Meredith Roberts Reflects On What To Expect From Disney Television Animation After 40th Years And 100 Shows.
Kicking off a panel called “40 Years of Disney Television Animation: Past, Present and Future” at Annecy Festival, Disney Television Animation’s Executive Vice President and CEO, Meredith Roberts, made several big announcements on the panel she mentioned what to expect from the studio on the future.
The landscape of TV is changing, whether it's live-action or animated, but Meredith Roberts gave a positive outlook on what fans can expect from Disney Television Animation’s future.
"The division is boldly entering new territory, with projects in development in genres that Disney Television Animation has yet to explore"
"The rise of streaming has shifted the focus of our projects to content focused less on kids and more on co-viewing between kids and parents" aka Young Adult animation
She also hinted that future strategies will try to meet kids where they’re consuming content, which includes gaming and web-based content.
"Things have certainly come a long way since Adventures of the Gummi Bears, but with new content from Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Prep & Landing, Phineas and Ferb, and The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder, it’s an exciting time to be a Disney Television Animation fan."
Congrats to Disney Television Animation CEO and VP of Animation At Disney Branded Television Meredith Roberts for being featured in Cartoon Brew’s 2024 Animation Power List.
Much like Ayo Davis, Roberts has been one of the key executives behind the current biggest slate of talent at Disney Television Animation for new series, movies, specials as well expanding the studio to new heights with original preschool shows ("RoboGobo," Tiny Trailblazers"," Dusty Dupree"), original series ("StuGo", "Cookies And Milk"), YA Animation (""Rhona Who Lives By The River", "The Witchverse", "InterCats", "Neon Galaxy"", "Fantasy Sports"), specials ("Prep & Landing: The Snowball Protocol"), Movies ("SupeFudge", "The School For Sensitive Souls","Confessions Of An Imaginary Friend") and reboots of the studio's iconic brands ("The Proud Family: Louder And Prouder", "Phineas And Ferb" revival, "Mickey Mouse Clubhouse 2.0", "Sofia The First: Royal Magic", "La Familia Avenúñez", "Darkwing Duck", "TaleSpin", "Recess")
Brew recognizes Roberts as a champion leader in animation with hits like Big City Greens, Kiff, The Proud Family: Louder And Prouder, Primos, Hamster & Gretel and upcoming projects like StuGo, the Phineas and Ferb revival, Prep & Landing: The Snowball Protocol and a NDA project by Noah Z. Jones.
Congrats To Ayo Davis, CEO of Disney Branded Television & VP of Current & Development Disney Television Animation for being featured on The Hollywood Reporter 50 Most Powerful Players in Kids Entertaiment
Davis has been one of the key executives behind the current biggest slate of talent at Disney Television Animation for new series, movies, specials as well expanding the studio to new heights with original preschool shows ("RoboGobo," Tiny Trailblazers"," Dusty Dupree"), original series ("StuGo", "Cookies And Milk"), YA Animation (""Rhona Who Lives By The River", "The Witchverse", "InterCats", "Neon Galaxy"", "Fantasy Sports"), specials ("Prep & Landing: The Snowball Protocol"), Movies ("SupeFudge", "The School For Sensitive Souls","Confessions Of An Imaginary Friend") and reboots of the studio's iconic brands ("The Proud Family: Louder And Prouder", "Phineas And Ferb" revival, "Mickey Mouse Clubhouse 2.0", "Sofia The First: Royal Magic","La Familia Avenúñez", "Darkwing Duck", "TaleSpin", "Recess")
Variety Interviews Ayo Davis, Meredith Roberts And Emily Hart On Disney Television Animation's 40th Anniversary And What To Expect On From The Past, Present And Future
40 years ago, Disney TVA was founded on the heels of challenging outcomes with features “The Fox and the Hound” and “The Black Cauldron.”
Initially, Disney TVA was restricted from using established Disney legacy characters, but nevertheless had huge successes with new shows like “The Wuzzles” and “Adventures of the Gummi Bears,” both of which became popular in syndication. As time went on, DTVA was able to use its limited rights to create shows like “DuckTales” and “TaleSpin,” which featured Disney characters. Today, the slate has evolved to include shows that travel across Disney’s streaming, linear and digital platforms, including Disney+, Disney Channel, Disney Junior and the Disney Parks
Over the 40 years of the studio has collaborated with Walt Disney Imagineering to bring beloved Disney Afternoon characters to the parks as well Mickey And Minnie's Runaway Railway and AquaMouse for the Disney Wish and Disney Treasure cruises from the Disney Cruise & Ships Line as well collaborating with Disney Yellow Two Shoes Team to redesing some heritage characters for the WDW Passholder Magnets.
Disney TVA characters also have gone to the realm of live action. In 2019 Disney Channel brought Kim Possible to the live action world as a Disney Channel Original Movie in 2019. In Spring 2022, Walt Disney Studios brought Chip 'n Dale: Rescue Rangers to a new generation of fans trought a meta-driven live action/animated hybrid film which won an Primetime Emmy Award for Best Feature Film.
In April 2024, it was announced that Kiara from The Lion King II: Simba's Pride created at Disney TVA will make her live action debut on the motion capture/computer animated film "Mufasa The Lion King" with the character being voiced by Blue Ivy Carter. In Fall 2023, it was announced that Blumhouse Television and Atomic Monster where developing a live action reboot of Gargoyles for Disney+.
The future of the studio looks bright as the studio is slated to debut it's 100th show overall "StuGo" in 2025, as well new interations of beloved classics like The Proud Family, Phineas And Ferb, Sofia The First and Darkwing Duck trought revivals,reboots and spin-offs in the coming years with early talks of new interations of TaleSpin, Kim Possible and Recess since Early 2023.
“We have a wildly diverse development slate because we don’t have a house style,” says Meredith Roberts, executive vice president, television animation, Disney Branded Television and CEO of Disney Television Animation “Our styles are creator-driven, so that allows for real support of the artist or creator to fulfill his or her vision. Anything is possible, whether it's CGI. (“Monsters at Work”), hand-drawn 2D (“Big City Greens”,"Primos","Hailey's On It!"), rig-based 2D (“Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur”,"Kiff") and stop-motion (“Mickey Saves Christmas”,"Rhona Who Lives By The River".).
Roberts continues, “We really try and solve all the problems and develop it. We look at the scripts and the story arcs. Every project has to have a strategy behind it that will complement the slate and separate it from other things. Each project has a distinct swim lane to attract an audience. And we’ve learned to meet the kids where they are, in terms of streaming and YouTube.”
Co-viewing, the viewership that happens when adults sit down to watch a DTVA show with the kids in their lives, is part of the studio’s secret sauce and long-term strategy. Many of the shows are written with jokes and plot points for both audiences so both groups will return.
“We double down on the kids and family space,” says Roberts. “We’re not just dipping a toe in the water. We’re diving in. I think we’ve seen a lot of churn with the competition, who just don’t have the patience to develop and are for this audience, which is a very specialized kid audience and co-view audience.” ("The Witchverse", "Rhona Who Lives By The River","InterCats","Fantasy Sports")
Roberts reflects: “I think one of the things I’m most proud of is how stable Disney TVA has been for the last 40 years despite a lot of outside churn of the animation industry. Many of our crews feel that Disney is their forever home. I think the excitement they have to illustrate and create with this brand has been terrific because it’s harder to be funny and clean. And nowhere are we tearing down people to get that laugh. I think that’s the beauty of a Disney animated show.”
DTVA also sought to meet kids where they are by making their audience — which is made up of the most diverse generation in history — feel seen, with series such as “Elena of Avalor,” which featured Disney’s first Latina princess, and “The Proud Family,” franchise focused on the life of a teenage Black girl.
“We do have an amazing insights team that are constantly in the field, giving us general information about how kids are watching content, what they’re into,” Emily Hart (VP of Current and Development - Disney Junior) says. “Some of those things are evolving, as we know the ways kids consume content is changing. But there are some universal truths about kids, and it’s great to have that reinforced. Kids still like a lot of the same things that we like. So, there’s a combination that we’re always tracking with every new idea, and we do pilot testing. We get to sit down and talk about the content, and we invite our creators in so they can see the kids talking about it because they’re the audience and they’re the truest test of if the story is going to work.”
Ayo Davis, president of the Disney Branded Television and VP of Current and Development at Disney Television Animation says the division is a “driving force” for memorable kids and family entertainment.
“All of us at Disney Branded Television are so proud of the studio’s 40-year legacy as it continues to entertain future generations with shows like ‘Kiff,’ ‘Big City Greens’ and ‘Mickey Mouse Clubhouse 2.0" --- Davis says.
Those creators who come to DTVA often stay for a long time, partnering with the studio on a variety of different projects or expanding on a hit and reimagining it for the next generation of viewers. “The Proud Family” was a standout in 2001 on Disney Channel. Creator and executive producer Bruce W. Smith is now working on the Emmy-winning “The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder,” which is based on the original series. The show follows Penny Proud as she navigates family life and her own childhood.
“Being at Disney TVA has allowed me to realize all my artistic dreams,” says Bruce W. Smith. “As a kid, you always have hopes, thoughts, dreams, ideas and characters that can help lay out those ideas in your head. Disney has allowed me to really tap into my creative instinct, at the end of the day, you have to learn how to trust yourself. Meredith Roberts has been a true shepherd for me in all of this, allowing me to stretch my wings. Because of her belief in me and my ideas, she’s really allowed me to blossom as an artist. All that happened at DTVA.”
“They really seem to be a place that welcomes your ideas,” Dan Povenmire says of Disney TVA. “They want to find people with real strong ideas of the stories they want to tell, and then they let them tell those stories for the most part. They seem to put storytelling and characters over anything. With [‘Phineas and Ferb’], we would write jokes for the kids and the adults in the room because we knew the adults would be there too. We were just careful not to do any double entendres.”
Facebook Meta Interviews Baobab Studios CEO Maureen Fan Where She Gives Small Update On The Witchverse And InterCats.
Facebook Meta interviewed Baobab Studios CEO Maureen Fan, during the interview Fan confirmed that "THE WITCHVERSE" and "INTERCATS" are still happening and are coming to Disney+
That’s very interesting. So what are your thoughts—I’m curious about the current transition we’re seeing from fully immersive VR to these more hybrid mixed reality experiences. Is that a space that you’re interested in exploring? Do you think you’ll stick with fully immersive VR and then also the non-VR adaptations that you mentioned, the books, the comics, games, and films? I’m just curious how you’re thinking about that?
MF: A lot of the projects that we’re doing right now start off as one medium and move to another. For example, Momoguro was a line of Roblox games and now it’s a TV show. And Baba Yaga was originally an Oculus exclusive, and then now, it’s a TV series with Disney+.
Oh, cool. I hadn’t heard that.
MF: Yeah, we’re really excited. We’re turning it into a witch anthology series—like the world of witches. And then Intercats, we originated that as a graphic novel series with Macmillan, and now it’s becoming a TV show at Disney+.
It's that time of the year again, Disney Television Animation's Festival international du film d'animation d'Annecy is next week to kick off #DisneyTVA40
Time for the annual sequence, what do you expect to be revealed? reminder to keep expectations low with the current state of the animation industry.
Disney Television Animation was founded 39 years ago, the studio has one year left for it's 40th anniversary and 100th animated series debut ("STUGO" created by Ryan Gillis")
The studio has 65 creators with currently 25 artist, animators and showrunners developing new shows and films. The studio wil also introduce new interations of it's beloved legacy properties like "Darkwing Duck" & "TaleSpin" in association with Point Grey Pictures (Nickelodeon Movies "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem", Walt Disney Studios "Figment"), additionaly reboots for "Recess", "Mickey Mouse Clubhouse" and a revival of "Phineas And Ferb" are set for the upcoming years.
The studio also has a feature film slate with upcoming films like "Big City Greens: The Movie" (2024), other feature film projects at the studio include the musical animated comedy "The School For Sensitive Souls", an animated adaptation of the "SuperFudge" novel in collaboration with The Russo Brothers production company AGBO, a animated adaptation of the book "Confessions Of An Imaginary Friend" is also being planned.
In 2024, as part of the studio's upcoming 40th anniversary Disney Publishing Worldwide & Disney Editions will launch The Disney Afternoon: The Making of a Television Renaissance, In December 2024, the studio will open it's lastest collaboration with Walt Disney Imagineering "Aqua Mouse: Curse of the Golden Egg" set to open with the upcoming "Disney Treasure" cruise.
