This holiday season, fans of Ru Paul’s Drag Race personalities were treated to a special animated spin-off episode of Trixie & Katya Show, packed to the top of the stocking with eleganza. Combo Studio, based in Rio de Janeiro and known for productions like Netflix’s Super Drags and Pabllo Vittar’s “Rajadão” music video, was entrusted with the animation production, from character concepts to the final version of the video. “Trixie & Katya Christmas” was released December 20 on the Ru Paul’s Drag Race official YouTube channel.
The five-minute production is a collaboration with New York-based Cartuna, which enlisted Combo to transform the duo’s show into animation with a more mature tone, while retaining the gurls‘ recognizable style. The project was designed with particular care to delighting true fans, with plenty of Easter eggs. The episode features the voices of the titular drag queens, Trixie Mattel and Katya Zamo. (Trixie previously lent her voice to another Combo Studio project, playing Champagne in the English-language version of the Super Drags series.)
“Our main focus was to bring this universe in a format easily recognizable to the characters, with good animation, as a ‘gift’ to our loyal audience,” explains Vitor Campos, animation director and partner at Combo Studio.
Synopsis: In a snowy winter cabin, Katya, a retired drag queen, receives an unexpected visit from Little Brian, a desperate messenger from the village. Nutcracker’s, the last queer bar between the North Pole and Gloucester, faces closure, spelling the end of drag in the region. Little Brian pleads with Katya to perform and save the bar, but she is reluctant to resurrect her past career. However, something unexpected happens…
Combo Studio developed the entire visual creative proposal for the short film, including concepts, visuals and style, after receiving the script and pre-recorded audio. From there, they created storyboards, character designs and handled the total animation production, which took approximately three months to complete. Around 25 professionals were involved in the project, with a notable contribution from representatives of the LGBTQIA+ community and fans of the original series — providing manual work, ideas, suggestions and advice, with the aim of creating an inclusive seasonal tribute to the irrepressible queens.
“We were very happy to be contacted by Cartuna for such an important and representative project. We have a portfolio with productions focused on the LGBTQIA+ audience, and we know that inclusion, diversity, and respect are essential for society. It’s always important to highlight these issues, bringing animations with humor but without losing the main message,” comments Marcelo Pereira, a partner at Combo Studio.
Established in 2015, Combo Studio is responsible for several animated successes both in Brazil and around the world. Its main creation is the character Any Malu. Among its other well-known production contributions, the studio provided animation for the Netflix film America: The Motion Picture, Marvel Studios’ Hit Monkey, CAKE toon Swan Boy (both on Hulu), more than 80 minutes of Netflix series Agent Elvis and episodes of Rick and Morty Season 7 (available on Max).
