Audiences at the Annecy Animation Festival got a first look at the upcoming CG-animated film “High in the Clouds,” based on Paul McCartney‘s book of the same name that features the voices of McCartney, Ringo Starr, Lionel Richie, Céline Dion and more.
Director Toby Genkel and project supervisor Christian De Vita joined Gaumont’s president of global animation, Terry Kalagian, to talk about the arduous eight-year process of bringing the story to the screen as well as collaborating with McCartney on the film. “It shouldn’t be about me,” Genkel recalls McCartney saying early on. “Yeah, OK, my name is all over the poster, but you get the point.”
The film, set to be released sometime in 2027, reimagines McCartney’s 2005 book as a story of a young squirrel named Wirral (voiced by Himesh Patel) who embarks on a journey to bring back his mother’s voice (Sugartail, played by Céline Dion) after it was stolen by a despot diva named Gretsch (Hannah Waddingham), who has banned all music and all freedom of expression. He sets out to find his mother’s old bandmates – played by McCartney (as a walrus named McKenzie, obviously), Starr (a bird named Roy) and Richie (a bison named Gladstone) — and accidentally sparks a revolution.
The panelists, as well as McCartney via a video message, made it very clear they didn’t want “High in the Clouds” to be a musical, but they did want it to be about the power of music. McCartney wrote 13 original songs for the film, which audiences got to hear a bit of during the presentation to audible gasps, but “High in the Clouds” will only use 6 of them. Still, the panelists explained that the finished film would play different versions of the songs, changing them slightly according to the singer and the place in the story where they’re played. Accompanying the songs is also a score by Academy Award winner Michael Giacchino.
Though no finished footage was shown, Annecy audiences got a glimpse at concept art and some early renders by Studio 88. Genkel and De Vita talked about wanting the movie to feature anthropomorphic animals who would not have animal mannerisms but still feature some animal traits (like Wirral being quick and agile like a squirrel). Some of the concept art shown included Gretsch’s empire, an island filled with industrial pipes in a shape resembling a Facehugger from the “Alien” franchise, while the rebellious musicians live in a colorful city in the clouds made out of hot air balloons and airships. Art for both locations got big cheers from the enthusiastic festival crowd.
“High in the Clouds” is aimed at family-friendly audiences of all ages, but it does feature themes of revolution and oppression, as well as freedom of expression. Balancing the message with a lighter tone was a challenge, particularly when it came to depicting Gretsch’s army. Rather than actual soldiers, she is surrounded by an army of devoted fans who make their own uniforms and create gadgets for her to use.
At the end of the presentation, audiences caught a video message from McCartney talking about his love of animation and how John Lennon inspired the main character of Wirral. They then got glimpses of McCartney and Starr recording lines for the film. McCartney said the film is a big homage to his first wife, Linda, who passed away in 1998 and inspired the character of Sugartail.
Love Film & TV?
Get your daily dose of everything happening in music, film and TV in Australia and abroad.
From Variety US