The InBESTigators facts for kids

Quick facts for kids The InBESTigators
Genre	Family Comedy-drama
Created by	Robyn Butler Wayne Hope
Written by	Robyn Butler Molly Daniels Lisa Marie Corso Maddy Butler Jayden Masciulli Bob Franklin
Directed by	Robyn Butler Wayne Hope Nina Buxton Ian Reiser Tim Bartley
Starring	Anna Cooke Aston Droomer Jamil Smyth-Secka Abby Bergman
Composer(s)	Craig Pilkington
Country of origin	Australia
Original language(s)	English
No. of seasons	2
No. of episodes	20 (40 segments) (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producer(s)	Robyn Butler Wayne Hope
Producer(s)	Greg Sitch Bernadette O’Mahoney
Editor(s)	Angie Higgins Kathy Freeman Mark Atkin Ian Carmichael
Running time	Netflix: 27 - 31 minutes (2 segments)
Production company(s)	Gristmill Productions
Release
Original network	ABC Me Netflix
Picture format	HD
Audio format	Stereo
Original release	21 June 2019 (2019-06-21) – present

The InBESTigators is a fun Australian TV show for kids. It's a mockumentary comedy series, which means it's like a fake documentary that's also funny! The show was created by Robyn Butler and Wayne Hope. You can watch it on ABC Me in Australia and New Zealand, and on Netflix in other parts of the world.

The series is made by Gristmill Productions. They worked with Screen Australia, Film Victoria, and the Australian Children's Television Foundation (ACTF) to bring the show to life. The main stars are Anna Cooke, Aston Droomer, Jamil Smyth-Secka, and Abby Bergman. They play four fifth-grade friends: Maudie Miller, Ezra Banks, Kyle Klimson, and Ava Andrikides. These four kids work together to solve mysteries at their school and in their neighborhood.

The show's stories are written by a team including Robyn Butler and Wayne Hope. The episodes are directed by them too, along with Nina Buxton, Ian Reiser, and Tim Bartley. The show was filmed at Moorabbin Primary School in Moorabbin, Australia. The InBESTigators first aired on June 21, 2019. A second season came out later that year, on November 11, 2019. The series was even nominated for an AACTA Award for Best Children's Program!

Solving Mysteries: The Story

The show is all about a group of friends who become kid detectives.

How the Team Started

Ezra Banks is an 11-year-old boy in fifth grade. He meets Maudie Miller, who is super smart and loves solving puzzles. Ezra's mom wanted him to try a special project. His teacher, Mr. McGilick, asked Ezra to help Maudie, a new student. Ezra, along with his friends Ava Andrikides and Kyle Klimson, are amazed by Maudie's detective skills. She can solve mysteries really fast!

Because of Maudie's talent, the four friends decide to start their own detective agency. They call themselves "The Inbestigators." Their mission is to solve crimes and mysteries at school and in their neighborhood. At first, adults don't take them seriously because they are just kids. But the Inbestigators always surprise everyone with their clever solutions.

Season 1 Adventures

In the first season, the Inbestigators solve many cases. One time, Maudie loses her special notebook. This notebook is very important to her because she writes all her clues and ideas in it. She gets really upset and desperate. Ezra, Ava, and Kyle decide to help her find it. They work together to remember where she might have lost it.

In the end, Kyle finds Maudie's notebook! It was hidden inside a box in Mrs. Parides' sports shed. Maudie is so happy and thankful to Kyle. She even shares some special photos from her notebook. These photos are of her and her mom, who passed away when Maudie was little. They are some of her last memories with her mom.

A Special Birthday Mystery

In the last episode of Season 1, Maudie turns 11. Ava is shocked to learn that Maudie has never had a birthday party! Meanwhile, Maudie's dad, Brian Miller, asks the Inbestigators to solve a case. He says he missed an important letter from a conference in Hong Kong.

Maudie works hard to solve the case. But then, she discovers something surprising. The "case" was actually made up by Ezra, Ava, and Kyle! It was their way of celebrating her birthday. Ava then reveals that they've planned a surprise party at Maudie's house. Maudie is overjoyed and says it's the best day of her life!

Season 2 Cases

The Inbestigators return for Season 2 with even more mysteries to solve! They continue to share their adventures at school and in the neighborhood on their blog. They also become even closer friends. In this season, they deal with new types of crimes. Sometimes, people are wrongly accused of things they didn't do.

Maudie, Ezra, Ava, and Kyle work to find the real person responsible for these crimes. They also try to figure out why these things are happening. One of the Inbestigators even becomes a victim of these false accusations!

The Final Season 2 Mystery

In the last episode of Season 2, Ezra announces that the group will make a commercial for their agency. But they keep getting interrupted! First, Ezra's goldfish goes missing. Then, two more mysteries pop up: Ezra's mom, Sarah Banks, loses her ruby earring, and a red bucket disappears.

The Inbestigators get to work. They soon discover that these "mysteries" were all accidental! Poppy, Ezra's sister, used some of Ezra's art supplies and painted with Michelle's (the dog's) paws. Ezra's dad accidentally vacuumed up Sarah's ruby earring. And Amelia put the goldfish, Neil, in the bathroom to give him more space. After solving these funny "crimes," the team finally finishes their commercial and watches it together.

Meet the Cast

Here are the main actors and the characters they play in The InBESTigators:

Making the Show

How the Idea Started

The creators of the series: Robyn Butler (left) and Wayne Hope (right).

The InBESTigators was created by Robyn Butler and Wayne Hope. They are also known for another popular kids' show called Little Lunch. After Little Lunch was a big hit, Robyn and Wayne wanted to make another funny show for children. They combined the humor of Little Lunch with their love for detective stories. This created a new kind of comedy show for kids.

Robyn Butler and Wayne Hope said they were very proud of the show. Bernadette O’Mahony, an executive producer, believed the show would be popular with both kids and parents. She said, "The Inbestigators is fresh and original. Every episode keeps you guessing and smiling. And the characters are just divine – we’ve fallen in love with them and know the audience will too."

The creators also shared why they made the show. Robyn Butler explained that they wanted to respond to the world we live in, where people sometimes focus on differences. She said they wanted to create a show that promotes kindness, respect, and understanding. They wanted to show kids from different backgrounds working together. The goal was to help foster positive values in children as they grow up.

In June 2018, ABC and Screen Australia gave the green light for The InBESTigators. This meant the show could start production. Sally Caplan from Screen Australia said it's important for young Australians to see their own country and stories on screen. She hoped young viewers would connect with the show's characters and stories.

Writing the Stories

The writing for The Inbestigators started in 2017. The team of writers included Robyn Butler, Wayne Hope, Molly Daniels, Lisa Marie Corso, Maddy Butler, Jayden Masciulli, and Bob Franklin. Robyn and Wayne gave their writers some important advice. They told them to keep the scripts simple but not to make them too childish. They also said to never put adult words into a child's mouth. The writers had to think like a 10-year-old when creating the stories.

Bernadette O’Mahony, an Executive Producer, said that making 40 episodes was a huge amount of work for Robyn and the script team. But she added that every episode would keep viewers guessing and smiling. She also said that everyone involved had fallen in love with the characters, just like they did with the characters from Little Lunch.

Finding the Actors

Once the scripts were ready, the next step was to find the perfect actors. Robyn Butler and Wayne Hope were also directing the show, so they led the search for the main cast. They held 715 individual auditions to find the right kids for the roles!

In June 2018, the main cast was announced. Abby Bergman would play Ava Andrikides, Aston Droomer would be Ezra Banks, Anna Cooke would star as Maudie Miller, and Jamil Smyth-Secka would play Kyle Klimson. Many other talented actors joined the show in recurring roles.

Filming the Episodes

Filming for The InBESTigators began on July 9, 2018. It took place at Moorabbin Primary School in Melbourne, Australia. The filming was planned to finish in December 2018, but it actually wrapped up earlier, in November 2018. Dan Maxwell was the director of photography, and Simon McCutcheon was the production designer.

The creators originally wanted to build the detective agency's studio on the school grounds. But there wasn't enough space. So, they set it up in a staff car park instead. Anna Cooke, who plays Maudie, shared a secret about filming. She said, "The episodes were not all filmed in order. If we had a bunch of scenes in, say, the playground, then we would film them all at once, even if they were in different episodes."

Abby Bergman, who plays Ava, explained how much work went into filming. She said it took 20 weeks to film all 40 episodes. The editors then put all the individual scenes together to create each episode. A director named Bartley said that after 20 weeks, the cast and crew felt like a "little family." He added that the kids were "really great." During breaks, the crew would cheer on the actors. The cast and extras would play on the playground, and other crew members would play sports together.

Episodes

List of The InBESTigators episodes

When the Show Came Out

The InBESTigators first aired on ABC Me in Australia and New Zealand on June 21, 2019. The first season finished on July 10, 2019. Then, it was released worldwide on Netflix on August 9, 2019.

On August 12, 2019, the show was renewed for a second season! The second season premiered on November 11, 2019, and ended on November 30, 2019. You could watch the second season on Netflix worldwide starting January 10, 2020.

Promoting the Show

To get people excited about the show, trailers were released. On May 31, 2019, the first trailer for The InBESTigators was put on ABC Me's official YouTube channel. Many people watched it! A second trailer was released on June 13, 2019, on Gristmill's YouTube channel. It also appeared on the Australian Children's Television Foundation's YouTube channel.

Netflix also released a trailer for the show on its Futures' channel on July 27, 2019. This trailer is still available on the Netflix website on The InBESTigators page.

Later, the second season was hinted at in some extra videos on ABC Me's YouTube channel. These videos showed clips from new episodes. The official 30-second trailer for Season 2 was released on ABC Me and Gristmill Productions' YouTube channels on October 20, 2019. The show was also promoted with cool posters. The international trailer for the second season was first shown on Gristmill's Twitter account on December 29, 2019, and was also available on Netflix.

Other Cool Stuff About the Show

The InBESTigators: Crime Crack Web Series

The InBESTigators: Crime Crack is a short web-series you can watch on ABC Me's official YouTube channel. In this series, Abby Bergman (Ava) and Anna Cooke (Maudie) explain each episode in six easy steps. They talk about the crime, the false clues (red herrings), who did it (the culprit), the real clues, why they did it (the motive), and what lesson the story teaches (the moral). This web series came out on July 18, 2019. Only two episodes were released, based on the second and fifth episodes of the first season.

Chatting with the Cast

On September 13, 2019, the ACTF announced a special online Q&A session with the cast for primary students. This event happened on November 22, 2019. Schools from different parts of Australia joined the video conference. Anna Cooke, Abby Bergman, Aston Droomer, and Jamil Smyth-Secka, the main cast members, answered questions from students. This Q&A was later released on YouTube on December 18, 2019.

Learning with the Show

A special "Study Guide" called The InBESTigators Teaching Toolkit was created. It was released in May 2020 during the coronavirus pandemic. This guide helps teachers and students use the show to learn about different topics.

Awards and Nominations

The InBESTigators has been recognized for its quality!