ITV

Tag: Fraggle Rock

  • Jim Henson Co puppets its way into European distribution deal

    Jim Henson Co puppets its way into European distribution deal

    MUMBAI; The Jim Henson Co, currently celebrating seven decades of making children talk to felt, has appointed DeAPlaneta Entertainment to handle European distribution and licensing for several of its beloved children’s programmes.

    The agreement, signed as the puppet powerhouse marks its 70th birthday, covers distribution rights for award-winning shows including Dinosaur Train, Pajanimals, and Dot. Perhaps most notably, the deal includes the 1980s classic Fraggle Rock – proof that even after 40 years, audiences still can’t resist small creatures who live in caves and sing about radishes.

    DeAPlaneta Kids & Family content and media sales director Carlos Biern waxed lyrical about the partnership: “We are firmly committed to celebrating children’s content that encourages viewing as a shared experience. There is no better example than the output of The Jim Henson Co,” he said, presumably without having his hand operated from below.

    The Jim Henson Co  chief operating officer & president Chris Lytton added: “Parents around the world know that our productions will be innovative, educational, and of course entertaining,” neglecting to mention how many of those parents still feel emotionally scarred by the Skeksis from The Dark Crystal.

    DeAPlaneta Entertainment, a joint venture between Grupo Planeta and DeAgostini, has previously distributed acclaimed films including The Pianist, The King’s Speech, and 12 Years a Slave – all of which would have been markedly different had they featured Muppets.

    The Jim Henson Co’s recent productions include the Oscar-winning Guillermo Del Toro’s Pinocchio for Netflix and Fraggle Rock: Back to the Rock for Apple TV+.

    The company continues to operate from Los Angeles, New York and London, quietly refusing to acknowledge that most children today would rather watch a teenager unbox toys on YouTube than engage with a talking sock.

  • Classic TV show ‘Fraggle Rock’ to make the transition to the big screen

    Classic TV show ‘Fraggle Rock’ to make the transition to the big screen

    MUMBAI: The Jim Henson Company now confirms what millions of internet fans have speculated.

    The company is developing a film about the Fraggles, stars of the 1980’s television show Fraggle Rock. In India the show used to air on Doordarshan.

    The untitled film will for the first time take Gobo, Wembley, Mokey, Boober and Red on an adventure outside of Fraggle Rock where they will interact with the strange beings in “outer space” (also known as humans). The treatment is being written by author Ahmet Zappa who will also executive produce the project with Brian Henson and Jason Lust. Jim Henson Company co-CEO Lisa Henson will produce.

    Henson said, “Fraggle Rock has remained a favorite project at our Company and has certainly continued to be loved by its many devoted fans. So we are thrilled to begin work on this project. With its message of celebrating diversity and its ambitious goal of promoting world peace, now is the perfect time to embark on a new Fraggle adventure.”

    Zappa says, “I’m very excited to be working with The Jim Henson Company on this project. So much of my childhood was spent watching Fraggle Rock. I never missed an episode. I am also really looking forward to using music to tell the story; it played such a central role in the original series and truly helped create the Fraggle Rock that we know and love today.”

    Fraggle Rock premiered on HBO in 1983 and over five seasons garnered multiple awards and a global fan following. The show was created by Jim Henson as an international co-production and was adapted for each territory to meet the needs of its audience. By showing cooperation and conflict resolution among the different inhabitants of the Rock (the Fraggles, the Doozers and the Gorgs), the show taught the concepts of mutual respect and peace.

    Recently, devoted fans petitioned online for a DVD release of the series. The season one box set exceeded expectations and its incredibly strong consumer response led to the successful season two release.