Disney To Spark Joy This Holiday Season

• Disney kicks off biggest festive campaign to date: Spark Joy This Holiday
• Unique and exciting fashion showcase featuring local retailers features a surprise appearance by Mickey Mouse
• Award-winning filmmaker and lifelong Disney fan Taika Waititi creates enchanting original short highlighting what makes the holidays special.
• Brand-new retail offerings including Moana 2 product supporting the release of the brand new animated adventure

Disney Africa (www.Disney.co.za) today kicked off Spark Joy This Holiday, its largest festive campaign to date. Throughout the season, fans can experience the holiday magic with Disney, with delightful products that bring beloved Disney stories to life, holiday classics streaming on Disney+, festive programming across Disney Channel and Disney Junior, and the special Disney Chari-tree initiative in malls across the country in support of Reach For A Dream, which helps bring joy to children in need during this season of giving.

Comments Luke Roberts, General Manager, Consumer Product Commercialisation, MENA and Africa: “The holiday season is such a special time of year and Disney is using the power of its stories and characters to inspire joy and wonder in people all over the world. We are excited to launch Spark Joy This Holiday, a campaign that not only celebrates the special connection so many fans and families have with Disney, but also to celebrate this magical time of year together in many different ways.”

The campaign kicked off in grand style this year with a festive fashion show featuring five of South Africa’s largest retailers: Ackermans, Jet, Pep, Mr Price and Woolworths. Models and influencers took to the stage showcasing the latest summer collections for the entire family, with the event culminating in a surprise appearance by the one and only Mickey Mouse, adding a further touch of pure Disney magic to the runway, setting the tone for the holiday season festivities.

Disney is also using the power of its timeless original storytelling to inspire joy and wonder this holiday season, with an all-new short in collaboration with Academy Award® winner Taika Waititi premiering on YouTube (https://apo-opa.co/3CxFPW5).

A Disney Holiday Short: The Boy&The Octopus follows the journey of a child who discovers a curious octopus has attached to his head during a seaside vacation. After returning home, the boy forms a true friendship with the octopus by introducing his new companion to his life on land, before taking the lovable octopus out into the world to experience the joy of the holidays. The boy comes to understand the extent of the octopus’ desire to explore everything the world has to offer, and he sets in motion a plan to make it happen. For the boy and the octopus, it is the precious everyday moments of childhood and friendship, as much as the magic of the season, that make their time together so meaningful. Disney fans will love finding even more hidden easter eggs throughout the holiday short including from beloved films like Moana (2016), Lilo and Stitch (2002), and Toy Story (1995), among others.

Throughout the season, fans can experience the holiday magic with Disney. The annual campaign offers up a world of wonder from a diverse range of products for the whole family. Discover a treasure trove of apparel, innovative toys and games, jewellery, accessories and so much more.

Disney’s stunning plush-adorned Christmas “Chari-trees” and installations also make a welcome return this year at no less than 20 malls across the country, with public donations towards the purchase of the plush, along with the toy, going towards Reach for a Dream. The installations are proudly presented by FNB, PEP and ToysRUs.

A feast of Disney festive programming awaits families across the country as Disney+, Disney Channel and Disney Junior offer up the latest and greatest festive series and movies. In addition, a brand-new animated adventure awaits cinema-goers this month as Moana 2 releases on 29 November. The film sees Moana, after receiving an unexpected call from her wayfinding ancestors, journeying alongside Maui and a new crew to the far seas of Oceania and into dangerous, long-lost waters for an adventure unlike anything she’s ever faced. A brand new and exciting product range will also be available as part of Spark Joy This Holiday.

For generations, Disney has been an ever-present part of the holiday season. As fans and families gather to celebrate the holidays, Disney’s Spark Joy This Holiday campaign invites you to embrace the spirit of giving, share laughter, and create unforgettable moments. Let the magic of Disney fill your hearts and homes this festive season.

Follow the conversation on social media and share your own moments of joy this holiday with the hashtags #DisneyAfrica and #SparkJoyThisHoliday, tagging @ DisneyAfrica (Instagram) and @ DisneyinAfrica on Facebook.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of The Walt Disney Company Africa.

Notes to Editors:
Giveaways, gift guides and more available for editorial

For more information, please contact:
Gilda Narsimdas
Retail PR
Gilda@entouragemedia.co.za
072 222 4383

Connect:
Instagram: @ DisneyAfrica
Facebook: @ DisneyinAfrica
Hashtag: #DisneyAfrica #SparkJoyThisHoliday

About Disney Consumer Products:
Disney Consumer Products (DCP) brings the magic of The Walt Disney Company’s brands and franchises—including Disney, Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars, National Geographic, and more—into the daily lives of families and fans around the world through products and experiences across more than 100 retail categories from toys and t-shirts to apps, books, video games, and more. A division of the Disney Parks, Experiences and Products segment, DCP’s global operations include: the world’s largest licensing business, one of the biggest children’s publishing brands, a leading licensor of interactive games across platforms, and the shopDisney e-commerce platform.

 About Reach For A Dream:
Reach For A Dream seeks to alleviate the strain that life-threatening illnesses place on sick children and their families by providing these dreamers with the opportunity to believe in their greatest wish. The Foundation has been providing dreams to children all around the country for 33 years in counting. These young children are under extreme pressure to deal with these medical issues and are in desperate need of encouragement. In addition, Reach For A Dream offers the child a magical moment to regain their childhood that is being lost to an illness. The vision is to grow the Foundation to enable us to continue giving hope to children fighting critical illnesses. The Foundation hosts several national projects throughout the year to engage with the brave dreamers and wonderful donors. The Reach For A Dream Foundation’s inception was inspired by an article by the Make – A –Wish Foundation, based in America. Owen Parnell, past Ransburg Rotary Club President, was struck by the opportunity to establish a similar venture in South Africa. On 7 July 1988, the Organisation made its very first dream come true. And so the journey of dream fulfilment began. The first dreamer, little J C Steinman, was treated to a wonderful birthday celebration with rides on a pony and a motorcycle. Being occasionally named the Reach For A Dream Foundation in 1991, the organisation deemed its core purpose as “fulfilling the dreams of children of any race, colour and creed between the ages of 3 and 18 faced with a life-threatening illness.