Ahoy, squirts! Quint here with the first of my one-on-one interviews I conducted at the San Diego Comic-Con this past weekend. I'm kicking it off with the interview I did with Brad Bird that was fit in between his signing and his flight outta San Diego. I had about 10 minutes, but we talked about some pretty interesting stuff relating to Pixar and 2-D animation Vs. 3-D animation.
We did this interview at his table in the Autograph Arena, which isn't a quiet place. That made for some fun at the beginning of the interview, which you'll see below. But enough of this. Let's get down to the interview! See you on the other side, squirts!
QUINT: You ready to kick this thing off?
BRAD BIRD: Sure!
QUINT: The internet was buzzing when it was announced that you had teamed up with Pixar to make a film. IRON GIANT is huge among the net geeks and Pixar, of course, is much worshipped...
BRAD BIRD: Right.
QUINT: How was it working...
BRAD BIRD: Does this record with all that sound?
QUINT: It'll be a monster to transcribe, but it should be getting everything.
BRAD BIRD: Well, here... Where is the mic? Here?
Bird picks up my tape recorder, which was laying on the autograph table between us, and holds it up to his mouth for a second before handing it to me to work it like a TV news reporter.
BRAD BIRD: So, what was your question?
QUINT: You mentioned on the panel that when you first got to Pixar that they kind of bubble-wrapped you to get you used to the 3-D animation world.
BRAD BIRD: Well, there was some time to get used to the systems because it's different than 2-D. I wouldn't say... A lot of people think computer is easier and it's actually harder because there's more things that you can control and more things that can go wrong, but I think they always wanted me to make the movie that I wanted to make. That was of unbelievable importance to me. They really protected the film and created a great atmosphere.
QUINT: Pixar is known for paying very careful attention to story above all else... it seems to be first priority with them.
BRAD BIRD: Absolutely. Story is king. There's a lot of people know who are really trying to push this really stupid agenda that CG equals success and 2-D equals failure. That's gonna last as long as it takes for somebody to put a good 2-D story out. You know, I'm looking forward to the SPONGEBOB movie! (laughs) If SPONGEBOB is the success that I think it will be, they'll probably say, "Well, that's based on a TV series!"
The funny thing is the people at Pixar are considered the experts of CG and yet no one at Pixar thinks 2-D is dead. Everyone at Pixar thinks 2-D is great, everyone loves the clay work of Nick Park (WALLACE AND GROMIT), people loved LILO & STITCH and SPIRITED AWAY. No one there thinks 2-D is dead.
QUINT: You started off in 2-D with your SIMPSONS work, then did IRON GIANT, which was 2-D with 3-D elements. Now you're on to a fully 3-D movie. You mentioned on your panel that you'd like to direct live action. Is that what you're interested in doing next?
BRAD BIRD: I have been and was kind of on the edges of it. I was one of the credited writers on BATTERIES NOT INCLUDED, although there's very little of my stuff in there.
QUINT: I have fond memories of that movie.
BRAD BIRD: Well, there's not a lot of me in there. I wrote one of the live action AMAZING STORIES. I storyboarded a lot in that, too. I'm actually in it, too, as Scientist #3 or something. It's something that I want to do, but one of the fun things about working with 3-D was moving the camera around and have a lens selection that would basically mimic actual lenses and play with light and stuff.
QUINT: One of my favorite parts in the trailers for THE INCREDIBLES was Sam Jackson's character. How was it working with him?
BRAD BIRD: I loved working with Sam! He plays with you a lot, you know! He knows he can turn on intimidation at the drop of a hat, so he plays with you a little bit. He's not for the feint of heart, but he's absolutely a blast to work with and so funny! He's just a brilliant actor. He'd do things on the first take perfectly and you can improvise with him. He was just a blast. He's one of my favorite actors. And the animators were really inspired by him. They all wanted to do Sam Jackson scenes.
QUINT: Is he in the movie a lot or is he a smaller character?
BRAD BIRD: Um, he's a supporting character, you know. But he figures in at a few key moments there.
QUINT: Time's running out, but since you have a chance to talk directly to the readership of Ain't It Cool News... sell them on the movie. Tell them what's in it for the geek... besides giant robots!
BRAD BIRD: Well, the movie, I think... The IRON GIANT was kind of a quieter, smaller piece. While there's emotions in this (THE INCREDIBLES), I would say this is to IRON GIANT what RAIDERS was to E.T. This is more of a popcorn rollercoaster ride. It has a lot of humor in it, a lot of action in it. It's the kind of movie I would want to see. But we had a blast making it. Everybody at Pixar worked their asses off to make it as good as we possibly could before the clock ran out. I just think people will have a blast watching it. Large amounts of popcorn should be consumed.
There it is, squirts. Many, many thanks to Lisa Stone as well as the kind folks at Disney who helped set this interview up. They like you guys. No one else got to talk with Bird at Comic-Con, especially in a one-on-one situation. It was a short interview, but a fun read, I think. Hope you squirts like it. I've got many more on the docket. Look for some one-on-ones with a hobbit, a gondorian soldier, a sky captain and more to hit in the next few days! 'Til then this is Quint bidding you all a fond farewell and adieu.
-Quint
