SASCHA PALADINO: "'MIRA, ROYAL DETECTIVE' WAS A CHALLENGING SHOW TO MAKE"

Emmy-nominated Writer and Producer Sascha Paladino told Senal about his role of executive producing Disney Junior’s animated series “Mira, Royal Detective,” which aired on 20th July. Paladino covered the inspiration behind the series, the process of production, and his expectations for the series release. “I love the idea of kids learning about cultures that are different from their own and seeing that there's something so beautiful about these differences and that they should be celebrated,” Paladino said.

“Mira, Royal Detective” is targeted at children, specifically between the ages of 2 and 7 years old, along with their families. It promotes critical thinking and deductive reasoning for young children. The episodes consist of two 11-minute stories that explore the culture and customs inspired by South Asia. 

The series was crafted together by a renowned creative team, including a cultural consultant named Chicago, to ensure precision and “make sure that we get every piece of the cultural part of the show as authentic as possible because we want to make sure we get all those details right.” The team worked with a Los Angeles-based animation studio, along with an animation team in India to execute the production. South Asian writers, musicians, and choreographers also contributed to the series to showcase as much of the region’s culture as possible. “It's a very challenging show to make. There are so many layers to it because, at the base, we just want to make a great show that's entertaining, fun, and funny for everyone,” Paladino said.

As a result of the circumstances surrounding the global Covid-19 pandemic, the team worked mostly from home. Artists and musicians received microphones and other tools for their home studios, and though animation has slowed, it persisted through the outbreak. “We're very lucky that animation can be done for the most part, with almost everyone working from home,” Paladino said. “We've continued to produce the show so I feel very fortunate that we can keep making it and we're working on Season Two right now. It's really exciting.”

Choreography also formed a big part of the production, with the creation of music and dance serving as the two main elements in “Mira, the Kingdom Detective.” Each episode features at least one original song and dance number. “Dancing is a big part of the show,” Paladino said. "So as it is in Bollywood movies, which we sort of want to honor, so we have a choreographer who choreographs dances for almost every episode and videotapes the moves. Then our animators will copy the moves.”

Set in the magical fictional land of Jalpur inspired by India,  the series follows Mira, a young kingdom detective who travels throughout the magical Indian-inspired land solving mysteries with Prince Neel, their creative cousin Priya and their funny and friendly mongooses Mikku and Chikku, as they embark on fun adventures and mysteries. Paladino hopes to bring a familiar piece of home to the big screen for families of South Asian descent and admits it’s “really great to hear that a lot of South Asian kids and their families are so happy to see their own lives reflected on the screen." He explained that, with this production, he intends to introduce a different culture to children who aren't familiar with South Asia. “One of my goals for the show is that kids feel that this culture that they might know nothing about is something that they can experience to and experience the joys and the beauty of this culture that's so different from their own,” he said. 

By: Karla Florez