If you ever wondered why Hollywood never tapped the rich tapestry of video games to make animated films, you're not alone. And now you won't have to wait long: The vibrant world of Insomniac's Ratchet and Clank is set to come to the silver screen in early 2015. The movie's being made by Rainmaker Entertainment, the animation studio behind Escape From Planet Earth, and Blockade Entertainment. Primary production is already underway on the film, which will feature voice cast members from the game franchise, including James A. Taylor as Ratchet, David Kaye as Clank and Jim Ward as Qwark.
Watch the very first teaser footage below:
According to the press release, "Ratchet and Clank tells the story of two unlikely heroes as they struggle to stop a vile alien named Chairman Drek from destroying every planet in the Solana Galaxy. Ratchet is the last of his kind – a foolhardy 'lombax' who has grown up alone on a backwater planet with no family of his own. Clank is a pint-sized robot with more brains than brawn. When the two stumble upon a dangerous weapon capable of destroying entire planets, they must join forces with a team of colorful heroes called The Galactic Rangers in order to save the galaxy. Along the way they’ll learn about heroism, friendship, and the importance of discovering one’s own identity. "
Screenwriter and Senior Writer for Insomniac Games, TJ Fixman, will handle the script. The movie will be directed by Jericca Cleland and produced by Blockade’s CEO Brad Foxhoven and VP of Development David Wohl, with Rainmaker President Michael Hefferon serving as Executive Producer and Rainmaker’s Kim Dent Wilder and Kylie Ellis serving as Supervising Producer and Producer, respectively.
“We’ve always thought Ratchet and Clank would be a fantastic all-ages movie and are thrilled our intergalactic heroes will finally get their chance to shine on the big screen,” said Ted Price, founder and CEO of Insomniac Games. “Insomniac is especially honored to play a hands-on role with the film’s production, including the screenplay, consulting on character development and animation, and adding support to the film's marketing.”
For more on this announcement, we spoke to Hefferon and Foxhoven about what we can expect:
IGN: How did this project come about?
Brad Foxhoven: The video game industry has some pretty spectacular franchises, filled with compelling characters and engaging story lines. When we looked at Ratchet and Clank, we recognized a franchise that was already very cinematic and with a distinct voice that set it apart from other game franchises. Most of the current crop of animated films are based on new concepts that require the marketing teams to invest a significant amount just to make the audience aware of the basic aspects of the film: who the characters are, what makes this world unique, etc.. With Ratchet and Clank, we already had a massive fan base, and partners in SCEA and Insomniac that would help promote the film.
IGN: What about Ratchet and Clank makes it perfect as an animated theatrical release?
Michael Hefferon: You have an incredible world of characters, locations and situations, that together set the stage for our action adventure comedy that will appeal to family audience. This is already evident in the success of Ratchet and Clank as a game franchise. The strong appeal of the main characters, make them identifiable and likeable that appeal to adults and kids a alike. Although the storyline for Ratchet and Clank is original to the movie, the game franchise provides the film an immediate market awareness – this inherent awareness will be a strong driver for the films success.
IGN: How involved is SCEA and Insomniac with this film?
Foxhoven: They are very involved, which is a big plus for us. We have tremendous respect for what they have accomplished with this game, and their guidance on how to transition this to a feature film. For example, TJ Fixman, who writes for the game, is also our screenwriter. TJ, and other members of the Insomniac team, also help to guide the film's creative vision, consult on animation and design, and even help on our marketing efforts. In many ways, this is more of a collaboration with them than us just running off to make a film.
IGN: Rumor has it that this project is coming in at a much smaller budget than other theatrical releases? How did you do it?
Hefferon: Rainmaker has tremendous experience in producing long form content and has built a feature film pipeline that allows the studio to leverage our technology and strong production methodology to give our artist the ability to achieve high quality results at a much lower cost. A strong driver for us on the Ratchet and Clank film, is the wide range of game assets available to us to base our designs in creating the world. The look of picture has already been established, allowing us to take the art direction for the game and adapt it for a cinematic format.
IGN: Does this use the in-game models or was it built from scratch?
Hefferon: Although the in-game models provide us with reference, all the assets, rigs, models and elements necessary to make the film will be entirely created from scratch. We will use the in-game models for the pre-visualization (Previz) phase, allowing us to block out the storyboard scenes with CGI characters. This allows us to shorten the typical development/preproduction phase and move quicker into production.
IGN: Do you have any ideas for who other voice talent – any "celebrity" talent?
Hefferon: The first thing we're doing right, is working with the talented voice talent from the game for our three main characters to ensure the film is true to the game characters. With our script locked and film now officially announced, we are in discussion with potential celebrity talent – many of whom are big fans of the game.
IGN: What part of the Ratchet and Clank lore will the movie cover? Will any of the story from the games make it into the film?
Foxhoven: The film really covers their "origin" story so to speak. TJ did a great job of inserting elements that would appeal to both existing fans while attracting a new audience that may not be familiar with the game franchise.
IGN: Will the film tie in with a next gen game release?
Foxhoven: The film is a stand alone story, but we will be looking at various ways to coordinate marketing efforts with both Sony Playstation and Insomniac.
IGN: What are some of the planets they might visit in their journeys?
Foxhoven: We want to keep the storyline under wraps for the moment, but fans should expect some familiar locations.
IGN: Which weapons from Ratchet’s famous and expansive arsenal will make it into the movie?
Foxhoven: One of the many cool aspects of this franchise, in addition to the great characters, is the endless supply of crazy weapons and gadgets that these characters use--and rest assured this film is loaded with them.
For more about the movie, check out the links below:
Are you excited to see Ratchet and Clank make their silver screen debut? Tell us how you feel in the comments!
Source : ign[dot]com
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