The Little Bear book series, written by Else Holmelund Minarik and illustrated by Maurice Sendak, served as the inspiration for the educational children's television program Maurice Sendak's Little Bear. It is now broadcast on Treehouse TV in Canada and Nick Jr. in the US. Nelvana originally developed it for Nickelodeon. It debuted in the UK on Children's BBC and was featured in the Toy Box BBC video collection in the late 1990s. Prior to Tiny Pop, it aired on Nick Jr. UK as well. Following the conclusion of the series, a full-length direct-to-video/DVD movie was also produced.