
--
LA-based United Media Capital, LLC, (United Media) announced today it has formed a joint venture fund with Pigmental Studios, LLC ( Pigmental Studios ) of Hollywood & Washington, D.C., and the Santa Monica, CA-based United Independents Group, LLC ( United Independents Group ) for the purpose of co-financing a slate of upcoming animated and live action films. The first film to be financed by the new fund will be Household Pests, written by Sergio Pablos, the co-creator of Despicable Me.
Pablos, of SPA Studios, along with Marina Martins of Pigmental Studios, will jointly produce the new film, along with Dennis Lorrig, Robert Rodriguez, George Malasek and John Cole. Managing Partners for United Media Capital will Executive Produce the slate of new projects. Leading the financing team for the initial two productions will be United Media Capital managing partners John Cole, COO, and George Malasek, Co-CEO. The deal was brokered between Marina Martins of Pigmental/United Independents Group, and United Media Capital.
Household Pests, based on an original idea from Pablos, follows an imaginative boy, Cole, who battles monsters under his bed every night, while his mother refuses to believe that they exist. It takes Jeb Dee, an undercover monster exterminator, to help Cole save the town.
Concurrently, the fund will also invest in a second animated project - Mean Margaret - based on the popular children's book of the same name. That film is being produced by Jay Ahn ( The Nut Job and The Nut Job 2 ) and Chris Henderson ( Return to Neverland, ) with Chuck Williams ( Brother Bear ) managing the creative for Astro-Nomical Entertainment LLC, a new studio from Ahn/Henderson.
Barry Cook ( Mulan ) directed the original development of the Mean Margaret project, with character designs by Carter Gooderich ( Finding Nemo. ) Winner of the National Book Award for Young People's Literature, Mean Margaret was originally published in English, German, Dutch and Italian, and, more recently, has also been published in Chinese and Korean.
The storyline for Mean Margaret : Fred, a meticulous, confirmed-bachelor woodchuck, has his seemingly perfect life turned upside-down when terrible two-year-old human baby, Margaret, is left behind by her preoccupied, trailer-dwelling family.
Pre-production for both Household Pests and Mean Margaret take place at both Pigmental's Studio offices in Washington, D.C., and in Los Angeles, in collaboration with Astro-Nomical Entertainment LLC, also in LA.
Prolific independent entertainment studio IM Global, a subsidiary of Indian conglomerate Reliance ADA, will handle international sales for Household Pests.
Pigmental CEO and Co-Founder Marina Martins said, With the recent acquisitions and mergers going on the industry today, there exists a space in the animation world for features which apply the tenant of story, story, story.' It was through storytelling that Pixar has been so successful at establishing itself above the norm, and excelling in a market so long dominated by studio fare. Pigmental's focus is that relentless pursuit of getting the story right, without compromise and without sacrifice, for the establishment of branded content. This goal would be unachievable without the extraordinary talent that has gathered here to form and finance the Pigmental team.
Jay Ahn adds, I am thrilled to be engaged with this prestigious media fund for Mean Margaret,' a fresh, funny, and very emotional movie that family members of all ages across the world will certainly enjoy.
United Media Capital's George Malasek said, We are pleased to be joining forces with such an industry reputable studio and an established co-financing group for these kinds of highly entertaining projects. Collectively, we bring a lot to the table, and I am thrilled to help bring these exciting new animated projects to a global audience.
About Pigmental Animation:
Pigmental Animation is an animation studio and development company specializing in creating branded, franchised animated content with defined multiple revenue mediums and purpose. The creative team is compact and effective, with experienced, disciplined, talented personnel who have the proven ability to create iconic animated product and a fully array of merchandise for a worldwide market. The company is the brain-child of CEO and Founder Marina Martins, a seasoned entertainment executive who is known for creative and ground-breaking work in development, distribution and financing.
Pigmental Animation is based both in Hollywood and within a facility located on the Gallaudet campus in the heart of the Union Market District in Washington, DC. (in collaboration with the DC Office of Motion Picture & Television Development and the DC Office of Planning and Economic Development.) Pigmental is home to some of the best in class artists and technologists currently working in the animation entertainment industry today. Please see: http://www.pigmentalstudios.com
About United Independents Group, LLC:
United Independents Group was envisioned as an umbrella company to support the development, packaging, financing, production, distribution and marketing of quality independent feature films and TV in live action. The company has developed its own properties, and has also enjoined with seasoned producers and talent to collaborate, share resources, develop and produce independent features for theatrical release. United Independent Group is focused on the excellence of storytelling in its television and feature slate properties.
About United Media Capital:
Based in Newport Beach, CA, United Media Capital, LLC, is a media finance company that specializes in the investment and production of filmed and recorded entertainment, as well as the ownership of content distributed across multiple platform
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
09/11/2026
In a new home, the show had its traditional focus on music production, but broadcast themes received significant emphasis
The Audio Engineering Society (AES) c...
09/11/2026
Content creation and rights, YouTube archive, production workflows, investment, ...
09/11/2026
Industry leaders from Prime Video, NASCAR, FOX Sports, and more discuss the tech...
09/11/2026
SMT (SportsMEDIA Technology) is delivering on-air graphics and shot data for the Women's Team Golf League (WTGL), which made its debut Sunday, Nov. 8, at So...
09/11/2026
BKB Bare Knuckle Boxing has appointed Michael Ridout Managing Director, UK. He will lead BKB's operations in the United Kingdom and take on wider operationa...
09/11/2026
SMPTE's Media Technology Summit (MTS2026) takes place Nov. 16-19 at the Pasadena Convention Center. The schedule:
Media Tech Business Forum (Monday, Nov. 1...
09/11/2026
The Audio Engineering Society (AES) held AES Show Nashville 2026 Oct. 30-Nov. 1 at the Gaylord Opryland Resort & Convention Center. AES reports nearly 3,000 reg...
09/11/2026
Analyst Josh Stinehour will share results Jan. 26 in Mountain View, Calif.
Devo...
09/11/2026
Behind The Mic provides a roundup of recent news regarding on-air talent, includ...
09/11/2026
Permanent mixed-reality activation debuted against the Brooklyn Nets at Rocket A...
09/11/2026
The new agreement brings the Playoff to 23 games, including 16 on-campus matchup...
09/11/2026
SMT provided production technology and graphics support for all three NASCAR nat...
09/11/2026
Captures Nils Frahms upright concert grand
In their latest collaboration with composer Nils Frahm, Native Instruments have captured a vertical concert grand...
09/11/2026
18-19 November 2026, Sonic College, UC SYD, Kolding, Denmark
Sonic College have announced that their annual Sonic Days conference is set to return to Koldin...
09/11/2026
Cinematic scoring tool gains free entry-level version
Sonuscore's Elements range offers a free entry point into the company's line-up of scoring too...
09/11/2026
Rohde & Schwarz and ZES ZIMMER present test solutions for power systems and auto...
09/11/2026
The BBC and BritBox have announced further casting for the forthcoming six-part series Hercule from Mammoth Screen and Agatha Christie Limited for the BBC and B...
09/11/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
09/11/2026
Share
{alert(Link copied)}).catch(err => {console.error(Failed to copy: , err)}) data-platform=copy_link data-action= class=font-ui-heading py-2 text-sm tex...
09/11/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
09/11/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
09/11/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
09/11/2026
Berklee's Singers Showcase Celebrates Whitney Houston's Music and Her Go...
09/11/2026
Monday 9 November 2026
Life in the fast laneTurn on cookies to view this content. Go to Privacy options and select Accept All'.
Privacy options
From Tik...
09/11/2026
Monday 9 November 2026
Cathy Newman to revist defining moments in recent histor...
09/11/2026
Monday 9 November 2026
Sky VIP unwraps over one million free rewards for customers this Christmas
This Christmas, Sky VIP is giving away more than one million...
09/11/2026
When is a city green' and when is it a big polluter? As we approach COP 31, when country leaders from around the world meet to negotiate climate policies a...
09/11/2026
Focusrite Control 2 iOS and Android apps now support Scarlett 3rd Gen, Clarett ,...
09/11/2026
Korea's Ministry of Science and ICT and NVIDIA hosted the MSIT-NVIDIA AI Sta...
09/11/2026
Simulation, which has long been the proving ground for robots learning to walk, ...
08/11/2026
Updated modules & new Analyze function
Acon Digital's all-in-one restoration plug-in has just been updated, and now boasts an Analyze button that allows...
08/11/2026
Run analogue gear emulations on your GPU
AnalogX have released a new GPU-powered mixing ecosystem that's been designed to change how users handle analog...
08/11/2026
COW Jobs: Set and Production Design Expert - Remote
Brie Clayton November 8, 2026
0 Comments
Set and Production Design Expert (Remote, worldwide)
No...
08/11/2026
NVIDIA is releasing Dynamo-optimized deployment recipes for Korea's leading open models: A.X K2 from SK Telecom, K-EXAONE 2.0 from LG AI Research, Solar Ope...
08/11/2026
NVIDIA and Korea's Ministry of Science and ICT (MSIT) are expanding their collaboration across the country's sovereign AI ecosystem, from AI semiconduct...
08/11/2026
As AI agents take on more work, they need capable open models and security that advances alongside them.
Hyundai Motor Group is exploring NVIDIA NemoClaw bluep...
08/11/2026
Tapping into the country's strengths in manufacturing and engineering, NVIDIA is helping advance Korea's physical AI ecosystem.
The country's indu...
07/11/2026
Mix Analysis, improved Render window & new bundled instrument
The free version of Tracktion's DAW software has recently received an update that introduc...
07/11/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) is a statutory body established to promote and develop the South African film and video industry, including animat...
07/11/2026
NEW YORK - November 5, 2026 - An estimated 31.2 million people watched primetime coverage of the 2026 U.S. midterm elections on Tuesday, November 3, according t...
07/11/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
07/11/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
07/11/2026
COW Jobs: Production Manager - Las Cruces, NM
Brie Clayton November 6, 2026
0 Comments
Production Manager
November 5, 2026COW Jobs: Faith-Based UGC ...
06/11/2026
It's been a big week in Australia horse racing as the Victoria Racing Club (...
06/11/2026
Additional gear includes a second, outside drone; a second slo-mo unit; and a wi...
06/11/2026
The University of Alabama has installed a new Daktronics display system at Coleman Coliseum in Tuscaloosa. It includes a 360-degree centerhung with four underbe...
06/11/2026
NEP Americas, part of NEP Group, has expanded its remote production offering with new IP-based flypack production kits deployed from the U.S. and available to c...
06/11/2026
Telestream has appointed Joseph Hopkins Chief Revenue Officer. He has more than two decades of executive experience in media technology. In the role, he will fo...
06/11/2026
In-venue and creative video staffers at the professional and collegiate level ha...