Leonardo (TV series)

Series overview

Packed full of mystery, adventure and comedy, the series follows the adventures of the young Leonardo da Vinci and his friends in 15th century Florence.

Characters

Production

Leonardo began as a novel outline by Tom Mason and Dan Danko portraying Leonardo da Vinci as a "teenage Renaissance Batman". Although never actually used in a book, Mason and Danko were able to interest the BBC in their unpublished story idea. It was optioned by the BBC in late 2009 and the pre-production was completed by summer 2010. The first series of Leonardo was shot on location in South Africa throughout the second half of 2010. A second series was completed on location in Cape Town and was aired in 2012. Roxane Hayward, Katie McGlynn and Pam St. Clement guest starred in the second series.

Historical accuracy

A Friday Download promotion for Leonardo suggested that the series is factual, but the series is misleading in certain respects. For example, in series 1, episode 5 the eponymous hero falls in love with a girl called Valentina. Art historians, including Lord Clark, have argued that Leonardo da Vinci was homosexual, and had no romantic interest in women. Another problem is that the action is said to take place in Florence in 1467. However, in episode 8 Leonardo is shown in competition with Michelangelo, who was not even born until 1475. In an interview with C21 Media, co-director Melanie Stokes said that "we play fast and loose with history and it's not the job of a drama to give facts... but to inspire imagination." Episode 8 accurately references Da Vinci's vegetarianism and love of nature (buying caged birds to release them).

The portrayal of Piero de' Medici as scheming to overthrow the Duke of Florence is misleading; in 1467, Medici was the de facto ruler of Florence, and the city state would only acquire a Duke in 1532, when the title was given to Piero's descendent Alessandro de' Medici.

The character of Niccolò Machiavelli is portrayed by Akemnji Ndifornyen, a black actor, whereas the real Niccolò Machiavelli was white. Furthermore, there appears to be no discernible age difference between his character and that of da Vinci, who was in reality 17 years his senior.

The characters all speak modern English, occasionally exclaiming "bella!" or "magnifico!" to remind the audience that they are supposed to be Italians. Contemporary pop songs are used for the music soundtrack.

Leonardo is frequently shown inventing things that are ahead of their time, most notably a wooden bicycle (actually invented 1817; Leo's design is close to a BMX, invented in the 1970s), which first appears in "Anything is Possible" and is later given a gunpowder engine (invented 1600s). The season one finale involves an indestructible suit of mechanical armour, and the season two ended with a "superweapon" - a mobile armoured tank with a cannon mounted in a rotating turret, an exaggeration of Leonardo da Vinci's fighting vehicle.

Leonardo's costume is also rather anachronistic, with his sneakers and chinos being more reminiscent of modern-day clothing rather than that of 15th century Florence.

Awards

In 2012, Leonardo won three KidScreen Awards for Best Non-Animated or Mixed Series, Best Music, and Best Design. It was also nominated for the Ivor Novello Award for Best Television Soundtrack, the Best Youth Program Award at the Banff World Media Festival, and the Award for Youth Fiction at the Rose d'Or. It was also nominated for a children's television award at the Prix Jeunesse International Festival in Munich.

Game

In 2012 an online game based on the second series was released. Entitled Leonardo, the game allows players to defeat the villain Il Drago who has stolen Leonardo's inventions. The game was nominated for a 2013 KidScreen Award for Best Companion Website.