Project CLEO Get updates

Project CLEO: Coastal Life Education & Outreach

Dive in

Calm adventures for little ocean helpers.

Meet Cleo, a little girl with big ocean dreams, and Ellie, the leopard shark only she can understand. Every episode starts with a real question at a real beach, and ends with one small way to help.

It's low-stimulation on purpose. Gentle colors, real wave sounds, no flashing, no fast cuts. The kind of screen time that leaves kids calmer, kinder and more curious than when they started.

Watch the trailer

A spin, a jump, a new friend, and one big question. Concept animation.

  • Low-stimulation, on purpose
  • Real waves and seagulls, no loud music
  • No flashing, no fast cuts
  • For curious kids of every age

Cozy enough to watch together. Calm enough to watch on their own.

Play with Ellie Get updates
For little ones Play with Ellie Six calm little games: tidy the sea for Ellie, breathe slowly with her, peek at the tide pool friends, watch a seal from a kind distance, match the sea friends, and swim with Ellie over the sandy shallows where the leopard sharks gather. No reading needed, so even the littlest ocean helpers can play. No ads, nothing to buy, no sign-in, nothing collected. Play now

Scenes from the Shores

Little moments from Cleo's world, painted while the show takes shape.

Concept art
  • Mother stands on a white paddleboard holding a paddle, in a visor and a sea-glass life vest. Cleo, in a pink life vest, kneels at the front and peeks over the edge at Ellie, a young leopard shark swimming just below in the clear water.
    The adventure Cleo spots Ellie from the paddleboard
  • A tall painted view looking straight down at about twenty leopard sharks resting in sparkly, see-through water, with soft foamy waves and sand along one side.
    The adventure A bird's-eye look at the gathering
  • A painted view across clear, shallow water near a sandy beach, where dozens of spotted leopard sharks swim calmly. A few swimmers are far off, and cliffs with houses and palm trees line the shore.
    The adventure Every summer, leopard sharks gather in the shallows
  • The whole family on a picnic blanket on the grass at sunset: Daddy sits with Evie on his shoulders, Mother in a white visor sits beside him, Cleo twirls in the middle, Estelle sits cross-legged with a sketchbook, and Lucky the pup rests in front. Palm trees, the pier and the ocean glow behind them.
    The family The whole family at Kellogg Park, golden hour
  • Estelle, in a green striped polo, sits cross-legged on a sunny seawall drawing in her sketchbook while Cleo leans on her shoulder to watch. In the clear water below them, leopard sharks swim past the rocks.
    The family Estelle sketches a leopard shark while Cleo watches
  • Daddy, smiling wide, rides a boogie board through a foamy wave while Cleo, in a pink life vest, holds on to his back and laughs. Behind them the sun sets beside a long pier.
    The family Daddy and Cleo ride a wave in at sunset
  • Cleo, barefoot in a cream polo and navy shorts with her coral shell pouch, holds Evie's hand as the toddler, in a mint shirt and pink shorts, steps into a tiny foamy wave. Cleo's pink sneakers wait on the sand, and the pier glows in the evening sun.
    The family Cleo and Evie meet the first little wave
  • Daddy, in a cap and an open navy shirt, walks barefoot along the wet sand at sunset, carrying Cleo on his back and his own sneakers in his hand. Cleo rests her cheek on his shoulder, and the pier stretches out behind them.
    The family A piggyback home at golden hour
  • Cleo, in pink pajamas with little shells on them, sits in bed reading a picture book with a leopard shark on the cover. Lucky, a fluffy black and tan pup, sleeps against her, a plush Ellie with a little heart on her side rests on the pillow, and stars shine through the window.
    The family A bedtime story with Lucky (and plush Ellie)
  • A painted view from high above La Jolla Shores on a clear afternoon: turquoise water over rocky reefs, gentle waves rolling onto a long sandy beach, a pier reaching out to sea, and palm trees and houses on the hills.
    La Jolla Shores La Jolla Shores from above
  • Looking straight down at Mother paddling a white paddleboard with Cleo kneeling at the front. They glide slowly over clear water while many leopard sharks swim around them, a kind distance away, over a sunlit sandy bottom.
    La Jolla Shores Mother and Cleo paddle through the gathering, a kind distance away
  • A painted view from above of leopard sharks with dark spots and saddle stripes, resting in clear, sunlit water beside a sandy shore edged with soft foam.
    La Jolla Shores Leopard sharks resting in the warm shallows
  • Looking straight down at Mother and Cleo in a coral and yellow kayak, Mother paddling at the back, gliding through clear blue-green water with many leopard sharks swimming all around.
    La Jolla Shores A slow, quiet kayak ride through the shallows
  • The same high view of La Jolla Shores in warm evening light, with the sun low over the ocean beside the pier, orange clouds, and sparkling water over the reefs.
    La Jolla Shores Golden hour over La Jolla Shores

Meet Cleo & Ellie

One lives on the shore. One lives in the water. They meet at the edge.

Concept animation
From Mother's paddleboard, Cleo leans over the edge and looks down. Ellie swims up to say hello, then glides back to her kelp.
Cleo, an animated girl with two buns, standing barefoot on a sunny beach in a cream polo, navy shorts and a coral shell pouch.
Concept art

Cleo

6 years old · ballet dreamer · future ocean scientist

Cleo digs in the sand, follows tiny tracks and asks the kind of questions that make grown-ups stop and think. Her favorite words: "On this day..."

Cleo's big dreams

  • Dance ballet
  • Study the ocean at UC San Diego
  • Help save Ellie's home
Ellie, an animated young leopard shark with dark saddle stripes, round spots and one small heart-shaped mark on her side, gliding through sunlit water over the sand.
Concept art

Ellie

A young leopard shark

Ellie's old home got too full of trash, so she found a new one near the Shores. She stayed hopeful. Cleo wants to help her, and that is how the adventure starts. Ellie doesn't talk. She says everything with how she swims, and Cleo is pretty sure she thinks ballet is swimming practice on land. When she's happy to see Cleo, she swims one slow loop.

The whole family in concept art, standing in a row: Daddy in a cap and an open navy shirt, Mother with a blonde ponytail, a big sister in a striped polo, Cleo with two buns and her coral pouch, a little sister in pink shorts, and Lucky, a fluffy little pup. Concept art

The people who love her most: Mother, who paddleboards and says "let's find out" when she doesn't know. Daddy, Cleo's biggest fan, who carries the bucket and holds her hand when the waves get big. A big sister who shows her how, and a little sister who follows her everywhere. And Lucky, the fluffy family pup, who thinks every wave is a game.

Big dreams are easier with a family cheering you on.

Ellie always stays in the ocean. Cleo never chases, touches or feeds her. They say hello from a kind distance, the way we hope every kid meets a wild animal.

Where it happens

Every place in Project CLEO is real and you can visit it. Except one.

Cleo in a pink leotard dancing in a sunny ballet studio. Big windows behind her look over a blue cove. Concept art · make-believe
At Sea Glass Dance Studio, Cleo leaps. In the next shot she lands in the sand at the Shores. That jump is how the show moves between her two worlds.
Mother stands on a paddleboard in a sea-glass life vest while Cleo kneels at the front and peeks down. Ellie, a young leopard shark, swims just below them in the clear water. Concept art
Out on the water, Mother paddles and Cleo looks down. The ocean is a window, and Ellie is right there.

  • La Jolla Shores

    A wide, gentle beach in San Diego, where most adventures start.

  • The cove

    La Jolla Cove sits inside a protected marine reserve. Leopard sharks gather there every summer and fall, and most of them are moms-to-be resting in the warm, calm water.

  • Tide pools

    Little worlds between the rocks at low tide. Look closely, touch gently, leave everything where it lives.

  • Sea Glass Dance Studio make-believe

    Cleo's ballet studio, with a big window over the cove. It isn't real. It's where she dances, and where one leap can land her in the sand.

More places on Cleo's map

  • The end of a long wooden pier on tall legs, with a small building on top, over blue water.

    The long pier

    A research pier where people study the ocean every single day.

  • Kids and a grown-up looking into rocky tide pools by a building on a hill.

    The aquarium on the hill

    Where Cleo takes her biggest questions.

  • A big blue mosaic map set into the ground by the grass, with a starfish tile and the ocean beyond.

    The Map at Kellogg Park

    A giant tile map of the canyons under the water, with over 100 sea creatures, life-size.

  • Waves rolling into a golden sea cave, seen from inside the arch.

    Sunny Jim Sea Cave

    145 steps down a tunnel to echoes, waves and changing light.

  • Sea lions resting on sunny rocks by the water.

    Point La Jolla

    Sea lions nap on the rocks. Wildlife needs space, so we watch from the path.

  • Harbor seals resting on the sand below a curved seawall.

    Children's Pool

    Ellen Browning Scripps gave this beach to the town's kids in 1931. Now harbor seals raise their pups here, so we watch from the wall.

  • Two bright paragliders floating in a blue sky over the ocean.

    Torrey Pines Gliderport

    Paragliders float over the cliffs, and Cleo wonders if flying feels like swimming.

  • A small hut with a palm-leaf roof on sandstone rocks at sunset.

    Windansea Beach

    Sunset, a little hut with a palm-leaf roof, and quiet waves.

Neighbors above and below the water

  • Leopard shark

    Gentle and shy. Lots of them rest near the Shores in summer.

  • Garibaldi

    California's state marine fish. Bright orange, so you can't miss it.

  • Sea lion

    Loud and playful. It can walk on its flippers.

  • Harbor seal

    Quiet and spotted. It wiggles on its belly on land.

  • Green sea turtle

    A rare visitor. If you see one, watch quietly.

  • Crab

    Walks sideways and hides under rocks at low tide.

  • Sea star

    It has no brain, and it can grow back an arm.

  • Octopus

    Three hearts, and it can change color in a blink.

What kids learn

Every episode follows the same calm shape, so little ones know what comes next.

  1. Notice

    Cleo spots something: a trail in the sand, a fin in the shallows, a shell that moved.

  2. Ask

    She asks Mother. Mother shares what she knows, and says so when she doesn't.

  3. "Let's find out"

    They go see for real, and Ellie shows the ocean side of it. Real places, real science.

  4. Help a little

    One small thing a family can do. Never a scary job. Caring means coming back.

Every episode ends at the water: "On this day, we learned..."

It started with one question

My daughter has loved leopard sharks for as long as she could point at the water. So one day we went looking for a documentary about them.

We found one. One. On YouTube.

It was Rewilding Sharks, the story of a baby leopard shark named Myra and the scientists helping her kind find their way home to the reefs of Indonesia.

We watched it together. When it ended, she looked up at me and asked:

"Mommy, what can we do to save the leopard sharks?"

I didn't have a good answer. So we're finding out, together, one episode at a time.

Now it's a whole-family project. Her dad is her biggest cheerleader. Her sisters are the first audience for every idea. And she's the one leading the way.

She dreams of dancing ballet and studying the ocean at UC San Diego someday. We want her to know her questions matter, and that her dreams are worth building something for. We'd love for your family to come with us.

We believe the ocean is a gift. Taking care of it is one way we say thank you.

From our family to yours

With thanks to Rewilding Sharks (directed by Melissa Godin, Kraken Films) and to the ReShark scientists bringing leopard sharks back to Raja Ampat. Myra's kind lives on coral reefs across the Indo-Pacific. Ellie's kind lives right here in San Diego. Two different sharks with the same name, and Cleo loves them both.

Why her name is Ellie

Ellie is named for Ellen Browning Scripps (1836 to 1932), who helped bring ocean science, a pier and a children's beach to La Jolla.

  • She helped found an ocean science institute in La Jolla, and helped pay for its first public aquarium.
  • The long pier you can see from the Shores carries her name.
  • She gave La Jolla the Children's Pool, so kids had a safe place to swim.
  • She helped protect Torrey Pines.

In one of the first episodes, Cleo finds out who Ellie is named after.

A tribute only. Project CLEO isn't affiliated with Scripps or UC San Diego.

Sources: City of San Diego · American Association of Immunologists

Updates for grown-ups

For parents, grandparents and teachers. We'll email when the first episode, free printables and the book are ready.

Shop, coming soon

The first two things we're making. No checkout yet. Just a heads-up when they're ready.

In the works

The Project CLEO picture book

Cleo and Ellie's first story, sized for bedtime.

In the works

The Ellie plush

Soft, sandy and spotted, with the little heart-shaped mark on her side.

Follow along @projectcleoshow

Art, real leopard shark facts and printables, made for grown-ups.