Jeff Hermann, Producer of The Wild Robot on Storytelling, Animation, and Collaboration

From DreamWorks Animation, The Wild Robot is an adaptation of a literary sensation, and #1 New York Times bestseller by Peter Brown. The Wild Robot follows the journey of a robot - ROZZUM unit 7134, "Roz" for short -- that is shipwrecked on an uninhabited island and must learn to adapt to the harsh surroundings, gradually building relationships with the animals on the island and becoming the adoptive parent of an orphaned gosling. We spoke to Jeff Hermann, Producer about the magic of making The Wild Robot, his creative approach and the importance of collaboration. 

What drew you to the story of The Wild Robot and why did you choose to adapt it into a film?

When I first read Peter Brown's endlessly charming book, I instantly felt the power and potential it could have as an animated film. What really stood out to me was how efficiently and eloquently the book presented the harsh realities of the natural world -  that there are not always easy outcomes but kindness and empathy can be the keys to our mutual survival. This felt extremely refreshing and relevant to the world we live in today.

The story also represents the best aspects of what movies can be, a mix of scope and intimacy, joy and tragedy, humor and terror and at its core it is a deceptively simple but actually quite thoughtful examination of the human condition told through robots and animals, making animation the perfect medium for Roz's story to be told visually.

How did the creative team approach the challenge of bringing the robot and the natural world to life on screen? 

With the depths of emotion that this story goes to, we felt that the visual style of the film needed to elicit an equally strong emotional reaction. For years our artists have been developing new and innovative ways to push the boundaries of what a CG-animated film can look like and in the process, return it closer to its hand crafted roots. The inspiration for our look on The Wild Robot came from impressionistic paintings, which upon first glance convey a very specific mood and tone through color and light and are completely believable without being photo-real. 

This approach also helped us to contrast the look of our technology in the film, in this case the robots who are rendered in a cleaner, less painterly fashion, from the wilderness that Roz finds herself in. And, as the story progresses and Roz integrates more and more into her environment, so too, does her look evolve as she gradually picks up more and more or a painterly look throughout the film. 

What message or themes from the book do you hope will resonate most with audiences in the film adaptation?

The book does such an incredible job of conveying and intertwining multiple themes from attachment, love, responsibility, community and how one can overcome your built-in programming to become something greater and unifying all of these ideas together was a simple but powerful statement that author Peter Brown shared as his guiding principle for the story, which is "Kindness is a survival skill." These five words resonated so deeply with us that it helped to not only align the narrative focus of the story, but it also placed the high bar we wanted to maintain experientially both on and off the screen.

How did the film’s soundtrack and score come together, and how does the music contribute to the film’s atmosphere?

Much like with our visuals, we wanted the music and sound design to feel big, sophisticated and worthy of a cinematic experience. This movie has much less dialogue than a typical animated film and that puts more emphasis and importance on the role music and sound play in the film. By design, we created spaces for our characters to go quiet and allow the music to take center stage as the best music can convey more emotion than any words can.

Composer Kris Bowers brought a freshness and vitality to the project by creating an epic score and a suite of rich character themes that feel both current and timeless. We were fortunate for Kris to come onto the project very early (about two years out from completion) and in meeting with him regularly he was able to not only see our progress on the film at key stages but was able to offer up his ideas for where music could help particular story challenges. His contributions to this film cannot be understated. 

And of course, working with Randy Thom, Leff Lefferts and the team at Skywalker Sound was a dream come true for us all. Their level of ingenuity in creating a rich soundscape provided the immersive experience for which we were hoping.

What are some of the unique elements or surprises in the film that fans of the book might not expect? 

In any adaptation, changes are inevitable but as huge fans of the book ourselves, our mission was to not lose sight of the tone and themes of Peter's story and we were careful to also hold onto the main story beats contained within his book, albeit with some alterations. One of the biggest changes from the book that I think people will enjoy is the promotion of Fink the fox from a minor character to a main one. Elevating his role gives contrast to Roz's philosophy and provides her someone to play against in a fun and entertaining way.

As someone who has worked on a variety of films, how do you approach collaboration with directors, writers, and other key creatives?

Early on in my career (and at another company), I was told that I would never become a producer because I was too nice. This was concerning to me on several levels, particularly the perception that one had to change who they were in order to lead or that kindness inherently makes one weak.  I approach all of my collaborations and interactions with the same care and consideration, no matter who it is. Also, providing people with context and a safe space to express themselves for me, is paramount in creating environments in which people feel respected and encouraged to do their very best.

The fact that I was told that kindness would hold me back all those years ago makes this moment, in which I am producing a film in which kindness is so central to its core, truly full circle.

DreamWorks The Wild Robot is in theaters now.