Images from The Most Magnificent Thing, Nelvana's 22 minute CG animated featurette. Directed by Arna Selznick, script by John van Bruggen, from the book of the same name by Ashley Spires.
About THE MOST MAGNIFICENT THING:
In the beginning of 2017, a team of NELVANA animation studio’s top CG designers, modelers and animators lead by director Arna Selznick, began the process of adapting a picture book, THE MOST MAGNIFICENT THING by Ashley Spires. The goal was to create a high-end feature-quality film that would set a new standard for CG animation in the studio.
Scripted by John van Bruggen and narrated by Whoopi Goldberg, the film follows the creative journey of a regular 8-year-old, just called GIRL, accompanied by her stalwart best friend named…wait for it… DOG, as GIRL finds her way to make The Most Magnificent Thing.
GIRL discovers that making this magnificent thing involves a few failures along the way. With the help of her best friend, she realizes that making something magnificent doesn’t necessarily mean making something grand. Something truly magnificent might just be something simple, made for a friend.
Art Director Yaleh Paxton-Harding worked closely with director Selznick to develop a beautifully modeled neighbourhood setting in a slightly fictionalized city of Toronto. The 3D modeled location is inspired by sketches from location designer, Scott Caple. The initial character designs are the result of a collaboration between design talents Lillian Chan and Jaewoo Kim. Nelvana’s in-house team of animators lead by Bill Giggie and Brian Harris, brought the characters to life, animating primarily on 2’s. This gives the film a stylized stop-motion feel. The film's sound design is enhanced with foley from Canada’s top foley studio, Andy Malcolm’s Footsteps. NFB regular, composer Judith Gruber-Stitzer created the evocative score to picture. Along with Whoopi Goldberg’s narration, the voice cast features Canadian acting talents Alison Pill as MOM, Lilly Bartlam as GIRL, and Tony Daniels as GIRL’s hilarious friend and emotional mirror, DOG.
The Most Magnificent Thing is now complete as of September, 2018. It is making the rounds of the international festival circuit and will be broadcast on several Corus networks in the Fall of 2019.
