Bluey backers confident of world domination in wake of Disney deal

A cartoon about a ‘normal Australian family’, albeit in canine form, is being pitched globally after a deal with Disney.

Bluey backers Daley Pearson (left) and Charlie Aspinwall say they are banking on the world loving dogs. Picture: Russell Shakespeare

The executive producers behind Australian hit kids program Bluey believe it can be as successful as Britain's Peppa Pig or America's Dora the Explorer on the world stage.

Charlie Aspinwall and Daley Pearson from niche Brisbane-based program maker Ludo Studio say the funny animated show about a normal Australian family is “good enough” to build a huge fan base around the world. That could be possible, thanks to a new international distribution deal with entertainment giant Disney.

“We definitely think it could be — I think it’s as good as anything out there,” Mr Aspinwall told The Australian.

“We're just banking on the world loving dogs.”

The program about two lov­able Blue Heeler female dogs and their parents was created by Joe Brumm in 2015 and is based on his experience of raising two ­daughters.

Mr Aspinwall said it was “contemplating” a Bluey live show, and flagged a possible movie down the track.

“We have talked about that (movie), and we'd really love to do one.”

The creation of Bluey has taken several years, starting with Mr Brumm showing the producers a two-minute clip that was “funny and brilliant”.

“It was all there — we loved it," Mr Aspinwall said.

From there, they started working on producing the program, approaching Michael Carrington, then head of ABC Children's Television.

“Michael really rolled the dice with us, and Joe, he stuck his neck out like nobody really has before,” Mr Aspinwall said.

With support from Mr Carrington, Ludo pitched Bluey at the Asian Animation Summit, an annual event designed to showcase Asia’s animated projects looking for investors and partners, in November 2016. After that, Ludo signed up with BBC Studios to distribute the show. Ludo started producing Bluey in July 2017 for ABC Children’s and BBC Studios. The series has also received production support from the Australian government through Screen Australia and Screen Queensland.

One seven-minute Bluey episode takes between three to four months to produce, Mr Pearson said.

The voices of the two female dogs, Bluey and Bingo, belong to kid actors, whose identities are secret. The voice of dad, Bandit, belongs to Dave McCormack, best known as frontman of Brisbane-based rock group Custard, and mum, Chilli, is voiced by actor Melanie Zanetti. The Aussie accents will be heard around the world, as the Disney deal prevents changes to voices.

Since debuting on ABC Kids last year in October, it has built a huge following.

Bluey, with 52 episodes, is the most-watched ­series on ABC iview, with more than 90 million plays.

It is currently the No 1 children’s series of 2019 on metropolitan broadcast television in Australia, according to OzTam.

Mr Pearson didn’t expect it to be as popular as it has become.

“Not this popular — we knew it was good, and we hoped, but you just don’t know.”

A second series of Bluey is in production in Brisbane, and will make its debut next year.

Under the international distribution deal with Disney, which was brokered by BBC Studio and announced last week, Bluey will premier on Disney Junior from late 2019, and its yet-to-be launched streaming service, Disney+, in all territories outside Australia, New Zealand and greater China, including Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan.

Disney+ will be launched in the US in November, but the US heavyweight has remained tight-lipped about its international expansion.

Given the huge success of Bluey, Ludo has increased its workforce from three to 55 in just under seven years.

Ludo has also produced interactive animated comedy series Doodles and a series #7DaysLater, which have won two international digital Emmy Awards.

And a cautionary note for parents: family-owned Moose Toys from Melbourne are set to distribute Bluey toys before this ­Christmas.