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From Shrek to The Lion King\u2019s Simba, Jeffrey Katzenberg<\/a> is behind some of the most iconic animated characters to appear on the big screen. His next creation aims for an even bigger screen: the sky.<\/p>\n Katzenberg believes that drones are poised to redefine entertainment, and he\u2019s teaming up with Nova Sky Stories\u2014the live drone entertainment company founded and led by Kimbal Musk\u2014to help shape that future. On Friday, the company announced that Katzenberg is joining as a strategic advisor and that WndrCo, the tech investment firm he cofounded, is taking part in a broader $50 million funding round.\u00a0<\/p>\n Innovation in drone hardware technology and programming, combined with Musk\u2019s creative vision for the medium, has opened up a \u201ccompletely new canvas for storytelling,\u201d Katzenberg told Fortune<\/em> in an interview ahead of the announcement.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re going to create original characters and original stories that can only be told with this technology. The only way you can tell these stories will be up in the sky, in dimension, hopefully engaging interactively with the audience,\u201d Katzenberg said.\u00a0<\/p>\n Founded by Musk during the pandemic<\/a>, Nova Sky Stories acquired chipmaker Intel\u2019s drone business<\/a> and its fleet of 9,000 drones in 2022. Since then, Musk\u2019s company has worked to improve the capabilities of the drones and of the airborne shows that the drones put on, extending the duration and sophistication of the performances. One of Nova Sky\u2019s early performances was an event at the Burning Man festival in 2022 that Katzenberg, who was at the festival, witnessed. A swarm of one thousand drones conjured a giant morphing face<\/a> that hovered over the revelers.\u00a0<\/p>\n Musk, who is a board member<\/a> at SpaceX<\/a> and Tesla<\/a>, which are part of his brother Elon\u2019s business empire, likens drone entertainment today to the early days of Disney\u2019s animation efforts. The eight-minute black-and-white cartoon reel Steamboat Willie<\/em>, released in 1928, showed the potential of combining animation with a synchronized soundtrack. Within ten years, Disney<\/a> made Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs<\/em>, the first feature-length animated film, and still considered one of the greatest films of all time.\u00a0<\/p>\n As Nova Sky Stories strives to achieve drone entertainment\u2019s Snow White moment, Musk says the company is focused on things like adding voice and interactive elements.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re innovating on an actual character that will speak to the audience, or interact with the audience,\u201d Musk tells Fortune<\/em>, noting that unlike a two-dimensional screen, drones are a physical medium. \u201cThe character can come 10 feet away from you.\u201d<\/p>\n Katzenberg, who oversaw some of Disney\u2019s biggest animated hits in the 1980s and early 1990s, and then pioneered computer-generated animated movies at Dreamworks, is the perfect partner for Nova Sky, says Musk. The first drone show co-developed with Katzenberg will debut in 2026. The company will be building up a library of intellectual property, Katzenberg says, as it pursues a goal of putting on drone shows of \u201cbranded family entertainment\u201d to audiences of 50,000 to 80,000 people at stadiums around the world.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWhen you think of it today, those stadiums more often than not are empty,\u201c says Katzenberg. \u201cThere are pretty much two things in those stadiums today: great sporting events\u2026and concerts,\u201d he says. \u201cWell, what\u2019s to say that 5 years from now there isn\u2019t a third leg to that stool?\u201d<\/p>\n As for the drones themselves, Nova Sky does not disclose the cost of each machine. But the plan is to build a lot more\u2014up to 25,000 next year, says Musk. The $50 million funding, Nova Sky\u2019s first since it acquired the Intel<\/a> drone business, will help.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThis is a cash-positive business,\u201d Katzenberg says, \u201cso that capital is to go out and scale and build the fleet.\u201d\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n