Canadian national broadcaster Aboriginal Peoples TV Network (APTN) and regional network Citytv Saskatchewan have ordered a new preschool series called Chums from a pair of Canadian studios.

Saskatoon’s Paxolotl Media and Winnipeg’s Zoot Pictures are in production on the CG-animated series, which will premiere on APTN and streamer APTN lumi in early 2024. This is Paxolotl’s first show, and Zoot’s first one for kids.

Chums revolves around a young Indigenous girl and her animal friends as they explore Turtle Island to learn more about each other and the environment. The nine x 30-minute series encourages kids to connect with nature and animals in the tradition of Indigenous cultures.

Dennis Jackson (Wapos Bay) created the series and is co-writing the scripts with his son, Eric. Dennis will direct, and Eric is producing it through his fledgling Paxolotl shingle. Zoot Pictures’ Leslea Mair (Nikola Tesla and the End of the World) is on board as an executive producer.

The studios are producing Chums in English, Cree and Ojibwe, and all above- and below-the-line talent are Indigenous. All rights for the series outside of Canada are available and Eric Jackson and Mair are in talks with a potential international distributor, according to a spokesperson.

Chums marks a reunion for APTN and the elder Jackson. APTN was the broadcaster for Jackson’s stop-motion kids series Wapos Bay (32 x 22 minutes and a 72-minute film), which ran from 2005 to 2011 and followed three kids from a Cree community learning lessons about overcoming fears, working with others and respecting traditions.

Zoot is new to kids content and has primarily produced live-action docs, such as Fall of the Maya Kings and Losing Our Religion.