I've long considered "The Nightmare Before Christmas" the definitive stop-motion feature film, because nearly 30 years after its release, it feels as fresh as it did in 1993. A lot of that comes down to the timeless quality of stop-motion, so I'm wondering if there was any tried-and-true technique that you used in "Nightmare" that you used today for "Wendell & Wild."
Something that goes to the heart of established animation is the direct connection between the animator and the puppet that has to be reposed up to 24 times a second to produce finished footage. That's something we've never given up on, that direct connection. While there's certain technologies that have helped us — we don't shoot on film anymore and don't have to worry all night if the lab's going to screw up the footage — it still comes down to our super-talented animators and a well-made puppet, and hopefully a good story to tell. That hasn't changed, and that's what should never change about stop-motion.
You've mentioned how Jordan Peele is a huge fan of stop-motion, and the disembodied hand in his production company logo is actually produced with the technique. During your meetings to discuss "Wendell & Wild," did Jordan point to any of your specific stop-motion work and say, "I was inspired by that"?
When we first met, he wanted to meet because it turned out he wanted to do more than just a voice, and I'm so happy he did. He basically let me know what a fan he was of my work and stop-motion. He realized I was the actual director of "The Nightmare Before Christmas" for producer Tim Burton. I can't recall specific scenes [he liked], but just that he thought that the films I had directed were really good ...
He talked about why he loves stop-motion as well, that handmade quality, and also what kind of films he wished he could have seen — animated films — when he was a kid, which certainly informed what we ended up doing with "Wendell & Wild."
