The Inspiration
Bernadine, a filmmaker with a passion for social good, created this film after completing a journey across her homeland of New Mexico, listening to storytelling from elders in the indigenous Pueblo, Hispano, and Diné/Navajo communities.
This life-changing experience not only reconnected Bernadine to her history, it convinced her of the power of ancient legends and stories in creating a better future.
From this, Wolf Dog Tales was born.
The Film
Wolf Dog Tales is an animated film inspired by ancient stories from New Mexico of what animals teach us about respecting life and the earth.
The film has been celebrated at top festivals and organizations around the world, ranging from the United Nations to Comic Con International, San Diego (Winner, Best Animated Film).
More importantly, countless people of all ages and backgrounds have shared how the film has positively touched their lives.
The Animation
An original animation technique called "faux sand painting animation™" was created for Wolf Dog Tales by the film's animator, Igor. Igor used a variety of innovative approaches, including stop motion sand animation, sand painting animation, and wind erosion animation.
You can learn more about faux sand painting animation™ here.
The Artists
Bernadine - Director
Bernadine was born and raised in northern New Mexico where her family has lived for over 400 years. The unique blend of her Native American and indigenous Spanish cultures is part of the inspiration for Wolf Dog Tales. Prior to becoming a filmmaker, Bernadine worked in venture capital. She studied engineering at Stanford and finance at the Wharton School of Business.
Igor - Animator & Designer
Igor is an Emmy Award winning animator/designer classically trained at Zagreb Film school of animation. He has developed a variety of leading-edge animation projects that have been honored across the globe and at acclaimed venues that include the World Economic Forum at Davos.
Robert Mirabal - Music
Robert is a 2-time Grammy Award winning Native American artist residing on the sacred mountain of Taos Pueblo in New Mexico. He can be found performing around the world in venues such as New York's Lincoln Center and Washington's Smithsonian.
Larry Fessenden - WolfDog Voice
Larry is an icon in the New York independent film community. An award-winning writer, director and producer of numerous films, Larry is also a talented, sought-after actor, working with directors such as Martin Scorsese and Jim Jarmusch.
WolfDog World
As Wolf Dog Tales made its way around the world, numerous requests were made to purchase items related to the film. It seemed people wanted to hold these images and positive messages close to them.
After much listening, we created WolfDog World.