Fantastic Mr Fox, introduced by Hannah Moseley.
Hannah Moseley is a film industry professional, with 19 credits as art director, including for Notes on a Scandal (2006), Hyde Park on Hudson (2012), Les Miserables (2012) and Muppets Most Wanted (2014).
The film is a 2009 Wes Andersen animated feature based on the Roald Dahl story and was chosen by Hannah for this event. A very good opportunity to learn a bit about how a film ends up looking the way it does on the screen.
Dir: Wes Andersen 87 mins USA 2009 Cert. PG
The event will begin at 7.45.
Admission: £8.00 (£6.50 f/t students).
Programme Notes
Special Event
Fantastic Mr Fox
USA, 2009, 87 mins, Cert PG
with introduction by Hannah Moseley, the film and TV art director
Based on the popular children’s book by Roald Dahl, Fantastic Mr Fox follows our titular character and his family as they try to survive the torment of three very sinister farmers. Whilst Mr Fox is advised to stop doing raids on their farms, he still wants to do ‘one more raid’. So he and his furry companions attempt to do just that, but the farmers have their own plans against them.
Featuring puppets made by the prestigious Mackinnon & Saunders studio (Mars Attacks! (1996), Chicken Run (2000), The Periwig-Maker (2000)), this popular children’s story is brought to life with delightful character animation and with the distinct directorial style of Wes Anderson (Moonrise Kingdom (2012)). There is also a voice cast of familiar film faces ranging from the likes of George Clooney and Meryl Streep, to Jason Schwartzman and Bill Murray- you even get a singing cameo from Jarvis Cocker! This is Wes Anderson’s first fully animated feature film, although some of his live-action films do contain effects done with stop-motion animation techniques (The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014), The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (2004)).
The film was nominated for two Academy Awards: for its music and as Best Animated Feature Film. The film did well at the 2010 Annecy International Animated Film Festival, and picked up an Annie award for its writing for Wes Anderson and Noah Baumbach (The Squid and the Whale (2005)).
Mr. Fox – George Clooney
Mrs Fox – Meryl Streep
Ash – Jason Schwartzman
Badger – Bill Murray
Franklin Bean – Michael Gambon
Rat – Willem Dafoe
Coach Skip – Owen Wilson
Director – Wes Anderson
Screenplay – Wes Anderson, Noah Baumbach
Cinematography – Tristan Oliver
Music – Alexandre Desplat
Draughtsmen – Hannah Moseley, Alexandra Walker, Poppy Luard
Art Director – Francesca Berlingieri Maxwell
Producers – Allison Abbate, Wes Anderson, Jeremy Dawson, Scott Rudin
“A pleasantly cerebral experience, exhilarating and fizzy, that goes to your head like too much Champagne.”- Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times
“An adventure in pure imagination that plays to the smart kid in all of us.” – Peter Travers, Rolling Stone
“By forgoing actual human beings, the director has made his most charming, least annoyingly fey film – a thing of lovely comic wisdom.” – Ty Burr, The Boston Globe
We are proud to introduce Hannah Moseley, who is making her debut as a guest speaker for us. She has been an art director on various films for nearly twenty years, including Closer (2004), Notes on a Scandal (2006), and Muppets Most Wanted (2014). She has been nominated for an Art Directors Guild award for her work on Les Misérables (2012). As well as a being a draughtsman on Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009), she has worked in the art department on a range of films including Corpse Bride (2005), The Tale of Despereaux (2008), and Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels (1998) (as assistant art director).
Comments
“Really, really excellent! Shame there weren’t more here to enjoy the evening. I shall try and spread the word.”
“A fantastic experience! Excellent introduction by Hannah Moseley – most enjoyable.”
“A totally fascinating evening. Hannah’s introduction was excellent, as were her revealing comments about the (animated) film-making process.”
“Fantastic! Very interesting to have some insight into the film-making process.”
“Very informative – excellent entertainment. Many thanks.”
“Whilst the plot was basically a furry heist movie, Fantastic Mr Fox was a hugely entertaining film packed with great visuals.”