One of my favourite scripting projects while working at Ravel has been the Get Ready School Program, a series of episodes commissioned by the Sunshine Coast Council to teach students how to prepare for natural disasters.

This is a project close to my heart, as I had the opportunity to develop an entire cast of characters, all with their own quirks and backgrounds. The main character, Jessie the kangaroo, spent each episode exploring one aspect of disaster prep with the help of his friends and neighbours, such as Daphne Dingo, Kerry Koala, and Paige Possum.

I also had the delight of voice acting for the character of Jessie’s mum, which was definitely a first!

The tone of this series was educational, comedic and engaging. It was of course aimed at children, but I like to think there’s enough fun for all ages involved.

The real challenge was keeping a balance between the information I needed to include, and the storytelling and character elements. There had to be just enough plot and jokes to keep students engaged, but not so much that it would take over the initial purpose of the video, which was to inform and prepare.

Thankfully with the Ravel team’s skillful animation, we managed to strike a balance.

Check out episode six below, a video I not only scripted, but animated as well!