"Hey A.J.!" Studio Reportedly Working on Second Disney Series as Company Expands Into the Canary Islands
Animators and students looking to become professionals, get those portfolios and reels ready!
Surfing Giant Studios, the group behind the new Disney Jr. series, Hey A.J.!, are already expanding their European studio network into the Canary Islands of Spain, with development on a new Disney series underway.
What’s Happening:
- The studio behind the newest Disney Jr. series, Hey A.J.! is already growing, getting ready to open a second animation facility in Europe in Spain’s Canary Islands.
- The new Surfing Giant Studios base, set for the Santa Cruz region of Tenerife, comes after the 2022 debut of their hub in Manchester, UK.
- It’s all part of an effort by Surfing Giant to establish a network of studio bases that can develop original shows and support multiple others.
- A good thing, since the report announcing this new studio base in Deadline confirms that Surfing Giant has another Disney series in the works, which is said to take place in the action-adventure space.
- This seems to be all we know of the new series thus far, with the show likely set at Disney Branded Television for Disney Channel or Disney Jr. with the inevitable Disney+ release as well.
- This builds upon an already growing relationship with the Studio, which is run by someone Disney has a lot of faith in.
- Surfing Giant Studios was founded by Emmy Award-winning producer Jeff “Swampy” Marsh (Phineas and Ferb, Hamster and Gretel), Multi-Grammy nominated writer/producer Michael Hodges (Blade Runner 2049, The Expanse, Blade Runner Black Lotus) and Alcon Chief Operating Officer Scott Parish.
- Of the new studio base location, Parish said, “The Canary Islands provide strong tax incentives and an experienced talent base, which allows us to scale production efficiently and reinvest directly into our teams and projects. Tenerife is a strategic extension of our European operation.”
- Hey A.J.! marks the first long-form series from the company, and features Amari McCoy as lead character A.J., a young girl who uses her imagination to make ordinary moments magical. The series is based on a children’s book from former football player, Martellus Bennet, who also stars in the series. The series debuted on Disney Jr. last month.
- The new location of Surfing Giant Studios is set to open this Spring creating more than 100 jobs in animation and production, with recruitment expected to begin in the coming weeks.
Hey Again, A.J.!
- Inspired by Martellus Bennett, the new series is a whimsical and music-filled comedy about an imaginative young girl who, along with her stuffed bunny sidekick Theo, uses her big imagination to make ordinary life moments extraordinary.
- Just ahead of the series debut earlier this month, our own Ben Breitbart sat with Martellus, as well as Grammy nominated composer Michael Hodges to talk about creativity, collaboration, and dreaming out loud.
- Hey A.J.! debuted on Disney Jr. on January 13th, running a marathon of the first seven episodes of the new series on both Disney Jr. and Disney Channel.
- The following day, the episodes arrived on Disney+, with additional episodes set to arrive later in the year.
- The series also features colorful and vibrant 2D animation, all sharing relatable storylines for preschoolers alongside the infectious and imaginative new songs that are featured throughout the series.
- Surfing Giant Studios is also reportedly initially focusing on 2D animation at the new studio location.
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