Jack and Holly

Did You Know?

• Jack is voiced by Cillian Martin Wright, the son of the producer.
• Holly is voiced by Emilia Shuardson-Hipkin and later by Julianne Martin.
• In November 2012 Jack & Holly launched their own Roku and IPTV channels.

Series philosophy

The series is educational as well as entertaining, including factual material for pre-school and primary school children alongside stories. Director Jezz Wright stated in a 2010 BBC interview that the series counters brash, bright-coloured, fast-cut aggressive programming aimed at children. He and his wife were inspired after finding little educative content in educational DVDs they bought for their son. Producer Julianne Wright noted in a 2011 press release that the small team hoped to deliver original content parents seek, believing all children's media should aspire to the highest educative standards.

The series was developed with assistance from teachers, educationalists, and parents to fit British educational standards. It promotes inclusiveness and multi-culturalism: Jack is from ethnic origin while Holly is a Caucasian character. The creators aimed to encourage children to spend time away from screens and enjoy reading, and to give parents topics for discussion. The second series, Cosmic Stories, includes an on-screen timer to help parents monitor screen time.

Animation style

The animation uses a mixed media style derived from machinima, blended with live action footage. Software including Moviestorm allowed quick, low-budget production. Characters share some visual similarities with Japanese Anime but have a distinctive design: they lack legs and instead float, fly, and hover. The colour palette was designed to appeal to younger children. Character designs were originally visualised by motion artist Bonnie Scott and Jezz Wright, then modified extensively before production.

Releases

The first series, released in September 2010 in the UK and October 2011 in the US on Roku and Google TV, is a non-religious celebration of Christmas spirit with early learning puzzles, songs, and situations. Its ten 5-minute episodes are: Snow, Snowmen, Furry Animals, Santa Land, Christmas Tree, Presents, Father Christmas, Songs on the telly, Christmas Eve, and Christmas Day. Originally titled Jack and Holly's Cosmic Stories, the second series was released worldwide in November 2011 on Roku and SMART TVs, with seven episodes: The Moon, The Sun, Planets, New Worlds?, Black Holes, Aliens?, and Twinkle Twinkle.

Jack and Holly books combined activities, stories, educational material, puzzles, and games, available as free downloads from the website. A third publication, Jack and Holly's Cosmic Comic, featured all major characters. An interactive workbook released in August 2010 contained 24 puzzles and exercises. A set of children's trading cards called Swapzees was a free download.

The album Jack and Holly's Christmas Top 10, released on 21 August 2010, included updated Christmas classics; most tracks were featured in the Jack and Holly's Christmas Countdown series, produced by Tom Richardson and Jezz Wright.