Gutsy Animations’ exciting new Moomin animation is being developed with the full support of Moomin Characters, the business Tove Jansson and her brother Lars set up to manage the Moomin brand. To this day Moomin Characters is run by family members, with Sophia Jansson (Lars’s daughter and Tove’s niece) as Chairman of the Board and Creative Director. Here, Sophia gives us some unique insight into her aunt’s life and work…
Tove Jansson
Photo: © Moomin Characters™
Even her contemporaries saw that Tove’s tales from Moominvalley were not just children’s stories, but instead set out an entire philosophy for life rooted in the core values of love, tolerance and adventure. Readers have always found a deeper meaning behind the narrative and the characters, who are often confronted with tricky questions and challenging situations – as indeed we are in real life. In Moomintroll, Snufkin, Sniff, Little My and friends, adults and children alike find a way to explore how to behave in the world in a way that is kind to their fellow creatures.
Today we are faced with many frustrating and saddening events and governments that seem to be throwing up barriers when they should be opening their arms. It can feel like we are living in a moment of misunderstanding – one in which we sometimes forget that we’re all equal inhabitants of this shared planet.
So the time feels right for a reminder of an important lesson from Moominvalley: that no matter who someone is, what they look like or where they’re from, everyone deserves to be treated with respect. It’s a message central to all of Tove’s work and one which should be central to the way we live, too.
The money raised by this campaign will go towards developing a new animation which will help to spread this message, and so we are very grateful to all the fans and funders contributing to making it happen. Thank you.
Click here to learn more about MOOMIN tv series, how you can get involved and the perks on offer.
Best regards,