TORONTO – Bell Media’s Crave announced today production is underway on Little Bird, a co-production with APTN and a Crave Original drama series produced by Rezolution Pictures and OP Little Bird with participation from the Canada Media Fund and Manitoba Film and Music.
Little Bird is a six-part limited drama series, which “follows an Indigenous woman on a journey to find her birth family, and uncover the hidden truth of her past,” a press release explains.
It is being filmed in and around Winnipeg on Treaty 1 territory and the traditional territory of Anishinaabeg, Cree, Oji-Cree, Dakota, Dene, and Métis people.
“The character-driven drama features an extraordinary cast of Indigenous actors, led by newcomer Darla Contois (Dhaliwal ’15) along with: Ellyn Jade (Letterkenny); Osawa Muskwa (World Ends at Camp Z); Joshua Odjick (The Swarm); Imajyn Cardinal (Tribal); Mathew Strongeagle (Blackstone); Eric Schweig (Blackstone); and Michelle Thrush (Bones of Crows),” says the release.
“Removed from her home in Long Pine Reserve in Saskatchewan, Bezhig Little Bird is adopted into a Montréal Jewish family at the age of five, becoming Esther Rosenblum (Contois). Now in her 20s, Bezhig longs for the family she lost and is willing to sacrifice everything to find them. Her quest lands her in the Canadian prairies, worlds apart from everything she knows. As she begins to track down her siblings, she unravels the mystery behind her adoption, and discovers that her apprehension was connected to a racist government policy now known as the Sixties Scoop. Bezhig’s sense of identity shatters and she is forced to reckon with who she is and who she wants to become,” the release explains.
Little Bird will be available in both English and French. International distribution will be handled by Fremantle.
Production has begun “with a newly developed training program that aims to build capacity and sustainability in the Indigenous screen sector,” the press release says. The training program was made possible through partnerships with the Indigenous Screen Office, Bell Media, REEL Canada, DGC, DGC Manitoba and IATSE 856.
Little Bird was created by showrunner Jennifer Podemski (above, left; Unsettled), and head writer Hannah Moscovitch (second from left; X Company). Elle-Máijá Tailfeathers (centre; The Body Remembers When the World Broke Open) and Zoe Hopkins (second from right; Run Woman Run) each directed three episodes, and Hopkins wrote three episodes.
Jeremy Podeswa (right) is an executive producer on the series, along with Ernest Webb, Catherine Bainbridge, Christina Fon, Linda Ludwick (Rezolution Pictures), Kim Todd, Nicholas Hirst (Original Pictures) Podemski, Moscovitch, and Christian Vesper and Dante Di Loreto (Fremantle).
Tanya Brunel and Jessica Dunn (OP Little Bird), Philippe Chabot (Rezolution Pictures) and Ellen Rutter are series producers. Adam Garnet Jones and Sylvain Lévesque from APTN are production executives for the series.
“I’m very proud to be working alongside visionaries like Elle-Máijá Tailfeathers and Zoe Hopkins, and a creative partner like Hannah Moscovitch, whose allyship is brilliant and remarkable,” said Podemski, in the press release.
“I’m also incredibly honoured to tell this story with an outstanding group of actors. We all take the responsibility very seriously, and acknowledge that the power and triumph of this project lies in the reclamation of Indigenous narratives and perspectives.”
“APTN is proud to present Little Bird, a compelling series that explores the far-reaching impact of the child welfare system on Indigenous families,” said Adam Garnet Jones, APTN’s director of TV content and special events. “The story is told by some of the brightest talents in Indigenous storytelling and provides audiences with the opportunity to reflect and have meaningful conversations about reconciliation.”
“Crave is committed to telling compelling stories that resonate with all Canadians, and Little Bird is a powerful story that must be told,” said Justin Stockman, vice-president of content development and programming at Bell Media. “We are honoured to collaborate with our partners at Rezolution, APTN, and OP Little Bird to share Little Bird with Crave audiences.”
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Photos supplied by Bell Media.
