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Bluey

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This article is about the television show and its history.
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Bluey is an Australian preschool animated television series. The program was created by Joe Brumm and is produced by Queensland-based company Ludo Studio. It was commissioned by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation and the British Broadcasting Corporation, with BBC Studios holding global distribution and merchandising rights. The show first premiered on ABC Kids on 1 October 2018. It airs on numerous channels, though most nations can access the show through Disney Channel & Junior and Disney+.

The show follows Bluey, an anthropomorphic six-year-old Blue Heeler puppy who is characterised by her abundance of energy, imagination and curiosity of the world. The young dog lives with her father, Bandit; mother, Chilli; and younger sister, Bingo, who regularly joins Bluey on adventures as the pair embark on imaginative play together. Other characters featured each represent a different dog breed. Overarching themes include the focus on family, growing up and wider Australian culture. The program was created and is produced in Queensland; its capital city Brisbane inspires the show's setting.

Bluey has received consistently high viewership in Australia and worldwide on both broadcast television and video on demand services. It has influenced the development of merchandise and a stage show featuring its characters. The program has won two Logie Awards for Most Outstanding Children's Program as well as an International Emmy Kids Award in 2019. It has been praised by television critics for depicting a modern everyday family life, constructive parenting messages and the role of Bandit as a positive father figure. Bluey was renewed for a third series in October 2020.

History

Conception

In July 2017, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) and the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) co-commissioned Bluey as an animated series for preschool children to be developed by Queensland production company Ludo Studio.[1][2] The production received funding from Screen Australia and Screen Queensland, with the setting of the series drawing upon the unique semi-tropical Queensland climate. Created by Joe Brumm, the series was inspired by his experience in raising two daughters. Brumm wanted to portray the importance of children participating in imaginative play, having witnessed his own child's experiences, creating the title character Bluey as a Cattle Dog to give the series an Australian voice. Brumm had previously worked on children's programs in the United Kingdom as a freelance animator and decided to create Bluey as a replica of the program Peppa Pig for an Australian audience.[3]

Brumm conceived the idea independently in 2016, and produced a one-minute pilot through his company Studio Joho, with a small team in their spare time. Brumm approached Ludo Studio to develop the series; co-founders Charlie Aspinwall and Daley Pearson pitched the pilot at conferences such as MIPCOM in France.[4][5] Brumm stated that the first pilot contained some "dangerous" character behaviours which drew the attention of studio executives; this included Bandit pushing Bluey and Bingo on a swing in an unsafe way.[6] Pearson expressed that it was difficult to pitch the series as it was not high-concept; but rather "just a show about family and games".[7]

The studio developed a five-minute animation sample that was pitched at the Asian Animation Summit in Brisbane in 2016, and was thereby noticed by ABC and BBC executives.[8][9] Michael Carrington of the ABC viewed the presentation and secured $20,000 of funding for the studio to produce a refined, seven-minute pilot. The new pilot was presented at the Asian Animation Summit in 2017. The two networks officially ordered 52 seven-minute episodes of Bluey, with the BBC investing 30 percent of the funding and acquiring the global rights for distribution and merchandising.[10] The series was produced entirely in Australia by a local team, many of whom were first-time animators from Brisbane.[11] The program was announced to premiere in Australia on ABC Kids, followed by CBeebies.[1][2]

Production

Writing

The stories featured in Bluey depict Bluey and Bingo engaging in imaginative play.[12] Brumm wanted to show that self-directed and unstructured play is natural in shaping children and allowing them to develop. He consulted research based on socio-dramatic play, reading the works of Sara Smilansky and Vivian Paley, who both had backgrounds in early childhood education.[5] The episodes show the parents as guides for their children, who allow them to explore their immediate surroundings independently, giving them opportunities to practise adult roles.[12] Brumm drew inspiration for scripts from his own experiences in watching his daughters play, which he described was "as natural to them as breathing".[10] The program's scripts show how children can use gameplay to learn lessons and integrate the world of adults into their own; Brumm noticed how his children would recreate interactions such as visits to the doctor, through roleplay. Pearson stated that gameplay represents children's first experiences of collaboration, cooperation, responsibility and emotions such as jealousy. Brumm discovered the importance of play-based learning after his daughter struggled with formal education, which led him to exclude elements of literacy and numeracy in Bluey and focus on the depiction of life skills. Brumm stated that he wanted the series to depict his experience as a parent rather than aim for children to be explicitly taught something. His creative aims were to make children laugh, and show parents what children can learn while engaged in play.

Aus Cattle Dog-Blue Heeler

An Austrailian Cattle Dog (also known as a Blue Heeler)

The characters of Bluey each represent a particular dog breed, some of which are drawn from Brumm's personal life. Brumm had a Blue Heeler named Bluey throughout his childhood, in addition to a Dalmatian named Chloe and another Blue Heeler named Bandit. [13] Bandit's career as an archaeologist was inspired by Brumm's older sibling Adam.

Brumm writes the majority of episode scripts, with Aspinwall labelling the series as an "observational" show, depicting Brumm's family life, and producer Sam Moor describing it as "[Brumm's] life on screen"; when producing the pilot, Brumm's daughters were aged between four and six, like Bluey and Bingo. Brumm's process for writing sometimes begins with making notes about his family's experiences; including games his children play and the conflict that arises between them. For this reason, Brumm has described the process as a challenge for other writers on the series. Moor stated that there are few writers besides Brumm, mostly animators already working on the series. The program was designed to be a co-viewing experience for parents and their children to enjoy together. Brumm described the process of writing each episode as "a chance to make a short film". The conflict and humour in the episodes stems from Bandit's relationship with his daughters. Bluey has been described as "rough and tumble" by Pearson, with both her and Bingo being seen to subvert the stereotypes of female characters, but rather have the characteristics of real puppies. This has led to uninformed viewers questioning if the characters are boys or girls. Pearson has credited the decision of Bluey and Bingo being girls to resemble the real families of Brumm, Aspinwall and McCormack. In relation to the humour of the series, Brumm has stated there is a lot of physical activity and "craziness".

Storyboarding and animation

Bluey is animated in-house at Ludo Studio in Brisbane, in Fortitude Valley, where approximately 50 people work on the program. Costa Kassab serves as one of the art directors of the series, who has been credited with drawing the locations of the series which are based on real places in Brisbane, including parks and shopping centres. Locations featured in the series have included Queen Street Mall and South Bank. Brumm determines the specific locations which are to be included. Post-production of the series takes place externally in South Brisbane.

Approximately fifteen episodes of the series are developed by the studio at any one time across a range of production stages. After story ideas are conceived, the script-writing process takes place for up to two months. The episodes are then storyboarded by artists, who produce 500 to 800 drawings over three weeks while consulting the writer's script. After the storyboard is finished, a black and white animatic is produced, to which the dialogue recorded independently by voice artists is added. The episodes are then worked on for four weeks by animators, background artists, designers, and layout teams. The entire production team views a near-completed episode of Bluey on a Friday. Pearson stated that over time, the viewings developed into test screenings where members of production would bring their family, friends and children to watch the episode. The complete production process for an episode takes three to four months. Moor described the program's colour palette as "a vibrant pastel".

During the lockdown period of the COVID-19 pandemic, the production staff of 50 were required to work on the episodes remotely from home. A skeleton crew of three remained working on the series at the studio. After restrictions eased in May, this number increased to ten and later 20. Production on the third series concluded in April 2022.

Characters and Voice Actors

A full list of characters can be seen here.

The child characters are voiced by children of the series' production crew, and are not credited in order to protect their privacy.

Several celebrities make appearances within the show, including David McCormack of the Australian band Custard in his first appearance in television, Anthony Field of The Wiggles, Robert Irwin, who is the son of Australian television personality Steve Irwin, Natalie Portman, who has starred in media such as Star Wars and the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and Lin-Manuel Miranda, who created the Broadway play Hamilton and composed the music of Encanto.

List of episodes

See Season One, Season Two and Season Three for detailed results per season.

See Episode Guide for episodes by their release date in countries, and Episode List for original viewership numbers for said episodes.

Release

Home media

For further information, see DVDs

Bluey's first appearance on home media was the Bluey: Magic Xylophone and Other Stories Vol. 1 DVD, released on October 30, 2019. DVDs of Bluey - excluding the British release Bluey: Season 1 - The First Half - are released through Universal Studios Home Entertainment and BBC Studios. Despite being distributed by the former company. the 2012 Universal logo does not make an appearance on these DVDs.

Other media

Video game

Bluey Videogame Platforms Box Art
Main page: Bluey: The Videogame

On July 2023, Bluey was rated by the Australian Classification Board for release on Microsoft Windows, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4 (PS4), PlayStation 5 (PS5), Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S.[14][15]

The synopsis reads:[16]

Follow the Heeler family on a holiday adventure to find a treasure hidden by Bandit and his brothers many years ago. The game takes place in 5 iconic show locations, and its story mode tells a family-friendly adventure about creating your own cherished memories with your family.

Reception

Critical evaluation

Bluey has generally received a positive reception over the years. Critics praised the show's writing, humour, depiction of everyday family life and the role of Bandit and Chilli as positive parental figures. The series continues to attain high viewing figures worldwide, and in the United States, where its appearance on Disney+ continues to top viewing figures on the streaming platform.

Certain episodes of Bluey have received critical acclaim, such as Sleepytime, which has been praised for its emotional message and visuals; it is currently one of the top-rated Bluey episodes on iMDB.

The series' popularity has led to multiple ancillary media being produced, including Bluey's Big Play, which is currently touring the United States and Canada with a further tour in Great Britain pending for late 2023. In 2022 a balloon version of Bluey appeared at the Macy's Thanksgiving Parade and the Paris Parade. Bluey has also featured in other media.

Cultural significance

Bluey's breakout popularity has stood the test of time. A major factor of the show's continuing popularity is through social media (such as on TikTok; additionally, YouTuber TheOdd1sOut has reviewed the series in a video, giving it a positive review). Bluey has featured in 2022's Reddit r/place canvas, where she was drawn with an orange heart; the heart being a symbol of Bingo, who was erased during the event. The following year's r/place canvas depicts Bluey and Bingo as depicted in official artwork, alongside the Heeler house itself, a picture of Bingo as depicted in "Sleepytime", Stripe and Trixie's side of the family plus Rusty, and Bluey on the Windows Vista taskbar below the canvas.

Censorship

For further information, see Censorship of Bluey

Despite its younger-skewing nature, Bluey is no stranger to censorship when released worldwide. Common reasons of censorship include toilet and/or crude humor, regional differences, including between Australian and American English, imitable sequences, and complaints from viewers.

Notable instances

The episode "Dad Baby" has been banned from multiple countries and is unavailable from multiple streaming services, likely due to depictions of childbirth, inappropriate behavior, pregnancy jokes and encouragement of immaturity.

Two episodes, Teasing and Flat Pack, were removed from circulation for a brief time to remove a term that was deemed as a racial connotation towards Indigenous Australians.

Exercise has been met with opposition for fat-shaming shown in the beginning of the episode[17][18][19], though most viewers side with the show. Nonetheless, the episode was edited less than three weeks after airing as a result of the controversy.

Gallery

Promotional images

Trivia

  • The show airs on ABC Kids in Australia. It is licensed for inernational distribution by BBC Studios, airing on Disney Channel in the USA, India and other countries, CBeebies in the UK, Taiwan and Australia, and TVNZ in New Zealand.
  • Bluey aired on Disney Channel eleven months after the ABC Kids release.
  • International versions of the show are sometimes edited for local standards.
    • Sometimes vocabulary is changed that would be unclear to the target audience - in BBQ, the word "capsicum" is replaced with "pepper".
    • Episodes may be edited to remove content deemed inappropriate. Disney broadcasts remove the pony pooping scene from Markets, and skip the episode Dad Baby entirely.
    • Some episodes have been edited in all markets. In the episode Chickenrat, Bandit's reaction to sauerkraut was edited from sneezing to burping, because the episode gave the impression that food allergies weren't to be taken seriously.
  • Bluey only began airing on CBeebies, the under-7 channel of BBC who co-funded the show, in early 2021.
  • The show has been dubbed into at least 30 languages (most of which can be found on Disney+ or on Disney Channel in their respective countries).
    • In China, the show can be watched on Youku and Tencent Video in either English or Mandarin.[20], and seasons one and two can also be viewed on ABC IVIEW.
  • TVNZ aired season 3 before it premiered on Disney+ and Disney Channel, and is the only other broadcaster (with the exception of ABC Kids who have aired Season 3B (Musical Statues-The Decider).
  • Originally, this show was going to be an Australian version of Peppa Pig, though over time this has changed into a show in its' own right.[21][22]
  • The show's main typeface text font is Hello Headline by Deartype.
  • There is a long sausage-type dog called 'long dog' hidden in many episodes. For example, in Charades, it’s hidden in the knitting on the couch. Long dog was designed by one of the background artists in series one, and the pup also turns up in some of the books.
  • The child characters are mostly voiced by children of the crew, though a few are professional actors. They are not credited to protect their identities.
  • There is a 1976 police drama series also named Bluey - in that case, it's an ironic nickname for a redhead.
  • The series was featured in an episode of the American answer-with-a-question game series Jeopardy! as a clue.[23]
  • A video game based on Bluey was released for Microsoft Windows, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4 (PS4), PlayStation 5 (PS5), Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S in November 2023.

Possible film

In Dave McCormack and Melanie Zanetti's interview on the 2022 Tonight Show With Jimmy Fallon, they mentioned possible plans for a potential "feature film trilogy" based on Bluey.

Awards

Award Country Year Recipient(s) and nominee(s) (if applicable) Category Result References
AACTA Awards Australia 2019 Bluey Best Children's Program Won [24]
2020 Won [25]
Joff Bush Best Original Score in Television (Flatpack) Nominated [25]
2021 Bluey Best Children's Program Won [26]
2022 Won [27]
2024[28] Won
APRA Screen Music Awards Australia 2019 Joff Bush (for "Teasing") Best Music for Children's Television Nominated [29]
2020 Joff Bush (for "Flat Pack") Nominated [30]
2021 Joff Bush Best Music for Children's Programming Won [31]
Bluey: The Album Best Soundtrack Album Won
2022 Joff Bush Most Performed Screen Composer – Overseas Nominated [32]
ARIA Music Awards Australia 2021 Bluey: The Album Best Children's Album Won [33]
Asian Academy Creative Awards Singapore 2020 Bluey Best Preschool Programme Won [34]
2022 Bluey (for "Rain" and "Fairytale") Won [35]
Australian Book Industry Awards Australia 2020 Bluey (for "The Beach", Penguin) Children's Picture Book of the Year (Ages 0–6) Nominated [36][37]
Book of the Year Won
2021 Bluey (for "The Creek", Penguin) Children's Picture Book of the Year (Ages 0–6) Won [38]
Australian Directors' GuildAwards Australia 2021 Richard Jeffery (for "Sleepytime") Best Direction in a Children's TV or SVOD Drama Program Episode Won [39]
Australian Toy Association Australia 2020 Bluey (Moose Toys) Preschool License of the Year Won [40]
BAFTA Children & Young People Awards United Kingdom 2022 Bluey International Won [41]
Banff World Media Festival Rockie Awards Canada 2021 Bluey Animation: Preschool (0–4) Won [42]
Critics' Choice Television Awards United States of America 2022 Bluey Best Animated Series Nominated [43]
2023 Bluey Nominated [44]
International Emmy Kids Awards United States of America 2019 Bluey Kids: Preschool Won [45]
Kidscreen Awards Australia 2021 Bluey Preschool Programming – Best Animated Series Won [46]
Creative Talent – Best Directing Won
Creative Talent – Best Writing Won
Creative Talent – Best Music Won
2023 Bluey (for Series 3) Preschool Programming – Best Animated Series Won [47]
Logie Awards Australia 2019 Bluey Most Outstanding Children's Program Won [48]
2022 Won [49]
2023 Nominated [50]
Prix Jeunesse International Awards Germany 2020 Bluey TV – Up to 6 Years Fiction (Children's) Nominated [51]
2022 Bluey (for "Sleepytime") Won [52]
Screen Producers AustraliaAwards Australia 2019 Bluey Animated Series Production of the Year Won [53]
Screen Business Export of the Year Won
2022 Bluey (for Series 2) Children's Series Production of the Year Won [54]
Television Critics Association Awards Canada/United States of America 2021 Bluey Outstanding Achievement in Children's Programming Nominated [55]
2023 Bluey Won [56]
TV Blackbox Awards Australia 2021 Bluey Most Popular Children's Show Won [57]
TV Tonight Awards Australia 2019 Bluey Best Kid's Show Won [58]
2020 Won [59]
2021 Won [60]
2022 Won [61]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 https://web.archive.org/web/20190706100849/https://tv.press.abc.net.au/abc-kids-and-bbc-worldwide-partner-with-award-winning-ludo-studio-on-new-preschool-animated-series
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 https://tvtonight.com.au/2017/07/new-animated-series-for-abc-kids-cbeebies.html
  3. ↑ https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1367877920941869
  4. ↑ https://thewest.com.au/entertainment/tv/bluey-the-cartoon-pup-your-kids-just-cant-get-enough-of-ng-b881124691z
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 https://thenewdaily.com.au/entertainment/tv/2019/12/01/bluey-secrets-abc-smash-hit/
  6. ↑ https://www.kidspot.com.au/lifestyle/entertainment/20-things-you-didnt-know-about-bluey/news-story/de9bbf0ec7764ba07ae56016f9ae6e04
  7. ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20191203032824/https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-12-02/i-took-my-toddler-to-see-where-bluey-is-made-ludo-studio/11742386
  8. ↑ https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2018/nov/21/bluey-how-australia-fell-in-love-with-a-cartoon-blue-heeler-puppy-and-her-family
  9. ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20191114174636/http://www.choosebrisbane.com.au/conventions/news/how-ludo-studios-global-animated-phenomenon-bluey-found-its-feet-in-brisbane?sc_lang=en-au
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 https://web.archive.org/web/20190326134315/https://www.perthnow.com.au/entertainment/tv/fun-tales-abc-kids-series-bluey-lapped-up-ng-b881147160z
  11. ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20190326134315/https://www.perthnow.com.au/entertainment/tv/fun-tales-abc-kids-series-bluey-lapped-up-ng-b881147160z
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 https://web.archive.org/web/20190419063919/https://tvtonight.com.au/2018/09/airdate-bluey.html
  13. ↑ https://www.abc.net.au/perth/programs/wa-afternoons/bluey-q-and-a/102197762?fbclid=IwAR2ufi4SnXv51e2QCFf046QPckwDDpCvZ0SjvdnVRpHEQDDCxfMZk2R7YPc&mibextid=kdkkhi
  14. ↑ https://www.gameshub.com/news/news/bluey-the-videogame-rated-australian-classification-2624159/
  15. ↑ https://www.vooks.net/bluey-is-getting-her-very-own-videogame/
  16. ↑ https://www.classification.gov.au/titles/bluey-videogame
  17. ↑ https://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-11979557/Bluey-exercise-episode-slammed-fatphobic-mums-said-important-avoid-obesity.html
  18. ↑ https://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/why-this-episode-of-bluey-has-been-criticised-by-some-parents/sibc12ag0
  19. ↑ https://www.kidspot.com.au/lifestyle/entertainment/uncomfortable-to-watch-doctors-and-parents-call-for-bluey-episode-to-be-edited/news-story/620d2a9cc08194af94b7114a94c256ec
  20. ↑ Youku and BBC Studios sign a content deal to bring a suite of top children’s titles to China.
  21. ↑ https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1367877920941869
  22. ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20190326134315/https://www.perthnow.com.au/entertainment/tv/fun-tales-abc-kids-series-bluey-lapped-up-ng-b881147160z
  23. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u12qb9fYXBM
  24. ↑ https://www.aacta.org/aacta-awards/awards-history/2019-aacta-awards/
  25. ↑ 25.0 25.1 https://www.aacta.org/aacta-awards/winners-and-nominees/2020-aacta-awards/
  26. ↑ https://www.aacta.org/our-news/media-room/2021-aacta-awards-winners-announced/
  27. ↑ https://www.aacta.org/our-news/media-room/winners-announced-for-the-2022-aacta-awards/
  28. ↑ While set on 10th February 2024, the event celebrates television and film throughout 2023.
  29. ↑ Template:Cite news
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