Shopping New Vodou is a half-hour documentary about Haitian artisans and the inspiration behind their creations. Working alongside a team of Canadian marketing gurus, together they are on a mission to rebrand the image of Haitian Vodou. Because of Hollywood and old stereotypes, Haiti’s ancient African spiritual practice has been perceived as a black art, when it is actually a rich, artistic cultural movement. In this programme, we meet the Haitian artisans Axelle Liautaud (designer), Jean Mikerson (metal artist) and Rose Marie Agnan, (textile artist), who embrace Vodou in their craftwork. They partner with the Canadian team and BrandTrade’s executives (Tony Pigott and Cameron Brohman) to sell their world-class products to international consumers through The Shopping Channel. But for North Americans to buy in, the image of Vodou must be set right. As the story unfolds, we watch the Canadian image-makers rebrand a religion and flip our view of Haiti’s cultural heritage right side up.
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