LAIKA’s Travis Knight teases multiple films are in the works, including a possible move to streaming.
“It’s certainly a questionable recipe for success if I’ve ever heard one.”
“LAIKA is not some massive multinational, multimedia operation.
So, this kind of attention is incredible for us.
It raises awareness and interest in our studio and our films.
With this renewed awareness, Knight hopes to keep evolving LAIKA with the times.
That may include streaming.
“Certainly the film-going experience is changing, the theatrical experience is changing.
It’s evolving as it always has,” Knight says.
We’re content, if you will.”
“When you strip it all down, we’re essentially just storytellers,” he explains.
What hasn’t changed are what Knight refers to as “humanist stories.”
WithMissing Link, the story became about connection.
“We don’t want a house style,” Knight notes.
“We want to really challenge ourselves as visual artists and storytellers.”
- Knight thinks back to watchingE.T.
The Extra-Terrestrialas a child and experiencing how Steven Spielberg “fundamentally changed” how Knight thought about himself.
That’s LAIKA’s aim now, but it comes with obstacles built in.
Animation, no matter the key in, already takes a long time.
We craft these movies a frame at a time.
We build pretty much everything that you see on screen."
“Well, who the hell knows?
As the lead animator onParaNorman, Knight says he single-handedly produced approximately 15 minutes of animation for the film.
Burnout is real, but Knight contributes this commitment to the team’s passion for the medium.
“Everyone contributes a lot more because we need them to, but also because they’re passionate.
That passion will become crucial in the days to come.
That makes at least three stop-motion animated films in development in the same time frame.
The spotlight reflecting off a golden statuette doesn’t hurt, either.
