Creating a Guilt-Free Entertainment Platform for Children

A family watching a cartoon on the Sherwood Kids streaming platform, meant to provide wholesome, educational entertainment for children. Courtesy of Sherwood Kids

Jess Hall is a storyteller. His interest in telling stories began in middle school when he and his buddies made little independent movies. They captivated their classmates by reenacting scenes from popular films. His interest in telling stories led to a three-year stint as an assistant producer in Hollywood. He followed his love of storytelling to Oxford University in England, where he studied creative writing. Eventually, he became the CEO of an educational media company.

But what turned this successful storyteller into an entrepreneur—leading to his creation of a wholesome entertainment streaming platform for children—begins with a story of sacrifice.

Jess Hall, founder and CEO of Sherwood Kids, with his wife and children. Courtesy of Jess Hall

A few years ago, Hall learned that his son was suffering from severe mold toxicity. He sold everything he owned and relocated from Idaho to Arizona, where the climate would promote a healthy recovery for his young son. That decision meant giving up his stable career. Spending more time with his son also meant spending time trying to find wholesome, family-friendly entertainment for his children to enjoy. But there wasn’t much out there.

This dilemma gave Hall the idea to make Sherwood Kids, a platform with film, TV, and book content that his children could enjoy and that taught them positive lessons. It would also be a means to provide for his family. “I’ve wanted to do [this] my whole life. That is, share good stories with children,” Hall said. “Rather than wait for someone else to save the day, I decided to take this on—this very difficult industry. Hollywood studios and New York publishers are no small competitors, but the truth is that there is a massively underserved audience, and we are going to serve them.”

Good Entertainment

The enterprise, launched in October 2023, isn’t exactly Netflix or Disney+. It’s entirely different. Hall wanted to not just entertain kids, but build a “catalog that will help to grow their imagination … through true, good, and beautiful stories that have stood the test of time.”

Sherwood bills itself as a “low-stimulation platform” that integrates kid-friendly TV with audiobooks, read-along videos, and e-books, aiming to strike a balance between passive entertainment and active learning.

A promotional image previewing what kind of content is available on Sherwood Kids. Courtesy of Sherwood Kids

While Hall believes film is a great medium to introduce ideas, he doesn’t think film should always be the “main course.” Sherwood, which is accessible via its app and website and can connect to any device, also includes thousands of book and audiobook titles that help children become better readers with larger vocabularies. According to Hall, many educators and homeschoolers use Sherwood to supplement their students’ educational journeys.

Sherwood runs on an ad-free subscription model, with a 7-day free trial available. Hall explained that the criteria for inclusion in Sherwood’s library is, if it’s true, good, beautiful, and a reflection of God’s will. The platform also ensures that content does not have hidden political or ideological messaging—in contrast to many shows on mainstream digital streaming platforms. Sherwood partners with a selection of content platforms, such as Vooks, which has a library of educational animated storybooks.

The platform includes not only videos, but animated storybooks and audiobooks as well. Courtesy of Sherwood Kids

Addressing Screen Addiction

A growing body of research shows that excessive screen time impacts children’s emotional, cognitive, and social development. Jonathan Haidt, author of “The Anxious Generation,” has shown scientifically that the use of phones, social media, and certain types of media such as video games are causing kids to become addicted or dependent on screen time. The average screen time is anywhere from four to nine hours per day, according to the latest research.

Hall believes that children’s entertainment today misses the mark, much of it fast-moving, which causes children to be overstimulated. Mainstream media companies are dependent upon ad revenue and therefore design shows that increase children’s screen time dependency. This makes it difficult for parents to deal with emotional outbursts and meltdowns when they take away children’s screens. “The trend is for families to seek low-stimulation entertainment that doesn’t create dependency or unhealthy relationships with screens,” he said. The content on Sherwood is slower paced, while incorporating engaging educational lessons, for that purpose.

A sampling of the ebooks available to read on Sherwood Kids. Courtesy of Sherwood Kids

Many children’s shows also lack positive role models. He gave the example of the ’90s cartoon series “Rugrats.” The characters are fussy. “Children imitate the characters they see. If characters whine, have bad attitudes, [and] get what they want all the time, this is the behavior your kids pick up on and imitate.”

With Sherwood, he hopes children can read and watch content that embodies objective morality. “What better way to promote conversations about consequences? These old stories embody the truths of morals that we want our kids to embody,” he said. He hopes these stories can spark ingenuity and inspire the next generation of creative thinkers and entrepreneurs.

For the Future Generations

Sherwood pays royalties to book authors, cartoonists, and content creators who make their content available on the platform. One recent partnership with author S.D. Smith will make available the popular Green Ember book series. Yesterday’s Classics will make available original editions of classic literature and old folk tales.

The platform is also enlisting animators and cartoonists to create a new type of content, called “readimations.” Currently in development, they provide a visual audiobook for children to read and watch by combining storyboard art, read-along captions, and sound effects. This format allows kids to use their imaginations to fill in the gaps of what they’re reading about, while providing a form of visual aid, in the hopes of using technology to help them develop a love of reading.

A "readimation" of a storybook for children. Courtesy of Sherwood Kids

Readimations have grayscale images, which don’t overstimulate the young reader’s brain. Onscreen text allows them to see the words being spoken so that they can read along while basic illustrations appear onscreen every 30 seconds. The project will bring to life classic literature that may otherwise intimidate young readers.

Hall hopes the platform can be both a “blessing” to parents and a platform for creatives who want to tell authentic, wholesome stories. Ultimately, we want to tell timeless stories to kids, he said, helping them “grow up to be the leaders we want shaping the culture. The stories that kids believe today will shape the culture of tomorrow. The stakes are high.”