Joe Brumm

Australian animator

Joe Brumm is an Australian animator and writer. After working on multiple British animated children's shows, he created the Australian animated television series Bluey.[1][2][3]

Early life

Brumm was born in Winton in Central West Queensland, he was the second eldest of three boys.[2][4] His father worked for the Department of Primary Industries, while his mother was a librarian.[1]

After moving to Cairns when he was five years old, his family finally settled in the state's capital city of Brisbane when he was aged 12 where he began attending high school. He graduated from Marist College Ashgrove in 1995.[5]

After finishing high school, he studied animation at Griffith University and graduated in 1998 with a Bachelor of Animation (Honors).[6]

Career

After graduating university, Brumm relocated to London where he obtained work as an animator on several British series such as Charlie and Lola, Peppa Pig, Ben & Holly's Little Kingdom and Tinga Tinga Tales.[1][7][8]

Brumm returned to Brisbane in 2009 and established a small animation studio called Studio Joho with the intent of making an Australian version of Peppa Pig, swapping the pig characters with dog characters and changing the personality of the father figure. The show would be titled Bluey.[8] Brumm decided the episodes of Bluey would centre around the two juvenile characters participating in play-based learning and creating their own adventures, creating a one-minute sample in 2016.[8] Ludo Studio, a local company, picked it up and helped Brumm expand the sample into a five-minute pilot.[8] Brumm and his wife Suzy subsequently created the first season of 52 seven-minute episodes which were released in Australia in 2018.[8] The show has gone onto achieve commercial success and critical acclaim internationally.[9][10]

Other work

In 2001, Brumm created an animated short called Causes, and he directed a 2015 short called The Meek.[11][12][13]

Awards

In October 2021, Brumm was named as Griffith University's Outstanding Alumnus.[14][15]

In June 2023, he was named as a Queensland Great.[16]

References

  1. ^ a b c d Turner, Tonya (20 May 2019). "Bluey show: Brisbane-made cartoon wins hearts of families". The Courier-Mail. Retrieved 9 June 2023.
  2. ^ a b Dow, Steve (11 April 2020). "Bluey creator Joe Brumm's dog days". The Saturday Paper. Retrieved 10 June 2023.
  3. ^ Shearer, Geoff (27 June 2019). "Meet the brains of Brisbane's smash hit Bluey and the simple concept behind it all". The Courier-Mail. Retrieved 10 June 2023.
  4. ^ Flynn, Sheila (15 March 2022). "The brains behind Bluey: He turned a simple kids' show into a global hit. Now he's ready to walk". The Independent. Retrieved 10 June 2023. grew up as a middle child sandwiched between an older and younger brother.
  5. ^ "Notable Ashgrovians: Film & Television". Marist College Ashgrove. Retrieved 9 June 2023. Joe Brumm (1995): Film Director / Writer – Creator and writer of "Bluey" Animated TV series
  6. ^ Crossen, Louise (4 October 2018). "Animation alumni create must-see kids TV". Griffith News. Griffith University. Retrieved 10 June 2023.
  7. ^ "About Joe Brumm". Brisbane Writer's Festival. 2023. Retrieved 10 June 2023. He also worked in Kenyan Tinga-Tinga Tales for BBC/Disney.
  8. ^ a b c d e Lamont, Tom (11 June 2022). "The cult of Bluey: how a kids' cartoon became a bible for modern parenting". The Guardian. Retrieved 10 June 2023.
  9. ^ McCutcheon, Peter (9 April 2019). "Bluey, the hit Australian children's cartoon, is set to go global — but only with Aussie accents intact". 7.30. Retrieved 10 June 2023.
  10. ^ Sebag-Montefiore, Clarissa (1 April 2020). "Stuck inside? Here's an Australian show every parent can love". The New York Times. Retrieved 10 June 2023.
  11. ^ "Causes (2001)". The Screen Guide. Screen Australia. Retrieved 10 June 2023. Director: Joe Brumm; Writer: Joe Brumm; Producer: Joe Brumm
  12. ^ "The Meek (2015)". The Screen Guide. Screen Australia. Retrieved 10 June 2023. Director: Joe Brumm; Producer: Joe Brumm
  13. ^ Cowley, Laura-Beth (23 February 2016). "Interview with 'The Meek' director Joe Brumm". Skwigly. Retrieved 10 June 2023.
  14. ^ "Griffith University's 2021 Outstanding Alumnus: Joe Brumm". Griffith University. 2021. Retrieved 10 June 2023.
  15. ^ Brown, Phil (7 October 2021). "Bluey creator honoured by Griffith University". The Courier-Mail. Retrieved 10 June 2023.
  16. ^ "2023 Queensland Greats recipients". Queensland Greats Awards. Queensland Government. 2023. Retrieved 10 June 2023.

External links

  • Joe Brumm at IMDb