City Island is an American children's 3-minute short education comedy animated television series created by Aaron Augenblick. The series features two young inanimate friends (voiced by Kimia Behpoornia and Kimiko Glenn) in the fictional city of City Island learning about how the city works, with a focus on civics. The three-minute episodes play between long-form series on PBS Kids. City Island debuted in December 2022.
Synopsis City Island is an educational series of animated shorts that follow a talking light bulb named Watt and his best friend, a kite named Windy. The series educates children on civics-related topics including economics, geography, finance, and transportation.
Cast Main cast Kimia Behpoornia as Watt Kimiko Glenn as Windy/Sally/Piper James Adomian as Detritus Rachel Pegram as Lidia Branson Reese as Frank Lloyd Light James III as Mark
Guest stars Amy Schumer as Terra, the planet where City Island is located Julio Torres as Ringer Ellen Cleghorne as Mayor Sitwell Michael-Leon Wooley as Carry Debi Mazar as Laney Rachel Bloom as Venus Flytrap Rosie Perez as Rosey Rivet Ali Stroker as Lacey/Ms. Rita/Ms. Leslie Vanessa Bayer as Ms. Webster
Episodes
Season 1 (2022–23) EP1: President Watt EP2: Point of View EP3: Circus Beach EP4: Sportsmanship EP5: Retirement Home EP6: Architect EP7: The World EP8: Town Hall EP9: Snow Day EP10: Art Museum EP11: Airport EP12: Skytown EP13: History EP14: Post Office EP15: Stuck EP16: Library EP17: Flag Day EP18: Skating Rules EP19: Pets EP20: Celebration
Season 2 (2024) EP1: The News EP2: Skyline EP3: Theater Street EP4: Dancing Rules EP5: Family Tree EP6: Future EP7: Venus Flytrap EP8: Advertising EP9: Hospital EP10: Maker Hill EP11: Movies EP12: Garbage EP13: Shopping EP14: Clouds EP15: Internet EP16: Maps EP17: Investigate EP18: Flashback EP19: Swap Day EP20: Holidays
Production City Island was created by Aaron Augenblick, known for Ugly Americans and Wonder Showzen. Augenblick stated that he created the series in part as an homage to Sesame Street, "because I’ve always liked the idea that, in any episode, kids can … meet all these different people in a location that’s friendly, inviting, and seems like it would be really fun to hang out in." The purpose of the series is to educate children about civics. Augenblick worked with academic Elizabeth Hinde to decide what concepts to cover. Season 2 expanded content to include media literacy with collaboration from National Association for Media Literacy Education.
The theme music was composed by TV On The Radio’s Tunde Adebimpe. The style is based on the work of art director Gemma Correll.
Each episode is approximately 3 minutes long and plays as interstitial content between long-form series.
Release The series debuted in December 2022. Season 2 debuted on July 5, 2024. City Island airs on PBS Kids and on the official website in the United States.
City Island Sings!, a spin-off series of music videos with original songs inspired by artists such as The Beatles, Dua Lipa, and David Bowie, premiered on May 29, 2024.
Accolades 2024 Winner, Webby Awards, Kids & Family Video Winner, Webby Awards, People's Voice, Kids & Family Video
References
External links Official website