Kiri and Lou Go Raaa! arrives on the big screen in the UK
Skwigly
Kiri and Lou Go Raaa! (© Stretchy)
Leading kids’ entertainment specialist CAKE and New Zealand’s award-winning animation studio Stretchy have announced that animated feature Kiri and Lou Go Raaa! will hit UK cinemas on 16 October.
Already familiar to UK families through CBeebies and BBC iPlayer, Kiri and Lou now make the leap from five-minute episodes to their first feature-length big-screen adventure.
The feature will open in Odeon and VUE cinemas nationwide through a theatrical distribution partnership between CAKE and AliLeo Media. The 60-minute feature offers a gentle, engaging introduction to the cinema, designed specifically as a “my first film experience” for young children.
Kiri and Lou Go Raaa! follows Lou, a gentle purple creature with an embarrassingly stretchy trunk, as he rescues Kiri, an ungrateful little dinosaur, from a flood — sweeping the pair into the greatest adventure in prehistory. Along the way, they discover that you can find friendship in the wildest places.
Based on the BAFTA-nominated, internationally acclaimed animated series which first premiered in the UK on CBeebies in 2020, the 60-minute prequel had its international premiere in official selection at the Annecy International Film Festival in June, followed by a successful theatrical release in Australia and New Zealand via Vendetta Films.
As the first feature-length stop-motion film made in New Zealand, Kiri and Lou Go Raaa! is a landmark for New Zealand animation and the latest chapter in the international success of a much-loved local creation. Handmade by Stretchy in association with the New Zealand Film Commission, NZ On Air, and Hinterland, Kiri and Lou Go Raaa! features the voices of Jemaine Clement (Flight of the Conchords, Moana, Rio, What We Do In the Shadows and Disney’s Alice and Steve) as Lou and Olivia Tennet (The Lord of the Rings, Power Rangers RPM) as Kiri. Kiri and Lou Go Raaa! is written and directed by Harry Sinclair with visual development by Ant Elworthy (Pinocchio, Isle of Dogs, Ma vie de Courgette, Coraline) and music and songs by Don McGlashan in collaboration with Harry Sinclair (The Front Lawn).
Dominic Gardiner, MD Distribution at CAKE said:
Ever since Kiri and Lou became a beloved fixture for UK families on BBC iPlayer, audiences have embraced its signature warmth, humour, and emotional honesty. Premiering Kiri and Lou Go Raaa! on big screens across the UK is a major milestone and we are delighted to partner with AliLeo Media to bring this charming, handcrafted prehistoric adventure to cinemas—giving young children and parents a whole new way to experience Kiri and Lou together.
Writer/director, Harry Sinclair, said:
The film has allowed us to take a leap into an epic space, with epic emotion and epic fun, as it tells the story of how Kiri and Lou became friends. At its heart, it speaks about how we can reach out to others — how we can let go of suspicion and fear and embrace the possibilities of growing up and exploring our world. How we can move beyond the selfishness of contemporary life and learn to share the world and care about the other, even if the other is completely different from us.
Fiona Copland, Stretchy Producer, said:
We really wanted to make a film that would entertain the whole family, with layering for parents and the older siblings of pre-school children. It’s been great seeing adults full of emotion in screenings while their kids are just laughing their heads off.
Annie Murray, Chief Executive of the New Zealand Film Commission, said:
Great storytelling travels, and Kiri and Lou are wonderful proof of that. As New Zealand’s first feature-length stop-motion film, this is a landmark achievement for Stretchy and our animation community. Handmade in Christchurch, the film retains the warmth, originality and unmistakably New Zealand character that audiences first fell in love with, while taking Kiri and Lou into an ambitious new big-screen adventure. We’re thrilled that families across the UK will now have the chance to experience it together in cinemas.
Greta D’Este-Donelan, Director at AliLeo Media, said:
Great storytelling deserves to be experienced on the big screen, and we’re delighted to partner with CAKE to bring Kiri and Lou Go Raaa! to cinemas across the UK. At the heart of this wonderful film there is a story about friendship, curiosity and embracing what makes us unique – themes that will resonate with children and families alike. For AliLeo Media, bringing Kiri and Lou to cinemas is also about creating memorable experiences for the audiences of the future, and we are thrilled to play a part in introducing this much-loved property to a new generation of cinemagoers.