Lion Forge Partners with Folktellers Studios

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Lion Forge Entertainment (Hair Love) has teamed with Folktellers Studios to develop and produce an animated show based on Hero’s Journey The Series.

The series explores many Black artists’ rise to fame by following the “Chitlin Circuit,” a tour route of juke joints and theaters that spread across the U.S. from the 1930s through the 1960s. Through the eyes of the circuit emcee, it tells the origin stories of Jimi Hendrix, The Jackson 5, BB King, Ike and Tina Turner and more.

Other musicians it tells the stories of are Little Richard, Aretha Franklin, Redd Foxx and Richard Pryor. Lion Forge will oversee the development and production of the animated adaptation.

This is the second collaboration between Lion Forge and Folktellers, as the two are also developing and producing an animated show based on Josef Bastian’s Excerpts from an Unknown Guidebook series.

“We could not be more excited to work with Lion Forge on this project,” said Stephen Sadley, executive producer from Folktellers Studios. “We are about to embark on a journey through time, to unearth numerous stories that have never been told before. This series is a vibrant combination of adventure, music, and history that will engage audiences both young and old.”

Lion Forge Entertainment’s founder, David Steward II, added, “At Lion Forge, we pride ourselves in telling the stories of the underrepresented, while bringing exciting and diverse entertainment to the world. The Hero’s Journey The Series franchise does just that, resurrecting the lives and music of black artists, who had to struggle through a very turbulent time in our collective history. We have found the perfect partner in Folktellers Studios to bring these stories to life.”