This Monday July 24th, DreamWorks debuts a new family animated series on Netflix. It’s Dew Drop Diaries, from Creator and EP Rick Suvalle and EP Aliki Theofilopoulos. Tiny fairies called Dew Drops have a large impact on kids in The Big City, helping them with various tasks and to make their days a little bit better. Suvalle and Theofilopoulos drop-in for this Animation Scoop Q&A. (This was conducted as an Email Interview and was edited for length and clarity.)

Jackson Murphy: This trio of lead characters is sweet. They compliment each other so well. What were your goals with them?

Rick Suvalle: When you’re creating an ensemble show like “Dew Drop Diaries”, you want every character to be different. You want them all to have their own strengths and weaknesses, so that while they can be successful on their own, they also realize that they can increase their chance of success by working as a team, especially if their skills complement one another. So, the goal was to show their united strength, to highlight their teamwork and resourcefulness when they get together. That’s when the real “magic” of the show happens.

Aliki Theofilopoulos: So then when we have these amazing, complimentary lead characters, we want to also make sure that their character traits are distinct not only in personality, but also visually. The way they each stand, move, and express themselves is a reflection of who they are. Phoebe is the more grounded and cerebral one so we tend to pose her in a way that is solid and thoughtful. Athena is all energy and loves to dance! So she has more broad movements that show her athleticism. Then there is Eden who is optimistic and full of sweetness. She has this delightful way that she runs that’s totally different than how the other two do. I’ve always wanted to make sure that the female characters in the shows I work on would have more personality than just being “the girl one”. I’ve been really happy to have the opportunity to work with Rick in making sure our characters get to be their unique selves in every way, while also working together.

JM: There are a lot of cool visual moments for younger viewers who will want to compare the sizes of the fairies to animals, humans and household objects. How did you approach proportion?

RS: In the early development phase of the show there was a lot of discussion about the Dew Drops’ actual size. Would they be one-inch? Would they be the size of a Coke can? Ultimately it came down to what would read best on screen. Originally, we were worried about the proportion of objects, as you can’t adjust the size of an object in CG more than 20% without breaking the asset. And with the Dew Drops being so tiny, we thought we’d need a giant version of the object when we’re with the Dew Drops, and a tiny version, when we’re seeing it from the human’s perspective, which meant our prop count would be cut in half, having to make two of every prop or asset. But thanks to the innovations of our partner studio in France, TeamTO, they were able to use the same object. But as you point out, we had a lot of fun playing with the scale, having the Dew Drops run between human feet and finding creative ways to get around, like using a tissue as a parachute or catching a ride in a Barbie-type Corvette.

AT: One thing we really noticed is the importance of showing a human world element to help the audience be aware of scale. Without something next to the fairies it would be easy to forget how small they were in our big world. So even if a Dew Drop was standing on a shelf, looking at their human, we made sure there was some sort of object next to them so the audience was aware of their size, or we would shoot the camera from a fairy-eyed view. And then like Rick mentioned, the fun and charm of getting to watch a Dew Drop use a human world objects in a fairy way was something we really enjoyed toying with… like Phoebe using a bent fork as a grappling hook, or Athena using a cut-in-half baseball as a table. We also leaned into the fun of watching the fairies do things they could only do because of their size…like take a ride atop a bird or neighborhood dog! We just truly relished in the wonder of what it would be like to be such a tiny entity. We could really do anything! It’s what makes animation so fun!

JM: I love how the episodes are about good kids being good kids. Can you expand on this aspect and why you decided to set up the story this way?

RS: There’s just too much negativity in the world and we didn’t want to expose our younger viewers to that attitude. But beyond that we felt that you don’t need a villain or villains to create interesting stakes for younger viewers. Instead, we tapped into issues preschoolers can understand, such as forgetting your lucky penny before a big piano recital, only to find relief when your Dew Drop secretly brings that penny to you, moments before your fingers hit the keys.

AT: The stakes could come from day to day conflicts that kids face, or personal conflicts that a character might be going through, be it a fairy or one of the kids that fairies watch out for.

JM: The fairies’ homes have such nifty designs! What do you like most about where they live?

RS: The idea behind the houses is that even though the kids in the show never see the Dew Drops, they believe in them, like they believe in Santa Claus, so instead of leaving out milk and cookies for Santa, they put out a house for fairies, hoping one will move in. And of course, they do! But what I love about the houses is that they are a mix between miniature objects, like a tiny oven or bed, and found objects, like using a half of a baseball as a table or using buttons for stairs. One of our executives once asked where the Dew Drops got their miniature furniture and I joked, “The Fairy Mart, of course!”

AT: For us it was fun to mix the idea of the fairies having found/collected objects that they used creatively to populate their homes, plus specifically fairy made items perhaps purchased from “The Fairy Mart”–we felt that perhaps a child would pick up a plain base fairy house for their fairy, that they could decorate and populate the house in a way they may have envisioned. Then a fairy could move in and from there, totally make it their own!

JM: The Dew Drops are able to communicate with animals in a nice way (“Critter Chat”). Was this inspired by kids talking to their pets, having conversations and understanding what their pets communicate back to them?

RS: It wasn’t our intention to make the parallel to kids talking to and understanding their pets, but I love that’s something you interpreted from those moments. We gave each Dew Drop a single magical power or “fairy-bility,” as we like to call them, and one of them has the ability to talk to animals (the “Critter Chat”.) We felt that with the Dew Drops being tiny, like small animals, it would be advantageous if one of them could communicate with animals so they can work with the animals in achieving their goals (hitching rides, searching for items, etc.). But the Dew Drops often help their animal friends too. And we love the idea that the Dew Drops can be a conduit between the humans and their animal friends.

AT: I really love how the empathy and care that the Dew Drops have for humans and each other is also there for animals too! Eden’s ability to communicate with animals also adds another layer of the “what if” aspect of our show! “What if fairies could communicate with animals, and what if they can enlist the help of animals to help out humans!”

JM: There’s an acknowledgment of the presence / awareness of the fairies when the kids say, “Thank you, Dew Drops” or wonder “Did the Dew Drops do this?” What themes/messages do you want to convey through this element?

RS: One of the recurring themes of our show is gratitude and the acknowledgement of what we’re grateful for, be it friendship, teamwork, or just getting out there and trying something new. And while the kids in the show aren’t 100% sure that their Dew Drop helped them, they are 100% thankful for the end result, and we want kids to acknowledge those moments in life because we live in stressful times and being grateful for life’s little victories can ease that stress and lessen anxiety.

AT: Exactly. It’s fun to wonder if a Dew Drop helped with any given solution to a child’s “problem”, but the real importance is that this child takes a moment to notice and appreciate it.

JM: How important is it to present the mementos / memories the fairies keep from each day?

RS: With the show being called “Dew Drop Diaries” we wanted to have a “diary moment” in each episode, where our Dew Drops can share their gratitude for the outcome of the day’s events. But with a lot of our viewers not knowing how to read or write, or are just beginning that journey, we wanted to create unique ways to “diary” and show their gratitude and preserve the memories they are thankful for. One of our Dew Drops, Phoebe, does that by putting a memento from the day’s adventure in her memory box, while Athena draws what she’s thankful for, and Eden, who loves to bake, records her memories in the form of a recipe (e.g. “And a dash of teamwork saved the day.”) We felt these were ways our younger viewers could understand and hopefully emulate when they’re thankful for something that happened in their life.

AT: Having a memento or creating one oneself helps with providing the space to acknowledge an important moment, memory, and feeling (in our case focusing on gratitude!). We want kids to hopefully create their own “diary moments” in their lives and hope it’s something they can share with their families and friends.

JM: What has been the most magical part of working on “Dew Drop Diaries”?

RS: One hundred percent the people. It takes a village to make a TV show and we got so much support from our DreamWorks family, as well as from our partner studio in France, TeamTO.

AT: I have to agree with my partner, Rick! The people on the team and the very special “fairy-bilities” they brought to the show and creative process was truly magical indeed! I feel forever grateful to have worked with such a fantastic partner and team both at DreamWorksTV and at TeamTO.