On Monday, July 14, Kiz Toys officially opened the doors of its Creative Studio on Johns Island, S.C., in Charleston city limits. The Creative Studio will be responsible for designing physical toys, digital avatars of the toys, and all aspects of Kiz Toys gaming and virtual environments.

The studio is now Kiz Toys’ creative center, and it will be the home of 3D artists, modelers, animators, texturing and lighting specialists, character designers, game developers, programmers and product designers. The Creative Studio is currently the only establishment of its kind in the Charleston area.

“Charleston is a perfect fit for Kiz Toys’ Creative Studio,” said Kiz Toys Chief Creative Officer Stephen Johnson. “It is a very inspiring place to live and work, and the location is important to the recruiting relationship and partnerships we’ve developed with the Savannah College of Art and Design.”

Johnson will lead the creative team, and he will be supported by Lead Modeler Hezzie Green Jr. and Creative Director of Gaming Michael Flynn.

The Creative Studio is currently hard at work on Kiz Toys’ initial product line, KizMoto. KizMoto features a line of originally designed toy vehicles that communicate with a personal computer through a USB connection to safely access a virtual world, generating a digital avatar of the toy. Kids can upgrade their virtual Moto’s appearance and performance and get behind the wheel of their personalized vehicle to race in exciting 3D gaming environments.