Lion Forge, the U.S.-based animation studio behind Oscar-winning short Hair Love, has announced a new partnership with Folktellers Studios to develop and produce entertainment history toon Hero’s Journey The Series. The project will bring the stories of Black artists who rose to fame amid racial segregation in the U.S.
The series retraces the route of the nationwide “Chitlin Circuit” toured by Black artists, musicians and comedians from the 1930s-60s. Through the eyes of an emcee named Theophilus George Odell, viewers will discover the origins of legends like Jimi Hendrix, The Jackson 5, BB King, Ike and Tina Turner, Little Richard, Aretha Franklin, Redd Foxx and Richard Pryor, from the fan-packed juke joints and theaters of the Circuit to international acclaim.
Lion Forge, formerly Lion Forge Animation, will oversee animation development and production under recently appointed President & CCO Stephanie Sperber, who joined the studio to help guide its expansion to live action after stepping down as President of Imagine Kids+Family in March. She reports to Lion Forge CEO & Founder David Steward II and to COO Edward Hamati.
Hero’s Journey The Series marks the second announced collaboration between Lion Forge and Folktellers. Last year, the companies announced they were teaming up for an animated series adaptation of Excerpts from an Unknown Guidebook, the award-winning middle-grade fantasy book series created by Folktellers co-founder Josef Bastian. The Detroit-based studio is co-founded by writer and tech innovator Stephen Sadler.
[source: TBI]
