Merrick here...


Disney and Robert Zemeckis' gang are teaming up to bring us CALLING ALL ROBOTS.

Michael Dougherty (X2, SUPERMAN RETURNS) will co-write the script alongside Breehn Burns and Simeon Wilkins, and Simeon Wilkins. Dougherty recently wrote & directed TRICK 'R' TREAT. Wilkins was previously a storyboarder on HELLBOY, MONSTER HOUSE, TMNT, and BEOWULF.

Details of the project are being kept under wraps, but it uses performance capture to "tell a story that's a throwback to old Godzilla movies," Dougherty said. "I grew up watching Godzilla movies. This film is very much rooted in those movies."

...says THIS ARTICLE in Variety.

I don't wanna be a big curmudgeon here, and maybe I'll happily admit I may simply be missing some obvious point. But...I'm still not "getting" this performance capture stuff. The cost of making the "animation" look "realistic" is so extreme, that it seems easier & more cost effective just to film the real folks in a real way. Also, while BEOWULF was clearly improved from the super-creepy zombies of POLAR EXPRESS, there were still a few too many dull-eyed mannequins taste. Sure they talked and moved, but...

To be fair, a GODZILLA-esque movie...which by inference would feature...what...giant fucking robots? ...may be the perfect use for this tech.

Looking forward to learning more about this project.