Spirit Riding Free
Spirit Riding Free is a computer-animated series, produced by DreamWorks Animation Television and distributed by Netflix, based on the 2002 Oscar-nominated traditionally animated film, Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron.[5] The series was first released on Netflix on May 5, 2017.[3]
| Spirit Riding Free | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Genre | Animation Adventure |
| Based on | Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron |
| Developed by | Aury Wallington |
| Voices of |
|
| Theme music composer | Kari Kimmel[1] |
| Opening theme | "Riding Free", performed by Maisy Stella |
| Ending theme | "Riding Free" (Instrumental) |
| Composer(s) | Joachim Horsley James Allen Roberson |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of seasons | 8 |
| No. of episodes | 52 (list of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Executive producer(s) |
|
| Running time | 23 minutes[3] |
| Production company(s) | DreamWorks Animation Television[4] |
| Distributor | NBCUniversal Television Distribution Netflix Streaming Services |
| Release | |
| Original network | Netflix |
| Original release | May 5, 2017 – present |
| External links | |
| Website | |
A feature film based on the series was announced to be in development and is scheduled for release on May 14, 2021.[6]
Plot
Set in small frontier town of Miradero, a 12-year-old girl[2] named Fortuna "Lucky" Esperanza Navarro Prescott, who had recently relocated from the city, encounters a wild kiger mustang named Spirit. The horse is caught by wranglers and brought to be "broken" in Miradero. Lucky immediately bonds with the stallion, and frees him. Lucky also meets two other girls, Prudence "Pru" Granger and Abigail Stone, who both own horses, Chica Linda, a talented and proud palomino, and Boomerang, a friendly and goofy pinto horse, respectively. They embark on everyday adventures across the land.
Cast
- Amber Frank as Fortuna "Lucky" Esperanza Navarro Prescott. She is a very brave, kind, headstrong girl, and does not like the rules. She serves as the main protagonist.[2]
- Sydney Park as Prudence "Pru" Granger. She is often the brains of the team, knowing something about everything, and is brave, like Lucky, and is nice at heart.[2]
- Bailey Gambertoglio as Abigail Stone. She is the least rebellious, and is often portrayed as sweet and funny, but naive. She can still be smart and is courageous, like her friends.[2]
- Darcy Rose Byrnes as Maricela[2]
- Nolan North as Jim Prescott/James Prescott Sr. (2nd Voice)[2]
- Kari Wahlgren as Aunt Cora Prescott[2]/Polly Prescott
- Duncan Joiner as Snips Stone
- Jeff Bennett as Mesteneros/Various
- Andy Pessoa as Turo
- Tiya Sircar as Kathryn "Kate" Flores-Prescott
- Jonathan Craig Williams as Al Granger
- Katey Sagal as Jane "Butch" LePray
- Thomas Lennon as Rooster
- Lucas Grabeel as Julian
- Andy Aragon as Javier
- James Patrick Stuart as Harlan Grayson
- Victor Garber as James Prescott Sr. (1st Voice)
Production
The first season premiered on May 5, 2017.[3] The second season premiered on September 8, 2017.[7] The third season premiered on November 17, 2017.[8] The fourth season premiered on March 16, 2018.[9] The fifth season premiered on May 11, 2018.[10] The sixth season premiered on August 17, 2018.[11] The seventh season premiered on November 9, 2018. The eighth season premiered on April 5, 2019.[12] The ninth season is scheduled to premiere in the fall of 2020.[6]
Crew
The voice director for the first three episodes was Ginny McSwain; Katie McWane took over as voice director subsequent to that.
Episodes
| Season | Episodes | Originally released | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 6 | May 5, 2017 | |||
| 2 | 7 | September 8, 2017 | |||
| 3 | 7 | November 17, 2017 | |||
| 4 | 6 | March 16, 2018 | |||
| 5 | 7 | May 11, 2018 | |||
| 6 | 6 | August 17, 2018 | |||
| 7 | 7 | November 9, 2018 | |||
| 8 | 6 | April 5, 2019 | |||
Christmas Special
On December 6, 2019, a 45-minute special Christmas-episode named Spirit Riding Free: Spirit of Christmas was released on Netflix.[13]
Spinoff Series
Spirit Riding Free: Pony Tales
The series premiered on August 9, 2019 on Netflix. The second season was released on October 18, 2019.[14]
Spirit Riding Free: Riding Academy
The series debuted on April 3, 2020 on Netflix.[15]
Webisodes and music videos
A number of webisodes and music videos have been released exclusively on the DreamWorksTV YouTube channel during the course of the series.
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Storyboarded by | Original release date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| - | 1 | "Magic Show" | Jim Schumann | Robert Taylor | Rick Lacy | August 22, 2017 |
| - | 2 | "Rainy Day" | Jim Schumann | Robert Taylor | Kennedy Tarrell | November 7, 2017 |
| - | 3 | "Mustang Mail Part 1" | Jim Schumann | Robert Taylor | Rick Lacy | January 16, 2018 |
| - | 4 | "Mustang Mail Part 2" | Jim Schumann | Robert Taylor | Rick Lacy | January 23, 2018 |
| - | 5 | "The Circus Mystery, Pt. 1: Magical New Tricks" | Joshua Taback | Robert Taylor | Jean Kang | July 24, 2018 |
| - | 6 | "The Circus Mystery, Pt. 2: Kidnapping in Miradero" | Joshua Taback | Robert Taylor | Jean Kang | July 31, 2018 |
| - | 7 | "The Circus Mystery, Pt. 3: The Bandit Standoff" | Joshua Taback | Robert Taylor | Jean Kang | August 7, 2018 |
| - | 8 | "Adventure Music Video" | - | - | - | September 23, 2018 |
| - | 9 | "The Grooming Wagon, Pt. 1: Horse Cleaning Calamity" | - | - | - | January 15, 2019 |
| - | 10 | "The Grooming Wagon, Pt. 2: Race Against the Clock" | - | - | - | January 22, 2019 |
| - | 11 | "The Grooming Wagon, Pt. 3: A Soapy Success" | - | - | - | January 29, 2019 |
| - | 12 | "Fast Friends: Abigail & Boomerang Meet for the FIRST Time!" | - | - | - | July 16, 2019 |
| - | 13 | "Fast Friends: Pru & Chica Linda Meet for the FIRST Time!" | - | - | - | July 23, 2019 |
| - | 14 | "Fast Friends: Lucky & Spirit Meet for the FIRST Time!" | - | - | - | July 30, 2019 |
| - | 15 | "Unstoppable Music Video" | - | - | - | August 6, 2019 |
Home media
Spirit Riding Free: Season 1–4, containing all of the episodes from seasons 1–4, was released on DVD on June 5, 2018 by Universal Pictures Home Entertainment. On September 24, 2019, Universal released Spirit Riding Free: Season 5–8, containing all of the episodes from seasons 5–8 on DVD. The series is also scheduled for DVD releases in the UK, France, Italy, and Germany.
Film adaptation
On October 7, 2019, DreamWorks Animation announced that a feature film based on the series was in development. Scheduled for a theatrical release on May 14, 2021, it will be produced by DreamWorks Animation and released by Universal Pictures.[16] The film will be directed by Elaine Bogan and co-directed by Ennio Torresan in their feature directorial debuts, and written by the creator of the series, Aury Wallington, and produced by Karen Foster.[16] The film will be produced on a lower budget and be made by a different animation studio outside of DreamWorks, similar to Captain Underpants: The First Epic Movie.[6]
Video game
5 December 2019 was released game for Android and iOS - Spirit Riding Free Trick Challenge.[17]
References
- Nashid, Naureen (March 30, 2017). "Interview with Kari Kimmel". Teal Magazine. Retrieved May 27, 2017.
- Milligan, Mercedes (April 18, 2017). "Trailer: DreamWorks' 'Spirit Riding Free' Races to Netflix". Animation Magazine. Retrieved May 27, 2017.
- Amidi, Amid (April 19, 2017). "TRAILER: 'Spirit Riding Free' Takes The Dreamworks Franchise In A New Direction". Cartoon Brew. Retrieved May 27, 2017.
- McLean, Tom (April 30, 2017). "Perfect Match". Animation Magazine. Retrieved May 27, 2017.
- Steinberg, Brian (June 16, 2016). "Netflix Readies Animated 'Spy Kids,' 'Llama Llama' Series (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved June 18, 2016.
"Spirit Riding Free," from DreamWorks Animation, is inspired by the 2002 Oscar-nominated film "Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron"...
- D'Alessandro, Anthony (October 7, 2019). "DreamWorks Animation & Universal To Release 'Spirit Riding Free' & 'The Bad Guys' In 2021". Deadline. Deadline. Retrieved October 8, 2019.
- "DreamWorks' 'Spirit Riding Free' S2 Hoofs It to Netflix". Animationmagazine.net. August 23, 2017. Retrieved March 12, 2019.
- "Archive » Spirit Riding Free gallops into third season". Kidscreen. October 24, 2017. Retrieved March 12, 2019.
- https://www.popsugar.com/entertainment/photo-gallery/44599592/image/44608732/Spirit-Riding-Free-Season-4
- Haylock, Zoe (May 1, 2018). "Netflix's New Releases Coming in May 2018". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved May 10, 2018.
- Twitter announcement of Season 6
- "Spirit Riding Free Season 8 Coming to Netflix in April 2019". What's on Netflix. March 12, 2019.
- https://www.netflix.com/se-en/title/81146370
- "Spirit Riding Free: Pony Tales on Netflix". Netflix. Retrieved August 9, 2019.
- https://www.netflix.com/se-en/title/81054417
- Milligan, Mercedes (October 7, 2019). "DreamWorks, Universal Slate 'Spirit Riding Free' & 'Bad Guys' for 2021". Animation Magazine. Animation Magazine. Retrieved October 8, 2019.
- https://www.commonsensemedia.org/app-reviews/spirit-riding-free-trick-challenge
External links
- Official website at Netflix
- Official website at DreamWorks TV
- Spirit Riding Free on IMDb
