Bright Little Labs selects two series to develop from early career creatives

Warner Bros Discovery-backed kids’ media company Bright Little Labs in the UK has selected two submissions from its Ventures programme that it plans to develop into series.

Kenton Thomas

Founded in 2015 by CEO Sophie Deen, Bright Little Labs produces content and products with a focus on inclusive role models and learning-inspired adventures, aiming to teach children modern digital skills like computer science, coding and critical thinking.

Over the summer it ran its Ventures programme, which aimed to find new children’s media IP from early career creatives. Bright Little Labs received over 300 submissions across six weeks and has now selected the first two projects.

The first comes from Kenton Thomas and is called Duppy Village. A modern take on West Indian folklore, it follows a 14-year-old girl as she is taken from her mundane life and thrust into a supernatural quest.

When her grandma becomes ill, she learns that the women in her family carry an ancient duty ¬– to keep their world and the spiritual world separate and to stop malevolent spirits from escaping and wreaking havoc.

Young Park

Yorkshire-born Thomas is an actor and playwright. His latest short film Imagine if Black Boys Just Smiled at Each Other was funded by Channel 4 in the UK and will be released later this year. He was inspired by his grandmother’s stories and her childhood in Jamaica.

The second series to be selected is called Hey Yenny Han and comes from Young Park. Based on Park’s childhood in LA’s Koreatown where his mother ran a clothing shop, the show is set in the fictional Gem Plaza, a melting pot of small businesses run by first- and second-generation immigrants from all over the world.

Every storefront is a window into a different culture stocked with colourful characters as well as unusual objects and unique traditions creating meaningful new ways to learn and play.

Park is founder of Park Star Media, a prodco based in LA and Seoul. He recently worked on digital-first series SuperBlinks, a coproduction with Canada’s WildBrain.

“The level of talent and creativity has been exceptional. There have been some really standout ideas that feel totally unique and this process has served as a brilliant opportunity to build relationships with creators from around the world. We are really excited to have made our first selections and hopeful there are still more to come,” said Deen.