The original version of script was about two warring ant kingdoms and was rooted in a much more

insect-based world. However, one day Michael O'Malley was on a walk and kept seeing all these squirrels playing, running, and chasing each other. And the idea just popped into his head for the character of Kaia. The idea for Marigold shortly followed and the rest of the world just kind of fell into place.

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The Official Adventures of Kaia the Squirrel was inspired by fantasy stories like Red Wall and the Secret of Nimh. It also aims to create a new backyard mythology, including lessons about invasive species. The Emerald Ash Sorcerer’s design is based on the Emerald Ash Borer beetle which is an invasive

species in the Midwest areas.

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Recorded in a closet that we converted into a sound booth. We screwed moving blankets into the walls

and because of it’s irregular shape, size, and heavy door, it works very well as a sound booth.

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Michael O'Malley the writer and creator and Angie Gawel the lead concept artist and animator, have known each other for over 10 years. They met through tabletop gaming.

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Leo and Molly Torres were very excited to be brought onto the creative team of Kaia as Directors for the voice acting and animation. The world created by Michael O'Malley is impressive and reminded Leo a lot of the majestic fantasy tales of Tolken and others but with an added element of education for the kiddos. We will continue to update as more progress is made in this nine episode series.