When the Academy Awards nominations came out on Tuesday morning, no one in the animation industry was more pleasantly surprised than the folks at Sony Pictures Animation, who assumed Academy voters would overlook Surf’s Up because most moviegoers did over the summer. Still dazed and a little confused, writer Chris Jenkins and director Chris Buck, who shares directing credit with Ash Brannon, spoke with us shortly after receiving the news.
Animation Magazine Online: Was the nomination a big shock to you?
Chris Jenkins: It’s a big shock all right, biggest shock of my life. I think Chris, Ash and I had gotten used to the possible penguin malaise that was out there’not to be mistaken with the penguin mayonnaise, which is something different all together. We just wanted more people to see it. In terms of awards and recognition, I think getting this kind of vote from the industry gives us the most validation for everything went into it, and for really trying to make a different kind of movie’not to be different for different’s sake, but to stretch animation out a little bit, push out the corners and see if we could do a very different kind of genre in our own medium. It’s been five years now I’ve been attached to Surf’s Up and pushing this idea of doing a mocumentary in animation, and it’s thrilling to see it recognized.
AMO: How do you size up the competition? You have Ratatouille, another state-of-the-art CG movie, and Persepolis, a very stripped-down, black-and-white 2D film. It’s a very interesting race this year.
CJ: I love both of them, and would have voted the same way. There’s a touch of magic about Ratatouille, and it’s great to see that 2D animation is alive and kicking and people are recognizing that. I don’t know what to say about how the competition’s going to run. Again, I hadn’t contemplated this three-way race, but I do believe it shows a sort of health about the animation industry that I hope most studios will reflect on and we can keep trying to do new things. In coming up with the idea and approach for Surf’s Up, we knew that we were not playing it safe, and we though the way it performed at the box office was maybe an indication that maybe we should play it more safely. Now I think that when people can see different kinds of movies, it speaks to the healthy end of the industry.
AMO: Has this completely caught you off guard?
Chris Buck: Yeah, kinda. I was still asleep when I got the call and I thought it was my phone alarm for getting the kids up and off to school. Luckily, I didn’t just open and close it like I usually do. As you know, this summer was a disappointment for us because people just didn’t go and see it, but it’s been a whirlwind these last few hours.
AMO: Do you start to play the odds, thinking Disney and Pixar already got their share of Oscars so perhaps Academy voters will share the wealth a bit?
CB: You never know. Last year, I was surprised that Happy Feet won. You don’t know what the voters are thinking because they’re not all animation people, obviously. That’s just a small portion of the voting membership. I’m just telling people this is a kick and I’m just going to have a good time. Whatever happens beyond that is gravy.
AMO: Hopefully there’ll be a ceremony this year.
CB: I hope so, too. The Oscars are sort of how America is viewed by the world sometimes. They follow our celebrities and our movies closely, so I hope that [the Writers Guild] can come to some sort of decision at least just for the show, and, of course, I do hope that the writers and producers can come to a decision soon.
AMO: Sony Pictures Animation has experienced some growing pains with these first two films. Has this nomination lifted the mood over there a bit?
CB: Chris Jenkins and I are developing the next one, which I can’t talk about yet, so we’re out of the day-to-day mood of the place, but I know the guys working there. We put so much work into it, Ash, Chris and I, but the artists and everybody on the crew really put their hearts and souls into the movie and for them to get noticed between the Oscars and Annies is huge for them. That makes me happier than anything.
AMO: I’m sure there was a lot of excitement around the house when you got the call. Are your kids old enough to really appreciate what any of this means?
CB: My youngest son, who’s 10, did one of the voices in the movie, the young penguin Arnold. He was excited about it, but still he was like, ‘That’s great, now could you just close the door so I can get back to sleep?’
AMO: Sounds like it’s business as usual at home, but can you start throwing your weight around at work now?
CB: Yeah. I’m going to have to re-negotiate now! No, it’s actually humbling. Brad Bird was one of my first mentors. We went to school together at CalArts and he was one of the first guys I worked with at Disney. I worked with him on Family Dog and stuff like that, so I’m thrilled to be in the same category with him.
AMO: But you still want to beat him, right?
CB: Of course!
