When the intergalactic puppet series Interster bursts onto our screens on Tuesday, it will wear its “made in South Africa” label proudly, because the series is generally regarded as being the most sophisticated of its kind in the world. It even outstrips the spectacular Thunderbirds, screened here as Redding Internasionaal. And that’s not just talk…the Thunderbirds producers, who saw an advance screening of Interster at the recent Cannes TV Festival, say so!

It’s not Interster’s futuristic storyline–the good people of Earth versus the bad people of an evil planet–that makes it superior to other series in its genre. “It’s the front and back projection photography techniques we developed in our Cape Town studios, our outstanding miniature sets–everything from a space-age Cape Town to a giant mother ship hovering among the stars–and especially our unusual electronic puppets,” says the producer, Dirk de Villiers.

The puppets really are unusual…in fact, they’re almost alive. They’re mini robots, little “living” computers. Even their skins glow like a human being’s.

Each puppet is a masterpiece of electronics. Under its lifelike exterior is an intricate network of wiring controlled by a computer. Every movement the puppet makes is rehearsed and fed into the computer, which then controls it when it’s before the camera. The Redding Internasionaal puppets were manipulated by hand.

The “skin” covering the puppets’ bodies took two years to perfect, and the producers aren’t giving away any secrets about it beyond saying that it was created from a formula containing rubber and silicon.

The combined expertise of puppet-maker Bernard Myburgh, architect Jan Correwijn and electronics engineer Colin Buckland was used to create the puppets, the men often working 15 hours a day, seven days a week to perfect the mini robots.

And the cost?

“Between R5 000 and R7 000 a puppet,” says Dirk de Villiers, “depending on its size and capabilities.”

Interster is set in the year 2500, a time when Earth is engrossed in a bitter intergalactic struggle against the inhabitants of the hostile planet Krokon, whose evil ruler, Prince Karnati, aided and abetted by the treacherous Dr Gorman, is intent on taking over Earth.

Instrumental in repulsing the Krokon attacks is a front organisation for the Earth forces, the Inter Star Freight Company. This organisation is being used because the struggle against the Krokons has not yet erupted into open and declared warfare.

Head of Inter Star is Professor Z, a gruff man who hides his affection for his personnel. His top spacecraft crew consists of Captain Buks de la Rey and Lieutenant Adam Buys, two debonair young men who are assisted by a robot named Pikkie. Pikkie is extremely proud of his status as the most advanced robot yet developed.

A beautiful blonde, Lida de Villiers, runs the control room from her desk at Inter Star headquarters in a very futuristic Cape Town.

The battle between the Earth and Krokon isn’t all Interster offers. Says Dirk de Villiers: "Time, light, nuclear physics, anti-matter and history…Einstein’s vast contribution to science forms the basis of some of the storylines. In others, the latest theories about the nature of space phenomena have been incorporated, giving topical interest and educational value to the series.

Though it’s aimed at the younger viewer, Dirk is confident that Interster’s exceptionally high quality will make it appealing to people of all ages.