Duke & Duck

Duke & Duck is an independent animation and creative storytelling studio founded in Washington, D.C., in November 2009. Its work combines commercial 2D animation, motion graphics, documentary animation, and mixed-media storytelling, with a focus on turning complex subjects into clear visual narratives. Originally known as The Duke & the Duck, the company adopted its current public name through a brand refresh in 2023.

The studio works with nonprofits, government agencies, research organizations, commercial brands, and editorial publishers. Its projects address subjects ranging from public health and scientific research to civil rights, climate issues, and economic policy. Storytelling, humor, and empathy inform its approach to communicating material that can otherwise be difficult to explain.

From research to finished animation

Duke & Duck’s production capabilities span message framing, research synthesis, creative strategy, and scriptwriting through visual development, storyboarding, illustration, and character design. Animation techniques include digital 2D production, hand-drawn frame-by-frame animation, kinetic typography, and mixed-media compositing. Editing, live-action integration, sound design, and musical direction coordination support the finished work.

The portfolio includes animated sequences for National Geographic’s Saving Giraffes: The Long Journey Home, NPR’s Just Listen, and the Virginia Department of Health’s Meet Your COVID-19 Vaccine series, produced with Reingold. Other projects include the American Red Cross’s Prepare with Pedro, explanatory content for the Legal Services Corporation, and scientific and medical communications for the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. Commercial assignments include animation campaigns and motion design for Nestlé.

Alongside commissioned projects, Duke & Duck develops original children’s entertainment through its internal Double Scoop Studio division. That work includes Count on June Bug!, a preschool mathematics series co-produced with The WNET Group. This extends the studio’s educational storytelling into original programming.

Since 2020, the company has operated as a distributed, remote-first studio across the United States while retaining its administrative base and community roots in Washington, D.C.