Hello everybody!

My name is Chris and I’m the current series director of “Shaun the Sheep” series 2.

Welcome to my first blog. Over the coming months I will be posting updates and news from the studio floor as we create the next forty episodes in the “Shaun the Sheep” series.

Those of you familiar with the “Wallace and Gromit” website will find this similar to the reports Beeky wrote during the production of “A Matter of Loaf and Death” last year. Although unfortunately I don’t have as interesting a nickname as Mr Beek (a few people used to call me “Salty” at University but that’s another story...)

And so to the story so far...

We started writing episodes for the new series back in September 2007. Some of the scripts were written by people here at Aardman (Look out for one written by none other than Mr Nick Park), but the majority were by professional writers who worked on series one or on other children’s series.

The storyboarding and model /set build took off in July 2008. A lot of sets and props from series one were reusable, but we still had to build quite a few characters from scratch.

As “A Matter of Loaf and Death” was shooting in the same studio, we had to wait for them to finish in October 2008 before we could move our sets in. Thankfully, they finished right on time (Thank you Beeky!).
We finally started recording on January 5th 2009 (at around tea time) with a shot of a weather vane in the shape of a sheep, turning in the wind. (Animated by the glamorous Wendy Griffiths)

It’s now mid March and We’re well and truly settled into the shoot. We presently have ten animators beavering away across almost twenty sets, all under the benevolent guidance of our two episode directors, Seamus and Richard.

I know you must have many questions to ask and I will try to answer as many as I can during the course of the production. Of course there are a few things which will be kept secret as we don’t want to spoil all the surprises for you! However, I can now reveal the following juicy information...

• Most of the cast will be returning in the new series, including baby Timmy and the naughty pigs.
• Some of the characters that appeared in series one will have a greater role (such as Pidsley the farm cat).
• Some characters have been slightly redesigned (but not the sheep!)
• We will be introducing some brand new characters for this series.
• We are recording in HD (Although I can’t guarantee it will be broadcast in HD where you are as that decision is down to the individual broadcasters.)

Finally, I had a question passed on to me regarding how big the sets are so I hope the attached picture helps...

In the picture you can see, from the left - Seamus (Episode Director, standing in the “animator access trench”), Alison (animator) and Charles (Director of Photography), setting up a shot outside the farmhouse. I can promise you they all looked a lot happier a second before I took the photo... tut, Typical eh? Note all the animator’s paraphernalia scattered about. We’re not a tidy lot, especially when we’re trying to meet a tight deadline, but we’ve got very good at making sure none of it ends up in shot!

That’s all for now, I need to go and catch up with those pesky storyboarders...

Catch you next time Shaun fans,

Chris

Click here to view the full image

ooo coooooool

wow,great work. so is this going to be similar to beeky's production blog for a matter of loaf and death?

Thankz!

Wow, you got to be in the same room as Shaun!

cooool

wow the characters r bigger then i thought they were!

damn larger picture dosnt work

Yes it does Jordan,

Bitzers changed, you can tell. As he is blurred out.

Also, Shauns had a hair cut...

Whoa, i thought the models were larger then that! Wow!

Morning all!

I just thought I'd confirm that there are no design changes to Shaun, although we have been having a little problem with his hair "deflating"! The model making boffins are working on the problem as we speak...

Everybody has the occasional bad hair day.

Ha ha ha, you can say that again. I had one when i woke up!

can you please fix the pic as when i click on it it comes up as a red X

Hi chris

I get the red x, too.

Hair deflating -- that is so funny! We love his topknot. One of my fave scenes is where he puts his hair back on his head after the bull blows it off.

This is easily the best news we've had all day...you'll be glad to know that Shaun has recently replaced The Wire as our most favouritist of programmes. Honest!

Loosh

cool

i like your pic

Oooh wow, nice to meet you Chris.
It's sounding good at the moment.

from DS99

x x x x x

cooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooool

Hmmm. I seem to get the "red x of doom" when I click on the picture too and I posted it! Oh, hang on, that's probably why it doesn't work. Now you know why I'm a stop frame animator and haven't switched over to CGI...
Katie, I need an adult!

how come bitzer's pixelated?

has timmy changed?

Will there be any new animals?
hopefully cows?

"how come bitzer's pixelated?" mmmhhh well spotted. I am sure (a) there is a reason to it and (b) we will not find out in the immediate future! I am so happy that there will be a second series. I am sure you know how much love there is for these characters and the stories! Thanks for this production blog ... it makes the waiting a bit better until ... until ... actually, until when?

"Katie, I need an adult" oh that made me laugh! lol

i think this series is going to be fab, are there any new characters?

csadler, I think in my opinion, as its not the same series, and there has been some time inbetween, it looks good with Shauns hair, 'deflated'. Also please can there be another Competition for making a Character, like last Series, I didnt get the chance to find out about that, All I did was look at the Winners and be jealous!

Ohh and...

Is there any way of you telling me/us the big modelmaking secret I have always wanted to know, Whats the Sheeps Fur made from!!! please could you answer that one!

didnt richard goleszwoski (sorry if I spelt it wrong) direct it last series

I might have the answer for the "Red X" problem.

"Press SHIFT+R at the same time or press the right side of the computer mouse and a list of options will come up. Click "Refresh" and the picture may come up"

There, hope that helps. It worked for me.

Gromits little bro, I love your avatar!

thanks WV!
Bitzer pixalated?
well, my theory is that he is holding something or doing something that will give a story away

mm maybe he's been adapted

Me thinks the bull will be adapted... due to the fact he's not on the meet the flock page... maybe Bitzer's eyes will become marinly bigger... or they'll change his tail...

Hi!
Im very glad about next Series. And welcome to Shaun the sheep

cool man what a good setting good picture

If you get the Red X, go back to this page, click the Right Mouse Button on the picture and choose 'Save Target As'. You can save the picture to your PC and view it that way.

Click here to view the full image

Looks great. cant wait!!!!!!!!!!!!

Click here to view the full image

You said most of the cast are coming back. Who couldn't make it?

Oooooh I'm excited!!!

Thanks for the tip about the photo. It worked!!

Wow!! Can't wait!! Thanks for the information Chris

Hello Chris,

thanks for the very good news, the posting and the nice picture. My family and i are the biggest Shaun Fans of Germany (but we are not alone...) and i spend much time with model bulding. I like to try to build the farmers house, the flocks house and a little bit of the nice surrounding. There are play figures of Shaun (maybe a little bit smaler than yours originals) and when i get them, i will start my project. So i have a lot of questions about your models.
- are they build with wood or plastics or booth?
- which material is the green floor on the picture?
- how do you build the bushes and trees?
- the wall are real stones?
- are the wallpapers behind the models paintings or photos?
- howe old and which type is the farmers Land Rover?
I found a little Model of the Landy from Corgy Toys and its blue (need a white roof) but a little bit longer as the model from the series. My model fits very good for the figures vom Bandai Mini Swing. It looks great when Shirly sits in back of the Rover. I will post a picture later.
How much episodes will you produce? 40 too? Hope so And when starts the series on TV and DVD? In Germany we had wait a longer time for showing in TV and the episodes are a little bit shorter as on DVD.

Shaun The Sheep is on of (maybe THE) the best series ever! And not only for the children - for the whole family! Good that Timmy gets back to the flock!

I stay in touch for more informations.
Chris(tian) from Germany

SHEEP ROVER

...sry but i must do it! Took my camera, the litte Rover and the Mini Swings and made a nice photo. My first modell work about Shaun ... and not my last SURE. Hope you like it.

Meet the flock,
Christian

Click here to view the full image

I can answer the back drop question for you. They are painted:

Click here to view the full image

WOW great work!
Its really hard to find out in the series if the background is a model or a painting! In this size of painting there are so many details. It seems that the backgrounds are in use for totaly scenes and the models are for detail scenes (...when the farmer goes out the door or the sheeps are on the roof...).
Really great work! I like it.
Christian

Sweeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeet!

You might like this link: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/spl/hi/picture_gallery/07/entertainment_shaun_the_sheep/html/1.stm
there's some behind the scenes pics!

Do Aardman ever use blue/greenscreen for the sky or background?

How do you get/make such realistic props?