Dot. Season 2 To Premiere On CBC, Universal Kids, And Stream Exclusively On Hulu In Fall 2018
Hollywood, Calif., January 25, 2018 — Industrial Brothers and The Jim Henson Company, are pleased to announce the greenlight of season two of Dot., the award-winning original series based on the popular children’s book by Randi Zuckerberg and produced by Industrial Brothers (creators of Top Wing, Yup Yups, Gummandos) in association with The Jim Henson Company (Splash and Bubbles, Word Party, Julie’s Green Room, Pajanimals, Dinosaur Train) and the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC).
Modeling positive digital citizenship, the inquisitive and exuberant Dot is well versed in technology, a true child of the 21st century. Targeted to children ages four-to-seven years old, Dot embarks on hilarious adventures to satisfy her imagination, curiosity and latest passion whether with her dog, friends, and any tool or technology that will help enhance their play and exploration.
The first season of Dot. (52 x 11’) has been a top performing franchise since its debut in the U.S. on Universal Kids, NBCUniversal’s Cable Entertainment network for kids 2-11, in September 2016, with all past episodes of the series now streaming exclusively on Hulu. The series also currently airs on CBC in Canada. Season two (26 x 11’) is anticipated to debut in fall 2018.
Dot. is the first animated show for New York Times best-selling author Randi Zuckerberg, who is also founder & CEO of Zuckerberg Media. Dot. was born from Zuckerberg’s passion of motivating and inspiring young girls to develop an early love and appreciation for technology, math and sciences. Since its debut in 2016, the series has received the 2016 Kidscreen Award for Best New Series, a Parents’ Choice Award – Silver Medal, a Common Sense Media 5 Star rating, Roger’s Prize/BANFF Media Festival Excellence in Canadian Content Award, an ACTRA Outstanding Performance (Voice) for Lilly Bartlam (Dot) nomination among others. The series app, Dotopedia, won the Award of Excellence, Best Cross-platform Interactive Content at the Youth Media Alliance Awards, a Common Sense Media 4 Star rating, and has received nominations for a BANFF Rockie Award for Interactive Content For Kids and Youth, and a Canadian Screen Award, 2018, for Best Cross-Platform Project, Children’s and Youth.
“I am so thrilled that Dot. continues to impact and inspire so many young people,” said Dot. creator and executive producer Randi Zuckerberg. “It’s so important to me that families find a healthy and positive relationship with technology, and Dot. is doing just that by allowing children and their parents to join along for her tech-fueled adventures! We can’t wait to see where Dot takes us next.”
“We are delighted that Dot has been embraced as a new friend and digital citizen model for our audiences,” commented Halle Stanford, President of Television at The Jim Henson Company. “She is inspiring kids and their families to embrace the modern digital age with enthusiasm, innovation, and balance.”
Matthew Fernandes, Arthur Spanos and Tammy Semen, of Industrial Brothers, Lisa Henson and Halle Stanford of The Jim Henson Company, and Randi Zuckerberg will serve as Executive Producers on the new episodes. Yalda Uhls, director of creative community partnerships at Common Sense Media and a senior research scientist at UCLA’s Children’s Digital Media Center @ LA serves as curriculum consultant. The Jim Henson Company handles all media rights for Dot. outside of Canada and all consumer products rights for the property worldwide.
Industrial Brothers is a company that is focused on creating engaging content with memorable characters that tell unique stories for kids of all ages. Based in Toronto the company works closely with broadcast, production and distribution partners to develop high quality shows such as Top Wing (produced by 9 Story Media Group for Nickelodeon), the award winning preschool series Yup Yups (Disney Jr.) and the YouTube exclusive boys action series Gummandos.
The Jim Henson Company has remained an established leader in family entertainment for over 60 years and is recognized worldwide as an innovator in puppetry, animatronics and digital animation. Best known as creators of the world-famous Muppets, Henson has received over 50 Emmy® Awards and nine Grammy Awards. Recent credits include Julie’s Greenroom (Netflix), Dot. (Sprout/Hulu), Splash and Bubbles (PBS), Word Party (Netflix), Doozers (Hulu/Sprout), and the Emmy®-nominated Sid the Science Kid (PBS), Dinosaur Train (PBS), and Pajanimals (Sprout). Television productions include Fraggle Rock, The Storyteller and the sci-fi cult series Farscape. Features include Sony Pictures Animation’s The Star, Disney’s Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day, as well as The Dark Crystal, Labyrinth, MirrorMask, and Jim Henson’s Turkey Hollow. Upcoming productions include The Happytime Murders, starring Melissa McCarthy, and the Netflix original series The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance. Feature films in development include the highly anticipated Fraggle Rock.
With additional locations in New York and London, The Jim Henson Company is headquartered in Los Angeles on the historic Charlie Chaplin lot, complete with soundstage and postproduction facilities. The Company is home to Jim Henson’s Creature Shop™, a pre-eminent character-building and visual effects group with international film, television, theme park and advertising clients, as well as Henson Recording Studios, one of the music industry’s top recording facilities known for its world-class blend of state-of- the-art and vintage equipment. The Company’s Henson Alternative brand is currently touring Puppet-Up! – Uncensored, a live puppet improvisational show.
CBC/Radio-Canada is Canada’s national public broadcaster. Through our mandate to inform, enlighten and entertain, we play a central role in strengthening Canadian culture. As Canada’s trusted news source, we offer a uniquely Canadian perspective on news, current affairs and world affairs. Our distinctively homegrown entertainment programming draws audiences from across the country. Deeply rooted in communities, CBC/Radio-Canada offers diverse content in English, French and eight Indigenous languages. We are leading the transformation to meet the needs of Canadians in a digital world.
CBC Kids creates entertaining and inspiring media for children and the grownups who care for them. As Canada’s national broadcaster we continue our tradition of excellence and innovation in children’s content and reach our audience through CBC Television, our websites and social platforms.
Randi Zuckerberg is a New York Times bestselling author, the founder and CEO of Zuckerberg Media and host of “Dot Complicated” on SiriusXM. Randi also served as mentor on Oxygen’s show “Quit Your Day Job,” as well as executive producer of “Dot.” based on Randi’s recent children’s book, which premiered on CBC and Universal Kids Fall 2016. Randi appears regularly on NBC the TODAY show and CNBC, and has also been seen on CNN, Good Morning America, Fox Business, Bloomberg News, and ABC’s World News. She is a Tony Voter and was also a correspondent for the 2016 Tony Awards and the World Economic Forum in Davos. Randi was recently appointed as a Young Global Leader for the World Economic Forum and is part of the Tech Committee for the American Theatre Wing. In 2017, Randi launched the revolutionary tech-enabled dining experience ‘Sue’s Tech Kitchen.’
Universal Kids represents the world of NBCUniversal family brands. As a kid-focused ecosystem with great TV content at the center, Universal Kids is programmed for the 2-12 year old audience, with a fresh mix of animated content, unscripted entertainment, and proven international hits. Launched in September 2017 and available in over 59 million homes, Universal Kids is available for kids and families across all platforms, including on air, online, On Demand and via mobile with the Universal Kids app.
