Press Release from National Film Board
Toronto, February 16, 2010 - The National Film Board of Canada (http://nfb.ca/ [1]) and Warner Home Video (http://www.whvdvd-collections.com/ [2]) present a new live-action/animated adaptation of Higglety Pigglety Pop! or There Must Be More to Life based on the book by Maurice Sendak. A film by the creators of the Oscar-nominated short Madame Tutli-Putli (http://films.nfb.ca/madame-tutli-putli/?lg=en [3]), Chris Lavis and Maciek Szczerbowski, features the voices of Meryl Streep and Forest Whitaker. Produced by Spike Jonze, Vincent Landay and Marcy Page.
Higglety Pigglety Pop! or There Must Be More to Life will be featured as an exclusive short on the Where the Wild Things Are Warner Home Video Blu-ray out March 2. On February 28, the film will have its world premiere at the Festival International du Film pour Enfants de Montréal (Montreal Children's International Film Festival) followed by a special presentation with the directors and the puppeteers. The NFB will distribute a DVD scheduled for summer 2010.
Higglety Pigglety Pop! or There Must Be More to Life tells the story of Jennie, who once had everything. She had two bowls to eat from, two pillows, and for cold weather a red wool sweater. She even had a master who loved her. But Jennie didn't care. In the middle of the night she packed everything she had in a black leather bag with gold buckles and looked out of her favourite window for the last time. Higglety Pigglety Pop! or There Must Be More to Life follows Jennie's surreal, suspenseful and unexpectedly moving journey to gain new experiences and realize her dream of becoming the star of the World Mother Goose Theatre.
Since 1997 Chris Lavis and Maciek Szczerbowski have formed the artistic partnership called Clyde Henry Productions. The pair have created award-winning films, ads, illustrations, comics, and music videos. Their first professional film, Madame Tutli-Putli, produced by Marcy Page for the National Film Board of Canada, received international acclaim - over 50 awards to date, among them the Best Short Film and Rail d'or prizes at the Cannes International Film Festival and an Academy Award Nomination in 2007. Lavis and Szczerbowski are currently working with the NFB and Silo Corporation on a feature film project entitled The White Circus co-produced by Lago Film (Germany) and Apple Film Production (Poland). In 2008 The White Circus was selected for development by the Sundance Film Institute's screenwriting lab.
Higglety Pigglety Pop! or There Must Be More to Life is produced by the National Film Board of Canada in association with Warner Home Video.
About the NFB
The National Film Board of Canada has led the way in auteur animation since 1941, when cinema pioneer Norman McLaren founded its first animation unit. Since then, NFB animators have created groundbreaking films across a wide array of techniques and styles. The NFB has received 70 nominations over its 71 years - adding to a record pace that has seen Canada's public film producer garner more nominations than any organization in the world, outside Hollywood.
Canada's public film producer and distributor, the NFB, founded in 1939, is committed to breaking new ground in form and content in socially responsible media. Overall, the NFB has produced over 13,000 productions and won more than 5,000 awards. NFB's online Screening Room and iPhone app offer over 1400 productions on line, many of them award-winning animation, including 29 Oscar nominees. Visit NFB.ca and start watching.
Links:
[1] http://nfb.ca/
[2] http://www.whvdvd-collections.com/
[3] http://films.nfb.ca/madame-tutli-putli/?lg=en