''Shaun the Sheep: The Farmer's Llamas'' is a British

stop-motion Stop motion is an animated filmmaking technique in which objects are physically manipulated in small increments between individually photographed frames so that they will appear to exhibit independent motion or change when the series of frames i ...

animated television special based on the television program '' Shaun the Sheep'' by Nick Park. Produced by Paul Kewley and John Woolley and directed by Jay Grace, the programme made its debut on Amazon Video in the United States on 13 November 2015 and on BBC One in the United Kingdom on 26 December 2015,

Boxing Day Boxing Day is a holiday celebrated after Christmas Day, occurring on the second day of Christmastide (26 December). Though it originated as a holiday to give gifts to the poor, today Boxing Day is primarily known as a shopping holiday. It ...

. The special follows Shaun the Sheep ( Justin Fletcher) as he gets the Farmer ( John Sparkes) to bring home three Llamas from the County Fair. Like the television series, there is no significant dialogue, as the majority of the screenplay takes place through visual implications or implied dialogue.

Plot

When the Farmer and Bitzer take a

cake Cake is a flour confection made from flour, sugar, and other ingredients, and is usually baked. In their oldest forms, cakes were modifications of bread, but cakes now cover a wide range of preparations that can be simple or elaborate, ...

to a contest at a festival, Shaun tries to steal it but ends up hiding in the Farmer's

jacket A jacket is a garment for the upper body, usually extending below the hips. A jacket typically has sleeves, and fastens in the front or slightly on the side. A jacket is generally lighter, tighter-fitting, and less insulating than a coat, which ...

. At the festival, he encounters three llamas named Hector, Raul and Fernando, who are hypnotized by a flutist. The flute player stumbles and awakens the llamas, who create chaos in the cake contest. Once the llamas are again hypnotized, they are taken to an auction and sold. Thanks to Shaun, the Farmer and Bitzer accidentally buy them. Back at Mossy Bottom Farm, the Farmer leads the llamas to the sheep meadow. Shaun befriends the llamas and he and the flock play a

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

game against them. Timmy finds the

flute The flute is a family of classical music instrument in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, meaning they make sound by vibrating a column of air. However, unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is a reedless ...

that came with the llamas and tests it, discovering that he can hypnotize them. However, Timmy loses the flute and the llamas destroy it. The llamas go on a vandalizing spree, culminating in taking a quad bike and destroying the sheep

house A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air condi ...

just as Bitzer finishes repairing it and Hector betrays Shaun. The flock becomes

angry Anger, also known as wrath or rage, is an intense emotional state involving a strong uncomfortable and non-cooperative response to a perceived provocation, hurt or threat. A person experiencing anger will often experience physical effects, su ...

with Shaun for bringing the troublemakers. Meanwhile, the Farmer and Bitzer discover that the llamas have taken over the Farmer's house. After a confrontation, the llamas lock the Farmer in a wardrobe. Bitzer and Shaun devise a plan to get rid of the llamas, tricking the creatures into the

caravan Caravan or caravans may refer to: Transport and travel *Caravan (travellers), a group of travellers journeying together **Caravanserai, a place where a caravan could stop *Camel train, a convoy using camels as pack animals *Convoy, a group of veh ...

. The plan fails and the llamas escape to take revenge on Shaun. He climbs on the roof of the Farmer's house where the three corner him. However, Timmy and the flock, with Bitzer's help, musically play empty bottles to hypnotize the llamas, who fall back into the caravan. Bitzer frees the Farmer from the wardrobe, and the next day the llamas are taken back to the auction, where the Farmer inadvertently buys a rhinoceros. In the end credits, the Farmer and Bitzer have just finished rebuilding the sheep barn and the pigsty fence the llamas have broke, the llamas’ buyer gives them to his daughter where she treats them badly, much to their annoyance, and the rhino came to the farm with the Farmer and Bitzer hiding, and the flock playing with the rhino.

Cast

* Justin Fletcher as Shaun the Sheep / Timmy * John Sparkes as Bitzer / The Farmer / Hector * Kate Harbour as Timmy's Mum * Simon Greenall as The Twins * Andy Nyman as Nuts * Emma Tate as Hazel * Richard Webber as Shirley * Sean Connolly as Raul * Chris Grimes as Fernando Additional voices * Dan Williamson

Production

The special was first announced on 13 October 2014 and aired on BBC One on 26 December 2015,

. It first went into production after production was completed on ''

Shaun the Sheep Movie ''Shaun the Sheep Movie'' is a 2015 stop-motion animated adventure comedy film based on the 2007 British television series ''Shaun the Sheep'', created by Nick Park, in turn a spin-off of the ''Wallace and Gromit'' film, ''A Close Shave'' (1995). ...

''.

Release

The special was released on

Amazon Prime Video Amazon Prime Video, also known simply as Prime Video, is an American Video on demand#Subscription models, subscription video on-demand Over-the-top media service, over-the-top Streaming media, streaming and Renting, rental service of Amazon (c ...

in the USA on 13 November 2015. It aired in the UK on BBC One on

2015 at 6.10pm. It was released on DVD in the UK by StudioCanal on 8 February 2016. It was also released on DVD by

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

in Australia on 2 March 2016.

Reception and ratings

The special was watched by 6.04 million viewers on BBC One. Melissa Camacho from Common Sense Media gave it four out of five and said "Shaun fans of all ages should find this adventure a delightful addition to the Aardman canon." Ed Power from '' The Daily Telegraph'' gave it four out of five and said "Kids, of course, will have loved every silly, sloppy minute. For a show going out at tea-time on Boxing Day, surely that was mission accomplished." Ed Liu from Toon Zone said "The show certainly held my interest and extracted more than its share of laughs, but ''The Farmer's Llamas'' doesn’t really have much more plot than an average episode of '' Shaun the Sheep''." Despite the accolades, commentators noted the overt xenophobia of the storyline. In 2016, it was nominated for an International Emmy Award for '' Kids: Animation''.

Accolades

References

External links

* * {{Aardman Animations 2015 television films 2015 films 2015 television specials Aardman Animations short films Animated films about dogs Animated films about llamas Animated films without speech Animated television specials British children's animated films British children's comedy films British children's fantasy films Clay animation television series Animated films about sheep Shaun the Sheep films Stop-motion animated short films Stop-motion animated television shows Animated television series without speech