Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Interview with Ruckus Media Group CEO, Rick Richter

Today I'm thrilled to share our interview we recently had with Rick Richter, President & CEO of Ruckus Mobile Media.

What is Ruckus? Here's a little about who they are and what they do,
"At Ruckus Media, we are reinventing family entertainment—and taking it on the road—with original apps for iPad, iPhone, Droid, and other mobile media platforms. We bring Jon Scieszka, Rosemary Wells, Andrew Clements, Patricia MacLachlan, Alan Katz, David Carter, Kevin Lewis, Mike Austin, and Caitlin Friedman, among many other bestselling authors and illustrators, animators, celebrity performers and musicians together with talented editors and software developers to create a completely new form of storytelling.

When children open Ruckus apps, turning and tilting pages, touching words and art, they read, see, and enter a story. Words, pictures, music, and dynamics made possible only by touch screen technology are woven to tell original stories to entrance and expand their imaginations. As with their favorite picture books, children will be enriched by and return to Ruckus apps again and again.

With over 26 amazing apps to be available by 2011 and 75 under contract, Ruckus Media is poised to become the most productive source of children’s stories for mobile platforms in the world." (quoted from their site here).

Our Interview with Rick:

I'll admit I have never been a huge digital book fan, but the line of books Ruckus Media offers is so appealing that even I have enjoyed your line of books just as much as my kids do. What was your inspiration behind Ruckus Media?
It was really the ubiquity of the devices. Everywhere we looked kids were using iPads and iPhones, with the permission and encouragement of their parents. It looked to me like this new medium was here to stay, and I wondered how to combine it with my years in book publishing and all of my talented friends in the industry. Creating digital, interactive storybook apps parents can trust seemed like a natural solution and Ruckus Media Group was born.

We’ll be satisfied when a mom or dad can hand their phone or tablet to their child without one ounce of guilt, knowing that the experience the child is about to have will entertain them, challenge them, perhaps make them giggle, and be utterly satisfying.

There's a growing trend with readers going the digital book/ebook route. What is one thing you feel your company offers that makes your books or what you offer unique?
First of all, we're offering original apps. We think that the iPhone and Android applications represent an opportunity for a entirely new form of storytelling. We are working with the best children's authors and illustrators to achieve this goal and create a brand new experience in this new medium.

I really like that you've brought together some amazing talent to bring your stories to life. How do you go about selecting who will be the voice for your children's books?
It really is the story that suggests who the narrator will be. Who better to read "Pecos Bill" than Robin Williams? When we working on "A Present for Milo", Mike Austin, the author/illustrator did a sample narration that we loved.

I love that you offer a fantastic line of children's classic stories. Why did you feel it was important to re-introduce the classic vs offering something that was more of a modern day retelling?
We actually do both. We produce current stories and classics. Any good children's library has a combination of both, and it's our goal to make sure that we create a wide variety of content.

What is the most important thing you want parents, teachers or readers to gain from your books?
We want to tell great stories and entertain kids in ways that they haven't been entertained before: combining great story telling, great narration, great music and great illustrations.
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Thank you Rick for taking the time to answer our questions and for being on our site today. You can learn more about Ruckus, and see the variety of great kid's digital books here. You can also find their logo and site link on our right hand side bar. Ruckus offers a variety of wonderful kid friendly digital books and applications we recommend checking out.
I would be most content if my children grew up to be the kind of people who think decorating consists mostly of building enough bookshelves. ~ Anna Quindlen

Good children's literature appeals not only to
the child in the adult, but to the adult in the child.
~ Anonymous ~