CBC Kids’ Gangnam Project is a landmark show for the Canadian kids television industry. What differentiates Gangnam Project from other kids’ programming is that they proudly have an explicitly all-Asian cast and a diverse crew. Gangnam Project centers around Hannah, a biracial Korean Canadian teen who gets an opportunity of a lifetime to teach English at a K-pop training school, but gets more than she bargained for.
As we continue to see more Asian representation in mainstream media in North America, most of the programming is geared towards adults, whereas Gangnam Project targets the age group of eight to twelve instead. Creator and producer of the show, Sarah Haasz spoke with Cold Tea Collective about the journey it took to create the show and how Gangnam Project helps the next generation of the Asian diaspora find belonging.
Asian representation in children’s programming
The initial idea of Gangnam Project was conceived as a book when Haasz visited South Korea at 16 years old. She shares, “I had this fantastical image of going back to Korea and being accepted, and everything was going to be fantastic. In many ways, my family was amazing and loving, but they thought that I was more Westernized than Korean. At that point, I didn’t feel Korean enough to be in Korea or Canadian enough to be in Canada.”
Fast forward two decades later and over six years of collaboration with the CBC, Gangnam Project gradually took shape, with the concept evolving to incorporate K-pop as its anchor. For Haasz, who was a broadcasting executive for twenty years, she says, “Timing is everything in this industry. Six years ago, I wouldn’t be able to get this green light… A lot has happened in the past six years where there’s more support for racialized communities.”
Every part of the show was done intentionally. From assembling a diverse cast and crew, including a…
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