Longtime weathercaster Al Roker (yes, from NBC's "Today" show) was at the Bentonville Film Festival this week promoting his new animated series designed to teach kids about weather, offering up a sneak peek to an audience on Tuesday.

Why it matters: "Weather Hunters," which premieres on PBS on Sept. 8, will explore the wonder of weather and the science behind it, Roker told Axios on Monday. Once you understand how something works, you're less afraid of it, he said.

The big picture: The Bentonville Film Festival, founded by actor Geena Davis, draws celebrities and film and TV industry professionals to NWA. The festival is in its 11th year, emphasizing the elevation of underrepresented groups in front of and behind the camera.

• "I think the programming for the Bentonville Film Fest is something that's trusted," Roker said. "People come to expect a certain quality and caliber, so I was thrilled when we were asked to do this."

Zoom in: The show is about a fictional family, Al and Dot Hunter and their three children, who are weather hunters. The family moves into Al Hunter's grandfather's house after his grandfather passes away.

• The fictional grandfather was a weatherman after coming home from World War II and serving as a meteorologist for the real-life Tuskegee Airmen, a group of African American pilots in the war.
• "There was a cadre of meteorologists who forecast for the Tuskegee Airmen because they couldn't get enough white meteorologists to forecast for them, so they had a number of Black forecasters," Roker said.

What they're saying: "I play Al Hunter, a TV weatherman," Roker said. "He happens to be bald and African American and better-looking than me, but he wears glasses."

• The show will explore everyday phenomena like dew and fog plus atypical weather like pink snow.

How it happened: Roker wanted to combine his fascination with weather and love of animation to create a show that educates and entertains kids as well as their parents and caregivers, he told Axios.

• He had the idea nearly 20 years ago, when his children were the same ages as the fictional children in the series.

Zoom out: During a conversation with TV critic Sharronda Williams at Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, Roker called PBS the most trusted source of children's programming and said it's important for educational public programming to remain part of the country's media landscape.

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Passengers boarded planes nearly 118,000 times at Northwest Arkansas National Airport in May, a new one-month record.

The big picture: The airport topped 1 million for the first time in 2024 as area population growth drives demand for both business and leisure air travel.

What they're saying: "It speaks to the energy of the Northwest Arkansas region and the vital role XNA plays in keeping it connected. People are choosing to travel, and they're choosing to do it from their local airport," XNA CEO Aaron Burkes said in a news release.

• "It's also a clear reminder that continued planning and investment will be essential to keep up with this kind of demand."

State of play: A $36 million terminal renovation and air traffic control tower project is underway at the airport.

• More than $20 million was recently awarded by the state to help pay for the upgrades.

By the numbers: May's 117,821 enplanements surpassed the previous record of 109,923 set in October.

• More than 473,000 enplanements occurred at XNA during the first five months of the year, about 41% of last year's total.

What we're watching: Screenings through the TSA checkpoint so far in June are up nearly 16% over June 2024.

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Convicted murderer, Grant Hardin, pleaded not guilty to the charge of second-degree escape from a law enforcement facility. (KNWA)

• He walked out of Calico Rock prison on May 27 wearing a makeshift law enforcement uniform and sparked a manhunt lasting nearly two weeks.

💸 Bentonville paused filling 17 vacant jobs this week following a presentation showing the city is projected to fall $18 million short of its 2% sales tax budget. (Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette)

🌳 The Fayetteville School District presented to the city's Environmental Action Committee some of its plans to build the new Woodland Jr. High School with sustainability in mind, including retaining 25-30% of the existing tree canopy. (Fayetteville Flyer)

• The site is the largest combined undeveloped land inside the city limits.

Juneteenth is on Thursday. It became a federal holiday in 2021 and commemorates the day in 1865 when enslaved people in Galveston, Texas, learned President Abraham Lincoln had signed the Emancipation Proclamation two years earlier. Here's how to learn more about the holiday and celebrate in NWA.

Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art the Phi Alpha Omega Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority is celebrating with kid-friendly activities and gallery talks throughout the permanent collection focusing on Black history. 11am-4pm Thursday. Free.

Freedom Festival, hosted by Music Moves and The Community Cohesion Project Foundation, includes a market and live music starting at 2pm Saturday at Luther George Park in Springdale throughout the night. Free.

The University of Arkansas and the NWA Juneteenth Planning Committee will host a free event with live music, games and activities from 1-5pm Saturday at the University of Arkansas Gardens on South Razorback Road in Fayetteville.

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