Anticipation is building for Stranger Things animation Tales From ’85.
At Annecy today, fans were treated to a sneak peek behind the scenes of the creation of the latest in the Hawkins-set Netflix franchise, while showrunner Eric Robles revealed the inspiration behind the first animation in the Stranger Things series.
It is early days, and no images have even been released, but Robles talked a packed Annecy crowd through some of the animatics, character design, scary creatures – including some terrifying upside down pumpkin zombies and a snow shark – and even showed a small bit of animation, much to the chagrin of the Netflix execs who have made the trip to Annecy, Robles joked.
“When you are given the responsibility to create a look for a Stranger Things animation, the fear of god is put in your soul,” he said of the pressure. The streamer has just released its first Tales From ’85 logline, which reads: “Welcome back to Hawkins in the stark winter of 1985, where the original characters must fight new monsters and unravel a paranormal mystery terrorizing their town in Stranger Things: Tales From ’85, an epic new animated series.” The show comes out next year.
“The north star”
Robles revealed many of the projects that have inspired Tales From ’85 but it is one above all that became his “north star.”
“It all went back to The Real Ghostbusters,” he said. “It was silly but had a handful of dark, creepy episodes and we just kept talking about that. That became the north star for us.”
Other inspirations cited by Robles, who drew on projects old and new for his show about “friendships, horror-filled story and mystery,” included Transformers, ET and Goosebumps.
“The vision is kids riding bikes, using walkie-talkies,” he added.
Making an animated show replete with danger was a new experience for Robles. “There’s danger and not everyone might survive,” he added. “The danger is real and that had an impact on the design.”
The characters’ depictions were particularly inspired by an artist named Meybis Ruiz Cruz.
The animation represents the next stage in the Duffer Brothers’ smash Stranger Things franchise, with the fifth and final series set to be released later this year in three parts. A Broadway and West End stage version, Stranger Things: The First Shadow, has opened, while immersive Stranger Things experiences have taken place worldwide.
Robles was on stage before the team behind Netflix movie In Your Dreams and after Fixed creator Genndy Tartakovsky.
In Your Dreams is a big priority for Netflix and director Alex Woo talked the crowd through the challenge of tackling a subject that has become something of a “white whale” for animators over the years. Starring Simu Liu, Craig Robinson and Cristin Milioti, the movie is about a girl named Stevie and her brother Elliot who magically travel into the world of dreams to find The Sandman, who would grant their wish of saving their parents’ marriage.
“Studios had stuff in development [about dreams] but never did anything because they couldn’t figure out the story,” said Woo. “But by some miracle we cracked it.”
Woo became emotional when explaining the origin story behind In Your Dreams. The project goes back to his mother leaving home when he was a child.
“Mum had her bags packed and said she needed time to figure things out,” he said. “I didn’t understand but knew everything was about to change. So me and my brother hatched a journey.”
While “none of our hare-brained schemes worked out,” Woo clarified that his parents are back together and have been married 50 years. His brother was in the audience.
Woo praised Netflix, which is out in full force at Annecy, for allowing creatives to be “free from the limitations of a house style.”
The creatives were speaking at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival.
From Deadline.com