Aardman Craft Brand New Online Home For The Gruffalo
Skwigly
In celebration of The Gruffalo’s forthcoming 15th anniversary in 2014, Macmillan Children’s Books commissioned Aardman to create a stunning new online fan site for the brand, which went live this month.
The Gruffalo, by Julia Donaldson and illustrated by Axel Scheffler is a modern classic, loved by an international audience and recognised with numerous awards and literary prizes. Since it was first published in 1999, the award-winning story of the little brown mouse’s encounter with the Gruffalo in the deep dark wood has continued to delight children and adults the world over. Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler, are the most successful author/illustrator partnership in picture book publishing, and The Gruffalo is regularly chosen as the nation’s favourite story.
Aardman, working alongside digital agency Distinction, were given the opportunity to craft the digital representation of The Gruffalo’s world, creating an online home for fans of all ages which works to support and extend this popular brand’s well-deserved reputation.
James Luscombe, Head of Web Development, Pan Macmillan says “It was very important for us to work with the right partner for this project. The Gruffalo, Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler are all simultaneously one brand and three distinct brands, and we needed to represent this clearly for the best user experience. Aardman’s knowledge of working with heritage brands both offline and online, made them the perfect partner to create this new and exciting experience for the extensive and important fanbase. “
Aardman have produced a premier destination for interacting with The Gruffalo and finding out more about the brand, whilst seamlessly encouraging users to learn more about Julia Donaldson, her books, and associated illustrators, especially Axel Scheffler. To compliment this, the team developed the Deep Dark Wood, an interactive experience targeted at the younger audience which adds a fun and engaging activity element to the site. Once entered, the Deep Dark Wood experience fills the screen, emulating a native app and contains entertaining and age appropriate activities such as Make a Monster, Plant a Nut Grow a Tree, Gruffiti, Footprint Match and Gruffalo Jigsaw.
Aardman Producer, George Rowe added “It was really exciting for us to be able to work with such a well-loved character and Axel’s beautiful illustrations. We really tried to give the interactive area the feeling of one of the books, letting kids find the animals and acorns hidden in this rich digital environment.”