Left to right: directors Kelly Asbury and Lorna Cook, singer/songwriter Bryan Adams, producers Jeffrey Katzenberg and Mireille Soria flank Donner, the real-life mustang which served as the artists' model for Spirit. All photos courtesy of DreamWorks Pictures.

"Horses are among the most beloved and beautiful creatures on the planet," Katzenberg stated in an interview, "and I think there is a connection that we as human beings have had with horses, going back thousands of years. For all of those reasons, I loved the idea of an animated movie about horses."

Katzenberg loved the idea so much that he postponed an anticipated Fall, 2001 release, opting for this Memorial Day weekend when Spirit will square off against the likes of Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones and Spider-Man. A more cautious studio executive would cringe at the thought. But to hear Katzenberg tell it, he has a sure bet. "It has been made literally for every audience, every age group," Katzenberg said of Spirit. "Every human will be able to see it after they've seen Spider-Man and Star Wars."

But will they? Katzenberg's certainly banking that they will. From the start, he knew what he wanted: "The story of the American West told from the point of view of the horse." At the same time, he realized that he was throwing down the gauntlet to his animation team. "I know that there is no animal more difficult to animate," he says.

The Most Difficult of Creatures
The challenge according to Dr. Stuart Sumida, a paleontologist who specializes in vertebrate anatomy, is that horses have long, inflexible spines, a defined musculature seen in their every movement, and a wide range of gaits. Their faces pose another kind of challenge, characterized by an elongated muzzle, with the eyes set high and wide, and the mouth set low.

James Baxter, the senior supervising animator, tackled the many challenges of animating a horse.

Understanding the challenge ahead of him, Katzenberg knew he needed a great jockey, not just a good one, to ride Spirit home. So, he selected James Baxter, whose animations include Belle in Beauty and the Beast, Rafiki in The Lion King, Quasimodo in The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Tulio in The Road to El Dorado and Moses in The Prince of Egypt.

"It was the hardest thing I've ever undertaken on a picture," Baxter admits. "I literally spent the first few weeks with my door shut, telling everyone, 'Go away; I've got to concentrate.' It was quite daunting because when I first started to draw horses, I suddenly realized how little I knew."