The Tiger Who Came to Tea and The Snowman and The Snowdog producer Lupus Films is in development on a series of three films based on the Storm Whale books by Benji Davies.
The Storm Whale Trilogy, three half-hour specials written and directed by Robin Shaw – who also directed Lupus Films’ International Emmy winning TV adaptation of The Tiger Who Came to Tea – are being presented at the Annecy International Animation Festival.
The stories follow the adventures of Noi, a young boy who lives on a slip of land surrounded by sea. His hardworking, single parent fisherman dad goes out to sea every day in his boat, leaving Noi to spend most of the day outdoors, regardless of the weather, where the island becomes his playground. He has only six sleepy cats and shy sea creatures for company and finds it hard to communicate with his dad. So when he finds a baby whale washed up on the beach after a storm, Noi is excited and takes it home to care for it. He tries to keep his new friend a secret, but there’s only so long you can keep a whale in the bath without your dad finding out…
The trilogy is being made by the team behind the hand-drawn animated TV specials The Tiger Who Came to Tea, We’re Going on a Bear Hunt and The Snowman and The Snowdog: director Robin Shaw and producers Ruth Fielding and Camilla Deakin of Lupus Films. Bond composer David Arnold will write the music for the trilogy. Arnold also wrote the original score for The Tiger Who Came to Tea, which won the British Animation Award for Best Music.
Director, Robin Shaw, said: “I’m so excited to bring Benji Davies’s gorgeous books to the screen. They are already bestsellers and will translate perfectly into wonderful family viewing with real global appeal. As well as being visually stunning, they are tremendously engaging as we follow Noi’s journey from a shy, quiet soul to a happy and self-assured boy. We are sure that kids everywhere will relate to his struggles to communicate his feelings, and his thrilling adventures across the trilogy as he grows his confidence.”
Ruth Fielding, Producer and Joint Managing Director Lupus Films said: “It’s a real pleasure to bring The Storm Whale Trilogy to life on screen. The books look so beautiful and perfectly suit Lupus’s trademark hand-drawn animation style, which really captures their essence. The stories are both poignant and exciting, with truly engaging characters and perilous adventures that are sure to have kids on the edge of their seats, and it’s a joy to watch Noi’s character develop across the three films. I’m sure they’re going to be a huge success.”
Click on the picture link to see the test animation for the films.
Jon Creamer
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