Coronavirus disease has taken a toll in every aspect of our lives, and continues to have consequences in the culture and entertainment industry. In this complex scenario, the animation special “Juntos contra el coronavirus” and the muppet children’s show “Agus y Lui: retos en casa”, were created and produced, completely remotely, by Paramotion Films for Clan TV.
Given the increase in telecommuting as a way of decreasing the spread of the disease, audiovisual productions have been enormously affected. However, in this new paradigm, animation is surviving and suffering less than other types of productions. “Juntos contra el coronavirus” was crafted during quarantine, a special episode created for Clan TV. The episode is about how the current shutdown is affecting children. Through the two characters Martina and Marcos, two brothers that find themselves on lockdown, the episode shows different difficult situations children might endure, and ways of facing these challenging scenarios. This project was made in conjunction with the Colegio Oficial de la Psicología de Madrid (Madrid Official College of Psychology) and scripted by child psychologist Mercedes Bermejo. The project used social networks as divulgation platforms to give parents advice during lockdown. The episode “Juntos contra el coronavirus” has become an international success being shared by the UER/EBU, the world’s largest alliance of the public service audiovisual industry, which has granted access to the episode for public television services from other countries so they can adapt it to their languages.
Although it’s obvious that work dynamics have been greatly affected, animation professionals have found ways around it to continue production from home. Professionals working on animation and muppets, although not being able to work in the most favourable environment, have adapted their workflow to be able to continue content production. This is the case of the children’s show “Agus y Lui: Retos en casa”, a muppet production created by Paramotion Films for Clan TV. A show completely created during lockdown. Due to confinement, the two animators were apart from one another, one in Madrid and the other in Segovia. Thus the production, which creatively depicts the current situation adjusting the message for children, has been done completely remotely. Created using muppets format, the production process is very similar to animation. José Luís Farias, Paramotion Films associate declares: “muppets production is real time animation, our work is based on the same principles. It’s a really powerful tool that allow us to communicate and become closer to the audience.”
“Agus y Lui: Retos en casa” is a twenty episodes show broadcasted in the morning by Clan TV, presenting different crafts for children in every episode. The show proposes different activities which can be performed with simple, easy to find materials. The main characters also take time in every episode to discuss current events (such as the importance of washing your hands, the importance of social distancing and the reasons why wearing a mask is essential), explaining said issues in the appropriate register, so children understand. Quoting Alfonso Fulgencio, another Paramotion Films associate: “the main characters, Agus and Lui, were created to give voice to the kids who watch us. They’re a reflection of their innocent perspective of our ever-changing world. In their conversations we try to discuss and debate certain social sensitive topics such as: recycling, the responsibility of taking care of pets, the dangers of the current situation… Always with humour and adjusting our discourse to their peculiar perspective.
The show has a big engagement with children, they send pictures of their crafts from different episodes to an email address. Some of the images are displayed at the end of every episode, so their crafts have their moment of protagonism on air. One of the most important actions that took place on the show, was made for mother’s day. Throughout various episodes before the date, different crafts were proposed to commemorate this holiday. Spectators were encouraged to place a heart in their balconies or windows. With the hashtag #PonUnCorazónEnTuVentana, the proposal spread through social media and we received images of the crafts made by children from all across the country.
Although we are still unaware of the long term consequences of COVID-19, it’s clear that work methodologies in audiovisual productions will have to adapt to the new situation. In this context, the non necessary attendance in animation and muppets productions is an important advantage which allows content creation in spite of social distancing or possible future lockdowns.