When you envision The Beatles music what comes to mind? The Abbey Road album cover? The British rock band up on stage? Mop tops and bowl cuts? For Josh Wakely it was a children’s show to accompany All You Need Is Love. Though he claims there was never the moment of insight, once he envisioned All You Need Is Love as a children’s program he could not get it out of his mind. Wakely turned his vision into the Australian-born kid’s animated show BeatBugs which became available worldwide on Netflix in 2016 and airs on Nick Jr. in Australia. This show has won countless awards for outstanding writing, animation script, and best children’s television series.What is it that makes this show so remarkable?
After realizing the inherent storytelling abilities of the Beatles’ songs, John Wakely fully immersed himself in his vision to bring their classic songs to a younger audience by making stories with them. He believes that the timeliness of Shakespeare is possible for the Beatles if younger audiences are being introduced to their material. Wakely thinks that music is the highest art form since it can convert your mood within minutes and his passion is to take this emotion and convert it into other forms. Since storytelling can take you away from the world and the Beatles songs tell such vivid stories, Wakely found that the combination of their songs with another form would make BeatBugs a success. Obsessions with these concepts and the ability to defy the odds (It took 3 years to get the rights to the music!) kept Wakley passionate and objective throughout the process.
BeatBugs itself is composed of 5 main characters who are bugs in a suburban backyard. These bugs go on adventures that dabble between reality and fantasy, all while intertwining songs like Blackbird, Yellow Submarine, and Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds to create an analogy for their lives (while leaving out the references to acid). Wakely collaborates with many artists to bring the final product to life; he describes his musical vision to Daniel Johns who creates the arrangements while keeping the integrity of the original sound. He gets his vision for what the songs and storylines should be like from listening to the songs most of the time, but on occasion he starts with a lesson for the kids and then finds a song and storyline that will explain it. He and Johns collaborate on the flow and sound of each show, but they are not the ones who sing each part.
The 5 bugs are the singers of most songs with guests such as P!nk, Sia, Aloe Blacc, The Shins, Of Monsters and Men, and Eddie Vedder. Wakely says that when he listens to a song, he thinks of who should sing it right away and reaches out to that artist. In order for the singers to sing correctly with the storyline they read the early scripts, watch the early animation, and sing their chords. Then they collaborate heavily with Wakely, Johns, and the rest of the team to create the final product. It is important to Wakley that the bugs remain the stars of the show and while his inspiration come from the Beatles, that the British rock band does not become the focus for children. This is how an episode is formed, but the motivation for the show’s two current seasons has differed. Since the future of the show was unknown in the first season Wakely focused on hitting songs that were iconic to create the best individual pieces, but in season two he is focused more on the storyline.
Wakely’s motivation and process in creating BeatBugs is truly unique and marks him as highly creative - being able to turn the Beatles iconic music into a modern but honest artform. The success of the show marks its individuality from other of its kind. If BeatBugs continues to receive this much attention perhaps someday the Beatles will become timeless.
ReplyDeleteI have never heard about this show and now I want to watch it! I think it’s truly a creative way to incorporate old ideas, through music in this case, to modern products that influence future generations. I believe that this writer is a creative for making a show for kids that uses songs that were influenced by ideas such as drugs and war, but creating an interesting, PG, storyline. I also think this supports that the Beatles were true creatives that made an impact on their field because their art is still being used in products such as BeatBugs, as well as a very insightful movie, Across the Universe, which uses Beatles songs to tell a story and show multiple points of view of history. Music lovers have been influenced by the Beatles as much as skaters are influenced by the Z-boys and have created a lasting impact.
This is such a cute show! I think it's really unique in that it has the potential to span different generations--it's something that parents can enjoy with their kids, as they said in the video. I think it's really cool that they brought together a variety of popular artists to create the show. I also think it's a great way to bring older music to younger generations that might not be familiar with the Beatles. It seems like a way to ensure that some of the most influential, classic music of our time doesn't lose popularity over generations and continues to shape young people all over the world. I am a firm believer that music is one of the most powerful things in this world, and the Beatles made a huge impact on the music world. I'm glad a show like this exists so their legacy can live on through younger generations.
ReplyDeleteIt's super interesting to think that something like the Beatles, which is a lot closer to our generation, could become as timeless and well-known as Shakespeare. I think it's really cool that shows like this are helping to achieve that! It definitely speaks to how meaningful the Beatles' music is to people such as John Wakely and it's great that he wants to share that experience with younger audiences as well. The way he achieves this through creating a TV show for kids to relate to is truly creative and shows how creativity can be a shared experience and not something people just keep to themselves.
ReplyDeleteWhile new music can be acceptable, it's refreshing to get a blast from the past in such a creative way. Often times, music is seen as strictly entertainment and the narrative being told or emotions being expressed are ignored. By weaving together the Beatles and everyday lessons in a television show, Wakely is teaching the next generation common morals in an entertaining and fun way. Who would've thought to use the Beatles to engage the youth, splendid!
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