U.K. Toon Shops Go Green for Disney Channel

Tuesday, October 07, 2008
By: Ryan Ball

Playhouse Disney, Disney Channel’s preschool programming block, has recruited six leading U.K. production houses to develop a series of short animated films that help teach preschoolers about the environment. The interstitials created by Bermuda Shorts, Artillery, Mr & Mrs Smith, Fold7, Studio AKA and Partinzan Lab will be part of Playhouse Disney’s ongoing “Playing for the Planet” campaign, which aims to help the next generation of preschoolers to grow up green.

Each production house was asked to take a complex environmental issue and reduce it to a single idea or example that a preschooler could easily understand. The spots empower kids by illustrating the simple actions that they can take by themselves or with their families, and shows them the positive impact they can have on the environment.

Simon Amster, creative director for Disney Channels U.K,. comments, “We encouraged a uniquely collaborative approach to the project by bringing all the production companies together to share creative ideas from the outset. The result is a variety of styles but shared creative visions and high production values. We are delighted with the results.”

Employing a range of techniques from animation to puppetry, the interstitials each focus on a specific environmental theme: saving water, recycling, reducing pollution, preserving nature, saving energy and spreading the green message. This second series of “Playing for the Planet” shorts from Playhouse Disney will air on Disney Channel in November.

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