{"id":18064,"date":"2022-05-11T08:50:32","date_gmt":"2022-05-11T12:50:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dev2.worldscreen.com\/tvreal\/worldscreen.com\/"},"modified":"2022-05-12T12:34:30","modified_gmt":"2022-05-12T16:34:30","slug":"wapanatahk-medias-dr-savannah-delivers-on-its-inclusive-mission","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvreal\/wapanatahk-medias-dr-savannah-delivers-on-its-inclusive-mission\/","title":{"rendered":"Wapanatahk Media\u2019s Dr. Savannah Delivers on Its Inclusive Mission"},"content":{"rendered":"

Founded and run by two Indigenous women, Tania Koenig-Gauchier and Shirley McLean, Vancouver-based Wapanatahk Media was launched in partnership with Thunderbird Entertainment\u2019s Great Pacific Media in 2021. The production company\u2019s first series, Dr. Savannah: Wild Rose Vet\u00a0<\/em>follows Dr. Savannah Howse-Smith, a M\u00e9tis veterinarian based in rural Alberta. The docuseries, which bowed on APTN last week, highlights Dr. Savannah\u2019s successes and challenges, as well as her lived experience as an Indigenous woman.<\/p>\n

The idea for Dr. Savannah: Wild Rose Vet <\/em>came to Koenig-Gauchier and McLean, executive producers on the series and CEO and president of Wapanatahk Media, respectively, while brainstorming a few years ago about what they and others most wanted to see on TV, landing on people\u2019s love of their pets. In Dr. Savannah: Wild Rose Vet<\/em>, in addition to sharing veterinary tales, Wapanatahk is also telling the story of a young Indigenous woman discovering her heritage.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s common for people to feel disconnected from their families or heritage sometimes, and we think a lot of viewers will relate to this journey of self-discovery,\u201d says Koenig-Gauchier. \u201cOur identities are such a big part of who we are and how we see the world, and we are thrilled to highlight distinct M\u00e9tis culture and heritage through a common lens: a love for animals and the joy they bring to our lives!\u201d<\/p>\n

Dr. Savannah \u201cis witty, funny, personable and has such a pure love for animals,\u201d adds Koenig-Gauchier. \u201cWe have no doubt that viewers will resonate with her right away. And, as Indigenous storytellers, representation matters so much. It\u2019s incredibly important for young Indigenous people to see themselves positively reflected on-screen, and Dr. Savannah\u2019s journey will allow the next generation of Indigenous youth to see this.\u201d<\/p>\n

Centering on Dr. Savannah and telling her personal story, Dr. Savannah: Wild Rose Vet<\/em> proved an exciting and fitting first docuseries for the women behind Wapanatahk Media, for whom the production company began as a dream in their college days. \u201c\u2018Wapanatahk\u2019 in Cree means \u2018morning star,\u2019 which signifies the dawn of a new day,\u201d says McLean. \u201cIt was the perfect name because it\u2019s exactly what we want to do\u2014take amazing Indigenous characters and stories and bring them to mainstream media.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAuthentic Indigenous representation is at the heart of our mission at Wapanatahk Media,\u201d adds McLean. \u201cOur goal is to provide a platform for new Indigenous voices and highlight uplifting Indigenous stories of communities and people. Our stories don\u2019t always center around trauma; there is so much more. Indigenous people are doing extraordinary things, and we are excited to bring these positive stories to the world.\u201d<\/p>\n

Koenig-Gauchier and McLean are proud to be part of the tide turn that is resulting in more Indigenous content that brings underrepresented people and stories to viewers around the world. At Wapanatahk Media, there is also a push to hire and create opportunities for aspiring Indigenous creatives behind the scenes. For Dr. Savannah: Wild Rose Vet<\/em>\u2019s forthcoming second season, the company has seven Indigenous women\u2014in addition to Koenig-Gauchier and McLean\u2014working in editing, writing and producing roles.<\/p>\n

In terms of the industry at large, they\u2019re pleased to see such programs as the Amazon Studios-Indigenous Screen Office Pitch Program and the CFC\/Netflix Project Development Accelerator in Canada that are providing opportunities for BIPOC creators.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe hope this trend continues, and we know it starts with production companies\u2014like ours\u2014that are on a mission to highlight authentic Indigenous stories,\u201d says McLean. \u201cWe need to keep doing more as an industry to empower young Indigenous creators by creating opportunities for them to work and create and to keep this momentum going!\u201d<\/p>\n

In addition to season two of Dr. Savannah: Wild Rose Vet<\/em>, which was renewed before its season one premiere, Wapanatahk Media is working on a series with Dr. James Makokis and Anthony Johnson, the first Two-Spirit Indigenous couple to win Amazing Race Canada<\/em>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Wapanatahk Media co-founders Tania Koenig-Gauchier and Shirley McLean discuss the production company’s first docuseries, Dr. Savannah: Wild Rose Vet, and their mission to tell Indigenous stories. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1033,"featured_media":18065,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"pmpro_default_level":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[68,69],"tags":[6195,6194,6193,6192],"class_list":["post-18064","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","","category-profiles","category-top-stories","tag-dr-savannah-wild-rose-vet","tag-shirley-mclean","tag-tania-koenig-gauchier","tag-wapanatahk-media","pmpro-has-access"],"yoast_head":"\nWapanatahk Media\u2019s Dr. Savannah Delivers on Its Inclusive Mission - TVREAL<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvreal\/wapanatahk-medias-dr-savannah-delivers-on-its-inclusive-mission\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Wapanatahk Media\u2019s Dr. Savannah Delivers on Its Inclusive Mission - TVREAL\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Wapanatahk Media co-founders Tania Koenig-Gauchier and Shirley McLean discuss the production company's first docuseries, Dr. Savannah: Wild Rose Vet, and their mission to tell Indigenous stories.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvreal\/wapanatahk-medias-dr-savannah-delivers-on-its-inclusive-mission\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"TVREAL\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2022-05-11T12:50:32+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2022-05-12T16:34:30+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvreal\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/12\/2017\/07\/wapanatahk-media-dr-savannah-0522.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"600\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"401\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Chelsea Regan\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Chelsea Regan\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvreal\/wapanatahk-medias-dr-savannah-delivers-on-its-inclusive-mission\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvreal\/wapanatahk-medias-dr-savannah-delivers-on-its-inclusive-mission\/\",\"name\":\"Wapanatahk Media\u2019s Dr. Savannah Delivers on Its Inclusive Mission - TVREAL\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvreal\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2022-05-11T12:50:32+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2022-05-12T16:34:30+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvreal\/#\/schema\/person\/2a2c6d8fb3c7c8b4220b8877ecffb79a\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvreal\/wapanatahk-medias-dr-savannah-delivers-on-its-inclusive-mission\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvreal\/wapanatahk-medias-dr-savannah-delivers-on-its-inclusive-mission\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvreal\/wapanatahk-medias-dr-savannah-delivers-on-its-inclusive-mission\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvreal\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Wapanatahk Media\u2019s Dr. Savannah Delivers on Its Inclusive Mission\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvreal\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvreal\/\",\"name\":\"TVREAL\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvreal\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvreal\/#\/schema\/person\/2a2c6d8fb3c7c8b4220b8877ecffb79a\",\"name\":\"Chelsea Regan\",\"description\":\"Chelsea Regan is the managing editor of World Screen. 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