On a day pretty much like any other, a girl named Prue is out in a park with her baby brother when the unthinkable happens: he’s swept off by crows and taken into a mysterious forest known as the Impassable Wilderness. Joined by her classmate Curtis, Prue ventures into the magical, sylvan realm where animals have developed a complex society of their own. The search for Prue’s missing sibling plots the course for an epic adventure that is the heart of the young adult novel Wildwood. Soon, the story lights up the big screen.
The forthcoming feature-length film is based on an original story by Colin Meloy—the lead singer of The Decemberists, for the fans out there—and illustrated by Carson Ellis, who also happens to be his wife. (Ellis has also designed phenomenal posters, album covers, and merch for the band over the years.)
Wildwood is directed by Travis Knight and is in the hands of Portland-based LAIKA Studios, which is behind box office favorites like The Boxtrolls and Coraline. At the forefront of feature film animation, LAIKA emphasizes both human-made elements and cutting-edge technology, incorporating meticulously hand-built puppets and sets along with computer-generated graphics.
Through intensive study, LAIKA’s artists captured the movements, behavior, and physical appearance of birds for the film’s so-called Avian Principality, of which a character named Owl Rex is the crown prince.
“Performance starts with observation,” says the narrator of a behind-the-scenes featurette, which you can see below. An ensemble of voice actors includes Carey Mulligan, Mahershala Ali, Awkwafina, Angela Bassett, and many others.
The trailer is out now, and the film is slated for release everywhere on October 23. You might also enjoy peeking behind the scenes of the making of LAIKA’s Kubo and the Two Strings.
