Grom Social Enterprises, Inc.’s Hollywood-based original storytelling division, Curiosity Ink Media, today announced that it has enlisted the diverse writing and producing talents of animation veteran Dustin Ellis (Mixed Nutz, Babak and Friends: A First Norooz) to further its expanding roster of original properties. Ellis will commence his duties by working on two original animated series recently unveiled by Curiosity: Aloha Hoku and Laugh on Lorp (working title, formerly Laugh on Lorb). The appointment of Ellis was made today by Russell Hicks, Chief Content Officer of Curiosity Ink Media.
Ellis will oversee writing and development for select original story-telling IP for Curiosity, which is dedicated to the creation and development of premium kids and family entertainment. Founded in 2017 by former long-time Nickelodeon executive Hicks, celebrated advertising executive Brent Watts and toy/marketing/production executive, Jared Wolfson, Curiosity aims to serve content-starved programmers around the globe with premium, multiplatform content expressed through theatrical distribution, TV series for linear and streaming programming providers, as well as publishing and licensing. Grom acquired a majority stake in Curiosity Ink Media in 2021.
“Dustin brings a unique understanding of animated storytelling, and we are in awe of his considerable talents,” explains Hicks. “Partnering with Dustin on Aloha Hoku, a gentle animated series about a young girl who blends Hawaii’s stunning beauty with positive messaging through song, and Laugh on Lorp, which follows a junior high student abducted by aliens who think he’s Oprah Winfrey, should give everyone a good idea of his considerable range. From all of us at Curiosity and Grom, welcome, Dustin!”
Along with actor/comedian Maz Jobrani, Ellis is co-creator of Laugh on Lorp, an animated sitcom centered on an aspiring teenage comic who is mistakenly abducted by aliens who believe he is Oprah Winfrey. Ellis reunites with Jobrani after an earlier collaboration on the PBS multicultural animated series, Mixed Nutz, which Ellis wrote, directed and co-produced. He also co-created and developed Curiosity’s new animated preschool musical series Aloha Hoku, with Jody Kamisato and Honoka Katayama, based on YouTube sensation Katayama’s celebrated blend of ukulele music.
Ellis began his career as an animation writer/producer for Warner Bros. Animation, Nickelodeon Animation Studios and Universal Cartoons. In 2005, he and his wife wrote and produced the direct-to-DVD cartoon, Babak and Friends: A First Norooz, a special about the Persian holiday similar in format to A Charlie Brown Christmas. The ground-breaking show starred several well-known Persian actors, including Shoreh Agdashloo and Catherine Bell, and sold over 20,000 copies in limited distribution. Critically acclaimed and covered extensively by the media, the special was screened at the British Museum in London and Washington D.C.’s Smithsonian Institution.
As a result of the positive reception for A First Norooz, Ellis spun-off the characters into the series Mixed Nutz, featuring a multi-cultural cast of children learning about each other. The series was a labor of love for Ellis, who is from a multi-cultural background, with an Iranian Muslim mother, an American Christian father and an Iranian Jewish wife.
Ellis is also co-founder of Cross Cultural Expressions, a non-profit organization whose goals are to promote cultural understanding and dialog through therapy, education and the arts. The group works closely with immigrants, refugees and underserved minority populations, such as the Iranian LGBTQ+ community, children and the elderly.
