With so many streaming services to choose from, Apple TV+ has made a name for itself with high-quality content. Their children’s programming is no exception with shows like Snoopy in Space, which follows the popular Peanuts character as he explores the international space station, the moon, and beyond; as well as the newly premiered, Doug Unplugs, about a young robot who journeys into the human world to learn about life.

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On Friday, December 4th, Apple TV+ launched another exciting children’s show called Stillwater, based on the Zen Shorts book series by Jon J Muth. Stillwater, tells the story of siblings Karl, Addy, and Michael and their next-door neighbor, a wise panda named Stillwater. Stillwater guides the children as they open their eyes to the quiet wonders of the world around them. Screen Rant got the chance to sit down with Executive Producer and Emmy Award-winning Animation Writer and Producer, Rob Hoegee (Teen Titans, Thunderbirds are Go, Niko and the Sword of Light, Abby Hatcher). Rob went behind the scenes on Apple TV+’s new animated preschool series and its mission to teach both kids and adults about mindfulness. empathy, and kindness.

Relatable Situations

Rob expounded on the show and said that “a goal for the series is to present something that is real. It’s a show in many ways about feelings and feelings are real. A lot of the ways we get to that is by putting forth situations that are relatable and feel genuine. I think that there isn’t a whole lot of room for fantasy when you’re taking that approach. There is a special kind of magic in our show, starting with the fact that these kids live next door to a giant, talking panda bear. But in our search to find ways to have our audience relate to the characters and to the situations, I felt that it needed to be as real and genuine as possible.”

Rob went on to share that many people who have seen the show say they have had similar experiences. They expressed that even their kids have felt the same feelings or have done the same things as Karl, Addy, and Michael. Rob said, “it makes me happy because the whole point is that we want this to be something everyone can see a little bit of their own life and experience in.”

Good Storytelling For The Whole Family

Rob’s career is mostly in adventure style shows aimed at kids ages 7+, but when asked about the difference with creating a show for preschool children, Rob said, “I didn’t find much difference. The engines of storytelling are the same. It’s not any easier and sometimes it’s a lot harder because you really have to think about your audience and making sure that you’re telling stories that they can understand. I never considered myself a preschool writer, just a writer. I’d be the first to admit that I don’t have a clue how to write a preschool show, so I just write a show. The goal was to make it as broad as possible. Even though Stillwater is sort of targeted towards a younger audience, my goal really is for this to be family viewing, where kids can watch with their parents. I have a teenager at home and she loved [the episodes] just as much as my younger child. It really does speak to the idea that good storytelling, animation, voice acting, and art transcends demographics in a lot of ways. I stick to the approach of why don’t we just make a show for everyone."

Mindfulness, Empathy, and Kindness

When asked if kids have too much screen time, Rob said, “kids and especially very young kids have far too much screen time, so I hope that when parents make the choice for the time they do allow their children and themselves to view things that they would choose Stillwater. Our agenda is to model mindfulness, empathy, and kindness and give children and parents actual tools to help them cope with unprecedentedly difficult times. We had no idea when we first started making this show that there would be such dramatic changes in the world with the global pandemic. All the things grown-ups are going through right now have a direct and immediate effect on children. We could not have thought of a better time for our show to be out there in the world than right now.”

No Such Thing As a Bad Feeling

Rob explained that Stillwater is a show about feelings. He said, “one of the things that we’re trying to communicate to the viewer is that there is no such thing as a bad feeling. We all have feelings. Sometimes we have angry feelings, sometimes we have happy feelings, but our feelings do not define us. All of our feelings have effects on our bodies. Sometimes those are positive things and sometimes those are negative... but you are not defined by your feelings.”

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Rob revealed that the show’s focus on mindfulness allows the viewer to have greater control over how their feelings affect their body. The show “gives kids an opportunity to say ‘hey, let’s take a minute and notice how our bodies feel.’ Let’s notice how these feelings inside of us are doing. Even thinking about them, can calm us down.”

Reference Point For Parents

Stillwater gives parents actionable information that they can use. “We’ve been able to do this without making it a lesson,” Rob said. “If parents take a look at Stillwater and use him as a reference point they’ll see how Stillwater handles situations.” Parents should ask, “how did he act when one of the kids came to him with a feeling, a problem, or a concern? How did he handle it?” Rob explained that “sometimes Stillwater has direct intermediate questions or comments that might speak to the issue or he’ll tell a story that gives a lesson in the sense that it illustrates a situation and how somebody dealt with that. Kids can then draw their own conclusion. What’s important is that Stillwater never gives the characters in the show an answer. He gives them a bunch of information and helps the children come to their own conclusion. I think that oftentimes is the best way to teach.”

High-Quality Animation

While so many things are being turned into live-action, Rob said that “Stillwater would have always been an animated series and I couldn’t imagine the show having any sort of relevance if this was a guy in a panda suit.” The show is based on Jon J Muth’s books and while the messaging of the stories is amazing; the art itself is one of the things that’s so wonderful and magical about the book. Rob stated that “given what you can do with animation, that was our best way to capture the artistry of Jon’s books.”

A Show Within A Show

One of the hallmarks of the book and subsequently the series are Stillwater’s allegorical stories which help the kids see their situations from another point of view. Rob explained that “In the books, the stories are styled in a pen and ink brush style, while the main parts of the book are in watercolor.” Similarly, the series portrays Stillwater's stories in 2D animation which helps make the 3D animated series seem even more real.

The Mr. Rogers Standard

When asked about the popularity of anthropomorphic animals in children’s programming, Rob said that in his opinion, “animals are more relatable to kids. When it’s an actual person talking to them the kids could see them as a parent or a teacher or someone who is in charge... Think about how kids have stuffed animals; in a sense, animals are very childlike and kids can see them more as equals.”

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He went on to say that, “there have been obvious situations where that’s not the case. Mr. Rogers to me is the gold standard for an empathetic and gentle soul that was able to connect with children in a remarkable way. That was the gold standard for me in this show. I wanted to sort of channel Mr. Rogers through Stillwater.”

Not A Commercial For Toys

Unlike many other children’s programming, Rob stated “we’re not trying to sell toys, this isn’t a commercial that’s all about grabbing eyeballs and trying to keep them. We’re not doing focus testing where we’re watching the kid’s attention and when it starts to stray from the screen we… pump it up. Stillwater is about creating an immersive experience that gives the viewers, the children, and their families a serene quiet place to be.”

Exclusive Clips

Stillwater the Panda waves from the Apple TV+ series.

The series premiered globally with the first six episodes on Friday, December 4, 2020. In the exclusive first episode sneak peek clip, Karl invites Addy into his homemade rocket ship. With the help of Stillwater, Karl and Addy are able to have the experience of launching into space and seeing the stars. The clip shows the wonder of a kid’s imagination but the reality and hard work that goes with it. Additionally, this other exclusive clip from episode five has Stillwater practicing Tai Chi with Karl. The scene reveals the calmness of the show and its slow pace, unlike many other children's programming. Don't forget to tune into Stillwater exclusively on Apple TV+, all episodes available now.

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