Ready, set, scare!
An animated horror series called JumpScare is in the works for viewers ages 8-12. Scholastic Entertainment — the media division of Scholastic — is partnering with Mainframe Studios to create the TV series.
JumpScare will feature adaptations of four stand-alone Scholastic books, as well as an original story from Man of Action Entertainment, the U.S. writer collective behind Ben 10. The first season will feature five distinct hauntings as the teenage protagonists are forced to reckon with spirits trapped between worlds at haunted sites like derelict houses, asylums, and graveyards. All of the series’ stand-alone stories will ultimately be connected within a shared universe and each story will feature a different animation style based on its respective vibe.
These are the Scholastic books that will inspire the JumpScare episodes:
- Summer’s End by Joel A. Sutherland — Four kids are inexplicably drawn to an old, abandoned kids’ sanatorium on a remote island. As they attempt to untangle the mystery behind its shuttered doors, the friends become involved in a deadly fight between restless spirits of past inmates and the murderer who trapped them there.
- Agony House by Cherie Priest, illustrated by Tara O’Connor — When Denise’s family tries to convert an old New Orleans house into a bed and breakfast, she becomes plagued by whispering voices, weird noises, and electric shocks. She finds an old comic book in the attic that might hide some explanations.
- The Forgotten Girl by India Hill Brown — Tormented with nightmares after she discovers an abandoned, segregated “Blacks Only” cemetery in her backyard, Iris’ life collides with a jealous and demanding ghost with some unfinished business. Iris must do everything in her power to help this vengeful soul, or risk losing herself entirely.
- The Dead Girls of Hysteria Hall by Katie Alender — Delia isn’t sure what to think when her departed great aunt leaves her the family home in her will. But when she becomes trapped within its walls, she discovers that the house was once an insane asylum for troubled girls — many of whom still haunt the halls. Delia quickly learns that ghosts are the least of her worries though, as something even darker lurks in the basement of the house.
There is not yet a release date for the series.
