Shaun the Sheep Movie

Shaun the Sheep Movie

Theatrical release poster
Directed by Richard Starzak
Mark Burton
Produced by Paul Kewley
Julie Lockhart
Written by Richard Starzak
Mark Burton
Story by Mark Burton
Based on Shaun the Sheep 
by Nick Park
Starring Justin Fletcher
John Sparkes
Omid Djalili[1]
Music by Ilan Eshkeri
Cinematography Charles Copping
Dave Alex Riddett
Edited by Sim Evan-Jones[2]
Production
company
Distributed by StudioCanal[3] (International)
Lionsgate Films[4] (United States)
Release dates
  • 24 January 2015 (Sundance Film Festival)[5]
  • 6 February 2015 (United Kingdom)[6]
  • 7 August 2015 (United States)[4]
Running time
 85 minutes[7]
Country United Kingdom[2]
Language English
Box office $55.2 million[8]

Shaun the Sheep Movie is a 2015 British[2] stop-motion animated comedy film produced by Aardman Animations, based on the Shaun the Sheep television series, which itself is a spin-off from the Aardman series Wallace and Gromit which introduced the character of Shaun. The film is written and directed by Richard Starzak and Mark Burton. Financed and distributed by StudioCanal,[3] it was released in the United Kingdom on 6 February 2015.[6]

Plot

The film follows Shaun, Bitzer and the flock into the big city to rescue the Farmer, who gets lost after Shaun's mischief.

After a blow to the head, the Farmer is diagnosed with amnesia, yet retains certain memories (i.e. shearing the sheep), which proves crucial to the plot. Meanwhile, Shaun is captured by Animal Control, and finds himself in a cell with Bitzer. They later escape, and find the Farmer, who is now a world-famous hair stylist (he mistakenly shaved the hair off a famous celebrity, as if he was Shaun), for starting the new trend. However, the Farmer no longer recognises Shaun, and Shaun is left heartbroken after the encounter.

The flock devises a plan - they will send everyone to sleep, then abduct the farmer, and take him back to the countryside. However, with the enraged stray-catcher hot on their trail, the protagonists' plan to safely make it back home won't be nearly as easy as they hope, but they're determined to succeed.

Voice cast

Production

In January 2011, BBC reported that Aardman had started developing a feature film version of Shaun the Sheep, with a plan to be ready for a 2013/2014 release.[9] In April 2013, it was announced that the film, written and directed by Richard Starzak and Mark Burton, would be financed and distributed by StudioCanal.[3] The film will follow Shaun and his flock into the big city to rescue their farmer, who was forced by Shaun's mischief to leave the farm.[3] On 24 September 2013, it was announced the film would be released on 20 March 2015,[10] but was later moved up to 6 February 2015.[6] Principal photography and production began on 30 January 2014.[11]

Music

Ilan Eshkeri composed the music for the film.[12]

The title song, "Feels Like Summer", was a collaboration between Tim Wheeler (of rock band Ash), composer Ilan Eshkeri and former-Kaiser Chief Nick Hodgson.[13]

Release

A poster and a teaser trailer were released on 3 April 2014.[14] The film premiered at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival as part of the Sundance Kid program on 24 January 2015.[5] The film was released in the United Kingdom on 6 February 2015.[6] It will be released in the United States on 7 August 2015.[4]

Reception

The film received universal critical acclaim. Review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reports that 100% of 33 critics have given the film a positive review, with a score average of 8/10. The site's consensus reads "Warm, funny, and brilliantly animated, Shaun the Sheep is yet another stop-motion jewel in Aardman's family-friendly crown."[15] On Metacritic, the film has a score of 77 out of 100, based on 6 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[16]

Potential sequels

Aardman has stated that they are considering making a sequel to the film.[17][18][19][20][21]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Omid Djalili Interview: Voice of "Trumper"". Newsround. 31 January 2015. Retrieved 31 January 2015.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 "Shaun the Sheep Movie (2014)". British Film Institute. Retrieved 6 March 2015.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 "Shaun the Sheep set for big-screen adventure in 2015". BBC. 25 April 2013. Retrieved 28 April 2013.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 "Lionsgate Movies on Twitter: "Greetings America! Get ready to meet Shaun the Sheep - The global phenomenon movie is coming to theaters August 7! http://t.co/1J0MQHF2W0"". Twitter.com. Retrieved 27 April 2015.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Means, Sean P (15 December 2014). "Sundance Film Festival adds three children’s films and a Robert Redford premiere". The Salt Lake Tribune. Retrieved 14 January 2015.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 Payne, Joey (28 May 2014). "Film Changes W/C 26/05". Digital Cinema Media. Retrieved 28 May 2014.
  7. ↑ "SHAUN THE SHEEP THE MOVIE - British Board of Film Classification". bbfc.co.uk. Retrieved 16 January 2015.
  8. ↑ "Shaun the Sheep Movie - International Box Office Results - Box Office Mojo". boxofficemojo.com. Retrieved 19 March 2015.
  9. ↑ "Aardman Animations plan new Shaun the Sheep film". BBC Online. 27 January 2011. Retrieved 28 April 2011.
  10. ↑ Jardine, William (24 September 2013). "Aardman News: Shaun the Sheep Movie Coming March 2015". A113Animation. Retrieved 24 September 2013.
  11. ↑ "Cameras are Rolling on the Shaun the Sheep Movie". ComingSoon.net. Retrieved 30 January 2014.
  12. ↑ "Ilan Eshkeri Scoring Aardman Animations’ ‘Shaun the Sheep’". filmmusicreporter.com. 30 November 2014. Retrieved 14 December 2014.
  13. ↑ "'Feels Like Summer' Song Available to Download Now!". Shaun the Sheep. Retrieved 27 April 2015.
  14. ↑ Anderton, Ethan (3 April 2014). "Aardman Animation's 'Shaun the Sheep' Movie Teaser Trailer". firstshowing.net. Retrieved 3 April 2014.
  15. ↑ "Shaun the Sheep". rottentomatoes.com. 5 February 2015. Retrieved 6 February 2015.
  16. ↑ "Shaun the Sheep". Metacritic. Retrieved 6 February 2015.
  17. ↑ SNAP.PA – Sat, 7 February 2015 (7 February 2015). "Shaun The Sheep creators would love a sequel - Yahoo News UK". Uk.news.yahoo.com. Retrieved 27 April 2015.
  18. ↑ "Nick Park and Richard Starzak talk movies... and possible sequels - Videos - Shaun The Sheep Movie - British Comedy Guide". Comedy.co.uk. 3 February 2015. Retrieved 27 April 2015.
  19. ↑ "Shaun The Sheep - The sequel? | News". Movies 4 Men. 9 February 2015. Retrieved 27 April 2015.
  20. ↑ &copy by Press Association 2014. "Shaun The Sheep creators would love a sequel (From York Press)". Yorkpress.co.uk. Retrieved 27 April 2015.
  21. ↑ 07/02/2015 - 00:32:21. "Shaun The Sheep creators would love a sequel". BreakingNews.ie. Retrieved 27 April 2015.

External links