ABC FAMILY'S POP UP SANTA SURPRISES 11 LUCKY "SHADOWHUNTERS" SUPER FANS WITH THE TRIP OF A LIFETIME

Fans Get a Sneak Peek of "Shadowhunters" with "Beyond the Shadows: The Making of Shadowhunters," Airing Tonight, December 6th at 9:30 P.M., EST/PST

Burbank, CA (December 6, 2015) - ABC Family continues to bring the fun and goodwill of Pop Up Santa to celebrate "25 Days of Christmas," with bigger events and better surprises than ever! ABC Family is becoming Freeform in January 2016.

Just last night, ABC Family's Pop Up Santa surprised 11 lucky "Shadowhunters" superfans with the ultimate fan experience. Fans submitted videos expressing their passion for Cassandra Clare's #1 bestselling "The Mortal Instruments" book series, which inspired the new original television series "Shadowhunters," in hopes of winning a chance of a lifetime to meet Clare at an exclusive "Shadowhunters" fan event.

The 11 devoted "Shadowhunters" fans and their guests were flown from around the country to New York City to meet Clare, where she gifted them with an early release of her highly anticipated new novel, "Lady Midnight," before it's available for purchase on March 8th. But that wasn't all! The 11 superfans were then surprised by the show's entire cast for an exclusive screening of "Behind the Shadows: The Making of Shadowhunters" and received "Shadowhunters" superfan swag bags. "Shadowhunters" premieres on January 12th at 9:00 p.m., EST/PST.

"Beyond the Shadows: The Making of Shadowhunters" airs tonight at 9:30 p.m. EST/PST on ABC Family and will give fans of "The Mortal Instruments" book series a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the making of the television show. The special will include the cast talking about how they landed their roles and a look into how the cast got into fighting shape. And for viewers who are new to the Shadow World, the cast explains what "Shadowhunters" is all about. "Beyond the Shadows: The Making of Shadowhunters" will include interviews with "Shadowhunters" cast members Katherine McNamara, Dominic Sherwood, Harry Shum, Jr., Alberto Rosende, Matthew Daddario, Emeraude Toubia and Isaiah Mustafa, as well as showrunner Ed Decter and executive producer McG. "Beyond the Shadows: The Making of Shadowhunters" is produced by Big Door, Inc. and Jen X Productions, Inc., with Jennifer Erwin as executive producer and Max Yoffe as co-executive producer.

Now in its 18th year, "25 Days of Christmas" is the biggest seasonal programming event on cable and the network's highest-rated period of the year, reaching nearly 100 million people in 2014. During the annual event, ABC Family airs 25 continuous days of holiday-themed entertainment for the whole family, adding up to over 300 hours of programming. The event includes traditional holiday film favorites and specials. "25 Days of Christmas" kicked off December 1st on ABC Family and runs through December 25th.

About ABC Family

Part of the Disney|ABC Television Group, ABC Family (to be renamed Freeform in January 2016) is distributed in 94 million homes. The network entertains and connects to audiences with bold, relatable programming. The programming is a combination of network-defining original series and original movies, quality acquired series and blockbuster theatricals. "WATCH ABC Family" (also to be renamed Freeform in January 2016) is an authenticated service which allows viewers with participating TV subscription services access to 24/7 live viewing of the network, as well as continued on-demand access to such popular series at home and on-the-go via a wide array of devices. The network is also the destination for annual holiday events with "13 Nights of Halloween" and "25 Days of Christmas."