CAKE & ‘The Boys’ prodco Kickstart hire Disney alum to lead new firm

The Boys

UK-based kids outfit CAKE has partnered with Kickstart Entertainment, the prodco behind Amazon’s drama The Boys, on a new venture that is to be led by a former Disney exec.

CakeStart is described as a full-service production company that will develop and produce kids and family live-action projects for the global market.

Kory Lunsford

It is being headed up by Kory Lunsford, the former head of current & VP of original series at Disney Branded Television, who has been named president and partner at the new firm.

Lunsford developed and produced an array of IP at Disney, including Hannah Montana, Wizards Of Waverly and High School Musical: The Musical: The Series, while working with talent such as Miley Cyrus, Selena Gomez, Hilary Duff and Zendaya.

The deal will bring together Kickstart’s live action expertise on shows such as AMC’s Preacher with CAKE’s production and distribution experience on IP including Angelo Rules, Total Drama and Angry Birds: Summer Madness.

CakeStart will have studio operating capabilities across four countries, including soundstages in the US, while the UK-based company’s sales division will handle global distribution.

Pablo

Kickstart founder & CEO Jason Netter said the deal would “give us the foundation to grow our ability to create and exploit global live action content in the kids and family space.”

Ed Galton CEO at CAKE, added: “We’ve seen a growing demand for live action content from all over the world and are excited to be partnering with Kickstart and Kory whose expertise and reputation as one of the most seasoned veterans in the industry, brings significant fire power to the growth of this business.”

Kickstart was founded in 1999 and works on animation and live-action programming, with offices in Vancouver, LA, Arkansas, Toronto, Hong Kong and China.

CAKE’s production slate includes Angry Birds: Summer Madness for Netflix and Space Chickens In Space with Anima Estudios for Disney, while its sales division sells more than 800 hours globally including CBeebies series Pablo.