Who we are, and what we’re about:
‘Small Things – Big Alberta!’ Is a locally made children’s show about art and nature. It’s all made and produced right here in Edmonton Alberta. Alice and her team know how important it is to engage with both kids and adults in a fun and light hearted way.
The team consists of Alice who is the host and one of the producers, Matt who is a producer, the man behind the camera and the head editor, and Dale who is our main puppeteer and cultural advisor. We may have a small team but everyone is really enthusiastic about educating the public about the many wonderful things we have here in Alberta.
The main focus of the show is to focus on the little things in big Alberta. Wether it’s finding a ladybug on a nature walk in the Edmonton River Valley, or exploring our heritage and history at Fort Edmonton or Kootenai Brown Pioneer Village. We want to get the younger generation excited about nature and the world around them!
Alice also hosts a crafting segment at the end of each episode so everyone can get creative and make cute things at home.
Meet all of your favourite characters!
Alice - the host
Meet Alice, she is the host for Small Things Big Alberta!
Alice has been fascinated with both the natural world and Art from a young age. She enjoys bug hunting, playing video games and has been a cosplayer for many years. She often helps judge the children’s cosplay contests at various comic expos.
She is working on her industrial art and design degree at the university of Alberta.
When she’s at home she likes to spend her time playing video games or drawing on her tablet.
Maskwa the bear
It’s Maskwa the bear! The name Maskwa means ‘Bear’ in the Cree language.
He is a Black Bear Spirit that accompanies Alice on her many adventures through Big Alberta!
Like most bears that call Alberta home when Maskwa isn’t out and about with Alice he calls the forests his home.
During the long winter months he hibernates in his den awaiting the return of spring and warm days in the sun.
Maskwa is a Folkmanis puppet played by Dale Alexis
Gerald the moose
Gerald the moose is always inviting himself on the adventures of Alice and Maskwa. He just loves to sing and play and is the most light hearted of the animal friends that Alice has made.
Singing is his favourite activity and he hopes to one day be able to sing just like the birds all around him. In the mean time he happily writes songs for Alice and Maskwa on their adventures in Big Alberta.
Like Maskwa, Gerald is a moose spirit and also calls the forests of Alberta his home.
Matt Alden Dykes is the puppeteer for Gerald and was made by Folkmanis
Squidgell the squirrel
Squidgell the squirrel is our camera squirrel! He’s the main director of photography for the show.
Squidgell is comfortable both behind the camera and also in front. But his main passion is film making. And as such he just loves taking the camera out and recording the adventures of Alice and Maskwa the bear.
Squidgell is named after what Alice used to think squirrels were called when she was 4 years old.
Squidgell the Squirrel was made by Folkmanis Puppets
Dale Alexis - Puppeteer
Dale Alexis is a member of the Enoch Cree Nation, he plays many of your favourite animal characters on the show. Most notably he puppets Maskwa the bear.
Dale is really excited to bring learning and fun to Big Alberta as well as showing the younger generation some of the Enoch Cree Nation’s rich culture.
While being a bit camera shy, Dale loves engaging with people through the art of puppetry and traditional story telling. And like Alice, when he is not working he fills his time with video games and other nerdy activities!
Matt Alden - Puppeteer
Matthew Alden Dykes plays many of the fun characters on the show such as Gerald, Gary, and Kevin.
He has spent years in the film and television industry and is the main editor and is often behind the camera.
Having also worked as an improviser and in theatre Matthew has a lot of traditional story telling techniques that he applies to Big Alberta. He is so excited to be able to apply these skills to the show to make learning engaging and fun for kids.
Matthew is a huge fan of comic books and has cosplayed with Alice at various conventions, and has also helped judge the children’s cosplay contests and the Edmonton Expo.
Kevin the grasshopper
Kevin may be small, but that doesn’t stop him from day to day tasks. He is super fast and can jump really high.
He often shows up to help Alice on her adventures, using his athletic abilities to help wherever he can!
Grasshoppers like Kevin have special eyes that allow them to see in all directions at once. They also have long hind legs that they use for jumping.
Another fun fact about grasshoppers is that their ears are located on the first segment of the abdomen! Imagine having ears on your stomach.
Kevin the grasshopper is a Folkmanis Puppet
Dee Dee the chickadee
Dee Dee is responsible for all of those amazing aerial shots in Big Alberta. Because Dee Dee is a bird she can fly high in the sky and get a ‘birds eye view’ of all the beautiful sights of Alberta.
Like Dale, Dee Dee is camera shy and prefers to stay behind the camera rather than in front. Regardless she is an essential part of the team of Big Alberta and is able to capture amazing footage from the air!
Dee Dee is a Black-capped chickadee, and like Squidgell the Squirrel Black-capped chickadees are known to hide seeds and other food to eat later.
Dee Dee is made by Folkmanis Puppets
Gary the snail
Gary the snail is a Gastropod, which means ‘stomach foot’. He, like other snails and slugs, only has one foot to get around on. Because of this Gary isn’t the fastest of Alice’s animal friends, but he still tries to help everyone whenever he can. He just has to take his time.
Gary is a Cornu aspersum, also known as a ‘garden snail’. He lives on land and is actually nocturnal and is primarily a herbivore. That means he mostly comes out at night, and he mainly eats plants.
As for Gary’s speed, he has a top speed of 1.3 centimetres per second, or 47 meters per hour. As you can imagine it does take him a while to get where he’s going!
Gary the snail is made by Folkmanis Puppets