behind the scenes
behind the scenes
All costume and make-up designs are by Nicole Heydenrijk, founder of BodyFX New Zealand ltd. a special FX and make up company in Auckland New Zealand.
The story of Bushbuddies started 15 years ago in the beautiful forests of the Rimutaka ranges in New Zealand. The creator, Nicole Heydenrijk, wanted to combine the wonders of nature with some magical, mystical and educational aspects. She thought of some wonderful small creatures that could turn into plants and never be spotted by children, thus encouraging kids to go out in the bush to find them. Awesome actors were found to bring the creatures to life in weird make-up and costumes. Permissions were granted by DOC to conduct photoshoots near streams and waterfalls in pristine locations.
The actors were totally submerged in their roles as Bushbuddies, hiding between ferns, dug into the ground or descending from trees. The dream was, and is, to create a tv series or movie with these awesome creatures, whether live action or animated.
Special thanks goes to the actors, with their patients and enormous energy, helping out to create the books, and making the Bushbuddies journey very special.
Mike King - ToiToi, Alana Zivanovic - Fern, Matthew Pike - Rocko, Andi hulse - Muddum, Ataria Sharman - Flaxine, Titus Heydenrijk - Rimu, Aiden Jacobs - Rata
Rocko may look scary but he is an awesome friend to have.
Film Scripts
We featured a DOC ranger outside his shed. Sometimes Bushbuddies need to interact with Humans
From all the books are film scripts available too. They can be used as individual 1/2 hour episodes or as one continuous movie, cut up in pieces of desired length. Two scripts can also be used as 2-hour feature movies.
All scripts are safe to watch for children of all ages, even though some parts may be a bit scary for young ones. There is no violence and the scripts are suitable for multi-cultural audiences.
If you are interested in reading one of the scripts please download a sample here:
No real pukeko were used at photoshoots, just a fake one in the right colour and size. They were replaced with real images.