An animated preschool miniseries celebrating Iranian culture and history has received $188,561 through the Canada Media Fund’s Program for Black and Racialized Communities. Big Bad Boo Studios’ Lili & Lola is the only B.C. show or film among 19 projects to receive production funding in the recent announcement.
The Canada Media Fund made $10.16 million available in its 2026-27 program. Funding will go toward the second half of Lila & Lola‘s fifth season.
Nine of the other projects are in Ontario and another seven are in Quebec. One is in Nova Scota and one is in Saskatchewan. Nine of the projects are documentaries, five are children and youth productions, and five are dramas. Lili & Lola is in Persian (Farsi), making it the only one created in a language other than English or French.
According to the Big Bad Boo Studios website, Lili & Lola is also in English, Spanish, and French. It’s about two sisters, Lili and Lola, who live in a small apartment in a big city with their parents and their lazy cat.
“Situated on a quiet street, their building is filled with interesting people from all over the world,” the production company states. “Together, we celebrate cultural holidays like the Chinese New Year, Norooz and Diwali, introducing nuances of various cultures to our young audience. Each episode also contains a literacy and a social/emotional lesson.”
Watch the full episode of the Lili & Lola “Norooz” episode in Persian.
Studio partners with UNICEF
Big Bad Boo Studios has several other award-winning cartoons. In addition, it has an international development division that partners with UNICEF.
“In 2018, Big Bad Boo, a signatory of the UN Global Compact, was the only commercial media company inducted into the Million Lives Collective for bettering the lives of over 1 million children living on less than $5 per day,” the production company notes. “Big Bad Boo currently holds five Long-Term Services Agreements with UNICEF for the provision of entertainment-based educational programs, strategic behavioral change communications, digital content and program evaluations.”
The co-founder and CEO of Big Bad Studios, Aly Jetha, was born in Zambia and grew up in Vancouver. He graduated from St. George’s School in 1992 and went on to earn a political science degree from the University of British Columbia and a law degree from the Berkeley Law School at the University of California.
Documentary funds flow to Ontario and Quebec
On the same day that the Canada Media Fund disclosed recipients under its Program for Black and Racialized Communities, it also announced nearly $7 million in investments in point-of-view documentaries. Of the 23 projects funded, only one is from B.C.
Grand Scheme Productions received $400,000 for When Shit Hits the Fan. The company previously produced The Grizzlie Truth, Saints and Warriors, I’m Just Here for the Riot, and Satan Wants You.