ShaneAcker Tagged Articles at Cinematical

It's safe to say that every film starts out small, and that many of them then end up staying small for any number of reasons. Beyond that, only a lucky few make the leap to feature-length, and even then, it doesn't always turn out for the best. Saw was once a mere fraction of itself, a grimy and gritty little morality play unlikely to spawn a seriously successful franchise that just won't die. The minds behind Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow dedicated themselves for years to creating a low-budget trailer for the film, only to then be granted the chance to flesh out their pulpy serial throwback with millions more. Wouldn't you know it, District 9 just became the summer's least expected blockbuster to the tune of $100 million, and even that was born of a like-minded showcase reel.

And then there's Shane Acker, whose original short for 9 was a wordless little post-apocalyptic breath-taker that rightfully earned itself an Academy Award nomination in 2005. Once an expanded take garnered the support of a recognizable voice cast and producers like Tim Burton, his vision was well on its way to the big screen, and all things considered, it's a small wonder that this small wonder made it through the Hollywood machine with most (though not all) of its mystique intact...

At Comic-Con, legends come a dime a dozen, and those are just the ones on the printed pages of the comics on the exhibition hall floor. But in Hall H, the epicenter of the convention's surprises, revelations and exclusives, true groundbreakers and history-makers are in comparatively short supply. This year, however, there were several, including James Cameron, Peter Jackson, Hayao Miyazaki, and Terry Gilliam; but even in such rarified company, Tim Burton stands head and shoulder above in terms of providing memorable, specific, and ongoing inspiration to the folks who like to look up at these filmmakers' latest projects.

Suffice it to say that a checklist of his most iconic films would be redundant, since virtually all of them qualify, either because of their source material, or his interpretation of it. But the filmmaker has two high-profile projects coming out in the next year or so, each of which applies his inventive style in different ways: first, there's 9, Shane Acker's computer-generated post-apocalyptic odyssey, which Burton is producing; and in 2010, there's Alice in Wonderland, his adaptation of the classic novel by Lewis Carroll.

In between Hall H panels, Cinematical caught up with Burton to discuss his work on 9 and Alice in Wonderland. In addition to talking about the technological opportunities and challenges presented on both films, he offered a few secrets about the forthcoming spectacle of Alice, and reflected on the filmmaking style – and substance – that has made his idiosyncratic body of work a happy home for outsiders and mainstream audiences alike.

Friday afternoon Hall H attendees were treated to their second chance to speak to Tim Burton (following his appearance Thursday for Alice in Wonderland), and their first look at the new film 9. Directed by Shane Acker, the film is produced by Burton and Wanted director Timur Bekmambetov, both of whom offered a few insights about their own work as they showcased the results of the first-time filmmaker's adaptation of his own animated short film.

Among the details revealed during the 9 panel:

Academy Award nominated director Shane Acker's animated film 9, which is currently in production for Focus Features, is shaping up nicely to include a cast of top-line voice talent. The film, written by Monster House scribe Pamela Pettler, is an expansion of Acker's highly-regarded short film, and is being produced by Tim Burton, Timur Bekmambetov, and Jim Lemley; Focus CEO James Schamus made the announcement.

One of the actors who will lend his voice talents to the film is Lord of the Rings alumni Elijah Wood, who will take on the title role of "9." Other notable actors joining Wood on the film include Academy Award winner Jennifer Connelly, actor/filmmaker Crispin Glover, Academy Award winner Martin Landau, Christopher Plummer and the versatile John C. Reilly. "This exciting and thought-provoking story has already drawn a strong filmmaking team together to work with Shane in bringing his visionary fantasy world to life. These splendid actors will provide compelling characterizations to go with the visual brilliance," says Schamus.

9 is an action-packed tale which takes place in a post-apocalyptic world parallel to our own. In this world, articulate and fully-mobile rag dolls must fight for survival. In their struggle they find strength and leadership in one of their own, 9, whose qualities may help them survive. Having seen Acker's short film on which this feature is based (which you can catch at YouTube), all I can say is "cool." Acker is an obviously gifted filmmaker with a bright future ahead of him. If the feature version of his short turns out even half as well as the original, he'll have a terrific film on his hands for sure.