sa国际传媒官网网页入口

Dorothea Gillim knows the importance of culture.

It鈥檚 why she wanted to produce the series, 鈥淎merica鈥檚 Awesome Kids.鈥�

鈥淲e were looking for ways to kind of celebrate America鈥檚 250th experience or birthday,鈥� Gillim says. 鈥淲e were thinking about how to do it in a way that would really connect and resonate with kids. We wanted to approach it from a kid鈥檚 perspective. We had done a series of shorts for 鈥楳olly of Denali鈥� called 鈥楢wesome Alaskan Kids鈥� shorts, where we basically profiled kids and we thought, 鈥楬ey, we could really build on the success of that.鈥欌��

According to PBS, 鈥淎merica鈥檚 Awesome Kids鈥� is a series of 25 live-action shorts. Produced in coordination with 23 PBS stations across the country, the series of mini-docs showcases kids from coast-to-coast, revealing what is special about where they live, their hobbies and passions, and how they are making a positive impact in their communities.

Viewers can stream 鈥淎merica鈥檚 Awesome Kids鈥� for free on the PBS KIDS Video App, the PBS KIDS website, and the 鈥淎merica鈥檚 Awesome Kids鈥� YouTube channel.

New Mexico is represented by 10-year-old Faith, who lives in the South Valley.

Faith gives viewers a glimpse into what she loves about sa国际传媒官网网页入口. In the segment, she showcases D铆a de los Muertos activities in Old Town, as well as the burning of El Kookooee in the South Valley.

Her hobbies include riding bikes, drawing and sketching and listening to music.

鈥淚 like to play my guitar,鈥� Faith says. 鈥淚鈥檓 a big foodie and I love to bake and cook. I also like going to the Rio Grande.鈥�

Faith is also a part of the lowrider culture. She and her brother have their own lowrider bicycles. Hers is named 鈥淐ielito Lindo.鈥� Faith鈥檚 parents, Pablo and Cristol, admit that they can鈥檛 keep up with Faith鈥檚 interests and activities, but encourage her to keep reaching for the stars.

Her parents say filming for the segment took about a week and they filmed across sa国际传媒官网网页入口 including at an acequia and at her elementary school.

鈥淚t was very exciting,鈥� Faith says of the production. 鈥淚t is my dream to be on TV. I was nominated by my teachers for this and they helped make this happen. I admit, it was very nerve wracking and very exciting to be in front of the camera.鈥�

Pablo says it was a new experience for Faith to be with a professional crew.

鈥淲e take family videos and stuff but this was big time,鈥� Pablo says. 鈥淗opefully, Faith鈥檚 story will help spread the word about how great it is to live in sa国际传媒官网网页入口.鈥�

Cristol hopes the audience notices that although each child comes from a different background, they are very similar.

鈥淚t鈥檚 interesting to see how everyone lives,鈥� Cristol says. 鈥淢aybe someone will see the piece on Faith and come visit New Mexico and learn about a different culture. We have so many cultures here that it鈥檚 unique.鈥�

Gillim says it was important to showcase how amazing the children are.

鈥淭hat was our goal, you know the old adage, mirrors and windows,鈥� Gillim says. 鈥淲e wanted for children to be able to see themselves reflected on screen, particularly those who are underrepresented. It also gives other kids a window into different experiences, different customs, cultures and hopefully gain sort of a new appreciation and understanding of the world.鈥�

Adrian Gomez is a freelance writer for the sa国际传媒官网网页入口. He works for the New Mexico Film Office, focusing on industry research.