The four-time Best Children’s Album Grammy-nominee and five-time Parents’ Choice Awards winners Joe Mailander and Justin Lansing, The Okee Dokee Brothers, are often referred to as two of family music’s best songwriters, given their attention to talk about nature, friendship, and a sense of community by using lyrics and Americana folk captivating rhythm.
Brambletown comes as a tender and poetic 35-minute musical animated short film based on the 2023 studio album of the same name, that follows the journey of two best friends – Fox and Badger – as they return to their home forest, after a long time away, and find that things happen to be different from what they used to remember.
Directed and animated by Eric Power by using multi-layered paper stop-motion, the visual album presents itself as an optimistic and vibrant fable of what it means to be part of a community and how taking care of ourselves and our relationships is part of taking care of the world.
However, unlike the animal fables we have been used to as kids, there is no moral in Brambletown. As Fox and Badger walk on their personal life path and discover new sides of themselves, their friendship, and the community of animals that lives around them, they will find themselves learning that even in the darkest moments they still have the power to heal.
With the Brambletown short film, The Okee Dokee Brothers aim to inspire children and families to step outside, discover the outdoors – how the little waterfall whispers, the stones sing, and the trees tell an ancient story – and explore connections. By delving into the sense of belonging – within ourselves, with each other, and with nature, children can get the message of care and respect, and not be afraid of talking (well, singing) to each other about some of the tougher moments we all face in life.
