The Adventures of Figaro Pho

Lore & Background

The Adventures of Figaro Pho was created by Luke Jurevicius, who also directs, voices Figaro Pho, and composes much of the music. Jurevicius drew on his own experiences with fears and phobias. The original shorts were first commissioned by the South Australian Film Corporation and the Australian Broadcasting Corporation’s New Media and Digital Services Division for ABC2 and ABC Online. Following the success of those shorts, ABC Kids commissioned 39 episodes of The Adventures of Figaro Pho for ABC3. The series is set in the town of Cogsville and features Figaro, a 9-year-old child prodigy afraid of nearly everything, and his pet robotic dog Rivet. Recurring characters include Juliet, Rudy, Prudence, Ronald, Penny, Cornelius the mailman, Dotty, Boris, Uncle Ernesto, and Leon. The first series is subtitled Fun, Fears and Foul Odours and contains 20 episodes with titles such as Fear of Fish, Fear of Being Alone, Fear of Boredom, Fear of Relatives, Fear of Rejection, Fear of Mosquitoes, Fear of Thieves, Fear of Foul Odours, Fear of Baths, Fear of Baldness, Fear of Hunger, Fear of Clowns, Fear of Shrinking, Fear of Elevators, Fear of Skin, Fear of Becoming a Vampire, Fear of a Rival, Fear of Meteorites, Fear of Everything, and Fear of Being Weak.

Reader's Guide

The Adventures of Figaro Pho has been reviewed favorably, with comparisons to animation from Tim Burton. It has been recognized for its humour, music, animation, and special effects. The series won several international awards, including 2013's Best Children's Program on three continents: the Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Awards, the Asian Television Awards, and Kidscreen New York. It also picked up awards for writing, digital effects, animation, and post production. The series is available in over 100 countries on platforms including Hulu, Netflix, Cartoon Network Latin America, Pakapaka, BBC Canada, and iTunes. In Canada, it airs on both Family Channel and CHRGD. The program was entirely produced in Australia and was the first long form series produced by Luma Toons, a branch of Luma Pictures, which partnered with Chocolate Liberation Front in 2014 to produce the sequel series.

Did You Know?

• The series has almost no dialogue and no text, relying on physical performance, music, and sound effects.
• Figaro Pho's only companion is a mechanical dog named Rivet who hates the postman.
• The first series consists of 20 episodes, each titled after a specific fear, such as Fear of Fish and Fear of Clowns.
• Creator Luke Jurevicius performs many key roles, including voicing Figaro Pho and composing much of the music.

Creative Origins & Production

Figaro Pho was born from the personal anxieties of its creator, Luke Jurevicius, an Australian animation director who has long struggled with his own fears and phobias. Rather than treating these vulnerabilities as something to hide, Jurevicius channeled them into the show's core premise, giving Figaro a catalogue of anxieties that mirrors his own. Beyond directing, Jurevicius performs the voice of the titular character and composes a significant portion of the series' musical score, making him a singular creative force behind the property. The production journey began modestly. The South Australian Film Corporation and the Australian Broadcasting Corporation's New Media and Digital Services Division commissioned the original shorts as an innovative digital property for ABC2 and ABC Online. After those shorts proved successful, ABC Kids greenlit 39 full episodes for ABC3. In 2014, Chocolate Liberation Front forged a partnership with Luma Toons, the new long-form branch of the visual-effects studio Luma Pictures, to produce the 39-episode sequel. That second series, entirely made in Australia, marked Luma's first foray into long-form animation and debuted in August 2015.

Narrative Approach & World-Building

What sets Figaro Pho apart from most children's animation is its near-total absence of spoken dialogue and on-screen text. Storytelling depends almost entirely on physical comedy, expressive character animation, a rich musical score, and carefully crafted sound effects to convey emotion and advance plots. This silent-film-inspired approach demands a high level of physical-performance-based drama from the animators. The world is compact: the small town of Cogsville, where nine-year-old Figaro—a slim, large-headed boy with a single curl of hair, a design that echoes Paul Livingston's character Flacco—navigates a relentless parade of fears. His constant companion is Rivet, a four-year-old robotic dog who is sweet, cheerful, and fiercely protective, with a fondness for whimsical tinkering and a deep-seated grudge against the postman. The supporting cast rounds out Cogsville's charm: Juliet, his next-door neighbor and love interest; Rudy, an extreme skateboarding boy; Prudence, a hyperactive girl obsessed with Figaro; Ronald, a chubby nose-wiper; Penny, a cookie-offering girl scout; Cornelius, the perpetually injured mailman; Dotty, a wrinkly old lady who takes odd jobs; Boris, an obese gardener with a terrible smell; Uncle Ernesto, a hygiene-challenged explorer; and Leon, an athletic TV-star cousin who is also a master chef.

Critical Reception & Awards

Figaro Pho has drawn consistently positive critical attention, with reviewers frequently drawing parallels to the gothic, stylized animation associated with Tim Burton. Critics have singled out the series' distinctive humour, its evocative musical scoring, and the quality of its animation and special effects as standout elements that elevate it above typical children's programming. The show's international recognition is particularly impressive. In 2013, it was named Best Children's Program on three separate continents, taking home the award at the Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Awards, the Asian Television Awards, and Kidscreen New York. Beyond that top honor, the series collected additional accolades in the categories of writing, digital effects, animation, and post-production, underscoring the breadth of its craft. The fact that a dialogue-free, physically driven children's series from a small Australian studio could earn simultaneous recognition across the Australian, Asian, and North American award circuits speaks to the universal appeal of its visual storytelling and the technical polish behind its production.

Franchise Expansion & Global Reach

The Figaro Pho franchise has grown steadily from its origins into a multi-platform, multi-season property with a genuinely global footprint. The story began in 2009 with an anthology of 26 ninety-second shorts produced by Vishus Productions, each tackling a different phobia in alphabetical order from A to Z. The success of those shorts led to the 2012 two-season television series The Adventures of Figaro Pho, subtitled Fun, Fears and Foul Odours, with 20 episodes later released on ABC DVD in 2013. The 2015 sequel, The New Adventures of Figaro Pho, expanded the catalogue with 39 episodes covering everything from Figaro on Ice to Camp Fear. Beyond television, the brand extended into interactive media. In 2014, ABC Commercial released three Figaro Pho touchscreen games available on both iTunes and Google Play. Distribution has been remarkably wide: the first series streams in over 100 countries through platforms including Hulu, Netflix, Cartoon Network Latin America, Pakapaka, BBC Canada, and iTunes. In Canada specifically, it airs on both Family Channel and CHRGD, ensuring the silent, phobia-driven adventures of a small Australian boy reach audiences on multiple continents.