Disney Animation’s Songs in Sign Language arrives on Disney+ on April 27, 2026, and the studio has released the first sneak peek footage for all three animated ASL musical sequences. The short clips offer the first real look at what director Hyrum Osmond and the team at Deaf West Theatre created together, and they are worth watching before the full release drops next week.
What are songs in Sign Language?
Songs in Sign Language is a collaboration between Walt Disney Animation Studios and Deaf West Theatre, the Tony Award-winning company based in Los Angeles. The project reimagines three songs from recent Disney animated films in American Sign Language, animated in the style of the original films.
We first covered this project back in March when Disney announced the collaboration. You can read that original report here: Disney to Launch Animated ASL Musical Sequences from Frozen II, Moana 2, and Encanto.
The three songs featured are “The Next Right Thing” from Frozen 2, “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” from Encanto, and “Beyond” from Moana 2. Each one has been reimagined and animated as a standalone musical sequence. A behind-the-scenes featurette will also accompany the release on Disney+.
The Next Right Thing (Frozen 2) — Sneak Peek
“The Next Right Thing” is one of the most emotionally grounded songs in the Frozen canon, and seeing it translated into ASL is a meaningful fit. The sequence captures the weight of the song without losing any of its intimacy.
We Don’t Talk About Bruno (Encanto) — Sneak Peek
“We Don’t Talk About Bruno” is the most ensemble-driven of the three songs, and the ASL choreography reflects that energy. The sequence moves quickly and the signing adds a visual layer that actually suits the song’s rhythm well.
Beyond (Moana 2) — Sneak Peek
“Beyond” is the newest of the three, and seeing it in ASL gives it a different kind of emotional weight than the theatrical version. The animation style stays consistent with Moana 2 while accommodating the signing reference in a way that feels natural rather than added on.
How Disney Animation and Deaf West Theatre Built These Sequences
The project was directed by Hyrum Osmond, a veteran Disney animator and director, with producers Heather Blodget and Christina Chen. Osmond led a team of more than 20 animators who worked from sign language reference created specifically for this production.
On the Deaf West side, artistic director DJ Kurs worked with sign language reference choreographer Catalene Sacchetti and eight performers from the company. The approach was not a word-for-word transcription of the lyrics into ASL. Instead, the team focused on concepts and emotion, which means the signing reflects the feeling of each song rather than a literal translation. That decision matters, and you can feel it in the clips.
The April 27 release date on Disney+ aligns with National Deaf History Month, which runs through the end of April.
Disney has done accessibility work before, but Songs in Sign Language is different because it is not a caption track or an overlay. It is a fully animated production built from the ground up with the Deaf community as the creative collaborators, not consultants brought in at the end. Deaf West Theatre has been doing this kind of work on stage for decades, and their fingerprints are on every frame of what you see in these clips. This is the version of accessibility that actually means something.
Songs in Sign Language premieres on Disney+ on April 27, 2026. For more Disney+ coverage, visit Fantasy Land News.
Join the Realm at fantasylandnews.com/the-realm.
Songs in Sign Language: Watch All Three Sneak Peek Clips Before the Disney+ Premiere
