Created in 1999, the awardwinning Hi-5 is now a franchise that reaches an estimated weekly audience of 1 million kids in over 83 territories globally. At its height, the show boasted 118 countries with a global reach of 5 million. As a format, the show has been recreated in the U.S. and the UK, while the associated music, merchandise and apparel have made the brand one of Australia’s top entertainment earners. Hi-5 “live” shows often perform to packed venues, where Hi-5-crazed fans scream their lungs out – and we’re just talking parents here.

For all its successes, Hi-5 was not without its difficulties. Julie Greene, who now helms the show, says that it was for cost reasons that led to Australia’s Network Nine selling the brand that sat famously on its channel for a decade.

“I just don’t think they (Nine) had the capability at the time to spend money on children’s television. It wasn’t really a matter of closing the show down and saying goodbye. They had a buyer for it, (which meant) they can actually sell the brand,” explains Greene.

In May 2012, the Hi-5 brand (owned by Endemol when it acquired Southern Star Entertainment in 2009, who in turn bought the franchise from Kids Like Us a year earlier) changed hands when ASIASONS Capital Limited, a Singapore-listed private equity firm acquired the franchise. Now, all things Hi-5 – the television show, “live” tours, music, merchandise and apparel – are Singapore-owned.

Greene has since uprooted from Sydney to Singapore to continue the Hi-5 tradition, and she says this is good for costs reasons, plus there’s the allure of a 40% funding under MDA’s “Production Assistance Scheme”, which the company is applying for. A new soundstage in Singapore’s Mediapolis will be home for future multi-camera productions of Hi-5, where the famous five will be flown in for shoots. The series will take on a new name, Hi-5 House, reflecting the show’s new concept where each cast member will “live” in a finger-shaped room (pod) in a “house” resembling the famous hand. Greene relishes the chance to recreate Hi-5.

“(Previously), you didn’t really have a tangible sense as to where they were in space and time. It might be nice to give them some context – like a group of friends living together under one space and having some fun, close-by, and under one roof,” says Greene. “The positive thing is that we’ll have a lot of fresh eyes so that’s going to give the show some fresh new influences and it is exactly what it needs because the brand has been going since 1999.”

Singapore-based Oak3 Films has been appointed to produce the show in collaboration with a director, an art director and a lighting director from Australia. Local crew will be trained on hair, makeup and wardrobe. Greene estimates a three-month shoot, with an additional three months for post at the soundstage in Singapore. The facility, she says, will have visual effects, post production suites, and production offices on-site; with space aplenty for props and costume, plus studio floor for (at least) 50 stomping children!

While the series will see some major tweaks, what remain unchanged are the songs the series is famous for. Resident composer (since season 1) Chris Harriot will continue to write and deliver his brand of smile-inducing and feet-tapping songs from down under.

New owner ASIASONS has ambitious plans for the brand. Its licensing and distribution team has been hard at work at content markets promoting Hi-5 not only as a finished programme, but as a format that can be replicated for local territories. The team also wants the new cast to meet fans face-to-face by way of “live” stage shows, with Indonesia being the first stop.

“We’re really excited about the new stage show. We want to make it a bit bigger because I had (previously) written a show for smaller venues around Australia. The cast would be doing exclusive mall shows at Gandariya malls in Indonesia from mid-June to early July. This will be before they shoot season 14. It will be great for us to the test the market,” says Greene.

Hi-5 Season 14 aka Hi-5 House Season 1 is slated for an Oct/Nov 2013 delivery.