San Diego Union-Tribune (Sunday)
NETFLIX SERIES FEATURES 11-YEAR-OLD ‘KOALA WHISPERER’
Like a lot of young people, 11-year-old Izzy Bee has a special bond with animals. Unlike a lot of young people, she shares it with one of the planet’s most cuddly — koalas.
“It’s hard to explain,” she says from her home in Australia. “When I’m with them, it’s just sort of like really calming. They sort of like understand me in a way.”
Izzy is showing that unusual bond in the new Netflix series “Izzy’s Koala World,” which follows the girl as she helps her veterinarian mom and takes care of the tree-climbing marsupials. It premieres Sept. 15.
“They all seem to gravitate towards her,” says her mom, Ali. “They’re wild animals, they’re terrified. They need that calming, gentle, quiet, loving presence.”
Izzy and her family live on Magnetic Island, which sits off the east coast of Australia and is home to hundreds of koalas. The animals rely on the eucalyptus tree for both habitat and food. They sleep for 18-22 hours a day.
When koalas on the island need help, Izzy and her family welcome them into their animal sanctuary and nurture them until they’re ready to be released back into the wild.
The series follows Izzy as she cares for a procession of koalas — Chompy, Juliet, Twinkle, Stormboy and a favorite, Leia, named after her very tufty ears, which reminded Izzy of the “Star Wars” heroine Princess Leia. When it’s time to release them, Izzy is sad but ready.
“Izzy is this Doc Mcstuffins come alive character who cares with every ounce of her body about koalas,” says Dave Glauber, the creative lead for Dodo Kids. “She will give medicine to a koala and she’ll also calm them down when they’re feeling scared.