Dana Terrace

Dana Terrace is an American animator, writer, director, and producer best known as the creator and executive producer of Disney Television Animation’s fantasy series, The Owl House. Born on December 8, 1990, she studied animation at the School of Visual Arts in New York City. Her early professional credits included work on Disney’s Gravity Falls, Alex Hirsch’s mystery-comedy series, where she was a storyboard artist. She subsequently worked as a director on the 2017 revival of DuckTales, developed by Matt Youngberg and Francisco Angones. The Owl House premiered on Disney Channel on January 10, 2020. Its central character, Luz Noceda, is a teenage human girl who discovers a portal from the human realm to the Boiling Isles, a magical archipelago built from the remains of a Titan. There, Luz becomes the apprentice of Eda Clawthorne, the self-styled “Owl Lady,” and befriends the small demon King. The series also follows the Isles’ coven system, Emperor Belos, and Luz’s relationship with Amity Blight. Terrace has said that she wanted Luz to be bisexual; the program made Luz and Amity’s romance a continuing part of its story. Their relationship culminates in a kiss in “Enchanting Grom Fright,” a 2020 episode set at Hexside School of Magic and Demonics. The series was recognized for LGBTQ+ representation and for its serialized fantasy storytelling. Disney announced in 2021 that The Owl House would end with a shortened third season consisting of three specials. The first, “Thanks to Them,” debuted in October 2022; “For the Future” followed in January 2023; and “Watching and Dreaming” concluded the series on April 8, 2023. Across its three seasons, Terrace used the show to develop Luz’s friendships with Willow Park and Gus Porter, Eda’s family history with her sister Lilith, and the resistance against Belos. Terrace has described Disney’s initial reluctance to include openly bisexual characters; she continued advocating for Luz and Amity until their relationship appeared onscreen. The characters ultimately date, kiss, and call each other girlfriends during the series. She collaborated closely with writers, artists, and voice performers including Sarah Nicole Robles as Luz, Wendie Malick as Eda, and Alex Hirsch as King and Hooty. The show’s detailed setting included the Owl House, Bonesborough, Hexside, the Emperor’s Coven, and the Day of Unity, Belos’s plan to drain magic from the Isles. Terrace’s career connects storyboard production experience on major Disney series with an original work that reached its planned conclusion.