Round the Twist
When the Twist kids - Pete, Linda and Bronson - and their Dad leave the city for a quiet life in the coastal town of Port Niranda, they get more than they bargained for. The lighthouse the Twists have moved into is haunted and Port Niranda is a town where the weird and unexpected regularly occurs. Ghosts, vikings, magical underpants, runaway shadows.
Round the Twist is an international award winning comedy series based on the stories of celebrated children's author, Paul Jennings.
The series follows the adventures of the Twist kids – Pete, Linda, Bronson – who have moved to the coastal town of Port Niranda with their Dad. Living in a haunted lighthouse, they encounter bizarre magical devices, neurotic ghosts, rampaging entrepreneurs and sneering school bullies. Each story is self-contained with an unpredictable twist at the end.
The many episodes in the series come with lesson plans to encourage students to become critical readers and viewers. The Round the Twistseries, tie-in novels and scripts integrate a variety of strategies for interpreting and comparing written and visual texts.
The stories encourage self-exploration and learning to cope with change. What we take for granted is questioned in every episode, raising the important issues of ethics and behaviour.
Episodes
Awards
Winner: Logie Awards (Australia)
Winner: Australian Writer’s Guild Awards (AWGIE)
Winner: Banff Rockie Awards (Canada)
Winner: New York Festival
Winner: Logie Awards (Australia)
Winner: Prix Jeunesse (Germany)
Winner: Australian Film Institute Awards
Winner: Australian Writer’s Guild Awards (AWGIE)
Nominated: International Emmy Awards (USA)
Selected: Cairo International Film Festival for Children
Winner: Australian Film Institute Awards
Winner: Australian Writer’s Guild Awards (AWGIE)
Selected: Banff Television Festival (Canada)
ACTF Education
Explore the award-winning television series Round the Twist and learn the importance of storyboarding when creating VFX (visual effects) and SFX (special effect).
The storyboards for Round the Twist were integral in the production of all the wacky and fun moments in the beloved series. Storyboards use visuals to effectively communicate ideas during the filmmaking process, producing a blueprint for cast and crew ahead of shooting scenes. VFX and SFX take a lot of planning and creative problem solving.
This virtual workshop features interviews with Dennis Nicholson, VFX Supervisor for Round the Twist Series 3 & 4 who unpacks the original hand-drawn storyboards from the series.
The resource also includes tips and tricks to create your own VFX in the classroom. The accompanying resource with student activities can be found here: https://education.actf.com.au/education/resources/teaching-resource/storyboarding-vfx-and-sfx
The storyboards created in the planning for Round the Twist were integral as production tools for the wacky and fun moments from the series. Storyboards use visuals to effectively communicate ideas during the filmmaking process, producing a blueprint for cast and crew ahead of shooting scenes. VFX and SFX require planning and creative problem solving.
This resource features interviews with Dennis Nicholson, VFX Supervisor for Round the Twist Series 3 & 4. Dennis explains the original hand-drawn storyboards from the series in association with the completed television series. This resource includes tips and tricks to create your own VFX in the classroom.