Gary Rydstrom’s Directorial Debut

Back in May of 2010, many animation fans were saddened when they had found out that an amazing-looking (and sounding!) film that Pixar was going to make had been shelved… A film that showed a lot of promise… One that was to be veteran sound designer/Pixar legend Gary Rydstrom’s directorial debut. That particular picture was titled Newt, as it was delayed a few times due to scheduling changes between April 2008 (when it was first announced) and the day its cancellation was announced. Currently, it doesn’t seem like the love story of two reptiles that are the last of their kind will see the light of day.

Rydstrom is now directing an animated feature for Lucasfilm Animation, which original Brave director Brenda Chapman confirmed in an interview with Animation Magazine. She revealed that she had worked on the enigmatic film for six months, while also hinting at what went on at Pixar during production of her film.

What could it be? Bleeding Cool’s Brendon Connelly suggests that it could be an earlier film that Lucasfilm once tried to get off the ground, but he feels it’s unlikely that they’ll go through with it now. Is it possible that Rydstrom was able to shop Newt to Lucasfilm Animation? Or will he return to Pixar and iron out the film’s reported story problems. Is it another Star Wars-related film? One that’s connected to the upcoming Star Wars Rebels animated series? Or is it something entirely new?

If it’s an original concept and something that isn’t associated with Star Wars, then it’ll be something to look forward to. Lucasfilm Animation has only made one feature film, and that was the theatrical pilot for their hit series Star Wars: The Clone Wars, which came out back in 2008. Lucasfilm itself was no stranger to theatrical animation. They teamed up with animator John Korty to produce his 1983 cut out animation classic Twice Upon a Time and then with Don Bluth’s studio to produce The Land Before Time. It’ll be great to see Lucasfilm Animation release an original production, one that’ll get a good deal of recognition… After all, Disney will be distributing it!

What do you think it will be? What do you hope it will be? A bold and daring original film perhaps? Or something fresh and new? Something similar to ILM’s Rango? Newt, perhaps? Sound off!