Aliki Theofilopoulos is a veteran in the field of animation. After getting her start as an animator on Disney classic films like Hercules, Mulan, and Tarzan, she continued climbing the ladder and delivering more cartoons - including Harvey Girls Forever and The Descendants: Wicked World.
Her career led her to also voice act and produce shows as well. Once she had a feel for computer-generated animation with her work on The Descendants: Wicked World, she started working with Dreamworks on another series with a similar animation style - Doug Unplugs.
Doug Unplugs is an adaptation of a children's book with the same title by Dan Yaccarino and sees a young robot that downloads data but realizes he needs to experience the things he's learning about to get a true grasp on them. The synopsis states the following:
DreamWorks Doug Unplugs follows a curious six-year-old robot, Doug, as he ‘plugs in’ to learn new facts about the world every day. Sensing there’s more to life than just the facts, Doug journeys into the human world in search of experience. And to do that, Doug has to...unplug. With the help of his best friend, a human ball of energy, Emma, the two discover all the simple wonders of the world. Join Doug as he learns about the intersection of technology and humanity, and how they both keep us truly connected!
We were able to speak with Aliki about the second season of Doug Unplugs which is now streaming on Apple TV+. You can hear our interview via the link below or view it for a fully immersive experience with our video chat at the bottom - and remember to share your thoughts!
In support of Dreamworks releasing Doug Unplugs Season 2, we spoke with co-executive producer Aliki Theofilopolous. She told us about her experience with regular animation vs computer-generated animation and how the challenges help her navigate the story-telling in a more clever way.
She's also known for her work on Descendants, but she kicked off her career on films like Tarzan, Mulan, and Hercules, so we obviously discussed her time with Disney as well as her career with Dreamworks. Aliki also provides her voice to a character in the series so we got her perspective from several angles and had a great time!
Be sure to check out Doug Unplugs Season 2, now on Apple TV+!
Doug Unplugs Season 2 is now streaming on Apple TV+.