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Dinosapien

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Dinosapien
Intertitle
GenreFantasy, Science fiction
StarringBrittney Wilson
Bronson Pelletier
MacKenzie Porter
Jeffrey Watson
Suzanna Hamilton
James Coombes
Alexandra Gingras
Brendan Meyer
Dean Manywounds
ComposerRob Lord
Country of originCanada
United Kingdom
United States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes15 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producersRick Siggelkow
Mark Young
Arnie Zipursky
Tom Cox
Martha Ripp
Simon Nelson
ProducersJim Corston
Jordy Randall
EditorPeter Light
Camera setupCarey Toner
Running time23 minutes
Production companySEVEN24 Films
Original release
NetworkCBBC
Discovery Kids
ReleaseMarch 24 –
June 30, 2007

Dinosapien is an American/British/Canadian children's television program produced jointly by BBC Worldwide and Cambium Catalyst International with SEVEN24 Films.

Overall 15 episodes were made, each 21 and half minutes long (30 minutes total when factoring in commercials). The series is filmed in Bragg Creek, Alberta. The program made its debut on March 24, 2007 on Discovery Kids and CBBC. The series ended on June 30, 2007. Each program contains around six minutes of CGI. Brittney Wilson stars as Lauren Slayton, Suzanna Hamilton as Dr. Slayton and James Coombes as the villain, Dr. Aikens. Because of the Native Americans role in the series, the show could possibly be loosely based on Turok. Dinosapien aired on Discovery Kids for its original run, and also briefly aired on The Hub until March 24, 2012.

Sci-fi veteran David Winning directed the pilot and first three episodes and Brendan Sheppard, known for his work on Doctor Who DVDs, directed five episodes. Marc Lougee, veteran of several award-winning animated series (including MTV's Celebrity Deathmatch and the CBC's What It's Like Being Alone) directed CG animation and Visual Effects/2nd unit for the series prior to filming The Pit and the Pendulum, a stop motion animated adaptation of Edgar Allan Poe's classic tale. The Pit and the Pendulum was executive produced by animation icon Mr. Ray Harryhausen, joined by DINOSAPIEN producer Pete Denomme and Fred Fuchs.

Premise

The program focuses on what would happen if dinosaurs had continued to exist and evolve into more intelligent beings (Lauren mentions in the opening credits "Everyone thinks dinosaurs are extinct, but what if they're wrong?"). It is set at Dinosaur Explorer Camp, a dinosaur-themed summer camp in Canada, where Dr. Hillary Slayton lives with her teenage daughter Lauren. Dr Slayton's husband Alan mysteriously disappeared on a fossil expedition into the Badlands and her daughter hasn’t come to terms with his disappearance. Lauren is, however, the first human to encounter one of the evolved dinosaurs, which she eventually gets to know. Throughout the series Dr. Slayton befriends Dr. Aikens (who later turns villainous) and Lauren makes lots of friends before finding out more about dinosaurs and her father's disappearance.

Cast

Dinosaurs

Eno - A 6-foot-tall (1.8 m) theropod teenage dinosaur who is pale green with red and yellow stripes along his back, has a grey underbelly, pheasant-like feathers on the head (like human hair) and tail, yellow hawk-like forward eyes, feet like a dromaeosaur, and a short snout. In fact, Lauren confirmed that Eno's kind evolved from the species Dromaeosaurus. Like a parrot, Eno can copy and use words almost in context, but despite his intelligence, he has a four-year-old child's grammar when he talks. Eno is known to make squawking sounds similar to that of a bird, and quite sensitive to high-pitched sounds; they have a tendency to scare and drive him away. He is also known for climbing trees, but only for hiding or escaping. Judging from an incident when Eno was seen eating hot dogs and leaves, he is possibly omnivorous.

The Diggers - Two rather goofy bipedal cross-between Prenocephale and Pinacosaurus, but with little arms like a T. rex. Their species is described as "Ornithosapien" by Danny and Nelson in episode 12. They are insectivores. They are Eno's enemies, and they chase him persistently. They also chase everyone else and seem just evil. They can make things and use tools. They have a weakness though; they can be disabled temporarily by very bright lights (shown by nictitating eyelids). Lauren has nicknamed them Green Eyes (the male) and Cerepta (the female). The Diggers were apparently killed in the final episode in the Badlands when the Thunderbird cloud ignited Aiken's dynamite stash. This is not certain, since Aikens survived the explosion making it possible that they could have as well. Since Cerepta is female and the leader of the duo it might hint that in their species the females are most dominant.

Episodes

# Title Directed by Written by Original air date
1"Dawn of the Dinosaur"David WinningJeff Biederman
Story by: Jeff Biederman & Jeff F. King		March 24, 2007 (2007-03-24)
An evolved dromaeosaur dinosaur named Eno escapes from an underground world where the last remaining dinosaurs have taken refuge from humans. While he's being hunted by two predatory dinosaurs called the Diggers, Eno encounters fifteen-year-old Lauren Slayton, who is enrolled at Dino Adventure Camp as a helper with her friends that seem to have known each other before the series has started. She's terrified and runs away, but leaves behind the cherished locket that her missing father had given her.
2"Without a Paddle"David WinningJeff BiedermanMarch 31, 2007 (2007-03-31)
Lauren and Courtney get lost in the woods while searching for Lauren's locket, and they are chased by the Diggers until Eno fights off the deadly dinosaurs and saves the girls. Chris and Kit arrive to help them, and so does the mysterious Dr. Aikens who begins asking some suspicious sounding questions.
3"Monster in the Woods"David WinningPat ConnollyApril 7, 2007 (2007-04-07)
Eno gives Lauren back the locket from her father and she gives him the name 'Eno', but he becomes frightened and disappears into the woods. Lauren follows Eno but comes upon the Diggers and she heroically fends them off and keeps the vicious dinosaurs from harming other campers. Meanwhile, Nelson and Danielle find one of Eno's footprints and tell Dr. Aikens, who recruits them to spy on the counselors.
4"Critters"David WinningDavid Richard-FoxApril 14, 2007 (2007-04-14)
Lauren and Kit go to find Eno, but change their plans when a grizzly bear begins to stalk them. At the same time, Eno discovers that the Diggers have set up their headquarters in an abandoned coal mine, where they nearly trap him. Eno escapes and returns to his wilderness hideout in time to save Lauren and Kit from the fearsome grizzly. Back at camp, Courtney and Chris do battle with a skunk ...and lose.
5"Trapped"Dean BennettJeff F. KingApril 21, 2007 (2007-04-21)
Lauren hopes that a medicine man named Ten Bears (Kit's Uncle) may hold the secret to her father's disappearance and the arrival of the dinosaurs. But instead of offering help, Ten Bears warns them to stay away from the dinosaurs, which he calls the "Uncate", a dangerous creature from Native mythology. Elsewhere, Eno has been trapped by poachers. Lauren and Kit distract the poachers and free him, but now Eno is afraid of humans and he turns on Lauren before escaping into the woods.
6"Camp Visitors"Dean BennettJeff BiedermanApril 28, 2007 (2007-04-28)
Lauren tries to befriend Eno by offering him some hot dogs which doesn't work. Later, she discovers that her father wrote The DinoSapien Theory about intelligent dinosaurs like Eno and the Diggers. Meanwhile, Eno is still hungry and encounters Courtney with a bowl of hot dogs in the woods. Little does she know, Danielle and Nelson have planted a "bug" on Courtney, and they overhear the name "Eno". The kids pass along this "secret password" to Dr. Aikens who becomes surprisingly intrigued.
7"No Place Like Home"Dean BennettPat ConnollyMay 5, 2007 (2007-05-05)
Eno tries to communicate with Lauren but she can't understand him. Out in the Badlands, Ten Bears confronts the Diggers speaking his native Sioux, a language the dinosaurs understand. Back at camp, Nelson is feeling homesick. While helping Nelson, Lauren realizes what Eno was trying to tell her.
8"Electricity"Brendan SheppardThérèse BeaupréMay 12, 2007 (2007-05-12)
Eno discovers the destructive power of lightning and he sets out to harness it. His search for tools brings him into camp on the day of the Talent Show. Nearly discovered by Dr. Aikens, he takes cover. Lauren realizes she must smuggle him out of the camp and convinces Courtney to ham it up in the Talent Show to distract everyone. Safely back in the woods, Eno tests his "Lightning Collector". But we don't know why he has built it or what he wants to use it for.
9"Dinohunt"Brendan SheppardJeff F. KingMay 19, 2007 (2007-05-19)
While everyone goes on a camping trip, Dr. Aikens sets out on a hunt for Eno with a tranquilizer gun. The camping trip goes badly and tensions are running high between the counselors. The Diggers catch the scent of Dr. Aikens and stalk him, fascinated by his weapon. Lauren foils Dr. Aikens quest and believes Eno is safe for now ... except no one knows that the tranquilizer gun is now in the hands of the Diggers.
10"The Underworld"Brendan SheppardPat ConnollyMay 26, 2007 (2007-05-26)
Just when Lauren discovers that Eno knows her missing father's name, the Diggers capture her and take her deep into the coal mines. Once she is discovered missing, Courtney recruits Nelson and Danielle to help guide Kit and Eno to the hidden entrance of the coal mine. Kit and Eno find Lauren but fall into the Diggers' trap. Eno tries to fight off the Diggers but the scuttle causes the mine to collapse and they don't all make it out on time.
11"Rescue"Brendan SheppardPat ConnollyJune 2, 2007 (2007-06-02)
While searching for Eno in the woods, Lauren and Kit are nearly attacked by the Diggers. They're saved at the last minute by a bright shaft of light which temporarily repels the evil dinosaurs, causing Lauren and Kit to wonder who their mysterious protector is. Meanwhile, Dr. Aikens steals Danielle and Nelson's prize from the scavenger hunt as he believes it's actual proof that dinosaurs are still alive.
12"The Masquerade"Brendan SheppardPat ConnollyJune 9, 2007 (2007-06-09)
Lauren decides to tell her mother about Eno to keep him from being captured by Dr. Aikens, or discovered by Nelson and Danielle. Courtney has her own solution to thwart off the kids curiosity. Kit takes Eno to the Badlands where he will be safe, but Eno runs away so he can be with Lauren. Chris finds out the hard way that Lauren was telling the truth about dinosaurs when he's captured by the Diggers.
13"The Gate Keeper"Pat WilliamsThérèse BeaupréJune 16, 2007 (2007-06-16)
Eno has caught a cold and without any human anti-bodies, he's in danger of dying. Lauren and Kit track him to the Badlands, and discover that Ten Bears is going to help them find a cure. Back at camp, Courtney breaks up a food fight but she loses Lauren's dinosaur journal. Everything Lauren knows about Eno is in the journal and now it has fallen into dangerous hands.
14"Saving Eno"Pat WilliamsThérèse BeaupréJune 23, 2007 (2007-06-23)
Dr. Aikens has teamed up with the poachers to track down Eno. Lauren and Kit are hiding Eno and call Chris and Courtney for help. But Courtney and Chris get intercepted by the Diggers. After a wild chase, Dr. Aikens succeeds in capturing Eno. Little does Aikens know who is hiding in the back of his truck.
15"The Thunderbird"Pat WilliamsThérèse BeaupréJune 30, 2007 (2007-06-30)
Dr. Aikens wants to use Eno as bait to destroy the dinosaurs as they emerge from their caves in the Badlands. Lauren is able to locate Eno with Nelson and Danielle's help. Undeterred, Dr. Aikens continues to stuff dynamite into the caves, but the Diggers arrive and chase him off. When a bolt of lightning strikes, the Thunderbird myth Ten Bears had foretold becomes a reality. Will this make Lauren and Eno's dreams come true?
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