I was so slow, my mental acuity was not quite there, and I was sleepy. Before I went vegan, when I was doing Aladdin and would eat before the show, there were some meals where my body would just feel terrible. I definitely have more energy and I feel lighter. It's become a huge social and activist issue for us as well. And we found that veganism was that change for us. There's cancer on both sides of my family and there's a history of neurodegenerative disease on her side of the family, so we just wanted to tune our bodies and be in the best place possible to have a fighting chance for whatever comes our way. My wife and I have been vegan for just over three years now. That's one of the biggest benefits for me as an actor and a New Yorker-jiu-jitsu slows me down in a good way. You really have to think and be present, and just take things as they come. You can't muscle your way through a match. You need to blow off some steam, and jiu-jitsu does that, because you're exhausted when you're wrestling, but it also teaches you to slow down. Being in New York, you're kind of on guard all the time. Does that apply to jiu-jitsu as well?Ībsolutely. It's a lot more interesting than the weight room, because the weights are trying to choke you out.Ī big part of yoga for a lot of people is the mental health benefits. I look at it as yoga, but, you know, people fight back. Jiu-jitsu is something that I really enjoy. In my off time I'll be able to get back into class. I never called out because of an injury, but I unfortunately can't practice jiu-jitsu during filming, because I'm the only person that they film, and God forbid I break a finger falling down. During Aladdin, I also did Brazilian jiu-jitsu on the DL. For the past five years I would always be doing something active at night. She says, while movements like Black Lives Matter still have their own fight, " now have a platform to work with.I also do cardio at night to mimic doing a show at night, because that's what my body is used to. The moment Fe clued in to the significance of the show for Filipinos was when she received widespread applause from Filipinos across North America and worldwide, including in the Philippines. He loves her like how I love my grandma.' That's a doorway to understanding culture." "To the kids watching, 'Oh that's Josh's grandma. The "matter of fact" way of depicting culture on the show is what makes differences seem normal rather than emphasizing "otherness," and he says these small acknowledgements mean everything to Filipinos. But Blues Clues & You! is different, he says. which is why the opposite thing is explained," he told CBC News. "The centre is still, for lack of a better term, North American Caucasian kids. The promo for the first episode featuring Fe showcases Dela Cruz greeting Lola with a "mano," a Filipino gesture signifying respect for elders, before sitting down to eat bibingka, a traditional rice cake from the Philippines.Ĭarolyn Fe, centre, with Josh Dela Cruz and Blue on the set of Blue's Clues & You! (Submitted by Carolyn Fe)īustamante recalls a time when kids programming introduced different cultures by explaining them to their young viewers. She moved to Toronto to further her acting career. They immigrated to Canada when she was eight and settled in Montreal. She was born in the Philippines but her family then moved to the U.S looking for a better life. But according to Fe, Blue's Clues & You! pulls back the curtain on the subtleties of what it means to be Filipino and showcases a culture that is rarely noticed.įe can relate. Many Filipinos are immigrants to faraway lands who pride themselves on integrating into new societies and see that as part of who they are. She says Lola will be a recurring character. The Canadian actress, who calls Toronto home but is now in Montreal staying with her parents during the pandemic, says the show will be an upfront "grounded representation" featuring Tagalog language, food, how the young respect their elders, and other aspects of the Filipino culture at home. "But I am very grateful because this representation really takes us away from the stereotype that everybody else has given us as Filipinos." "I don't know when the idea to bring Lola came, when it came and who decided," says Fe. His nationality was a mystery on the show until the preview of an upcoming episode that introduced a new character named Lola, Josh's grandmother, played by Fe. The reboot premiered last year with new host Joshua "Josh" Dela Cruz, a Filipino-American. The Nickelodeon remake of the popular 1996 educational series Blue's Clues is part of the growing trend of inclusive kids programming that is more reflective of its diverse audience. Carolyn Fe had no clue her heritage would be under the spotlight after stepping out of her audition for Blue's Clues & You!
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