Set in 1980s NYC, ROBOT DREAMS is the story of Dog, a lonely canine who builds himself a robot for companionship. Their friendship blossoms as they embark on adventures (and misadventures) across the city, from taking the subway to Chinatown to roller skating in Central Park. But they are soon separated on the beach. Dog, devastated at the loss of his friend, does everything in his power to get Robot back.
Fresh off a nomination at the Academy Awards for Best Animated Feature Film, and leading up to it’s cinema release on April 11, Nick spoke with the film’s director Pablo Berger about creating a large scale New York feeling, the importance of music, and creating over 1000 different characters for Robot Dreams.
Nick: Obviously, this film is based on a graphic novel, but I’m curious to know whether at any point did you consider exploring these themes in live action? Or was this project always going to be an authentic animated adaptation of the graphic novel?
Pablo Berger: Yeah, from the beginning I only thought about an animation version of the graphic novel. As you know, it’s based on a graphic novel called Robot Dreams from Sara Varon, and it was a huge hit in the States in 2007. I read it in 2010, and the fact that it was a graphic novel, and the fact that I was going to adapt it in the medium that I was not familiar, it was like a challenge. It was a big excitement.
To make it live-action could have been done, but I would have to change the characters. Instead of anthropomorphic, they would have to be human beings. The story is universal, and it could’ve been done in live action, but maybe by some other director perhaps!
Nick: I think the animation is one of the most beautiful aspects of the film. And a big part of it that stood out to me – and this is coming from someone who’s never been to New York City – I felt so immersed into New York as the location of this story. It genuinely feels like a character itself with the sounds and the scale of the city. What were the key things you were looking to get right to create that immersive feeling of New York City?
Pablo Berger: Well, the thing with book is you don’t know which exact city it takes place. It takes place in an undefined American city. The design of the book is very basic with its background. So, even though the characters have a lot of spirit with Robot and Dog, making over the background was a big change.
When I decided to make this film, I wanted to make three characters: Robot, Dog, and New York. The reason is [because] I lived for 10 years in New York, and I thought it would add a big layer to the film if we could identify the city.
This is my fourth film, but my first animated film, and I loved the idea that I could make New York in the 1980s for people like you who have never been to New York. I wanted you to feel what New York was like in another time.
We were very careful to be precise about the background details. The cars, the stores, everything feels like it was from that time. And we’ve been approved by New Yorkers! I just did a presentation a few weeks ago at Film Forum, one of the best arthouse cinemas in New York. We did a Q+A, and the New Yorkers approved our representation of New York.
Nick: The sound design was a big part of that immersion too!
Pablo Berger: The sound was something we truly worked on. The sounds of New York, you have to put a specific alarm, or ambulance siren, sounds of the cars. We had to do a lot of research about it.
Nick: And on top of the soundscape, you use those sounds and music to create a rhythm to the film, especially during a scene that involves a rising drum beat coinciding with a bird flapping their wings for the first time. How important is music, score and sounds when it comes to creating a rhythm for the film?
Pablo Berger: Why it’s super important, you know, for me is when we study the history of cinema, we know from early on that music was playing – a piano!
For me, Robot Dreams is a musical. When you don’t have dialogue, the music becomes the voice of the characters. We had different kinds of music, like pop music, the diegetic music that appears in the film was very important.
And because it’s a film that takes place in New York, the most diverse city in the world, there are different ethnicities, different neighbourhoods, we had to put music in to reflect that. Robot Dreams has Latin music, punk rock, hip hop, new wave.
One of my favourite scenes in the film, and one of my favourite characters, is like a street musician that is a bucket drummer who is an octopus!
But then the key song is ‘September’ by Earth, Wind and Fire, one of the most popular songs of all time! And the song appears many times, in many different ways during Robot Dreams. When the song appears, Robot thinks about Dog, Dog thinks about Robot. It’s such a key part of the film.
But there is also the non-diegetic music, which the soundtrack was composed by Alfonso de Vilallonga, a collaborator on my last three films. And we thought the music that best reflects the sound of New York was jazz.
And of course, there’s the percussion. In all of my films there’s a lot of percussion. I think percussions and cinema, they work beautifully.
Nick: Going back briefly to the immersive nature of this film, that scale of New York feels so grand. And even though this is an incredible personal story, having so many background characters in this huge city makes the movie feel grand. How many animals and characters did you have to animate to create that feeling?
Pablo Berger: The thing is that you cannot represent New York without the New Yorkers, you know? So, for me that was a big part, and that was a big difference from the book. We wanted to create a big scale film because New York is a Megalopolis!
We had a team of character designers, which was led by Daniel Fernandez Casa, one of the best character designers in the world. He’s worked for Illumination for over a decade, and he came to work with us!
He had a dream team of six designers, and for about two years they just created non-stop. We had a book with like, over 1000 New Yorkers, any animals you could imagine. And they were designed with some kind of personality because that was important to us. That was my challenge to them, because there’s so many times were characters are in the background and they’re not moving or they’re non-descript.
But from my work in live action, characters in the background are so important. They have to be moving, and they have to have a personality. So, in our film, the characters in background, the New Yorkers, they’re moving, they’re doing something, and they’re going somewhere. And there’s a reason why they are. I think it gives the possibility that the audience may have seen the film once, and if they see it again, they might start paying attention to the background because there’s a lot of interesting things happening in the background!
Nick: Well, in regard to looking out for things in the background, you also have a lot of cinematic references in Robot Dreams. There’re obvious ones like The Wizard of Oz, but I believe there was also a certain shot from Jaws in here too…
Pablo Berger: Yes. Yes, there is!
Nick: Are there any other references people should look out? Are there any you’re particularly proud of?
Pablo Berger: Well, before a director, I am a film buff. I prefer to watch movies! The film is full… there are dozens of references to other films. But I prefer that the audience find them! Then they can go to Instagram or to Letterboxd and talk about the film references. There are many more to be found. It’s a bit like Where’s Wally!
Nick: Pablo, we’re getting close to the end of our time, but I just wanted to say that the final scene of this film is truly beautiful. I loved the film up until that point, but there was just something that hit me about longing, and relationships, and remembering the good times, but having the courage to move on. There are so many feelings that stirred in me because it’s a fantastic ending.
Pablo Berger: I think that in cinema, the third act, the end, needs to be strong. That’s the reason I decided to make the film, because when I read the book, and I got to the end, I thought it was wonderful. If I felt like this reading the graphic novel, then it surely was going to be a great ending when we make it for the cinema.
I’m happy that you enjoyed the ending.
Nick: I really appreciate you taking the time to talk, and I hope we can do it again on your next project.
Pablo Berger: Thank you, Nick.
Thank you to Pablo for his time, and to Madman Films and NixCo PR for organising the interview. Robot Dreams is in cinemas April 11.
