After more than 30 years, the cult goblin Pumuckl will soon return to television with new stories – and is thus following in big footsteps. “At the beginning it was too delicate for me,” said director Marcus H. Rosenmüller at the premiere of the series in Munich.
The original was “so great, with Gustl Bayrhammer, with Hans Clarin – we don’t need to do that again,” he thought. He was then convinced by the “great stories” and that the new edition should be a “great bow to the old series”. “Pumuckl’s energy jumped over to us.”
In 13 episodes of “New Stories from Pumuckl”, the little goblin with the red hair does his practical jokes again – this time with Master Eder’s nephew, Florian Eder (Florian Brückner), who takes over his uncle’s old carpentry workshop. Pumuckl is played by Maximilian Schafroth – the voice and acting of the Bavarian cabaret artist serve as a template for the animation.
Viewers can choose Pumuckl’s voice
“I think everyone has a little Pumuckl in them and I have a job in which I was allowed to keep this inner Pumuckl,” said Schafroth of the German Press Agency. After all, political cabaret is also a form of teasing. “In addition, I spent most of my childhood in the Allgäu in the workshop at my parents’ farm. So I know what a sublime joy it can be to hide tools.”
With the streaming service RTL, viewers will have the choice at the end of the year whether they want to experience Pumuckl with the new voice of Schafroth or with the unmistakable original voice of the former speaker Hans Clarin.
With the help of artificial intelligence, Schafroth’s voice is converted into that of Clarin, who died in 2005. “I admire Hans Clarin very much, he gave Pumuckl this unique soul and this rebellious, loving character,” said Schafroth. He incorporated Clarin’s work into his game.
Brückner: “It’s a great responsibility to follow in these footsteps”
In his role as Eder’s nephew, Brückner was also inspired by Gustl Bayrhammer, who played the master carpenter in the original TV series. “I at least tried to create similar moments in which you can feel the familiarity between Pumuckl and Eder,” said Brückner. “And the calm that Gustl Bayrhammer always radiates, despite all the shenanigans, I have always taken as a role model.”
The original “Meister Eder and his Pumuckl” based on the books by Ellis Kaut had conquered children’s hearts from 1982 onwards. Brückner grew up with the cult series and still loves it today, the actor explained. “It is of course a great responsibility to follow in these footsteps. But the original remains untouched, the story is only told further.”
In addition to Schafroth and Brückner, Ilse Neubauer, Katharina Thalbach and Milan Peschel also play in the new edition. The episodes can be seen on RTL, RTL and SUPER RTL at the end of 2023.
