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Claw Control

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Welcome Aboard the S.S. FableVision

Strap in and set sail on the S.S. FableVision during this summer vacation! To help your children continue learning once school’s out, FableVision picked a few pieces from our portfolio to bring you and your child on an all-expenses-paid cruise from the comfort of your home.

Through these pieces, your kids will travel throughout the galaxy, exploring Georgia with Savannah, playing at the GASHA GO! Arcade, and more. With pieces for a variety of ages, there’s sure to be a stop for you and your child to visit and enjoy! 

GASHA GO! Arcade

First stop as you board the ship – visit the GASHA GO! Arcade on the S.S. FableVision and assist the Gashlings in their adventures.

Created for Georgia Public Broadcasting in its goal to provide a computer science curriculum for underrepresented students, the GASHA GO! World is full of playful and imaginative creatures who come alive at night to build toys. 

In Bubble Build, kids learn numeracy and literacy by helping Mash and his friends solve math problems to refill the toy capsules in the empty machine. 

Claw Control helps players practice resiliency, persistence, and grit as they help the Gashlings organize their tasks to efficiently create arcade toys. 

Play the games and watch the animated shorts about Gashlings for free on Georgia Public Broadcasting’s website!

Pinna Original Yes No Audio

Travel can be unpredictable. Find yourself trapped in a haunted house, sinking ship, or the Marshmallow Dream Forest in the Pinna Original Yes No Audio adventures.

Created by audiyo-yo, FableVision’s podcast division, this is an interactive audio experience that lets listeners drive the narrative and create their own adventure. By answering yes-or-no questions, explorers are led through the story, choosing their own path. They have five minutes to escape, or else they’re stuck in the story forever!

Pinna Original Yes No Audio is available through Pinna’s website with a subscription or a 7-day-free trial.

So Few of Me Animated Storybook 

Stop by a meadow with beautiful flowers where you can follow Leo as he struggles to deal with his overscheduled life and learns the importance of leisure time. In this Vooks animated storybook of Peter. H Reynolds’ So Few of Me, Reynolds invites us to include “time to dream” on our to-do lists throughout busy summer vacations and daily chores. 

The animated storybook, along with the rest of Vooks’ catalog, is available with a subscription.

Georgia Race Through Time 

Next, visit Georgia and time travel in Georgia Race Through Time with Savannah, an antiques collector. In this game created for Georgia Public Broadcasting, Savannah and her trusty canine companion Peaches follow cryptic clues that take them to locations throughout Georgia. Bonus: Savannah has a special gift to see back in time when she’s close to or touching a historical artifact. 

This game is available for free on Georgia Public Broadcasting’s website.

Zebra Penguin Skunk: Beach

It’s island time – visit the beach with Zebra, Penguin, and Skunk and get crafty with problem solving! The video, created by FableVision for Sesame Studios, a kids’ YouTube destination from the makers of Sesame Street, teaches children about friendship and ingenuity. The three black-and-white friends work together against the elements to build an elaborate sandcastle.

The short is available to watch on Sesame Street’s YouTube channel.

NoiseFilter Animated Video Series

Travel into the body with Dr. MarkAlain Dery and Dr. Eric Griggs (Doc Giggs), along with special guests Irma Thomas and Milan Nicole Sherry. 

FableVision and NoiseFilter collaborated in this animated series that supports NoiseFilter in its mission to reduce health disparities and achieve health equity. The timely videos demystify how vaccines work and how variants evolve, the science behind clinical trials, and Hepatitis C and HIV education.

All videos are available for free on NoiseFilter's website.

Discover SCIENCE Videos

Check in with friends Drew and Nia throughout your travels and continue to learn about the human body!

To help bring preventative health activities to children and families, Children’s National Hospital (CNH) partnered with FableVision for animated shorts featuring two tweens who met at CNH. The videos aim to destigmatize topics on how bodies work by focusing on blood, germs, mucus, digestion, sleep, and stress. 

All videos in this series are available on CNH's YouTube. 

Cyberchase Fractions Quest

For your last stop, blast into space to learn about fractions with Cyberchase Fractions Quest! In this game created for PBS KIDS and based on Cyberchase, kids use their mathematical sequences and problem-solving skills to outsmart the villain Hacker, who captured the CyberSquad. 

Cyberchase Fractions Quest is available through FableVision Games!

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June FableFriday: Jill Letteney, Producer

Jill Headshot

With an extensive background in project management and event coordination, FableVision Producer Jill Letteney brings her masterful organization skills to every project she works on. She ensures that everyone knows what’s going on and there’s no miscommunication between the client and the creative team. 

“It’s certainly a balancing act with creative and timeline – they are equally important on all of our projects,” says Producer Jill Letteney. “I throw a lot into planning and scheduling in the initial stages, planning backward to ensure that we can meet deadlines.”

Read the FableFriday to learn more about Jill’s favorite type of work, most rewarding part of producing, and love of museums.

What’s your “journey to FableVision” story?
My introduction to FableVision came quite some time ago from former Developer Erin Carvalho. I remember her telling me about the animation and games she developed from a studio housed in the same building as the Boston Children’s Museum.

Years later, once my kids went back to learning in school, I expressed interest in freelance work and Executive Producer Peter Stidwill reached out about producing a short animation for the National Action Alliance. I had the best time working that summer with the FableVision team and felt a tremendous sense of accomplishment when we completed the project. I knew I wanted to do more. When FableVision offered me another animation project, I jumped at the chance and I’ve been happy to work alongside such creative, fun professionals ever since.

Kiawah Island

You have an extensive background in project management and event coordination. How did you transition to production?
Project management has been at the core of every job I’ve held. No matter the role, special projects and events pop up, and I’m happy to take on coordinating. Transitioning to production was easy since it involves scope, scheduling, planning backward from a deadline, and breaking large tasks into smaller ones. At FableVision, I know who to turn to if I run into obstacles. Troubleshooting issues can be fun and productive when you are working with the right people.

What type of projects do you like to work on?
I really enjoy animation and seeing the components of a story unfold over time. There are so many little details that we have to think about when it comes to character designs, backgrounds, and story. It’s like assembling a vibrant, moving puzzle. 

I also like producing live-action projects, from getting to know the crew to working on set. We recently filmed a series of videos where we put in a lot of hours to get everything shot in two days, but it was a lot of fun. And the studio we partnered with, Sound and Vision Media, featured us on their Facebook and YouTube pages.

Cliffs of Moher

How do you work with other team members to produce the best possible projects?
I try to stay as organized as possible so team members have access to everything they need to do their best work, like art assets, script copies, brand guidelines, storyboards, and schedules. I work to facilitate communication between clients and project team members so people aren’t spending time shuffling through various communication tools. It’s a challenge to tell a story or deliver information in short form and I’m always amazed at how effortlessly our artists, writers, and developers can work to pull it all together.

How do you balance the creative and timeline on complex projects?
I’ll share a high-level schedule with our clients so they know where we are throughout the project. I try to schedule meeting time with team members before we enter a new phase, like design, animation, or development, so we can discuss our project goals, assess existing work, and address any concerns or potential conflicts. 

Once I’ve established a solid structure for the project and we know our direction, it’s easy to let the artists take charge of their work. And I’m never disappointed with the quality and quantity of work they put out. I truly believe we have some exceptional talent here!

What are the most challenging or the most rewarding parts about being a producer?
The most challenging part is keeping track of the moving pieces as we near a deadline. Fortunately, we use tools like Basecamp, Slack, and Trello so I know where we stand. I also work with fantastic production assistants who jump in to support so I can focus my energy where it’s needed. And without a doubt, the most rewarding part is hearing and seeing how happy our clients are at the end of a project. When they return later with new work, I get all of the good feelings again.

What advice do you have for aspiring producers?
Don’t overlook your creative intuition! Trust your gut and speak up when you notice something – that will help streamline the projects and bring them to their fullest potential. 

You’re involved with several Harvard groups! Can you talk about your work with Harvard Square Script Writers and Harvardwood?
These writing groups kept me connected with people and the outside world during the pandemic! Screenwriting is such a craft – I admire writers who can tell a meaningful, visual story in just 90 pages. Depending on my schedule, I try to review one or two scripts per month, providing notes and feedback to help writers craft more realistic characters and dialogue. I’ve read some amazing work and I always leave these meetings inspired to write and collaborate. Fortunately, I can carry that into my work with FableVision. It’s a great feeling to have my hobbies inform my professional life and vice versa.

We heard you’re a big fan of museums – tell us more!
I love museums – they’re the first thing I want to see when I travel somewhere new. When my dad moved to Philadelphia, he and I visited four museums in two days. As an undergraduate student, I studied Classics and Historical Linguistics and spent a lot of time at the MFA deciphering funerary inscriptions in Latin and Etruscan. Then I got my graduate degree in Museum Studies and worked closely with the MFA Boston, Harvard Museum of Ancient Near East, and the Brooklyn Museum on various research projects.

Museums are responsible for so much when it comes to their audiences: quality content, meeting educational goals, and online and in-person accessibility, among others. Exhibition design has similar processes to multimedia production, except I don’t have to handle fragile, ancient artifacts.

More About Jill

Favorite show?
Mad Men! I’ve rewatched the entire series five times and always discover something new. My husband bought me the box set recently so now I’m enjoying the director’s commentaries.

Favorite game to play with your kids?
Mario Kart – I used to be able to beat them. I’ve also been playing a lot of FableVision games with them recently, like Echo Explorers, Bubble Build, Claw Control, and Lights, Camera, Budget!, to prepare for new projects. It’s fun to see what attracts their eye in games and they give me very honest feedback when it comes to what they like and what they don’t like.

Favorite holiday?
My grandfather’s birthday was March 17, so St. Patrick’s Day was a big deal for my family. We celebrate every year with a parade, live music, food, crafts, games, and prizes. I basically start planning right after Christmas because it gives me something to look forward to in the spring.

Favorite band?
I love Radiohead but I haven’t seen them perform live yet. :(

A Jill fun fact that most people don’t know?
My cousin Dillon and I inspired a children's song: “Jillian Dillon (The Hippoplatypus).” (For the record, I am neither part hippo nor platypus, but I hope to see each in their native habitats one day).

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May FableFriday: Erik Laats, Junior Developer

Erik's Headshot

Erik Laats’ keen eye for design and game-building background provide him with the perfect combination of skills to develop FableVision’s projects. After working for a startup in Boston and an advertising agency across the globe in Sydney, he came back to the east coast with revived gusto to pursue his passion of creating games and interactives. Erik approaches his projects with accessibility in mind, to ensure that all users have a fun experience. 

“Everyone has a unique perspective, and I love designing and developing to accommodate ranging technical backgrounds, generational differences, and cognitive and physical disabilities,” says Erik. “The best designed experiences are ones that transcend these divisions.”

Read on to learn more about Erik’s typical day as a junior developer, his TikTok-famous pet, and his range of active and calming hobbies.

Erik Sydney

What’s your “journey to FableVision” story?
I have long been interested in animation and illustration and I was immediately drawn to FableVision’s clear affinity for beautiful, hand-drawn artwork during my senior year at UC Davis. Digging deeper, I was thrilled to find the company primarily built games and interactives with an educational bent – another interest of mine.

After a few months of email badgering, former Technical Director Brian Grossman agreed to speak with me. While I had an interest in developing games and websites, my experience was primarily in design, so FableVision decided to go with Nathan Wentworth, and I was left to continue my job search.

With a little luck, I found myself as the designer in a tiny software startup (then SYRG, now HourWork) in Boston. At such a small company, I had plenty of opportunities to help the developer team, so I pitched in whenever I could. Between these moments and a few personal game projects, I grew my confidence in technical work.

In 2019, my partner and I moved to Australia, and I found a position as a “creative technologist” at a trendy advertising agency in Sydney. It was the perfect hybrid of technical and creative work, providing me with a great chance to expand my technical abilities with my design background.

Upon returning to the United States once the pandemic began, Brian put me in touch with Jordan Bach, our current technical director, who was looking for new freelancers. After freelancing for about six months, I joined FableVision as a full-time junior developer!

What’s a typical day like for a junior developer?
I like to start the day by taking the cat for a walk and doing The Mini Crossword. Once that’s taken care of, I’ll dive right in on my current project. I am usually scheduled for one or two projects over the course of a week, so I’ll spend my morning crunching through new features or handling thoughtful client feedback.

Most days are broken up by a few client meetings, which are a nice break from the code editor. I’ll work closely with the producer or other team members to make a development plan to accommodate client requests. In the quiet moments, I like to investigate new technologies and fiddle with prototypes. If I can, I try to sneak any interesting things I’ve learned into current projects.

How does your experience in design help you create projects at FableVision?
Design and development form a symbiotic circle – one cannot exist without the other. While designing, it is useful to consider the limitations of the technology you’ll be using so you can make informed decisions. Conversely, when developing based on a design, it’s common to stumble across an edge case or some design question that wasn’t caught in the design phase. I do my best to solve these problems on my own, keep the development moving forward, and ensure the project stays on track.

Screenshot from Michael’s Flowers, a game created by Erik.

How have you approached accessibility in games and why is doing so important?
While technical accessibility – which includes things like screen reader and keyboard usability – is super important, I am also interested in exploring accessibility in a broader sense. Is this generally easy to use? Is it easy to find? Will someone with no prior knowledge be able to enjoy and understand this? I try to keep different perspectives in mind to create the most effective experiences.

What have been some of your favorite FableVision projects?
I loved working on Keenville, created in partnership with the Georgia Department of Education (GaDOE) and Georgia Center for Assessment, because it was exciting to be on a team with developers for a large, technical project. Keenville closely embodies why I was drawn to FableVision – beyond the technical challenge, it strives to build its own imaginative universe, complete with a comprehensive world, dozens of games, and a sense of agency. I would love to see this package expand.

I also like the GASHA GO! World games from Georgia Public Broadcasting. I worked on Claw Control, which was a perfectly sized project that allowed me to take ownership of it. The huge emphasis on art and creative design led to clever interfaces that joined them together successfully in the program.

What do you hope to work on in the future at the studio?
I would love to work on a larger-scale, narrative-driven Unity game, with an emphasis on storytelling and relevant player decisions. I find these types of games very compelling, and I enjoy the challenge of building a game that accounts for player agency. These are fun to create from both a development and design perspective, especially if the game needs to be educational, too. The last FableVision project like this that comes to mind is Wanderlight.

You enjoy creating your own games and comics! What’s a side project you’re currently working on and from where do you draw your inspiration?
In my college days, one of my biggest hobbies was playing Super Smash Bros. Melee competitively. My school had a big tournament scene and people met weekly to host brackets, watch events, and hang out. It was amazing to be a part of a passionate community and inspiring to see the positive effect an old video game could have on people. While I still play for fun and go to the occasional tournament, Melee is more on the back burner these days. It will always be important to me and a foundational part of why I love making games. 

Recently, I've been drawing inspiration from my cat, Winston. He’s so ridiculous that it’s hard not to imagine him as a silly protagonist in a comic or a game. Since he loves cinnamon, in my latest project, players use their fingers to draw lines of cinnamon in the sky. Winston follows those lines on a skateboard and the goal is to reunite him with his three best friends – cow, ham bone, and donut (his favorite toys). It’s a prototype right now, but someday I hope to finish it. A while back, I made an idle game where Winston fishes and then stops to play his Nintendo Switch. The player has to tell him to fish again.

As a present for my partner, I wrote a dozen or so comics about Winston. They depict some key moments, including his adoption, our daily interactions, and when he gets too hot.

Speaking of Winston – tell us more about him!
When we adopted him from a shelter in 2020, he was a skinny and scrawny 6-month-old kitten with a biting problem. He’s since filled out nicely into a full-grown adult menace! Like all cats, he’s got some quirks, and my partner built a big following on TikTok around his love for cinnamon. I don’t want to out Winston, but he’ll snuggle anything… although cinnamon is definitely his favorite! 

He’s not the brightest bulb, but he loves to play and go on walks and nature hikes. It’s hard to get him out of the door sometimes, but he’s great at coming home to the food – he’ll run all the way back with his ears down. 

What are some of your hobbies?
When I started working, I took up rock climbing to combat sitting in an office. It’s fun to risk life and limb, jumping from rock to rock, feeling alive! I’m unable to think about anything else at that time, so I have no choice but to stop worrying and being stressed out. It’s a fun escape.

Since the pandemic, I’ve also started paying more attention to birds. While birding may have a lame reputation, it’s a useful way to stay present. No matter where you are, you can step outside and listen to the birds. I’ve slowly learned how different birds look and sound, and it is so satisfying when something flies by that you recognize. 

More About Erik

Bird

A picture of a cardinal taken by Erik.

Favorite game? Super Smash Bros. Melee – I’ve been playing it since I was six. A close second would be Undertale. 

Favorite Pokémon? That’s tough. The child in me says Lugia, but I also like Surskit, he’s a cutie.

Favorite bird? The green heron. They don’t look like your typical herons – they’re still hunters, they hide in the weeds, and wait for hours. It’s my goal this summer to get a nice picture of one.

An Erik fun fact that most people don’t know? When I was 10 years old, I jumped off the swing and “obliterated both of my arms at once,” as my doctor said. That was a defining moment for me and it took me about a year to recover. I had to serve spaghetti at a school fundraiser with my two enormous casts.

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