BD: He got a little taste of voice acting on Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland  as the White Rabbit.

BR: We were actually recording with him while he was recording Alice, also, on different days.

BD: He's the skeptic about fairies.

BR: Yes, he has to learn how to believe in his daughter -- to have interest in what she's interested in. He's a scientist busy with his job and gathering butterflies for an exhibit, but he has a sense of wonder about science, and so when you first meet them and they're looking at a mis-painted butterfly, he thinks it's a scientific reason and Lizzy thinks it's because of fairies. So, to see him realize that everything she's been saying is true, is a wonderful moment, and people who've seen the movie have been talking about wanting to spend time with their children more.

BD: And Tinker Bell's role in all of this?

BR: It's interesting: I call Tinker Bell a catalyst character, so she arcs other characters.

BD: Like a traveling angel.

BR: Yes, absolutely. And she wants to know why fairies can't get closer to humans. And she pulls everyone along for the ride to see that humans are not that bad once you get to know them. So it's a nice contrast to see the fairies running away from the humans in the beginning and [later] having a tea party with them.

BD: What is characteristic of the summer look?

BR: There is so much to do during summer from a fairy point of view: flowers that open at night and close in the day, and flowers that open during the day and close at night; they stay at Fairy Camp on the mainland the whole summer. And the fantastical look of Pixie Hollow, inspired by Mary Blair of Peter Pan, I wanted to look a little more realistic -- not as designy -- to give you a sense of looking at a more relatable world, where the magical things happening to Lizzy are happening to the audience at the same time.

BD: And what were some of the animation challenges?