Andrew Stanton (you know, the guy who created and co-wrote all the Toy Story movies https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andrew_Stanton) grew up down the street from the house my family got when I was about 10, and when I was in middle school he still lived at home. The first time I went Trick Or Treating at his house, he and his brother came to the door covered in fake blook, pencils stuck in their throats, and he unloaded a (real but empty) staple gun in my face.
I think that's the kind of attitude it takes to make entertainment for kids that actually lasts (c.f. Roald Dahl).