In Table Town, July 2nd marks the most treasured holiday in the world of Kiff, Halfway There Day. July 2nd marks the exact halfway point through the year, and it serves as a great occasion to relax, take it easy, spend time with friends and family, and if you do it right, maybe Centaur Claus will appear and let you burn your New Year’s Resolutions in his magical trash can.
To celebrate the day, I had the great pleasure of being able to ask the creators of Kiff, Lucy Heavens and Nic Smal, a few questions about the holiday.
TB: What was the inspiration behind this unique new holiday?
LH/NS: We all love holidays, but it can be a little bit stressful to cater for the family, make your home neat and tidy, and worry that everyone is comfortable. In general, of course, many people (like Kiff!) put a lot of pressure on themselves to get everything exactly right all the time. We wanted to create a holiday where the whole point is to let your hair down, not feel pressure to look perfect, and to just focus on good times. July 2nd is exactly midway through the year – Halfway There Day! The one day of the year that's there to remind all of us to go easy on ourselves.
TB: Centaur Claus and Helen seem to have some kind of past. Will we ever find out what happened there?
LH/NS: We sincerely hope so, but you have to wait until Helen is in the right mood to tell you about that kind of thing. Just speculating here, but they both seem like pretty ancient beings – no one’s ever nailed down Helen’s true age. So, looking forward to seeing how far back their history actually goes!
TB: With Kiff now renewed for season two, will we see Halfway There Day for a second year?
LH/NS: It's the most beloved holiday in Table Town. We just have to do more Halfway There Day episodes! When else will our dear Tabletonians have the opportunity to throw away their New Year's resolutions (that they know they’ll never actually do) in Centaur Claus’ magical trash can?
TB: How will you celebrate Halfway There Day this year?
LH/NS: We'll be doing whatever we feel like doing on the day, wearing half the amount of socks we usually wear – no pressure! Exactly halfway through the day, we’ll be singing the Halfway There Day Carol (“Halfway there, we’re halfway there; if you haven't done it all, then we don't care. We love one another the way we are; it's time to lower the bar”). There will absolutely be cheeseballs, “group soup,” love and friends.
There are many ways that YOU can celebrate Halfway There Day this year, so if you want to be a Beverly and celebrate to the fullest extent, you can! You can tune in to Disney Channel all day on July 2nd, where this episode of Kiff will be repeated several times throughout the day. Fans of the show will also be able to see some never-before-seen Kiff shorts in between select episodes. Fans also love the songs throughout the series, which are now available in the official Kiff soundtrack which is streaming now on major platforms, including Spotify and Apple Music!
From South African creators and executive producers Lucy Heavens and Nic Smal, Kiff follows an optimistic squirrel, Kiff, and her chill bunny bestie, Barry, as they navigate school, relationships and their often-eccentric community in Table Town – a world where animals and magical oddballs tackle day-to-day life together. Inspired by the people and places Heavens and Smal experienced when they were growing up in Cape Town, each half-hour episode, comprised of two 11-minute stories, includes a new original song. Announced at the recent Annecy International Animation Festival, the series has been renewed for a second season on the network.
You can catch Kiff now on Disney Channel, the DisneyNOW app, and Disney+. You can check out my conversation with Lucy Heavens and Nic Smal ahead of the debut of the series earlier this year in the video below.