New preschooler series co-produced with Imagine Create Media premieres November 18, 2024
Toronto, ON, November 15, 2024 – TVOkids and Imagine Create Media are thrilled to announce the premiere of the TVOkids Original Happy Place (43x 3’), a series that invites young viewers into a quaint town filled with real-life guinea pigs, where they learn the value of manners, kindness and community through delightful daily adventures. The series will be available for streaming in Canada on TVOkids starting November 18.
Watch trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TesNXtvPPec
“We’re thrilled to bring Happy Place to our younger viewers, along with parents and anyone who loves adorable, furry friends,” said Kirsten Hurd, Commissioning Editor, TVOkids. “While the series is filled with fun and charm, it’s also a return to the basics—teaching kids the importance of manners, kindness, and empathy. The guinea pigs of Happy Place model how simple acts of respect, like saying ‘please’ and ‘thank you,’ can build stronger connections and help children develop key social-emotional skills, such as cooperation, emotional regulation, and conflict resolution.”
These 43 episodes, each two to five minutes long, introduce a lovable “muddle” of guinea pigs navigating life’s small but important moments — from making friends to learning manners. Set in a beautifully crafted miniature town, Happy Place offers children engaging stories designed to model empathy, cooperation, and respect.
“Through their daily adventures, the guinea pigs of Happy Place help young viewers navigate social situations, from making friends to resolving small conflicts, providing an engaging and relatable model for early learning,” says series consultant and educator Sarah Beairsto.
For the production, the Imagine Create team built a beautiful, miniature scale town featuring a city hall, schoolhouse, tea room, and farmers’ market. Happy Place features a cast ten adorable guinea pigs along with a supporting cast of goats, bunnies, chicken, sheep, a horse, pony, donkey, cat, and a polish hen.
“Happy Place takes viewers back to the basics. It’s about small acts of kindness and community spirit, teaching valuable life lessons through engaging storytelling,” says Tara Hungerford, co-creator of the series. “We wanted to create a show where young children can feel inspired, and where they can see the value of saying ‘please’ and ‘thank you’ in a way that’s entertaining and natural.”
The TVOkids Original series, Happy Place is a Imagine Create Media production in partnership with TVOkids. The series is created by Tara Hungerford and Eric Hogan of Imagine Create Media and produced by Tracey Mack. For TVOkids, Kirsten Hurd is the Commissioning Editor and Caroline Voitovici is the Production Executive. Imagine Create Media are the creators behind the acclaimed TVOkids series’
I Love (Prix Jeunesse winner), Space Kids (Youth Media Alliance Awards of Excellence winner) and Baby Baby (Youth Media Alliance Awards of Excellence nominee). Hungerford and Hogan have also created the acclaimed CBC Kids series, Gumboot Kids (Canadian Screen Award nominee, Kidscreen Award winner, NHK Japan Prize finalist).
The Happy Place soundtrack was written and produced by JUNO award-winning artist, Jessie Farrell and performed by the shows voice actors. The soundtrack will be made available for streaming on all major streaming platforms in December 2024.
Starting November 18, the series will be available to stream in Canada via the TVOkids YouTube channel, TVOkids.com and Smart TV app. Happy Place will also premiere on broadcast at 6:30 p.m. ET on November 18.
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About TVO Media Education Group
TVO Media Education Group inspires learning that changes lives and enriches communities. Founded in 1970, we are a globally recognized digital learning organization that engages Ontarians of all ages with inclusive experiences and diverse perspectives. Through our brands TVO Today, TVO Docs, TVO Learn, TVO ILC and TVOkids, we’re investing in the transformative potential of education for everyone. TVO is a registered charity funded in part by the Province of Ontario and supported by thousands of sponsors and donors. Visit TVO.me for more information. Stream TVO on your favourite device. Follow TVO: X , Instagram, Facebook, YouTube
About Imagine Create Media
Imagine Create is an award-winning family entertainment company. With over ten years in the family entertainment space, Imagine Create has built a library of 350+ episodes of content including The Gumboot Kids (CBC Kids), Run Jump Play (TVOkids, Knowledge Kids, Telus Fund) I Love (TVOkids, Knowledge Kids), Space Kids (TVOkids, Knowledge Kids), Take Me Home (Knowledge), A Window Looking In (Knowledge), Space Suite Apollo (Knowledge). Their work has been recognized with the highest honours for family content including a Prix Jeunesse Award, Banff Rockies Award nomination, a Kidscreen Award, multiple Parents Choice Awards and a finalist for the prestigious NHK Japan Prize.
Media Contacts:
Eric Hogan, Imagine Create Media |eric@imaginecreatemedia.com | +1 (604) 802-8680
Genevieve Grant, TVO | ggrant@tvo.org