Some things transcend language barriers, and for Natasha Kline, growing up in a bicultural family, she remembers the bear hugs from her abuela (“grandmother”) best. Even if she couldn’t quite understand her grandmother’s words, the sentiment was clear. “She would grab me and cradle me like I was super precious, all while sending a steady stream of loving Spanish words my way,” Kline says. “I often didn’t understand what she was saying, but the warmth and the overpowering message of love were not lost on me. That was important because I was a very nerdy, shy, introverted kid who needed support so badly. She absolutely accepted who I was and was proud of me.”
That love and acceptance strongly influence Kline’s new coming-of-age Disney Branded Television animated comedy, Primos (“cousins”). The show follows Tater Ramirez Humphrey, a 9-year-old girl with big dreams for her future and just one summer to figure them out. When her mom throws a wrench in her plans by inviting all 12 of her cousins to visit, Tater braces for the worst — only to find herself having the best summer of her life. Surrounded by a family who may not always understand her but who love and support her for exactly who she is, Tater and her dreams flourish.
Featuring a dynamic cast of characters, including Buela, voiced by legendary Mexican singer/actress Angélica María, Primos has the potential to work its way into the hearts of homes of many U.S. families.
The show debuts July 25 at 8 p.m. on the Disney Channel, and the following day on Disney+.
Kline’s childhood dreams
Emmy-nominated Kline came of age east of Los Angeles in the 1990s, in a suburban area known as the Inland Empire. Just like in Primos, Kline’s mother’s family is from Mexico City, and her father hails from Tennessee — Tater’s father is even portrayed with a mullet. And like Tater, Kline has cousins —plural. As Tater says in the first episode, “extremely plural,” though Tater’s 12 pales in comparison to Kline’s 23.
Growing up, “I loved cartoons, but I didn’t see families or neighborhoods like mine portrayed in them,” Kline says. “As a kid, that made me feel like my story wasn’t worth telling. Television has grown in its storytelling diversity so much, especially in the last few years. But that vision of a supportive, embracing family with different skin tones and ethnic identities that I had longed for when I was a kid still hadn’t been seen in TV animation. That door hadn’t opened yet. Disney opened the door, and I walked through it.”
Much like Tater’s big dreams, Kline began dreaming about what she wanted to do with her life as a child. It might have been the moment she watched the animated music video for Tom Petty’s Runnin’ Down a Dream that she decided to become a cartoonist. Like Tater’s mother, Bibi, Kline says that her mother stood firmly in her corner with her artistic aspirations. But Kline’s father, like Tater’s father, Bud, had a harder time seeing where those dreams could lead. Those real-life family apprehensions disappeared once Kline landed a job on South Park, followed by work on BoJack Horseman, then the family-friendly The Adventures of Tip and Oh, The Lego Ninjago Movie and Big City Greens.
‘Primos’ format and inspiration
Each half-hour episode of Primos is split into a pair of 11-minute stories. Episode 1 unveils Tater’s plans for the summer, starting with her simple quest for alone time and then her anxiety over all 12 cousins coming to stay at her house — and all sleeping in her bedroom. A recurring element is Tater’s embrace — often literally — of her stuffed blue diary and the magical fantasies inside it. This diary was another aspect of Kline’s childhood that influenced the show. In fact, Tater was likely born earlier in Kline’s career in the heart of LA, where she participated in sketch shows with an Upright Citizens Brigade comedy troupe. There, Kline created a short animated film of odd, ridiculous and particularly memorable moments from her own diary to the delight of audiences. “As a kid, I journaled and always kept a sketchbook,” she says. “Many of Tater’s weird fantasies are things I thought about as a kid, I’m a bit embarrassed to admit. But the other writers on Primos also helped develop Tater’s rich fantasy life.”
In the show, Kline voices cousins Gordita and ChaCha, whom she says represent two sides of her own personality: Gordita, initially seen as the colder, analytical one has trouble relating to those around her; and ChaCha the wild, independent child Kline says she always felt like she had to suppress when she was little. “There are such strict rules society puts on girls’ behavior,” Kline says. “I wanted to write girl characters that don’t bow to the pressure of what society expects of them.” Other recurring cast members include Myrna Velasco as Tater; Angélica María as Tater’s grandmother, Buela; Liza Koshy as Tater’s friend, Serena; and cousins Becca Q. Co (Lotlot), Cristina Valenzuela (Tere and Toñita), Elizabeth Grullón (Lita), Jonathan Melo (Scooter), Sarah Tubert (Cookita), Nomi Ruiz (Tabi), Rick Simon (Big Nacho and Cousin Bud) and Ryan Anderson Lopez (Nachito). Cheech Marin voices Tater’s grandfather.
Overcoming controversies
Primos’ journey to the small screen has not been without controversy, owing in some ways to the exact multiculturalism that sets it apart. A year ago, the title sequence of the show was shared online, sparking some audience objections. One point of contention was the theme song’s grammatically incorrect Spanish. In it, Tater screams, “¡Oye, primos!” — “Hey, cousins!” However, the singular “Oye” clashes with the plural “primos”; the correct Spanish translation would be “Oigan, primos.” The show’s producers explained that this was an intentional mistranslation, meant as a reflection of Tater’s own Spanish stumbles with her extended family.
Additionally, some audience members felt the yellow tint Kline and art director Ivan Aguirre used to depict the Inland Empire bore an uncomfortable resemblance to long-standing Hollywood coloring tropes for representing Mexican communities. But, in reality, was inspired by the community where Kline and Aguirre grew up, as a nostalgic homage. Lastly, some objected to the fact that the show’s fictional setting in the title sequence was the town of Terremoto Heights. Though “terremoto” translates to “earthquake” in English, Kline and her art team agreed to change the name for a reason close to Kline’s heart. The show now takes place in the fictional town of Hacienda Hills, a nod to the real-life Hacienda Heights neighborhood where Kline’s grandmother lived.
“Whenever I spent the night at her house, she would give me a giant stack of fliers she had collected from church, which she saw as drawing materials,” Kline says. “I would wake up at her house, with that golden SoCal light filtering in through the windows, and she’d be sitting at the kitchen table, smelling like fresh soap. I would sit across from her at her kitchen table with all those church fliers stacked in front of me. Then, I’d fill the blank backs of the fliers with drawings as she did her crosswords. Sometimes she would ask what I was drawing, but mostly we were just quiet together, enjoying our different hobbies. It’s something I took for granted when I was a kid. Now, it’s a memory that brings me to tears.”
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