‘Smiling Friends’ Creators Launch Indie Outfit Zam Studios In L.A.

Ahead of the upcoming third season of Adult Swim’s absurdist hit series Smiling Friends, the show’s creators, Michael Cusack and Zach Hadel, and their longtime collaborator and series producer, Aron Fromm, are opening a new animation company in Los Angeles called Zam Studios.

According to a release, Zam aims to deliver premium animation and visual effects for a range of clients while also developing original properties in-house. According to Cusack, Hadel, and Fromm, the studio is set up to handle everything from production and post-production to VFX, compositing, and mixed-media animation for television, feature films, and commercial work.

In a joint statement, the trio explained their creative mission:

Zam will focus on what matters most in animation — high-quality work made by people who understand the process, are obsessed with craft, and have a knack for producing cartoons that recapture the magic of years past.

The studio stayed close to home for its first high-profile first project: providing specialty animation, live-action integration, compositing, and VFX for the third season of Smiling Friends, which returns Sunday, October 5, on Adult Swim and streams the next day on HBO Max. This season promises an ambitious mix of high-end 2D work, CG animation, stop motion, and live-action sequences, expanding on the wild mixed-media aesthetic of the show’s earlier seasons.

Cusack (YOLO: Crystal Fantasy) and Hadel (OneyPlays, Hellbenders fame) created Smiling Friends, while Fromm — whose credits include Sessions with Stan and Mike Judge Presents: Tales from the Tour Bus — serves as a producer and director on the series.

In addition to their flagship show, Zam Studios’ growing portfolio includes the Smiling Friends spinoff shorts Smiling Symphonies, the documentary Billy Idol Should Be Dead, and branded content such as Adult Swim and Rick & Morty bumpers.

The company is represented by Fourth Wall Management.