Astro Boy
Nestled near a Starbucks and the Sherman Oaks Galleria in Los Angeles is a chic-looking office building, discreet enough that you'd never know it exists unless you went looking for it. On the second floor, somewhere in a maze of hallways and office space, is a huge cylindrical container that encases an unconscious, life-size Astro Boy. A mass of electrical wiring is attached to his back and other various parts, suspending him in the air. Small, circular lights give him a dim, shadowy effect, but the eye-catcher is Astro's glowing blue core power source at the center of his chest.
His home at the moment is here at Imagi Studios, which opened its doors to the press last month for an exclusive look at the making of Astro Boy, opening October 23, 2009. This ambitious little studio—also responsible for TMNT—has 15 projects in the works, including Gatchaman (opening 2011), and plans to churn out a film every 18 months. The studio collaborates with its Hong Kong counterpart via teleconferencing and Skyping, operating like a 24-hour studio. While the L.A. office oversees the front end operations including script, characters and animation, the Hong Kong office is bustling with 400 artists who handle animation, visual effects and lighting.
The office's waiting area has a little bamboo/rock garden that lines one of the walls where four portraits of Astro Boy characters hang side by side. Nearby, a bookshelf is packed with all things Astro—from Osamu Tezuka's manga memorabilia to video games for PS2, Wii and Nintendo DS.
Producer Maryann Garger shows us a featurette that demonstrates how far-reaching Astro Boy's pop culture influence has spread. Linkin Park's "Somewhere I Belong" blares while Astro soars through the air. The video cuts back to the 1960's black and white TV show, then moves forward to recent footage of cultural icons like Shia LaBeouf and Quentin Tarantino sporting—respectively—an Astro shirt and necktie. The last part of the clip recalls a "Simpsons" spoof of Astro's signature butt guns.
Japan's beloved icon has been compared by many to America's own Mickey Mouse. Astro's creator, Osamu Tezuka is regarded as the "god of manga" for being one of the original pioneers of the manga—Japanese comic and print cartoons—genre. For this upcoming, westernized movie version, Imagi Studios worked closely with Makoto Tezuka, Osamu's son, and the whole Tezuka estate, to ensure that Astro Boy is properly re-introduced to a new generation of young Americans.
New vs. Old
Character designer Luis Grane and animation director Jakob Jensen showed us animated character designs, and shared details on creating the new Astro Boy. The team took into consideration what to keep from the original, and what to change to accommodate American culture. For instance, they made Toby (Astro Boy's human name) look a little older to appeal to a larger audience, and they gave him clothes; they weren't keen on having him fly through the city in his underwear. They also gave him a hi-tech upgrade: Astro has a glowing, blue-core energy instead of the original, which is heart shaped; he still has X-ray vision, rocket boots and butt guns—which were a whole conversation in itself. Grane wondered if they should keep the guns, or if it would look weird. "For me, it's completely normal. I grew up with this. Of course he has butt guns!" he says. "It's our version, but we didn't want to lose the essence of the character."
They ran into a problem animating Dr. Elefun, voiced by Bill Nighy, and his characteristic balloon nose. "In 2D, the comics and the original cartoon, you can get away with a lot of cheats. You move the nose to one side or to another side, and you can get away with the movement," Grane explains. "In 3D, you don't have that. The nose is always in the same place, and we couldn't see the eyes."
If you can't see the eyes, you lose the emotion, Jensen says. Ultimately, Dr. Elefun underwent a nose job. "It was reduced pretty drastically, but it still looks as enormous as it should."
Jensen says they had to exercise some restraint on animation wizardry and keep it simple for emotional impact. "If you break the believability by getting too cartoony, I think you lose the battle," he says. "That's what I mean by simplistic and sophisticated—just being honest about the moment and not thinking, 'How can I show all these new tools that I have?'"
Story Intros: The Characters
-Astro Boy: Voiced by Freddie Highland, the robot believes he's a boy named Toby upon creation.
-Cora: Kristen Bell voices this colorful character, who befriends Astro. (A 7-foot-tall painting of her shows off her spunky, uneven, cropped black hair with subtle magenta highlights—characteristic of anime.)
-Trashcan Dog: At Cora's feet is her robotic, trashcan-like dog, sharing a similar likeness to Stitch (from Lilo and Stitch). He's squat, has blue eyes, and a metallic yellow-brown tin for a body. We saw a character animation of him sort of getting around on two very stiff front legs, while his hind legs took on more puppy-like characteristics—adorably cute.
-Ham Egg: Voiced by Nathan Lane, he's the only character who resembles the actor, and his name is borrowed from a minor character in the original Astro Boy. He runs a body repair shop.
-Dr. Tenma: Nicolas Cages voices the scientist, bordering on mad, who creates Astro Boy after his son Toby died in an accident.
-Dr. Elefun: Bill Nighy is the beloved balloon-nosed friend of Dr. Tenma.
-President Stone: Donald Sutherland voices the antagonist who's in search of Astro's blue-core energy.
-The Peacekeeper: He's the red-core energy powered robot who becomes Astro's nemesis.
Astro Boy Clips:
We viewed five clips, which we explain in great—spoiler alert—detail below. You've been warned, so read on only if you dare...
The Birth of Astro Boy
Director David Bowers introduces this clip: "Dr. Tenma has just lost his son Toby. He's heartbroken. He feels it's his fault. This is his way of coping—this is his solution."
Dr. Tenma is busy at work in his lab, absorbed in piecing together a robot. He takes one of Toby's hairs from his cap and uses it to upload all of Toby's memories into a computer.
A group of lab assistants are watching him, some are whispering.
"He hasn't eaten or slept for days," a lab assistant says to Dr. Elefun.
"I know," Elefun responds.
"He's gone crazy, hasn't he?"
"If you lose your son like that and you don't go crazy, you're not a human."
"Clear the lab!" Tenma suddenly yells.
Everyone leaves except Dr. Elefun and a few others.
Tenma starts up a machine that sends bolts of static electricity over the robot, creating Toby's perfect likeness onto it.
"It looks just like him! Doesn't it? A perfect replica!" Tenma says euphorically. "Plus, I've uploaded all of Toby's memories." He lets out a small gasp in excitement. "It'll think it is Toby."
"Don't expect too much, Tenma," Elefun warns gently.
"It has the most advanced systems ever created. I won't lose him again. Did you bring what I ask?"
"I couldn't refuse a grieving father." Elefun presents a box with a blue, glowing ball inside. Tenma takes it and places it inside the robot's chest. "The core is unpredictable. I can't guarantee what effect—"
"It will make him perfect! PERFECT! Just like Toby was."
In a truly Frankenstein-esque moment, Tenma starts up the machine. Static electricity is everywhere as fuses burst and destroy parts of the lab. The wires attached to the robot snap off as it falls from the table. There's a moment of silence as it wakes up and attempts to stand. We hear a hint of gear shifts with its robotic movements.
"Dad?" The robot says weakly.
"Toby!" Tenma whispers.
The robot takes its first wobbly steps toward Tenma, whose arms are outstretched, ready to catch him. He falls into Tenma's arms, exhausted.
"Welcome back, son," he says gently. He hoists the robot up and addresses Dr. Elefun. "Thank you, Elefun. I'm going to take it—him home now. Quality time! Bonding! All the good things!" The robot is looking over Tenma's shoulder as he starts walking out the lab.
"Bye Dr. Elefun!" the robot says with Toby's voice.
"Bye...Toby," Elefun says awkwardly. He watches them leave. "Incredible!
Astro Evades the Military
Bowers explains that Astro and Dr. Tenma go through a day together, but things don't work out the way Tenma expects. He's disappointed and breaks the truth to Astro that he's not his son. He's a robot that looks like his son, and he doesn't want him anymore. Heartbroken, Astro leaves, discovering he can fly out of the apartment. In the clip, he's sitting alone, coming to terms with the truth of what's just happened. Meanwhile, President Stone covets Astro's blue-core energy power source for his own ends. When Astro flies, he shows up on the military's radars.
A bunch of military jets sneak up on him, and Astro suddenly takes notice and becomes startled.
"Sir, located the signal source, but it's—it's a child," a soldier in an aircraft reports to Stone, who's at military headquarters. "Readings for the core are off the chart!"
"Is that…Tenma's boy?" A military staffer asks President Stone. They are viewing a monitor that allows them to see from the aircraft's perspective.
"Of course not!" Stone says.
The official gets a better glimpse of Astro. "Holy Cow! Tenma must've lost his mind!"
"Bring it in!" Stone commands the troops.
Astro sees the pilots taking action and flies away.
"Woah! He just took off!" One of the pilots says.
"Commander, engage the subject with intent to capture." Stone demands.
The jets catch up with Astro, surrounding him
"What do you guys want?" Astro asks. He tries to evade them, soaring through the city and in between skyscrapers. The aircrafts chase after him, upsetting the public.
"Get him!" Stone yells, watching everything that's happening.
The jets attach wires to Astro, securing him to their planes. Astro struggles and tries to flee. He manages to drag the planes with him, causing them to crash into each other. One pilot falls from his aircraft, screaming. Astro breaks free from the wires and catches the falling pilot.
Back at headquarters, a command is given to send in another force.
"Destroy the robot, then collect the core!" Stone commands.
As Astro brings the pilot to safety atop a building, the group of aircrafts approach him.
"Again?! What's with you guys?" Astro asks angrily.
"I love you!" says the just-saved pilot.
"Come on then!" Astro challenges the others, but instead of attacking, they suddenly disperse. One, gigantic aircraft comes into view. Astro gasps at its enormity.
"Fire!" Stone commands.
A blast hits Astro and he's sent through the air, screaming.
"Finish it," Stone says. Another blast hits. "Touchdown!" He laughs.
"Hey! Where's he going?" he asks, when he suddenly loses sight of Astro.
"He's falling to the surface sir," someone reports.
"Get him back! I am declaring a national state of emergency! Leave for all military personnel is canceled until Tenma's boy is found!"
Dr. Tenma removes Astro's Blue Core
From the start, Bowers had a Pinocchio-themed plot in mind for Astro Boy. "I was keen when I thought of this film to have something to hang all of the action, adventure and comedy from," he says. "So I really went back to the father-son relationship between Astro and his father. Astro Boy is a robot, created by a brilliant scientist to replace his dead son. This film explores the problem of attempting something like that." Artists Grane and Jakob introduced this next clip, which barely has any dialogue, but succeeds in hitting an emotional chord.
Astro lies on a lab table, looking up at Dr. Tenma who's opening the panel on his chest. A tender, melancholic score plays in the background.
"I'm sorry," Dr. Tenma says, removing the core.
"Don't be," Astro says, falling asleep. "I'm sorry I couldn't have been a better Toby for you." His voice trails off and his eyes close.
Astro Boy meets Ham Egg
Cora, Astro Boy and Ham Egg are at what looks like a junk shop, with scraps of metal and robot parts scattered all around them. Bowers explains that Astro thinks Ham Egg could be another father for him.
"You escaped from the Scorpion Brothers?" Ham Egg asks Astro, incredulous. "Wow!"
"Actually, I'm from Metro City," Astro says.
"Double wow! I used to work there once upon a time."
"Really?"
"Hmph. Why am I running a crummy body repair shop down here while I could be creating state of the art robots in Metro City?"
"Well, No—I didn't meant to—"
"Relax, son. We're family here. We're allowed to ask questions. The answer is... I love robots! Especially the discarded ones," he says while fixing a tiny bot that fits in his hand. "The more banged up they are, the more abused, the more I like getting them back on their feet!" The bot, now fixed, takes flight and zooms away.
"Oh, wow!"
"It's almost a religious thing with me, kind of like the way saints feel about the poor, or women feel about shoes, or fat people feel about donuts, or uh... I'll stop with fat people and donuts."
"So, you're not into e-enslaving robots?"
"What?!"
"I don't enslave robots!" Ham Egg chuckles. "I LOVE ROBOTS! They're our friends, and we rely on them for our daily bread. Speaking of which, are any of you misfits hungry?"
Astro vs. the Peacekeeper
President Stone has activated the Peacekeeper, who becomes Astro's nemesis. He has the power to absorb anything and has grown to 12 feet by absorbing the stuff around him. He also absorbs President Stone, so he speaks with Donald Sutherland's voice. In the clip, Peacekeeper is after Astro, who's hiding.
"Come out, come out wherever you are," the Peacekeeper playfully taunts. A scared civilian runs away. "Where are you, robot boy?"
"Oh no!" Astro says when the Peacekeeper finds him.
"There you are!"
He blasts Astro and laughs as Astro screams.
Astro discovers his arms can turn into missile shooters. "Cool!" he says.
On another city in the sky, Cora and Astro's young friends watch from afar as Metro City lights up in destruction.
"That has to be Astro," a boy says.
"I don't care if he's a robot," a girl says. "I miss him."
"I hear ya," says another.
Cora's trashcan dog barks in agreement.
Ham Egg shows up, preparing to leave. "When the going gets tough, smart people take a hike," he says. "Bye bye, kids." They give him a questioning look. "What do you want? An apology?"
"Nope, just the car," Cora says.
"I would love to oblige you--" Ham Egg lets out a yell as the kids suddenly hijack his car. "Come on!" Ham Egg pleads. "I love you guys! Wait!" he yells after them.
On Metro City, the battle continues. Peacekeeper keeps growing. Astro has a close call when Peacekeeper catches Astro in his hand. Only Astro's legs are free and his butt guns automatically unleash a fusillade of bullets on Peacekeeper, who releases him.
"I got machine guns--in my butt?!" Astro exclaims, checking out his own rear.
Peacekeeper finds him again.
"You gotta be kidding," Astro says, seeing how he's grown.
"Batter up!" Peacekeeper hits Astro. "Home run!"
Astro hits the ground and Peacekeeper prepares to crush him. Everywhere, car alarms go off and civilians run away in panic. Right before Peacekeeper crushes Astro, a car speeds by and the kids rescue him.
"Astro!" Cora whispers.
"Cora?" Astro says weakly. "Thanks guys! Hey, who's driving?"
"Arf! Arf!" barks the trashcan dog who's at the wheel.
The kids start to scream as they see the Peacekeeper chasing them.
"Faster!" Astro yells.
"Move over!" a boy shouts, and the wild ride continues...
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If you'll be at San Diego Comic-Con on Thursday, July 23, there will be more on the movie at the Astro Boy panel from 10:15 to 11:15 a.m. in Room 6BCF. Director David Bowers, producer Maryann Garger, and stars Freddie Highmore (Astro) and Kristen Bell (Cora) will debut additional, exclusive footage.
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