Creative Boom published a review of LAIKA’s Wildwood on 2 November. Rather than retell the plot, let’s consider one production method: replacement puppet faces are 3D printed. Production collaborator Fraunhofer IGD separately describes converting digital models into data for full-colour printing.
We like this route between screen and object. An expression begins as a model, becomes a small physical thing and returns to an image through photography. Discussing handmade and digital work through specific operations is more useful than making their labels compete.
There’s another interesting challenge: emotion must remain convincing as components change. Viewers needn’t notice the inventory of smiles. They need a character. Read the technical account alongside images, without treating component counts as a measure of artistic achievement.
