What is Lil Red Alerts?
LIL RED ALERTS™ is an educational safety series that encourages curiosity, sparks meaningful dialogue, and builds discernment. Spoken word poetry becomes dialogue and narration for the most vulnerable youth in communities around the globe. Memorable characters are seen in animated stories that include a mix of humor, heart, and real-world consequences.
Cast of Characters
Lil Red
Age: 12
Red is a hoodie-wearing, sharp-witted, brown-skinned boy, who’s curious and creative. He's also vulnerable to taking shortcuts and represents kids who are navigating trust in a world that doesn’t always share unspoken rules and street knowledge.
Goldie
Age: 14
Goldie is Red's best friend and she's a protective big sister type who is known for her gold locs. She has some street knowledge given she's made some mistakes of her own. She’s no angel but she will go out of her way to protect younger kids from traps.
Granny-O
Age: 70
Granny-O lives in the safest house on the block full of herbs, teas, and history books. She loves sitting on her porch and can make you laugh and think with her unique way of speaking. She makes people go..."Oh," because she has no problem telling you the truth.
The Tricksters
Age: Varies
Tricksters are predators who appear in every episode to help kids spot red flags or questionable behaviors. These smooth-talkers represent real-world threats, and modern-day scams and peer pressures in an increasingly complex world.
Director Statement
Every child will eventually meet a trickster. My work is about helping them recognize one before it's too late.
I'm Venus Jones, a Director of Dialogue, spoken word poet, filmmaker, and educator with more than 20 years of classroom and stage experience. I believe curiosity, conversation, and discernment are among the most powerful tools we can give young people.
My first animated film, "Lil Red is Riding the Wrong Way in the Hood", took ten months of relentless determination to create. What began as a short film about trust and dangerous wrong turns quickly became something bigger. It inspired Lil Red Alerts — an educational movement using storytelling, dialogue, and practical resources to help children identify red flags, build discernment, and navigate tricksters both offline and online.
Living with ADHD and anxiety, I've made my own share of wrong turns. That experience fuels my commitment to meeting young people at life's crossroads before someone with harmful intentions does.
Learn more about me at www.venusjones.com.
Bragging Rights
Lil Red is Riding the Wrong Way in the Hood is the first modern-day Hip Hop version of the classic folktale "Little Red Riding Hood" to change the gender of the main character from a girl to a boy.
The film was partially supported by an individual artist grant Venus earned from the Center for Cultural Innovation and it helped reignite Venus’s career when she was ready to quit.
The first 6th grade class to see the film were at Chiang Mai International School in Thailand.
The film was a Pan-African project that was created to decrease child exploitation around the globe.
Lil Red won Best Animation once in 2023 in and twice in 2024 on the festival circuit with a total of 9 awards total and 10 official screenings or selections for a first-time indie black female filmmaker entering the field of animation.
It was an Essence Festival finalist and it also was one of the first films ever to be screened at the Apollo Victoria Theatre in Harlem, New York.
