Eagle Vs Bat and ITV release official trailer for the brand-new animated children’s series, The Sound Collector

Eagle Vs Bat and ITV release official trailer for the brand-new animated children’s series, The Sound Collector

Narrated by Keira Knightley and with beautiful stop-motion animation by the multiple award-winning Mackinnon & Saunders, The Sound Collector launches on ITVBe and ITVX on Monday 20th February.

Get ready to explore and embrace the beauty of nature through the ears of The Sound Collector.

Eagle Vs Bat are proud to present the brand-new trailer for their new show The Sound Collector, a masterful mix of live-action and stop-frame animation. Created by Erica (formerly Darby) & Tom Angell of Eagle Vs Bat, who between them have over 40 years of experience in the animation and music industry and narrated by Keira Knightley in her first-ever pre-school children’s show, The Sound Collector is a beautiful, heart-warming series that is bound to become a favourite among households.

When discussing the series, Keira comments:

“As a viewer and a parent, The Sound Collector is a welcome relief for me. It’s a real hit with my own family – something 3 generations can sit down and enjoy together. I love the space it allows – every time we watch an episode, we feel soothed.”

About The Sound Collector

The Sound Collector is all about sound - as heard through the ears of a small but very active little being called the Sound Collector, who has a passion for sound despite being hard of hearing.

The Sound Collector spends his days discovering and using new sounds that he finds on his adventures: the blooping and popping of sea anemones, the hissing of the tide drawing back along a pebble beach or even the snores and snuffles of his best friend and pet, Mole. He is endlessly fascinated by the world around him and whether he loves sound because of, or despite his hearing, it is the focus of his life in an incredibly positive way.

This show is not about being deaf, it is however placing somebody who wears hearing aids at the front and centre of a show for young audiences, which is remarkably rare.

Throughout this series, children, as well as adults, will be inspired to go out and explore natural environments - seeking joy and wonderment in the little things and gaining a new appreciation for the world around them. Mindfulness also plays a key role in the show’s messaging.  With techniques now being taught in schools as a stress-reducing aid for children, the show's concentration on the small and real details of the immediate world in front of us will leave audiences feeling relaxed and even meditative, whatever their age!

About the Production

The stop motion animation is brought to you by the creative minds at Mackinnon & Saunders. The incredible team at Mackinnon & Saunders have brought some of the world’s best-known animated characters to life – including the Academy Award-nominated Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio and Netflix’s hit The House.

Sound is integral to the show on a fundamental level. Throughout the show, we hear what the Sound Collector hears, and so, to focus our attention on the changes in sound, the team considered exaggerating the differences between the Sound Collector’s 3 levels of hearing. Advisors in the field of audiology were consulted on whether the plan to use sound in this way could potentially be deemed offensive. In fact, they championed the idea of familiarising viewers with the effects of deafness and the help that hearing aids and radio aids provide - especially for the children in the audience. They also provided the team with access to various typical hearing aid specifications allowing them to portray more accurately something of the reality of using hearing aids for someone who is hard of hearing.

The series is directed by Chris Tichborne (Coraline, Fantastic Mr Fox, The House), with episode directors including the Academy Award nominee Barry Purves (Rainbow, The Wind in the Willows) & Andy Burns (Postman Pat, Bob the Builder) and based upon the scripts by head writer, the multiple BAFTA winning Dave Ingham (The Clangers, The Rubbish World of Dave Spud, Octonauts) and his team - Alex Williams, comedian and TV presenter Bec Hill, William Mager, Gaia Agostinelli and Maria Chiara Oltolini.

The series is co-produced by Enanimation SRL based in Turin. As well as providing two of the writing team, they worked on the storyboards, animatics, as well as the compositing & VFX under the co-direction of Lisa Arioli.

The Young Audiences Content Fund, run through the BFI, has been a huge supporter of the show - from its development right through to the production and is a major financier.

The show is distributed internationally by Serious Kids.

For more information on Enanimation SRL, YACF and Serious Kids please go to:

Enanimation SRL: https://www.enanimation.it/?lang=en

Young Audiences Content Fund: 

https://www.bfi.org.uk/news/final-evaluation-findings-young-audiences-content-fund

https://www.thechildrensmediafoundation.org/events/yacf-evaluating-the-evaluation

Serious Kids: https://www.seriouskids.com/

The Sound Collector will air daily at 10:20am on ITVBe and ITVX from Monday 20th February.

ITVBe is available to watch on BT (channel 28) Freeview (channel 28), Sky (channel 131) and Virgin TV (channel 119)

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About Eagle Vs Bat

Eagle Vs Bat was established in 2018 by Erica Darby and Tom Angell to create and develop content they are passionate about. As the creators and producers of the show, they bring a unique cohesion between sound and storytelling - a perfect blend of their skills. Erica has over 20 years of experience in the animation industry, both as an artist and producer, including owning and running UK animation studio Spider Eye. Erica has developed, produced and exec-produced shows internationally for Disney, Warner Bros, Netflix and the BBC among many others. Tom has 20 years of professional experience in the music industry, as a musician, studio engineer and producer, award-winning composer, sound designer and foley artist. Tom grew up in a watermill and has a large collection of tapes.

About Mackinnon & Saunders

Ian Mackinnon and Peter Saunders are Creative Directors / Executive Producers and co-founders of Mackinnon & Saunders Ltd. Ian and Peter’s talented team have worked on a huge range of TV series, short films, commercials, and feature films. Their work includes puppets for popular TV shows such as Postman Pat, Bob the Builder, Scream Street, Pingu, Koala Brothers, Rastamouse, Strange Hill High, Raa Raa the Noisy Lion, Twirlywoos and the new Clangers. Feature film work includes Wes Anderson’s Fantastic Mr Fox and Tim Burton’s Corpse Bride and Frankenweenie.

Ian Mackinnon and Peter Saunders began working together in the 1980s at one of Europe’s largest animation companies, Cosgrove Hall Films. They pioneered new techniques in puppet making on productions such as the BAFTA-winning The Reluctant Dragon and Emmy Award-winning The Fool of the World and The Wind in the Willows, and their puppet-making skills are renowned throughout the world.

Concerning the approach to Deafness in The Sound Collector

Dr Edward Killan is currently an Associate Professor in Audiology at the School of Medicine, University of Leeds and is a Principal Fellow of the British Society of Audiology.  Prior to working at the University, he was a Senior Clinical Scientist in Audiology specialising in working with hard-of-hearing children and their families. He says: “It is great to be involved in a children’s TV show that positively raises awareness of deafness without making it the focus of the story.  Children who are hard of hearing will positively identify with the Sound Collector, whilst hearing children will gain an insight into what deafness can be like.  I especially like the sound collection device that allows this little character to hear and record interesting sounds.  This is a perfect analogy for a Radio Aid, a device used by hard of hearing children at school and increasingly when out and about to ‘tune in’ to sounds of interest.”

About ITVX

Launched in late 2022, ITVX is UK’s freshest streaming service, letting viewers stream new programme exclusives, with adverts, for free; ranging from premium dramas, documentaries, US series, comedy and reality shows to blockbuster films and much, much more. ITVX is the first streaming service in the UK to offer viewers the flexibility to access free content with ads and ad-free paid subscription, all in one place. Paying subscribers also have access to BritBox UK. ITVX live streams must-watch events, from live sport to Love Island, as they are broadcast on ITV’s channels. ITVX also offers an ever-changing host of exclusive themed channels in line with viewer preferences and popularity; these constantly evolving pop-up channels provide a scheduled experience through a streaming service.