Ryzo Studios

What Ryzo Studios does

Ryzo Studios is a privately held Impact Franchise Studio founded in 2022 by Pixar veterans Erica Milsom (Chief Creative Officer, 20 years at Pixar) and Todd Shaiman (President, 10 years at Pixar and founder of Google's Immersive Arts team), operating at the intersection of feature-quality animation, interactive gaming, and research-backed social-emotional learning. The studio develops multi-platform story worlds in active partnership with Stanford University and UCSF, with research functioning as a creative constraint on story, game mechanics, and activation design rather than post-hoc validation.

The studio's core products are Release The Beast, a 12-minute animated short about anger and emotional regulation premiered on YouTube in March 2024, and Rage Fighters, a free-to-play educational melee fighter on Roblox in which four emotional regulation skills (Pause, Breathe, Chill, Connect) function simultaneously as game mechanics and real-world tools. These are extended via the UN-TILTED 90-minute afterschool activation program, downloadable educator guides aligned with CASEL standards, and forthcoming YA novels and merchandise. Production is supported by CTO Suzanne Slatcher (25+ years at Pixar) and a pipeline built on Autodesk, Unreal Engine, Perforce, and Roblox technology partnerships.

Ryzo's business model is overwhelmingly free-to-play and pre-commercial: both the film and the Roblox game are distributed at no cost to users, educator and parent resources are largely free with some premium assets marked 'Coming Soon,' and revenue is not publicly disclosed. Early funding has come from Kickstarter campaigns and private community donations, with the studio signaling active pursuit of impact investment. Customers and audience include youth ages 10-17, middle and high school educators, afterschool and community organizations (The Clubhouse Network, Best Buy Teen Tech Centers, Boys & Girls Clubs of San Leandro), and parents/caregivers, with operations currently concentrated in the United States.

Name

Ryzo Studios

Legal name

Ryzo Studios

Website

https://ryzo.studio

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Ryzo Studios is a 2022-founded Impact Franchise Studio creating research-backed multi-platform story worlds spanning animated film, Roblox games, and live activations, targeting youth ages 10-17 alongside the educators, parents, and community organizations supporting their social-emotional learning.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Children's Educational Entertainment

NAICS

Educational Support Services (611710), All Other Schools and Instruction (61169)

SIC

Services-Prepackaged Software (7372)

akta.pro primary industry

Educational Games & Kids/Families Game Studios (MPAFAAAI)

akta.pro secondary industries

Serious Games & Simulation Studios (Training, Defense, Enterprise) (MPAFAAAH), Interactive Learning Games & Gamified Courseware (EDAGALAL), Game-Based Learning & Gamification Authoring (EDAFAHAF), Simulation, Scenario & Serious Games Design (EDAGAKAH)

Keywords

• Animated film production
• Educational video games
• Social-emotional learning
• Interactive entertainment studio
• Youth-focused content

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Free-to-Play Game (Roblox): Rage Fighters is available free on Roblox. Roblox platform games typically monetize through Robux purchases and engagement-based revenue sharing with Roblox. The game is free for all players (ages 5+).
2. Animated Film Distribution (YouTube): Release The Beast is available for free streaming on YouTube. Revenue is not directly generated; the film serves as a demand-generation and brand-awareness vehicle driving users to the game and activations.
3. Educator Guides & Engagement Resources: Downloadable resources (educator guides, classroom kits, parent companion guides) for schools and community organizations. Some guides are noted as 'Coming Soon,' indicating future paid or gated offerings.
4. Live Events & Activations: Ryzo team or partner-facilitated live events for schools, festivals, and community organizations. Events include film screenings with Q&A, UnTilted multimedia experiences, and panels at creator festivals. Revenue model not explicitly disclosed; appears to be relationship-driven at this stage.
5. Merchandise: Ryzo's franchise model includes merchandise as a distribution channel, allowing youth to 'carry' the story's themes with them. Merchandise details and pricing not yet publicly disclosed.
6. YA Novels: YA (Young Adult) novels are part of the franchise architecture, allowing audiences to go deeper into the Ryzo story world. Revenue model not yet disclosed.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

Ryzo Studios creates multi-platform story worlds combining animated short films, free-to-play Roblox games, live activations, and educator/parent engagement resources that teach social-emotional learning skills to youth ages 10-17. Its flagship Impact Franchise consists of the 12-minute animated film "Release The Beast" and the Roblox melee fighter game "Rage Fighters," supported by the UN-TILTED 90-minute afterschool activation, classroom educator dashboards aligned to CASEL standards, and downloadable engagement guides.

Product overview

Ryzo Studios is an Impact Franchise Studio that creates multi-platform story worlds combining animated films, Roblox games, live activations, and educator resources. The core offerings include 'Release The Beast' (a 12-minute animated film about emotional regulation) and 'Rage Fighters' (a free Roblox melee fighter game teaching the same skills). These are supported by the UN-TILTED afterschool and classroom activation programs, engagement guides for educators and parents, and live events. All offerings are designed around the same thematic framework of helping young people understand and manage emotions like anger.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Release The Beast: A 12-minute animated film about anger, gaming, and emotional regulation for young people.
• Rage Fighters
• UN-TILTED

Products and services

• Release The Beast A 12-minute animated short film about a young protagonist named Aaron whose anger literally explodes out of his unfinished game character as multiple rage-fueled versions of himself. The film addresses anger as energy rather than as a villain, teaching emotional regulation through cinematic storytelling for youth audiences.
• Rage Fighters An educational melee fighter game on Roblox that brings the Release The Beast world into playable form. Players fight emotional enemies using real SEL skills (Pause, Breathe, Chill, Connect) as game mechanics, learning emotional regulation through combat gameplay. Produced in partnership with Equimundo and the Caring Masculinities Fund.
• UN-TILTED Afterschool Activation A 90-minute live multi-part experience combining film screening, game play, and sticky-note art activity designed to help kids identify and handle big emotions. Includes a master slide deck, facilitator guide, and field intel lore sheet for community organizations and afterschool programs.
• UN-TILTED Educator Dashboard Classroom resources for grades 6-12 featuring evidence-based emotional regulation tools delivered through cinematic storytelling and gameplay. Includes activity packs, visual decks, and assessment tools aligned with CASEL standards for Self-Management and Self-Awareness competencies.
• Engagement Guides Deep-dive downloadable PDF resources for educators and parents covering the emotional landscape of the Ryzo universe, including narrative lore, enemy breakdowns, skill mapping to CASEL competencies, discussion questions, and activity guides. Some guides (e.g., Co-Op Companion Guide, elementary classroom guide) are marked 'Coming Soon.'

Quantifiable outcome

• Ryzo franchises are designed to achieve measurable emotional and behavioral outcomes — not just awareness — with the research partnership framework explicitly structured to move audiences measurably, not just emotionally.
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers9 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core and supporting.

• Equimundo (Caring Masculinity Fund)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEquimundo and the Caring Masculinity Fund were lead partners on Rage Fighters — true collaborators in connecting story and activation inside the places where young people already live. Gary Barker, CEO of Equimundo: Center for Masculinities and Social Justice, leads the fund and provided visibility and strategic guidance throughout development. Rage Fighters is described as 'A Ryzo Studios × Equimundo production.'
• AutodeskcoreTechnology or IntegrationAutodesk provides software donations and technical support as a technology partner, powering the animation production pipeline from ideation to linear media.
• Unreal Engine (Epic Games)coreTechnology or IntegrationUnreal Engine provides software donations and technical support powering the studio's full pipeline — from ideation to linear media to interactive worlds.
• PerforcesupportingTechnology or IntegrationPerforce provides software donations and technical support powering the studio's production pipeline for version control and asset management.
• RobloxcoreTechnology or IntegrationRoblox provides software donations, technical support, and the platform for Rage Fighters — the interactive game that is a core pillar of the Impact Franchise Model. The game is live on Roblox as a free-to-play title.
• The Clubhouse NetworkcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorThe Clubhouse Network is the live events partner, connecting kids and teens with new ways to use their creativity and take on big emotions through art, film, and gaming. Ryzo runs UnTilted activations at Clubhouse Network sites across the US.
• Digital Wellness Lab at Boston Children's HospitalcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Digital Wellness Lab advises on impact measurement, helping Ryzo check impact math and improve measurement tools. The lab also convenes the Inspired Internet Pledge, to which Ryzo Studios is a signatory.
• Stanford UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerStanford University researchers provide active creative partnership — not post-hoc validation — shaping the story, game mechanics, and activation model. Research focus: social-emotional learning, growth mindset, and educational psychology.
• UCSFcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUCSF researchers provide active creative partnership, ensuring content is developmentally appropriate, trauma-informed, and clinically sound. Research focus: child development and clinical research. Dr. Gowri Aragam is a Harvard-trained psychiatrist and Assistant Professor at UCSF.
• Inspired Internet Pledge (Convened by Digital Wellness Lab)supportingOthersRyzo Studios is a signatory of the Inspired Internet Pledge — a public commitment to make the internet a safer, healthier place for young people, convened by the Digital Wellness Lab at Boston Children's Hospital.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• BrainPOP: BrainPOP produces animated educational content, quizzes, and educator tools for K-12. It is comparable to Ryzo as a content-plus-curriculum business selling into schools, though focused on core academic subjects rather than SEL.
• PBS Kids: PBS Kids is the children's programming arm of PBS, providing standards-aligned educational media and games for K-5 audiences. It is comparable to Ryzo as a broad incumbent in evidence-based kids' educational content with educator resources, but at much larger scale and primarily TV/web rather than Roblox-native.
• Sesame Workshop: Sesame Workshop is the nonprofit behind Sesame Street and a broad portfolio of kids' educational media with research-backed curriculum. It is comparable to Ryzo as a much larger incumbent combining research partnerships, multi-platform kids' content, and SEL/social-emotional programming, though primarily via TV/streaming rather than games.

Others

• Roblox Corporation: Roblox Corporation operates the Roblox platform that hosts Rage Fighters and provides software donations, technical support, and distribution for Ryzo's flagship game. It is comparable as the upstream platform/enabler for Ryzo's interactive distribution rather than a direct content competitor.

Emerging players

• Night Zookeeper: Night Zookeeper is a kids' creative writing and gaming platform with educational content for elementary audiences. It is comparable to Ryzo as an emerging studio building game-based creative/educational experiences for kids with school and parent channels, though focused on literacy rather than SEL.
• Common Sense Education: Common Sense Education provides SEL and digital citizenship curricula and educator reviews of media for K-12. It is comparable to Ryzo as a SEL/digital-wellness content provider selling into schools, though delivered via curriculum rather than narrative franchise IP.
• Games for Change: Games for Change is a nonprofit and festival community supporting games and immersive media for social impact. It is comparable to Ryzo as part of the same impact-games ecosystem (Rage Fighters was featured at the Games for Change Festival) and as a potential distribution/credibility partner, though it is an organizer rather than a competing studio.

Direct peers

• iCivics: iCivics produces educational games and curriculum for middle and high school students, primarily around civic education. It is comparable to Ryzo in delivering standards-aligned, game-based learning to school districts with educator support materials.
• Schell Games: Schell Games is a Pittsburgh-based studio that develops educational and entertainment games, including VR/AR learning experiences. It is comparable to Ryzo as a studio that straddles entertainment-grade production and pedagogical design for youth and institutional customers.
• Filament Games: Filament Games is an educational game studio that designs learning games for K-12 and institutional buyers. It is comparable to Ryzo as both studios build games-as-learning-products for youth, though Filament focuses on broader curriculum subjects rather than SEL-specific franchise IP.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCotWg6gjmIEYXoUfvK_upxQ
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ryzo-studios
• Instagraminstagram.com/ryzostudios
• TikToktiktok.com/@ryzostudios

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Ryzo Studios