Animated short, directed by Arna Selznick and based on Ashley Spire’s best-selling picture book, is set for film festival debut in early 2019.
TORONTO – Nelvana, one of Canada’s leading animation companies, has announced that Hollywood icon, Oscar winner Whoopi Goldberg, and Tony Award-nominated screen and stage star Alison Pill (Vice, Three Tall Women, The Newsroom) helm the voice cast for its upcoming animated short film, The Most Magnificent Thing. Based on Ashley Spires’ best-selling picture book of the same name, published by Corus Entertainment’s Kids Can Press in 2014, The Most Magnificent Thing is currently wrapping production and is set to debut at various to-be-announced film festivals in early 2019.
Goldberg stars as the film’s narrator, with a cast rounded out by Pill as “mom,” Lilly Bartlam (Total Drama Island, Dot.) as “the determined girl,” and Tony Daniels (Atomic Puppet, Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood) as her canine best friend.
Produced in 4k resolution CGI, The Most Magnificent Thing brings to animation Spires’ tale about an unnamed girl, her furry best friend and their quest to make the most magnificent thing. The girl knows just how it will look and just how it will work – all she has to do is make it, and she makes things all the time. After several trials and several errors, the girl realizes that making the most magnificent thing might not be as easy as she thought, but with the help of her furry best friend, and a whole lot of dedication and imagination, she manages to get it just right.
“Building on our award-winning catalogue of beloved children’s content, The Most Magnificent Thing is an extension of Nelvana’s iconic storytelling, designed to deliver stories with mindful characters and innovative themes that both entertain and educate families and children,” Scott Dyer, Nelvana president, commented “Bursting with talent on screen and off, from an award-winning cast to our acclaimed animation director Arna Selznick, we produced this film much like the story’s lead character, determined to create a magnificent masterpiece that will delight audiences around the world.”
The film, directed by Selznick, is written by John van Bruggen and produced by Pamela Slavin and Lynne Warner. Spires, Dyer and Doug Murphy serve as executive producers. Nelvana will handle the film’s international and U.S. sales. Following its film festival appearances, The Most Magnificent Thing will make its linear debut on Corus’ leading kids networks in Canada.
Both Nelvana and Kids Can Press are part of Corus Entertainment, a leading media company whose business portfolio of multimedia offerings encompasses 44 specialty television services, 39 radio stations, 15 conventional television stations, a global content business, digital assets, live events, children’s book publishing, animation software, technology and media services.
Goldberg is represented by William Morris Endeavor (WME) Entertainment; Pill is represented by CAA and managed by Burstein Company; and Bartlam is represented by Talent House.
Source: Nelvana
