Budding TV series sprouts from Wales
Cyfres deledu addawol yn egino o Gymru
A Welsh animation company’s children’s series encouraging young audiences to take an interest in nature and the world around them has been picked-up to air by some of the UK’s leading broadcasters, including S4C and ITV.
With support from the Welsh Government’s Creative Wales agency, Bumpybox’s new TV show under the working title of Mini Buds / Egin Bach, will be available in Welsh on S4C and English on ITV. The series also has the potential to be distributed globally.
The 26 five-minute episodes of Mini Buds / Egin Bach explores the big adventures of six tiny, budding explorers navigating the vast wilderness of a small back garden. Each story focuses on different aspects of the garden environment such as flowers and seeds, the insects and the creatures that live there and the elements like the rain or sunshine.
The creation of Mini Buds / Egin Bach expanded Bumpybox’s team from 4 to 12, securing jobs for 12 months. The series’ success will improve the company’s sustainability and further strengthen its track record as a renowned production company.
With a strong reputation in children’s animation, Bumpybox has previously created over 75 episodes of My Petsaurus for BBC's dedicated children's channel Cbeebies.
The team are also awaiting the theatrical release of Michael Morpurgo’s Kensuke’s Kingdom, featuring Cillian Murphy and Sally Hawkins. Bumpybox joined the production team as an animation partner, providing their expertise in CGI, colouring and compositing.
Sam Wright, producer and director at Cardiff-based Bumpybox, said:
“We've been working on developing Mini Buds / Egin Bach for a long time, it actually started out as an idea we had while still studying at University of South Wales over 13 years ago. It's amazing that with the help of Creative Wales, we'll be able to finally bring this to audiences.
“The production means a lot to our company as it will allow us to expand our staff, offer training for new animators, work with new broadcast partners and sell overseas greatly increasing the outlook of our business. We’re very grateful to all the assistance we’ve received in getting to this stage.”
Minister for Creative Industries, Sarah Murphy, said:
“The animation industry is a key priority for Creative Wales and I’m delighted that we have been able to support this exciting new development from the team at Bumpybox.
“It’s fantastic news that this funding has allowed a home-grown company to build its workforce for such larger-scale projects. This growth will also provide excellent opportunities for new graduates to stay in Wales and find work closer to home in this exciting sector.”
Notes to editors
About Bumpybox:
Bumpybox Limited is an independent animation studio based in Cardiff with over 10 years of industry experience. Bumpybox was founded by three graduates of the University of South Wales; Sam Wright, Leon Dexter and Toke Jepsen in 2011 after working in the industry.
As a company they specialise in providing high-quality animation, visual effects and compositing. Compositing is a process that encompasses a wide range of advanced filmmaking techniques such as green screen capture, computer-generated imagery and rotoscoping.
About Creative Wales:
Creative Wales is a Welsh Government economic development agency established to promote and grow the creative industries in Wales.
Our focus is to offer funding, support, and guidance across a range of sectors from TV and Film, Animation – including Immersive Tech, AR/VR – through to Games, Music, and Publishing - positioning Wales as one of the best places in the world for creative businesses to thrive.
We are passionate about creating opportunities for people in the industry. Whether that’s entry-level training or developing and upskilling people already working in our creative sectors. We are committed to investing in people from a diverse range of backgrounds, whether they’re young people, newcomers to the industry or our talented and experienced workforce.
From studio development to grassroots music venues, indie games developers and major international productions, we provide funding, specialist advice and help people within the industry to make connections that will nurture the development of creative projects of all sizes. We also actively promote sustainability, fair work, and equal opportunities for everyone working across our creative sectors.
Whether we are supporting home-grown talent or working to attract international creative projects to Wales, our aim is always to strengthen the industry for the long term and create exciting and rewarding opportunities for future generations.
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