LA Trip Ep. 7 Inside Curiosity Entertainment with Adhrucia Apana & Charles Allen

Chris: Welcome to, we Built This Brand. I'm your host, Chris Hill, and today we're talking to Arusha Aana and Charles Allen, the co-founders of Curiosity Entertainment and Storyteller Publishing.

Adhrucia: Yeah.

Chris: Excited to be talking to you on the other side of the, uh, I the month this time. Know

Adhrucia: it's been a beautiful day being able to co-host with you, Chris.

I know.

Chris: I feel like we finally got a, a rhythm going and then now I have to interview you separately and I'm like, what do I do? What do I do?

Adhrucia: Well, it's a pleasure to be here.

Chris: Absolutely. Pleasure to have you and Charles, pleasure to have you as well. So, um, yeah. You know, as, as we discuss a lot and we build this brand, I'm, I'm just all about diving in and finding about, out about where you started, where this came idea came from.

So we'd love to hear from you. Um, Arusha, like where did curiosity start?

Adhrucia: Yeah, so I've been in film and TV now for. Quite a few years and I always wanted to be able to tell original stories that would impact. And by impact, I mean, uh, make someone laugh, make someone cry. I think we forget in film and television and media specifically.

That the stories that we tell here in Hollywood, California or in Atlanta, Georgia or in New York, wherever you're shooting your film, those carry and have a a lifetime of touch points with consumers and they can really, for me, growing up as a first generation American film, film, and television really was something that taught me, it taught me how to flirt.

It taught me how to be powerful in a room. It taught me how to go after the job I wanted, and for so many. Uh, both Americans and, and people abroad. That's what film and TV is. It's something that teaches you culture. And so I think we have a responsibility to create stories that inspire, create stories and make people smile, create stories that change people at a resonance level and really encourage them to seize the day and sees their opportunity.

And that's what we're about. Um, a Curiosity Entertainment came because I was in brand for many years. And when I thought about what I wanted a media brand, if we were going to build, I'm a filmmaker first and foremost, and Charlie and I are screenwriters first and foremost. And when we think about what we wanna do, if we're creating a brand, I want a brand that people all relate to.

That cannot be my brand, can be their brand. And when I think of what the, what the, in the inception of every great story and every great idea is it starts with that spark of curiosity. And as a 5-year-old, I was a, and, and as an adult I am was and an am. And. We'll continue to be the most curious person in the room.

Always want to know why and how, and I think that that is where those questions are, where humanity gets its greatest stories. And so that's why it's called Curiosity Entertainment.

Chris: That is exciting. Um, and, and obviously this is something you've wanted to do for a while too. Like you didn't just start off, um.

You know, it didn't just come to you one day that you wanted to start Curiosity Entertainment, right? Like it's been a long journey.

Adhrucia: I wanted to make movies and I think that what we learn and what all artists should take the time to learn as filmmakers, as screenwriters, as actors, is that if you want to have longevity in this.

Storytelling industry. You have to understand the business. You can make stories to thank God that we live in a world today where you can make stories and you can put them out on TikTok or on YouTube and, and I, I encourage people to do so and you can monetize that storytelling. It's no longer this, this closed door system where to tell a story.

You have to go to a movie theater. You have all these avenues to tell. Stories and you should, I wish that I had had those, you know, opportunities when I first started out. It may have changed the trajectory of my, of my, my career, but when I started out, you know, you could make film and you could make tv.

And for me, as an artist who wanted to make film and TV and make. Music. Um, when I looked at the industry, I realized that you have to understand a business to be able to sell art into a business. And so Curiosity is an artist first company, and it was built for artists that. As a company that understands the business side and is therefore able to support them.

And so I don't know that my goal was to start a company or to to own it, but I think that my goal was to tell stories and to be able to tell stories sustainably until my eighties or my nineties. And that means creating, uh, a community, creating a brand, and creating a company that doesn't exist for me, but exists for the audiences that we serve.

Chris: So, Charles, what's your involvement here? When, when did you get, how did you meet Arusha and how did you get involved with this business?

Charles: Sure. So I am a storyteller at heart. Um, I started as a, a writer, an author. Um, I had my first, first book. It was a memoir. It was adapted into a, a film, uh, that got me started in sharing stories.

And since then I've, I've helped a lot of other people, um, publish their books. Um, I, I love empowering storytellers, whether it's through books or films or TV shows. And, uh, I met Arusha at an industry event. Uh, it was actually an event for Ted Lasso. Of all things Great, great, great show. It was great. And yeah, so we just connected, really hit it off and we've joined forces that was probably two and a half years ago.

Chris: Okay.

Adhrucia: I think for, for people who are in storytelling, it really shouldn't matter how you tell that story. And I had been fascinated with books and comic books and really being able to connect that to the vehicle, um, of film and the vehicle of television, how to do that. Seamlessly and how to help artists, um, and to help support them from one form to the other.

And Charles was instrumental in bringing those two worlds together. He has a deep history in publishing and has been both an author as well as worked in publishing and helping others publish books for a long time. And so together he both is a producer at Curiosity and a screenwriter, and we, we create and develop worlds.

Together, but we also were able through his background, to bring in the world of publishing books, a space that really needed to be disrupted Absolutely. And really needed to take care of his artists in a more meaningful way. And what we've created at Storyteller Publishing, which is our book Arm Under Curiosity Entertainment, is a infrastructure that does that just that puts the artists first and supports them from end to end throughout the story making process.

Chris: That is fascinating. And, um, it's always great when two people come together and see a similar vision and are able to, to make that into something together. Um, so where, where do you all see it? Um, you know, where do you all see it going? I mean, you all are working in this space. I'm not as familiar with television and movies and movie making as as you all are of course.

But, um, I'm just curious like where, where do you all see your, your industry going and, and especially with curiosity, where do you all see you going?

Adhrucia: Um, I think that, that there's, there's one thing that we all have to keep front and center, and that is that story. And, um, the story is still, the king IP is still king.

And so it's very easy in this world when there's constantly new tech coming into an ecosystem. There's constantly changes in the market. There's obviously world disasters are happening. They're affecting all the economies of all businesses, but we get distracted and we try to grab land, grab at different areas.

Just stay relevant. And I think what my message to storytellers is that the story is still always king. Create a great story and then build around it. Right? And we, we interviewed a couple people about how you build around that ip. I think that we are living in a world now where you, again. Have the access to infrastructure to take a story, and whether it's that you're talking about on a podcast, creating a podcast about it, whether it's putting it out on social media, in small form, in short form, so that you can gather audience around it, whether it's creating a comic book or a novel and putting that out.

There are so many ways. To build audience and community around a story, and that will always still be the most important thing. Whether you are using AI to execute that story, whether you're using a song to execute that story, whether you are using a movie to execute that story. The one thing that is needed if you wanna be in the business of entertainment is building community and building.

Audience around a piece of ip. It could be a song, could be a book, could be. And so start thinking about how do I authentically build community around the story that I want to tell? Yeah. And don't think inside of a box. There's no one way to do that. There's so many ways to do that now. So what feels most authentic to you?

To create that kind of momentum around and community around this? Story. 'cause really no matter where someone watches, reads, listens to that story, eventually that is gonna be the most important thing and it's gonna be the most meaningful thing to you as an artist.

Charles: And let the, the story be a conduit for human connection.

Adhrucia: Mm-hmm.

Charles: That's what it's really about. And yeah, on the the publishing side, we, we do the same thing We. Saw as as storytellers, as authors, as creators, we saw big gaps in the market. And the, the old model with traditional publishing, uh, really just exploits the authors a lot of times. Uh, very low, um, earning potential, very low alignment of interest.

So we flip the model upside down. We do offer, uh, traditional infrastructure. Through our partnership with McMillan and our partnership, uh, JV with, uh, gunner Entertainment, Matt Meny. Shout out Matt. And we offer authors the ability to still have that infrastructure while also um. Aligning interest more like self-publishing.

Mm-hmm. Uh, where it's still creating opportunities just like Arusha was speaking to, to actually engage with audiences, actually connect with fans, actually, um, have that human connection, that personal relationship with the readers.

Chris: Yeah. Yeah, I think, I think community building, you, you, I'm having flashbacks to previous interviews I've done where we've talked about building communities and how important that is for marketing, especially in the world of media.

Um, how challenging is that when you're doing an original property, maybe something that nobody has read before or something that nobody has heard of? Like how does that initial community get built?

Adhrucia: I, I think that it was challenging prior to the, the tech boom of, uh, YouTube and all the different social platforms.

I think that it becomes less challenging now. So prior to that, you know, people would, would go out and they would read books at bookstores. They would do. Re they, they would read their novels right before they came out. They would go on the road and they would go to Comic-Con and they would drum up support for their comic books.

They would go on the road and they would talk on different news, like on local news channels, about whatever the project was that they were trying to fundraise for, et cetera. And I think that that is just kind of collapsed. Collapsed in a good way, where now you have. So many touch points where digitally you can do these things and really build audience.

And I think the focus on building audience on original I, uh, piece of IP is your connection to that story. People love authentic authenticity. They love to understand why this story matters to you and people are, are, uh, natively. Compelled to, to root for people and the stories that they want to tell and their reason for telling it.

So I think it's really about getting over kind of this idea that, um, you know, there's only one way to get to building. An original story and start looking at all the different ways and the the mechanisms that are now available to you to build community around it. And it can start as if you're not someone who likes to be online or put your face online.

I think that you're missing a massive opportunity, but you know, that can happen by creating local. Group, like local groups, you could set local book clubs, local film books, explaining your story. Let them be the ingers your community, be the beringers of your story and building, um, that audience for it.

Charles: Authenticity, like in the age of ai. I think there's something really to be said for human authenticity, and that's why at both Curiosity and also at Storyteller Publishing, why we're an artist, first creator, first author, first company. Mm-hmm. Uh, to really create those opportunities for the artist, the creator, the author, to engage with people and.

Let that authenticity shine, because right now in the age of ai, you know, AI could write a book, but can it have a conversation with a person that's actually meaningful and can they share human history? No. No. In a relatable way. No. Uh, so yeah, it's really about. Yeah, that's the love of storytelling is how we all connect through it.

Chris: Yeah, I think that makes a lot of sense. And I mean ai, like for all it can write a book, it's not gonna write something that's as compelling as what a human can do. At least point. It can mimic, it can mimic and it can do its

Charles: best. But uh, I think, see Craig said it really well earlier that, uh, anytime you need specificity, that's when a human has to step in.

Right.

Chris: That's a great way to put it. So, you know, now as we talk, you know, Trisha, you're, you're also a bit of an influencer and she's, or at least, so it's been set. Um, how does personal branding come into growing your business, and how do you, how do you see your personal brand as, uh, maybe either a part of the brand you're currently building, a curiosity and or separate from that?

Adhrucia: Yeah, I think that there's a, you know. It's an interesting conversation that I haven't fully solved. I think that there is a lot of strength in going all in on a personal brand. People love to know the person that's behind something. They love to be invested in your story. They love to root for you. Um, and on the other side, if we look at a company like a 24 who is built.

Almost fully without the founders being faced forward and built on, on the side of community. I think there's something very powerful there and an existing Decatur for your fans. Um, and I don't know that there's a right way or a wrong way to do it. I'm curious as, as to if there, if there's a happy medium.

Right, and that's what I'm really trying to figure out right now is if there's a happy medium. I, I really deeply understand as an artist not wanting to necessarily be out there constantly talking about your product or your brand, et cetera, as artists like we love, well reason we. Storytelling is that we love to live within the story, within the characters, behind the characters.

That's like my real joy. That's my real, uh, I, I think like my, um, neutral, that's my neutral. That's like where I feel the best. Um, but the, but there is. A, a question now on whether you go in all in on our personal brand. I think that if you're not at least out there, putting yourself out there and speaking towards what you want and what you're doing, that you are doing a disservice to yourself because then someone else is always in control of your message or someone else is always, whether it's the media, whether it's the press, whether it's something goes wrong with your film, like who's in charge of, of that voice.

So I think. As artists, it's very important to have an a, a voice within your art. So I think it's a mistake not to lean into building some sort of personal brand, but I also understand fully the like, uh, division of personalities where the other part of me, you know, just wants. To be my art. And so I don't know that I fully solved it, but I do know that we are moving to a space that if you do not have your own audience in the next 10 years, it's gonna be very hard for you to sell your art, right?

And so, however you wanna build that audience and capture that audience, whether you use the company, whether you use your personal brand, do something to start capturing that audience and in a way where, where it's yours. So that means if you have an Instagram, make sure you have an email list. If you have a TikTok, make sure you're moving those consumers to something where you own that audience, right?

Chris: I, I think that's, I mean, that's honestly a lot of what, and I'm no influencer, but that's a lot of what I already tell people when we talk about building a podcast, building an audience, you know, like having control over that audience, having that, having that strength. And yeah, I mean, you know, you've gotta have some level of.

Followers before your show can actually really grow a lot of times. So I, I, we already see that in the podcast industry a lot where, you know, if you don't have a hundred thousand plus followers, I can't guarantee your show's gonna do anything. You know, I can say, Hey, you might get some traction here or there, or if we put out a press release and you get in the news, we might be able to grow.

But like without that personal brand, there, those numbers behind you of those followers who are invested in you like. It makes a huge difference. So,

Adhrucia: yeah, and I, I think that like, as someone who, again, like in my native state, I don't know that that's something I would naturally do. I love being on stage, I love doing, you know, doing things as a character, but to be yourself in front, I know that feels really ick to some people, right.

But. Outside of that, you need to look at the business markets and what's happening. We have an entire consumer base who are coming into their spending power right now, who grew up in a pandemic and grew up with first person attention from YouTubers, et cetera, and they are becoming the people who will buy your movie tickets and buy your TV shows and buy your books and buy your comic books in the next couple years, and they expect that personal connection.

Secondarily, you have a retraction of marketing dollars have. Right now. And so what, what happens when those dollars retract? Now you need to be the marketer of your own product. And so how are you going to market that if you haven't built it? And so even if we do, don't love it, even if it's not our favorite thing.

And it's not that the community and the audience and the people who are in my community aren't my favorite thing. They are my favorite thing. It's a, that feeling of like having to be everyone to experience the ick of being in front of a camera and trying to like sell your own product. I know that's not natural, but if you.

Want to be in an industry where you're, you're, you're gonna need to sell your art. And it could be an artist book, uh, writer of novels, writers of books, writers of comic books, singers, people who are actors. You need to be thinking about how you're capturing community because it's become invaluable in the next couple years.

Charles: Yeah, I, I would agree with all that. Um, both you on the, the technical side, I think on the either spiritual or emotional side, it really just comes down to this is who I am and this is how I share my gifts with the world. Yeah. And then the people find you, the people that, that relates to. They're like, Hey, I'm about that.

I love that. For whatever reason. Yeah.

Chris: And I, I think that's, I mean, that's a very important point too, because you do want to have, um, you do wanna be authentic in what you do because the minute you're not, people are gonna pick up on it. Like that influencer that recently got popular for his morning routine and then you find out his morning routine probably takes him most of the day to actually film and produce and create, and you're like, oh no, this isn't real.

Right. You know, and then he gets made fun of for it, right? Sure. Now he is made it a whole thing, but. It, it makes a difference. And then there's, you know, the challenge of um, you know, putting yourself out there mentally and emotionally is a big T in and of itself too.

Charles: Yeah. Usually those come back around when, when something is inauthentic or, you know, they put something out to project some kind of image it comes through.

Chris: Yeah. It does. It does indeed. So that's great. Well, awesome. Um, Arua Charles, it's been great having you all on. Thanks for having me. Normally at the end of these episodes, I like to ask, you know, what brand do you admire the most? Just as one you look up to as you grow your business. So, um, with that in mind, I'll ask both of you that question.

Arusha first,

Adhrucia: what brand do I love the most? Um. Yeah, so the thing that comes immediately to mind is Cheerios, and I don't actually eat Cheerios, but I have to say that like, uh. Growing up and when we think about brands that left an indelible mark on society, this is a brand that is equated with family.

It's equated with love, it's equated with bringing people together. And I think that anytime that you can as a brand, um, have that type of emotional investment from your audience, you've created true community. They do a lot of giving back to those communities. They do a lot of. Spreading the word about uh, people who, you know, who are their consumers, who maybe are going through tough times.

They were very focused on who their consumer is and how they better their consumer's life. And I think that that the mark of a best of. The best brands in the world is that, that it is, that they are tuned into who their consumer is and how they make their consumer's life better. And so that's what I hope to do with anything that I put my, my mark on.

And I think that, yeah, that, that sticks out to me as a brand that's really stood, stood the test of time.

Charles: Yeah, I, I agree with all that. And I guess a brand as I think about it that really stood out would be Patagonia, love them, great brand, the impact that they made. They were so mission driven, and it wasn't just about the, the transactional aspect of it.

It was actually about creating significant impact and change, positive change in the world. Um, so yeah, it's definitely something we aspire to do as well.

Chris: Yeah, absolutely. I mean, Cheerios, I definitely see, um, I mean we have those prevalent in our house right now with two little kids running around. Yeah.

Um, but, but then also like Patagonia, I mean, when I think of brands I wanna invest in and think of, you know, 'cause where, where I live, you know, we're near the Smoky Mountains, right? So like, there's a lot of hiking I can do, there's a lot of outdoor activities I can do. And knowing it's going back into a sustainable company that cares about people, um, I think makes a big difference.

That's it. Yeah, agreed. If

Adhrucia: you, if you, the, you just answered the, the ultimate question for a brand. If you feel like, I don't eat Cheerios, but if Cheerios asked me to participate in something, would I? A hundred percent. You know what I mean? Yeah. Because they leave that feeling, that like alignment of understanding of what they stand for, and I think that's what's really important.

Patagonia too. I love Patagonia answer.

Chris: Absolutely. Well, great. Well thank you all for coming on. Um, where can people find you all online and where can they connect with you all in Curiosity, entertainment and Storyteller Publishing?

Adhrucia: Yeah, we have Curiosity Entertainment, um, handles on all platforms, also on LinkedIn.

Same with Storyteller Publishing and Storyteller Media, uh, and also www curiosity entertainment.com. And you can find all my stuff. Under my first name, my handles are under my first name, A-T-H-R-U-C-I-A on all platforms, including LinkedIn.

Charles: Yeah. And for publishing. It's Storyteller Media and yeah, I'm available on Instagram.

It's C-H-A-S-A-L-L-E-N, short for Charles. And yeah. Thank you so much.

Chris: Alright. Thank y'all for coming

Charles: on.