Australian prodco Gristmill (The Inbestigators) has teamed up with Sinking Ship Entertainment to co-produce the live-action series Lightning Primary (10 x 30 minutes). 

The adventure series for six to nines takes place in a school that has been hit by lightning, transforming it into a magical realm—where the class pet can now sing and geysers of water shoot from the sprinklers. But before the students can enjoy their new paradise, the kids realize that their principal has gone missing and must embark on a journey to find him with the help of the school’s new magical abilities. 

This marks the first Canadian/Australian co-production for both companies. Gristmill will film the series in Australia, and Sinking Ship will do the visual effects in Canada.

It’s a natural partnership since both producers have a track record of successful live-action kids shows. Gristmill’s mystery/comedy series The Inbestigators (20 x 30 minutes) secured a co-commission from Netflix and ABC, while Sinking Ship has produced more than a dozen shows and distributed its own series Dino Dana and Odd Squad worldwide.

Gristmill developed the series and the Australian Children’s Television Foundation invested in it back in 2021. Lightning Primary got a piece of US$326,000, which was split between 16 projects. Interestingly, it was funded alongside a strong batch of children’s shows that broadcasters went on to greenlight and are now on air, including Barrumbi Kids (NITV), Eddie’s Lil Homies (Netflix and NITV) and MaveriX (ABC and Netflix).