Guillermo Del Toro To Produce 3D Stop-Motion ‘Pinocchio’
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Guillermo del Torois a filmmaking force of nature. Seemingly every few weeks, the writer/producer/director announces a new project and the latest will team him up with the Henson Company and Pathe to produce a 3D stop-motion animation version ofPinocchio.Based on a 2002 bookof the classic fairy tale, the film will be aimed at slightly older audiences and be more edgy. It’ll be co-directed byGris Grimly(who illustrated the 2002 book) andMark Gustafsonfrom a script byMatthew Robbins. Del Toro and Robbins collaborated on the story and the whole production is gearing up for production later this year. After the jump, see more concept art from the film, read who else is going to be working on it (Nick Cave!) and even check out some quotes from Del Toro about this film andhow he’ll fit it withAt the Mountains of Madness.Deadline exclusively brokethe news of this collaboration and del Toro himself sent the above image, as well as this one to convey the proposed look of the film, which he talks about below:
Nick Cavehas already signed on to be the musical consultant and the puppets and 3D will be done by the UK companyMcKinnon and Saunderswho didFantastic Mr. Fox, Corpse Brideand more.
Del Toro and Robbins reportedly came up with the story and take on this material about four years ago and Del Toro was going to direct it himself, but then ended up doingPan’s Labyrinthinstead. So they have some prep work in place which will allow Del Toro to go ahead and directAt the Mountains of Madnessin the coming months while producing this.
We’ve designed key frames and characters, we know the mood and the feel, we’ve created a bible. Shooting stop motion animation takes a lot time, but we’ve got the right team and I will be there for daily or weekly updates on how it’s going.
There’s more information inthe Deadline story, including some additional story specifics and also the latest updated onAt the Mountains of Madnesswhich is now two weeks away from getting a greenlight:
We are doing very intense prep work, we’ve shown Universal tests, designs and they are very very happy. I hope to start this as soon as possible, by May. This long process has been a blessing, because we’ve had two years of full pre-production. I have gotten to be involved in every meeting and key decision, during part of The Hobbit process and post-Hobbit.
Do you think the marketplace is ready for a darker, Guillermo del Toro influencedPinocchio? What do you think of his take on it?
