It’s ‘Frankenstein’ meets ‘Wallace & Gromit’ in the adaptation of Guy Bass’ children’s book about a small, forgotten creature living in a long-abandoned castle tasked with protecting a mad professor’s wildly inventive creations from the suspicious townspeople; in theaters October 29.
Ever since the days spent lounging on the couch with his brother watching Saturday morning cartoons, Guy Bass has been, in his words, “obsessed with animation.”
So, when director Steve Hudson signed on to adapt Bass’ book “Stitch Head” into an animated film, Bass couldn’t have been more thrilled.“It’s been a privilege seeing the characters brought to life with such care,” says Bass.
“Director Steve Hudson delivered so much drama and dynamism with the action sequences, but they’re all to earn the quieter moments in the film, where the characters realize who they were, who they are, and who they might become.” Bass first published “Stitch Head,” a heartfelt twist on Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein,” in 2011. The award-winning author’s children’s book series also include “SCRAP,” “Skeleton Keys,” and “Spynosaur” as well as others that don’t start with the letter “S.” Hudson’s film adaptation, releasing in U.S.theaters today, October 29, takes place in a castle laboratory high above the little town of Grubbers Nubbin.The maddest of all mad professors awakens monstrous creations to life… kind of… and then promptly forgets all about them.
So, who looks after the castle? Who takes care of the monsters? Who teaches them not to be monstrous, so the townsfolk living below the castle don’t form an angry mob, lit pitchforks in hand, and burn the castle to the ground? The job falls to Stitch Head, the Professor’s very first creation. Stitch Head does all the work, though the Professor never even notices him.But, one day, a ramshackle freak show comes to town, and its owner, Fulbert Freakfinder, desperately needs a new attraction to draw in crowds like in the old days.Soon, he arrives at the castle gate, promising Stitch Head fame, fortune and love.
Produced by Sonja Ewers and Mark Mertens, illustrated by Pete Williamson and with David Nasser serving as animation director, is produced by Gringo Films, Fabrique d’Images, Traumhaus Studios, and Senator Film Produktion. Check out the trailer: “I’ve always loved horror and was keen to write a slightly scary but wholly wholesome gothic tale in the vein – the story of a monster-making mad professor,” shares Bass, recalling the origins of his book, which now has many sequels.“I thought it’d be fun to tell the tale from the point of view of the professor’s first, less-than monstrous and long-forgotten first creation.That’s how came to be.” A few years later, Hudson would come across the story for the first time, through the audio recordings of German actor Katharina Thalbach.
“The book was first gifted to my wife and I about 10 years ago as an audio book,” shares Hudson, whose wife is producer Ewers.“Our twins, who were seven or eight-years old at the time, had never seen a movie but, listening to this German audio book, I started to realize the strength of that story and the fun we could have with it.” is Hudson’s first time directing an animated feature and he says he was very much inspired by Aardman films like and where timing plays a large role in the effective delivery of the films’ comedy. “I used to do a lot of live theater and comedy, and timing is kind of my thing,” says Hudson.“I felt that, even if I’m the only animation director in the universe who can’t draw, I can still bring something to this mix.
So, when we were moving into the animation, we kept saying, ‘Flat is funny.’ We would go back to Buster Keaton and early silent comedy.Something not quite Wes Anderson, but not far off it.We took a cinematic approach where, in one frame, many things are happening, and the animators are challenging the spectators to find the fun.” Hudson notes that at times, the film can feel very 2D in its composition, reminiscent of .
And, despite there being so many characters of different sizes, shapes, colors and textures, they all support each other's performance on screen. “Movies are often about individuals,” notes Hudson.“But, in films like , you see these large groups of characters acting as one.That’s what we were after in .
You have all these different monsters acting like a chorus in ancient Greek theatre or even in a modern musical.They all have emotional reactions, but they act together, then you get the one guy doing something a bit off key and it’s like the cherry on top of the performance.That out-of-group hiccup or one-liner or whatever it may be is like the punctuation mark.” The play on opposite characteristics, or subverting expectations, was also a big part of ’s comedy. “That was one of the most fun parts of this process, finding the individuality and contradiction in each character,” says Hudson.
“There’s a large warthog with little butterfly wings, a great white shark with pumping, iron biceps and little insect legs, and they’re all kind of exaggerated like that.The designs made the whole team laugh.” And Bass was elated.“It’s wonderfully surreal because the characters moved and spoke and interacted like they do in my head,” says the author.
“Watching the film for the first time was more or less an out-of-body experience.” However, amidst all the comedy and caricatured designs, the film also poses a very intentional and emotional conversation about found family. “I want kids to really feel the love in that theater,” shares Hudson.“Especially because we're now living in an age where kids grow up thinking that this thing called social media is telling them how much love they're getting.It’s turned love into a metric, a number.
I didn’t have to deal with that growing up and, truthfully, I don’t think I would have handled it well.” But, then again, social media has only emphasized the struggles that were already very present for kids growing up in any generation. “Like every kid, I grew up with real insecurities,” notes Hudson.“I’ve felt like an outsider and was sometimes very unhappy.But the paradox of that is, even though you feel like something that’s weird and not normal, that’s also the most natural and human emotion, feeling like you don't belong.” And, in addition to his love of horror, that emotion was also part of the origins for Bass’ .
“My best friends are a mix of actual and ‘found’ family and, long ago, we resigned ourselves to being stuck together for life,” says Bass.“Stitch Head is also a mix.He’s so joyful and ebullient, and enormous fun to see on screen, but he is also quiet and introspective and really takes care of his family.
I thought he’d be tricky to get right.I was excited and nervous to see how he and this film turned out but I couldn’t be happier! I guess it’s up to audiences if we see more films in the future but there are definitely more stories to tell.” Luckily,seems to have resonated with audiences, even before the release. “We did this test screening in LA and, afterwards, this 11-year-old girl in the audience wrote, ‘I was really glad that it was a happy ending because I don't feel very loved.’ And I just want to say to that little girl, I don’t know your name, but this movie is for you.” He adds, “We need to become a community that cares for each other.And, If we can give that to kids, the sense of hope in community and not just individualism, then that would be the ultimate reward.” Victoria Davis is a full-time, freelance journalist and part-time Otaku with an affinity for all things anime.
She's reported on numerous stories from activist news to entertainment.Find more about her work at victoriadavisdepiction.com.
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