Pororo the Little Penguin

Pororo the Little Penguin

English Title Card
Korean 뽀롱뽀롱 뽀로로
Genre Children
Theme music composer Bruce Broughton
Composer(s) Bruce Broughton
Country of origin

[1]

North Korea
Original language(s) Korean
English
No. of seasons 6
No. of episodes 208 (Not counting Pororo's Sing-A-Long and Pororo the English Show Episodes)
Production
Executive producer(s) Michael Loman
Arlene Sherman
Producer(s) Lisa Ferrasan
Mickey Lawrence
Editor(s) Mark Zaslove
Running time 5 minutes per episode
(until Season 3)
11 minutes per episode
(Season 4 – present)
Production company(s)
Release
Original network EBS1
Original release November 27, 2003 (2003-11-27) – present
External links
Website www.pororo.net/main.htm

Pororo the Little Penguin (Korean: 뽀롱뽀롱 뽀로로) is a Korean computer-animated television series created by Iconix Entertainment, SK Broadband, Ocon and Channel One with the North Korean company Samchŏlli in Kaesŏng. Production began in 2002 and the program began airing in South Korea on EBS in 2003.

The series revolves around the adventures of Pororo and his friends who live in the snowy village of Porong Porong Forest, who often encounter challenges and learn practical and moral lessons in each episode.

Origin

It was created in 2003 by Iconix Entertainment C., Ltd, a company based in Seoul, South Korea.

Design

Choi, Sanghyun, who was working at Iconix Entertainment, was given a project of creating an icon that represents an animal living in the winter. So, he kept visiting a zoo to understand animals and kids enjoying watching them. Many professional designers joined the project to come up with an icon, but Choi’s designed was chosen as the winner, which became the first Pororo.

Characters

Main characters

A Christmas show featuring Pororo the Little Penguin at Nex, Singapore

Season 1 – present

Season 2 – present

Season 3 – present

Season 4 – present

Minor characters

Animation history

The original Pororo was a blue and white, petite penguin sporting an aviator helmet and goggles, which became popular among children. When it was introduced, it targeted children aged 2-4, unlike other characters devised by Iconix Entertainment that targeted children aged 2-6. Pororo is an adventurous 5-year-old penguin, who dreams of flying, and lives on a snowy island with six other animal friends. In the design, Pororo in most animations has a neutral background, so that the animation could be popular to children all around the world. The role models of Pororo in design included Mickey Mouse, the Walt Disney icon who turned 84 this year, and the Japan’s most adored character, Hello Kitty, who has been cherished for nearly 40 years. The creators cautiously picked the colors — blue, pink and white — that are familiar to children and also ones that represent both genders. When making episodes, producers paid attention to details that could be biased to certain cultural codes or give a historical reference that is sensitive to viewers in certain parts of the world. For example, they make sure Pororo and friends wave hands instead of bow or even nod to each other.

Awards and honors

In 2003, Pororo received numerous awards from the South Korean government, including the award by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism. In 2006, Pororo got the President’s award for best animation characters. In 2013, Pororo got the award for Creative Brands. In 2014, Pororo was chosen as the mascot for mass transportation in Seoul.

Format

Opening/ending theme songs

Opening theme songs

Ending theme songs

Social impact

When Pororo was first created, it was just with normal episodes. Later parents suggest to Choi Jung-il in Iconix Entertainment that new episodes be included that have some educational purposes. Producers have received many requests, ranging from what the character should eat and how to play in episodes to what he can do for society. When these new episodes were made, kids started to follow what Pororo is doing, like crossing the road with right hand up, not being fastidious on eating food, washing and cleaning. These acts are making children easily follow and fix their attitudes in enjoyable way. In Summer 2016, there was a new carnival related to Pororo in Coex Mall, South Korea with musical and parade of the characters. [5]

References

  1. ↑ Editorial, Reuters. "Iconic South Korean penguin character actually half-North Korean". Retrieved 18 November 2016.
  2. ↑ http://www.pororo.net/en/story/summary.php?Numid=1 Episode Guide Season 1
  3. ↑ http://www.pororo.net/en/story/summary03.php?Numid=1 Episode Guide Season 2
  4. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLE81F0AD3149C3767 Originally 14 episodes, additional 12.
  5. ↑ Ulsan Maeil. "코엑스몰서 '뽀로로 카니발' 개최". 2016-05-08. Retrieved 2016-05-07.
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