Garfield’s performance was the top animation concern on the film.

The most important element of the animation was Garfield’s performance and the ability of the team to sustain that performance throughout the entire film, because as the main character, Garfield essentially had to carry the movie. It was important to keep the character’s physical performance in tune to Bill Murray’s humor. It is not a broad Three Stooges-type humor. The humor comes from dialogue and delivery. It relies on the subtle turn of a phrase so typical of Murray’s performance style. Garfield’s face had to be expressive enough to convey not only Murray’s dialog, but also the actor’s mannerisms captured on video during voice over sessions. Garfield needed to be able to sell the joke. He needed to be able to physically setup a joke with a look in much the same way Murray would if he were on camera.

Deleeuw is proud of the team’s accomplishments. “I think that is one of the most pleasing things about the film. That we were able to pull that off. Garfield runs the gamut… It really was an acting movie for us.”

Mary Ann Skweres is a filmmaker and freelance writer. She has worked extensively in feature film and documentary post-production with credits as a picture editor and visual effects assistant. She is a member of the Motion Picture Editors Guild.