Blue Zoo Animation Studio

Last updated
Blue Zoo Animation Studio
Industry Animation
TV Production
Advertising
Founded2000 [1]
FounderOli Hyatt
Adam Shaw
Tom Box
Headquarters
Website www.blue-zoo.co.uk

Blue Zoo Animation Studio is a British animation studio known for producing children's television series, commercials and short films. Founded in 2000 by Oli Hyatt, Adam Shaw, and Tom Box from Bournemouth University, [1] the studio has gone on to win numerous BAFTAs and in 2021 won two Daytime Emmy awards. They have also previously won the Best Places to Work in TV survey by Broadcast and Best Companies Group.

Contents

Some of the more well-known children's shows the studio has produced are Alphablocks , Numberblocks , Digby Dragon, Miffy's Adventures Big and Small, The Adventures of Paddington, and It's Pony.

The company operates from a studio in Fitzrovia, London, where they have a team of over 200 artists. It later expanded to a second studio, adjacent to its main studio, that's 'dedicated to episodic 2D animation.' [2] In August 2021, it was announced that they would be opening a new hub in Brighton, initially partnering with Plug-In Media on a new 2D pre-school action comedy series. [3]

In 2021, the company became the first major animation studio in the world to achieve B Corp certification. [4]

List of long form productions

List of awards and accolades

YearAwardCategoryNominee(s)ResultRef.
2006 Children's BAFTA Animation Those Scurvy Rascals Nominated
2008Children's BAFTAShort FormStitch Up ShowdownNominated
2009Children's BAFTAShort FormMy Favourite Bedtime StoryNominated
2009Children's BAFTABreakthrough TalentAdam ShawWon
2010Children's BAFTALearning - PrimaryAlphablocksNominated
2010Children's BAFTAShort FormMy Favourite Bedtime StoryWon
2012Children's BAFTAPre-School Animation Tree Fu Tom Nominated
2012Children's BAFTAIndependent Production CompanyBlue Zoo Animation StudioWon
2014Children's BAFTAShort FormGumball SongNominated
2014Children's BAFTAIndependent Production CompanyBlue Zoo Animation StudioNominated
2016Children's BAFTAIndependent Production CompanyBlue Zoo Animation StudioNominated
2017Children's BAFTALearning Numberblocks Nominated
2017Children's BAFTAIndependent Production CompanyBlue Zoo Animation StudioWon
2018 BAFTA Films Short FilmMamoonNominated
2019Children's BAFTAPre-School Animation Digby Dragon Nominated
2019Children's BAFTAPre-School AnimationNumberblocksWon
2020 Annies Best TV/Media - Preschool The Adventures of Paddington Won
2020AnniesBest Voice Acting - TV/Media It's Pony Nominated
2020AnniesBest Production Design - TV/MediaThe Adventures of PaddingtonNominated
2016 PromaxBDA UK Best Direct Response PromoBitesizeWon
2015PromaxBDA UKBest Channel IdentityNick Jr RebrandWon
2015PromaxBDA UKBest Sponsorship PackageLEGO Star Wars RebelsWon
2021 Emmy Award Outstanding Pre-School Children's Animated Series The Adventures of PaddingtonWon
2021Emmy AwardOutstanding Writing for a Pre-School Animated ProgramThe Adventures of PaddingtonWon
2021Emmy AwardOutstanding Directing for a Pre-School Animated ProgramThe Adventures of PaddingtonNominated

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Miffy</span> Fictional rabbit in books by Dick Bruna

Miffy is a fictional rabbit appearing in a series of picture books drawn and written by Dutch artist Dick Bruna. The original Dutch name, "nijntje", is a shortening of the diminutive konijntje, "little rabbit".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">CBeebies</span> British childrens television network broadcast internationally

CBeebies is a British free-to-air public broadcast children's television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is also the brand used for all BBC content for children aged 6 years and under. Its sister channel, CBBC, is aimed at older children aged 6 to 12. It broadcasts every day from 6:00 am to 7:00 pm GMT / BST (Summer), timesharing with BBC Four.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jakks Pacific</span> American Toy Company

Jakks Pacific, Inc. is an American company that designs and markets toys and consumer products, with a range of products that feature numerous children's toy licenses. The company is named after its founder, Jack Friedman, who had previously founded LJN and THQ and presided over the company until retiring as CEO and chairman after March 31, 2010, a month before his death on May 3, 2010.

Wang Film Productions Co., Ltd. is one of the oldest and most prolific Taiwanese-American animation studios since 1978. The company, based in Xindian, Taipei and Los Angeles, California, has done traditional hand-drawn 2D animation/ink and paint for various TV shows and films for studios across North America, Europe and Asia-Pacific.

CBC Kids is a Canadian children's block on CBC Television. The block was launched as Hodge Podge Lodge in 1987 and contains programming targeted at children. The block airs on weekdays from 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m., Saturdays from 6:00 a.m. to noon and Sundays from 6:00 a.m. to 8:00 a.m.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jam Filled Entertainment</span> Canadian animation studio

Jam Filled Entertainment is a Canadian animation studio based in Ottawa, Ontario, and a division of Boat Rocker Media. The company is best known for animating Thomas & Friends and Nicktoons.

<i>Alphablocks</i> Television series

Alphablocks is a British animated television series for preschoolers that debuted on CBeebies on 25 January 2010. The programme was created by Joe Elliot and produced by Alphablocks Ltd with Blue Zoo. It was commissioned by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC). The show follows the Alphablocks, characters made of blocks who represent each letter of the alphabet. They live in a fictional planet called Alphaland and embark on adventures relating to word concepts.

Sixteen South is a Northern Irish company that creates, produces, and distributes television for children. Founded in Belfast in 2007 by Colin Williams, Sixteen South has partnered with major names in children's entertainment, co-producing shows with Sesame Workshop, The Jim Henson Company and the BBC.

<i>Miffys Adventures Big and Small</i> Dutch TV series or program

Miffy's Adventures Big and Small is a CGI-animated television series based on the Miffy book series by Dutch artist Dick Bruna, and a continuation of Miffy and Friends (2003–07). The series first aired on October 2, 2015 on Tiny Pop in the UK and aired on NPO Zappelin in the Netherlands and on the Nick Jr. Channel in the US. The series finale aired on June 15, 2019.

<i>Numberblocks</i> Television series

Numberblocks is a British animated television series for preschoolers that debuted on CBeebies on 23 January 2017. The programme was created by Joe Elliot and produced by Alphablocks Ltd with Blue Zoo. It was commissioned by the British Broadcasting Corporation, with Larkshead Media and Learning Resources holding merchandising rights.

Pegs'n Co was a French software company that developed a traditional animation software package called Pegs, and is now part of Canadian company Toon Boom Animation. It was based in Paris, France. Pegs was used for several animated feature films, shorts, and television series, and it powered the French animation industry until the 2000s as it was used by studios like Millimages, Alphanim, and Animage, but it was also used by studios in other countries, most notably Saerom Animation, CineGroupe, and Mike Young Productions. In total, Pegs was used by over 100 studios worldwide.

<i>The Adventures of Paddington</i> (2019 TV series) French-British animated television series

The Adventures of Paddington is an animated television series developed for television by Jon Foster and James Lamont. The series is co-produced by Heyday Films and StudioCanal, with the participation of Nickelodeon, M6 and Piwi+. The animation for the series is produced by Blue-Zoo Animation Studio and Superprod Studio. The series is based on the Paddington Bear franchise. The series airs on Nickelodeon internationally, except in France where the series airs on Gulli and later on M6 and Piwi+.

References

  1. 1 2 "Growth capital: Blue Zoo are a trio who got animated about a venture into cartoons". Evening Standard . 13 May 2013. Retrieved 18 September 2022.
  2. Wolfe, Jennifer (2018-12-19). "'Blue Zoo Opens New 2D Animation Studio in London". Animation World Network . Retrieved 2018-12-25.
  3. "Blue Zoo and Plug-In Media partner on new studio" . Retrieved 2021-09-30.
  4. televisual.com (2021-09-29). "Blue Zoo gets B Corp status". Televisual. Retrieved 2021-09-30.
  5. https://twitter.com/cbeebieshq/status/1718337585469440463