My name is
SEK
I was born 3 mill. years BC +20
Eleven-year-old Sek is friendly, sensitive, kind, courteous and quick-witted. Sooo... not like a caveman at all. Which is often bad for his social life, but is very useful for nudging human evolution forward! Unlike his father who “solves” everything with brute strength and a club, Sek comes up with new ideas and innovative solutions that sometimes are quite literally ahead of their time- like his prototype for a “smart phone”… carved out of rock (if only electricity were invented, too). Sek is restless, resourceful, inventive and full of ideas. He’s mischievous and loves to play harmless pranks, but he’s never malicious. Because he’s so kind and helpful, he has no shortage of true friends who gladly come to his aid when he gets into trouble. Sek is a sensitive boy, who loves the arts. He invented something he calls “cave painting”, which the others don't understand at all, i.e. ”Why don't we just look at a real mammoth?!” Sek has various allergies, to grass, to sabre tooth cats, etc. He’s always sneezing at very inconvenient times, like during a hunt. Because he’s not like the other cavemen Sek often feels like an outcast, even more so than a normal 11-year-old. But his lack of oldschool caveman qualities is more than made up for by his intelligence, and his positive attitude.
I don't have social media in my era.. and I live
My name is
ZULA
I was born 3 mill. years BC +23
For 13-year-old Zula, prehistoric adolescence is just as difficult as it is today. Even more so, because aside from the drama of wondering which caveboys like her, and how her hair looks, and dealing with hormones that make her cry one second and giggle hysterically the next, she also has to deal with creatures that can eat her alive and even worse, stupid Neanderthal men- literal Neanderthals. It’s A LOT. Can you blame her if she freaks out sometimes? On top of that, she has to look after her younger brother, who she spends most of her time with. She’s slowly outgrowing joining in with his wild schemes and mischief-making, but still gets drawn in unwillingly at times. She wants to be like her beautiful domestic goddess mother Pola, so she spends a lot of time primping and preening at he spring. But Zula’s attempts at fashion and make-up often get sidelined by her beating all the caveboys in a race, or lifting bigger rocks than they can. She’s a tomboy at heart, more than capable of taking care of herself- though her dad Pim has his hands full (usually with his club) worrying and looking out for her. Zula tends to leap before she looks, literally. She’s much more emotion-based and impulsive than Sek, who’s the more evolved voice of reason on their adventures.
I don't have social media in my era.. and I live
My name is
PIM
I was born 3 mill. years BC
I don't have social media in my era.. and I live
Ancient forefather Pim is a true caveman, through and through. His wardrobe consists entirely of fur loincloths, he seemingly has two emotions: confused or angry, and he prefers to solve problems by bashing things with his club. He always has his club in hand, even when bathing (you never know when something will need bashing). As head of the family and chief of the world’s very first human settlement, Pim is the decision maker... though his tendency toward knee-jerk emotional reactions means he’s usually very bad at his leadership role when it involves, you know… thinking. Thankfully he consults Sek and Pola for advice as well. The opposite of a romantic, he married Pola simply because he needed someone to help with chores. But he’s come to truly adore her, and vice versa. Pim isn't around a lot of the time, as he’s leader of the tribe and a master huntsman. As a father he’s very loving, but he can also be very blunt. He wants his kids to be tough! He’s always telling them it’s an eat or be eaten world! And even though he’s literally right, they still roll their eyes at him.
My name is
POLA
I was born 3 mill. years BC +2
Foremother Pola is a resourceful and fashionable prehistoric housewife. She skillfully runs the household and always knows how to make a meal out of whatever Pim brings home—even if she sometimes has to catch it again first! Pim tries to help, but isn’t much good around the house. He’s so big and clumsy his attempts at helping out end in disaster. That means Pola doesn’t have much time to keep an eye on Sek and Zula, who are often looked after by prehistoric animals, especially their good-hearted brontosaurus pet, Spot. Pola is the most beautiful woman around, far and wide—the only woman, in fact! Plus she makes the BEST FOOD EVER. Pim is always ready to bash a head in to protect her food! Oh, and her, too. Pola’s emotional maturity and deep common sense often make her the defacto leader of the tribe, since Pim regularly seeks advice from her.
I don't have social media in my era.. and I live
My name is
SPOT
I was born 3 mill. years BC -30
Spot is Sek and Zula’s pet and best friend... who just happens to be an enormous talking brontosaurus. Despite his hugeness Spot is elegant, always a poised gentleman- as well as a lifelong vegetarian. He finds carnivores so uncouth. Ever positive Spot is often a surrogate parent to Sek and Zula, and cares for them with a touching tenderness. He adores them, and repeatedly gets them out of trouble. They repay him with belly rubs, special fruit snacks, and games of hide and seek where they let him win. Because of both his giant size and his calm refined nature Spot is almost never flustered, making him a great source of support in an emergency, which could be anything from getting the world’s first soccer ball out of a tree to helping Sek and Zula escape from a bloodthirsty rampaging t-rex! It’s all in a day’s work for unflappable Spot. Spot was a “rescue” brontosaurus that they found and nursed back to health as a baby- who and where his parents are is a mystery.
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Claws
Philomena
My name is
Claws
Claws is a small saber-toothed tiger that Sek and Zula tamed, who shares all their adventures with them. Like most cats, Claws is less of a pet and more a creature that tolerates humans hanging around them sometimes. His whereabouts are often unknown and he’s very bad at following commands. Claws acts very kitty-like: batting toys around, playfully pouncing, purring, chasing feathers, etc. He’s rambunctious, unpredictable, and mischievous- the opposite of elegant refined Spot. Claws is constantly messing with Spot, climbing on him, batting him playfully, pouncing on him, etc., but the gentle giant remains unfazed. The two love each other, and are hilariously mismatched best animal buddies.
My name is
Philomena
Philomena the cow- a calm, benevolent matronly cow full of wise sayings- she’s Pim’s cow and therefore part of the homo sapien tribe, but the Neanderthals are always trying to steal her
I don't have social media in my era.. and I live
01
TV SERIES
“SEK & ZULA” is a 2-D animated TV comedy series for young adults, ages 6-11. Season one consists of a 13-minute pilot episode introducing the characters and the world, and ten 7-minute regular episodes. Episodes are mostly self-contained stand-alone stories, but will also feature a few multiple-episode story arcs, such as showing how the settlement progresses over time.
The tone is comedy/action, with lots of physical humor including slapstick, since some of our characters such as the Neanderthals are very nonverbal. Episodes feature high action stakes, like needing to rescue the tribal cow from the band of wild Neanderthals who cownapped it, mixed with personal stories for Sek and Zula that arise from being teenagers in caveman times. The art style will resemble the visual style of the original beloved comic strips, bright, bold, and full of character.
02
THE EPISODES
Each episode has its own main plot while continuing one or more subplots developed in other episodes of the season. Possible story arcs across the entire first season are:
A giant carnivore, perhaps an Allosaurus, periodically shows up briefly in episodes as a threat. By the end of the season they must track it down and stop it. Pim leads the warriors, but Sek, Zula and Pola secretly tag along, knowing he’ll need help.....
Spot is a rescue dinosaur, and decides he wants to track down his parents, who we catch glimpses of in various episodes. The family goes on a perilous quest to find them.
The Neanderthal group keeps growing bigger over the season, until in the last few episodes we realize it’s because they’re forming a Neanderthal army to take over the settlement! They outnumber our heroes and take over, but Pim and his peeps use their smarts to take the settlement back.
03
PERIOD AND SOCIETY
The series is set millions of years ago BC, in the Stone Age. One unique aspect of “Sek and Zula” is that it mingles prehistoric eras, as far as the animal world is concerned. Brontosauruses, pterodactyls, t-rexes, mammoths, sabre tooth tigers, and even cows and pigs all rub shoulders. This playful approach adds to the fun and offers fresh storytelling possibilities.
Some of our ancestors distinguished themselves in these harsh prehistoric times; the less successful among them were eaten. That’s actually the least successful someone can be- getting eaten alive. Just to remain uneaten in prehistoric times makes you a successful individual and a hero! And since eaten people can’t reproduce, we’re in large part the descendants of the uneaten, like Sek and Zula and their family. Hooray for the uneaten! Our ancestors managed to overcome every challenge thanks to their wits, their resourcefulness, and above all their humor, which has been with humankind since the very beginning.
