- Born
- Died
- Janice Burgess was the creator of The Backyardigans (2004) and the story editor for Nickelodeon's revival of Winx Club (2004). She joined Nickelodeon in 1995 as executive-in-charge of production and worked at Nick Animation for almost 20 years. When writing for both The Backyardigans and Winx Club, Burgess drew inspiration from action and adventure movies. Burgess said, "I wanted to bring some of that fantastical nature to young children, but to do it in a way that is safe, hopefully not scary, and not 'imitatable' except in your head."
The character of Uniqua on The Backyardigans was partially based on Burgess herself. In an interview, Burgess stated, "Uniqua is me. Or at least who I was as a kid. She's a ringleader. Out of the five, Uniqua is the main character, and we use her in every story."- IMDb Mini Biography By: Nick Press
- In the early 1990s, Burgess held positions at the Children's Television Workshop, including as an assistant travel coordinator for 3-2-1 Contact and project manager for Ghostwriter. For the latter, she coordinated the efforts of a tie-in magazine and teacher materials with the content and goals of the television show. It was during this job that she was notified of an opening at Nickelodeon; Burgess joked that she interviewed for the job "about 11,000 times.
- She created the Nick Jr. series The Backyardigans and worked as a writer and story editor for Nickelodeon's revival of Winx Club. Both shows were produced at the Nickelodeon Animation Studio.
- She frequently played in her backyard, and she later used those memories as inspiration for The Backyardigans. "I really remember it as a wonderful, happy, safe place... you could have these great adventures just romping around. From there, you could go anywhere or do anything.
- According to an interview with Investor's Business Daily, Burgess did not enjoy traveling "in art circles with collectors and high society," so she sought out a different career after college. She volunteered for a job at the public television station WQED, where she was put in charge of craft services.
- Janice Burgess was an American television executive, screenwriter and producer for Nickelodeon.
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