Here Comes Mavo! Animated ASL Show Expands

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Here Comes Mavo! Animated ASL Show Expands

The first animated sign language cartoon got a donation to make more episodes. Creator Melissa Malzkuhn explains what Here Comes Mavo! is about and why it is so important.

Sorenson sat down with Melissa Malzkuhn, the Director of Motion Light Lab (ML2) at Gallaudet University, to talk about its new animated children’s show, Here Comes Mavo! This show features characters that use sign language — a first ever for children’s cartoons! To assist the animators with the movements of sign language, the team is using motion-capture technology. (Learn more about motion-capture below.)

Malzkuhn talked to us about who Mavo is, the primary audience of the show, and why this show is so significant to Deaf literacy, education, and employment. (Because of its importance, Sorenson donated money to help it grow.)

Video Transcript:

Steven: Hello! Welcome to Melissa Malzkuhn, the director of Motion Light Lab (ML2). She is also making an animated show called “Here Comes Mavo”. Now we’re going to talk about what that’s about for you.

Hello, Melissa. Do you have a name sign?

Melissa: (Shows sign)

Steven: (Repeats sign) Melissa, for those that don't know, what is Motion Light Lab (ML2)?

Melissa: I founded ML2 back in around 2009-10. At that time I was, and still am, working at Visual Language Visual Learning (VL2) which is a large research center focusing on how visual language — sign language — impacts Deaf children’s lives. I saw a gap. What resources were there in development? We were finding things with our research, which was fine, but how could we apply that in a real, tangible way that could impact children?

We started with bilingual storybook apps that had both ASL and English. The kids could use them to supplement their reading skill development. It is important to have sign language at an early age — the earlier, the better. All of our work is backed up by scientific research in language acquisition and the benefits of bilingualism, specifically for Deaf children. That’s how we started.

What is motion-capture?

Animators use motion-capture to record the movements of people, animals, or objects. They then transfer it to a 2D or 3D model and animate it with the set of recorded movements. This lets them create animations that reflect the real movement of these people, animals, or objects.

To use a human as an example, someone will wear a motion-capture suit like the one in the image. The dots on the suit are at strategic places such as joints, limbs, and other parts of the body the creators want the camera to follow.

ML2’s motion-capture suit is different from similar suits actors wear for mainstream TV and movies because it has more dots on the hands. ML2 uses those dots on the hands to capture the motions of signing and fingerspelling.

Visit the Motion Light Lab website!

Main Character: Mavo

Steven: I know that you’re making an animated show called “Here Comes Mavo!” Who is Mavo?

Melissa: I’m glad you asked. I think Mavo — she has a name sign (shows sign) —is a special character. She first appeared in our first storybook app, “The Baobab”, which we released in 2013. This was the first reading resource for Deaf children in the world. She was a character in that story. She is an 8-year-old Deaf girl who is very adventurous and sometimes a little mischievous. She is curious and explores, wanting to understand the world. She signs fluently.

She has now developed into a character with a beautiful spirit.

We developed the show around that character. She will carry each episode with new knowledge as she learns and navigates through different situations. The show will teach children this knowledge through Mavo’s navigation in the world. Our goal with this TV show is to educate kids on different subjects such as emotions, communication, relationships, friendship, feelings, and many more.

We want to take the opportunity to allow Deaf children to understand through watching the signs. This show is 100% accessible for Deaf children who are young. We are targeting the 4- to 7-year-old age group and are very excited about this. This is the first ever show made for children with a signing character. This is history in the making.

Significant impacts

Steven: I’m excited to get to know more about Mavo through her adventures. You mentioned a few significances. But overall, what is the key significance of a show like “Here Comes Mavo”?

Melissa: Thank you. That’s an important question. I feel there are several levels of impact.

The first impact is we are bringing sign language to homes. Our goal is to have the show available on YouTube Kids. It will be easy for people to open and watch. It will be visible. There are many hearing families with Deaf children. It is our goal to reach them so the children can watch and relate to the signing and the families can be more open to learning sign language. That impacts Deaf children who see themselves represented on the screen.
Second is the opportunity for learning moments. The show is designed to educate so we want to reinforce that.
Third: to make progress on this show, we need a team. Our goal is to build a team with more Deaf people involved, some of whom may be growing and learning new skills. They need the opportunity to get into the industry. This show is a great opportunity to get more Deaf people involved.
Finally, but still importantly, we have an amazing story to tell. It is human nature to remember stories. We can see a story, then turn around and share that story with someone else and pass it on that way. We are excited to share these different stories through Mavo.

Future plans

Steven: That’s a great aim for the show. Do you have plans for more episodes or offshoot stories or other things related to “Here Comes Mavo”?

Melissa: Yes, definitely. Our goal is to develop 52 11-minute episodes. We’re fundraising. We want to tell this story in an authentic way from a Deaf-centered perspective. We’ve raised enough money to get started. With Sorenson’s support we are excited to start on our first three episodes, the pilot episode and 2 additional episodes. We will work on raising more funds to make the whole series. Our goal is to have episodes coming out frequently for kids to watch full of content. We’re working on that.

Now that we’re working on releasing the show, we also have lots of plans for Mavo. We want to make dolls, toys, and other little items that children can be excited about and relate to because Mavo is Deaf.

Steven: Identification/identity.

Melissa: Yes, exactly. I am Deaf and when I grew up, I didn’t have that. Same with you. We didn’t have that level of shared experience where we had a Deaf character to identify with. I want to change that. I want the kids to be excited about it so we have lots of exciting plans with Mavo. There’s lots of potential out there for activities and educational resources.

I hope people out there are interested in this and follow us on social media such as Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn. We post updates on those channels frequently, so please follow us. If you’re wondering how to support us, there’s a link on our website where we welcome people to support us by donating.

My view is this is for the community. The community is part of this movement. We’re in this together. That’s how I see this growing.

You can find more about Motion Light Lab and their social media accounts here.

We encourage you to support them by following them on social media and watching the show when it comes out. Sorenson will also share updates on the show as we get them.