From Wall-E to the Incredibles 2, Alex Woo has worked in the art department of some of Pixar’s biggest films, and now the animator is finally releasing his fist feature film – the new Netflix movie In Your Dreams.
Following a limited theatrical release earlier this month, the film will finally be available on one of the best streaming services from November 14, which is great news for anyone that doesn’t want to cry in a busy cinema, as it explores an emotional, yet important subject matter – the imperfect family.
In this Netflix comedy-adventure flick, a young girl called Stevie worries that her parents’ relationship is in the midst of breaking down. Along with her younger brother Elliot, they embark on a journey across the landscape of their own dreams, coming face-to-face with absurd creatures in hopes the Sandman will grant them the ‘perfect family’.
Blending an important message with humor and a vibrant color palette that keeps you glued to the screen, In Your Dreams is perfect viewing for the family this holiday season – even if it’s subject matter can be emotional at times. Indeed, for Woo, that’s just testament to “the power of animation”, “it can tell such fantastical stories,” he told TechRadar.
A decade in the making
A veteran of animation, Woo has contributed to the storyboards behind some of the best animated features of all time, particularly to Pixar’s Ratatouille (2007) and WALL.E (2008). Ten years ago, he left Pixar to start his own company Kuku Studios, and the story for his feature debut was conceived. Now that it’s here, the sense of relief is settling in.
“It’s definitely a relief, but also there’s some anxiety”, Woo begins. “It’s like sending your kids off to school. You spend so much time nurturing them and preparing them for the real world, and the you just go ‘okay, I hope people like you!’”
But 10 years is a long time, and so much has happened in that time, including a global pandemic, which Woo recalls had a worrying threat on production. “I was so surprised we didn’t buckle under the pressure of remote work and that we were able to execute the film to the level that we did” Woo said, who also shared how his passion for the end result dissolved his anxieties.
“The level of passion and love I had for the film superseded the anxiety I had, and so that was enough. I was also in Hong Kong for 18 months of the production and working California hours, so I was working from midnight to 10am everyday. It was rough, but I knew how important this movie was to me”.
The ‘imperfect family’ takes center stage
One of the shining moments of In Your Dreams is its hard-hitting yet powerful depiction of a family on the brink of destruction. The story of Stevie and Elliot in the movie is inspired by Woo’s own childhood experiences, but in order to bring it to the screen, it required a difficult trip down memory lane for the director.
“It’s both cathartic, and quite emotional”, Woo said “You’ve got to get in that headspace of where the character is at, and that character was pretty much where I was when I was 6 or 7 when it was happening to me”. With that said, it was also incredibly rewarding for Woo.
“But it’s also cathartic because at the end of the film Stevie really comes to the other side and sees that it’s okay that life is imperfect, and that her family is not perfect. It’s a lesson that I needed to learn, and one I still need to learn on a daily basis”.
Through the ups and downs of In Your Dreams is an authentic portrayal of a reality that not a lot of moviemakers think to capture. For Woo, this was his main goal, who tells me “there’s not enough of these stories that give children and audiences in general a really honest portrayal of life” – and on that, I have to agree.
“There are so many family movies that present this buttoned-up, contrived version of reality. Escapism can be fun, but there can also be a real need for stories that present life honestly”. He ends with a deeper analysis of his movie’s point of view, which took me by surprise.
“I also wanted to change the conversation about dreams and nightmares. I think there’s so much pressure on both kids and adults to make their dreams come true, and though it can be healthy, it feels to me that there’s too much emphasis on it in our culture – and it can become quite toxic”.
Inspiration is key
As an animation auteur, the art means so much more to Woo than meets the eye. When it comes to the references for In Your Dreams, it was impossible for him to narrow them down. “There are so many, it’s so hard to list them!” – Woo thinks for a moment, and then it comes to him.
“I mean The Iron Giant is a masterpiece, and also Finding Nemo – I cry every time I watch it. There’s also Porco Rosso, I just love that film. I don’t know if you’ve seen it but My Neighbors the Yamadas is a weird film, it’s a bunch of vignettes of a family’s life. It’s so funny, but so poignant”.
However, it wasn’t just the best animated movies that influenced Woo’s creativity, he’s also big on live-action blockbusters – and he’s quite the fan of Steven Spielberg, revealing that Elliot from In Your Dreams was named after the young boy from E.T. Not only that, but Woo pays special homage to E.T. with a direct reference in his own movie – when you stream it, you’ll see what I mean.
“The movie Hook was also a big inspiration, tonally in the sense that you’re going on this adventure with these kids, and so was The Goonies and Rain Man. You know, the power of that sibling relationship is what I tried to capture in our film. Those are the movies that seeped into subconscious, I mean they’re all solid references, and some of the most iconic movies ever made”. There’s no denying that Woo has impeccable taste, and I can’t wait to see what he does next.
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