Portfolio Entertainment in partnership with the CMF/SRF Digital Animated Series Program and Corus Entertainment’s Treehouse TV, has produced a brand-new family Christmas Special, Where Oliver Fits: A Christmas Eve Tale, and an accompanying series of 9 x 2.5’shorts based on the hit Canadian children’s book Where Oliver Fits by Cale Atkinson.
Portfolio Entertainment holds global distribution rights to both, the special and the series. The heartfelt animated comedy special and series explore the challenges of not knowing where you fit in with your friends, and how to be yourself.
The Christmas special and series of shorts will be available for distribution in spring 2021.
Portfolio’s VP of Sales & Business Development Donnie MacIntyre said, “As we move toward the world reopening and people around the world reuniting with friends and family, this is the perfect time to launch this hopeful new Holiday special about the joy of finding your place in a world filled with others who have their own unique tastes, interests and talents, Oliver’s adventurous spirit and can-do attitude are just what kids will be looking for this holiday season.”
The special focuses on children of age group three to seven years. The half hour special features Oliver, a little puzzle piece from a loving puzzle family who is happy, outgoing, and maybe just a little too focused on what he wants over the needs of others. When Oliver finds himself separated from his family in Santa’s workshop one Christmas Eve, he quickly learns that the world away from his family isn’t so easy to figure out. Luckily, Oliver meets some other lost toys during his adventure, and he realizes that each of us are different: we have different abilities, likes, skills, shapes, differences in lots of things! When Oliver slows down and learns about the needs of his new friends, he discovers he is just one small piece in a much bigger world. By working together, Oliver and the toys are able to find their way back to Santa’s sleigh where they are reunited with family and fly off to bring Christmas joy to kids around the world.
The 9 x 2.5’series of shorts follows Oliver’s adventures in the playroom where he lives with his family. Here, playing is an everyday activity and Oliver wants to join in on whatever his friends are doing, he wants to do it all! Oliver will show that with a little resilience, we can find ways to be with others and participate in lots of different adventures, especially when you are OK with who you are. And that’s what Where Oliver Fits is all about!
Along with being a playful comedy, the series will have a soft focus on developmental learning as it relates to a preschooler’s social interactions with their peers and the skills that can help them become successful in integrating with others.
The series will be accompanied by an on-line game titled The Where Oliver Fits Puzzle Party. Parents and teachers will be able to find a downloadable activity booklet on the Treehouse.com website.
Along with a variety of activities and colouring pages, this booklet will be an excellent resource for parents to help guide discussions with their children about how to find your fit; just like Oliver!