6 cgw m ay . j u n e 2 0 1 6
SONY IMAGEWORKS CREATES AN ISLAND HOME FOR BIRDS AND PIGS
ALIKE IN THE ANIMATED FEATURE THE ANGRY BIRDS MOVIE
BY KAREN MOLTENBREY
P
a
r
a
d
i
s
e
I
n December 2009, the world was intro-
duced to flightless, wingless, legless (and
"smileless") birds in the mobile game Angry
Birds from Rovio. The concept was simple:
Players used a slingshot to launch the birds
at hungry, green pigs that have poached
their eggs. With colorful characters and addictive
gameplay, the title became a huge hit, resulting in
billions of downloads around the world.
Without question, the characters and property
were highly recognizable – which can be both
a blessing and a curse with fans. According
to Catherine Winder, who, along with John
Cohen, co-produced the movie, one of the most
exciting aspects of bringing the franchise to
the big screen was that so many people had a
connection to the game. "Angry Birds has a 91
percent awareness around the world," she says.
"Everybody knows who these characters are, so
the expectations are high. Our aspirations had
to be high; we want to make sure all the fans are
happy with this movie."
Bi
r
d
s
OF
