Ash Brannon has a rich history in animation. He has learned from the best, working his way up the ranks at Disney… culminating in co-directing Toy Story 2. He also struck out on his own with the hit animated treat Surf’s Up. Now he’s back with the most original of animated tales (or is it a tail?!). Rock Dog is a compelling and emotionally charged musical journey that should find adults and children alike finding inspiration in the story of Bodi (Luke Wilson).
Bodi is a Mastiff and as the son of Khampa (J.K. Simmons), he is expected to follow in his footsteps and become a guard who keeps watch over the village sheep. See, there was a great attack by wolves in their village’s past that is the stuff of legend. It was the Mastiff guards and their magical powers that kept the evildoers at bay and have ever since. The thing is, instead of heading down that path, Bodi has another calling. It is to become a musician.
He is obsessed with a cat named Angus (voiced brilliantly by Eddie Izzard, literally the definition of “cool cat”) who is the hottest thing in pop music in this animal world. After hearing an interview with Angus who presses his fans to do what their hearts desire and to not listen to the doubters, Bodi leaves his village behind and heads to the big city in search of the rock star in hopes of becoming his pupil.
The film is a great story for young animation fans as it is filled with many lessons to be learned, all told through a story that is as entertaining as it is enlightening and enthralling.
The Movie Mensch caught up with Brannon for an exclusive chat where he shares his insight into the casting process, finding the right music for the right moments and why this film spoke to him.
The Movie Mensch: First of all, congrats on a really, really fun film with a great message. It just plays to adults, and kids, and everyone. I have to start with the cast. This is just an incredible cast. When the names started coming from, “Can we get them to yeses,” what was your reaction? This is a film that could work with any number of people, but the people you got, my goodness, are just incredible.
Ash Brannon: We were so blessed to end up with the cast we got. I’m grateful to all of them because they took a big chance on an independent animated feature made by an unknown studio. Thankfully they cracked the door open enough that I could talk to them or at least send a script over — give them a sense of the character I wanted them to play. Across the board we got our number one choices. I’m very thankful again. They’re incredible.
The Movie Mensch: Yeah. I have been a fan of Eddie Izzard for years.
Ash Brannon: Yeah, me too. For years. He was the hardest to get.
The Movie Menshch: Really? Why do you think? He hasn’t made a lot of animated films.
Ash Brannon: That took a while. He’s done Cars 2. He played a pretty major role in that one. I think what clinched the deal for Rock Dog was when I met with him in London and told him that I really wanted to embrace his improvisational skills. If you’ve been to his shows, you know how brilliant he is at just coming up with material in real time. I knew if we could just get him in the booth, turn that tape recorder on, and let him run, it would be brilliant.
The Movie Mensch: I can’t imagine the movie without him, and I can’t imagine that character voiced by anyone else.
Ash Brannon: Exactly, we couldn’t either. That’s why we kept at it to bring Eddie on board. It took months!
The Movie Mensch: What part of the story spoke to you the most as you headed into production?
Ash Brannon: Two things… On a musical front I really wanted to capture what it feels like to create music for the first time. Every kid does that, right? We all bang on pots and pans when we’re kids or we curl up on a piano. We discover that we can make sounds. Then eventually if you’re good enough, you can create pleasing sounds. Music has this ability to just touch hearts around the world and move people. I really wanted to embrace Bodi’s discovery of music. By the way, it says in the synopsis of the move he’s looking to be a rock star. That is not the case at all. We wanted to make it very clear that Bodi’s looking for nothing more than just to find a band, and be a musician, and create music.
The Movie Mensch: What other elements resonated with you?
Ash Brannon: The familial theme I wanted to touch on was something that I could relate to as a kid. I really wanted to be an animator even when I was 10 or 12. Luckily I had very supportive parents who didn’t want me to be a doctor or a lawyer. I had that support. I know a lot of kids want to do something. They have big dreams, and want to do something that may not seem practical. Or it may seem very risky. As the father of a 10-year-old now who is probably going to be a creative person, I know how parents feel. How do you support your children and their dreams, but also make sure that they’re going down the right path? We tried to embrace that theme and play the story out between Bodi and his father.
The Movie Mensch: There is also that element that Bodi doesn’t completely ignore his father’s wishes. Was that an important part of the story to spotlight?
Ash Brannon: Yes. I think we all feel obligated to our families in some way too. Often their expectations are put upon us. In Bodi’s case, his dad wants him to be a guard just like he was, and guard this village of sheep. It’s not in Bodi’s heart, but I love that we were able to synthesize Bodi’s own dream and his obligations to his father and his family by having him… spoiler alert, find a way to do both at the end.
The Movie Mensch: Yes. That’s stunning. I love the idea also that music can bring us together and how that plays out at the end.
Ash Brannon: Terrific! That was so important too. These mastiffs, they have this weird power, which we could never explain that they can shoot lasers or something out of their paws. That’s one thing we had to work into the story. We took the idea that it represents passion. In Bodi’s father’s case it’s a passion of hate. He hates these wolves. Bodi’s passion, he doesn’t hate. He loves. He can’t find the deadly mastiff paws and eventually discovers that passion was there all along, it’s just a musical passion and it’s released in an unexpected way. We really wanted to show that music can heal people and heal cultures. I’m glad you caught that. It’s one of my favorite moments at the end when we realize that Bodi’s pursuit of music changes his world in a big way.
The Movie Mensch: One thing that also struck me and I had to ask you about too, is the final song. Whether it’s going to be our lovely cat rock star’s new single, or it will serve as Bodi’s coming out song — or whatever it is it’s going to be — for you as the filmmaker, and us as the audience, it is the “payoff” song. How hard was it to find that perfect song and what made that song Glorious? It was perfect to hear. What did you hear in it that you said, “That’s it!”
Ash Brannon: I’m glad you asked because I love this story. We took the Hollywood route initially. We were going to hire professional songwriters and get some big name star to either perform it or co-write. Then we got bogged down in legal paperwork for about six months. In the meantime, the producer’s daughter had a friend named James Burnett who is the son of Mark Burnett, who produces Survivor and The Voice. James had gone to Berkeley School of Music. When we knew the connection he had to this college we thought, “Oh man, if he could maybe check in with some of the kids in college and get some of their music we could put it in the movie. It would be perfect for the in the park [scenes] where the kids are busking and give them a little exposure.” That’s the whole point of the movie is emerging musicians. Well, James sent over about 10 to 12 songs. One of them was Glorious.
The Movie Mensch: No way. What a great story. It’s like art mirroring life.
Ash Brannon: I heard about half a minute of it co-written by this guy named Adam Freedman. We were very thankful that the legal morass paperwork — the Hollywood route — was not working out. We quickly made a deal with this new group. Everything fell into place. It was serendipity to the max. Adam ended up moving back to L.A. about a mile from where we were working. We could always call him on the phone and say, “Hey, we need you to come in, and can you lay down some guitar tracks for us?” He became the singing voice of Bodi. He shares the same pitch ranges as Luke Wilson. It was just a gift from heaven, really.