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Spinning a Loving Web The creative team behind the Lucas the Spider series tell us everything we wanted to know about the adorable arachnid.
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ack in November of 2017, animator Joshua Slice’s charming Lucas the Spider videos grabbed the attention of YouTube watchers all over the world. Now, four years later, the beloved eight-legged wonder is back in his own animated series on Cartoon Network’s hot new preschool block Cartoonito. The CG-animated show, which is produced by the brilliant team at Toronto’s Fresh TV and distributed worldwide by London-based CAKE, expands the universe of the cute little spider and is bound to be one of the fall’s big preschool hits. “Back when I was making Lucas the Spider clips on YouTube, Fresh TV approached me with a vision for a character that went beyond YouTube,” Slice tells Animation Magazine. “I thought it was a great opportunity to give the character a chance to grow beyond what I was capable of doing on my own.” Veteran animation visionary, Fresh TV president Tom McGillis (Total Drama, 6teen) says he and his partners Jennifer Pertsch, George Elliott and Brian Irving all discovered the viral phenom at the same time. “We were mesmerized by the beauty and the heart of the YouTube shorts,” he notes. “We quickly got on the phone with Joshua, hoping that he would trust us with his creation. We listened hard to his vision of the shorts and promised him
‘The idea of creating a cute spider came to mind after seeing real-life photos of jumping spiders. Once I posted the first clip and it went viral, it was pretty clear that I needed to make more!’ — Lucas the Spider creator Joshua Slice
that we would keep the magic alive if we were lucky enough take on the series. I can honestly say that when Joshua chose Fresh TV for the project we have never been so honored as a group. After this we invited Matt Wexler, WexWorks Media, to partner with us on this amazing production, and we bought CAKE on board as international distributor.”
Lots of Love for Lucas Slice, who is an animator who has worked on features such as Ferdinand, Frozen II, Ralph Breaks the Internet, Raya and the Last Dragon and Pixar’s 2022 feature Turning Red, began the whole enterprise as a personal hobby. “I never intended for it to catch on like it did, I just wanted to give myself a fun creative challenge,” he admits. “The idea of creating a cute spider came to mind after seeing real-life photos of jumping spiders. Once I posted the first clip and it went viral, it was pretty clear that I needed to make more!”
“Lucas is a lifelike CGI spider living in a real house — yes, that was Joshua’s actual house in the shorts!” reveals McGillis. “The result is an almost National Geographic style that gave the shorts an intimate and completely original feel. But beyond the look, it was the voice of Lucas that melted my heart. Lucas Slice is Joshua’s nephew, and there was such an easy, comfortable feeling about Lucas’ performance that really spoke to the love that this uncle and nephew share.” Slice says his contributions to the new series come mostly in ensuring that the character stays on model and that he communicates all the thoughts and reasons behind the creative choices he had made. “That way, as the series grows, it can stay true to the original design as much as possible,” he points out. “George Elliott stayed in constant contact with Joshua as we created the new cast of friends inhabiting his world,” explains McGillis. “These creatures needed to have that same
www.animationmagazine.net 20
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november 21
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