Animation Guild | We are 839 Digital Magazine
Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1529871
Fur, Fins & Flight A vibrant eco-system of forest animals populates the island from beavers and otters to ducks and owls, each with a different type of locomotion. "You have to have grounded performances," says Jensen. "If they're not grounded, you don't believe it." While the animals' behavior is naturalistic, their facial expressions are more anthropomorphic. On a technical level, the lmmakers wanted to achieve the sophistication and the richness that you get out of real fur without seeing every hair. "When you paint things, you're thinking about silhouettes and shape language and gradients of value and color, and then you're adding hatching maybe where the light is hitting," says Budsberg. "That's really hard to do [in CG] because the renderer wants to make something physically accurate." The effects team developed tools such as an Accent shader to manipulate the light response to make it look like it's brushed and painterly. "We approached fur and feathers as a painter would, [a] broad-stroke underlayer with successive layers of accents of texture that were only revealed through light," notes Budsberg. The realistic yet expressive depictions of the wildlife anchor the story as Roz's relentless kindness collides with the animals' instincts to be wary of potential predators. Slowly, Roz starts to engage with the animals on the island, and develops an unexpected friendship with Fink, a tough-talking fox. "He's representative of the island in that the animals on this island have to be sel sh," says Sanders. "If they're not, they won't see another day." The lmmakers' constant attention to the in uence of art in conveying emotion was essential for building relationships like this one, which allows both characters to reveal their vulnerabilities as they grow and heal. It becomes a wonderful lesson and reminder for the audience—that nding common ground through kindness is a skill worth cultivating. Head of Story Heidi Jo Gilbert didn't necessarily intend for the lm to be a tearjerker, but the emotional arc of motherhood connected deeply with the audience. "I just believe in telling stories with honesty, and sadness is a real part of life," she says. "It gives kids a way to process those harder emotions." In the lm, Roz develops a maternal bond with her adopted gosling, Brightbill. She explores the gift (and challenges) of motherhood, and it provides a catalyst for Roz's evolution. However, Roz isn't the only mother gure represented in the story. Pinktail—an opossum with babies hanging off her like accessories—is an overworked, exhausted mom who gives Roz advice and also acknowledges some of the dif cult realities of parenthood, like the fact that there aren't any instructions on how to raise a child. "We can only get away with that because we had multiple mother characters," says Gilbert. "If we only had one character that was representing all of motherhood, then [the lm] wouldn't be able to be that harsh, showing that funny overworked side of motherhood. But because we have these two mother characters, we're able to show all aspects of that theme." Gilbert notes that it was important to stay true to her North Star, as some notes pushed for more comedy.But she knew the story needed to explore the deep and complicated emotions between loved ones. "I lost my mom as I was rolling onto this project," says Gilbert. "And I just felt like [it] was such a gift for me because it gave me a place to live in scenes and a story that I could honor my mom. This was a love letter to my mom in that way." A Love Letter "We were always set dressing and composing things that really made you feel like you're close to that environment." –Raymond Zilbach, Production Designer WINTER 2024 31 opposite (from top): The movie's fi nal look maintained a hand-painted style; Each interaction with animals brought Roz closer to her wild nature; As Roz evolves on the island, she increasingly blends into her surroundings. this page (from Left): Character explorations of Brightbill by Character Designer Genevieve Tsai show his growth from duckling to adult; The mother-child relationship was an important theme throughout the fi lm.