Sky Trackers

Sky Trackers is a 26-part science-based[1] Australian children's television adventure series created by Jeff Peck and Tony Morphett in 1994. It was produced by Patricia Edgar and Margot McDonald for the Australian Children's Television Foundation (ACTF). The pilot was produced by Anthony Buckley.[2] The series aimed to popularise science for children through drama and to excite them about the opportunities science has to offer.[3] It also aimed to demystify the work and working conditions of scientists, and highlight the potential of the science world for future career choices.[4] It began screening nationally on The Seven Network and prime Television each week across Australia from 18 March 1995. The series was a winner of various television awards.

Sky Trackers
Sky Trackers (VHS cover)
Created byTony Morphett
StarringPetra Jared
Zbych Trofimiuk
Country of originAustralia
No. of episodes26
Production
Running time25 minutes
Release
Original networkSeven Network
Original release1994

Plot

Sky Trackers is set in a space tracking station in the Australian Outback. Combining adventure, teenage romance, and the cutting edge of science, the series centres around two single parent families with three kids who live and work beneath the gleaming white dishes of a space tracking station in the Australian outback.[5]

The series was shot over 28 weeks, on location at the CSIRO's National Australia telescope Facility at Narrabi, New South Wales, and in studio and on location in and around Melbourne, Australia.[5]

Nikki is 13 and into science. Her dream is to be the first person on Mars. She is an avid fan of Mike's father and has read all of his research.[3]

Mike is 14 and thinks 'science sucks'. Jimi Hendrix is his hero.[3]

Nine-year-old Maggie watches as Mike and Nikki fall in love and with the best intentions, just seems to get in everybody's way.[3]

Over 26 adventurous episodes, the children experience a world of the past, present and future: searching for the bush rangers' treasure; tracking meteorites; listening to signals from outer space; exploring hidden caves; and they discover themselves.[3]

Cast
  • Petra Jared as Nikki Colbert
  • Zbych Trofimiuk as Mike Masters
  • Emily-Jane Romig as Maggie Colbert
  • Anna-Maria Monticelli as Marie Colbert
  • Steve Jacobs as Tony Masters
  • Marco Chiappi as Christian
  • Rosalind Hammond as Effie
  • Paul Sonkkila as Frank Giles

History

Sky Trackers grew from an approach by the CSIRO who asked Patricia Edgar and the ACTF if it could develop a program that would help attract girls towards science studies.[4]

The program was launched by The Hon Michael Lee, MP, Minister for Communications and the Arts, at the Planetarium, Museum of Victoria, on 20 February 1995.[6] Also in attendance were Bob Campbell, Chief Executive of The Seven Network, representatives of NASA and CSIRO, Sky Trackers cast and crew members, Staff and Board Members of The Seven Network and the ACTF, and representatives of the media.[6]

Dr Tamara Jernigan, a NASA astronaut who has spent more than 800 hours in space and orbited the Earth more than 400 times, visited Australia at the invitation of the ACTF in June 1995 and made a four day tour of schools in Melbourne, Sydney, Adelaide and Brisbane.[6] Travelling with her was Petra Jared, the 15-year-old star of Sky Trackers.[6]

Sky Trackers Educational Resources

The Australian Children's Television Foundation produced three Sky Trackers teaching packages for use in schools in the form of three Curriculum Packs:[6]

  • Sky Trackers: The Environment by Annemaree O'Brien and Noel Gough[6]
    • covered environmental activists, waterways. human intervention and protecting your planet[5]
  • Sky Trackers: Space by Annemaree O'Brien and Noel Gough[6]
    • covered rockets, space phenomena, radio telescopes and microwaves, SETI, science and culture, ethics and values.[5]
  • Sky Trackers: Family and Self by Don Edgar and Annemaree O'Brien[6]
    • covered family relationships, grief, domestic violence, family breakups and adoption.[5]

These packs contained three Sky Trackers episodes on videotape, with background notes on the topic and suggested questions and activities for students. They were designed for use by teachers of upper primary and junior secondary school (years 5-8).[3] These Sky Trackers stories are a dramatic blend of stories about science, deep space, the environment and family life.[3] They explore a fascinating range of issues, encouraging viewers to ponder, debate, discuss, question and investigate further.[3] On 30 June 1995, 329 packs had been sold.[6]

Tie-in novel

Penguin Books Australia published a tie-in novel based on the series, also titled Sky Trackers , written by Amanda Midlam.[4]

Telemovie

The Sky Trackers telemovie, starring Pamela Sue Martin (Dr Spencer Jenkins), Maia Brewton (Ali Barnes) and Justin Rosinak (Mike Masters), screened on The Seven Network at noon on 11 March 1995.[6]

Village Roadshow distributed the video of the telemovie and by 30 June 1995 758 videos had been sold.[6]

The telemovie was produced by the ACTF in association with The Disney Channel, and was written by Tony Morphett, produced by Patricia Edgar and Anthony Buckley, and directed by John Power.[6]

The telemovie was sold to Showcase Television in Canada and EuroArts International Gmbh in Germany in 1996.[7]

Popularity

REEL Entertainment began selling Sky Trackers videotapes to the general public in June 1995 and to 30 June 1995 reported sales of 1,640 videotapes.[6]

The Sky Trackers series performed particularly well in Europe where it was sold to ARD Germany, Danmarks Radio, NRK Norway, Finish Broadcasting Company, Slovak TV, RTSR Switzerland and RTE Ireland.[6] A contract with France 2 was also negotiated in 1995.[6]

The series has been sold to the Philippines, Nigeria, France, Germany, Turkey, Denmark, Slovak Republic, Israel, Iceland, Italy, Switzerland, Cyprus, Arabic-speaking territories, Honk Kong, Mexico, Indonesia, Brunei, Malaysia, Taiwan and Sri Lanka.[5]

The Sky Tracker series was sold to the Encore Media Corporation, for its WAM! teenage channel in the United States and AVRO, a public broadcaster in the Netherlands.[7]

On 28 August 1995, the series went to air on RTE Ireland.[7]

In 1996, Telepiu, a pay television channel in Italy, acquired a one year window of the series and Canal Plus Poland acquired a two year window.[7]

Program Awards and Nominations
Awards and Nominations
Year Nominated Work Award Event Category Result Reference
1994 'Skating the dish' Sky Trackers episode Australian Film Institute (AFI) Awards, Melbourne, Australia Best Children's Drama series Winner [6]
1994 Zbych Trofimiuk playing the role of Mike Masters Australian Film Institute (AFI) Awards, Melbourne, Australia Young Actor's Award Winner [1]
1994 Sky Trackers series Cairo International Film Festival for Children in Egypt Golden Cairo for TV Programmes Winner [1]
1995 Sky Trackers series Australian Teachers of Media (ATOM) Awards, Melbourne, Australia Best Children's Television Series Winner [1]
1995 Sky Trackers series Bavarian State Ministry for Education, Culture, Science and Art in Munich International Competition of the MediaNet Awards Selected [1]
1994 'Skating the dish' Sky Trackers episode Banff Television Festival, Canada Banff Rockie Award for Best Children's Program Nominated [1]
1996 Sky Trackers series Prix Jeunesse, Munich Children's program, Age 7-12 Finalist [1]
gollark: Obfuscate it and put some basic checks in?
gollark: A demo of some software you won't actually let them use? Not very helpful.
gollark: It is entirely possible that the money/time tradeoff is worse for copy protection than actually adding features.
gollark: If a random person can do it so can probably other people.
gollark: Because someone will just break it *anyway*, it'll be copied, and you'll have done more work and probably irritated paying users a bit with licensing.

References
  1. Edgar, Patricia, 1937- (2006). Bloodbath : a memoir of Australian television. Carlton, Vic.: Melbourne University Publishing. ISBN 0522852815. OCLC 224730166.CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  2. Ed. Scott Murray, Australia on the Small Screen 1970-1995, Oxford Uni Press, 1996 p143
  3. Australian Children's Television Foundation, (1995). Care for kids: Television News, The newsletter of the Australian Children's Television Foundation, Issue No. 48, p. 1-4. ISSN 0813-3727.
  4. Australian Children's Television Foundation, (1995). Care for kids: Television News, The newsletter of the Australian Children's Television Foundation, Issue No. 50, p. 1-4. ISSN 0813-3727.
  5. Australian Children's Television Foundation, (1994). Care for kids: Television News, The newsletter of the Australian Children's Television Foundation, Issue No. 47, p. 1-4. ISSN 0813-3727
  6. Australian Children's Television Foundation, (1995). Australian Children's Television Foundation Annual Report 1994-1995. A.C.T.F. Productions Limited. ISBN 0-86421-121-X
  7. Australian Children's Television Foundation, (1996). Australian Children's Television Foundation Annual Report 1995-1996. A.C.T.F. Productions Limited. ISBN 0864212739
  • "The Australian Film and Television Companion" — compiled by Tony Harrison — Simon & Schuster Australia, 1994
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