Sci-Fi Film and Television Developments

Legend of the Guardians (aka Guardians of Ga’Hoole)

3/1/10 - Warner Bros.' Zack Snyder-animated film Guardians of Ga'Hoole is being retitled Legend of the Guardians, according to The Hollywood Reporter.  The movie is an adaptation of a book series by Kathryn Lasky about a group of young kidnapped owls who must try to find the Guardians of Ga'Hoole in order to save their kingdom. Jim Sturgess, Geoffrey Rush and Helen Mirren are among the voices.  Warners opens the movie domestically Sept. 24.

11/20/09 - Sam Neill, Geoffrey Rush, Hugo Weaving and David Wenham will lead the voice cast of Zack Snyder's 3-D animated movie Guardians of Ga'hoole, according to The Hollywood Reporter's Heat Vision blog; the big-budget fantasy film, in production in Sydney, also features the voices of Emily Barclay, Abbie Cornish, Emilie de Ravin, Ryan Kwanten, Jay Laga'aia, Miriam Margolyes, Helen Mirren and Jim Sturgess.

6/25/09 – SCI FI Wire reported that Zack Snyder is making progress on Guardians of Ga'Hoole, a fantasy adventure movie based on the children's books by Kathryn Lasky.  Animal Logic is creating the animation in its Australian studio, and Snyder has just begun watching footage with the initial voice recordings.  "It's just been the way that we sort of designed the movie to be made," Snyder said. "Basically I have an HD video conferencing system that I have in the house and I'll have up in Canada. I basically do about three hours with them in Australia every day."  Guardians of Ga'Hoole is an adventure story in a fantasy realm of owls, who will of course speak English via animation and A-list voice talent. Snyder called the early footage mind-boggling, adding that if each animation studio—Pixar, DreamWorks, Blue Sky—has a signature look, he has created yet another one. His owls are photo-real, but stylized.  "I wish I had them on my phone," Snyder said. "I can't wait until we start to show those images, because it's really something else. They're talking owls, but they're just not. It's not a cartoon. I think that's the point. It's really not a cartoon. It looks like talking owls, but they are expressing, and they're emoting, but there's this awesome proprietary software that we created for the feathers, so all the inclusion happens, and it's all real, and it looks totally—it's just awesome."  Snyder also plans a 3-D release of Guardians. "It will be 3-D," he said. "We're making it 3-D, but it's 3-D and 2-D. Even without the 3-D it's mind-boggling. I don't know what the hell it's going to be like."  Guardians of Ga'Hoole is due in theaters Sept. 24, 2010.

2/10/09 - Guardians of Ga'Hoole, director Zack Snyder's owl-centric animated film, has lined up a voice cast headed by Jim Sturgess, Geoffrey Rush, Rachael Taylor and David Wenhem, according to The Hollywood Reporter.  Based on the children's book series by Kathryn Lasky, the film, which is shooting in Australia, follows a young barn owl and his friends as they join forces with the mythical Guardians of Ga'hoole, owl protectors, to save the owl kingdom from rogue elements.  Animal Logic chief executive officer Zareh Nalbandian is producing, with Donald De Line, Deborah Snyder, Lionel Wigram, Bruce Berman and Dana Goldberg as executive producers.

04/14/08 - Zack Snyder will direct Guardians of Ga'Hoole, an animated feature film based on the series of children's books by Kathryn Lasky.  The movie is set in the Forest of Tyto, where Barn Owls live in peace until their kingdom is threatened by an evil that could destroy their home.  The script was written by John Orloff and John Collee.  The film is on a fast track and is likely to be ready by 2009 or 2010.

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