‘Sheep In The Big City’ Creator And Caldecott-Winning Writer Mo Willems Launches Hidden Pigeon Company

Emmy and Caldecott-winning kids and family writer Mo Willems (Sesame Street, Codename: Kids Next Door, Sheep in the Big City) has teamed with longtime ally Stampede Ventures and new partner Redbird Capital Partners to launch Hidden Pigeon Company (HPC).

HPC is a multiplatform kids and family content company that will lean on Willems’ catalog of kid’s books and intellectual property to create content for tv, film, digital, gaming, live events, publishing, consumer products, and more.

Hidden Pigeon Company Details:

• Kathy Franklin has been appointed as CEO at HPC. She joins the company from Lightstorm Entertainment where she served as president of franchise development for nearly 12 years.
• The foundation of HPC is an extension of an existing relationship between Willems and Stampede. But for private investment firm Redbird, the new partnership represents an expansion into the kids and family entertainment sector. According to a release, the company is backing the endeavor with a significant financial investment.
• HPC will house a new publishing imprint called Specific House, which is partnering with publisher Unions Square & Co. to distribute a new adult-aimed comedy book Be the Bus – The Lost & Profound Wisdom of The Pigeon, recent NYT bestseller The Pigeon Will Ride the Roller Coaster!, and the upcoming book Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Sleigh!
• In a release, Willems said: “The Hidden Pigeon Company takes its name from how kids and former kids delight in finding The Pigeon hidden in every one of my books. It is my hope to create a similar bit of surprise and delight in the fabric of everything we make or do. I am thrilled to have found wonderful collaborative partners to make that hope a reality.”

• Chris Bosco, Stampede Ventures’ president added: “The launch of Hidden Pigeon Company with Redbird is our opportunity to bring the full range of Mo’s creative genius into one entity crafted to expand the impact of his work. Redbird’s extensive experience will be critical in HPC’s long-term success, and we are thrilled to have their support and partnership.”
• Redbird founder and managing partner Gerry Cardinale added: “The creation of HPC is consistent with Redbird’s broader media investment thesis of acquiring best-in-class IP and scaling its scope of impact and commercialization. Our goal is to help this new company and partnership transform the traditional kids and family entertainment landscape and the way audiences experience Mo’s stories.”

Cartoon Brew’s View: Willems has more than 30 years of experience as a writer in the kids and family space, both for film and tv and in books. He’s a bonafide star in the kids and family literature space, and HPC will certainly serve to grow his profile even more as he brings his brands to new mediums.