Written by Sarah Carter
Art by Juka
Project Description
Little Alice and her Uncle Chris spend their days in Alice’s garden coming up with answers to some of life’s biggest mysteries, but when tragedy befalls Uncle Chris, Alice must draw the connection between the metamorphosing caterpillars in her garden and her beloved uncle in order to process his loss.
Chrisalice is a children’s book centered around Little Alice and her Uncle Chris, who spend hours in the garden picking fruits, spending time with Alice’s critter friends, and coming up with answers to some of life’s biggest mysteries. When Alice’s dad announces that he’ll be spraying the orange tree with pesticides, putting Alice’s dear critter friends will be in danger, Uncle Chris and Alice set out with a wagon full of mason jars to save the caterpillars. He teaches her that in nature every living thing is interconnected, and nothing really dies - it just becomes something different. When tragedy befalls Uncle Chris, Alice draws the connection between the metamorphosing caterpillars in their cocoons and her beloved uncle. Chrisalice is a colorful, dreamy, and poetic picture book that will help children process the nature of life and death in a way that honors their natural emotional intelligence while offering them hope, depth, and faith.
Project Status
The project is being shopped for publication and seeking collaboration opportunities for animation.
“In our dreams, we can wrap our spirits around the roots of every tree on the planet to listen for wisdom and guidance,” he told her.
Chrisalice Illustrations
Collaborators
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Juka
ILLUSTRATOR
JUKA is an interdisciplinary artist born and raised in Brazil. His practice explores storytelling through poetry, sculpture, illustration, film, and digital technologies.
During his time in Brazil, he also worked as an educator, supporting school boards and schools and developing curriculums based on multidisciplinary artistic practices, Paulo Freire’s theories and Brazilian folklore. He has published over a dozen books, some of which were featured in international fares and nominated for literary awards.
In 2020 he moved to Toronto and began collaborating with several local artists while pursuing an MFA at OCAD University, where he was awarded with the University’s President Award for his installation, exploring Brazilian art, music, and folklore through sculptures and film.
Having finally made his way over the mountains back to (different) shores, Juka is currently based in Vancouver, unceded and ancestral territory of the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh Nations.
He recently concluded a specialization in 3D animation and modeling at Vancouver Film School, and continues to work on his stories and characters while collaborating and learning from various artists from around the world.
You can check out more of his work at https://en.jukaart.com/.
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Lauren Kate
DEVELOPMENTAL EDITOR
LAUREN KATE is the #1 New York Times and #1 Internationally Bestselling Author of thirteen novels including The Fallen Series, which was made into a major motion picture. She is the Executive Producer of an eight-episode TV adaptation of Fallen starring Jessica Alexander, Sarah Niles, and Alexander Siddig, currently in post-production.
Her novels include the young adult novels The Betrayal of Natalie Hargrove and The Teardrop Series; the adult historical fiction novel The Orphan’s Song; and the romantic comedies By Any Other Name and the forthcoming What’s In A Kiss?, which will be published by Putnam in July 2024. She has published essay with Newsweek, Lithub, and the Huff Post, among others.
Lauren graduated Summa Cum Laude from Emory University and holds a masters degree in fiction writing from UC Davis. She worked for five years as an acquiring editor at HarperCollins Publishers, editing authors such as Joyce Carol Oates, Louise Erdrich, and Frank Cottrell Boyce. She currently teaches creative writing at Stanford University’s Continued Studies Program and runs her own series of Creative Writing Workshops: Novel School.
Lauren’s books have been featured on Jeopardy, referenced in The Simpsons, translated into more than thirty languages, and have sold over twelve million copies worldwide.
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Sarah Carter
AUTHOR
SARAH CARTER is a talented creative visionary, known for her diverse contributions to the arts as a writer, filmmaker, and musician. With a career marked by collaborations with industry icons and a passion for storytelling, Sarah has crafted narratives that resonate with audiences of all ages.
Inspired by her three-year-old daughter's profound perspective on life, Sarah embarked on a heartfelt journey to create stories that celebrate the beauty of resilience and the power of love. Her latest venture as a children's book author draws from personal experiences, including the loss of a loved one to addiction, inspiring a message of hope and understanding for young readers.
As the CEO of her own production company, Cheshire Moon Productions, Sarah premiered her directorial debut feature film, "In Her Name," at the Tribeca Film Festival, where it won an Audience Award. “In Her Name” is available to stream now on Apple TV+, Prime Video, Kanopy, Google Play, and Fandango, with a Limited Edition Blu-Ray featuring a BTS documentary available exclusively on Amazon.
With a background rooted in creativity and a dedication to uplifting narratives, Sarah Carter continues to honor her career milestones while embarking on a new chapter as a children's book author. She weaves tales of resilience and love for young hearts to cherish, all while honoring the child’s natural emotional intelligence, recognition of higher truth, and capacity to survive and grow through the darkest and most challenging moments in life.
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George Fuentes
THINKINGSEEDSTUDIO
George is an executive producer, director, and artist, who has been running Thinking Seed for the past 16 years. As an artist, he has contributed to numerous projects, including the Emmy award-winning title sequence to Games of Thrones; closing ceremony to the 2018 Winter Paralympics in Seoul, Korea; and Jay Z’s animated project, The Story of OJ.
His love for storytelling has charted his path as a writer/director and founder of THINKINGSEEDSTUDIO, which produces and develops Fine Art Printing, Animation, Digital Art, and Concept Art into award-winning masterpieces. They work on creative packages including scripts, storyboard, artwork, budgets, production schedules, and overall completion of projects through their internal animation teams and partners.
Illustrations by Juka
“The opportunity to work with Sarah arrived unexpectedly. The introduction came through my youngest daughter, and in retrospect, it makes perfect sense that this bridge was raised by a child. At first, I was a little apprehensive. Although we both live by the Pacific, the roads are long between us, and I was worried about working on something so personal without being physically close. All my hesitation evaporated the moment I met Sarah. Her gentle kindness and genuineness faded the screens away as she welcomed me into her beautiful story. Sarah is a talented artist who was generous and brave in sharing a piece of herself with the world. I had the honor of helping Sarah shape and color the spirits and ancestors that inhabit her dreams—or at least come as close as I could as an illustrator. Sarah’s presence and story have been true gifts to me. Her words have comforted me in very difficult recent times. During the winter, our dog passed, and over this last full moon, my father left for the stars. As the scientist and renowned professor Robin Wall Kimmerer once said, “gifts exist in a realm of humility and mystery—as with random acts of kindness, we do not know their source.” Thank you, Sarah, for this unexpected encounter. I hope we can continue to stitch dreams together. ”
— Juka, Illustrator