Pinky Dinky Doo

Everybody’s Favorite Pink Linguist Adds “3-D” To Her Vocabulary

Mr. Guinea Pig, Tyler, Pinky (Pinky Dinky Doo)

What do you get when you cross a perky, pink 7-year-old girl with some of the most cutting-edge 3-D technology on children’s television? Pinky Dinky Doo, of course! The series, now in its second season, is a unique, animated romp through the life of a whip-smart young girl and her pals, and draws preschoolers in with new words, colorful characters and imaginative storylines.

A Brand New 3-D World

Season 2 of Pinky is better than ever because it moves away from “traditional” Flash animation to 3-D animation. “We wanted to take the flat collage-y look of our Season 1 Flash animation and make it look even better for Season 2,” says Jim Jinkins, president of Cartoon Pizza and Pinky Dinky Doo’s creator. “Our friends at Keyframe Digital did a spectacular job of preserving the look of Pinky Dinky Doo, but added a 3-D animation process that really made Pinky's world come alive. Season 2 looks phenomenal!”

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In one particularly memorable episode, “The Pinkys Rock,” Pinky and her pals stage a “concert for the whole world.” Using the software program 3D Studio Max, animators at the Canadian company Keyframe Digital were able to create thousands of unique-looking audience members with relative ease. The production team programmed the computer to sort through dozens of outfits, body sizes, and hair and skin colors. By randomly mixing and matching the various choices, much like an algorithm, the animated audience was as diverse as a real-life audience would be. The 3-D element also allowed the camera to pan through the crowd so that young viewers were deeply drawn into Pinky’s world, which Darren Cranford, lead animator and co-founder of Keyframe Digital, describes as a “pop-up book.”

In addition to making a huge splash in the U.S., where each episode of Season 2 is watched in an average 400,000 households, Pinky Dinky Doo has enjoyed great success internationally.

Everybody Loves Pinky

Michael Carrington, controller at CBeebies, the B.B.C. television channel for children, says U.K. audiences are absolutely smitten with Pinky.

“We’ve found the team at Sesame Workshop to be wonderfully creative, very knowledgeable about young audiences, and incredibly collaborative — even when asked that Pinky have a British accent,” Carrington says. “Pinky Dinky Doo is really well received in the UK — audiences love her zany pink hair and her quirky approach to storytelling.”

Bilai Joa Silar, vice president and channel director of Discovery US Hispanic Networks and Discovery Kids, hails the show as a fun and essential educational tool.

“Pinky Dinky Doo has been on the air since 2006 and it has always been a fan favorite,” says Silar. “Kids enjoy the show because it allows them to be in the driver seat and use their imagination to create funny stories that are associated with problem solving. Parents appreciate that their kids can learn new words and that it fosters an early love of literacy. Pinky is a wonderful character and embodies Discovery Kids’ core values of creating lifelong learners and independent thinkers.”

No End to the Fun

Music plays a big role on the show, and the Pinky Dinky Doo theme song has become such a hit that parents have filmed their exuberant children dancing to it and posted the videos on YouTube.

Pinky Dinky Doo’s brand-new 3-D sets and the many activities on the show’s Web site all help catapult young viewers across the world into their favorite pink linguist’s fun and often nonsensical world.

“Through Pinky’s stories and games, we hope kids will feel inspired to make up their own,” says Jinkins. “We hope to sharpen their listening skills and expand their vocabulary, but most importantly, we want them to laugh and have a great time!”

So, here’s to Pinky and her gang: “Yesserooni Positooni!”

Pinky Dinky Doo airs weekdays at 3 p.m. and 3.30 p.m. ET on Noggin.

Pinky Dinky Doo is a co-production of Sesame Workshop, Cartoon Pizza, Abrams/Gentile Entertainment, Inc. (AGE), and Keyframe Digital.