Show of the week: The Super Heroes Of Nature

Aimed at 4- to 10-year-olds and families, this children’s hybrid animation opens up the natural world for young viewers with a deep dive into the lives of organisms both large and small.

Written by Charlotte Schmidt, the 30 x 3-minute series uses playful metaphors and references to popular culture, to take an often funny and humorous look at biodiversity.

Each episode is built around an animal and their environment and, as Emmanuèle Pétry Sirvin, producer & head of international at Dandelooo, explains, the series covers a range of creatures.

“There are many animals and organisms that feature in this fascinating show such as a sea cucumber that can poison a shark, a bird that chirps like a chainsaw, an ant that kills a cow, the blob which appears like scrambled eggs but has nothing to do with any living creature we know, a lizard which makes babies on its own for example. And who knew that octopuses have nine brains? Or that dolphins see with their ears?”

The series digs into biological notions such as animal intelligence, social behaviours, reproduction and the roles of the cells or the immune system.
It uses a blend of filmed archives and animation to tell its stories, which Sirvin says is well-suited to the format, with the footage identifying the animal and their environment, while the animation illustrate biological or behavioural phenomena.

“This is where the very definition of animation becomes clear. Charlotte Schmidt’s graphic style – simple and uncluttered – focuses on revealing what is essential and stimulates our knowledge and understanding. The representation of ‘super powers’ is then illustrated before our eyes. The dialogue and response between illustrations and filmed reality create didactic and rhythmic visual writing which educates and entertains.”

Sirvin adds the series will open kids eyes to “fascinating phenomena about the tiniest of creatures which are typically not seen or in sight in their daily lives.
“Kids will learn and understand how they can relate to invisible characters in nature and therefore will want to help and protect them.”

The series has already secured a number of pre-sales in both Europe and North America and is set to be be delivered for broadcast in November 2023.

Producers: Moonworks Productions & Amopix Studios
Distributor: Dandelooo
Broadcasters: TV5 Monde, Arte Editions, Noozy (France), RTS (Switzerland), Télé-Québec (Canada)
Logline: Hybrid kids series exploring the natural world through animation and archive footage to educate young viewers about the incredible world around them