Joyce Miller & Rob Doherty Board The Greatest Gift: The Wrong Hat

Industry veterans Joyce Miller and Rob Doherty have joined Cloud 10 Studios’ Christmas special The Greatest Gift: The Wrong Hat as executive producers.

Miller, who has overseen over 150 animated productions and previously held roles at Netflix, Spin Master Entertainment and Disneytoon Studios, and Doherty, who has over 30 years of experience and formerly held positions at Aardman, Disney, ITV and CAKE, will work alongside Tracey Dispensa, Cloud 10’s CEO, to bring the special to a wider audience and build it into a franchise.

Gary Trousdale (Beauty and the Beast, The Hunchback of Notre Dame) is the director of the 22-minute special, and Floyd Norman (Mulan, The Hunchback of Notre Dame) is the character designer and creative consultant.

In the special, the ornaments come alive with Christmas spirit. To the outside world, the Christmas trees are just trees, with no idea that the ornaments are busy behind the scenes, keeping the magic of the holiday bright. When a mishap threatens to dim the holiday sparkly, a brand-new dinosaur ornament sets out on a quest to find his missing hat and prove himself. Along the way, he discovers that the true Christmas magic isn’t about perfection—it’s about courage, friendship and the spirit that holds it all together.

A feature film and TV series are already in funded development, along with more holiday specials.

Cloud 10 is also rolling out a licensing merchandising program for the brand. The first deal is with Lionel Trains, and the two companies are working to bring the film’s Cloud 10-themed train to life. An immersive show and live event are also being developed.

“Ever since myself and Gary met and worked together at DreamWorks, it has been our dream to create and produce our own original film,” Dispensa said. “Floyd’s imagination and vision has helped bring it to life. We believe The Greatest Gift has all the ingredients to become an evergreen franchise, and we could not be prouder of our first holiday special. We are genuinely delighted to bring Joyce and Rob on board to augment the Cloud 10 team. Their caliber, contacts, knowledge and track record in the international TV and film industry will enable us to take our film to a wider global audience.

“We’re excited to announce that the train featured in our new animated film is none other than a classic Lionel toy train. A timeless symbol of imagination and adventure, the Lionel train brings a special kind of magic to our story. We believe its rich history and iconic design will spark a sense of wonder in audiences of all ages.”