Henson's 'The Storyteller' Is Getting A Gaiman-Assisted Reboot & Reimagining (O Happy Day!)

Yes, it's true. The Storyteller - that inspired and beloved anthology series that fairy tale folk recommend at every turn - is coming back to the small screen (ie. whatever device you currently watch TV or stream on). It's going to get a little updating and "reimagining", thanks to Neil Gaiman and a new generation of Henson Creature Shop folks, and to cater to the new (lucrative) world order of binge-watching/streaming viewers but we are being promised that it will still recognizably be Jim Henson's original vision.

Deadline had the exclusive when the news broke on February 19, 2019.

In the new incarnation, written and executive produced by Gaiman, The Storyteller will create a mystical world combining various fairy tales and folklore. It will be updated to work “for the binging kind” of viewer of today, Gaiman said.

We might be getting more of a backstory on the Storyteller himself too...

“Part of what fascinates me about The Storyteller is the stuff that we don’t know.,” he said. “Who was the Storyteller, why was he telling these stories, was he a goblin, what kind of creature? What I’d love to do is an inside story that’s as long as the outside story. We’re going to find out a lot about who the storyteller is, we’re going to find out things we don’t even know that we don’t know. We’re going to begin in a Northern kingdom where stories are forbidden and where the act of telling a story is liable and can get you imprisoned or executed. If you put a storyteller into that situation, things would need to start getting interactive.”

But never fear. This won't "devolve" into a drawn-out character story and ignore the tales it originally meant to highlight. We're going to be treated to brand new "old tales" from around the world. 

“The original Storyteller was a brilliantly written, directed and told set of stories. It’s a terrifying and inspiring task to reinvent what Jim Henson did for the golden age of television we are in right now, and I’m honored that The Jim Henson Company would entrust me with the task of bringing back the storyteller and his magical stories, and sending him out into the world for a whole new round of tales,” Gaiman said. 

Gaiman and Henson would not say which fairytales they are planning to tackle. “We have our eye on lots of them and one of the things that was brilliant (about The Storyteller) was, they would take little known versions of well-known fairytales because every story comes in various different versions, and I think that’s definitely something that I would love to keep going,” Gaiman said.

That makes us heave a huge sigh of relief! The unique and memorable retelling of lesser-known tales is the whole reason we adore The Storyteller and it would seem that both Lisa Henson and Neil Gaiman intend to keep this core intact. (Yay!)

Within that frame, the aim is to create new and innovative directorial methods for blending puppetry, tales and live action with a variety of unique directors - a risky, but needed move to breathe life back into the series and reach a whole new generation in the making. 

Lisa Henson whose studies in folklore and Greek mythology at Harvard university inspired her father, Jim Henson, to create The Storyteller series, is well qualified to develop a folklore-related project.  Folklore, myth and old fairy and folktales are an interest she and Gaiman not only have in common but have bonded over since they met in 1991, so this project is personally important to both of them with regard to using integrity in bringing old tales to life again. Regarding how they would approach this for an audience that has a very different view of the world to the original Storyteller audience and consumes entertainment very differently, Lisa elaborated a little on their new approach:

“I think that we’re looking to do the same thing here, (Ed: a.k.a. use non-linear shooting with impactful imagery like music video directors do) work with the directors who can do the most innovative work with puppetry technologies to marry it up in that truly innovative modern way with word crafting.”

We are SO EXCITED!

What tales - and cultural variants - would you like to see be brought to life in the new Storyteller series?

If you would like to read more of the production details currently available, you can read the whole exclusive article at Deadline HERE.

Frozen II Teaser Trailer Drops With Fairy Tale Vibes In Full Force

Confession: we have not been keeping close tabs on Frozen II's development. With the Frozen shorts being underwhelming (despite lots of artistic effort evident behind the scenes), we haven't held out much hope for a film for which the biggest hype seems to be "Will Elsa get a girlfriend?", rather than actual story* or any fairy tale associated content (as opposed to just fantasy).

Enter today's teaser release, full of fairy tale feels and allusions. You have our attention again now Disney!

Check it out:

See what we mean?

Have to mention that we are quite tickled that the internet is including this speculation about the two new characters below:

"What if these two are supposed to be Gerda and Kai from the original Snow Queen story?!"

Heh. We would be delighted - but surprised - if they were.

What we'd really like to see is the Little Robber Girl (from Andersen's original story - who, by the way, is representative of the Land of Autumn/Fall in Andersen's multi-part fairy tale) making an entrance. Apart from being a favorite character from The Snow Queen, the Robber Girl would be an interesting character to (eventually) explore for a potential Elsa-love-interest, though please note, in this teaser the new girl character is still a child. Check the original text describing her and you'll see that potential as one way to interpret her.

In the meantime, what do you think of the trailer? Does it capture your fairy tale radar's attention?

We'll remain tuned as updates from Frozen II continue in the remaining nine month countdown till it hits theaters in November...

A new snowflake design with different symbols - lots for fans to speculate over

*Now if someone mentioned 'Frozen II' was doing a take on 'The Girl Who Pretended to be a Boy', then you'd have our attention!

Timeless Tales Announces 3 Rapid-Fire Poetry Submission Windows

Devoted readers of Timeless Tales Magazine may know that we've only been accepting poetry since 2016. While poetry may not have the same mainstream readership of fiction, I've always felt that a truly great poem offers the same depth and complexity of a short story, but in a more compact vessel. Writers are born loving words and therefore, it takes so much discipline for an author to restrain their ever-flowing thoughts into such a tiny package. Once we started publishing poetry, I can't help but feel like it's a gap in our older issues.

I've also found times when an idea for a retelling has occurred to me, but none of the stories I receive  fit into that particular gap. I think, "Wow, I wish someone would send me a Puss & Boots retelling about a tiger!", but none magically appear in my inbox. I usually just shrug it off and move on. Until now.

We're trying something new this year. A normal full-size issue usually takes over 4 months to release (hence why we've never managed more than two a year!). So instead of a brand new issue this Spring, we are going to revisit our old themes and add one poem to each. And I'll even give some hints about what I'm hoping to read and what writers should avoid.

NOTE: If you have a great poem retelling that doesn't fit my hints, that's totally fine. As long as you're thinking outside the box, I can't wait to read it. But for goodness sake, please read through the original issue before you submit to make sure you're not repeating an idea we've already published. It could really save you time (or might inspire you with a new idea).

These submission windows will come and go fast, so don't blink or else you might miss them!

To submit, please read our submission guidelines. We will follow all the usual guidelines, but we will only be accepting ONE poem (okay, maaaaaybe two) per theme. Here are the deadlines:

• Puss in Boots: Deadline EXTENDED to March 4

• Hints: 1. I'd love to see a retelling where Puss isn't a house cat. Lions, leopards, griffins, and sphinxes are all encouraged. 2. Something that focuses on the often overlooked ogre encounter would be great. 3. A crossover with the Count of Monte Cristo (just because I think "The Cat of Monte Cristo" would be a fun title). 4. A crossover with The Cowardly Lion from The Wizard of Oz . 

• Pandora's Box: April 14-19

• Hints: The seven deadly sins concept already has a story in this issue, so unlikely to publish a poem with that angle. I'm kind of surprised we didn't have more submissions about the biblical counterpart to this myth (Adam and Eve), so you could try that as a potential twist. No promises I'll love it, but it's an idea. Oh, or what about the box being a volcano?

• Twelve Dancing Princesses: June 9-14

• Hints: Don't send me poems from the shoes' perspective, please. Or a poem with a ballet setting. We already have stories with those angles. What about mixing the tale with some Bluebeard elements? Or the 12 tribes of Israel? How about a crossover with Bluebeard?

Good luck and I cannot wait to see what you send me!