Dog Ears

Dog Ears is a children’s media and 2D animation studio founded in Derry, Northern Ireland, in 2010. The independent company develops stories for young audiences across television, film, publishing, digital content and interactive formats. Its name refers to the well-thumbed corners of childhood books, reflecting an early focus on story-led children’s publishing.

The studio began with the 2011 picture book Let Me See, What Will I Be? by Trisha Deery and an accompanying digital app described as Ireland’s first children’s picture-book app. It subsequently expanded its work in animation and multi-platform intellectual-property development.

Animation and children’s media

Dog Ears develops and produces pre-school and family entertainment, with particular strengths in visual development and animation pre-production. Its work includes:

• Writing, storyboarding, character and background design
• Casting, editing and 2D animation production
• IP development, co-production packaging and finance management
• Children’s book publishing and digital interactive experiences

A major part of its catalogue is Puffin Rock, developed with Cartoon Saloon and Penguin Random House. The pre-school series debuted in 2015 and became an international franchise, followed by the 2023 feature Puffin Rock and the New Friends. Dog Ears also co-produced the 2D adventure series My Brother the Minotaur with Cartoon Saloon, which premiered globally on Apple TV in April 2026.

The studio’s recent work includes WildKind, an animated short directed by Creative Director John McDaid and written by Ciara Tinney. Alongside screen production, Dog Ears continues to explore stories across books, apps and real-world interactive experiences, including Puffin Rock activations developed with Belfast’s W5 Science and Discovery Centre.

Dog Ears combines a core management team with freelance animation artists, storyboarders and writers for active productions, with an emphasis on pre-production, visual development and children’s storytelling.