‘Wildwood’, ‘Forgotten Island’ Film Producers at ‘Pixels & Pencils’ Panel

As artificial intelligence continues to advance, animators face more and more questions about the future of their craft and the role of human creativity in filmmaking. However, the majority do not favor the inclusion of artificial intelligence in the art of storytelling.

On: DiversityAt a “Pixels and Pencils” panel held Monday in Savannah, Georgia, leading filmmakers discussed the process of bringing animated stories to life and why technology can’t replace the work behind them. Six panelists participated DiversityClayton Davis participated in the discussion, moderated in partnership with the SCAD Savannah Film Festival. These include Brad Bird for Netflix’s “Ray Gunn” series; Daniel Chong for Pixar’s “Hoppers”; Joel Crawford and Januel Mercado for DreamWorks Animation’s “Forgotten Island”; Travis Knight for Laika’s “Wildwood”; and Leah Nelson for the Independent Film Company’s “Tangles.”

Meg Weichman, artistic director of SCAD Theaters and Festivals, introduced this year’s panel, describing it as a celebration of “the imagination, artistry, and collaboration that brings extraordinary animated stories to life.”

But making something “extraordinary” requires significant effort, which is part of what makes the process “magical,” Chong said.

“Every set, every character, every piece of fabric, every piece of hair, every moment of atmosphere, they were all created and made from scratch. There’s not a camera you can point at,” Chong told the audience. “It’s completely made up and made and created, and that’s a pretty amazing thing, because that’s one of the reasons why I think these movies last so long, because they have to create their own world.”

Creating an animated film usually takes more than a year, and sometimes much longer. Bird’s “Ray Gunn” movie took nearly 30 years to complete, from its initial idea to its big-screen release, but he did not work on the film consistently during that time.

But Bird was willing to take the plunge, saying a good story must come from life. “You cannot create the illusion of life without an illusion of life, and that is what we are responsible for; creating the illusion of life and bringing people to something new.”

“Wildwood” also required an extensive production process, especially considering its use of stop-motion animation. 2,800 shots were used in the film; Knight described this process as “painful.”

“Stop motion is progressive. You start at frame one and work all the way through in slow motion until you have a performance,” he said. “There is something incredibly magical about being a part of this.”

Despite the time and effort required, the producers said the process is what makes the work meaningful. Chong added, “When you see people quipping, ‘Oh, I can do this with the click of a button’ or ‘I can do this with these shortcuts,’ I think we just have to believe that these processes are the way they are and how difficult it is to do these things, because that’s what makes these movies great and that’s what resonates with people.”

Panelists agreed that the humanity behind these films allows the stories to resonate with audiences; This is something that AI cannot replicate. But as technology advances and animators continue to adapt, the future of the industry remains uncertain. Bird advised artists in the audience to continue learning the ins and outs of animation as the field evolves.

The filmmakers also discussed how different animation styles could shape the story. Mercado said deciding whether to use 2D animation, 3D animation, stop motion or even Claymation depends on the narrative of the film.

“The story is really what drives the visual storytelling and the motivations of the characters,” he shared. “This way, we were able to play with a variety of anime and manga styles that follow the character’s perspective in these parts of the game. [‘Forgotten Island’].”

“For ‘The Forgotten Island,’ we said, ‘This is an exploration of memories and how we experience them,’ and we think we all reflect memories in different ways. It was a really exciting opportunity for the animation style to change depending on who was narrating the memory,” Crawford added.

The panelists also challenged common misconceptions about working as an animator; This included the necessity of actually becoming an animator for Nelson, the director of “Tangles.”

“Since I’m not an animator, what I had to do was do whatever I could to communicate the vision; everything I could think of to communicate to my team what I hoped for and what I wanted to fight for,” he said. “I used every other medium I could think of. I made a lot of references to acting. When I couldn’t draw, I filmed myself doing the actions.”