The Tiny Chef burst onto Instagram late last year and has since has garnered a cult following. I’ve personally been unsure as to how I ended up with a puppet animation on my Insta feed, but today, I found the answer: Kristen Bell.
If you’re not already following The Tiny Chef on Instagram or YouTube, here’s the context: There are multiple creators of the online puppet personality but the most notable is animator Rachel Larsen who worked on Coraline and Isle of Dogs.
Basically, the account features a green, five-inch-tall “chef” with a cute little head, round belly and a stripy apron. The short videos are usually of the puppet running around his house (which is, adorably, a tree stump) while he sings in gibberish and cooks tiny food. It’s completely random, I know.
The page probably kicked-off with a humble following. I imagine puppets are usually not super popular amongst an adult audience. However, the account’s following has since exploded, currently sitting at 404K.
Part of this, I’m sure, can be attributed to the fact that Kristen Bell became a huge fan and started promoting the puppet’s online adventures. But there’s more to it than that. Kristen Bell is extremely likeable. She recently revealed the reason why she celebrates her partner’s sober anniversary every year and it was wholesome, to say the least, but she isn’t the sole reason for the account’s success. There’s something about The Tiny Chef that just warms-up the internet. It’s truly the most refreshing “famous” account on the gram.
There’s something inherently likeable about an old school puppet animation – it definitely conjures up the childhood mems. Kids’ shows these days have incredible high-end production values and complex storylines, but The Tiny Chef takes us back to the likes of Paddington Bear and Wallace and Grommet. The videos often feature the puppet cutting up vegetables in his kitchen while singing smash pop hits. It’s relatable and adorable all at the same time.
His rendition of Lorde’s ‘Royals’ was completely moving:
It’s just so no-frills and makes for the perfect wholesome meme to send to your mates. The fan engagement is through the roof, too.
Bell has since developed a partnership with the creators of the Tiny Chef and so has American film and television production company, Imagine Kids & Family. It’s not hard to see why.
In a sea of influencers, hot celebs and fitspo accounts this puppet personality offers some lightheartedness.