Netflix adds seven original series to kids’ line-up
David Farnor | On 02, Oct 2015
Netflix has announced seven new original series for older kids.
The streaming company has placed an increasingly strong emphasis on young viewers in the past year, as competition for family subscribers increases. While Amazon has announced its own subscription kids’ media service and education VOD company Hopster has expanded onto Android, even the BBC has joined in the rush to woo tiny eyeballs, announcing its own kids’ iPlayer to launch in 2016.
Building on its partnership with DreamWorks Animation, Netflix recently announced a slate of original series for pre-school audiences, but now, the VOD giant is broadening its offering for tweens and teens with seven new series, beginning this December.
Including new stories from LEGO Bionicle and LEGO Friends, as well as a prequel to DreamWorks’ Dawn of the Croods, the line-up includes a live action music show, a stop-motion action comedy and the “anime inspired” Glitter Force. As Netflix continues to diversify its international offerings, the VOD giant is also introducing its first ever original animated series produced in Latin America: Las Leyendas (The Legends), based on a successful trilogy of children’s films from the Mexican animation studio, Ánima Estudios.
“Roughly half of our 65 million members around the world regularly watch kids content and with the addition of these seven diverse original series we are continuing our strong investment in kids programming,” says Andy Yeatman, Director of Global Kids Content for Netflix. “We know kids love Netflix and that’s in part because they never really outgrow us. We programme and recommend new TV shows and movies from preschool through their teen years and into adulthood.”
Here’s the full rundown:
Glitter Force – 18th December 2015
When the magical kingdom of Jubiland is invaded by an evil emperor and his band of fairytale villains, a tiny pixie named Candy recruits five pre-teen girls to form Glitter Force and help defend Earth from becoming their next target. These friends transform from ordinary schoolgirls into super-powered girls. From Saban Brands, the 20-episode season will premiere worldwide, excluding Asia, on 18th December 2015.
Dawn of the Croods – 24th December 2015
Eep, Grug, Thunk, Ugga, Sandy and Gran are back in this new sitcom. Follow the family as they meet new friends, outrun new creatures and encounter “firsts” the world has never seen – such as school, sleepovers, hiccups and elections. Dawn of the Croods will be available exclusively on Netflix in all current territories except Germany and Japan.
LEGO Bionicle: The Journey to One – Q1 2016
The LEGO Group will premiere the Netflix original series, LEGO Bionicle: The Journey to One, based on its popular LEGO Bionicle franchise and line of action figures. The new story takes place on the mythical island of Okoto, where the forces of darkness are on the move and the evil Makuta is working to cast the world into darkness. The desperate island inhabitants enlist six heroes – called the Toa – to help save their beloved island. The four-episode season will be available in all Netflix territories in early 2016.
Lost & Found Music Studios – Q1 2016
From Temple Street Productions, Lost & Found Music Studios is a series about a group of talented teenage musicians who struggle to find their authentic sound and place in the world as they hone their craft at a prestigious music studio. In each episode, young artists navigate the ups and downs of the music industry, as they find their way to love, inspiration and redemption. After all, the next hit song could be just one heartbreak away. Lost & Found Music Studios will premiere exclusively on Netflix worldwide, outside Canada, the UK and Ireland, with 26 half-hour episodes.
LEGO Friends: The Power of Friendship – Q2 2016
Complementing LEGO Bionicle: The Journey to One, will be a new Netflix original series for kids featuring characters from the popular LEGO Friends line of construction toys. LEGO Friends: The Power of Friendship will follow the adventures of five best friends – Stephanie, Emma, Olivia, Mia and Andrea – around their hometown Heartlake City. From summer camp to the basketball court, saving their webcast or helping take care of a friend, the zany antics, romances and mishaps are made all the better by having their best friends by their side. The four-episode season will premiere worldwide on Netflix in 2016.
Buddy Thunderstruck – 2017
From American Greetings Entertainment with Stoopid Buddy Stoodios, Buddy Thunderstruck is a stop-motion action-comedy that follows the adventures of a semi-truck racing dog named Buddy and his albino ferret mechanic. It all goes down in race-obsessed Greasepit, a place chock full of larger-than-life characters and nitro-burning, gear-slamming, tyre-squealing, fish-tailing good times. The first 12 episodes will premiere worldwide exclusively on Netflix in 2017.
Las Leyendas – 2017
The first animated Netflix original series to be produced in Latin America, Las Leyendas is based on a successful trilogy of children’s films from the Mexican animation studio, Ánima Estudios. Set in the 1800s, this whimsical adventure centres on Leo San Juan, a reluctant but heroic teenage boy with the ability to communicate with ghosts and monsters. One day, Leo’s home town vanishes into another dimension, prompting Leo to join forces with phantasmagorical group of misfits in order to defeat Quetzalcoatl, an inter-dimensional entity who has sought to conquer the universe for centuries. The first 13 episodes will premiere in 2017.