Ordinary objects keep coming to life around Koyaa, causing all kinds of trouble. While Koyaa deals with the various goings-on, Mr Raven patiently builds, polishes and assembles his birdhouses. Every now and then, he checks up on Koyaa to see if his friend is OK, before returning to his work. Koyaa barely notices Mr Raven, since he always has so much to deal with himself. Things get sticky, messy and crazy ... but Koyaa isn't one to quit!
Episodes
KOYAA – Wild Sunbed
On a hot summer’s day, all Koyaa wants to do is relax on his sunbed. As usual, Mr Raven is busy building a birdhouse, this time from straw. Koyaa lies down, shielding his face from the sun. Suddenly, the sunbed snaps shut, trapping Koyaa inside, then spitting him out like a cannonball towards the cliff – where he just about manages to hang on to a vine! Koyaa weaves a lasso from the plant, but instead of catching the sunbed, he’s treated to a wild rodeo ride on its back. It seems like he could use another clever idea ...
KOYAA – Elusive Paper
As Mr Raven crafts a cardboard birdhouse, Koyaa decides he fancies doing some watercolours outdoors. He grabs his brush to begin painting, but the canvas starts folding in all by itself – once, twice, then flying off as a paper airplane. He tries grabbing it as it turns into a jumping frog, then a ship and soon a butterfly ... Koyaa realises he'll need one of his special plans to outsmart the canvas.
KOYAA – Jumpy Eraser
Koyaa is feeling creative and decides to draw some fluffy bunnies. Mr Raven is nearby, building his new birdhouse. Koyaa frames his picture and starts cleaning up, which prompts the mischievous eraser to hop off like a bunny, bouncing all over the place. It erases stuff as it goes, including Mr Raven's blueprints! Koyaa needs to catch it –and the quicker the better.
KOYAA – Slippery Soap
Koyaa brings Mr Raven a pile of mud – material for his new birdhouse. All dirty, he heads over to the bathroom to wash. As he starts scrubbing, the soap slides out of his hands. He tries catching it, fumbling awkwardly and, before he knows it, he's slipping around on the soap like a figure skater. Tumbling to the ground, he shakes his head ... then leaps into the air with a clever idea. He'll trick the soap into playing nice!
KOYAA – Trippy Trashcan
Koyaa is painting an iron chair outside, but he notices he’s got some of the blue paint on the metal trashcan. He tries wiping the stain off, but that just smears it around, so he decides to paint the whole can blue instead. The can resists, rolling off on its little wheels, racing and chomping about as it plants itself on the newspaper used by Mr Raven to build his birdhouse. Koyaa needs a clever way to catch it!
KOYAA – Creepy Blanket
Halloween preparations are ready! Mr Raven is carving his final pumpkin while Koyaa is already in bed. During the night, as he's dreaming, his blanket slowly starts sliding off. He pulls it back up, but it slides off again ... He pulls with both hands, but the blanket pulls back, snatching him off the bed and carrying him around like a magic carpet. He keeps his balance by flapping his arms, but eventually crashes anyway. It looks like Koyaa's in for a long night.
KOYAA – Happy Fork
It's a calm summer’s day on the rocky ledge. Mr Raven is making a new birdhouse from corn husks while Koyaa prepares a summer picnic. The cloth is ready, the basket is set and a juicy homegrown tomato awaits. But since no day on the ledge is without a funny twist or two, the fork decides to fly off rather than play utensil. It buzzes around like a bee, looping out of Koyaa's way. Can he save his picnic with a bit of creative thinking?
Hi Koyaa!
The documentary takes us way back, to the very beginnings of the story of Koyaa, our animated hero, which has its roots in the children's world of author Kolja Saksida. We go behind the scenes as other members of the film crew join the audience to show first-hand how the set is made, how Mr Raven comes to life, and how Koyaa gets his voice and movement. Our entertaining narrator will tell you about Koyaa's world, and the film examines the magic not only of Koyaa but of animation as a whole.
about the author
Kolja Saksida received his Master's degree in Film Studies from the ECAL University of Art and Design, Lausanne. He works in filmmaking as a director, producer and educator, and is one of Slovenia's most prominent creators of animated film. His works have been screened at numerous festivals all over the world, and he has been an artist-in-residence for several major international cultural organisations. Kolja transfers his knowledge and experience to bring people of all ages closer to the boundless expressive possibilities of stop-motion animation, a great storytelling medium accessible to practically everyone. Kolja is also an assistant professor at the Academy of Arts, University of Nova Gorica.
‘The Koyaa films are aimed at both children and adults, as they carry a universal message: that situations that at first glance appear insurmountable can be turned to your advantage with imagination and good humour, and be resolved in an interesting way. I wanted that message to come across in an entertaining context, with unexpected complications and a big dose of situation comedy resulting from the hero’s creative approach that saves the day every time. I want to emphasise through the films that it is always worth persevering and searching for new ideas even though they might not work at the first attempt’
- Kolja Saksida, director and producer
‘Koyaa is a really fun series to animate. The story-line is packed with action that is mostly slapstick, which requires excellent timing and bold movements, two elements which add a lot of excitement in our minimalist job. The acting part, on top of the two main characters, also involves inanimate objects who take a life of their own. Giving life to objects is a challenge that is especially interesting to an animator because objects don’t have facial expressions or even a body per se and yet we need to apply human acting to draw empathy from the spectator. This series enables me to perform some of my favourite types of animation’
- Julia Peguet, lead animator
about Koyaa
‘Koyaa is an animated hero in every sense of the word: more than just curious and entertaining, he takes the audience by the hand and drags them into his funny adventures, into the wacky world of animation on his rocky mountain ledge‘
Martina Peštaj, Editor of Children and Youth Programming, RTV Slovenija
‘Koyaa doesn't let the material world sour his mood – to him, every obstacle is a challenge and every challenge an adventure! The films are sparkly, inventive, and a tribute to persistence, the magic of the imagination and the cheekiness of everyday life. Through Koyaa's eyes, life is a game and playfulness a way of life‘
- Gert Hermans, ECFA Journal