The Art & Making of Arthur Christmas

Book excerpt: Finally, the answer to the incredible question asked by every child: "So how does Santa deliver billions of presents to every corner of the planet in just one night?" According to Arthur Christmas, it takes millions of elves, an ultra-high-tech Mission Control, the S-1, a huge, mile-wide, state-of-the-art sleighship, three generations of working Santas, a family in a state of comic dysfunction, and Arthur, an unlikely hero on an urgent mission that must be completed before Christmas morning dawns. The voice cast includes James McAvoy as Arthur, Hugh Laurie as Steve, Bill Nighy as Grandsanta, Jim Broadbent as Santa, Imelda Staunton as Mrs. Santa, and Ashley Jensen as Bryony. This lavishly illustrated moviebook, The Art & Making of Arthur Christmas, offers more than 300 pieces of fantastic art culled from the archives of Aardman and Sony Pictures Animation, featuring drawings, paintings, concept art, background art, color keys, animation wire frames, and storyboards. The reader will enjoy fascinating insights from director/writer Sarah Smith, co-writer Pete Baynham, Sony Pictures Digital Productions President Bob Osher, Co-Founder of Aardman and Producer Peter Lord, as well as from the producers, animators, artists, designers, Visual F/X and CG supervisors, and other talented filmmakers who brought this hilarious movie vividly to life. This official tie-in to Arthur Christmas, the first film collaboration between the wildly successful Sony Pictures Animation (The Smurfs, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs) and Britain's deliciously wacky Aardman Animations (Wallace & Gromit, Chicken Run), celebrates everything we love about the holiday season and is perfect for anyone interested in movies, animation, or the simple joy of Christmas.