Lockdown (2020 TV series)

Lockdown (also stylized as Lockdown: The Scream Next Door and Lockdown: Who Is Question Mark Face?) is a Canadian-American children's and teen web television series produced by Sinking Ship Entertainment and commissioned and distributed by YouTube Originals. Conceived, developed and produced in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada and the United States, the scripted live-action series follows a group of socially distanced teenagers working together to solve a mystery in their neighborhood.[1] Originally announced in April 2020,[2] the initial ten-episode series premiered on the YouTube Originals for Kids & Family channel on June 26, 2020.[3]

Lockdown
Genre	Mystery Thriller Teen drama Children's television
Created by	J.J. Johnson
Developed by	J.J. Johnson Christin Simms
Written by	J.J. Johnson Christin Simms
Directed by	J.J Johnson
Starring	Arista Ahin Saara Chaudry Amanda Cheung Dorian Giordano Edison Grant Tomaso Sanelli
Composer	Erica Procunier
Country of origin	Canada United States
Original language	English
No. of seasons	2
No. of episodes	16
Production
Executive producers	J.J Johnson Blair Powers Christin Simms Matthew J.R. Bishop Carla de Jong
Producer	Alex Grieve
Editor	Courtney Goldman
Production company	Sinking Ship Entertainment
Release
Original network	YouTube Originals
Original release	June 26, 2020

The series received a Special Achievement Award from the Prix Jeunesse International festival for excellence in COVID-19 programming, the global festival that every two years recognizes the best in children and youth television,[4] as well as the Content Innovation Award for Kids Programming.[5] The series was also recognized by the MIPCOM Diversify TV Excellence Awards,[6] while series stars Arista Arhin and Amanda Cheung were nominated by the Joey Awards for their performances.[7]

YouTube Originals announced in October 2020 that it had ordered six new episodes of Lockdown as part of its focus on racial justice programming.[8] The new season, titled Lockdown: Who Is Question Mark Face? premiered on the YouTube Originals for Kids & Family channel on November 19, 2020.[9] The first season was also picked up for second-window by WildBrain for the Family Channel in Canada.[10]

Premise

This scripted series follows six teenaged friends as they work together to solve mysteries in their neighborhood during the social distancing era. Shot entirely via webcam and smartphone from the actors’ homes and neighborhoods, the series is a suspenseful look at how young people stay in touch while having to stay away, and the story unfolds almost in real-time as the friend group works together – from a distance – to solve the mystery, while also exploring their own anxieties and frustrations about life during a pandemic.

Lockdown: The Scream Next Door

In this initial ten-episode season, which takes place during days 1 through 60 of a Covid-19 lockdown, Nira overhears what sounds like a woman's scream one night from her neighbor's house. As she enlists the help of her friends Aiden, Chris, Emi and Sam - along with Emi's crush Luke, who lives on the other side of Nira's neighbor - new suspicious events, including late night digging and creepy notes - thicken the plot. As they work together remotely and use technological tools to solve the mystery, they also support each other emotionally through the pandemic and the experience of being in quarantine. Storylines include Luke's grandmother at risk for Covid-19 in her retirement community, Sam's nurse father quarantining away from the family, Emi being verbally attacked for her Asian ethnicity, Aiden's and Sam's efforts in the online video game Bielzemor, a love triangle and bourgeoning romantic feelings between Luke and Nira as well as between Emi and Chris.[11]

Lockdown: Who Is Question Mark Face?

In the six-episode second season that takes place days 61 through 120 of lockdown, the six teens reckon with a growing racial justice movement following the deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery and others. After Sam organizes a local Black Lives Matter march, Chris' family's restaurant - which had been preemptively boarded up ahead of Sam's community march - is vandalized with graffiti. A masked figure calling themselves Question Mark Face releases a video on social media claiming responsibility for the attack and promises for future attacks, while local real estate agent Mary Lewis blames Sam for the tagging. As Question Mark Face continues to target local businesses, the six teens work together to investigate the perpetrator's identity and motive. Throughout the season, the show explores how each of the main characters are responding to the George Floyd protests and Black Lives Matter movement, including Sam's growing social activism, Chris' focus on allyship, and Emi's use of fashion to make her voice heard. Additional storylines include Sam's crush on fellow gamer Harley, the socioeconomic impact of the lockdowns on families, and the differing philosophies on how to make a difference between Sam, her friends and her cousin Asha.[12]

Cast and characters

Main cast

• Saara Chaudry as Nira
• Arista Arhin as Sam
• Amanda Cheung as Emi
• Dorian Giordano as Aiden
• Edison Grant as Luke
• Tomaso Sanelli as Chris

Supporting cast

• Jackie Richardson as Luke's Grandma (seasons 1-2)
• Ayesha Mansur Gonsalves as Aunt Raina (seasons 1-2)
• Michael Brown as Sam's Dad (seasons 1-2)
• Jayne Eastwood as Mrs. Eastwood (seasons 1-2)
• Emaan Chaudry as Kumari (season 1)
• Sean Patrick Dolan as Jeremy (season 2)
• Katie Griffin as Mary Lewis (season 2)
• Kiki Hamill as Asha (season 2)
• Andrew Jackson as Bernard (season 2)
• Lex Mayson as Harley (season 2)

Episodes

Season		Episodes		Originally released
				First released	Last released
	1	10		June 26, 2020	July 14, 2020
	2	6		November 19, 2020

Season 1: The Scream Next Door (2020)

No. overall	No. in season	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original release date [13]
1	1	"Neighbor Watching"	TBA	TBA	June 26, 2020
2	2	"Walk-By"	TBA	TBA	June 26, 2020
3	3	"Stake Outing"	TBA	TBA	June 26, 2020
4	4	"Bad Connection"	TBA	TBA	June 26, 2020
5	5	"Unfriended"	TBA	TBA	June 26, 2020
6	6	"If The Shoe Fits"	TBA	TBA	June 26, 2020
7	7	"Relationship Status"	TBA	TBA	July 2, 2020
8	8	"Angry Face"	TBA	TBA	July 7, 2020
9	9	"Social Togetherness"	TBA	TBA	July 8, 2020
10	10	"Killer Instinct"	TBA	TBA	July 14, 2020

Season 2: Who Is Question Mark Face? (2020)

No. overall	No. in season	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original release date [13]
11	1	"The Confession"	TBA	TBA	November 19, 2020
12	2	"Guilty Until Proven Innocent"	TBA	TBA	November 19, 2020
13	3	"Best Intentions"	TBA	TBA	November 19, 2020
14	4	"The Sting"	TBA	TBA	November 19, 2020
15	5	"Ticking Clock"	TBA	TBA	November 19, 2020
16	6	"Questions Answered"	TBA	TBA	November 19, 2020

Reception

Common Sense Media awarded Lockdown for its Common Sense Selection for Families seal, calling it a "enjoyable, fresh series adapts a traditional whodunnit story to the 2020-era pandemic experience of being homebound for weeks on end" that "doubles as a modern spin on Rear Window-style suspense and a more realistic, revealing glimpse into the teens' psyche during a period of compulsory quarantine."[14] Cablefax also praised the series, noting "it's not difficult to see why this series...has garnered awards for youth programming" and "it’s not an easy assignment for the mostly teen cast of “Lockdown” to create art on a small screen, but they do it well," while commending its inclusion of timely issues, including the Black Lives Matter movement and the LGBTQ+ experience.[15]

Accolades

Year	Award	Category	Recipient(s)	Result
2020	Prix Jeunesse International	Special Achievement Prize (for excellence in Covid-19 programming)	Lockdown	Won
	MIPCOM Diversify TV Excellence Awards	Representation of Diversity - Kids Programming	Lockdown	Nominated
	Content Innovation Awards	Innovation & Ingenuity Award - Kids Programming	Lockdown	Won
	Joey Awards	Best Actress in a Webseries 12-15 Years	Amanda Cheung	Nominated
			Arista Arhin	Nominated

References

1. "YouTube rolls out first content fund series". Retrieved 2020-07-02.
2. White, Peter (2020-04-22). "YouTube Originals Launches COVID-19 Slate With Stars Including Karlie Kloss, Ken Jeong, Yungblud & Joseph Gordon-Levitt". Deadline. Retrieved 2020-07-02.
3. "YouTube". www.youtube.com. Retrieved 2020-07-02.
4. "PRIX JEUNESSE INTERNATIONAL 2020". Prix Jeunesse. Retrieved 2020-07-02.
5. Ago, 1 Hour (2020-12-03). "TBI's Content Innovation Awards 2020 – The Winners!". TBI Vision. Retrieved 2020-12-03.
6. "Mipcom - Diversity & Inclusion in the entertainment industry". www.mipcom.com. Retrieved 2020-11-23.
7. "2020 NOMINATIONS". www.joeyawards.com. Retrieved 2020-11-23.
8. "YouTube Sets Originals Slate Focused on Black Voices, Racial Justice After Establishing $100M Creator Fund". Retrieved 2020-10-07.
9. "YouTube Originals Premieres Next Installment of Teen Mystery Series "Lockdown" With 6 New Episodes". Retrieved 2020-11-20.
10. July 3, Jordan Pinto; 2020. "Family Channel acquires Sinking Ship's Lockdown". Retrieved 2020-11-23.CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
11. "Lockdown - YouTube". www.youtube.com. Retrieved 2020-11-23.
12. "YouTube Originals Premieres Next Installment of Teen Mystery Series "Lockdown" With 6 New Episodes". The Hype Magazine. Retrieved 2020-11-23.
13. "Lockdown – Listings". The Futon Critic. Retrieved November 26, 2020.
14. "Lockdown - TV Review". www.commonsensemedia.org. 2020-07-15. Retrieved 2020-11-23.
15. "Reviews: 'Lockdown'". Cablefax. 2020-11-19. Retrieved 2020-11-25.