Dino Dan

Not to be confused with Dino Dana.

Dino Dan is a Canadian television series created and directed by J. J. Johnson. The series premiered on TVOKids in Canada on January 4, 2010, and ended on August 23, 2019. In the US, the series premiered on the Nick Jr. Channel on October 17, 2010. The show was produced by Sinking Ship Entertainment, in association with TVOKids,^[1] Access, Knowledge Network, and SCN. A sequel of the series, Dino Dana,^[2] premiered on Amazon Prime on May 26, 2017.^[3] The show premiered on Universal Kids on October 6, 2018, three years after Nick Jr.'s rights to the series expired.^[4]

Dino Dan
Created by	J. J. Johnson
Directed by	J. J. Johnson
Starring	Jason Spevack Sydney Kuhne Isaac Durnford Jaclyn Forbes Allana Harkin Ricardo Hoyos Trek Buccino Keana Bastidas Sarah Carver Andrea Martin Jayne Eastwood Mark McKinney
Theme music composer	Michael-Paul Ella
Composer	Michael-Paul Ella
Country of origin	Canada
Original language	English
No. of seasons	8
No. of episodes	103 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producers	Blair Powers Bruce Johnson
Producers	Matthew J.R. Bishop J.J. Johnson Blair Powers
Production locations	Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Editors	Matthew J.R. Bishop Liam Ward
Camera setup	Single-Camera
Running time	22–23 minutes
Production company	Sinking Ship Entertainment
Original release
Network	TVOKids Access Knowledge Network SCN
Release	January 4, 2010 (2010-01-04) – August 23, 2019 (2019-08-23)

On February 4, 2013, it was reported that CITV had acquired and secured rights to air the series in the UK and eventually to re-air it on the channel.^[5][6]

Plot

In this series that combines live action with CGI animation, paleontologist-in-training Dan Henderson and his friends take a journey to a modern-day world where dinosaurs roam freely in the world. There, they have adventures, uncover clues about the past and teach children scientific information ranging from new species to dinosaur vocabulary.

Dino Dan: Trek's Adventures

A follow-up season starring Dan's younger brother, Trek, began airing in 2013. Trek, now age ten, is also able to see dinosaurs and spends his time learning about them as his brother did. There are fifteen new dinosaurs from Albertosaurus to Microraptor in this series. Dan did not have time to do his experiments because he has to help his father, so he asks Trek to do them for him. Although Trek becomes the main character for the episodes, Jason Spevack made periodic appearances as Dan throughout Trek's Adventures, though much of the adult cast remained largely unchanged.

Dino Dan cast

• Jason Spevack as Dan Henderson
• Sydney Kuhne as Angie
• Isaac Durnford as Cory Schluter
• Jaclyn Forbes as Kami
• Allana Harkin as Mom (Melissa Jessica Henderson)
• Ricardo Hoyos as Ricardo Sanchez
• Trek Buccino as Trek Henderson
• Keana Bastidas as Jordan
• Sarah Carver as Mrs. Carver
• Andrea Martin as Mrs. Hahn
• Jayne Eastwood as Dan's grandmother (Ms. Currie)
• Mark McKinney as Mr. Drumheller
• Jon Dore as Uncle Jack
• Jason Hopley as Jim the Zoologist
• Seán Cullen as Mr. Paluxy
• Pat Thornton as Mr. Schluter, Cory's dad

Trek's Adventures

• Trek Buccino as Trek Henderson
• Jordyn Negri as Hannah Schluter
• Katherine Forrester as Penelope
• Colin Petierre as Bobby
• Allana Harkin as Mom (Melissa Jessica Henderson)
• Jayne Eastwood as Trek's grandmother (Ms. Currie)
• Connor Price as Liam, Penelope's brother
• Sarah Carver as Mrs. Carver
• Jason Spevack as Dan Henderson
• Seán Cullen as Mr. Paluxy
• Pat Thornton as Mr. Schluter, Hannah's dad
• Dale Yim as Mr. Caperaz, Bobby's dad
• Naomi Snieckus as Penelope's mom

Episodes

Main article: List of Dino Dan episodes

Awards

2009: Nominated for a Gemini Award for Best Preschool-to-4th Grade Program or Series

2009: Won the Shaw Rocket Prize for best independently produced Canadian children's, youth, or family program^[7]

2010: Won the Young Artist Award for Most Outstanding Young Ensemble In A TV Series^[8]

2015: Dino Dan: Trek's Adventures won the Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Pre-School Children's Series^[9]

2016: Dino Dan: Trek's Adventures was nominated for the Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Pre-School Children's Series^[10]