Extinction Report: Episode One Has Landed
A cranky dinosaur with a news desk and a grudge against the modern world. Remember Kate Production’s newest animated short series is here, and we sat down with the creator to find out where Rex Derrick came from — and where he’s headed.
The series feels like it has a history to it. Where did the idea actually come from?
It does have a history. A couple of years back I made a short series where Rex was a news reporter covering the animation industry. I was scrolling through old YouTube videos recently and came across it, and thought — I love this. An extinct dinosaur reporting on news that makes no sense. So I rebuilt the character and started working up shorts for him to run with. The goal is one episode a week.
How is this version different from the original?
The original was around five minutes, very fact-heavy. This is shorter, more entertainment-focused, built for a different format. Less report, more bullet. The humour is front and centre now rather than wrapped around information.
What are you going for tonally?
Dry. Irreverent. Quick. Rex speaks directly to camera, just like a real news anchor, but everything he says has that edge of someone who has already watched civilisation end once and isn’t particularly impressed with the sequel. Vertical format, something you can watch on the way to work and feel a little smarter — or a little more hopeless — about the world.
Why keep the design so simple?
Efficiency, mostly. I’m familiar with the style from Worlds Apart, so the animation pipeline is already comfortable. A simple character means a faster turnaround. A single news desk set means I’m not rebuilding the world every episode. Anything used for news coverage can be sourced from real-world assets. The whole thing is designed so the one-week turnaround is actually achievable, not just a nice idea.
What was the hardest part of getting episode one finished?
Two things. Getting enough punch in the script — finding where the gags land, making sure the sarcasm has a target. And then the delivery. I’m comfortable directing other voice actors, or voicing other characters, but Rex has a very specific voice living in my head. Finding the variation within that so it doesn’t sit flat the whole way through took some work.
Where do you spend most of your time in the process?
Writing, without question. That’s where I want to spend it. A joke that doesn’t land on the page costs you nothing. A joke that doesn’t land in the final edit has cost you all the animation, recording and editing time that went into it. You minimise losses early.
What do you hope people take away from it?
The humour, first. I expect a lot of people will look at it and assume AI made it — which it didn’t — and that’s part of why I do the making-of content alongside it. But mostly I just want people to get a laugh out of it.
Any advice for yourself at the start of it all?
Let it be fun. I don’t have to spend hours getting it perfect. I can do that elsewhere in the work. I make these shorts because I enjoy making them, so just relax and have a little fun with it too.
Episode one of The Extinction Report is out now. Rex Derrick is ready for his close-up — watch it here.