Madagascar Creator’s Studio: How Baobab Builds IP Across Games & TV

Why do most studios struggle to build IP across games, film, and TV? For more Leaderspeak episodes click here : https://vitrina.ai/category/leaderspeak/ Inside how Baobab Studios tests ideas in VR and Roblox before scaling them into global franchises. In this episode of LeaderSpeak, Larry Cutler (Co-Founder & CTO at Baobab Studios) breaks down how a 10-time Emmy-winning animation studio is building original IP and taking it across games, VR, film, TV, and publishing. Drawing from experience at Pixar and DreamWorks, he explains why creating and owning IP is central to long-term value — and how Baobab structures its teams and processes to make transmedia storytelling work. He shares how projects like Mamaguro scaled from an NFT launch into a Roblox hit with millions of players and is now being developed as a TV show, and how Baba Yaga evolved from a VR experience featuring Daisy Ridley and Jennifer Hudson into a Disney+ anthology series. The conversation also explores how Baobab uses rapid testing on platforms like VR and Roblox to validate ideas before committing to longer production cycles in film and television. Key topics covered: Why original IP ownership is core to Baobab’s strategy How VR and Roblox act as fast testing grounds for new franchises The challenge of building transmedia storytelling as a startup Structuring teams across film, games, and publishing divisions Lessons from Pixar and DreamWorks on IP value creation How generative AI is changing animation workflows and iteration speed A must-watch for producers, studio executives, and creators building IP across film, games, and emerging platforms. Larry Cutler is Co-Founder and CTO of Baobab Studios, a 10-time Emmy Award-winning animation studio. He previously worked at Pixar on films like Toy Story 2, A Bug’s Life, and Monsters, Inc., and led character technology at DreamWorks. Baobab creates original IP across film, TV, games, and publishing, with projects in development with partners like Disney+ and Netflix. Chapters: 00:00 Introduction 00:01 Baobab Studios origin and vision 00:04 Building original IP and transmedia strategy 00:08 From VR to Roblox to TV: Mamaguro example 00:12 Baba Yaga: VR to Disney+ pipeline 00:15 Structuring film, games, and publishing divisions 00:18 Lessons from Pixar and DreamWorks 00:22 Why audience testing matters across platforms 00:25 Building franchises across mediums 00:29 Company journey: VR phase to transmedia expansion 00:33 COVID impact and remote production 00:37 Current projects: Disney+, Netflix, books, games 00:41 Partnerships with tech, AI, and game studios 00:45 Generative AI in animation workflows 00:51 YouTube strategy and data-driven IP testing 00:56 Future of transmedia storytelling Vitrina AI turns data from 360,000+ companies, 5M+ professionals, and 1.6M+ titles into actionable intelligence for the global media & entertainment industry. Find the right partners, back the right projects, and enter the right markets. 🔗 Explore Vitrina AI: https://vitrina.ai 📺 Subscribe for weekly M&E intelligence:    / @vitrinaai   🎙️ LeaderSpeak | Spotlight Series | Inside the Deal — new episodes every week. #FilmFinancing #AnimationStudio #ContentStrategy