PROJECT OVERVIEW

Produced by Maiden Voyage Productions, Just Like Me, But Different targets six-to-eleven year old children. Each program will include a 30-minute documentary produced for broadcast on public or cable television, an expanded DVD with features for home and educational markets, a book, a multimedia Website, with resources and activities for children and parents, and curriculum materials for second through fifth grade classrooms.

Most kids grow up at the center of a narrow universe that includes home, family, friends, neighborhood and school. Learning about other countries becomes just another homework assignment —- rarely connected to the concept that there are real people living there, who lead lives not so very different from their own. All too often, these children grow into adults, who discover distant places only when war or disaster forces them onto the front page and the evening news. This lack of awareness can lead to intolerance and prejudice.

Skeletons and Sea Turtles: Life, Death and Buried Treasure in Oaxaca, Mexico is the story of a young boy, who transforms from potential predator to fierce protector of the sea turtles that nest on the beac near his home.

Fostering sensitivity to global cultures is essential in today's world. Recent events have dramatically demonstrated that the actions and beliefs of people in far away places can have a powerful effect close to home. And immigrants from a wider variety of regions are joining our population in greater numbers than ever before, creating unprecedented diversity in our local communities. Parks and playgrounds in cities across the United States are filled with children from everywhere. Some are recent arrivals; others were born here but still have many family members living in another country. Just Like Me, But Different will help kids gain a deeper understanding of their classmates and neighbors, who might look, talk, eat and dress a bit differently. Children who are newcomers or from minority cultures will feel more valued for the richness they add to the tapestry of our local and national communities.

Cultivating awareness of world environments is equally important. A growing number of species face extinction, the proliferation of international trade transforms foreign problems into issues of local concern, and climate change is threatening the very nature of our survival. Just Like Me, But Different inspires concern about the health of our planet, and all of its inhabitants, through real stories about children, who are taking action to protect their local wildlife and ecosystems.

To realize this ambitious vision, we are working with organizations, such as Kilimanjaro Lion Conservation Project, Sea Turtle Restoration Project, Snow Leopard Conservancy, Rainforest Alliance, Painted Dog Conservancy, Wildlife Conservation Network and the San Francsico Zoological Society. They are helping us to identify children, who are involved with their community environmental programs. We, in turn, are creating multimedia materials, which will document and support their conservation efforts, appeal to young viewers, parents and educataors, and carry a compelling message of global consciousness into homes, schools and libraries across the nation and around the world.

We are actively seeking funding for the completion of the first feature-length documentary, which will include three segments, including Living with Sea Turtles. If you are interested in supporting Maiden Voyage Productions in our effort to change the way children see the world, please contact us!