FRANNY'S FEET will return with its second season of 13 half-hour shows premiering February 3, 2007, on PBS KIDS. The series, produced by DECODE Ent. in association with Thirteen/WNET New York, debuted in the U.S. last summer and has become a hit for kids 4-7.
Franny's adventures take her and her viewers to places around the world, where she meets new friends and tries to help them solve problems, sharing her feelings, fears and advice with the audience along the way. Global awareness, science and vocabulary development are woven together with entertaining storytelling.
New FRANNY'S FEET episodes once again take Franny to places near and far -- sometimes even under the sea or back in time. In the new shows, Franny travels to India, where she learns how to make shadow puppets; to Quebec, where she helps a boy make maple syrup; to Mexico, where she helps a migrating goose find her flock; to the Kalahari Desert, where she helps a shy meerkat and learns how these clever cats adapt; as well as some places closer to home, such as a dairy farm, a veterinarian's office or a "fais do do" party in Louisiana.
"Kids are really drawn to Franny -- she's a spunky, adventurous girl who is a great role model for both boys and girls," said Sandra Sheppard, exec producer/director of children's and educational programming for Thirteen/WNET. "It's a wonderfully captivating and charming way for pre-schoolers to discover other worlds and cultures."
In every episode, while helping her grandpa in his shoe repair shop, Franny slips on a pair of shoes and says "Where will my feet take me today...?" From there, the adventures are limitless. Dancing shoes transport her to a Highland dance studio, and paint-splattered shoes to an island where an artist teaches her how to mix paint colors. In hiking boots, she travels to the Swiss Alps and goes camping with a new friend. Flippers take her under the sea. In sandals, she's transported to Africa, where she meets an ostrich. In cowboy boots, she's off to the rodeo. In knight's boots, she travels to a medieval feast, where she discovers that dragons need to learn a few things about manners.
Each 11-minute story is followed by "Franny's Treasures," an interactive segment in which Franny speaks directly to viewers. She asks for their help as she tries to figure out answers to game-like challenges. These segments, produced especially for the PBS KIDS GO! broadcast, expand on educational concepts explored in the previous story.
"FRANNY'S FEET has enchanted kids across the world with its magical storytelling," said Beth Stevenson, evp, development and production at DECODE Ent. and exec producer of FRANNY'S FEET. "We're looking forward to launching brand new episodes and interactive acitives to US kids through Thirteen/WNET and PBS KIDS."
Viewers can go to FRANNY'S FEET Online at pbskids.org/frannysfeet for Web-based features. By clicking on "Grandpa's Globe," kids can join Franny on adventures in locations around the world, including India, China, Hawaii, the Arctic, Canada, Africa and South America. "Franny's Clips" offers short segments from the series and three sing-a-long music videos that highlight Franny's magical adventures and the many friends she meets along the way. In "Franny's Words," whimsical activities extend the content featured in the series and help build vocabulary. "Shoebox Adventures" features delightful, engaging and challenging interactive games that promote creativity and memory-building skills. And "Downloads" offers colorful wallpapers, adventure screensavers and coloring pages.
FRANNY'S FEET was commissioned by Five in the U.K. and Canada's Family Channel. It can be seen around the world on channels that include ABC Australia, France 5, Cartoon Network in Japan, Canada's TeleQuebec, RAI in Italy, TVP Poland, Cartoon Network Taiwan, TV2 Denmark, and TV12 Singapore.
Beth Stevenson, Steven DeNure and Neil Court serve as exec producers for DECODE. Cathy Moss and Susan Nielsen are the series' creators. Kym Hyde is the producer. For Thirteen/WNET, Sandra Sheppard is exec producer and director of children's and educational programming; Jill Peters is exec producer and director of creative development; and Suzanne Rose is producer/project manager.
Rick DeMott
Animation World Network
Creator of Rick's Flicks Picks
