| The Off-Beats | |
|---|---|
 Title card | |
| Genre | Comedy |
| Created by | Mo Willems |
| Written by | Mo Willems Josh Selig |
| Directed by | Mo Willems |
| Voices of | Mischa Barton Mo Willems Mark Wagner Jimmy McQuaid Kathleen Fasalino Dylan Roberts Trisha Hedgecock Tara Ketterer Kevin Seal |
| Narrated by | Mo Willems (opening only) |
| Composer | William Anderson |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 2 |
| No. of episodes | 14 |
| Production | |
| Executive producers | Mo Willems Mary Harrington |
| Producer | Mo Willems |
| Running time | 2-4 minutes |
| Production companies | Curious Pictures Nickelodeon Productions |
| Original release | |
| Network | Nickelodeon |
| Release | November 29, 1996 – January 2, 1998 |
| Related | |
| KaBlam! Sheep in the Big City Codename: Kids Next Door Team Umizoomi Little Einsteins | |
| Infobox instructions (only shown in preview) | |
The Off-Beats is an American slapstick comedy animated television series that was created by Mo Willems. The first episodes were produced as standalone short animated films for Nickelodeon; but after the series was nominated for a CableACE Award, more segments were produced for Kablam!.[1] The series was initially called The Misfits, but Nickelodeon had Willems change the series' title (and re-animate the intro) at the last moment before its television debut.[1] The series was the first to end on KaBlam! after Willems moved to Cartoon Network to create Sheep in the Big City; it too was cancelled after two years on the air.
The show features a distinct art style, with flat, dry colors. The animation is similar to that of UPA, and Hanna-Barbera cartoons. The series itself (especially in story and concept) pays homage to the classic Peanuts TV specials, especially since the majority of the voice cast are child actors. Each episode is composed with a jazz genre, occasionally includes big-band music, but mostly including a combination of a piano, drums and a double bass. Each segment was two to four minutes in length. Most of the soundtracks in the shorts are similar to The Pink Panther cartoon shorts.
After 15 years of being considered lost, the Off Beats Valentine Special can be viewed on YouTube as of February 27, 2014.[2]
- ^ a b "Mo Willems Doodles: Popular…". 13 January 2007.
- ^ The Lost Media Wiki (27 February 2014). "An Off-Beats Valentine's (1999 Nickelodeon Special)". Archived from the original on 2021-12-13 – via YouTube.