Why a media company behind ‘Young David’ wants to see a robust Christian kids TV economy
Before the release of the Angel Original feature-length film “David” in 2025, there’s a prequel kids show coming to town and it’s called “Young David.”
“Young David” is a five-episode animated series about the life of David “as a young teenage shepherd — with lyre, slingshot and sheep for friends,” a press release for the show sent to the Deseret News said. “Warrior,” “King,” “Shepherd,” “Poet” and “Worshipper” are the titles of each of the episodes.
Minno, Slingshot Productions, Angel Studios and Sunrise Animation Studios will release the show “Young David” on Nov. 10. It’ll be available to watch on both Minno Kids streaming service and the Angel App. Members of the Angel Guild will have early access starting on Nov. 3.
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Creatives who have experience working at Sony, Disney, DreamWorks, Pixar and other big Hollywood studios teamed up to make this series, the press release stated.
“The ‘Young David’ series takes the quality of animated Biblical series to a level audiences haven’t seen before. It gives a tiny glimpse into the quality of the upcoming ‘David’ feature film,” Jeffrey Harmon, CCO of Angel Studios said. “We are honored to partner with Minno, a company that shares our mission to amplify light.”
Ahead of the release of “Young David,” the Deseret News interviewed Minno CEO and co-founder Erick Goss to talk about the upcoming release and what Goss’ vision is for the future of Christian kids entertainment.
The company Minno is a streaming service that is working with studios to create original content for Christian kids. It all started when Goss saw “a huge gap in the marketplace for Christian children’s entertainment.”
“My vision was ‘what could we do to create a company, an institution that could basically create an economy around children’s media,” Goss told me. One of the goals he had was to give Christian creators who want to make content from a Christian perspective the space and opportunity to do so.
The company is interested in making values-driven content that tells stories “from a biblical and Christian point of view.”
“We put a process in place where we’re vetting, we’re working closer with creatives. And oftentimes within children’s media, because you don’t have that infrastructure, a creative will make something without giving any kind of constructive feedback” Goss explained.
The structure Minno has in place to vet content and ensure that it meets the company’s narrative, quality and values goals. Their work on the creative side and their work to think about frameworks kids will learn from the shows makes the company unique, Goss believes.
As Minno organized itself as a company, the idea for “Young David” came along.
Excluding Veggie Tales , Goss said there’s not a lot of high-quality, popular Christian kids entertainment. Minno thought “Young David” could be “a breakthrough project” and could also “elevate the perspective of children’s media.”
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“The story of David is an amazing story, especially when you think about it in regards to how he did grow up to be a man after God’s heart,” he continued. “There’s a really rich storytelling opportunity and that’s why we got so excited about ‘Young David.’”
It isn’t the only project the company is excited about — Goss said. The “Laugh and Grow Bible for Kids” original series is transposing a kids’ bible onto the screen.
Minno’s content creation and curation is targeted specifically toward kids, which Goss believes is a market that has a supply and distribution probably.
“There’s an audience there,” he said, explaining how “The Chosen,” “Veggie Tales” and other shows has proven the viability of an audience. “The key is there isn’t enough supply of really high-quality content for the purpose of demonstrating that the market is active and it can be served well.”
In a decade from now, Goss would like to see Minno as part of a thriving economy around Christian entertainment and a robust catalogue of shows and movies.
“I would love to see there be a robust economy around children’s media. I’d love to see there be easy distribution — that people actually know there’s Christian children’s entertainment available and they know where to access it,” he said. “And I would love to see that available globally.”
“Young David” will release on Nov. 10. The trailer is available below.
