"Creature Comforts" (2003) TV series 2003-????

User Rating:

8.3/10   

Creator:

Nick Park
(more)

Seasons:

1 | 2

Release Date:

1 October 2003 (UK)

Genre:

Animation | Comedy | Family

Plot Keywords:

Animal | Clay Animation | Interview

Awards:

5 wins & 2 nominations

Cast

The Great British Public

...

Various (14 episodes, 2003-2005)

Series Directed by
Richard Goleszowski		(14 episodes, 2003-2005)
Nick Park		(unknown episodes)

Series Writing credits
Nick Park		(14 episodes, 2003-2005)

Series Produced by
Julie Lockhart	....	producer / series producer (14 episodes, 2003-2005)
Peter Lord	....	executive producer (14 episodes, 2003-2005)
Nick Park	....	executive producer (14 episodes, 2003-2005)
David Sproxton	....	executive producer (14 episodes, 2003-2005)
Claire Jennings	....	associate producer (13 episodes, 2003)
Abbie Ross	....	associate producer (13 episodes, 2003)

Series Original Music by
Stuart Hancock		(3 episodes, 2003)

Series Cinematography by
Frank Passingham		(14 episodes, 2003-2005)
Andy MacCormack		(13 episodes, 2003)

Series Film Editing by
Dan Lincoln		(14 episodes, 2003-2005)
William Ennals		(13 episodes, 2003)
Andrew Hassenruck		(13 episodes, 2003)
David McCormick		(13 episodes, 2003)

Series Art Direction by
Kitty Clay		(14 episodes, 2003-2005)

Series Production Management
Gareth Owen	....	production manager (13 episodes, 2003)

Series Art Department
Kate Anderson	....	senior model maker (14 episodes, 2003-2005)
Chris Brock	....	model maker (14 episodes, 2003-2005)
Amanda Darby	....	model maker (14 episodes, 2003-2005)
Cath Ford	....	model maker (14 episodes, 2003-2005)
Nick Mackie	....	title sequence (14 episodes, 2003-2005)
Arlene Arrell	....	model maker (13 episodes, 2003)
Justeen Bailey	....	props (13 episodes, 2003)
Claire Baker	....	props (13 episodes, 2003)
Andy Brown	....	props (13 episodes, 2003)
Nigel Davies	....	title sequence (13 episodes, 2003)
Claire Drewett	....	model maker (13 episodes, 2003)
Chris Entwistle	....	model maker (13 episodes, 2003)
Ben Greenwood	....	model maker (13 episodes, 2003)
Mick Hockney	....	model maker (13 episodes, 2003)
Rob Horvath	....	model maker (13 episodes, 2003)
Neil Jones	....	model maker (13 episodes, 2003)
Jane Kite	....	senior propmaker (13 episodes, 2003)
Dan Lane	....	title sequence (13 episodes, 2003)
Virginia Mason	....	model maker (13 episodes, 2003)
Duncan Miller	....	props (13 episodes, 2003)
Rachel Moore	....	props (13 episodes, 2003)
David Pedley	....	model maker (13 episodes, 2003)
Bridget Phelan	....	props (13 episodes, 2003)
Manon Roberts	....	props (13 episodes, 2003)
Michael Salter	....	character designer (13 episodes, 2003)
Debbie Smith	....	model maker (13 episodes, 2003)
Lee Tetzner	....	model maker (13 episodes, 2003)
Harriet Thomas	....	model maker (13 episodes, 2003)
Kathryn Williams	....	props (13 episodes, 2003)
James Young	....	model maker (13 episodes, 2003)

Series Sound Department
Nick Upton	....	voice breakdown (14 episodes, 2003-2005)
Paul Ackerman	....	foley artist (13 episodes, 2003)
Helen Garrard	....	voice breakdown (13 episodes, 2003)
Toby Hughes	....	sound recordist (13 episodes, 2003)
James Mather	....	supervising sound editor (13 episodes, 2003)
Sean Millar	....	sound recordist (13 episodes, 2003)
Joseph Stracey	....	assistant sound editor (13 episodes, 2003)
Mark Swinglehurst	....	sound recordist (13 episodes, 2003)
Adam Tavner	....	sound recordist (13 episodes, 2003)
Will Norie	....	supervising sound editor (13 episodes, 2005-2006)

Series Visual Effects by
Stefan Marjoram	....	computer animator (13 episodes, 2003)
Mike Shirra	....	visual effects (13 episodes, 2003)

Series Camera and Electrical Department
Churton Season	....	assistant camera / lead camera assistant (14 episodes, 2003-2005)
Charles Copping	....	additional lighting camera (13 episodes, 2003)
Richard Hosken	....	gaffer (13 episodes, 2003)
Toby Howell	....	lighting camera (13 episodes, 2003)
Clive Scott	....	gaffer (13 episodes, 2003)
Alan Scrase	....	rigger (13 episodes, 2003)

Series Animation Department
Terry Brain	....	animator (14 episodes, 2003-2005)
Mike Cash	....	animator (14 episodes, 2003-2005)
Shona de Bradeny	....	assistant animator (14 episodes, 2003-2005)
Alison Evans	....	assistant animator / animator (14 episodes, 2003-2005)
Maria Hopkinson-Hassell	....	assistant animator / animator (14 episodes, 2003-2005)
Andy Spilsted	....	assistant animator / animator (14 episodes, 2003-2005)
Phil Beglan	....	animator (13 episodes, 2003)
David Bennett	....	additional animator (13 episodes, 2003)
Sylvia Bennion	....	additional character designer (13 episodes, 2003)
Claire Billet	....	animator (13 episodes, 2003)
Darren Burgess	....	animator (13 episodes, 2003)
Dug Calder	....	animator (13 episodes, 2003)
Stefano Cassini	....	animator (13 episodes, 2003)
Merlin Crossingham	....	animator (13 episodes, 2003)
Nigel Davies	....	additional character designer (13 episodes, 2003)
Suzy Fagan	....	animator (13 episodes, 2003)
Jo Fenton	....	animator (13 episodes, 2003)
Jay Grace	....	animator (13 episodes, 2003)
Seamus Malone	....	animator (13 episodes, 2003)
Peter Peake	....	additional animator (13 episodes, 2003)
Pascual Perez	....	animator (13 episodes, 2003)
Dan Ramsey	....	animator (13 episodes, 2003)
Christopher Sadler	....	animator (13 episodes, 2003)
Jack Slade	....	assistant animator (13 episodes, 2003)
Andy Symanowski	....	animator (13 episodes, 2003)
Darren Thomson	....	animator (13 episodes, 2003)
Richard Webber	....	animator (13 episodes, 2003)
Ian Whitlock	....	animator (13 episodes, 2003)
Lee Wilton	....	animator (13 episodes, 2003)

Series Editorial Department
Stuart Bruce	....	assistant editor (13 episodes, 2003)

Series Music Department
Rory McLeod	....	composer: title music (14 episodes, 2003-2005)

Series Other crew
Toby Farrow	....	script editor (14 episodes, 2003-2005)
Susan Fry	....	transcriber (14 episodes, 2003-2005)
Wendy Rickard	....	interviewer / key interviewer (14 episodes, 2003-2005)
Helen Argo	....	production coordinator (13 episodes, 2003)
Richard Beek	....	floor manager (13 episodes, 2003)
Karen Bidewell	....	interviewer (13 episodes, 2003)
Mindell Bowen	....	interviewer (13 episodes, 2003)
Andrew Carter	....	interviewer (13 episodes, 2003)
Steve Cole	....	interviewer (13 episodes, 2003)
Jane Devoy	....	interviewer (13 episodes, 2003)
Dean Ferris	....	floor assistant (13 episodes, 2003)
Cindy Jones	....	pre-production coordinator (13 episodes, 2003)
Kim Lenaghan	....	interviewer (13 episodes, 2003)
Bridget Mazzey	....	pre-production coordinator (13 episodes, 2003)
Graeme Rose	....	interviewer (13 episodes, 2003)
Katherine Towsey	....	interviewer (13 episodes, 2003)
Zbigniew 'Spish' Trzaska	....	interviewer (13 episodes, 2003)
Gerald Tyler	....	interviewer (13 episodes, 2003)
Rob Young	....	interviewer (13 episodes, 2003)

Production Companies

• Aardman Animations

Distributors

• Independent Television (ITV) (2003) (UK) (TV)
• Sony Pictures Home Entertainment (2005) (USA) (DVD)

Other Companies

• Cliff Thorne Scenic Construction  set building
• Mcasso Music Production  incidental music
• Pink House Post Production  post production
• Wounded Buffalo  dubbing studio

Runtime:

10 min (26 episodes)

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Certification:

Australia:PG

Company:

Aardman Animations

Trivia:

The family of sea anemones, the Rudges, are voiced by the same family who voiced the polar bears in the original Creature Comforts short, only now with older voices.

Quotes:

[episode - Working Animals]
Pickles: If you work every day and you're doing something you don't enjoy then life must be so miserable, you know, and if you're doing something you don't enjoy, I don't know why you don't just give it up and do something you do enjoy because, you know, you...

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Knowing (2009)

Very intelligent and innovative animation that's fun for all ages

From the same creative team who brought us 'Wallace and Gromit' and 'Chicken Run', comes what has to be Aardman's greatest achievement yet, and without a doubt the most brilliant and ground-breaking primetime animation since 'The Simpsons'. 'Creature Comforts' is a clay-mation cartoon that breaks all the rules of animated TV - no story lines, no heroes, no villains, and, most unusually of all, an entirely anonymous cast of voice-overs. Instead, each 10 minute long episode revolves around a pastiche of vox-pop interviews, in which animals of all shapes and sizes finally get to have their say on life, the universe and everything; be it the circus, medicine, evolution or the meaning of life. In every episode a different issue is explored, and, believe me, nothing could be more entertaining than seeing a pair of plasticine slugs speaking into a microphone about aliens and UFOs. Or a rat panning slapstick as a form of humour. But of course, the great little buzz about 'Creature Comforts', that not everyone is able to pick up on right away, is that everything the animals are saying is true, as such - the dialogue is entirely extracted from unscripted interviews with real people.

The whole concept of 'Creature Comforts' though is nothing new. The first film was made by Nick Park in 1990, in which animals were interviewed about life in the zoo. And anyone in the UK who owned a TV set at any point in the early nineties will remember the Heat Electric ads they soon made, in which the talkative critters had now moved on to discussing the joys of a fully heated home. I have to say, when I first heard that the major driving force behind this series was not the original creator, Nick Park, but Richard Goleszowski, I was worried that it wouldn't have the same spirit as the original films. How wrong I was. Richard has done a truly fantastic job - in fact this TV series is miles better than anything that has come before. The animation, while still faithful to Nick Park's style, is more colourful and seamless, the characters more vibrant, and the end result much more amusing and with a good sense of warmth.

One of the most clever and rewarding aspects of this series is just how well some of the voices have been matched up to an animal character. Even the most mundane of human lines can sound hilarious when coming out of the mouth of just the right animal. A prime example is with the character Norman, a hapless maggot on a fish hook, who explains to his interviewer how he copes with having such an unpleasant career. Also great were the performing elephant and sea lion in the circus episode, who spoke of stage fright and getting warmed up for a good performance. There's enough subtle humour in this light to appeal to both kids and adults alike.

Another superb quality is just how wide a range of memorable animal personalities have been created within the course of thirteen episodes - animals you'd probably never even think of, including sea anemones, fleas and even amoeba, have been anthropomorphised and given their own distinct voices and viewpoints. And it was so great for anyone who loved the original films to see Frank the tortoise, star of one of the Heat Electric commercials, to make a comeback in this series, and prove that he's still one of the most awesome TV celebs out there. As are some of the newer characters too - including Fluffy, a hamster so miserable he makes Eeyore look cheerful, Trixie the mongrel and Captain Cuddlepuss the cat, a pair of pets who spend all their time lazing around on the couch, Pickles the rambling guide dog, Megan and Gladys the Irish seagulls, and Gary and Nigel, the cuddliest looking pair of slugs you could imagine (also big endorsers of organic gardening).

All in all, this is an excellent series, a great way to hear a variety of different views on life in a wholly entertaining way, and another triumph for clay-mation studio Aardman, who no doubt still have a bright future ahead of them. Before I finish, just one more word of advice - be sure to keep your eye on the 'extras' characters too, not just the ones being interviewed, because there have been some pretty darn good jokes going on in the background too. Yep, this cartoon is an absolute gem!

Grade: A+