Red Balloon

The New Coviewing at the Cooney Center

2012-01-26T22:22:00.004-05:00

Monday night Women in Children's Media and the Joan Ganz Cooney Center cosponsored an event at Sesame Workshop showcasing the center's newest study, "The New Coviewing: Designing for Learning through Joint Media Engagement." You can download a pdf of the study here--it's the center's first study published exclusively online; this not only saves trees but also allows for some cool interactive features impossible in paper. (Mac users should use Acrobat rather than Preview.)

Now last night I spent just over an hour writing what I thought was a really thorough review of the event and the report; that got deleted when I tried to post it, and I'm not able right now to rewrite the entire post. (Frustrated with google!) But the most important thing I can say is to read the actual report itself. The design guide will be an excellent resource for content creators of all stripes: it contains great, research-backed advice about how to design media that will maximize the opportunities parents have to interact with their children while using/viewing your product. Like I wrote at the very outset of this blog several years ago, smart parents will look for those opportunities anyhow, so it's savvy of producers to maximize that potential in our products.

One great example of this that I wanted to mention is the new Electric Company video game "Electric Racer." You can download this for free at the show's website. It's basically a phonics game couched stealthily in a racing game. That in and of itself is worthwhile for kids in its target 6-9 demo, but it goes further by involving parents as well. Kids man the arrow keys to steer the car while parents use the mouse to unscramble words and give their kids additional speed. It's a great example of media designed to foster collaboration and learning through "joint media engagement," or JME.

So to be brief, what are some pointers for maximizing JME? Check out the report for full discussions, but here are some bullet points:

* Make it kid-driven

* Provide multiple planes of engagement

* Ensure differentiation of roles; parents shouldn't be backseat driving the kids' task

* "Scaffold to scaffold," meaning you should make it easy to engage with immediately; parents shouldn't need a lot of prep

* Previous/Next -- build on prior experience and prepare for future experiences, within your own brand or elsewhere

* Co-creation -- like old Lego, give the kids the tools and let them build their world the way they want; allow parents the tools to collaborate but not dominate

* Fit -- make sure it fits well into daily routines, otherwise it won't get used

* Collaborate, don't compete; it's never good to pit parents against kids, at least not in educational media

Wish I had time to repeat some of the other great points. Perhaps the best lesson is for people to get in tune with what WICM is doing, either on their website or through their twitter feed (@wicmnyc), for future events and writing groups. They're a great resource and another joy of working in children's media in NYC.

NOTE: To the PBSKids.org IT team, "Electric Racer" isn't downloading (with Safari). Any thoughts?

Inside Sesame Street

2012-01-13T10:41:00.007-05:00

Happy new year! I've been writing on my other blog so I'm glad to have a reason to post here again, and a really good reason it is (and it's not even the upcoming BAM Kids Film Festival--though I wanted to mention that). Last night ASIFA-East and SVA hosted a panel called "Inside Sesame Street." The four panelists were Louis Mitchell, an Associate Design Director of Special Projects (more on that later); Margot Duffy, a producer of "Sesame Street English" (that too); Marcus Pauls, a producer of digital media; and Nikon Kwantu, a digital media and animation producer; it was organized and chaired by Justin Simonich.

Justin began with a quick history of the show, including a 2-3-minute television spot from 1969 announcing the show for the first time. Rowlf the dog is in charge of the whole thing, but it's Kermit who comes up with the title "Sesame Street," "because it's going to open up whole new worlds to these kids. You know, like 'Open Sesame.'" That was a gem that's apparently not online, so it was great to be able to see it.

Then we moved into a discussion of each panelist's position and recent projects. If there were any over-riding themes, the most prominent was what a wonderful opportunity it is to work for Sesame Workshop. Everyone was really enthused to be able to work with these classic characters, new media and formats, and the expectations of the brand. Louis Mitchell was particularly explanatory about how much of a dream come true it is to be working on the Street; during the day yesterday he was attending a shoot with Kevin Clash for a new Elmo project, and he talked about how fulfilling it is to be able to sit down on the most famous stoop in the world and work out production problems, or do things that naysayers claimed could never be done, like transport the Snuffy puppet for a photo shoot or introduce him into teen licensing and merchandise. That enthusiasm and optimism was probably the best part of the evening for me--I'm using its momentum to push me through all these video projects and finally get randyastle.com back up and running--and it's evident in this 2009 interview that Louis gave The Muppet Mindset, or in this photo (which we saw and is actually a full-body shot, taken after shipping the giant Muppet to his first L&M photo shoot).

A second theme was the protection/projection of the Sesame brand that I just mentioned. Louis does a lot of this as he vets everything from scripts to DVD covers. He does the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade balloons and floats, and talked about how one Super Grover pose was too heroic, when in fact "he's an idiot," so he redesigned it to look more bumbling. (The original character designers, in passing him the baton years ago, emphasized that each character was created to exemplify certain preschool character traits, and the most important thing--for characterizations and curriculum--is to ensure that the characters remain true to that purpose. Grover, then, may be bumbling but he's never down on himself, he's the eternal optimist. That's what Super Grover as well as Regular Grover teaches, which may be why he was my favorite as a kid.) But with the property in so many territories and existing in so many media--print, live, interactive, etc. etc.--the brand is more than just something that concerns individual artists; it's enshrined in the culture of Sesame Workshop, with lots of levels of review to ensure that the brand--and the responsibility in implies toward parents and kids--is maintained. As Louis said, "All the new media have to connect back to the show." One department with a lot of sway there is called ER&O--Education, Research, and Outreach--and it got a lot of both wry and appreciative shout outs during the evening.

This, of course, implies the third theme of the evening, that the bureaucracy at the Street has really increased over the years. Gone are the days of carte blanche commissions to freelance animators, for instance, and any project can expect a litany of notes all the way through postproduction and even broadcast--tweaks might still be made on something that's already aired. But notes on curriculum, story, music, and other components are no strangers to children's media, and Nick, Disney, and CN probably aren't any different.

Here are some other items:

* One major project for Digital Media is the next Xbox Kinect game. Just like television was an emerging medium in 1966, so are gaming consoles today, with over 50% of American households owning one. The motion sensors of the Kinect make it ideal for preschoolers who don't have the fine motor skills to operate other devices, and Marcus Pauls talked about how they were going back and using forty years' worth of archival footage and make what was always an interactive show truly interactive, with player/viewer involvement affecting what goes on on screen. Loretta and I tried to go to a publicity event for the launch of the "Once Upon a Monster" game a few months ago but we couldn't get from her school to the venue in the pouring rain in time, so I can't really say much else about it. Here's a little trailer, though.

It's a long-term partnership with Microsoft, though, and the new game(s) are in post now; Marcus said they recently finished a seventeen-day shoot for the original content for the game, which consists of eight episodes.

* Ebooks are also a growing medium. The classic The Monster at the End of This Book just launched for handheld devices, and lots others are underway. I had a chance conversation with an editor at Sesame publishing earlier this week and she said the same thing, that ebooks are growing but they're committed to maintain print publishing as well.

* Digital Media has forty in-house employees, but it's producer-driven so they still look for outside freelance talent. You get those jobs by networking, putting out your own stuff, etc.-all the traditional methods.

* I didn't realize this, but Abby's Flying Fairy School (animated by Speakeasy in New Jersey) is actually Sesame's first transmedia project. Each episode, as seen in the middle of every Sesame Street episode, is written so that it has five points where, online, kids can enter the story and interact with it. I'll definitely be checking that out. You can do that here--so much for the rest of my work day.

* Margot Duffy's been working on a project called "Sesame Street English," which is basically a Street-based curriculum for teaching English as a second language, for 3-12-year-olds. The client is in Japan, but this could work for other territories too. Aging it up for middle schoolers was a challenge, even with Japan's increased acceptance of bright animation for older kids and adults (the program is 100% animated, I forget if with Flash or html5, all done locally here in the NY area). In fact, that leads me to a point Nikon Kwantu wanted to make, which is that

* Sesame Street is really a bastion of the New York animation (and puppetry) community. It's been here over forty years and it's kept people working. Economically, it's a major part of the filmmaking community here.

* Cookie Monster is #1 in the teen market. Mr. Snuffleupagus is #2. Who is #3?

* One thing impeding transmedia is its cost, especially since the Street's a union show. There's a push-pull effect between legacy (the term for maintaining the brand and the feeling of the show from the past 41 years) and moving into transmedia and new platforms.

* Everyone at Sesame Workshop wants to hire people with interactive experience. If you want to work with them know Flash, html5, ebooks, interactivity, etc. Stay up to date.

* Louis Mitchell has an online school for artists and creatives.

* Operating Muppets is hard. Kevin Clash and others travel to each of the 21 international coproductions (or those puppeteers come to Astoria) to train the puppeteers in the "Muppet Way." Carrol Spinney is particularly amazing: the Japanese 'Big Bird' has fainted from heat exhaustion inside his suit, and the Brazilian performer has kept a chiropractor on set because the costume is so demanding, but, as Margot pointed out, Spinney has conducted entire symphonies in character, keeping his arm up in the head the entire time. Big Bird is 8' 2", I believe they said, and that's a lot of bird. And his Oscar is pretty amazing too, of course.

* Just because you work for the Street doesn't mean to get to visit the Street. You can work there for years and never set foot on the set at Kaufman Astoria. That makes sense, but my own dream, I think, would be to stand in front of Hooper's Store and reach out and touch Oscar's trash can. Some day...

I've talked to other children's television producers who have a decidedly low opinion of Sesame Street, citing its snarkiness and its obsession with celebrity cameos, parodies of grown-up films, and asides to adult viewers--none of which enrich the experience for the intended viewers, kids. But to hear the commitment, dedication, and technical and artistic standards of each of the panelists--and all of their coworkers--shows me that Sesame Street is no dinosaur. It's been on the air this long for a reason, and it's still an excellent show with exacting standards and some of the best artists in television. My Isabelle, who's almost 2 1/2, has now largely stopped watching In the Night Garden. Instead we've added Blue's Clues to her repertoire, but her favorite program is clearly "Mumo," her name for Elmo and, by extension, the whole show. There's a reason it's her favorite: the craftsmanship shows on the air, and that's what the entire organization of Sesame Workshop exists for. Thanks to Justin Simonich, ASIFA, and the panelists for an enlightening and encouraging evening.

Best Animated Films of 2011

2011-12-30T08:06:00.003-05:00

I just published a post over at Filmmaker Magazine about the best animated films of the year, both for kids and adults. Check it out.

FETCH! with Ruff Ruffman App

2011-12-14T21:33:00.004-05:00

While we're on the subject of apps, here's one that I totally missed a month ago when it was released. It's FETCH! Lunch Rush, and here's the Nov. 14 press release:

PBS KIDS Launches Its First Educational Augmented Reality App

Furthering PBS’s leadership in using new technologies to support learning, FETCH! Lunch Rush App employs augmented reality to teach kids addition and subtraction

ARLINGTON, VA, Nov. 14, 2011 – PBS KIDS today announced its first augmented reality app for iPhone and iPod touch, FETCH! Lunch Rush, which is now available on the App Store. Available for free, the app uses the camera on iPhone or iPod touch to overlay computer-generated graphics on top of the physical, real-world environment. Extending PBS’s leadership in using augmented reality as an educational tool, FETCH! Lunch Rush opens a new world of learning by teaching kids ages six to eight math skills, like addition and subtraction, while blending the virtual and real world into a truly engaging experience.

“Augmented reality is becoming a popular marketing tool and a compelling feature for gamers, but no one has fully explored what this could mean for educating children,” said Jason Seiken, Senior Vice President, Interactive, Product Development and Innovation, PBS. “We were among the first to offer educational augmented reality kids content when we launched the DINOSAUR TRAIN Hatching Party online game last year, in which a player’s real world intersects with a virtual environment online to help hatch a dinosaur egg. We’re excited to expand our exploration of this space by launching our first augmented reality mobile app and continue PBS KIDS’s leadership in using new technologies to further learning.”

“The FETCH! Lunch Rush App is designed as a 3-D game, which helps kids visualize the math problems they are trying to solve,” added Lesli Rotenberg, Senior Vice President, Children’s Media, PBS. “At PBS KIDS our goal is to use media to nurture kids’ natural curiosity and inspire them to explore the world around them; we can’t wait to see what this new app will mean for furthering that exploration.”

The Fetch! Lunch Rush App was produced by PBS member station WGBH and is based on the PBS KIDS GO!series FETCH! With Ruff Ruffman, also produced by WGBH. In this multiplayer app, Ruff Ruffman has to collect the lunch order for his studio crew. The challenge is keeping track of how many pieces of sushi everyone wants using augmented reality “markers” (printable hand-outs) that prompt activity within the app. The app uses 3-D imagery to reinforce the early algebraic concepts, helping kids to make the connection between real objects and corresponding numeric symbols.

The FETCH! Lunch Rush App is available for free from the App Store on iPhone or iPod touch or at www.itunes.com/appstore.

Developed in partnership with the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and powered by a Ready To Learn grant from the U.S. Department of Education, Fetch! Lunch Rush is part of a new suite of games available on the newly launched PBS KIDS Lab website (PBSKIDS.org/lab). Combined with online and interactive whiteboard games, this new app helps build a learning experience for kids that takes place across platforms, all with the goal of accelerating learning. In addition to FETCH!, six suites based on hit PBS KIDS series are available on the PBS KIDS Lab: THE CAT IN THE HAT KNOWS A LOT ABOUT THAT!, CURIOUS GEORGE,SID THE SCIENCE KID, FIZZY’S LUNCH LAB, SUPER WHY!. and DINOSAUR TRAIN.

To date, PBS KIDS mobile apps have been downloaded more than 1.4 million times. With a transmedia approach, PBS KIDS is increasingly serving children wherever they live, learn, and play – through mobile devices, as well as on TV, online, in the classroom, and through a new line of educational toys.

New Interactive Dinosaurus ExploreUs Book

2011-12-13T23:08:00.004-05:00

Here's an informal announcement from Darren Lutz of Believe Animation about the latest with Dinosaurus ExploreUs. I worked on the original television bible and, if I remember right, pilot episode script. With money tight for television pilots Believe has moved to introduce Dinos in new interactive spaces, which is pretty great. I haven't seen it but it sounds like a nice integration of print and interactive media.

Exciting news from the work front. We just finished a book for one of my animated children's shows called DinosaurUs ExploreUs and it is being released this friday. yeh! It's called Rocks In My Socks and it was authored by my sister and I. It's an adorable story about the process of acceptance. What makes it really stand out from the pack though, is that it has Augmented Reality (old name; virtual reality) games and activities in it. You need an iPad, iPhone or iPod touch 4th gen. to use the AR. Its like nothing you have ever seen before. It will make an AWESOME christmas present for the lil' ones :-) It will be available on Amazon and the Dino website this Friday. The FREE App is in review by Apple now and should be ready be weeks end also.

The Children's App Manifesto

2011-12-11T21:44:00.002-05:00

So I just got passed along this new manifesto for quality and responsibility in the creation of children's apps. I know quite a few people whose names appear in the signatures, and there's nothing in the manifesto that they weren't already doing; be sure to read the "Our Thinking" page. Where it might be most helpful for producers is to get in touch with other like-minded professionals. On that note, the Facebook Children and Media Professionals group is great for that to. Happy producing!

Sesame Street Launches in Afghanistan

2011-12-02T13:35:00.003-05:00

There are already local versions across the globe, but the newest, that premiered yesterday, is significant for obvious reasons (just think of the fact Abby and Zoey are learning along with Elmo and Telly, for one example). Here's the AFP article (no byline):

US children's television favourite Sesame Street came toAfghanistan this week with the launch of a new series featuring familiar characters like Elmo and Big Bird.

"Baghch-e-Simsim" made its debut on a local TV channel Thursday and aims to improve education for children in the desperately poor, warring country.

It features Sesame Street's typical mix of Jim Henson's Muppets and short educational films and its initial run is for 26 half-hour episodes.

But some of the most familiar characters from the original show had to be cut from the Afghan version for cultural reasons, including the trash-loving Oscar the Grouch and The Count, a vampire maths whizz.

"Oscar the Grouch I had to minimise because his passion for trash did not translate well culturally here," the show's Afghan-American producer, Tania Farzana, told AFP.

As for The Count, she added that his fangs and fondness for bats would have proved problematic in a conservative, Islamic society like Afghanistan.

Producers also had to scrap a scene they tested in which shock-headed duo Bert and Ernie barked at each other.

"I can have them do lion sounds, rooster sounds but doing a dog is not acceptable," Farzana said.

"One of the worst words you can call someone in Afghan culture is a dog so to have kids barking like one is going beyond the line of what's right."

Farzana added that, unlike the US version of Sesame Street, dancing was not encouraged on the Afghan version.

Such activity in front of the opposite sex is seen as overtly sexual in Afghanistan, so Afghan children watching the show are encouraged to exercise to music instead of dancing.

"That way I don't get reprimanded by the parents because it's exercise and who can disagree with that?" Farzana said.

It is not the first time that the Sesame Street format has been exported.

A version of the show came to neighbouring Pakistan earlier this year, funded by the US government's international aid agency USAID, while co-productions have also screened in Bangladesh, Egypt, Mexico and Russia.

The latest version is a joint production by Sesame Workshop, the non-profit organisation behind Sesame Street, and Afghan television station Tolo.

"Teachers here in Afghanistan will discover that Sesame Street can help children start school well prepared," said the US ambassador to Kabul, Ryan Crocker. "Perhaps most importantly, it shows children the world around them."

Afghanistan's deputy education minister Mohammad Siddiq Patman said he believed the programme would "depict traditions, culture and other aspects of Afghan rural and urban life" and would be "profoundly useful" for children.

And here's a really short video from the Guardian:

New Beauty and the Beast app

2011-11-29T15:42:00.006-05:00

Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving. We were able to go down to Virginia Beach to see my brother's family, play with cousins, work on riding a bike without dozens of cars all around, and visit Jamestown and Colonial Williamsburg on Black Friday. It wasn't Plymouth, but it was great to see the site of America's oldest English settlement and the recently excavated site of their first church, where Pocahontas was married. (At least I think the covered hole in the ground was the site referenced in the article, which came out a day or two after we visited.) Loretta's just suddenly gotten into the American Girl books, so it was nice to have two in hours in Williamsburg so that she can identify with the place when she reads the Felicity books, which she started this morning on the subway. It was a really unexpected "text-to-self" connection, as they say at her school.

Recently I've really been trying to get up to speed on all the kids' literary/narrative apps out there, like the Mo Willems app I wrote about the other week. A new one came out on 11/11 that looks really promising, Disney's Beauty and the Beat Storybook Deluxe:

Here's the description as posted in the app store:

Experience a tale as old as time in this fully interactive Storybook Deluxe app. Complete with games, movie clips, puzzles, coloring pages, and sing-along songs from the film, you’ll find a surprise on every page. Hear the story read aloud, record your own narration, or explore at your own pace.

In this unforgettable story of love and adventure, a young woman named Belle finds herself in a castle with talking furniture, an enchanted rose, and a grumpy beast. Despite an awkward beginning, Belle and the Beast gradually become friends, and Belle learns not to judge a book by its cover. A beloved Disney favorite retold in a magical new format the whole family can enjoy!

Features:
* Interactive Storybook Deluxe app features your favorite characters from Disney's award-winning Beauty and the Beast.
* Two reading modes allow you to follow along as the story is read aloud, or explore at your own pace.
* Engage in exciting activities based on scenes from Beauty and the Beast—help Belle make her way to the Beast's castle in the hedge maze, or go on a hunt for hidden roses.
* Puzzles and coloring pages for all ages!
* Record your voice reading the story and hear it played back as narration.
* Jump to your favorite page with the Visual Page Index.

I haven't been able to try it out yet--I guess I need to put an iPhone or Pad on my Christmas list--but it shows the promise of the expanding field of e-publishing. The combination of gaming and print is interesting, expanding the story world of the experience in ways that can engage new readers or lengthen the experience for established fans, and the games and coloring pages look really fun. But I'm a little more interested in the ways the app lets kids interact with the text itself. Essentially, different reading levels and reading out loud yourself remind me exactly of reading a print book, but it is a little different. Hearing your voice back, for instance, is something a book can't do, and I'd love to hear more about users' experiences--or professional research--about how this influences kids and the act of "reading" a text.

If you watch this demo video, however, you'll be reminded that the Disney Beauty and the Beast that's being adapted here to app form is not a book but a film. At first I was hesitant about the use of the full-motion video, but it looks like it actually works with the printed text quite well; the music, visuals, and Linda Woolverton's narrative innovations are obviously the strength of the film version, after all, so it wouldn't make sense to ignore those in bringing the film to the iPad (plus the performances by all the actors). What you're left with is a nice mix of video, print, and gaming, which should be a great treat for any Disney Princess fan. I hope that with future adaptations the mix becomes more and more fluid, but how to do that will be the state of the art of narrative app design.

Off to Bed! with Dada Company

2011-11-17T23:23:00.005-05:00

So even though I haven't yet been able to get an iPhone or iPad, I'm trying to get more informed about the children's media, particularly narrative media, that's appearing on their screens. One app that I've recently come across is the interactive picture book Off to bed! by Mariam Ben-Arab and David Yerga. It's produced by the Spain-based Dada Company and is now available in English as well as Spanish. Here's a video trailer:

And here's a little promotional film about the company in general, including their title on transportation. This is in Spanish and I wish the music were mixed a little lower because it's hard for me to follow what they're saying when Zooey Deschanel is so much easier for me to understand, but even if you don't speak the language there are some good shots of their art and design work.

It looks like companies like this are starting to get their head increasingly around what interactive storytelling is and how it differs from traditional A-Z narratives. But what are these hybrid forms? Is this really a goodnight storybook or should we call it something else? Beyond semantics, is this really helpful in getting kids down for bed? I tried a Pajanimals clip tonight and it initially quieted my two-year-old down, but when it ended and we closed the laptop she broke down, so I'm not sure how helpful it was.

But those are the kinds of questions creators and parents will have to ask now, because there's obviously no going back to the pre-digital days, even for late adapters like me. (I don't want to be a late adapter! I'm just semi-employed!) So I'm excited by the enthusiasm and commitment on Dada's website and the respect they show both their young audience and their new tools. Whenever a new medium's been introduced theorists and practitioners have had to labor over finding its inherent comparative advantages vis-a-vis old media, and I think titles like Off to bed! will help move us in that direction--and entertain kids along the way. I can definitely see Izzy--and even Loretta--playing with those lights, swings, and the kissing moon for quite some time. Bien hecho y buena suerte con sus proyectos en el futuro!

A Curious George Thanksgiving

2011-11-12T14:02:00.001-05:00

It's been about three years since I've written about the PBS/WGBH show Curious George, which was then starting its third season, and the show is still going strong and worth revisiting. Obviously the source property has been a favorite for over half a century, but the television version adapts and builds on that in a style all its own. And it's still proving popular: the show won the Outstanding Children's Animated Program Emmy last year, it's the top-ranked preschool show in the U.S., and it's been renewed through its ninth season--which is three seasons away! Building upon that popularity, PBS is airing a new collection of George films this Thanksgiving in what it hopes will become an annual holiday tradition.

In a line-up called the Curious George Holiday Spectacular, PBS will be airing the network/public television premiere of the theatrical Curious George film from 2006, followed immediately by Curious George 2: Follow That Monkey, which had aired in '09, and then, getting in the all-out holiday spirit, Curious George: A Very Monkey Christmas (also '09), a kind of mix between O. Henry, Charles Dickens, and of course Hans and Margret Rey. My 7-year-old had the chance to see the original theatrical film at an event hosted by PBS a few days ago, and she was absolutely enchanted. For the subsequent thirty minutes I heard every last plot point from beginning to end, accompanied with a tremendous amount of girlish giggling--in other words she loved it.

The films will air back to back Wednesday the 23rd and then repeat frequently throughout Thanksgiving weekend, when there's plenty of time to curate your own monkey movie marathon.

I got a chance to talk with the executive producer Dorothea Gillim (also the creator of another family favorite, WordGirl) and learned some more about how the books were adapted (a strict "no purple" rule to match the palette of the books, and the fact Margret Rey wrote in her will that George would never be allowed to talk) and what's in store for the property. Besides being slated to pass 200 regular episodes in the next few years, there's more long-form content on the way. Future television films include other seasonal productions--initially for spring and Halloween--that will roll out at least annually. These film ventures could really represent the direction George is going in his third iteration, after books and the television show, in the next decade.

Here's a spot on the Thanksgiving lineup:

And here's the trailer for the original feature film (lower resolution):

Don't Let the Pigeon Run This App

2011-11-01T11:49:00.009-04:00

Hope everyone had a great Halloween weekend. Ours was full of candy, pumpkin carving (Harry Potter again...), some Wallace and Gromit were-rabbitting, a little partying, and, for the first time, the Halloween costume parade by Ft. Tryon Park in Washington Heights. Izzy bit into her glow stick and immediately threw up, but she recovered almost immediately and remained the cutest little chicken in the crowd (as profiled on the Today show!).

Before the holiday, however, I had the chance to learn about a cool new app from Hyperion Books and Mo Willems (seen here): Don't Let the Pigeon Run This App. (For everything the Pigeon can't do, evidently sitting on heads is allowed.)

I'm sure that nearly all parents will be familiar with Mo's work in print--he's the author of the Pigeon picture books (starting with Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus in 2003), the Elephant and Piggie easy readers, the Cat the Cat books, and numerous other stand-alone books. Recently Loretta took a break from her Harry Potter craze to really get into Naked Mole Rat Gets Dressed, which we had gotten for Isabelle. There's no way a naked mole rat isn't funny, and leave it up to Mo to be the first to exploit that in a book for kids. I first saw his work when Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus was being passed around the Strand Bookstore office--which is run by adults--when I was there in 2003. Through all this he's earned my everlasting envy by doing everything I want to do better than I ever could: he's won six Emmys while working on Sesame Street, created his own kids' shows, and racked up the awards with his books: three Caldecotts, two Theodor Seuss Geisel Medals, and probably others I'm losing track of. And he's pushing boundaries as well: on October 23 Jonathan Hunt wrote a column at School Library Journal arguing that the Elephant and Piggie book I Broke My Trunk should be considered for (and win) the Newbery Medal, an award given purely on the merit of the text and hence not traditionally given to picture books; Hunt's somewhat controversial argument, illustrated through a really thorough analysis, is that Mo has blown right past all other easy readers and expanded the state of the art of the storybook or illustrated book in what most publishers and librarians would consider just a picture book. Whether that argument will persuade the ALA remains to be seen, but last month Mo published a new Elephant and Piggie book (the excellent Happy Pig Day) and installed an large-scale sculpture at the Eric Carle Museum in Amherst; and another Pigeon book, The Duckling Gets a Cookie, will be coming early next year. Talk about polymathic. Maybe he should let the Pigeon do some of this stuff!

And now there's an app. At the event last week Mo said he'd long resisted doing something interactive. After his move from television to literature this reasoning makes sense: he's astute enough to know that each property needs to fully exploit the capabilities of its medium, and he didn't want to create any type of app that didn't fully capitalize on the interactive capability of iPads and handheld devices. He didn't want it to keep going if you set it down and left the room. (That would be a TV show on a tablet.) So when the inspiration came about how to create the right kind of app in March he and the folks at Hyperion jumped right in, working on it over the summer and launching last week. And it is a pretty great piece of software; Apple noticed and named it "App of the Week" last week. At $7 it's definitely on the pricey side, but that reflects the work that went into it and the variety of activities it presents youngsters.

This is the most basic: shake the Pigeon. Mo made sure that you could shake the Pigeon--causing him to freak out as seen here--indefinitely. Tickling works too. Beyond small creative corners like this, the app breaks down into two basic categories: drawing the Pigeon and telling stories with him. The first is fairly self-explanatory, with the tutorials introduced by Mo himself. This is enough to keep budding artists busy for some time, but it's with the storytelling where things really come to life. The Disney Interactive Publishing people described this as their first author-driven app, and Mo's drive for true interactivity (much like the original books themselves) means kids are intimately involved with shaping the narratives: the title page even credits it as an app "By Mo Willems and YOU." (So kids can "infringe on my copyright in interesting ways," Mo said.)

There are three levels of interactivity here for different age ranges: Egg, which lets the youngest kids change a few nouns to create new stories; Chick, where slightly older kids can create stories through multiple-choice options; and Big Pigeon, where audio cues tell kids to supply various words, Mad Libs-style, that are then plugged into the resulting story. With all the variables built into the app--let alone the creativity of the kids using it--there are over 100,000 stories in there. (One youngster last week suggested Don't Let the Pigeon Poop on the People, and Mo promised to read it if the boy wrote it.) So there are quite a few train rides built into this thing--although given its aural interface it might be better built for quieter car rides than the straphanger kids here in the city.

Mo's influence is all over this--in a nice Freudian touch he even voiced the Pigeon himself--and I really hope it indicates the direction future narrative-based apps will be going. Thankfully, the Disney/Hyperion folks indicate that it is. After this maiden voyage--the first collaboration between the teams at Hyperion, a book-only imprint of Disney, and Disney Interactive Publishing, the app people--they have several other properties lined up and are even interested in new authors angling to write in this new space. And that bodes well for the state of art of the app; we'll see what suggestions the Newbery committee is dealing with ten years from now.

As for now, there's one cool app out there starring one surly but lovable pigeon. Check out this video and more Willems-related stuff at pigeonpresents.com.

Why we like Harry Potter

2011-10-27T23:14:00.008-04:00

Astute readers will notice that my posts here have been steadily declining for quite some time. This is mostly because other interests have taken my time and attention elsewhere, and those other activities remain incredibly, well, active, right now. I won't go into them all, which would be boring even for me, but I will say that there's been a lot of things I've wanted to write about here that have fallen to the side during all my craziness and disorganization. (And I'm oh so sorry to those publicists and musicians who I haven't followed through with yet!! It's still coming!) I'm writing for my own film/transmedia blog and have now started posting for Filmmaker magazine, plus I'm also revising my own website--randyastle.com--with the intention to migrate a lot of my blogging there. My writing docket's pretty full.

So what to do here, on my oldest and truest little blog? Long term I don't know, but for the next little while I'm going to try shaking it up and seeing what kind of effect that can have on my own writing and consistency. In a nutshell, I'm going to try treating Red Balloon more casually, more autobiographically, and more like any other daddy blog out there--although I'll certainly retain my bias toward media. Loretta and Isabelle are seven and two now, and their adventures through the digital world are well worth chronicling.

A couple weeks ago I was cleaning out some computer and camera stuff from our storage closet and ran across a roll of 35mm film. "Look, Loretta," I said, "this is what people used to take pictures on."

"Why didn't they just use a camera?"

Oh, my dear sweet digital native. Last night she said Izzy sounded like a "record on repeat" and I realized she'll never see or hear a broken record in her life. A hair turned gray but I got a bit more insight into her seven-year-old worldview.

In monitoring all this familial activity, I won't lose my perspective as an active participant in the children's entertainment industry. I'll try to increase my reviews--helpful for both creators and users--and continue speaking about industry information, news, etc. -- just all from the perspective of a father who's both a creator and consumer in this biz.

So I'm going to try to upload a rather large video file of Loretta talking about her favorite books. She accompanied me on a shoot for a nonprofit organization, and while we had a little pause for that I had Loretta take a seat in front of the camera and asking her about books was just the first thing that popped into my head. But I think it turned into an insightful little interview.

Sorry about the squeeze and grain on the image. I shot it HD but am still figuring out all the compression codecs, etc.

So for the record, we've let her read the first two Harry Potter books but we're taking a several-month break before #3. Call us conservative, but I also think that will help draw the experience out longer and help her as the actual reading level pushes upward toward The Deathly Hallows.

Here are some of her favorites, then:

and

The Anderson School, where Loretta goes, doesn't technically celebrate Halloween, not during the school day anyway (tonight they're watching Wallace and Gromit and the Curse of the Wererabbit as an evening event). Next Monday is Storybook Character Day, not Halloween, so every kid's costume has to come out of a storybook somewhere. Loretta's is Annie's kimono here from Dragon of the Red Dawn. And if you're really interested in seeing it in action, here she is on the Today show this last Tuesday. A film crew caught us near the end of the day at Boo at the Bronx Zoo a couple weeks ago. So Loretta, little Isabelle (a chicken holding Cinderella's hand), and some friends are in the video at 2:41.

It was just a moment of screen time but it made Izzy's day. Happy Halloween!

Furry Puppet Studio

2011-09-08T12:33:00.005-04:00

So we missed the Elmo doc but hit the Jim Henson exhibit and both girls really liked it; there were enough puppets and videos for them to look at and enough labels and conceptual art to supplement it for the adults. We had to drag the girls away from a documentary on Henson's life and, later, the Muppet-full gift shop.

After that we survived the hurricane by leaving town for a week to see Niagara Falls, some Mormon Church history sites east of Rochester, and some friends in Vermont, with surprisingly good roads given the flooding. The Hudson and East Rivers are both brown with flooding run off, and I stopped by the Central Park lake this morning (after dropping Loretta off at her first day of second grade!) to see it's risen about a foot (it's been raining this week too), but there's virtually no damage in the city and the kids I've talked to actually found Irene more amusing than anything else, which is a nice contrast to how it could have gone.

So let's get back to puppets. While all of that was going on I got an email from Zack Buchman, the founder of Furry Puppet Studio in Brooklyn. The studio's been around a while but they just got a new website, which looks really cool in both Flash and html versions. One thing I love about New York is the plenitude of puppet-makers here; I'm no expert but I think this may well be the puppet-making capital of the world. And Furry Puppet's work, like this example, looks great--anyone in need of some design or construction would do well to check them out!

Muppets Galore

2011-08-23T12:06:00.004-04:00

Just a couple of notes about things going on around New York related to Muppets. The Museum of the Moving Image in Astoria is hosting the Jim Henson's Fantastic World exhibit until next January. As explained on the museum's website, the exhibit contains Muppets and material covering everything from his earliest show Sam and Friends through all the films--Muppet movies as well as Dark Crystal--and the well-known television shows: The Muppet Show, Fraggle Rock, and of course Sesame Street, which is filmed next door to the museum. There are evidently demonstrations and lectures on the weekends, but for the next couple weeks Friday afternoons are free, so you can pick which you'd rather have. We'll probably go this Friday.

If you like looking behind the scenes of the Muppets, you can then catch a screening of the new documentary Being Elmo: A Puppeteer's Journey, which premiered at Sundance and is currently showing as part of DocuWeeks in New York and L.A. Directed by Constance Marks, who cut her teeth with the Maysles brothers, and featuring Kevin Clash (aka Elmo), this looks like one of the best looks behind the scenes of Sesame Street we've had; for me it seems more engaging than The World According to Sesame Street from 2005. Maybe it's apples and oranges because of the different emphases of the films, but giving intelligent analysis to the character and phenomenon of Elmo, and the creative personality behind him, seems like a really excellent idea.

Here's a really short teaser:

Here's an interview with the filmmakers:

and with the subject:

Legend of Korra trailer

2011-08-08T20:21:00.004-04:00

I neglected to share this a couple weeks ago during Comic-Con when it was released. But since Avatar is by far the most popular show in our home it's a pretty big deal around here. And this new series looks every bit as good as the old one, meaning the whole property won't suffer too much for its feature film misstep.

Doesn't that footbridge look excessively steep?

Party with the Laurie Berkner Band

2011-08-04T17:38:00.006-04:00

Last week the Laurie Berkner Band released a brand new DVD-CD combo called Party Day!

My own kids are out of town so I can only give you my grown-up take on it, but I was not disappointed. It has 12 songs, taking viewers along for a costume party, a birthday party, and a pajama party. A group of kids (giving great performances) accompany them along the way, joining in for consistently upbeat songs like "This Hat," "Where is the Cake?," and the mischievous "The Cookie Bakers of the Night."

The DVD is essentially a visual album, a smart move in today's market of online media and decreased DVD and, particularly, CD sales; the great animations on the DVD, coupled with the accompanying five-track CD, give parents a reason to purchase the actual discs, although I don't know if there are plans for an iTunes version down the road.

Like all of Berkner's work, the program seems geared toward the 3-6 crowd, although I expect it should work very well all the way through age eight or even nine; the music certainly does, and I know my seven-year-old, having given up on many other preschool properties, still enjoys this band's segments on Jack's Big Music Show. I'll have to give it a go with her when she gets back from her summer vacation, but my expectation is a lot of dancing and jumping around...

The band consists of Laurie Berkner, Adam Bernstein, Susie Lampert, and Bobby Golden. The DVD was directed by Bil White and produced by his partner Nathalie Renard at Space Cadet Industries. You can check out the album on the band's website.

Here's a YouTube preview of the title track "Party Day":

First graders on transmedia

2011-06-23T00:03:00.002-04:00

This is a great post on how first graders define transmedia buzzwords. Can't wait to try with my own first grader.

http://edtechinsight.blogspot.com/2011/06/first-graders-view-of-transmedia-world.html

Enjoy!

Readeez Volume Three

2011-05-05T22:05:00.006-04:00

Over the past couple years I've become a fan of Michael Rachap (seen here), father and creator of the musical literacy "Readeez" DVDs. Michael's a musician and father who's put his skills to great use creating these minimally animated--but beautifully designed--videos to teach phonics and sight words around a first grade level (expanding later into things like syntax and math). Now he's just finished volume three in the series, and though I haven't seen it yet I'm excited to do so and can guarantee it'll be full of catchy tunes, great lyrics, and strong curriculum. Check it out (and buy it!) on Readeez' website.

New Teletubbies & In the Night Garden apps

2011-03-26T07:01:00.003-04:00

Teletubbies is one of my favorite programs (or favourite programmes) out there for very young children. We used it to introduce Loretta to television when she was old enough, and now I still go back and look at old episodes on my own. I've also recently discovered the joys of In the Night Garden, the follow-up show by the same production company, Ragdoll, in the UK. I've been watching it on the Hub constantly over the past two months and can't think of a better program for the pre-preschool set, the 2-4 year-olds. So if parents have been using these shows to introduce their youngsters to TV (no younger than 2, I hope), then they can now use them to introduce them to their mobile devices. I haven't seen these apps yet, but I expect them to be pretty high quality, given the precedent.

Here's the story by Wendy Goldman Getzler:

Toddlers can now tap into BBC Worldwide’s In the Night Garden and Teletubbies brands on their iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad mobile devices.

Now available on the App Store, Teletubbies: My First App! features the characters from the TV series along with the original music and voices. Developed by EM Studios, the app features age-appropriate games and a dedicated Parent’s Zone that allows parents to customize the app specifically for their children, including length of play and access to other content.

Similarly, Hibernum Creations’ In the Night Garden app immerses fans into the TV series’ fantastical world. Players are able to dance and play counting games alongside characters like the Pontipines and Upsy Daisy.

Now I know that for some Ragdoll's shows can be a little controversial, and there are plenty of parents out there who don't like the Teletubbies. I think they're extremely well designed, but I'd love to hear any other opinions. What can be the merits of new Teletubbies and Night Garden apps?

Who Else Misses Ooh and Aah?

2011-03-04T13:42:00.005-05:00

So far so good for Disney Junior here in the U.S. But it's always sad when great host characters have to move on to that big television station in the sky, and the removal of the words "Playhouse Disney" has apparently made Ooh and Aah obsolete--and there aren't even any high quality videos of them online. These puppets were well written, well designed, and with great songs. Congrats on the long run to everyone involved with them.

What other host characters do you miss? Piper O'Possum was awesome. At least she's on Vimeo.

KidScreen 2011 Gets Underway

2011-02-15T22:01:00.002-05:00

Today was the first day of the expanded KidScreen Summit for 2011 and I already had several really great meetings. There were no regular sessions today, just day-long master classes for those who paid an additional fee, but that gave those of us who were meeting a chance at finding a seat. I'll start going to sessions tomorrow, of course, and will probably be tweeting with the hashtag #kidscreen11, which is how you can find out about all the goings-on. My twitter name's randyastle, btw.

A note on the show

2011-02-07T23:34:00.003-05:00

Just wanted to say Saturday's Milkshake show was everything that was expected--a little bottle of sunshine while it was raining outside. It helped cement my belief that the Just Kidding series is one of the great opportunities for New York families. This Saturday: music of the African diaspora from Heritage OP (Organic Percussion). Check it out.

Just Kidding at Symphony Space

2011-02-03T13:41:00.003-05:00

One of the coolest things about living in New York is all the wonderful venues and events going on for youth and families all the time. Symphony Space in the Upper West Side is one of the great continual fountains of such events. Thus far, because of my interest in children's film, I've only attended the New York International Children's Film Festival (this year's tickets just went on sale a few days ago). But this Saturday I'm excited to go to a performance by Milkshake as part of Symphony Space's Just Kidding live event series. I've been vaguely aware of the series for quite a while but have never found out much about it or, obviously, attended, so it's exciting to not only see Milkshake again but tap into one of the best children's concert series in the city.

Of course, calling it a "concert series" is a little myopic, as I found out yesterday when I got to chat with Darren Critz, the performing arts director who curates the entire series. (He's the one on the left, I believe.)

Darren's a really affable guy--and incredibly knowledgeable about children's music, as I found out. He has two main programming dicta that reflect this: the first is that any performers have to be quality musicians (or dancers or thespians), and on top of that quality live performers--they have to not only sound good on their CD but engage kids at the back of a 750-seat hall. His second rule of thumb is that he wants as broad a range of music as possible, from the country sounds of Farmer Jason to pop and rock acts like Milkshake, Recess Monkey, and the Sugar Free Allstars, to, this season, international and native music such as from folk artist Suni Paz, the Thunderbird Dancers (who present an array of Native American dances), and, all the way from Cuba for the first time since 2002, los Munequitos de Matanzas (who will be giving shows for both families and adults sans kids). This array is already striking, and Darren envisions getting more artists from outside the U.S.--as well as just from outside the city--coming in and presenting their work.

Since college I've striven to be eclectic in my musical choices, so I appreciate being able to expose my daughters to such a broad spectrum of live performers this early in their lives. Tweens, it seems, have started to solidify in the type of music they like, and they're hesitant to try anything new. And parents are even worse. So Darren sees the Just Kidding series as an opportunity to expand parents' musical worlds as well as kids'. Parents are more likely to take children to a concert of music that they wouldn't normally listen to just to expose the kids to it--and the upshot is that the parents are exposed as well. One of the best things about the entire series, in fact, is watching parents get into shows and rock out with their children.

That brings me to what I believe is one of the most important purposes of live events--be they music, dance, theater, galleries, picnics, or anything else--they allow for greater interaction between parent and child than more passive (socially constrained) experiences like watching a movie. I wrote about the value of interaction between parents and children in one of my first posts on this blog (it's point #4); suffice it to say here that the type of talent lined up for Just Kidding is exactly what you would want for this type of interaction. And groups like Milkshake are great, as we discovered with our infant last year, because they pack so much more into a performance than just the music. There's such a strong visual component, as Darren pointed out, that they can entertain very, very young children (as well as adults).

Here are some other really cool things I learned about Just Kidding:

* In addition to pushing international performers, future series (which run from October through April generally) will have a stronger component of theater and dance. I'm really pleased about that.

* If you miss a performance or don't live in the city, chances are it will have been recorded and you can catch it online at Symphony Space Live. Note, that's for grown-ups' performances as well as kids', and included discussions and presentations as well as performances.

* Also, there's a lesser known book series that brings literature into the mix. These presentations aren't as frequent as those with musicians, due to publishing dates, author availability, and general book tour issues, but they're definitely worth checking out. (These are generally for 7-11 year-old readers, btw--chapter books and easy novels rather than picture books.) The next one is with Laurie Halse Anderson on March 20, with Lincoln Peirce on April 10. Authors do various things, but they include readings, discussions of their works, and even writing workshops with the kids. There are eight to ten of these a year (and, again, there are adult authors as well).

So there's definitely a lot going on--congratulations to Darren and everyone at Symphony Space for keeping such an outstanding series going for roughly a decade now. As far as this Saturday goes, I'm excited to see Milkshake again; we often listen to their music during breakfast to get my seven-year-old moving in the mornings, and I'm excited that she's excited to see them in person now that she can sing along. That kind of reaction from the kids is what these live events are all about.

New Study on Children's Books and Bookstores

2011-01-29T14:26:00.002-05:00

A few days ago Publishers' Weekly had a good article about a new study on youth reading and book-purchasing habits. It's a very interesting short little read, with some expected information and some surprising findings, such as that teenagers rate reading books as their third favorite leisure activity and that over 80% of them don't read ebooks. Interesting.

BAMkids Festival in February

2011-01-14T21:45:00.003-05:00

Just a quick note that the schedule for the BAMkids Film Festival in Brooklyn is up and available. It's a great event--looks like an excellent line-up this year--that's happening the first weekend in February. Check it out and if you're at all able it's a great event with shows for kids of all ages.

And speaking of events in New York, check out my post on my other blog about the reopening of the Museum of the Moving Image in Queens; it's a great venue for kids and adults alike, and the new floor space and exhibits will just make it that much better.

Top 50 Kids' DVDs

2010-12-16T10:33:00.001-05:00

The folks at NYICFF and GKIDS.tv have put together a list of what they consider the best fifty DVDs for youngsters. I skimmed through it and saw some titles I definitely would include in such a list of my own and many others that I haven't yet seen or haven't even heard of. The international scope is impressive and it's a list well worth keeping on hand (with Netflix links conveniently provided).

Christmas with Milkshake

2010-12-03T11:24:00.003-05:00

I think I've got a few regular listeners out there, and you will know that although I don't frequently write about kids' music here I am an inveterate fan of Milkshake, one of the most sophisticated and fun bands in the industry. The past two weeks I've started using their newest album "Great Day" (which got them a Grammy nomination) to get my six-year-old out of bed in the mornings and actually eating her breakfast, instead of just staring glazed-over at the food in front of her. What surprised me, though, was that a couple days ago my 14-month-old was dancing on the floor to "Statue of Me," a trick she's repeated with other songs every day, including this morning.

Well, I coincidentally received their newsletter this week as well, with the announcement that, at the request of fans, they're working on a Christmas album for 2011. They couldn't get it all done for this season, but they have completed a single--and a video--called "Christmas in Baltimore." Check it out on their YouTube channel. I like the dirty Super-8 look of this; it really goes well with the quiet of the music and the peaceful sub/urban feel of the city we see in the footage. Maybe just a few more shots of the city would be nice, but the feel is still really nice. I was actually down in Baltimore two Christmas seasons ago--my then four-year-old saw Santa there on the harbor, rather than at Macy's here in New York--and it was fabulous, if cold. It's nice to see the city get its own carol.

The band also has some gigs in the northeast and radio appearances this month; check out all the news on their website and Facebook page.

Brinca Dada Dollhouses

2010-11-30T14:59:00.005-05:00

I don't often get to write about traditional toys here, but I've been meaning to mention Brinca Dada's modern dollhouses since I first saw a prototype probably over a year ago. I'm friends with the design principal Tim Boyle, a professional architect turning his skills to the world of toys, and in person this Emerson house is a really impressive sight. The kids I've seen interact with them love them, and my impression is that they've been getting fantastic reviews as well, like in this recent article on "Bauhaus meets dollhouse," which discusses a range of modernist dollhouse designers; I also enjoyed this interview with the CEO Douglas Rollins. If all the attention lately seems to have been on digital toys and gaming, it's nice to see such well-crafted design going into "low-tech" toys. Check out all that the house does, plus the furniture(!), at the company's website. And check out the more vertical structure and the muscle-flexing minimalist dolls who inhabit it.

The full-sized Emerson house comes at $329 and, though I'm not privy to any inside secrets, I suspect that a smaller, more economical model will be available soon. But at any rate the website inhabitots is giving away a free Brinca Dada Emerson house right now.

Facebook for Kids

2010-11-21T19:38:00.004-05:00

The youth research firm Smarty Pants recently released their list of kids' most beloved brands (i.e. a combination of brand awareness and brand loyalty), and though the Wii topped the list Kidscreen on Friday had an interesting little article about Facebook's amazing jump up the charts. Here's what Kidscreen's Wendy Goldman Getzler had to say (read the original here), and here's Smarty Pants' listing of top brands, which is incredibly interesting reading in and of itself, even without the Facebook connection. (Like, what does it mean that Walmart is #51?)

Facebook's age limitation isn't stopping US kids from naming the world's largest social network among one of their Most Beloved Brands this year.

According to an annual study by youth research firm Smarty Pants entitled Young Love, Facebook's brand-affinity ranking among kids ages six to 12 jumped 85 positions in the past year and is now a Top 100 brand among tweens nine to 12.

Facebook jumped from #181 to #126 this year among kids six to 12 and to #91 among tweens, making the social network's shift in ranking among the most significant increases of the 270-plus brands evaluated by more than 4,500 children.

Brands that facilitate a family connection seem to dominate the top spots on the Beloved Brands list, with Nintendo's Wii holding the number-one spot, followed closely by McDonald's, M&M'S, Disney Channel and Oreo. Apple's iPod Touch and iPad made 2010 debuts at #35 and #109, respectively.

FCC launches a new site for parents

2010-11-16T02:22:00.003-05:00

I just learned that the FCC has launched a new site called Parent's Place. The url is http://reboot.fcc.gov/parents/. It's billed on its homepage thus:

"From televisions to laptops to cell phones, electronic media have become our children's almost constant companions. Get information about how to improve your children's safety in today's complex media landscape, and what the FCC is doing to help."

It's still in beta but looks like it could be useful, with resources on parental controls for televisions, online safety, and even the media's relationship to childhood obesity. I'll put a link in my blogroll as well.

Republicans versus Sesame Street

2010-10-27T14:41:00.003-04:00

...And all of PBS, PBS KIDS, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, essential grants like the tremendous Ready to Learn grant that was announced over the past few weeks, and other government support of public media--and hence a large portion of children's media in this country. And those grants, btw, don't just go to organizations like CPB but to private production companies as well; Wildbrain just received a joint five-year grant with Chicago's WTTW, for instance. (Read here for more on all the amazing projects the grant will be funding in the upcoming years.)

Public broadcasting has always been controversial in America; Sesame Street had political opponents from the right since its very inception, when public broadcasting emerged as one of the great achievements of President Johnson's Great Society. And conservatives have essentially kept up the drumbeat against it, even while raising their children on Sesame Street and Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood. And now in the wake of Juan Williams' well-earned dismissal from NPR for inflammatory comments against Muslims the Fox News contingent of Republicanism is at it again, calling for complete defunding of programs like NPR and CPB, claiming them to be elitist and therefore a waste of tax-payer money. (Is Sesame Street really elitist? because it's elitist to aspire to basic literacy? Then so is every well-meaning privately-funded children's show, unless you want everything to turn out like SpongeBob Squarepants. I guess in their book that show is populist.)

This is normally a politics-free blog, but a lot's at stake next Tuesday--and this doesn't have to be a left-right issue anyway. Still, public broadcasting isn't at the top of the list of public awareness, and it's probably not in real danger of dissolution, but the audacity of the Fox commentators and the supposition that the marketplace will provide for media--children's or adult--that is in the best interest of society rile me. There would be no children's media industry today in this or any other country without public funding; and it's continuation is essential to ensure a check on private profiteering with our children. (I really think PBS helps keep the private stations honest, away from being 24-7 toy and junk food commercials.)

So let's rally to restore a little sanity and let the country know that, for conservatives and liberals both, removing publicly funded television from the air is no more viable an option than, say, privatizing the FCC. And keeping public funding going will neither impose elitism on poor American viewers or drive out of business private companies like Disney and Viacom--or even the little guys like Wildbrain (who just might get a grant!). Don't let Fox News become the voice that defines American media, especially for our children. And please check out Timothy Karr's Huffington Post article on the same topic.

Oh, and also watch the Grouches' opinion:

I Love My Hair

2010-10-19T11:40:00.002-04:00

I just caught up with this Sesame Street video written by Joey Mazzarino that's apparently already gone viral. Check out this ABC story about it. It's great to see such small simple videos having such a tremendous impact, and that's one of the things that Sesame Street does best.

Scott Traylor on Virtual Worlds & Education and Media

2010-10-16T22:34:00.003-04:00

I only recently became aware of 360KID, an interactive product development firm that also features a great blog about all things children's media, especially online, gaming, and other interactive media. After I added the blog to my blogroll on the right here the CEO Scott Traylor very graciously contacted me and let me know about two presentations he recently gave. I've been focused for quite a while on children's literature and traditional media--i.e. television--and it's just within the past five or six months that I've started trying to get equally up to speed on interactive media. So these presentations, though brief, were fantastic for me and I wanted to pass them along.

The first was given at Engage Expo earlier this year. It's called "Virtual Worlds for Kids" and is full of some great statistics about what online worlds kids are joining, the advertising and merchandise tie-ins that get them there, the age demographics, etc. Some surprising stuff for me.

This second one is from the EdNET Conference held in Boston last month. Scott is speaking to educators about his perspective as both an educator and consumer product developer: his ninety-second Digital Data Smack Down, starting around 3:40, is worth repeat viewing for educators, commercial producers, and parents alike. Check it out!

How to Train Your Dragon news

2010-10-14T01:04:00.003-04:00

The other day DreamWorks announced that they'd be making a sequel to How to Train Your Dragon. Now today they've followed that with the announcement of a television series set to premiere in 2012; if I remember right the film will come out that summer as well. Read KidScreen's brief article about the new show. MTV wrote about both announcements.

Dora the Explorer lawsuit

2010-10-08T14:06:00.002-04:00

This is kind of interesting. I suppose it's a blessing we don't see more of this kind of thing in children's media, but heaven knows there's a lot of money floating around.

http://tv.yahoo.com/blog/dora-the-explorer-lawsuit-alleges-star-was-cheated-out-of-millions--1622

Countdown to the Hub

2010-10-07T13:52:00.006-04:00

After over a year of buzzing it's finally upon us: The Hub will launch this Sunday, 10/10/10, and it's time to take a little look at what the initial offering will be. The website is already up, of course, so you can check it out at http://www.hubworld.com. I'm just looking at the line-up there, rather than in any industry or trade journals (although Wikipedia has a long potential list), and it looks like the expected Hasbro content but with a good mix of other things, both from the back catalog (HIT's rolling back out Fraggle Rock, for instance) and new productions. So this is what we have:

A revamped version of one of my favorite shows as a kid, Pound Puppies. I used to love to watch this and to play with my own Pound Puppies even more. The licensing and merchandising should be gangbusters; I know it was, more than any other show except maybe G.I. Joe, at my house in the 80s.

Which brings us to G.I. Joe Renegades. What connection it has to the feature film I don't know, for better or worse, and it looks like it's been recast with the Joes being outlaws fighting to prove their innocence by facing off against a large corporate Cobra. Maybe it's the post-Enron or Halliburton version? An interesting twist--will it supply sufficient toys and coolness to hook the modern boy's 6-12 demo?

And speaking of retooling old 80's toons after a big screen version, there's Transformers Prime. I think it's very possible that the first Transformers film rivals The Last Airbender for Worst Film Ever Made, so in this case I'm hoping the producers aren't sucked in by all that Michael Bay nonsense and follow the lead of Avatar's creators Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko and create a cool new series without any relation to the feature film. (For news on that new Avatar show go here.) Transformers was equally cool at my house in the 80s as G.I. Joe--I spent my school hours designing new Transformers, my recesses pretending to be Transformers, and my afternoons watching or playing with my Transformers. There's so much coolness here--I'm really crossing my fingers for this one.

Other remakes include My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, and Strawberry Shortcake's Berry Bitty Adventures; expect to see others soon, I suspect.

Then there are some other cool shows; I'm most excited about the documentary-based Meerkat Manor--I think it's always fantastic when kids watch nature documentaries, like when I took my daughter to see the original Meerkat Manor feature film a couple years ago as part of the Tribeca Film Festival. As you can read in my blog about it, it was a little scary in parts for her at that age but overall was excellent, and I loved it (you have to be amenable to giving animals names and attributing human emotions to them). This is an example of Discovery Kids' influence on The Hub (well, I think it was actually on Animal Planet, but it comes from the same gene pool, I think), and since that's one of my favorite kids' TV stations (perhaps I'll get to write it an epitaph before it goes) I hope there's a lot more where this came from.

There's also The Twisted Whiskers Show, Dennis and Gnasher, a game show called, appropriately, Family Game Night, another called Pictureka! (with hidden pictures), the anime action show Deltora Quest, Dan Vs., and Cosmic Quantum Ray, a sci-fi action comedy perhaps in the mold of something like TMNT. Overall a great line-up, one that lays to rest fears that the Hub would just be the Hasbro Network.

It will give those of us interested in kids' TV (including kids) a lot of new material to watch. The Hub website also has a channel locator to help you find it on your own television. It looks like the more mature material, including reruns of shows like Family Ties and Happy Days, should make this a good nostalgic family channel. I haven't found any mainstream press reviews as yet, just the trade press stuff on the business developments that I'll forego re-posting here, but hopefully the station's invention will lead to a bit more critical scrutiny of kids' TV. We're making it through the recession and broadcasters are becoming a bit more daring with new content, I think, and Hasbro's and Discovery Kids' commitment to television as a delivery medium shows a lot of faith that it will remain viable for a long time to come, even in a 24-7 on-demand liquid media environment. Children's media will continue to evolve online, but this is a huge development for it on the television, and as a parent I hope it will be worth spending some time there.

Word World eBooks

2010-10-04T11:09:00.004-04:00

There were some great kids' events in NY this weekend. We went to the falconry show in upper Central Park and had a wonderful time--thanks to everyone who put it on, and I hope you found your runaway hawk! Or, flyaway hawk, I suppose. (It's kind of cool, actually, because a wild redtail hawk spooked the captive bird; it's cool because the redtail population is so resurgent in the city.) Afterwards we walked west past the Seinfeld diner to Grant's Tomb, which was nice to teach a little Civil War history to the six-year-olds.

Then on Sunday right here in Ft. Tryon Park, a three-minute walk from my apartment, was the annual Medieval Festival. This event always looks like a lot of fun but it would be a lot more fun if they would hold it on a Saturday so that those of us who keep the sabbath on Sundays can attend and even spend a little money. Not that they're hurting for attendance, but it just bugs me that every year our daughter begs to go and even when we do walk through with her it just makes her sad that she's not able to spend any money or skip church meetings to stay the whole time. It just makes it not worth going into the park at all, and it riles me that so many events are held on Sundays when so many families are not able to attend (and religious observance isn't an aberration; there are really a lot of families who keep the sabbath--and I do recognize some do it on Saturdays).

Anyway, that's a tangent, because I was going to say that even though I'm still iPhone-less Saturday after the falconry show a friend was showing me the eBook app he has for his kids but which features some subpar literature, in his opinion. But that family is a big WordWorld fan fam, so I wanted to note for their sake and everyone else's that there's a new WordWorld eBook application for all kinds of different devices, iPhone and iPad included.

My schedule hasn't permitted me time to check it out, but I have strong confidence in anything associated with WordWorld. It should be top-knotch, with some good phonics skills built in amidst the narratives and production design. Here's a bit of the press release, from a couple weeks ago:

NEW YORK, September 16, 2010 - Just in time for the 2010 Back to School season, Don Moody, creator of the three time Emmy™ Award-winning television series WordWorld is launching a new, free eBook library available online now and on iTunes in October--for iPhone and iPad. WordWorld has been demonstrated by a U.S. Department of Education funded study to improve early literacy skills. WordWorld’s eBook library extends the learning lessons introduced in the television series.

The WordWorld eBook library consists of five dynamic educational WordWorld stories. Children may read the eBooks on their own, be read to by a caregiver or have stories read aloud to them by the eBook narrator. By clicking select words in each eBook, children build words and watch letters “morph” into WordFriends™. A Caregiver Guide accompanies the eBooks, providing caregivers and educators strategies to maximize the tool’s educational effectiveness.

“Children and [the WordWorld] eBooks are a match made in educational heaven!” says Linda Labbo, Professor of Language and Literacy Education at the University of Georgia. “Words come to life on screens in unique ways that invite children to interact with stories, characters, and language. The interactivity scaffolds children’s attention and provides age appropriate prompts that ensure an entertaining and educational experience.”

The WordWorld eBook library supports the curriculum delivered through the WordWorld television series. It provides the groundwork upon which emergent readers can build early literacy skills. Each eBook promotes story comprehension, age-appropriate vocabulary, rhyming, print awareness, phonological sensitivity and letter knowledge.

Behind the Scenes of The Electric Company

2010-09-27T16:21:00.002-04:00

Last week ASIFA-East and the School of Visual Arts presented an outstanding evening with the creators of Sesame Workshop's The Electric Company. The show's now preparing the third season in this iteration, but it bears repeating that this is not The Electric Company many of us grown-ups watched a generation ago, nor is it a direct remake. In fact, as reconceived by executive producer Karen Fowler, PBS's VP of Children's Programming Linda Simensky, and their collaborators, the new show has a younger cast, a smarter connection to its audience (imo), and a cohesive structure that eschews sketch comedy in favor of continuous narrative and a strong reading and phonics curriculum for 6-9-year-olds. But it's also updated too: check out the new version's opening credits:

Also in attendance last Tuesday were animation producer Claire Curley, head writer Adam Peltzman, and one of the chief animators Alan Foreman. The emphasis was on the show's animation since this was an ASIFA event, which is an organization based on both coasts for animators interested in all age groups and genres; their interest in the children's television world is quite commendable (although David Levy, ASIFA-East's president, was head animator on Blue's Clues and has been involved with lots of other shows). It was cool to see a children's show examined in this way, with an emphasis on the artistry and craftsmanship of creation, although questions about curriculum and procedures in this industry also came up. Let me just go through my notes to try to capture some of the highlights.

Thanks to a conflicting meeting one hour before this one and the brilliance of the NYC public transportation system I missed Linda's opening remarks about the show's online presence and multimedia/transmedia strategy, but I got the feeling it's very thought out and very organic to the show as a whole. Television episodes are now directing viewers online with cliffhangers that can only be resolved by kids playing as avatars on the web, etc. Plus The Electric Company has always had a multimedia persona, even back in the 1970s with print material supplementing the television show.

Anyway, there are 35 episodes created in one year. They're all shot on the streets of New York, giving the show a realism not available on a set, even one as detailed as Sesame Street's. This has sometimes put off rural PBS station programmers, so the producers walk a fine line between the realism of life here in the city without making it too "scary" for viewers in Nebraska. That's not to be condescending, btw: I was impressed at how seriously Fowler took rural viewers' sensibilities. Ditto for racial issues, sexual/feminist issues, etc.

So they're 24-minute episodes, with each consisting of 15 minutes of live-action narrative and nine minutes of short-form animation. Within each show, for the curriculum, there are five new or complicated words used five times in context. Remember this is a show for 6-9-year-olds, a demographic that, I think, are a little more difficult to write for in a curricular program; they have more autonomy and more non-curricular options, aka SpongeBob, and they're more easily turned off by obvious didacticism, so kudos to Peltzman and his team for keeping it fresh and funny while working in the language lessons. Besides vocabulary (the newest element) that curriculum includes four elements of phonics per episode, connected text (visualizations and contextualizations of printed words), and the narrative element of explicit motivations for the characters, which I believe means relating to the language material, not strictly narrative material.

Interesting stat: over one-third of kids are below reading level by fourth grade. So a huge portion of the producers' motivation is to really improve these kids' lives and nip that trend in the bud, a lot like Reading Rainbow a generation ago.

Now, on the animation. Claire came in in the middle of season one, when things were in trouble for delivery to PBS. They did over eighty animations in 2008, between April and August. (That's a lot!) So she had to really reach out to a lot of artists--trying to find the best ones--with no proof of concept to show them initially. Some of the clips they showed included Jack Bowsor, a 24 parody that achieved economies of scale by always featuring the character in essentially the same situation, allowing the production company, in this case Screen Novelties in Los Angeles, to crank out a lot of shorts in record time. She also talked about how they learned to reuse elements for their Music Man shorts, featuring the voice of improvising singer Reggie Watts, who does all of these vocals himself:

After Chaire spoke about efforts like these Adam Peltzman talked about the curriculum, which I've already mentioned, and gave a case study example, really, of how the Haunted House segments developed. They started out as one small interstitial used to teach a certain phonic concept, and the characters--a bat, mummy, and wolfman who live together as roommates--were so engaging that in the current season they've become a regular part of each episode. They're great characters and they easily lend themselves to working with written text (leaving notes for each other, etc.), and they're super funny. Here's one on apostrophes that Adam showed:

All the voices were done by the same actress, whose name I missed, and the animation was (and is) done by Alan Foreman. He came on board in March 2009 and has made, I don't know, 1,200 cartoons for them or something. He took us through the process of storyboards, animatics, rough, and full animation; the majority of this work, obviously in 2D, was done on Flash with small brushing up in AfterEffects.

One interesting thing with the new episodes came from the show's research, which showed kids were confused why they had to leave the live-action segments to "go off" and watch cartoons. It's for curricular reasons, but to make it a smoother transition for viewers new shows include animated characters like the Mummy above appearing on live-action backgrounds and commenting on the live-action action of the Electric Company, then introducing an animated spot (which themselves are fewer and longer than in previous seasons). There are three of these bumpers per episode, plus all the interstitials themselves; I couldn't write down all the production statistics fast enough, but it's now something like 300 short form cartoons that have been made (besides ten games, a twenty-city live theater tour, fifty-two more episodes by the end of this year, etc.).

There was a discussion of the animated effects done over the live-action portions (all done on Maya) with new clips with LL Cool J and Jimmy Fallon, and then the floor opened up for questions. Everyone agreed time and money were their greatest constraints, but Claire made a good point that if you put your emphasis on the creative material, i.e. the show's quality, then those things won't loom out at you, they won't be bears.

The last cool thing I found out about was a documentary that was actually done before the show went into production about a girl, Priscilla Star, who became one of its stars (and actually inspired the shift from adult characters to youth characters). It's P Star Rising, and it in itself looks like a great program for doc lovers. And Priscilla's own story, from nearly illiterate to the star of a show about literacy, is a great testament to the power, if not of The Electric Company specifically, the power to change children's lives. Here's the trailer, but be aware there's a little grown-up language in it:

New Festival in San Francisco

2010-09-17T15:06:00.003-04:00

There's already the San Francisco Bay Area International Children's Film Festival in April, but today the New York International Children's Film Festival announced the creation of a sister fest named (ready?) the New York/San Francisco International Children's Film Festival. The new festival is co-sponsored with the San Francisco Film Society; you can go to their website to find out more about the film line-up or buy tickets. The dates are September 24-26 at Landmark's Embarcadero Center Cinema in the Financial District. In my opinion, the more kids' films screen in any market as large as San Francisco, the better, especially half a year apart.

Tiny Planets Creates Online Worlds

2010-09-04T00:03:00.009-04:00

Tiny Planets is a wonderful British/American preschool show made by Pepper's Ghost Productions in the UK and Sesame Workshop here in New York. It depicts the planet-hopping adventures of two fuzzy aliens named Bing and Bong. In roughly the decade since its creation, it has won a BAFTA and aired in nearly two dozen territories, and though no longer in production it's continuing to spread around the world, and deservedly so--it's a great program for preschoolers. I mention all of this because I really do have a strong affection for the show and its protagonists. Both of them are mute, and that fact alone harkens back to the narrative/visual brilliance of pre-1928 films and animated characters like Wile E. Coyote and the Roadrunner, although the humor here is entirely different.

Bing and Bong are explorers par excellence. In each five-minute episode they hop into their fuzzy couch and launch off of their planet to go explore another. Each planet is visually distinctive with different denizens; hence they offer young viewers different learning experiences, most centered around the concept of exploration, a generally scientific concept, although some episodes range into the field of social skills as well. Bing and Bong interact with planets' color, sounds, and other characteristics to introduce these concepts to preschoolers with a depth and precision that wouldn't really be as efficient in another format--i.e., with characters explaining the concepts verbally as normally happens. Like I said it works really well for preschoolers, and it's also a nice way to sell your show in foreign markets, obviously.

The show was conceived and executed long before the word "transmedia" was buzzing around every executive's lips, but its central premise leant itself marvelously to extending the story space in multimedia directions. Right off the bat, the feedback that came back to the show's producers was that kids were keen to create their own planets, presumably in creative play. But the idea that kids could actually create their own worlds online began to grow organically out of the television show. Tiny Planets always had a strong web presence and as social networking and Web 2.0 design emerged over the past few years the direction for the show's website--transforming it into an independent universe--began to take shape. The new site, or constellation of related sites really (centered around http://tinyplanets.com), launched this past June, and I've had an opportunity to take a good long look at it over the past few weeks through my daughter Loretta, who's become an enthusiastic player. First, though, here's a video previewing all the new features:

The central site, at least as far as Loretta's been concerned, is My Tiny Planets. This is the core of the concept I was just talking about: young players can create avatars that build, play, and interact in a really well-balanced mix of Sim-like world-building, traditional games (harking all the way back to Asteroids, which is nice for us old folks), and social networking. Security is a big issue for any juvenile social network, and the creators here took pains to make sure kids' identities would be protected. As one example, they're not allowed to create their own user names; instead they choose from among an assortment of silly names like Cute Giant, Chatty Genius, or Classy Aurora. (Though implemented as a security feature, just selecting the wackiest name has become a major treat for some kids.) And then there are no places for them to transmit personal information to other players; parents have various controls, including the ability to temporarily shut an account down; etc.

So far there are a handful of games that Loretta likes best, like "Star Buster" and "Trash Blasters" (that's the Asteroids one). She loves the fact that she has her own planet to design and cultivate, although it took us quite a while to even figure out where in the galaxy it was (tip: you can access it from your passport, go to your map and click on Protoplanet, or just fly there). That's one of the things that's being revised as the site receives feedback, but we're still hitting a few problems, like how to name our planet something besides Protoplanet. A help page with FAQs like this would be, well, helpful. And I do have a few other quibbles: when flying your spaceship around with your keyboard's arrow keys, it's counterintuitive, at least for me, to always have the Up key move your ship forward no matter which way it's facing. For folks accustomed to console game controls, it makes more sense, I would think, to push Left to go forward if your ship is facing left. Also, if you click on any of the navigational menu items on the top (What's New, Parents, etc.) it logs you out. This is the worst when you're lost in space or stuck on some planet you don't want to be on and click on "Play" thinking it will take you back to the games, but it logs you out completely. (I'll let you think it was the six-year-old who kept getting lost in space.)

Those are a couple quibbles, but I'm getting ahead of myself: in general everything else is really well-designed. We haven't yet really made any friends, so I can't comment on the efficacy of the social networking, but the virtual chat rooms (i.e. chat planets) that are set up for your space explorers to float around make it more fun than just texting your friends. The games are fun for younger players (six is around the bottom of the target demographic, making this an older-skewed property than the original show), and the planet building and networking are fun for the older players, although taking the time to gradually build Loretta's planet has already been good in teaching patience and long-term planning. (You earn points in the games that you can use to buy portions of landscapes you can install on your planet--different skies, buildings, etc. There's also an environmental curriculum as kids recycle, collect and compost waste, etc.) So Loretta's really enjoying that component the most. Right now her world is chock full of mushroom everything; I'll let you figure out which one it is.

The other sites in this community arguably relate more to the television show. The most obvious is the TV site, where you can watch all of Bing and Bong's original adventures, making it a very good page for the youngest users. There are also books, more games, and a lot of additional educational material.

I really like the multiple directions the IP can take you, offering different avenues of enrichment to kids at different developmental levels and with different interests. I mentioned that it's still developing, and I'm really pleased by one feature currently in the works, which is the Moon Zoo. Located on the My Tiny Planets page, this feature comes from a partnership with NASA and will feature real photographs taken by the Hubble Telescope; basically children can become involved with actual mapping of space, getting the first look at images as NASA categorizes and studies them. I feel that's a real step away from being a simple multimedia property and becoming a major transmedia experience. Right now it's obviously limited to Internet use, presumably at home, but I could see school science curricula being written around this, partnerships with museums and other physical locations that can become educational resources, live events like star gazing, etc. The social network set up on My Tiny Planets can begin to take on a practical element as kids share information with each other and collaborate on their work. This type of interaction with the material would probably occur with kids over ten, but even having the framework in place will be immensely fun and educational for kids as young as six. I know Loretta loves all the space material at she's seen at various science museums--she still asserts she wants to be a "space scientist" when she grows up--and just knowing that she's getting prime access to new images essentially never seen before would really thrill her, even if she's not going to make a measurable contribution to NASA's research.

Taken in whole, then, the Tiny Planets IP has positioned itself extremely well for seamless engagement across a very broad age range, from the nonverbal show and simple picture books for the smallest kids to the traditional online games and social networking for grade school kids on to the more serious science engagement that we could see emerge for older tweens young teenagers. The strong but mutable curriculum seems to be at the core of that breadth, and though there are dozens of IPs that engage really well in each of those demographics, I'm having a hard time off the top of my head thinking of one that does so across them all.

Anyway, these have been more the musings of a dad than a quick and formal review. I think the site's so in-depth that it warrants these kinds of thoughts, though, because it's really indicative of the direction social gaming and the Internet are going for kids--or at least I think so. It's a great model for those of us creating transmedia properties today, and I can't wait to see similar shows/sites/networks on other topics like music, reading, or fitness. Kudos to the Tiny Planets team!

New Kids' Program at the Sun Valley Spiritual Film Festival

2010-08-25T21:59:00.002-04:00

I just heard that the Sun Valley Spiritual Film Festival in Idaho is including a children's program for the first time this September 18th & 19th. Films include Lost and Found, above, (a great film I saw at the last NYICFF), the much lauded The Secret of Kells, and others; check out the whole program on the festival website.

Kids' Lit for Haiti

2010-08-24T22:32:00.003-04:00

I've been able to post a few times about children's media and the Haitian reconstruction effort, so I was pleased to see this Publishers Weekly article linked in a recent KidScreen email. By Rachel Steinberg, it's about two new children's books about the earthquake that will also give financially to recovery efforts: Hope for Haiti by Jesse Joshua Watson and Eight Days: A Story of Haiti by Edwidge Danticat. If anyone knows of other children's books, films, etc. contributing to relief, please let us know!

Planet Preschool on the current kids' TV industry

2010-08-05T20:01:00.003-04:00

I re-read that Peppa Pig story after posting it yesterday and noticed how quickly it glossed over some of the problems and setbacks the creators had in getting that show up on the air. They certainly had them, though, and the truth is that the trials and setbacks are part and parcel of kids' television production--often more prevalent than the successes and accolades. So it was really engaging for me to read Josh Selig's Planet Preschool post from Tuesday, about the sobering realities of the children's television industry post-Internet/recession. It's a great post full of camaraderie for those of us who have had trouble finding paid work over the past couple years. And it puts the troubles in perspective--there's still a great community out there ready to help anyone who needs it. I'm just a little fish in the big ocean, but if there's anything I can do to help with your work please let me know!

The Inspiring History of Peppa Pig

2010-08-04T21:47:00.003-04:00

I've loved Peppa Pig for quite some time (and we've got some merchandise in our house!). Today the Financial Times wrote a really in-depth history of the show and its creators Phil Davies, Neville Astley, and Mark Baker. The odds are still stiff for the rest of us aspiring creators, but it's great to read a success story like this every once in a while. And parents should check out their new show Ben & Holly's Little Kingdom as well.

Super Yoda

2010-08-03T15:01:00.004-04:00

Around a year and a half ago or so I hit upon the brilliant idea of doing a little Frank Oz mash-up by putting the voice of Super Grover on top of footage of Yoda. So I did a YouTube search and found I'd been beaten to the punch. I'd wanted to post it here ever since: Sesame Street and Star Wars fans should all laugh equally.

A little facelift...

2010-07-29T22:00:00.004-04:00

I've been neglecting this blog in favor of other writing assignments and sites and blogs I want to get up, so yesterday I decided to give this site a little TLC. I hope you like the new look and the fact that all the links in the blogroll once again work, plus the addition of lots of new production companies I wasn't aware of in 2008 when I launched this site. Of course I couldn't be comprehensive by any means, but I hope to have included a smattering of the big fish, the little fish, and some of the best fish in the children's television pond.

Most importantly for anyone who is a potential return-visitor, please note that I changed the URL from balloonred.blogspot.com to redballoonblog.blogspot.com.

Also note that I added the links to my twitter feed and new film blog over on the right, as well as facebook and some other sites. The new blog isn't really up and running yet--I just have the architecture in place--but I'm really excited about it. Its immediate purpose is to document the progress of my feature film (adult) that I'm hoping to shoot next spring. But it will also include my thoughts on adult cinema, film criticism, transmedia, and other more grown-up themes than belong here at Red Balloon. You can follow these directly, of course, and I'll feed all posts from both blogs through Twitter and Facebook.

Let me know what you think. Anything I'm missing? Thanks!

Family Music for Haiti

2010-07-28T10:20:00.004-04:00

It hardly seems like six months since the Haitian earthquake, but it has been--it was on January 12th--and reconstruction is progressing slowly, to say the least. I posted earlier about the work of Kids in Distressed Situations in helping out Haitian children, and now I've learned about a new project by Dean Jones from the band Dog on Fleas, the producers of KindieFest, and a large group of some of the most impressive children's and family musicians working today. It's a benefit album called Many Hands: Family Music for Haiti and it will be released on Tuesday August 10th.

I've listened to most of the tracks and can vouch for the quality, as well as the eclecticism, which ranges from hip-hop (Secret Agent 23 Skidoo, who have their own new album August 31) to rock (Jonathan Coulton, for instance) to the somewhat ska-influenced folk of Dan Zanes (who gave a good interview on Sound Check the other day). In fact the complete line up of twenty-two musicians or groups, most of whom recorded original songs for the album, is more than impressive:

* Emily Curtis

* Rani Arbo & Daisy Mayhem

* Bonga & Vodou Drums of Haiti (a wonderful and very appropriate track that's great for American youngsters to hear)

* Dan Zanes & Friends

* Recess Monkey

* Dog on Fleas

* Elizabeth Mitchell & Family

* Caspar Babypants

* Secret Agent 23 Skidoo

* Jonathan Coulton

* They Might Be Giants

* Lunch Money

* Gustafer Yellowgold

* Pete Seeger

* Dean Jones & Jerrice Baptiste

* Grenadilla

* Baby Gramps

* Randy Kaplan

* Deedle Deedle Dees

* Uncle Rock

* Frances England

* Jerrice Baptiste, with the title track "Many Hands"

Here's a portion of the press release:

The idea for Many Hands came to Jones in the middle of the night and the very next day several of his fellow family musicians signed on. “When I had the idea for the Many HandsCD, I knew without a doubt that I could count on the big-hearted kindie community.” said Jones. “The generosity and the amazing work of all the musicians and everyone involved definitely exceeded my initial expectations.”

Almost all of the tracks on the album are previously unreleased, most of them recorded especially for this release. The gathering of artists featured here is a strong assortment of the unique and special talents creating and performing for today’s all ages audiences, from the legendary Pete Seeger to family hip-hop star Secret Agent 23 Skidoo. In addition, everyone involved in the process of getting this album out into the world from replication to distribution has also either drastically discounted or donated their services. Proceeds from this release will benefit the Haitian People’s Support Project and their long-standing work to help the people of Haiti.

Many Hands will be released as the debut album of Spare the Rock Records, founded by kindie rock connoisseur Bill Childs. “After speaking with Dean it was immediately obvious to me that this would be a great record, and, just as importantly, that it would have the potential to help keep people’s attention on the ongoing recovery of Haiti,” recalls Childs on how the partnership came to fruition. “Dean asked for some help reaching out to a few artists, and that just naturally flowed into my helping the record get a wider release; ultimately, that meant starting a label.” Childs produces, with his kids, the weekly radio show Spare the Rock, Spoil the Child. Bill also writes about kids’ music for various parenting magazines and has produced numerous kids’ concerts and is the cofounder of KindieFest, the family music conference.

There will be benefit performances in conjunction with the release, including these:

Sunday August, 15: Dog on Fleas, Grenadilla, Uncle Rock, Rosendale Theater, Rosendale, NY
Friday, August 20: Elizabeth Mitchell & Family and Frances England, Mill Valley Library, Mill Valley, CA
Saturday, August 21: Dog on Fleas, Lunch Money, Randy Kaplan, Deedle Deedle Dees, Armory, Boston, MA
Saturday, September 11, 11:00: Randy Kaplan, Johnny Bregar, and Recess Monkey , Multnomah Arts Center, Portland, OR, presented by A Child’s Time to Rock!
Saturday, September 11: Deedle Deedle Dees, Gustafer Yellowgold, Dog on Fleas, Knitting Factory, Brooklyn, NY
Sunday, September 26: Rani Arbo & daisy mayhem, Deedle Deedle Dees, and very special other artists TBA, Pines Theater, Look Park, Northampton, MA

Thanks to Dean and everyone who's been involved with this release. With all the attention spent on the oil spill and other calamities it's important to not forget the kids of Port-au-Prince.

Mind in the Making Video Up

2010-07-21T22:55:00.003-04:00

The 360Kid blog has just graciously put up a video of the entire proceedings from last week's Mind in the Making event with Ellen Galinsky (see my post below). Now you can read Scott's excellent summary and watch the entire video. There's also a direct YouTube link if you'd like to watch there.

Thanks to David Kleeman for letting us all know about this (although 360Kid is a fantastic site that deserves to be followed, if you're not). David's also migrated the ACCM social network off of Ning and onto Facebook. Children's media professionals, scholars, and basically anyone interested can apply for membership.

Mind in the Making

2010-07-17T16:13:00.004-04:00

There's a new book out on child development that looks poised to change, or at least dramatically shift, the entire field. It's Mind in the Making by Ellen Galinsky; professional researchers may already be aware of it, but it also looks fantastic for educators, parents, and content developers of media like television shows.

The American Center for Children and Media sponsored a conference with Galinksy at Columbia University Thursday morning. It was a great hour and a half--incredibly informative--and I used it to launch my tweeting career at @randyastle.

One of the highlights for me as a "film guy" was the extent to which Galinsky taped her research. The purpose was to create a "vook," which I didn't even know about before but which obviously means a "video book" for platforms like the iPad. I love documentaries, and the concept of a video book is, to say the least, intriguing to me. We watched several video clips, very well produced, and I believe you can see some also at the book's website. (which also has a great news feed/blog) **Well, I just went there and couldn't easily find the videos embedded within the site itself (maybe you need to buy the vook after all), but below I'll put the YouTube video that's linked to the site. The book in print will most likely hold a lot more information than the videos, but watching the children go through the experiments is priceless in its own way (including what was promoted as the best marshmallow test ever filmed). Check it out!

Funding DinosaurUs ExploreUs

2010-07-06T16:07:00.008-04:00

At last year's KidScreen Summit I met Darren and Tina Lutz, who run an animation company in Green Bay called Believe Animation. Believe is the sister company of their original venture, a software and programming company called Balance Studios, and it's therefore a pretty young company but Darren and Tina have already developed several amazing television concepts; I've been involved with two now: the kid's show Who's Watching Conrad Farcus?, about two brothers, who happen to be vultures, living in the Louisiana bayou, and now Dinosaurus ExploreUs, a preschool show that teachings archaeology and, hence, history and culture to youngsters. Episodes include visits to places like Chichen Itza, Stonehenge, the Acropolis, and new sites like the Tower of London. The curriculum sounded intense for preschoolers and I think we were all a little trepidatious at first, but it works really well. Darren's vision brought in the coolness of School House Rock, and with some strong narrative guidelines, snappy songs, and fantastic visual design, everything has become really accessible (through the contributions of a large team of really talented people--musicians, artists, etc., etc.). I think even three-year-olds will come away with a basic knowledge of what, for instance, the Great Wall of China is--and they'll have a ton of fun to boot! You can see a great teaser on the page linked above.

I did sign a nondisclosure agreement and can't really give any more production details, but the general information on the show is up online because the Lutzes now want to move ahead and produce an entire pilot episode. The script for this was written by Darren and myself (from his idea), so I have a keen interest in getting this funded and produced. They've now launched a campaign on Kickstarter.com to crowdfund the entire 11-minute episode. There's an introductory video on that site in which Darren explains the project better than I could, and if you're interested in getting our script produced you can then go ahead and pledge any amount from $5 up to, I guess, several thousand. There are only 26 days left in the campaign and there's a lot of money left to raise; if we don't reach the full amount then we don't get any of the pledged funds (which means that you as a donor won't be charged after all, but which of course also means the pilot won't get made yet). I'm excited and hopeful that we'll get there and be able to use the pilot to get a full season produced. It's a fantastic show and deserves to be seen by children; my own daughter and her Dinosaur Train-fan friends said the existing video was better than any show on the air and immediately wanted to see the full episode. Please help that happen! And thanks!

Status Update

2010-05-25T22:43:00.004-04:00

For those who have noticed, I've had something of a hiatus here on Red Balloon. The wait has been primarily due to my redesign of my entire website (www.randyastle.com) and this blog, which will hopefully be more integrated into that site when it relaunches, with a new URL and everything. So if you were wondering if I'd ever return I certainly will. Thanks for checking in!

Milkshake in New York

2010-03-11T00:11:00.005-05:00

I've been following Milkshake somewhat closely on this blog since they released Great Day and I got in touch with the band a few months ago. Now I've just learned that for the first time since they released that album--that got nominated for a Grammy, by the way--they'll be playing in New York. They'll be at the Fillmore at Irving Plaza (just east of Union Square) on April 17. The show's at 10 a.m., which is one great advantage of preschool bands over the traditional variety (and they rock just as hard). Tickets ($20) are at Live Nation and more information's available at www.houseofkidsnyc.com. In fact, the whole House of Kids initiative, which you can read about there, is pretty cool.

New Book on Preschool TV

2010-03-04T09:54:00.002-05:00

In my KidScreen '10 summary I mentioned the ning social networking site Children and Media Professionals that was started several months ago by David Kleeman. It has great potential for professionals to find out about, support, and collaborate on each other's work, and this morning I received a message to illustrate this. Jeanette Steemers let us all know that she's just published a new book entitled Creating Preschool Television: A Story of Commerce, Creativity and Curriculum with Palgrave Macmillan. I've just skimmed over the promotional material but it looks like another great resource on children's television, which isn't a backwater industry any more. You can find out more information here and look at the book on Amazon (U.S. and Britain).

Congratulations and thanks to Jeanette for all your hard work in putting it together. I hope the release goes well!

The Classic Children's Television Quiz Book

2010-02-25T10:02:00.004-05:00

A little while ago Dean Wilkinson was kind enough to send me, all the way from England, a copy of his book The Classic Children's Television Quiz Book, which was first published in 2008.

The book is precisely what it claims to be, a compilation of questions about kids' television shows from the past, primarily the 1970s and 80s. The emphasis is decidedly British, so I highly recommend it for telly aficionados in the UK, but there's a lot here for us Americans as well, from The Muppet Show to He-Man to Hanna Barbera, and on and on. Each page includes a thematically linked group of questions, whether about a specific show, production company, or topic like voice actors, Saturday morning programming blocks (remember those?), game shows, etc. Questions range from the easy to the brain tickling. Here's a sampling:

* In which year did The Flintstones first air - 1955, 1960, 1965, or 1970?

* On The Magic Roundabout, on which sardonic English comedian was Dougal the dog based - Kenneth Williams or Tony Hancock?

* On Play School, was the rocking horse called Dappledown or just Dapple?

* From which planet does Doctor Who hail?

* On Maid Marian and Her Merry Men, the short, angry and violent one was called Rabies - true or false?

* What was the show Top Cat renamed so it could air in Britain?

* In the show Fingerbobs was Rick Jones' character called Nerf, Papa, or Yoffy?

And so it goes! As a Yank I wish there were more Americana present, but we'll have to wait for another writer to give us that. As it is this is a great resource for Americans wanting to learn more, informally, about British children's television history and a fun way for Brits to take a walk down memory lane. It's also a very practically sized coffee table book.

Here's another review. Dean himself is an accomplished author and kids' telly writer, and you can check out his website as well.

KidScreen 2010

2010-02-20T14:21:00.009-05:00

It's that time of year again, or at least it was two weeks ago when Brunico publishing sponsored its annual KidScreen Summit for children's film and television professionals here in midtown New York City. (Since then Toy Fair's been going strong, for those on the licensing and merchandizing end of things.)

It was my second KidScreen and I had a wonderful time and a very useful event. Attending as a sophomore attendee was a lot better experience than as a green freshman: I knew more what to expect, how to spend my time, and who to try to talk to. In the latter category, for instance, I was able to focus my attention on people who had a chance of getting their concepts produced, rather than the first-time creators with no industry experience I spent a lot of time with last year (and haven't heard back from since). In that middle category--how to spend my time--I knew to completely ignore the main sessions and to instead try to schedule personal meetings during them; I therefore missed a few discussions I would have liked to hear, but I think the meetings I had instead were much more profitable. I also knew that you aren't really truly limited to two or three 30-Minutes With sessions, so I was able to get into seven of them and meet some high ranking executives at places I would never have known how to approach before (CBC, Cartoon Network Europe, etc.) as well as see some of the super-friendly execs that I'd already established a connection with--people like Adina Pitt and Kay Benbow. Such executives are so busy you'd expect them to justify being aloof, but they're all the most friendly and helpful folks I've ever met, remembering my name and the fact we recently had a baby; this is one of the things I really like about the children's television industry.

On the negative side, it looked like sponsorship was down from last year. Not that I miss having so many booths and signs all over the place, but do the organizers really need a big Cartoon Network statue in order to have a rendezvous point? I missed several appointments because we weren't able to find each other, and everyone else was complaining about the same thing. So my advice for next year: Instead of brochures, have some meeting point signs up along the north wall of the main delegates' lounge: Meeting Point A, Meeting Point B, and C and D. That will cost $20, and it doesn't require Treehouse or someone to accompany it with a huge billboard. And it will make happy delegates. Second, more chairs. Just like last year, but it seemed like there were actually less this time around. Finding a place to meet shouldn't take half of a meeting.

I'd like to talk quickly about specifics of what I did. It was a great agenda for me, I think, because I started out with eighteen appointments throughout the three days. Two or three of those fell through, some due to my being detained in a previous meeting, some to my contacts forgetting, and some to the we-can't-find-each-other effect (and the fact my phone decided to stop calling international numbers). But still, the fifteen or so that I was able to have and the original contacts I was able to make there were great. It started out Tuesday night (the 9th) down at Little Airplane by the financial district, where we got to sing along with Bobby McFerrin and Dan Zanes. I also met lots of great people, like Robert Seal, a gregarious, prolific, and tall writer from L.A., and Kristen Souvlis, a producer at Jonathan M. Shiff Productions in Brisbane (makers of H2O Just Add Water, seen here).

Kristen was fantastic and I hope to see more great stuff from their studio, especially here in the U.S.

I won't include too much detail on all three days, but Wednesday I got back in touch with some old contacts like Andrew Brenner, creator of Humf and quite a few other things--whose advice as a fellow writer has been fantastic. Among his thoughts: try to work on the literary end of things, specifically in comic books based on TV shows. In England where he's based there's a large market for this and it can help you as a writer learn the nuances of a show without the high-cost pressure of having an entire episode riding on you (so the producers/publishers are more willing to take a chance on a new guy). Here in America I just have to find out who publishes the Dora comic books, etc. Andrew was pitching a new show with King Rollo Films, although the bible didn't make it due to our snow, and he's also waiting to hear back from E1 about a second series of Humf (seen here).

After Andrew I also had several great meetings, including with Kristy Fuller at 1440 Productions in Melbourne. They've got a great live action tween/teen adventure show in the works (I read the pilot script after MIP) called Dig Deep Creek which would be a perfect fit for Disney XD or Cartoon Network's new live-action boy-centered productions. Kristy was here on her honeymoon as well as for work, so I'm the weather's turned good for her and hope she has another great and relaxing week here before heading back Down Under.

I also loved my meetings with Simon Parsons of the CBBC Scotland, an incredibly generous gentleman who's trying to raise the entire preschool industry in Scotland at the expense of his own company (well, not "at the expense of" because he's trying to improve the quality of everyone's work, which will create a pool of talent in Glasgow and Edinburgh the Beeb can call on as well), and with Jennie Stacey of Brown Bag Films in Dublin. I've been in touch with her for nearly two years and she's been a fantastic contact and incredibly nice, as has everyone at Brown Bag--and throughout Ireland, for that matter. You've seen Brown Bag's animation on shows like Noddy and Olivia, and now they're working on their own original productions which sound very exciting. They would be getting farther on them, though, if they hadn't been nominated for an Oscar for Granny O'Grimm's Sleeping Beauty. If you haven't seen this short film you absolutely need to, and you can in high def right here on Granny's own website.

It was fascinating to hear what chaos ensues when one is nominated for an Oscar. Basically, there's a lot of chaos. So there are definitely plans to do more with Granny as a character. I don't want to divulge too much of what Jennie shared with me (those interested in developments can follow the Brown Bag Blog), but I guess I will say that it's starting to dawn on everyone (distributors, I mean) that Granny is not a very child-friendly character; she's a crotchety old miser-type, after all. So we might not see her in a children's series, after all; I'd much rather see her in prime time as an alternative to the Family Guy school of humor. That has a place, but it would be nice to see alternatives, and the crotchety old person is certainly entertaining for adults. Brown Bag could have the Mr. Magoo of the 21st century on their hands, and UPA certainly didn't need to market him (just) to kids. Look first for a Christmas special this holiday season. Best of luck to everyone there as they develop the property and head to Los Angeles in a couple weeks.

On Thursday I had a great meeting with David Kleeman that I wanted to mention. David's the director of the American Center for Children and Media, an organization in Chicago that fosters excellence in global children's media productions, meaning primarily television. They sponsor conferences, panel discussions, and screenings from venues like the Prix Jeunesse; David also spends a great deal of time consulting with individual filmmakers and production companies. So it's a combination of advocacy and education, based on the philosophy (like Simon Parsons') that a rising tide raises all ships. One of his latest efforts is to create an online social network for children's media professionals and scholars. It's hosted on ning, which is a great platform for this kind of thing because it allows for blogs, tweets, discussions, and smaller groups within the broader community. (I've created two ning networks for my Mormon cinema work and am pleased with the results.) It's called the Children and Media Professionals network and is available for anyone with an interest. I've just joined but can't recommend it enough; in an industry so reliant on networking, such an online application is exactly what we need to get to know potential collaborators, distributors, clients, etc. And the conversations stemming from David's prolific blogging can really improve the quality of our work.

On Friday I was able to meet with quite a few Canadians, including Patricia Lavoie, who I originally met with last year. As a quick note for Canadian readers, please be aware that a new nationwide French-language station will soon be a reality. Look for the news conference on February 28.

Canadians can also look forward to the release of Pirates from Halifax Film, a series so good that the second season has already been ordered before the first has even aired. Katrina Walsh, who I also met last year, is one of the most accommodating producers in business, especially for Americans looking to break into the Canadian market and its labyrinthine tax credits and national pride schemes. Patricia's equally as helpful, by the way, as was Kim Wilson of the CBC. To qualify as Canadian for CBC acquisition or co-production you simply need to have a Canadian firm involved (which I knew), and you can go to the CBC directly and, if they like your pitch, they will try to help connect you with someone to meet the criteria (which I didn't know). Curriculum, by the way, is very important for preschool in Canada: not just social curricula, but hard subjects like math, science, art, & literacy. In England, by contrast, they nearly have an aversion for such stuff, so position your material accordingly. At any rate, very specific pitching guidelines are available on the CBC website, demystifying much of the process.

There are other people to mention, but I want to end with Fred Seibert of Frederator, who wasn't available during KidScreen but took nearly two hours of his time to meet me this week in his office on Park Avenue. Frederator's main office is located in L.A., but Fred and a small staff are here on the East Coast. I was really grateful for his generosity with his time--and the work of his assistant, a producer named Carrie Miller, in setting it up--because I wouldn't have been able to spend that much time with him at KidScreen itself. Frederator's well known for its TV work like Wow! Wow! Wubbzy and Fanboy and Chum Chum (seen below), and now they're looking to expand their Internet and feature presence. I'm crossing my fingers for them to finish a Samurai Jack feature by 2011, and just a day before I met with him they began development on their second feature property.

Fred was full of great advice. Most emphatic was the thought that confidence, attitude, and bearing are often the most important characteristics in this business. Anyone can say they're a director, writer, etc., but only those who have true confidence in their abilities and comport themselves accordingly will succeed. Another interesting fact in his estimation was that writers and producers interested primarily in preschool will be able to make a living here in New York, but for people interested in working on shows in the 6-11 range it really helps to be in Los Angeles. I hadn't thought of the geographical split being an age split as well, but as you start going through names of shows you really do see the difference, with perhaps Playhouse Disney being the biggest exception as they're located entirely around Burbank. He also advised to do as much pro bono work as possible, something I had been hoping to minimize this year but about which I now see his logic--the bigger the portfolio the better--and to write as many spec scripts as possible. Previously when I'd mentioned to people that I have nine specs on my website they at least appear duly impressed, but Fred pointed out that you won't really get good at a particular show until you've written ten spec scripts for it. So then by the time you get to talk to the producer or show runner, you'll be up to speed on it, at least as much as you can without a producer's or show runner's guidance. So write a lot of scripts, and write more than one for a single show you like. That advice alone quadrupled my workload, but the logic--the bigger the portfolio the better--is too compelling to ignore (especially when coming from a Fred Seibert).

Finally, both Fred and Andrew Brenner, and some others, indicated the relative worth of bibles and scripts tips in favor of the latter. A good bible does not guarantee a good show, but several good scripts is a very good indication. And then you can write a bible if you need to, but it's basically a marketing tool, while a script is a part of the show. So that's something I'm going to turn to on shows I'm working on like The Milkshake Show, Puppy and Ducky, and The Depardieus. Many broadcasters say not to go too far before approaching them, but this advice to have scripts done is sound as well. I think the golden mean might be to write as many scripts as you can, to know it as well as you can, and then be extremely flexible and willing to throw that all away if a broadcaster wants to take it another way (and you agree with them it's a good way to go).

That's a nutshell summary of much of the advice, etc., that I heard at KidScreen. I talked with lots of other people who are working on or pitching fantastic looking shows. I wish I could blog about all of them, but evidently I have about twenty scripts to go write. As the recession recedes 2010 should be a fantastic year for children's television!

New York Children's Film Fest Tix On Sale

2010-02-01T10:39:00.008-05:00

Some readers may have noticed a drastic decrease in my posting this year, which is simply due to an influx in other work-related activities that have kept me away from blogging. But I did really want to let New York parents know, if they don't already, that tickets for this year's New York International Children's Film Festival go on sale today. The fest consists of staggered screenings held at various venues from February 26 through March. I've been browsing through the selection and once again it looks fantastic. It's been a hard year for independent film and it's really gratifying to see so many youth-oriented works seeing completion and getting shown in theaters.

Here's just a smattering of screenshots:

Things are, as I said, busy around our house, but I think we'll try to see one of the short programs and Turtle: The Incredible Journey, the documentary pictured above.

The full festival schedule and film descriptions are here at www.gkids.tv. It's imperative to buy tickets beforehand rather than at the door because they sell out quickly. Also please notice one of the festival's great charitable operations, which is donating a portion of box office proceeds to New York City schools, which are somewhat underfunded to say the least. Just click on the drop-down menu at the top ("Select My School or Organization...") before selecting your tickets. If you're so inclined you could even select my daughter's school PS 334 The Anderson School, and we parents would greatly appreciate it.

Thanks to the organizers and congratulations to all the filmmakers! I'm looking forward to another great event this year.

Helping Kids in Haiti

2010-01-20T16:46:00.002-05:00

Here's a notice by Emily Claire Afan of KidScreen about one way to assist Haitian children. Read the original here.

Searching for ways to contribute to the Haiti relief efforts? Nonprofit Kids In Distressed Situations (K.I.D.S.) is looking for donations to help out the younger set.

The New York-based charity has already secured US$2 million worth of new products with large donations being made by Jockey, Haddad Brands, Gerber Childrenswear, Kahn Lucas, World Team Tennis and LT Apparel, UGG Australia, Vitamin Shoppe; and Toys 'R' Us.

K.I.D.S. is continuing to work with retailers and manufacturers to obtain donations of new products. The public donate cash at www.KIDSdonations.org or by calling 1-800-266-3314, and the organization is looking for new clothes, socks, underwear and blankets to provide immediate relief to earthquake victims, and any type of new product donations will also be welcome for the coming weeks and months.

Katherine Paterson Named the National Ambassador for Young People's Literature

2010-01-08T22:58:00.003-05:00

Here's some news from the world of youth literature: the Library of Congress recently named Katherine Paterson, author of Bridge to Terabithia, Jacob Have I Loved, and numerous other books, the new National Ambassador for Young People's Literature. Here's a little news brief:

A two-time winner of the National Book Award and Newbery Medal, Paterson will serve in this role for 2010-2011, and has selected Read for Your Life as the theme for her platform. She succeeds author Jon Scieszka, who was the first to hold this title (2008-2009). The National Ambassador for Young People's Literature was created to focus on the importance of young people's literature and lifelong literacy, education and development and improving the lives of kids/young adults. The Center for the Book in the Library of Congress, the Children's Book Council (CBC), and Every Child a Reader, the CBC foundation, are the sponsors of the National Ambassador for Young People's Literature initiative (www.read.gov/cfb/).

Congratulations to Paterson and good luck during her term. For her own work you can check out her website or read a bio and watch a video interview at Reading Rockets, which also has links to other sites about the announcement.

Everyone Loves to Dance

2010-01-05T21:46:00.003-05:00

A happy Hanukah, Christmas, and new year to everyone! I'm back from an Internet-less trip to Idaho (even my Blackberry died!) and am ready to catch up on what's been happening over the past couple weeks. I've been writing a fair amount about music lately, and it looks like 2010 will be an even busier year than 2009, at least if the number of announcements and press releases I receive is any indicator (and of course my own email must be a good barometer of the state of the industry!). Unfortunately my own professional obligations have picked up lately and won't allow me to write in as much detail as I'd like about each of these (i.e. full reviews), but here's at least one new album that folks should be aware of.

It's "Everyone Loves to Dance," the sophomore album by L.A.-based musician and educator Aaron Nigel Smith, who you may have seen featured on several episodes of the last season of Between the Lions. It will be officially released in just a few days (Amazon UK says it's today in that area) and adds another flavor to the group of discs I've mentioned lately, this time of the Caribbean variety. The music that I've heard online has a good mix of rock and other genres, but the guest artists are probably a good indicator of what all's in store on the final album, and they include Ziggy Marley, Kevin Ricardson, DJ Drez, and Junior Rhythm from Rhythm Child. Anyone who can get Ziggy Marley to play along making music for kids is definitely worth listening to, and you can do that by giving his album a preview at his Jango music channel here. And of course the best resource on his work in general is his own website.

Also be aware that the live Between the Lions show is touring around to different markets and that Smith is currently a part of that, coming to New York the end of this month and thus getting his year off to a busy start (again, other performances are noted on his site). I look forward to hearing more from him and all the other musicians busy getting their work out this year. Best of luck!

A Barry Louis Polisar Tribute Album - Part 2

2009-12-23T14:41:00.005-05:00

If you're into quirky independent cinema, chances are you've already seen this title sequence from the film Juno:

The composer and performer of this song is Barry Louis Polisar, and many folks saw the success of this song--the album won a Grammy for best compilation album--as an overnight success, which it would have been except for the fact that he wrote it about thirty years ago. But the fact is that Polisar is now enjoying an increase in popularity, something well deserved after three decades of entertaining, educating, and singing for kids.

Now some of those kids, all grown up, are returning the favor. In September I wrote about the announcement of a tribute album called "We're Not Kidding"; that post includes a press release with some really good information. The album was finally released on December 4, and it's been well worth the wait. Under the guidance of Radioactive Chicken Heads singer Aaron Cohen, a reported forty-five musicians (including some appearances from Polisar himself) have gotten together to rework and record sixty tracks of Polisar's music. The musicians include a few I've heard of before, like Tor Hyams who I wrote about a couple weeks ago, but for the most part since music isn't my main professional focus it's introducing me to a whole bunch of people who warrant further investigation: the Vespers, J-La, Deleon, Kid Kazooey, Elizabeth Street, Alyssa Robbins, Rutherford B. Hayes Is Dead, Purple Mums, Rebecca Loebe, the Boogers, Tom Vincent, Le Page, Ham & Burger, Jeff Forrest, Haunted Cologne, the Brothers Vilozny, Bonnie Phipps, League of Space Pirates, Your Little Pony, and of course the Barry Louis Polisar Self-Aggrandizement Choir (who sing "The Tushie Song"), plus dozens of others.

The stylistic breadth of the album, which consists of two discs of thirty songs each, is just as broad. The first thing I did was compare the different versions of "All I Want Is You," the song from Juno above (and, yes, Polisar's use of the title predates U2 by quite a while). The Vespers start out the entire album with an amazing rendition, possibly if I dare say it better than Polisar's own: the twangyness and harmonica which give the original much of its flavor is gone in favor of discrete harmonies between the female singers, lending it an air of Alison Krauss singing "Down to the River to Pray" on that other Grammy-winning soundtrack from O Brother, Where Art Thou?. (I was intrigued enough by this number to quickly go to the second disc to hear them sing the more up-tempo "Barnyard Stomp," and they carried that off equally well. According to their My Space page, linked above, their first album will be out in March, so that's something to keep an eye out for.) Closing the entire album is an "All I Want Is You" cover by Noga Vilozny that takes it in the other direction, a rollicking, swinging rock number that puts some boogie into it. The version by Eric Hartereau is pretty traditional except that it's in French, which is quite a kick ("C'est Toi Que J'veux"; all I got out of it was a "femme" and a "toi" or two). And then there's a parody/redux by Polisar himself at the end of the first disc featuring dazzling new lyrics like "...if you were a cow, I'd be the utter." Takes your mind in whole new directions...

Of course, that's not unfamiliar territory for his lyrics. There are plenty of songs like "'Doo-Doo' Is a Bad Word," "I'm a Slug," "Don't Put Your Finger Up Your Nose," and so on that delve into the comic and the disgusting. He's not shy about investigating the darker sides of childhood--mean teachers, not sharing, and so on--but there's plenty on here that's sweet and tranquil as well. Because of some of the more mature lyrics and hard rocking arrangements (heavy on the electric instruments and drum kits), this might be a little much for some of the littler children, but it's on a song by song basis--it's essentially a compilation album, after all. It's probably all good listening for kids in the older crowd, especially if they've been exposed to rock at all before, and some songs are great for the littlest tikes: my Isabelle, who's all of three months, was grooving to the Vespers and Elizabeth Street's "That's What Makes the World Go Round."

One other factor leaning this toward older kids, though, is the vocabulary, which can be pretty challenging. Much of it might go right over kids' heads, but on the other hand it can help them learn and stretch in ways that they might not otherwise; I can still remember a good old Elvis Presley song sending me to the dictionary when I was about ten to look up what a "ghetto" was. They Might Be Giants and other good lyricists do this (that's where I learned about echidnas, for instance), and Polisar seems right at home in that crowd. Besides that the rhymes are catchy and often funny, something making this good listening for parents as well as for kids. The fact that Juno was in no way a kids' movie speaks to the cross-over appeal Polisar's work has.

Here's another review of the album, by Paula Slade, and there's a lot more information, including blurbs from a lot of other reviews, here. I'd like to thank Polisar for letting me know about all of this and all of his personal interest in my work as well; his interest and warmth in the few emails we've exchanged has gone way beyond that of a musician trying to promote his new album. As I've listened to the music I think that kind of attitude has carried over into his own work as well.

At the end of the day it's a compilation album and is therefore a mixed bag, but overall the album's quite excellent and well worth checking out. If you're interested more information is available on his website, and for those of us involved in children's television it's really interesting to check out the clips from his old TV show Field Trip, which won two Emmys in its evidently too-brief run. With all the renewed interest in Polisar's work, perhaps it's time to resurrect this concept as well...

Susan Kim and the Little Airplane Writing Academy

2009-12-21T19:21:00.009-05:00

Last Saturday I was able to attend the first ever Little Airplane Academy on Preschool Television Writing, held in downtown New York (Southstreet Seaport) at the studios of Little Airplane Productions, makers of Oobi, The Wonder Pets, 3rd & Bird, and now some new shows like the absolutely fantastic Small Potatoes, seen here. I attended one of their three-day workshops on children's television production last year, but this one-day seminar was the first devoted exclusively to writing. It was run primarily by Susan Kim, a freelance writer for dozens of shows, from Square One back in my own childhood up to modern things like Arthur, Mama Mirabelle's Home Movies, and of course Little Airplane's shows. Susan ran a great workshop: the day was divided essentially into four parts: exercises and activities to help us re-access childhood, to re-understand children and their experiences; a review of screenwriting mechanics and techniques; a discussion of the business of children's television writing; and then a final session with Little Airplane founder Josh Selig about creating and selling original properties.

My main focus in going was to learn more about #3 above--the business of making it in this business--but I assumed that I would have to patiently pass through the creative portions to get there. I was very pleasantly surprised, therefore, at how useful the opening exercises actually turned out to be. When I approach a show or writing assignment I try to think holistically about the curriculum, the characters, the structure, and what would be humorous or engaging for the target age group, but I've never really taken the time to sit back and warm up by reaccessing my own childhood. Writers of novels and poems and other media warm up and keep trim with little prompts and exercises, like free-association exercises, writing quick flash fiction, journaling, etc., so why do I think that a writer of children's television can remain fresh and creative without similar exercises? Also, doing routine exercises like these show real respect for the audience. Since we as authors do not belong to our target demographic--something pretty rare (since usually mystery authors read mystery novels, romance authors read romance novels, etc., but no matter how much Nick Jr. we children's screenwriters watch we still won't ever literally be children again)--it really pays dividends to keep ourselves in touch with what it was like when we did belong to that group. And it helps us avoid cliches, talking down to kids, being pedantic, moralizing, and aping other more successful shows we've seen on the air. It makes the writing more fun.

The exercises I'm talking about were specifically things like writing what we remember about a photo taken during our childhood--who was there; tactile things like what we were wearing, doing, or smelling; how it was taken; where we'd seen it since. Another was remembering a specific object from kindergarten, another what we were afraid of in childhood, something specific that we thought was beautiful, a trip to the beach (or elsewhere), etc. In other words, it's all like an actor accessing his emotion memory through tactile and concrete details, although in our case we're trying to remember what it was like being a child, the universal things that will still apply to children today, their digital nativity notwithstanding. It's a great way to reach farther and farther back in your memory, regaining it with greater clarity, which is pretty cool whether you're a writer or not. Other exercises include trying to write a first-person story in a child's voice, brainstorm or free associate ideas for a kids' show when not working on a specific program or assignment, or anything else that gets you in the groove of respecting, thinking about, and speaking to children on their level. Great stuff.

Much of the mechanics of screenwriting were essentially what I'm familiar with already, although it was nice to follow one episode of 3rd & Bird from concept through premise to outline to script to screen, with examples on paper of all of those. That's great information and is the kind of area that could be explored in greater detail should Little Airplane decide to do a three-day writing seminar.

Concerning the business portion, Susan mentioned some resources I was unfamiliar with like Cynopsis Kids. The three-part pattern she gave for finding and keeping work was: 1) Write two to three specs (I have nine and am working on my tenth, which will hopefully be the last), 2) Locate companies and the right people at them (i.e. story editors and head writers mostly, as well as producers and show runners), and 3) Write a good cover letter and resume. I suppose I need to work on the latter as well as my general hustle of networking, although I have started on three new shows in the past month and am finding myself pretty busy (hence no blogging). Alternatively you can work your way up from a script assistant on a show, which is a job I've found it pretty difficult to get in the first place. You should also join ASCAP and/or BMI if you're ever going to write lyrics, which you probably are. Also, treat your story editor as your greatest ally and friend, and constantly keep them informed about everything you're doing (when you're working for them, that is). So not too much there I'm not in general trying to do, or things I didn't know about like a magical group policy for health insurance for freelance cartoon writers, but again it was nice to learn the new material I wasn't aware of and it still really helped focus my efforts. Oh, and we touched on agents. The best advice I've heard about agents was something I read a few weeks ago in an IFP publication: only take an agent that is really hungry to have you; a disinterested agent is worse than a bad one or none at all. Last Saturday Susan said she does have an agent but she still finds 80-90% of her work herself; she's glad she has an agent, though, for help with the contracts, etc.

I'm running out of time to finish this post, ironically, but I want to mention what Josh talked about in his hour. Hopefully it'll be the subject of a blog or article soon over at Planet Preschool on KidScreen, and I don't want to give anything away that I oughtn't, but here's the general idea. The most striking aphorism he gave us was: "The only difference between a writer and a show creator is a good lawyer." So there's no reason, really, to not become a show creator, so it's time I must start thinking of myself in those terms and not only continue preparing material for the KidScreen Summit in February, which I am, but also start talking to entertainment lawyers, which has always seemed like some far-off concept before.

Long story short about the approach Little Airplane is taking: with Wonder Pets they were still new enough they had to go to Nick and sell the thing outright; it was the only way they could have funded it, and Josh said he wouldn't have changed that because that's just where they were then. Now, however, not only is Little Airplane a more established company, but the nature of children's media has changed drastically over the past seven years. It's become more democratized and egalitarian, with power shifting away from the big broadcasters like Nick, Cartoon Network, and Disney and toward the producers of shows, folks like Little Airplane. So with Small Potatoes they've taken a very different approach that Josh is now calling the Blitz: they're raising funds through state's rights distribution and other outlets (licensing, online, merchandise, publishing, etc.) but they're retaining ownership themselves. And that can make all the difference. So CBeebies bought the UK rights for Small Potatoes (wisely, by the way, because the music video we saw--it's essentially a short-form all-music property--was the cutest and most engaging few minutes of preschool TV I've seen in a long time) and gave them something like 20% of their budget for a season. So now they're talking to everyone under the sun, from other broadcasters to stage troupes to puppet shows to, I don't know, magicians and everyone in between. Using facebook, twitter, etc. to build up buzz. The only drawback of this approach is monetizing it, because twitter doesn't exactly pay for content and no one's going to pay to download a video online. Hopefully it'll bring in enough attention, however, to eventually bring in a major player, one with cash that is, and a deal will be able to be struck with Little Airplane in a much better bargaining position than they were able to have seven years ago. Or the merchandizing takes off, or something else like that.

As a creator unaffiliated with an animation studio or anything I'm going to go ahead and try both approaches as much as I can with the various properties I have in development. I've got to get animators attached before I can go through the online, democratized route, but on the other hand I'd hate to see Nick Preschool snatch up a beautiful property, fire me, and ruin it. Well, let me qualify that, because having a property on Nick wouldn't exactly be heartbreaking, no matter the terms of the agreement, and they worked well, for instance, on the creation of Ni Hao, Kai-lan, which came from a person in a similar situation. Anyway, for those hoards of industry peeps reading this and asking what I'm working on specifically, one example is on some characters developed by the animator Annie Poon, called Puppy and Ducky. A short she made of them for younger kids won an audience choice award at the New Museum and just showed at the last Chicago festival, and we're now working on aging it up for the 6-10 crowd. Check out Puppy's blog for retailer Fred Flare here (although for some reason they only display P&D on Saturdays) and Annie's blog and website. And of course industry folks can contact me about this or my other preschool concepts. Here's a pic of Puppy with his oblivious puppy love, Miss Duck, as drawn by Annie.

But I should end by seriously thanking Susan Kim, Josh Selig, Melinda Richards, and Tone Thyne for all the work they put into the workshop. It was inspiring, focusing, and just the thing I needed to jazz me up and get me from post-MIP to KidScreen.

Roy E. Disney

2009-12-17T11:29:00.003-05:00

As many readers will have heard by now, Roy E. Disney, his father's namesake and uncle's near spitting image, died yesterday of stomach cancer at the age of 79. Over the years he's been involved in Walt's and Roy O.'s company, he's been seen as a sort of guardian of the Disney name and brand against the likes of Walt's son-in-law Ron Miller and, later, Michael Eisner & Michael Ovitz. I remember first learning about Roy Jr. when I was a junior high school student enamored with Beauty and the Beast and Aladdin in 1993 and I read John Taylor's book Storming the Magic Kingdom about the attempted corporate take over of Disney in the 1980s (yes, I guess I had a touch of nerdishness). Roy was instrumental in retaining control of the firm then as he was just a few years ago in getting Michael Eisner removed after some poor managerial decisions. I don't know that I've been uncritical of Roy's work--heaven knows I'm critical about a lot of things about Disney--but I was essentially a fan of his leadership over the company's animation division, as it was essentially him who was responsible for the aforementioned renaissance in the early 90s and hence the global resurgence in animation that we've seen with Pixar, DreamWorks, and half a gazillion other companies. People might say, oh no, that was Jeffrey Katzenberg, but I don't think that's so much the case: #1) You wouldn't have had Katzenberg at Disney without Roy there first, and #2) I've not been thrilled by anything done at DreamWorks since Katzenberg's own departure from Disney. Of course Disney's slumped as well over the past decade with the rise of 3D CGI (although one should point out it was Roy who helped engineer Disney's union with Pixar a few years ago), but what a thrilling time it was in 1991 to discover the magic of animation and hence of cinema. I've hoed a crooked career path to get where I am today, but it's safe to say I wouldn't be involved in cinema, television, or children's media if it weren't for Beauty and the Beast and, hence, if it weren't for Roy E. Disney. Here are some obituaries:

L.A. Times

Fox

Disney Parks blog

Media Decoder at the New York Times

The regular NY Times obituary

New Kids' Festival in Singapore

2009-12-15T08:23:00.003-05:00

I'd like to thank Jade Young of the National Book Development Council of Singapore (NBDCS) for letting me know about the upcoming Asian Festival of Children's Content (AFCC) happening this May in Singapore and--hopefully--traveling around to new countries and venues in the years after that. In this inaugural session the organizers hope to bring together authors, illustrators, filmmakers, television producers, and everyone else involved in creating (or consuming!) children's media in Asia for a few days of workshops, classes, networking opportunities, an Asian Media Market, a Children's Book Award, Children's Writer Award, and other fun activities. There's a little information on this website. The whole program is an offshoot of the ten-year-old Asian Children's Writers & Illustrators Conference, so although this specific event is new the organizers themselves are not neophytes, as the following information from the NBDCS shows:

1. Asian Content for the World’s Children

Over a billion children in Asia lack good resources, both for their education and entertainment. Those who have the means and the access, benefit from a wide selection of edutainment material available from the West. Asian material, even those available, is seldom promoted and is therefore left unexplored. Bringing quality Asian content to children is paramount as it would make children aware of Asia’s unique environment and cultural values, promote understanding of, and love for, the literary and visual arts. It will thereby lay the foundation for a good and all-round education.

Asia is rich in culture and tradition; a heritage from which content could be developed. What’s more, the region has talent to produce content based on these sources. It is therefore critical that an annual programme called the Asian Festival of Children’s Content (AFCC) be organised to draw the attention of content creators and producers to this vast opportunity AFCC will also showcase content already available, and promote new materials that are produced and published. This will benefit parents, teachers, librarians and children in Asia as well as the world.

For the past 10 years, the National Book Development Council of Singapore (NBDCS or The Book Council in short) has organised the Asian Children’s Writers & Illustrators Conference (ACWIC) to develop new materials for children. It now aims to expand ACWIC’s reach by including the new initiative that AFCC promises. The Festival, with a series of innovative programmes, seeks to fill the direct need for quality Asian Children’s content worldwide, particularly in Asia.

The inaugural AFCC will be held in Singapore in May 2010 and will be organised by the Book Council and The Arts House.

2. Advisory Board

Ms Claire Chiang, Senior Vice President of Banyan Tree Holdings (Singapore) is the Chairperson of the Board.

Please see Appendix 1 for the full list of members in the Board.

3. Vision, Mission & Objectives

a. Vision

To provide the World’s children with quality Asian content for education and entertainment.

b. Mission

To foster excellence in the creation, production and publication of children’s materials with Asian content in all formats and to facilitate their distribution and access, first in Asia and then to children worldwide.

c. Objectives

• Develop children’s materials with Asian content for information, education and entertainment.
• Promote publishing of Asian children’s content in all formats.
• Provide children in Asia and the world with ready and easy access to Asian content.

4. AFCC Programme Outline

a. Core Programmes (6 & 7 May 2010)

• Asian Children’s Writers and Illustrators Conference (ACWIC)
• Asian Children’s Media Mart (ACM) including Asian Children’s Rights Market
• Special programmes, master classes and workshops on a variety of specialised topics
• ASEAN / India Writers and Illustrators Dialogue (AIWID)
• Asia / Australia Writers and Illustrators Network (AWIN)

b. 8 May 2010 (Saturday)

• Primary and Pre-School Teachers Congress (PSTC)
• Asian Children’s Librarians Seminar (ACLS)
• Asian Children’s Publishers Symposium (ACPS)

c. 9 May 2010 (Sunday)

• Asian Parents’ Forum (APF)
• A special session on suitable content for children and young adults

Please see Appendix 2 for the AFCC programme structure.

5. Target Audience

The entire community of children’s content creators in all formats, i.e. aggregators, disseminators, retailers and consumers etc.

• Writers, illustrators, digital artists, producers and designers of children's content, including comics, books, e-books, graphic novels, videos, films and educational games
• Librarians and institutional buyers
• Publishers and broadcast media executives
• Educators, primary and preschool teachers
• Literary agents, translators
• Media distributors and vendors
• Multimedia professionals
• Parents
• Vendors of educational products and services

More than 400 hundred participants from the region are expected to participate in the Festival.

6. Conclusion

Over four exciting days, the AFCC delegates will get to celebrate and learn about Asian children's content in all formats and subjects from diverse sources. It will provide a platform to trade, exchange and access Asian children’s content.

The participants will network with fellow producers of children’s content, as well as meet solution-suppliers from the region.

Very crucially, AFCC provides a unique opportunity for professionals involved in developing Asian content for children to reflect on how these materials could be produced, distributed and effectively used to provide quality education and stimulating entertainment for the young people.

R. Ramachandran
Executive Director
National Book Development Council of Singapore
www.bookcouncil.sg
November, 2009

* I've omitted the appendices, but those interested in more information can contact the NBDCS. Best of luck to the organizers!

Top Kids' Music of 2009

2009-12-14T16:08:00.002-05:00

It's that time of year again. Kathy O'Connell of NPR has undertaken to pick out the top ten kids' albums of the year in a story she posted online a week or two ago (yes, I'm perpetually catching up!), as has Jeff Bogle of Time Out New York Kids. I'm always a bit wary of such rankings, but given that all the music listed here is worth knowing about, I wanted to pass it along. At the top of O'Connell's list is the perpetual favorite (and last year's Grammy winner) They Might Be Giants, and both lists include two acts I've posted about before, King Pajama and Milkshake; Bogle also includes Morgan Taylor's newest Gustafer Yellowgold disc. Lunch Money's album Dizzy, their sophomore effort, is at the top of Bogle's list (the album cover is seen below), with They Might Be Giants nowhere to be seen. It just goes to show how subjective this all is, and for my purposes it suffices to say that compared to ten years ago there is a flowering of children's music comparable to that in television. Anyone have any thoughts about a similar trend in children's literature?

Fallen Angels

2009-12-11T19:26:00.003-05:00

I'm focusing enough on my own writing and directing, and reading material that directly supports that, that I've completely missed the whole Twilight phenomenon thus far. But about two weeks ago I was watching Wings of Desire by Wim Wenders and had the brief thought that they (meaning the YA people) ought to explore angels (and demons?) to escape from the vampires/werewolves rut. Well, seems I'm a few steps behind the industry because Disney just optioned the film rights to the YA novel Fallen by Lauren Kate. You can read all about it in the Hollywood Reporter.

Now I just wish we could get American teenagers--let alone adults--to actually watch Wings of Desire and Far Away So Close...

Kids Make Films in New York

2009-12-10T10:53:00.003-05:00

The New York International Children's Film Festival, which has a year-round presence through screenings and other events, is currently accepting applications for their third annual Film Production Workshops. Course tracks include claymation, film acting, 2-D animation, and puppet animation and kids age six to sixteen can participate and receive mentoring from working professionals in the respective fields. Films from the first session of courses, held in mid-February, will screen at the festival later next year. For more information see the fest's website. I haven't checked the price, which may be steep, but having conducted animation sessions at the Museum of the Moving Image and more recently done the cinematography merit badge with my local Boy Scout troop's Blazer patrol (i.e. the eleven-year-olds) I can testify that kids this age love this thing, and, who knows, you may just be nurturing the talent of the next Orson Welles.

General Mills Lowers Sugar

2009-12-09T17:35:00.003-05:00

General Mills announced today that it will be reducing the amount of sugar contained in its cereals marketed to children. Five years after the firm, which is based in Minnesota and is, I believe, the second largest cereal producer in the country, converted all of its cereal to whole grains, this is a welcome move that's still been a long time in coming. It would be great if now Post, Kellogg, Nestle in Europe, and the other cereal makers follow suit (I don't follow this industry enough to know just where every company is on the "rush" to health food status). It's something that should position the companies as socially responsible without cutting into their bottom line (like banning marketing to children or advertising during children's television shows, which has been troubling in the United Kingdom). I hope the nutritional difference is enough to make an impact in children's diets, and I also wish there was a way to continue to inform parents that it's not just the lack of sugar in these foods they allow their children to consume (or, like at our house, consume themselves), but also the fact that eating these foods instead of more nutritional alternatives robs you of the potential benefit you could have had from those. In that sense it's like soft drinks and milk; sure the sugar and fat are bad for you, but it's the lack of calcium that's going to give you osteoporosis. Anyway, kudos to General Mills for taking this step, and let's hope there are more such announcements in the future.

Milkshake Gets a Grammy Nod (plus Tor Hyams)

2009-12-08T21:50:00.006-05:00

Since I've been going through their entire output quite meticulously over the past couple weeks, I've become quite the fan of Milkshake recently. If you missed my original review of their new album "Great Day" you can have a look at it now. This week's news, however, is that the album has been nominated for a Grammy for the best children's musical album category, thus simply validating my opinion of it.

To be fair, I suspect that all of the nominees are pretty good, and a lover of children's music would be well served to check them all out, which you can do here. They're listed in category 76, and the spoken word nominees are #77.

Here's a press release about Milkshake and the nomination:

BALTIMORE (December 6) – With the Recording Academy’s December 3 announcement that Milkshake’s album Great Day has been nominated for a 2010 GRAMMY® Award in the “Best Musical Album for Children” category, the Baltimore-based rock band for kids has achieved yet another milestone in a remarkable career.

Milkshake began in 2002 as a musical experiment on the part of vocalist Lisa Mathews and guitarist Mikel Gehl, longtime bandmates from Baltimore’s indie rock group Love Riot, who vowed to “grow” their music right along with their own young children. Since then, Milkshake and the band’s legion of fans have been living an exciting, real-life, growing up adventure, moving from early childhood through the early elementary years, as the group toured the country and produced three multi-award-winning CDs, a DVD, and a multitude of music videos seen all over the kid-friendly networks. Along the way, as the kids grew and the music grew with them, Milkshake grew from a duo to a six-piece band.

The GRAMMY® nomination for Great Day is a crowning achievement of the past seven years in the life of Milkshake. Notes Lisa Mathews, "Milkshake is a rock band at heart, and we happen to have found our calling playing music for families to enjoy together. After all those years performing in the adult music world, where everyone yearns for a GRAMMY®, our nomination has us over the moon with joy. To be recognized in this way by our peers is immensely gratifying. Although we’re told over and over that adults love our music (and it’s great to hear that!), our purpose, from the start, has been to create real music that kids can call their own. We’re very grateful that NARAS is honoring these ideals."

Known for their pop-rock style that fairly crackles with energy, Milkshake indeed has a following of all ages. The band is familiar to millions of American households through their colorful, energetic music videos, which have been seen on PBS KIDS, NICK JR., and DISCOVERY KIDS. Milkshake’s live concerts, described by the Baltimore Sun as “a little like magic,” bring the same happy, rocking energy onstage to fans across the country. Baltimore Magazine declared, “Hip parents who like music will absolutely thrill to Milkshake.” Kenny Curtis, Sirius/XM Radio’s Director of Specialty Programming, describes Milkshake as “an amazing band whose songs are conceptual and fully thought-out pieces of music.” Wrote Paste Magazine, “Overflowing with energy and enough stylistic chops to move convincingly from rockabilly to jangle-pop, these tunes will make fans of the whole family.”

Great Day demonstrates the rocking energy, true teamwork, and sheer joy of six musicians performing “live to disc” the material that has won them coast-to-coast applause. Milkshake has previously released three critically acclaimed, multi-award-winning CDs – Happy Songs, Bottle of Sunshine, and PLAY! – in addition to a Parents’ Choice® Silver Award-winning DVD, Screen Play!, a joyous mix of MTV-like videos, animation, in-concert videos and cool bonus features, including interviews with the band and a pair of videos featured on PBS KIDS.

As Milkshake prepares to walk the Red Carpet at the GRAMMY® Awards, they are also looking ahead. The band has conceptualized The Milkshake Show, a TV program for kids that’s like Reading Rainbow meets The Monkees. Other plans include a Christmas CD with a festive mix of new material and fun songs from Milkshake’s live holiday shows and, of course, continuing to perform live for kids and famiies nationwide.

And here's a second release, this one focusing around the album's producer Tor Hyams. It's enlightening, and I for one think it productive to learn more about the producers behind kids' music's top acts. Enjoy:

LOS ANGELES (December 4) – Music producer Tor Hyams takes special pride in The Recording Academy’s December 3 announcement that Milkshake’s album Great Day has been nominated for a 2010 GRAMMY® Award in the “Best Musical Album for Children” category. Tor Hyams produced Great Day as part of his ongoing commitment to creating exceptional family entertainment.

Great Day is a capstone of nearly 20 years in the music and film industries for Hyams, who says, “Producing this kids’ album was an amazing experience, absolutely as exciting and fulfilling as anything I’ve done in the adult arena. Milkshake is truly a rock band of the highest caliber. The songs are edgy and packed with meaning, but also just plain good fun for the whole family. I’m tremendously proud to have produced the GRAMMY® nominated Great Day.”

Tor Hyams’ experience in the entertainment industry runs the gamut from writing and performing his own material to producing world-class recording artists and composing dozens of scores for film and television. Hyams’ star as a music producer has most definitely been on the rise, with albums for Joan Osborne, Vivian Campbell, Edwin McCain, Broadway star Rachel York, Jewish rappers Chutzpah, and the late Lou Rawls under his belt. He continues to collaborate with Lisa Loeb, Perry Farrell, Edwin McCain, and more.

Since 2002, inspired by his own family, Hyams has broadened his scope to encompass the burgeoning world of children’s/family entertainment. He founded HyLo Entertainment as an umbrella company for these activities, which began with Hyams writing and producing the award-winning, star-studded children’s CD A World of Happiness. Originally licensed to Disney’s Buena Vista Records, the album features performances by Samuel L. Jackson, Magic Johnson, Lou Rawls, Isaac Hayes, Debbie Harry, Gary Oldman, and Perry Farrell, among others.

With Farrell, Tor Hyams then conceived and developed Kidzapalooza as a family festival nested within the Lollapalooza Festival, a project of C3 Presents. Kidzapalooza, now in its sixth successful year with Hyams as producer and emcee, has been contracted through 2015. Innovative ancillary properties include Kidzapalooza Radio on Sirius/XM and a new compilation album, Kidzapalooza Vol. 1, featuring tracks from some of the best new names in family friendly music, such as Lunch Money, Secret Agent 23 Skidoo, and The Jimmies, along with such familiar artists as Ralph Covert (of Ralph's World), Perry Farrell, Lisa Loeb, and more. Continuing his ever-expanding live music work with C3, Hyams also found himself producing the “Kiddie Limits” stage for Austin City Limits and the kids’ stages for a number of other regional festivals. Rounding out his activities, for the past several years Tor Hyams has led the family music efforts at the SXSW Music Festival.

Tor Hyams’ success in the world of live children’s music has spawned other opportunities, which include the formation of Happiness Entertainment, a full service children’s music label with distribution through Koch. In its inaugural year, Happiness has already released three albums, including a bonus track-filled reissue of A World of Happiness, the abovementioned Kidzapalooza compilation CD, and a family hip hop CD by Secret Agent 23 Skidoo.

Riding on the crest of today’s growing interest in children’s music, Tor Hyams decided to found Kindie Fest, the first-ever family music conference, featuring panels and performances with the most influential personalities in the field. The first Kindie Fest, held in Brooklyn, NY in May 2009, was sold out. The event’s sophomore year is planned for Spring 2010. Added recognition came when Tor Hyams was named a judge for the audio category of the 2009 NAPPA awards, one of the world’s most prestigious honors for children’s products.

The future holds unlimited possibilities for Hyams. Upcoming projects include producing albums for the critically acclaimed, multi-award-winning children’s musician Frances England and the hugely popular kids’ band Lunch Money.

Kids BAFTAs Awarded

2009-12-02T23:33:00.003-05:00

Sunday night in London the BAFTAs were awarded, and it deserves reposting here on Red Balloon. Go here for a full list of nominees and winners. Among highlights: Coraline, which I finally saw last week during Henry Selick's New York publicity tour, won best film; The Penguins of Madagascar beat Phineas and Ferb for best international (i.e. non-British) television programme; Nick Jr. (UK?) beat both CBeebies and the CBBC for channel of the year; Bookaboo, which I wish were here in the States ever since seeing puppet models over a year ago, won best preschool live action; Ben and Holly's Little Kingdom won best preschool animation and proco Astley Baker Davies won best independent production company of the year (my family used to be Astleys until about two-hundred years ago); Kindle Entertainment got a few wins such as Helen Blakeman best writer for Dustbin Baby and the Big and Small website for best interactive (those two are seen above). Makes me anxious for The Shiver Sisters and whatever else is coming out of that studio.

It's all more than enough to make me long for a crepe at Westminster Bridge (though good old New York will have to do for now). Congratulations to all the winners. Consumers (parents) on both sides of the Atlantic would be well advised to check out all the nominees they can--there's a ton of stuff here I was unaware of that just looks fantastic.

The New Parents in Kids' Lit

2009-11-28T15:30:00.002-05:00

Here's another article I've run across that's gotten swamped in my backlog. It's a New Yorker piece by Daniel Zalewski about how parents are depicted in today's picture books opposed to the classics of the past. Brief summary: stern and authoritative is out, bumbling and befuddled is in. I wonder if such findings are statistically significant, but as I browse titles in my head I see that Zalewski is probably on to something. I just hope it doesn't reflect too accurately how I myself teach and discipline my daughter. But either way I'm sure the kids will turn out all right, and the new trend makes for some great new characters, like Ian Falconer's Olivia and her wonderful family.

Jaroo -- Cookie Jar Launches Online Kids' TV

2009-11-24T21:57:00.004-05:00

So, my plans--or hopes, really--to write three or four long essays about Sesame Street this month have been squelched by, well, actual work. There might be more to come, but for now I'll continue the theme of Canadian television I got into last week.

If things are moving and shaking in broadcast and cable television, the realm of the not-so-distant future is of course online television. The big news in November was therefore the launch of Jaroo, an online station sponsored by Cookie Jar. At the moment, in its beta stage, the website features all Cookie Jar material, but that's not a bad library, especially after their purchase of DIC Entertainment last year. From classics like Inspector Gadget and Paddington Bear to more recent fare, there should already be something for every kid, and negotiations are evidently underway to carry material from other providers. Check out this article by Paul Bond in Ad Week.

The State of Children's TV in Canada

2009-11-21T13:12:00.002-05:00

If that's the kind of thing that interests you, then check out this article by Kate Calder about the Children, Youth and Media Conference held in Toronto Thursday. Interesting stuff.

Where Gossip Girl Comes From

2009-11-16T20:32:00.003-05:00

I feel like I've been incredibly behind in blog posts--and everything else--since the whirlwind of MIP in October. Here, for instance, is a New Yorker profile of Alloy Entertainment, the midtown teen media company responsible for such fare as the television version of Gossip Girl, the cast of which is seen here.

The article, by Rebecca Mead, ran in the October 19 issue, meaning that I'm a full month behind here. You can read a long abstract, but a digital subscription is required for the full text. It's worth digging up, though, for those interested in teen literature and television; I don't think the profile was biased in any direction, but it does take a critical look at the kind of story factory environment that produces a lot of kids' and teens' entertainment. We're somewhat used to that in publishing--where certain houses commission authors to fulfill projects according to their preexisting specs--but moving the formula into television and, now, feature films, seems to be a new creature than we've seen in the past. Creation by formula isn't always anathema to art, and heaven knows Gossip Girl is popular enough, but it's worthwhile for those of us interested in the quality and artistic merit of youth media to examine how this production model will impact future shows and books. That model will probably prove more pervasive and influential over the next five to seven years than the Twilight phenomenon or anything else, except interactivity (which is a subject for a different post). If you're interested, Alloy's website is here.

Sesame Street's 40th Celebrations

2009-11-12T00:44:00.002-05:00

Here's the clip of Michelle Obama on Sesame Street a little while ago. I'm not sure what day it aired on television, but Sesame Workshop has connected it at least indirectly with their jubilee celebrations. There's certainly a lot of buzz going on around Lincoln Center and the Kaufman Astoria Studios.

It's nice that this isn't just peripheral to Mrs. Obama's agenda--she's been promoting gardening and health since her husband took office--and that it's not really just a "kiddy" issue: gardening dovetails into issues of economic self-sufficiency, environmental stewardship, personal responsibility (teaching kids to work), and of course health.

But more to the point of the anniversary celebrations on the 10th is this statement from the show's co-creator Joan Ganz Cooney and various actors including puppeteers. The other day I posted Big Bird's rendition of "It's Not Easy Being Green" at Jim Henson's memorial service to reference Henson's contribution to the show, but to be accurate it was not his brainchild. It came from Cooney and Ralph Rogers, who passed away in 1997. I've got a lot more to say about the origin and legacy of the show, but I'll forebear from rambling for now. Kudos to everyone who's been involved over the years, from Cooney, Henson, and Rogers all the way down to the Teeny Little Super Guy.

Happy Birthday, Sesame Street

2009-11-10T00:23:00.003-05:00

Something Sweet from King Pajama

2009-11-09T19:49:00.003-05:00

A few months ago a new kids' rock album, "Something Sweet," was released by the new group King Pajama, based here in New York. I've only had the time to listen to one of the tracks (apologies to the band) but it sounded pretty cool and funky and it already earned a 2009 Parents' Choice Award; the whole album is definitely worth checking out, and I hope to see--and hear--more from them in the future. Here's their website and here's the text of a press release:

A King is Born…
Since its release in the summer of 2009, King Pajama’s award winning, critically acclaimed, debut album Something Sweet has received the highest praise. The album’s unique, piano-driven sound includes rock, funk, jazz, blues, pop and bossa nova. Whimsical, humorous and moving songs appeal to children but are sophisticated enough to keep adults enticed. Song themes include the unbridled joy of eating ice cream in “Chocolate Ice Cream”, the mythic origins of sleepwear in “King Pajama”, the passage of time in “Time Goes” and the difficulty of dividing the world into neat categories in “Some Pieces”. Without a doubt, Something Sweet is a fun, musically eclectic journey through the magic of the everyday.

When composer and pianist Jason Blechman was downsized from his day job as a corporate attorney, he seized the opportunity to pursue his long-time dream of creating children’s music. With the help of his wife Jena, a school psychologist and former elementary school teacher, he composed a catalog of catchy but timeless songs. Through their music, the pair hoped to expose children to different musical styles, foster a love of music at a young age, and inspire conversations about music between children and parents. When accomplished vocalist and music producer Nina Zeitlin added her talent and experience in educational music, King Pajama was born.

King Pajama’s Crew…
Jason Blechman is a pianist, composer and attorney with a deep love of ice cream. He has a B.A. in Biological Basis of Behavior from the University of Pennsylvania and a J.D. from New York University School of Law.

Nina Zeitlin is an established Brooklyn-based singer/composer/producer. In addition to her multi-genre, multi-media work in independent and commercial music, she also has extensive experience creating music as an educational tool. Her songs have been featured on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, NBC’s Nightly News, and CBS News. Nina has had original songs released by a number of international record labels and publishers and she performs at venues all over the New York area. She is a graduate of Wesleyan University where she studied music and sociology.

Jena Blechman is a school psychologist at a public school in Brooklyn, New York. She has a P.D. in school psychology from Fordham University and an M.A. in Education from Claremont Graduate University with an emphasis on teaching culturally diverse students. Jena was an elementary school teacher in public and private schools in Los Angeles for five years.

Sesame Street in England

2009-11-07T10:52:00.002-05:00

Tom Geoghegan and Megan Lane of the BBC wrote a nice little article yesterday about the storied history of Sesame Street in the United Kingdom. It's quite interesting and you can read it here.

Sesame Street Month on Red Balloon (aka Orange Oscar)

2009-11-04T19:45:00.004-05:00

That's right, Sesame Street is turning forty a week from tomorrow (Nov. 10), and to celebrate I'll be posting thoughts and videos all month (or trying to!). To start us off I thought I'd hearken back to its 1969 origins with some fun videos. And what better one to start with than the original orange Oscar? He's singing "I Love Trash," a song I knew as a kid but had no idea dated from so far back in the series. The performance then as always was by the great Carroll Spinney, who also plays Big Bird and is one of the great puppeteers of the last four decades.

Sid and Elmo on Swine Flu

2009-11-03T20:22:00.002-05:00

Happy election day, everyone. Tonight Loretta and I had fun voting for "Mr. Blueberry" for a third term as mayor (even though I secretly had her pull the lever for someone else). At any rate, my friend Stephen sent me a YouTube video today of Sid the Science Kid singing a promotional song about the H1N1 vaccine. So in today's spirit of public service I thought I'd pass that along, leaving it up to you to decide if it's completely helpful or a little bit on the creepy side. If kids are scared of shots I think things like this will generally help. I thought I'd throw some Elmo in too--it looks like Kathleen Sebelius was right about his sneezing abilities.

Happy Halloween with Casper!

2009-10-31T00:04:00.002-04:00

Here are some Casper the Friendly Ghost classics to enjoy the holiday with (presented in chronological order). Happy 60th birthday this year, Casper!

They Call Him Mellow Yellow: Gustafer Yellowgold

2009-10-27T00:04:00.011-04:00

If you're like me you may not know the name Gustafer Yellowgold but you might just recognize his face:

He is a curious little pointy-headed fellow from the sun, come here to Earth (specifically Minnesota) to hang out with his pet eel, the dragon who lives in his fireplace, and a flightless pterodactyl with a keen fashion sense. On a more prosaic level, he's the creation of musician/illustrator Morgan Taylor, based in Brooklyn here in New York City. Taylor came up with the concept in 2005 as a means to create narrative-based multimedia experiences for his live concerts. In these performances he sings and plays with the animation projected up on a screen, giving the kids multiple avenues to get into Gustafer's world (and live music!). Gustafer has since released three CD/DVD compilations: Gustafer Yellowgold's Wide Wild World, Gustafer Yellowgold's Have You Never Been Mellow?, and this year's Gustafer Yellowgold's Mellow Fever. There is a theme running through the titles, as these little films--essentially music videos--and the accompanying tunes are certainly mellow. The quality of the artwork and the musicianship is high, reflecting what I believe to be a general upward trend in the children's music industry, yet it's among the products that aim to let kids sit back and chill more than hop up and dance.

Here's what a recent publicity release said about Taylor and Gustafer, including blurbs from several major-market publications:

"Named “Best Kids’ Performer 2008” by New York Magazine, Morgan Taylor developed the Gustafer Yellowgold experience as equal parts pop rock concert and minimally animated movie. A natural storyteller with a comedic bent, Taylor has dreamed up a whole world of catchy and original story-songs about Gustafer (a friendly creature who came to Earth from the sun), performed alongside a large screen displaying vividly colored animations with karaoke-style subtitles. Gustafer lives out an explorer’s life in a slightly psychedelic version of the Minnesota woods, where he resides in a cottage with his menagerie of friends, including a pet eel, a tuxedo-wearing pterodactyl, and a dragon named Asparagus who inhabits the fireplace and loves corn on the cob. For recreation, Gustafer enjoys jumping on cake.

"Since his creation in 2005, Gustafer Yellowgold has become an international phenomenon, praised by Newsweek as “full of great pop tunes and hand-drawn animation about a li’l fella from the sun.” The Los Angeles Times enthused, "Taylor’s whimsical, lightly psychedelic world forms an interesting bridge between adult and kids’ music.” The Washington Post declared, “He’s a star on stage and screen! … The mix of catchy tunes and offbeat stories has endeared Taylor, and Gustafer, to teenagers as well.” The Chicago Tribune wrote, “Gustafer Yellowgold has made kids’ music so cool that teenagers and ultra-hip bands such as Wilco want to get in on the act … a shiny blend of pop art and pop tunes.” Parenting magazine called Gustafer “The coolest little space invader since E.T. … a hip and trippy sunsation. Parental warning: You, too, will become hooked on the tunes.”"

As I recently watched through the three DVDs I could definitely see where such enthusiasm was coming from, relating back to the mellowness. As I've said before about other products, it's nice to turn down the volume sometimes (a lot of the time, actually) and let kids be quiet and even pensive. Here's a YouTube example of one of Gustafer's exploits. It's one of my favorites, the lead number from the new DVD, "Getting in a Treetop":

In terms of the music, you can hear how Taylor uses a high vocal register, acoustic instruments, and a light touch to create the "mellow" world of Gustafer (although this is one of the most upbeat numbers). It's not so laid back as to avoid a drum set, but it is sufficiently calm that most parents won't freak out if kids want to listen to it again and again--in fact, the property's crossover appeal to adults is one of its key selling points.

You can also see the limited 2D animation at work: this is the visual feel of all the videos. The quality of illustration is fantastic and the karaoke-like frame that allows for the stylish presentation of subtitles is beneficial for literate viewers who want to sing along. For the most part the limited animation (probably done on Flash or AfterEffects--I have no eye for that kind of thing) works well, melding with the light music, although after a while it does start to feel incomplete, like watching an animatic rather than a completed cartoon (compare it with the less-detailed rendering but very rich atmosphere of the Brian Vogan video I posted a few days ago). It's probably as much a budgetary decision as an artistic one, but I found myself hoping that Gustafer will actually move at 30 or even 15 frames per second in the near future, which could be fairly easily done with Flash.

So if the music is hummable and able to stand up to adult music and the visuals are well drawn and adequately rendered, where does Gustafer fall short? Most obviously in the lyrics and the overall tone of the videos. Things in his world are certainly mellow, but at times--quite frequently, actually--the tone slips across the line from the mellow to the morose. There is simply an inordinate amount of sadness, ennui, longing, and unfulfilled desires here. When I first got the DVDs i started watching Mellow Fever with Loretta, who is over 5 1/2 and therefore well within the target demographic. She enjoyed the upbeat theme song and the treetop song shown above, but the third number, "Sunpod," had a different effect. It shows how Gustafer chose to come from the sun to the earth and how his space pod breaks up on entering the atmosphere, preventing him from ever returning home. He's crying when he leaves, his family is crying too, and he's still crying when the song ends with him on earth--thus it should not have been surprising that Loretta was crying also. It was bedtime so in an effort to quickly cheer her up, show her that Gustafer likes his new home, I skipped through to some other songs with happy-sounding names, but I found nothing less disconsolate than that number. I remember getting only partway through "Sugar Boat," about a ferret who has a long-distance obsession with Gustafer (with strong inferences of homosexuality that Loretta fortunately missed) before Loretta was sobbing inconsolably: it was hard to get her to bed and she woke up three times that night in tears, having bad dreams. (And that's where I see the real connection to E.T., a film at which I cried my eyes out in the theater.) There is of course the complete possibility that my child is abnormally sensitive or that it was just a bad time of night to show this to her or that the vibe is completely different in a live performance, but as I went back through the other DVDs and started counting how many times a character was crying versus how many times a character was happy, the balance weighed strongly towards the former, even when it doesn't make any narrative sense, such as when a bee puts together a rock band (something that should be happy). Gustafer may be the only children's cartoon character seen reclining on a psychoanalyst's couch.

So that in a nutshell is where the concept seems to have steered off course. Children have to learn to deal with sadness, death, separation, and unfulfilled desires--it's part of maturation and is absolutely healthy. But they shouldn't be made to wallow in it song after song after song. It is definitely possible to have mellow music and mellow characters who also smile: Mr. Rogers is the epitome of this, and Blue's Clues brought quietness into the new millennium. I really have affection for Gustafer: I like the character, if not all the sidekicks, and I really like the music. I hope, therefore, that Taylor is able to add a sense of joy, or even fun or comedy, into the next edition. That's where a band like Milkshake excels, and Taylor doesn't have to mimic their sound sonically to capture that feeling in the lyrics. (I'm no musical expert, but the Mamas and the Papas are the first example that spring to mind of a group with a bit of that folksy feel--not pure folk like Peter, Paul, and Mary--that still maintain a sense of forward progression and optimism, while staying generally mellow.)

There is humor, particularly in the visuals. The characters are so outlandish that it's quite comical to look at them in different situations and outfits, even if the visual references to Titanic and other such material are lost on kids. And the new DVD has a very funny live-action pseudo-documentary about the actual existence of a Gustafer-like creature out in the Minnesota woods: the visual reference to the famous Sasquatch home movie is spot on, with just the right posture, gait, and turn of the head. Brilliant.

I'd also like to make a quick comment about the quote from the New York Times on the front of all three DVDs, which is a comparison of "Dr. Seuss meets 'Yellow Submarine'!" At first I thought this quite apt, especially from the tranquility of the drawings (Seuss) combined with some of the outlandish zaniness like a pterodactyl in a tuxedo (Submarine). After watching a bit though I've modified the analogy. Dr. Seuss, after all, had more than a little zing in him: his creations were frequently more strikingly original than the Blue Meanies, and he could be acerbic in his films and adult material. I definitely think that UPA's Gerald McBoing-Boing (1950), a Seuss creation, was a necessary step to get to George Dunning and Yellow Submarine in 1968. Not to harp too much on the minutiae of animation history, but rather than comparing Gustafer to Dunning's masterpiece (which with The Umbrellas of Cherbourg is one of my favorite musicals ever), it could be more apt to reference Sylvain Chomet and Belleville Rendezvous/The Triplets of Belleville. I say that just because of the strange mixture of optimism and pessimism in the film; I remember Chomet saying lots of people kept telling him to clean it up, take out the grotesque and offensive bits (like the Mickey Mouse-shaped feces floating in a toilet) and he said that those people just didn't understand the film he was making. So that can be likened to my suggesting that Gustafer be made brighter and happier to appeal more to preschoolers: it may just be that I haven't grasped the kind of product that Taylor is striving to make.

Still, in summary I must maintain that Gustafer has major thematic problems--especially for children that young--but still a lot to offer, particularly for parents whose kids take to the melancholy moments of life better than my daughter. The music and visuals are great, but for my taste the sheer volume of tears makes it a bit of a drag and parents should go in with their heads up. For those in New York City for whom this is not a problem or who already love Gustafer please be aware of a special performance on November 15 at the Jewish Museum on the Upper East Side. It will have a larger-than-usual ensemble with lots of material from the new album/disc. Information is available on the museum website.

Baby Einstein Issues Refunds

2009-10-26T23:03:00.003-04:00

Last Friday the New York Times reported on one of the strangest refunds in recent consumer protection history: the Baby Einstein Company, owned for several years now by Disney, will refund up to four DVDs per household, based on the fact that research shows that not only do the movies not benefit children but that watching any television of any type can be damaging for children under three. The refund is the closest thing we're likely to see to an admission from the industry that the product is dangerous. The decision came under the threat of a class action lawsuit prompted by the Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood, one of my permanent links in my blog roll.

Of course there are lots of parents out there who think that television is innocuous for kids under three. Remarkably people in the children's television industry, because they care so passionately about benefitting children, are some of the most cautious when it comes to screening things for their own kids. I'm much more discerning concerning quality than I was a few years ago before wading into this industry. And the consensus for infants is generally that it is completely detrimental. I believe that when Loretta was a baby we checked a Baby Einstein out of the library and I watched it more than she did, and we took it back and never felt we'd missed out on anything. Now with Isabelle (six weeks) we're simply going to adhere strictly to the no-television-before-2 1/2 rule. Spending time with kids at this age is so much more important than any visual media, no matter how good. And if you're really thirsting for something enriching, actual music, art, and poetry, besides the plethora of brilliant board books out there, are all readily available.

There's been a lot of online commentary on this "recall," but let me recommend Dade Hayes' book Anytime Playdate, which includes a lot of thought about media for kids this young and an extensive interview with the Baby Einstein's creator Julie-Aigner Clark. In fact, while I'm on the subject, rather than rag on Baby Einstein unfairly, because I think Clark's original intentions were good, let me include a forty-five minute video of an interview with Hayes introduced by David Kleeman of the Center for Children and Media (both of whom I met at Little Airplane last summer) from last year when the book was new. I haven't seen it all because of the length, but it looks good. Watch it here or on a larger screen on YouTube. With a lot of ranting going on out there right now it can be the kind of thing to put the Baby Einstein phenomenon in a rational perspective.

"That's How a Pumpkin Grows" by Brian Vogan

2009-10-24T12:47:00.002-04:00

With one week until Halloween I suppose I ought to turn my thoughts toward the autumnal and spooky. Last year I posted some video recommendations, for those interested in that, so this year I'm turning my attention to music. Specifically, a couple weeks ago Seattle-based children's musician Brian Vogan released a new music video of his song "That's How a Pumpkin Grows." It's from his debut CD "Little Songs"--a sophomore album will be out early next year--and was animated in marvelous multiplane 2D by Fashionbudda Studio, with direction and illustration by Alberto Cerriteno. I watched it with Loretta, and she particularly enjoys the pumpkin man running around in the background, as do I. Here's the video's YouTube page. Enjoy, and if you like it be sure to check out Brian's site and CD. Happy Halloween Week!

Star Wars Hitchcock Style

2009-10-19T21:05:00.006-04:00

About four minutes into last Friday’s new episode of Star Wars: The Clone Wars I started experiencing déjà vu (kind of like Jimmy Stewart in Vertigo). I said to my wife, “Hey, this is Hitchcock!” Specifically, the episode, “Senate Spy” written by Melinda Hsu, was a reworking, plot point by plot point, of Hitch’s 1946 masterpiece Notorious, even with, to my memory, quite a few shots quoting the original film—especially the final shot.

Of course, borrowing plots and making homages is a time-honored practice in the motion picture industry. Heck, the entire Star Wars franchise wouldn’t exist if it weren’t for George Lucas borrowing from Kurosawa’s Hidden Fortress. I’m currently reading veteran animation writer Jeffrey Scott’s 2003 book How to Write for Animation, and it gives allowance for such a procedure on page 36:

"You can take a familiar story and change its setting or its date or its characters, and make it fresh. For example, take Run Silent, Run Deep, the classic World War II film in which a sub captain (Clark Gable) is obsessed with the sinking of a Japanese destroyer that destroyed his previous vessel. Make it two starships, and it's a fresh idea....

"I borrowed an 'old' idea known as Raiders of the Lost Ark and changed the setting (to a basement) and the characters (to Kermit, Piggy, and Gonzo) and got a fresh idea that turned into 'Raiders of the Lost Basement' episode of Jim Henson's Muppet Babies."

What appears to be the case here is that Hsu is casting a bit broader net than Indiana Jones, reaching back into the classics of American spy thrillers to find new lightsaber-less directions to take the Clone Wars series: The episode centers around Padme and Anakin. The Jedi Council is wary of a spy in the Senate and asks Padme, who used to be involved with this fellow romantically, to act as a spy and determine if he is in fact in league with the Separatists (the bad guys). She rekindles their romance, to Anakin’s chagrin, and travels with him to another somewhat dodgy planet, with Anakin along as their pilot. There the Senator meets with his Separatist friends and reacquaints them with Padme. They, of course, decide to poison her for leverage over the Senator, to force a better deal with him. . On her way to dinner that night Padme receives the poison (in a cup delivered near the staircase), and then afterwards manages to find the Macguffin (Hitchcock’s word for the plot device, itself relatively unimportant, around which the narrative revolves), here a hologram plan of Count Dooku’s new droid foundry, all while Anakin watches pretty helplessly from the sidelines. She falls ill and the Senator confronts his Separatist compatriots, then eventually Anakin walks boldly into the palace and physically carries Padme away, visually challenging anyone to try to stop him. The Senator quickly gets the poison’s antidote and begs for them to take him along, but Anakin and Padme board their ship and leave him behind to face the Separatists who now believe he betrayed them.

Notorious stars Ingrid Bergman as the American daughter of a convicted Nazi and Cary Grant is the government agent who convinces her to enter espionage and infiltrate a group of her father’s former affiliates who have relocated to Brazil. The two fall in love (including one of film history’s most famous kisses), but Bergman is forced to initiate a romance with the character played by Claude Rains (this just a few years after their antagonistic turn in Casablanca). As Grant forces her deeper and deeper into her role, her nerves start to fray; she’s eventually forced to marry Rains in order to maintain the charade. Gradually the Nazis—Rains and his domineering mother, that is—start to suspect her and deliver her doses of poison, initially in a cup of milk brought up a long stairway to her room. (Hitchcock actually put a light inside the milk, for added emphasis.) But she manages to find the Macguffin, during a dinner party, which happens to be some enriched uranium, as I recall, cleverly disguised in wine bottles. Long story short she gets sicker and sicker until Grant barges into the mansion, walks up that long staircase, picks her up, and walks back down, visually challenging anyone to stop him. Rains begs for them to take him along, but they drive off, leaving him to the mercy the Nazis who stand behind him and now know his indiscretion.

Obviously, it’s a direct homage, done quite on purpose. As Catherine Taber, the actress who plays Padme, says, “Dave actually had me watch Notorious before we started working on ‘Senate Spy.’ He wanted me to see the way the pressure builds—especially when love is involved.” (Read the whole short interview here.) In fact, in this second season all of the Clone Wars storylines will apparently be branching out into new areas. Read this interview with supervising director Dave Filoni for more insight about that, but the basic idea is that the folks at Lucasfilm want to show more than just Anakin waving his lightsaber around, so there will be more stories about politics, more about the clones, more about other Jedi we haven’t seen as much of. Which is all pretty heartening.

The entire enterprise to broaden The Clone Wars’ storylines is quite encouraging, but you have to be wary when taking your source from something as exquisitely done as Notorious. For instance, both productions feature a shot of the heroine holding the key to the Macguffin behind their backs—literally a key for Ingrid Bergman, an electronic memory device for Padme Amidala—but Hitchcock’s shot is an immense indoor crane move down several stories, over a crowded ballroom, ending in a close-up on Bergman’s hand; because of the technical problems, such as maintaining focus, that it surmounted and its sheer beauty, it’s one of the more famous shots in cinema. Clone Wars, by contrast, references it in a simple cutaway close-up, close enough to bring the original to mind but prosaic enough that it necessarily disappoints. While that’s a visual/aesthetic issue, there are also problems with the narrative proper, particularly the final two minutes. As Anakin carries Padme down the steps the Senator easily obtains the antidote by merely flashing a blaster, a development the Separatists should have anticipated: as it is, it seems they capitulate a little too easily. Second, it feels much less organic for Anakin to leave his romantic rival there on the launching pad than it was for Cary Grant to refuse Claude Rains a ride. In that moment Anakin comes across as more mean spirited and downright cruel than necessary, as his response was not as motivated as Grant’s was. It was only much later that I remembered that, oh yeah, he is Darth Vader. It just didn’t come across as a “Premonition of Darth Vader” moment in the script.

That said, there is a great deal to say positively about this production. It’s admirable when show runners are going to take a risk like this, in this case making a low-key personal drama rather than a high-stakes and high-action battle scene like most Star Wars fans expect. Subverting the generic expectations here is more risky and hence more rewarding than in something like Muppet Babies appropriating Indiana Jones. Now, I’m all for lightsaber duels, but it’s encouraging to envision what other detours are in store this season. I don’t know that we’ll see blazing lightsabers on the face of Mount Rushmore, but one can only hope that it might be nearly as good.

Wild Things

2009-10-17T06:28:00.009-04:00

Well, as everyone at all interested in children's film knows by now, Spike Jonze's adaptation of Maurice Sendak's Where the Wild Things Are is finally--finally--in theaters. It was a long and turbulent process, as has been well documented, but the result looks worth it. I haven't seen the film yet, so I can't really comment on it personally (I haven't even seen Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs yet!), but this is a book that has a lot of resonance for me. I loved it as a child, enough so that in my senior year of high school I proposed it as the theme for our week-long homecoming celebrations and wound up drawing eight-foot pictures of all the creatures to adorn the hallways and editing my first videos of clips of various "wild things" (wildlife films, Muppets, etc.) to the song by the same name by the Troggs. Suffice it to say that I gained new respect for Sendak's artistic abilities, something that has quintupled since I started really getting into book illustrations.

Anyway, the film. It's getting mixed reviews and the main complaint seems to be that it's not exactly for kids, i.e. that it's too scary or morose. I'm glad that--evidently--Jonze and co-writer novelist Dave Eggers did not drag Max and his friends through the psychoanalytical wringer like, for instance, Ron Howard did with the Grinch a few years ago, ruining that film. What we have, according to Jonze, Sendak, and everyone involved is a movie about childhood, one that doesn't soften the blows or tie up all the loose ends, one that can be kind of dark but which is appropriate anyway, because childhood is kind of dark sometimes. As a parent of a young-ish child I'm cautious about whether it would be appropriate for her, therefore, but for anyone over six or seven I think it would most likely be a great experience.

Anyway, lots of reviews and articles are out there about it, but I'll link to a few to avoid making people google it themselves. There's a mix here between praise and condemnation--I guess viewers will just have to figure it out themselves.

Roger Moore at the Orlando Sentinel

Sharon Eberson at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (on Sendak himself)

Reuters that was right there on Yahoo's homepage

Saki Knafo at the New York Times on the production

Patricia Cohen at the New York Times on Sendak turning eighty last year

And finally Manohla Dargis at the Times with the actual review

Frank James at NPR reviewing the reviews (with links of his own)

Kenneth Turan at the Los Angeles Times basically giving it a thumbs down

And, placing the best last, David Denby's not-so-positive review at the the New Yorker, which they thankfully put online and which has garnered, I think, the most discussion--at least it has in my own little circle. Plus I like the picture. But besides reading every New Yorker review for the past two years I've been reading old Pauline Kael reviews as well, and I just think The New Yorker is a fun place to briefly talk about film.

Here, by the way, is Sendak, who is fiercely defending Jonze's film.

And here is Jonze, trying to get one of his recalcitrant actors into character.

Now, speaking of The New Yorker, for New Yorkers I've saved the best little bit until last (even better than Denby's review). There are still a couple weeks left (through November 1) in which to see Sendak's original illustrations on display at the Morgan Library. This is worth going to because it's not just the finished illustrations in the book but earlier drawings and sketches as well, plus drafts of the story. It's an amazing opportunity that everyone here in the city should rush to. (Plus there's some William Blake there to boot!) Check it out on the Morgan's website. Here are two examples.

More Diary of a Wimpy Kid

2009-10-14T22:05:00.002-04:00

If you've been avoiding young adult literature or galavanting off to Cannes to learn more about kids' TV, then you may have missed the release on Monday, October 12, of the latest book in the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series by Jeff Kinney. In it Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon is back at it, getting bullied at school, slacking around the house, and finding ways to avoid doing his cryptology homework. Oh wait, that's actually Greg Heffley--got some wires crossed. But the kind of anti-drama Kinney goes in for should actually be much more grippingly dramatic than learning that the Washington Monument is--gasp--actually a giant phallic symbol. If you're going to read any new book this fall, you'd do best to start with this one, whatever your age.

I of course was one of those folks not aware the new book, number four in the series and subtitled Dog Days, until yesterday; I certainly didn't know a film version was in the works until this very moment. So with apologies I'd like to now share some reviews and things I've come across, starting with one on the same page of yesterday's Times that I cited yesterday.

Comic Mix on the film

Jeff Kinney's blog

And then the books' official website

Digital Kids and Homework

2009-10-13T17:17:00.002-04:00

The New York Times science section ran an interesting little article today about the ubiquity of digital media in kids' and teenagers' lives and how that affects things like homework and multitasking. It's a good perspective on a topic all parents and industry peeps are intensely aware of. You can read it here.

WordWorld's iPhone App

2009-10-12T23:30:00.002-04:00

I'm still trying to catch up on all my emails and blog post topics, but here's a note I received from the good folks at WordWorld clear back on September 24. Enjoy!

"It's time to Build-a-Word! WordWorld is thrilled to announce our first iPhone application, now available in Apple's iTunes store.

"Children will watch spellbound as the letters D-O-G transform into Dog and a lovable WordFriend from the PBS series WordWorld jumps to life. Words magically "morph" into animated WordFriends DOG, DUCK, PIG, ANT, FROG, SHEEP, BUG, COW, CAT and BEE and engage children to spell and read.

"This application is based on the Emmy Award-winning PBS television show. WordWorld has been demonstrated by a Department of Education-funded study to improve early literacy skills including: print awareness, letter knowledge and comprehension."

The app costs $3 and can be found through the iTunes store or through a link on the show's website. Episodes are also available for purchase.

Astro Boy Advanced Screening

2009-10-10T22:00:00.004-04:00

The New York International Children's Film Festival is sponsoring two advanced screenings of Astro Boy next weekend, with director David Bowers appearing for a Q&A session on both Saturday and Sunday (although the latter is apparently already sold out). For more information check out the NYICFF website, and all filmmakers should be aware that they're already accepting submissions for next year's festival. As for Astro Boy, which is a historic anime property now getting made in CGI, please be aware it's PG and has some fighting, but nothing beyond an Incredibles level. Watch this clip!

More MIP

2009-10-09T18:38:00.002-04:00

Here are a couple other thoughts about what went on at MIP Jr. and MIPCOM:

Thoughts on Arab children's television.

"What kids' buyers are looking for"

WordWorld teaches ESL in France.

The Simpsons is twenty.

And my personal favorite, because it's so portentous of things to come, some thoughts from Brian Goldner the new CEO of Hasbro's TV station.

MIP Junior 2009

2009-10-07T20:41:00.004-04:00

As I believe I mentioned in previous posts, this past weekend was the MIP Junior marketplace for children’s television in Cannes, France. The larger market MIPCOM, which includes adult programming as well, is ongoing through the end of this week, but I was only there for the two days of child-centric activity and would like to give some thoughts and summaries.

The event takes place entirely at the Carlton Hotel (seen here), one of the premiere luxury hotels along the Mediterranean waterfront. (I stayed at the Ibis, by the way; it’s for a much better price and is only about ten minutes from the Carlton—it’s near the train station—and the room was very nice with free Internet. In case you’re planning on going to the festival in May or anything.) It’s therefore very small, with about 900 participants, and it was great to bump into people and be up close with all the creators of children’s television throughout the globe. I was able to overhear juicy bits like one executive director of a major children’s channel (I won’t say which) say The Hive, a much buzzed about new preschool show about a family of bees, is no good at all, while others were praising other shows I hadn’t yet heard of. Those and all the great meetings I was able to set up myself were the plusses, but the negatives were the fact that I had to throw together my schedule so quickly (given the unexpected early birth of my daughter which allowed me to go) and the market-centered nature of the event. It’s definitely about the buying and selling of programs, so anyone going to network and advertise their own services as I did is one step further removed from the purpose of the conference than at a event like KidScreen here in New York in Februaries. MIP is geared to the buying and selling, which is good if you’re buying or selling, but makes it that much more difficult to maneuver if you’re not. That said, there were amazing people there, great shows on display, and plethora of opportunities to trade writing, animation, and other services. Nowhere else would I be able to meet with people from Dubai, Mumbai, Seoul, Ottowa, Quebec City, Melbourne, Brighton, Regina, Brasilia, Bangalore, Brussels, Shanghai, London, and even the exotic Cleveland. That kind of international connectivity is priceless.

At any rate, there weren’t very many conference sessions, but even so I wasn’t able to attend all of them, particularly those on licensing. But the three or four sessions I did get into offered quite a bit to think about. Allow me to skim through my notes and pull out some points from the various presentations:

• Despite the plethora of kids’ programming that’s out there, there are going to be vacuums for content in certain markets. For instance, ABC in Australia is vastly expanding its preschool hours; Disney still needs material for XD, which has just about finished its global roll out; and where is all the boys’ action programming going to come from now that Disney bought Marvel? (Answer: it will come from new independent producers who want to do superhero cartoons, etc.) Oh, and China. There’s practically more money and potential viewers in China than in all other markets combined.

• All broadcasters agree that television is still more important than Internet or interactivity. Make sure your concepts are good for television and then worry about interactive content later. (Let online extend the viewing experience, rather than vice versa.)

• Cartoon Network (Adina Pitt, actually) suggests creating a “backdoor pilot” like a short film, interstitial, or miniseries, a method which really, incidentally, seems to work for Nickelodeon; perhaps CN as well.

• Do not try to sell anime to Japan. They do not want it. (They have enough.)

• Despite what I said about television as the main medium, its revenue stream is dying so eventually “broadcasters” will have to get out of that mindset. (Okay, that point’s not exactly breaking news.)

• Michel Mol of Netherlands Public Broadcasting gave a really good presentation about online privacy and protection for tweens, including one of the only good definitions I’ve ever heard of what a “tween” is, which he did by relating it to parents and freedom vs. control/protection: Tweens are that age group that is no longer completely protected and sheltered by parents but which is not yet competent enough to be left completely out on their own. At age eight kids are still basically taken everywhere by their parents (at least in big cities like this one), told what to do and with whom, etc., but by age twelve they are riding the bus or their bikes themselves, doing activities their parents don’t know about, etc. (hopefully by this age the parents have taught the kids to do good activities). So tweens, those 9- and 10-year-olds, are those who need marginal guidance to learn how to navigate things (the neighborhood, the Internet) for themselves. “They are no longer completely supervised, but are not yet equipped to on their own.” So the bulk of Michel’s presentation was about how his company is instigating higher tech technology to track and protect kids on the Internet, especially social networking sites, so that they can’t fudge their age, get around the rules, etc. This will be very important for children’s safetly online. (Because, yes, “tweens” are really just older children.)

• Go to Cartoon Network’s site and find the game creators for Star Wars, Batman, and Ben 10. They sound fun.

• Shifting gears to the “Next Big Hit” session, don’t look forward for one major hit like SpongeBob or The Simpsons: instead look for a series of medium-sized hits. Given the democratic nature of modern media that is the way future hits will be manifested. (Which reminds me of music: there will be no more super platinum albums anymore because people are downloading only tracks they want, not whole albums.)

• Look for Zing Zillas on the CBBC soon: it’s the Beeb’s first musical children’s show (3rd & Bird is Little Airplane.)

• Disney Channel UK is looking for an animated show that will fit between Hannah Montana and The Wizards of Waverly Place. Well, at least I understood “animated,” but I bet they’d take live-action and that Disney-Burbank would be interested too.

• Another news flash: Given evolving media we’re going to see a breakdown in the traditional broadcaster/producer/distributor relationship. New hits and new series will come out of any and everywhere and just well may “broadcast” any and everywhere.

I guess that’s about it. Sorry for the dearth on marketing and licensing information, which is half of what was going on there. Thanks to everyone who met with me and introduced me to other people, and (still) anyone interested in a writer for your show shoot me an email!

Barry Louis Polisar Tribute Album

2009-09-29T22:51:00.003-04:00

I'm leaving for MIP Jr. in a little over a day so I'm definitely feeling the crunch sending emails, writing one-sheets, and all that fun stuff, but I've been remiss in not passing along a press release from none other than children's singer/author Barry Louis Polisar, who's been doing his wonderful thing since about when I was born but who has come to renewed prominence since having his music featured in Juno a couple years ago.

His work deserves serious attention and analysis, but I'm afraid at the moment all I can do is pass along the notice unedited. I hope that suffices for now because the important news is that this new album is coming out. For those who are truly intrigued please visit www.barrylou.com; on that site you can listen to his music as well.

So here goes:

"We're Not Kidding: A Tribute to Barry Louis Polisar" to Release this Fall

Children's musician and author Barry Louis Polisar achieved "overnight" success and fame in 2008 when his 30 year old song "All I Want is You" was featured in the opening credits of the film JUNO. Now indie musicians from around the world are coming together on a two-CD album, "We're Not Kidding: A Tribute to Barry Louis Polisar," to be released this fall.

Polisar has performed concerts -- songs for children and smart adults -- at schools and libraries since 1975. Aaron Cohen, lead singer of The Radioactive Chicken Heads, an indie punk rock band from Los Angeles, grew up on Polisar’s music. The group has recorded their own versions of Barry's songs for years. Cohen is putting together recordings of 45 different singers and musicians from around the world doing covers of 60 Polisar songs.

Though originally created as children's songs, Polisar’s music will be played in genres as diverse as hip-hop, folk, jazz and rock. Three totally different versions of "All I Want is You" from JUNO are featured, including one performed in French from a singer from Brittany. There is even a Klezmer version of Barry's song "Don't Put Your Finger Up Your Nose" sung entirely in Yiddish.

A number of the tribute album songs are already posted on Polisar’s web site: http://www.barrylou.com/tributeAlbum.html

"The best part for me," Polisar says, "is that most of these artists had my albums as kids and many claim me as an early influence. I can't begin to tell you what that means to me... and how deeply that touches my soul."

Polisar’s performance of his song during the animated opening of JUNO has reunited him with fans who had his vinyl recordings as kids. The soundtrack to JUNO has sold over a million copies, won a Grammy award, and earned Barry a lifetime achievement award from the Children's Music Web.

For additional information, contact Aaron Cohen or Barry Louis Polisar at . . . Barrylou@Barrylou.com

Milton Meltzer

2009-09-28T11:39:00.004-04:00

Milton Meltzer was one of the most important and prolific nonfiction children's authors of the past half century; he died last Saturday, the 19th, at home here in Manhattan; he was a Worcester native, though, and evidently lived and wrote in Massachussets a while as an adult.

Here are the obituaries from the New York Times, the Worcester Polytechnic Institute, and the School Library Journal. Also, here's a fascinating interview I found about his time as a young writer with the WPA during the Depression (from the website History Matters). This isn't exactly about his later children's writing, but it does show where he came from as a progressive and how and why he chose to write about organized labor, civil rights, and similar topics for children and youth.

Sergei Mikhalkov

2009-09-24T21:43:00.004-04:00

On August 27 Russian poet, children's author, and patriot Sergei Mikhalkov died. He's a figure I admittedly hadn't encountered before, but in surveying his work now it appears he is primarily known for two seemingly divergent strains of work: writing multiple versions of the Soviet national anthem and many books and poems for the children of Russia. His Uncle Styopa character, a policeman designed to instill respect for rule of law, was particularly beloved. Such a terse description makes it sound like another bland foray into socialist realism, but the character and Mikhalkov's verses were apparently quite charming and beloved. If anyone knows about English translations I'd love to hear about it.

Here's the notice I received in my SCBWI online newsletter:

"Sergei Mikhalkov, an author favored by Stalin who wrote the lyrics for the Soviet and Russian national anthems, has died at age 96. In 2005, he received a state award for "literary and social achievements, " personally handed to him by Vladimir Putin.

"Mikhalkov also received numerous state awards for his children's books, film scripts, plays and fiction. He churned out adaptations of Russian and European classics—including Mark Twain's "The Prince and the Pauper"—transforming them according to Politburo-prescribe d ideological recipes.

"Millions of Russians can recite lines from his other famous work—the 1935 children's poem "Uncle Styopa," about an unusually tall police officer—which is still taught in Russian kindergartens and primary schools.

"Mikhalkov's survivors include: his physicist wife Yulia Subbotina, his son Nikita who won an Academy Award for the 1994 film "Burnt by the Sun," his other son Andrei Konchalovsky who has made a career as a Hollywood director and whose films include the Oscar-nominated "Runaway Train," ten grandchildren, and eight great-grandchildren."

Here's an obituary from the Daily Telegraph.

Another from the Guardian.

And of course the Moscow News.

New Breakfast Block on Nick Jr. UK

2009-09-16T10:29:00.002-04:00

On October 5th at 7 a.m. Greenwich Time Nick Jr. UK will be launching a new block of programming called Wake Up World. This KidScreen article by Emily Claire Afan has all the details, particularly about the two-minute interstitials that will be included with the longer programming. The past two weeks I've been trying to tweak out the appropriate running time for an interstitial with a production company in Wisconsin, so I'd love to be able to see these super-short ones here in the States. Alas, it's not meant to be...but I hope readers/viewers in the United Kingdom enjoy this new block of programmes!