Credit: DreamWorks/NetflixCharlie Kaufman, director and writer known for his incredibly meta takes in films such as Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and Being John Malkovich, is trying his hand in family animation for the first time. Kaufman has partnered with DreamWorks and Netflix on a new film, Orion and The Dark, which they previewed at the Annecy Animation Festival today, Tuesday June 13.
Netflix has had first-run rights with DreamWorks Animation for years, and now they appear to be expanding their partnership into making films together. This is a venture we could see more of if Orion and The Dark goes well – which it very well may, given the appetite that modern children and tweens seem to be showing for meta-concepts and psychological analysis on platforms like TikTok.
What Will Orion and The Dark Be About?
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Based on a children’s book by Anna Yarlett, the concept for Orion and The Dark sounds somewhat familiar – as a matter of fact, it sort of sounds like a Pixar movie.
The story is about a young boy named Orion, who is afraid of basically everything: “Rejection, humiliation, murderous gutter clowns, cell phone waves giving me cancer, saying good morning, bees, dogs, the ocean!” His biggest fear, however, is one that many kids share: Orion is afraid of The Dark.
The Dark, however, has something to say about that.
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Orion and The Dark will see The Dark personified in to a big, lovable, shadow-casting cloud of black vapor, who declares to Orion:
“I’m going to get you to overcome your fears if it kills me…And I’m immortal, by the way, so I have all the time in the world.”
That is what the film is about: A scaredy-cat boy will meet The Dark personified – as well as a whole other host of characters, including Insomnia, Unexpected Noises, Werner Herzog, and Sleep. Through meeting them, and befriending The Dark, Orion will learn that the only real thing he has to fear is fear itself.
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The meta-concept is not unlike the one found in Pixar’s Inside Out, where the viewer travels into the mind of the main character and meets her emotions, as well as other mental constructs, like Memory and an imaginary friend. Orion and The Dark, however, is a little different, because the character whose fears we are examining will actually be going on the journey as well.
It seems like an excellent concept for a movie, and while they don’t have a full cast yet, they have announced a big get for the main character: Jacob Tremblay, who is currently in the limelight for reprising his Broadway role as Flounder in the new, live-action Little Mermaid, will star as Orion.
Tremblay is also known for his Academy Award-winning role as Jack Newsome in 2015’s Room.
Are you looking forward to hearing more about Orion and The Dark? How do you think this new film will do for DreamWorks and Netflix? Let Inside the Magic know in the comments.