A new children鈥檚 show featuring one of Nunavut's most well-known entertainers is on the air.
Nunami Piqatigiit/Tundra Friends, an animated series produced by Inhabit Media, follows a group of Arctic animals as they learn and grow together. It premiered on APTN in January and each episode sees Arviat's Susan Aglukark with her pet fish, Lloyd, telling playful stories in Inuktut and English. It's designed to introduce children across Canada to 黑料吃瓜网 life and culture with themes include sharing, friendship, cooperation, and health while simultaneously helping to develop language acquisition skills in Inuktut.
鈥淭he stories are carefully built around an emotional theme and teaches children how to cope with difficult situations and emotions,鈥� according to the show's description. 鈥淭his distinctly 黑料吃瓜网 series showcases talent from all over Nunavut and introduces 黑料吃瓜网 culture to children across Canada.鈥�
黑料吃瓜网 had the chance to speak with Aglukark and she talked about how her career in music determined the direction of the show.
鈥淚 didn't realize until I was in the company of artists that I had this [trauma] that I was working through,鈥� she said. 鈥淏ecause I was safe there emotionally, I could explore it. And in the exploring of that is little bits and pieces of this puzzle (and) stuff starts to fall into place. And that's coming to realize these pieces are missing. There's that emotional intelligence piece that falls into place, and in that way, music has played a big role for me.鈥�
Aglukark said when the invitation came to be a part of the show, she didn't hesitate.
鈥淲hatever I can contribute, I will,鈥� she said. 鈥淎nd it's been an incredible experience because the first series of recordings, those translations are powerful translations. There's just this incredible relationship between myself and the translators. I learned myself, and in the learning of the language is a powerful connection to my culture. I am fluent in Inuktitut, but this is a next level of work these translators do, and it's such a privilege to be a member of that team.鈥�
Aglukark added that she's very grateful to Inhabit Media's team, saying she expressed some initial hesitancy about her role in the project and giving it a try before committing as she wasn't sure she would best fill the role.
鈥淭hey gave me the space and time to explore,鈥� she said. 鈥淭hey were very patient with me, and I am very grateful for that.鈥�
The first season of the show has 13 episodes with new episodes every Sunday broadcast twice at 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. EST. The series is also available to stream through Apple TV.
