They say “it takes a village to raise a child.” In keeping with our ongoing commitment to impact producing, while bringing to birth such a multifaceted ‘child’ as the Congo Tales project, we needed many allies, guides and support along the way. To uncover and develop native stories through the eyes of children deep in the rainforest, we needed a strong community of dedicated and skilled individuals. To insure the health of this child, we needed a “village.” Deborah, better known as “Tartaruga Feliz”, was a very important part of this village, playing a vital role in the development stage of our project. In the very early stages of this work’s inception, she journeyed to Congo to volunteer within and also to teach the teacher program with SPAC. By initiating creative storytelling workshops that focused on character design, she was able to tap into a remarkable reserve of creative potential within the children of Odzala. Using her advanced skills in early childhood development, the results were remarkable and became a big inspiration for the project and its creative...
