This summer, in partnership with PBS Kids, Grammy Award-winning Americana adventurers The Okee Dokee Brothers present Brambletown, an animated musical film based on their 2023 album of the same name. Premiering on July 26, the film follows Fox and Badger, old friends who carry lessons in friendship, growth, and community.
Brambletown explores connection and belonging – within ourselves, with each other, and with nature. The story follows Fox and Badger, two lifelong friends returning to their childhood home of Brambletown, only to find that things have changed. As they grow apart, experience new hurts, and navigate major disruptions in their forest community, Fox and Badger learn that even in the darkest moments, they still have the power to heal.
The film conveys the core message that taking care of ourselves and our relationships is part of taking care of the world. Through its music and story, Brambletown provides children and grown-ups a safe on-ramp for talking (and singing) about some of life's toughest challenges with hope, honesty, and optimism. Themes and universal messages in the film include environmental concerns, interconnection, and the wisdom of plants and animals. Brambletown provides an honest look at life’s challenges through lightheartedness and optimism, aiming to inspire a sense of gratefulness, humility, wonder, and respect for the life forces that connect all things.
Animator Eric Power created the 35-minute film using a unique handmade construction paper style stop-motion animation. The Okee Dokee Brothers’ trusted melodies and unfussy lyrics provide the soundtrack through the woods of Brambletown. The music draws heavily from the sounds and instrumentation of traditional folk songs that have been passed down for generations. Families will hear blends of banjo, trombone, harmonica, cello, pedal steel, accordion, and more echoing throughout the forest.
ABOUT THE OKEE DOKEE BROTHERS
As childhood friends growing up in Denver, Colorado, Joe Mailander and Justin Lansing were always exploring the outdoors. Whether it was rafting down their neighborhood creek or discovering hiking trails through the Rocky Mountains, Joe and Justin were born adventurers. Now, as the GRAMMY® Award-winning Okee Dokee Brothers, they have put this passion for the outdoors at the heart of their Americana Folk music. Joe and Justin record and perform family music hoping to inspire children and their parents to step outside and get creative. They believe this can motivate kids to gain a greater respect for the natural world, their communities, and themselves. The five-time Parents’ Choice Award winners have garnered praise from the likes of NPR’s All Things Considered and USA Today, and have been called “two of family music’s best songwriters.”
