Brave Bunnies


Brave Bunnies is a Ukrainian children's animated television series for preschool children aged 2 to 5. In the series, two rabbit children show their courage when they meet and befriend other animals. Creator Olga Cherepanova sought to encourage respect for diversity and to promote healthy childhood development.
The series has been broadcast in more than 80 countries. The first season was produced by Glowberry and Ánima Kitchent in partnership with distributor Aardman Animations, and premiered in December 2020. Production of the second season was interrupted by the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and resumed in December 2022 after WildBrain acquired a majority ownership of the property. A second season was distributed by WildBrain in 2023.
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Synopsis

The 2D animated series follows the adventures of a family of rabbits: Boo and Bop, Ma and Pa, and four Bunny Babies. Every episode starts with a cheerful song as the family ride on their bunny bus, which stops at a new location. Brother Bop and sister Boo then explore and make friends with a different animal, creating a new game to play with them. The series attempts to show its preschool viewers the diversity of the world and to accept the differences of others. Starting in the second season, some episodes have the bunny family revisit friends at their homes, meeting their families and learning more about their different lifestyles.
The series introduces children to the concept of diversity and, through the example of the Brave Bunnies, shows how to accept and communicate with people possessing different appearances and behaviours. To promote healthy childhood development, characters Bop and Boo acknowledge the uniqueness of each new friend.

Voice cast

The Ukrainian voice cast includes actress Olena Kravets and singer-songwriter Potap, which 1+1 Media stated was the first time a Ukrainian children's animated series attracted such high-profile performers.

Development and production

Publishing house Glowberry was founded in 2009 and worked in children's literature and illustration, seeking to create modern fairy tales. Their best-selling work was a picture book about a family of rabbits on a journey, meeting unusual animals as they travelled further from their home. Several years were spent developing this into a television series for children aged 2 to 5. Glowberry co-founder and series creator Olga Cherepanova noted that while rabbits are often considered to be timid animals, their bravery in the series comes from discovering new challenges every day. She said that she created the series "to help children... communicate with different friends without any fears or stereotypes, respecting the diversity of our world."
Illustrator Anna Sarvira developed the style for the series, serving as art director while Cherepanova was the creative producer. Following this early creative work, the production became an international project to ensure funding, market access, and expertise. Over a hundred people in different countries were involved, coordinating together on the same schedule. This included British director Tim Fehrenbach and Canadian lead writer John Van Bruggen, both of whom had experience in children's animation. Cherepanova was educated in psychology, and the writing team consulted with child psychologists throughout the process. They sought to maintain the interest of young children, present stories that would aid early socialisation, and create characters representing the many different human personality types. The music which celebrates the characters' achievements in each episode was composed in Ukraine.
In 2019, the series was in development with Glowberry and Ánima Kitchent. The production also received support from the Ukrainian State Film Agency and the Ministry of Youth and Sports. Glowberry pitched the series to studios and distributors at MIPCOM in 2019. By early 2020, UK studio Aardman Animations had partnered as the international distributor and secured additional international sales at the 2020 Kidscreen Summit in Miami. The first season consisted of 52 seven-minute episodes.
When the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine began in February 2022, the production of Brave Bunnies in Kyiv was suspended. Many of the Glowberry team were forced to flee Kyiv, and production coordinator Natalia Yermak became a war correspondent for the New York Times. Production resumed in August and by December 2022, Canadian children's entertainment company WildBrain became a majority stakeholder in Brave Bunnies, to continue the reliable production and distribution of the series. WildBrain took over global distribution of the series, merchandising and licensing, and the company's Vancouver animation studio joined Glowberry and Ánima Kitchent to produce the second season of 52 episodes.

Release

Broadcast

The series premiered on 5 December 2020 on PLUSPLUS in Ukraine, followed by Nick Jr., Super RTL, ABC, Yle, and HOP!. The first season was distributed by Aardman Animations, and by 2022 had been broadcast in over 80 countries.
Brave Bunnies streamed on the Sunflower TV YouTube channel, which launched in July 2022 and allowed Ukrainian refugees across Europe and the UK to watch ad-free children's programming in the Ukrainian language. Content was approved by a panel of media professionals, child psychologists and Ukrainian mothers. The creators of Brave Bunnies along with partner companies waived their rights to enable the project.
It is broadcast on WildBrain's Family Jr. channel in Canada and on the Comcast WildBrain+ SVOD channel in the United States. The second season was released in Canada in June 2023 followed by other territories later that year.

Reception

Brave Bunnies was among the top-rated children's programs in Ukraine, the UK, Israel and Australia. The New Voice of Ukraine applauded its message of diversity and acceptance. A 2020 focus group by British research agency Childwise found that 79% of children aged 3 to 5 felt happier after watching the series, and 90% liked the characters.

Books and merchandising

Glowberry first distributed its books through the company's tablet app. Following the launch of the TV series, various publishers were licensed to print physical books for Brave Bunnies, beginning with Italian-language editions by Planeta Libre in 2021. English-language editions were published by Penguin Random House imprint Ladybird Books. These children's books include picture books, colouring books, activity books, and sticker books.
Canadian multinational toy company Spin Master created a line of toys for the franchise. The toy line includes figures, playsets, games, and plushies.
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