Hopster Orders Third Season of Two Minute Tales

The digital preschool platform Hopster has commissioned a third season of its original animated series Two Minute Tales, which is set to premiere next year.

Produced by the Consortium of Gentlemen, the new season will be called Two Minute Tales From Shakespeare. It will consist of ten two-minute episodes and is narrated, written, animated and directed by Mole Hill. The new season will focus on some of Shakespeare’s classic plays, including Hamlet, The Tempest, Romeo and Juliet, Henry IV, King Lear, Macbeth and Othello.

The series, aimed at 4- to 6-year-olds, introduces preschoolers to Shakespeare, its iconic characters, famous quotes and immersive core themes in a speedy, creative and fun way.

The first two seasons of Two Minute Tales are based on the traditional Grimm’s Fairy Tales, offering preschoolers fast-paced, modern and quirky stories that challenge traditional gender stereotypes and promote diversity. To date the show has been translated into nine languages (English, Icelandic, Romanian, Serbian, Bosnian, Slovenian, German, French, Kurdish) and has been picked up by WDR Westdeutscher Rundfunk Fernsehen (Germany), Zarok TV (Turkey) and France TV (France), with further deals in negotiation.

Ellen Solberg, head of content at Hopster, said, “Shakespeare’s plays are wonderfully layered and complex, but can be hard for kids to engage with from a young age. We hope that by introducing kids to the key themes and characters of his stories in an enjoyable, creative and preschool-friendly way, they may go on to develop a stronger interest and passion for his plays and theatre later in life.”

Hill said, “It’s been fascinating adapting Shakespeare for such a young audience—the themes and characters in the plays are so strong that there’s an embarrassment of riches to work with!”