In a bid to further address the burgeoning, albeit underserved Latino kids’ market, Exile Content Studio has tapped Stephen Davis, former executive VP and chief content officer of Hasbro, for the position of Chairman of Exile Kids.
Davis, who has been advising Exile since he retired from Hasbro about a year ago, will be working with the Exile team to identify and scale global franchises for the Latin American studio across original IP, acquisitions, licensing and merchandising.
The award-winning producer and entertainment executive oversaw the creation and production of some of the most successful television, film and consumer products-driven franchises in the international arena. These include the multi-billion dollar “Transformers” franchise, “GI Joe,” “My Little Pony,” “Dungeons and Dragons,” “Power Rangers,” “Taylor Swift: Journey to Fearless” and “Monopoly” among many others.
“We feel so privileged that someone of Davis’ scale and stature has come to work with us,” said Exile Content CEO, Alejandro Uribe, who added: “Beyond being an incredible executive, he’s an incredible human being.”
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Davis’ appointment by Exile Content Studio signals its robust commitment to the Spanish-speaking kids market. In the U.S. alone, Latino youth represent the nation’s largest, and youngest, minority group. According to a Congressional study titled ‘The Economic State of the Latino Community in America,’ “the Latino population is younger than the overall U.S. population; The median age of Hispanics is 29 years old—almost 10 years younger than that of the overall population.
It also pointed out that “the Latino share of babies born in the United States is expected to increase, raising the percentage of Latinos as a total share of the U.S. population.” Demographers predict that by 2050, one third of all U.S. children will be Latino.
In Latin America, a study by Aaron O Neill on age distribution in the region reveals that “in 2020, around 23.88% of the population of Latin America & Caribbean was between 0 and 14 years old, 67.15% was between 15 and 64 and 8.97% was 65 years old and over.”
“We realized that there was an outsized growth opportunity in the kids space,” said Uribe who notes that the networks that have aired Exile Content’s “Club Mundo Kids,” launched in April, have reported positive ratings and audience size increases. Led by bi-lingual host Romina Puga, the educational series of 16 episodes that combine live action, puppetry and animation, launched this year in the U.S. (NBC’s Universo), Mexico (Televisa), Venezuela (Venevision), Colombia (Señal Colombia), El Salvador (TVS), Panama (TVN) and Guatemala (TIGO). It’s also streaming on Amazon Prime Video.
Exile Content has also acquired the rights and is developing a live action series based on Spain’s “Charlie Brown,” “Manolito Gafotas.”
It has in development a slate of seven animated series with A-list talent as voice actors and original music.
“The company is in a unique position to identify the underserved brands as well as the talent behind them and to really understand from a regional, cultural perspective how to create a bigger, creative footprint that can be commercialized,” said Davis who also pointed out the broader acceptance of language across the spectrum.
“In terms of broad consumer acceptance of storytelling from outside their borders, that’s never been higher than it is today,” he asserted, adding: “So that’s what positions Exile so smartly because it understands the region so well and the connections that it has.”
