On the set of Sesame Tree, the Northern Ireland version of Sesame Street which began filming this week, there is as much a sense of excitement as there is industry.

Film sets are normally cramped, slightly fraught, places with lots of panicked people scampering about.

But here everyone seems to have a smile on their face and a sense of wonder in their eyes.

It's oddly magical, and the sharpened sense of Ulster cynicism you tend to bring to such things melts away when the puppets – or, more accurately, Muppets – are in action.

Perhaps because of the mood on set, though more probably because it's all being done so well, there's no need to suspend disbelief.
Potto and Hilda are very much real.

As are the supporting characters: the Bookworms, two helpful and friendly worm-Muppets who live among Potto's books; Claribelle, a bright bird and lovable, eccentric character who occasionally visits the tree, and the three Weatherberries who hang together in a bunch.
It's hard not to feel a sense of child-like awe about the whole thing.
"I could never have imagined there would be so much public interest," Sesame Tree's executive producer Colin Williams said, "it's been huge."
The idea of a Northern Ireland Sesame Street had been doing the rounds for a few years, but it was only when the Sesame Workshop invited companies to pitch for the show earlier this year that things began to move.

Local production team Sixteen South were selected, with their idea for Sesame Tree.

Once news of the series broke there was, almost inevitably, a lot of speculation about the idea of Northern Ireland Muppets.

"It was hard," Colin said.

There were jokes in the media about which of the characters would be Catholic and which Protestant.

"People are waiting to make all sorts of political assumptions but it's not about that.

"It's aimed at three to six-year-olds – a new generation. Stuff in the past is in the past and this is moving forward."

While the show will reflect Northern Irish society, it won't do it in an overtly political or divisive way.

More so, it is setting out to address children's curiosity about the world around them.

"There is a beautiful film featuring a young lad and his older brother, who's teaching him how to play the drum and showing him how he puts his uniform on.

"It's a film about first experiences and a film about music.

"Yes, it has a band, who happen to lead an Orange parade, but it's not about the Orange Order."

Colin added: "I feel proud that we've been able to tell the stories for what they are.

"They're the things that we want to teach, not 'here's green' or 'here's orange'."

Other shows in the 20-part series will feature everything from making soda bread, to cutting turf to language.

The idea of contentious characters, and challenging storylines, is not new in Sesame Street.

Though nothing in Northern Ireland could be quite so controversial as the HIV-positive character in South Africa, or the ambitious female Muppet in Egypt.

"I think it's hard for us to understand things like that as part of a children's programme," Colin said.

But he added that this was the reason for allowing countries to produce their own versions of the show, which will, in turn, reflect individual attitudes.

"In Kosovo they're targeting issues that are relevant there, in the same way in our own production we're talking about caring for each other and sharing," he said.

And it's the same in Northern Ireland: "We're covering all aspects of local life and local culture, but we're doing it through the eyes of three to six- year-olds."

Sesame Tree is an Ulster production – written and produced here using homegrown talent. This means that Potto, Hilda and those around them speak in Northern Irish accents, and use terms which will be familiar to Ulster audiences.

It's clear how apparent this is when the cameras start rolling.

As Potto and Hilda continue to talk about language – I'd tell you what they said but it would probably give away a major plot point – what comes across is a show that understands its audience rather than talks down to them.

In a scene that is carefully and confidently done, it brings a wonderful simplicity to the issue of languages here.

Colin admits there have been plenty of moments where the hairs on the back of his neck have stood on end.

The day the puppets arrived in Northern Ireland, seeing the set for the first time and seeing the characters coming to life were all "wow moments".

And he has had plenty of his own childhood memories evoked during the production process.
"We have inserts from the Sesame archive in each show and, when we sat down to think about what clips we would use, we could all remember our favourites.

"Things like Rubber Duckie and the '1-2-3-4-5' pinball machine sequences stay with you after more than 20 years and that's amazing."

And he said that if this show has the same impact he'll be delighted.

"We're hoping, in 30 years' time, that viewers will be able to remember Sesame Tree like that."

Sesame Tree will be shown on the BBC next spring.

The World According To Sesame Street, a documentary which looks at the phenomenon of the programme across the globe, will be screened at the QFT at 4pm on November 28 as part of the Cinemagic Festival.