New Indigenous kids show launches on Cree language and culture

Kokum & Dot, a new eight-episode kids series celebrating Cree language and culture, launches Monday, June 15, on TELUS channels in B.C. and Alberta and on their On Demand app. The show arrives perfectly timed for National Indigenous Peoples Day on June 21 and National Indigenous History Month.

Filmed at the BOSA Centre for Film and Animation at Capilano University in North Vancouver, the series follows Kokum Dorothy—played by Cree/Anishinaabe actor and musician Renae Morriseau—as she talks with her hand-puppet friend Dot about her day, introducing Cree vocabulary and guiding principles. Ventriloquist and puppeteer Kellie Haines performs Dot.

Filmmaker April Johnson, who is Métis and Nehiyaw (Muskoday First Nation, Saskatchewan), produced and directed the show. Johnson drew inspiration from Dorothy Visser, a Cree Nation of Saddle Lake elder, after taking a Cree language class from her at the Native Education College in Vancouver during the pandemic. Johnson struggled to learn the language on her own—she cried while trying to write a book in Cree for a seminar course at the University of Victoria—but Visser's teaching method, which used songs and puppets, transformed the experience.

"It was such a good way to remember," Johnson said. "So I was like, 'OK, she's onto something here.'" Years later, Johnson brought that inspiration to screen.

The series intertwines live-action and animation with a 1990s nostalgic feel, channelling Sesame Street and Mister Rogers' Neighborhood. Many crew members behind Kokum & Dot are Indigenous and came from CapU's Indigenous Film and FILMBA programs. Morriseau, an instructor in the university's Indigenous film program, composed music for the project and shares the Cree language through song—a method that makes learning easier than isolation.

The show's teachings—love, respect, courage, honesty, wisdom, humility, and truth—are universal, Johnson said. "It's bringing up a whole new generation of Indigenous creators," she added. "The one thing that makes this show special is how many emerging and Indigenous creators are getting their first opportunity to step into the industry through this show, and the mentorship is really important to us."