Burlingame, CA (January 31, 2024) – Baobab Studios, the ten-time Emmy award-winning interactive animation studio, and 9 Story Media Group, the kids and family content powerhouse, announced a partnership to co-produce and launch a new television series for Baobab Studios’ Momoguro game-based property. The success of Baobab’s line of Momoguro Roblox games, which garnered worldwide fandom with over 21 million visits and an 87% positivity score, have attracted demand for a television series for children 6 – 12 years old.
Baobab Studios and 9 Story Media Group will leverage their award-winning creative, development and production experience along with 9 Story’s established distribution, financing, and merchandising business.
The Momoguro franchise was created by Baobab Studios, in collaboration with industry-recognized creators Martin Allais & Nico Casavecchia and developed for television and games by Baobab Studios. Baobab also launched the Momoguro digital collectibles game, the first of its kind to be nominated for an Emmy Award. Momoguro’s fantastical universe features contrasting creatures who use the magical power of Momoguro to fuse together, forming powerful beings, greater than the sum of their parts—but only if they can work together.
“We’re delighted that Momoguro’s characters and universal theme of ‘stronger together’ has resonated with global audiences and gained such popularity with the family audience on Roblox. Our fans have told us it evokes the childhood nostalgia of Pokémon meeting Voltron,” said Maureen Fan, CEO and co-founder of Baobab Studios. “We feel there is no better partner to grow this universe independently than with 9 Story, known worldwide for scaling hit children’s programs through licensing and distribution across every major TV market.”
“We are thrilled to partner with the talented team at Baobab to bring Momoguro to new audiences as our first Roblox to TV IP,” said Vince Commisso, President & CEO of 9 Story. “Momoguro is a fresh take on the hero genre, set in a rich world where two kids, born on opposing sides of an age-old feud, find a deep connection through self-expression. Just like the game, our heroes find themselves at the heart of a societal transformation that will put the power in the hands of kids.”
Today’s news builds on Baobab’s track record of creating original IP for cutting-edge platforms and expanding franchises across media. The company recently announced two Disney+ series: The Witchverse, a fantasy action-adventure universe based on Baba Yaga, the three-time Emmy-winning interactive VR experience and short film; as well as Intercats, a cat workplace comedy based on the studio’s graphic novel series with First Second Books / Macmillan.
9 Story Media Group is a global leader in all aspects of children’s media, including development, production, distribution, and brand management. The company recently announced a significant multi-project development, production co-financing and licensing deal with Crayola Studios and was ranked Top Ten on the Kidscreen Hot50 across Distribution, Licensing, Production and Digital Media, including #1 in the Distribution category. Recent and upcoming series include Open Season: Call of Nature (Discovery Latam, Wildbrain Canada), Dee & Friends in Oz (Netflix), Lu & The Bally Bunch (Warner Bros. Discovery US, Latam and EMEA, CBC Kids), and A Kind of Spark Season 2 (BBC, CBC Kids and BYUtv).
About Baobab Studios
Building on its leading position of being at the intersection of film and games, ten-time Emmy-Winning Baobab Studios founded by Maureen Fan, Eric Darnell, and Larry Cutler, is the world’s leading independent interactive animation studio. Maureen was previously VP of games at Zynga overseeing the Farmville franchise, and Eric was Director/Writer of Antz and all four films in the Madagascar franchise. Named Fast Company’s 2018 Most Innovative Company, its award winning works (traditional, VR, and AR) have been viewed millions of times and have starred diverse talents such as John Legend, Oprah, Kate Winslet, Jennifer Hudson, Glenn Close, Daisy Ridley, Constance Wu, Diego Luna, Liza Koshy, Tye Sheridan, Elizabeth Banks, Ethan Hawke, Lupita Nyong’o, Ali Wong and Edward Norton. The studio’s IP is currently being adapted into books (MacMillan, Penguin Random House), film (Roth/Kirsch, Disney), original series with the premium streamers, and games.
Website: https://www.baobabstudios.com/
About 9 Story Media Group
9 Story Media Group is a leading creator, producer, and distributor of kids and family-focused intellectual property. Its Oscar®- nominated animation studio, Brown Bag Films has won numerous awards including 19 Emmys®, 21 Kidscreen, and 2 Peabody’s, and produced best-in-class brands such as Doc McStuffins, Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood, Octonauts, Ada Twist, Scientist, and Blue’s Clues & You. The company’s international distribution arm, 9 Story Distribution International based in Dublin, represents 4,400 half-hours of animated and live-action programming, seen on some of the most respected international channels and platforms. Its in-house consumer products division, 9 Story Brands, builds international entertainment brands for kids, with expertise across creative, brand marketing, and licensing. 9 Story’s Creative Affairs Group creates, develops, and produces award-winning branded properties using groundbreaking formative research. With facilities in Toronto, Dublin, New York and Bali, 9 Story Media Group employs over 1000 creative and corporate staff.
