The Art & Making of Monster House

Book excerpt: As much a testament to the art of the book as the art of animation,The Art and Making of Monster Houseis presented in lavish four-color throughout, with highlights of some of the film's most astonishing features including 3-D art, gatefolds and die-cut overlays of the five stages of computer generated "motion capture" technology. It also includes envelopes, cards, and a movie poster. Monster Houseis the first film from director Gil Kenan, who is living every young director's dream, hand-picked by the film's executive producer, Steven Spielberg, to create this groundbreaking film. This latest release from Sony Pictures Imageworks and ImageMovers, features the innovative, cutting-edge technology of " performance capture" animation, first introduced inThe Polar Express. Monster Housetells the story of a trio of friends who discover the secret that a scary, creepy house in their neighborhood is actually a living, breathing monster and it's up to the kids to stop the evil house before it's too late. Standouts in the cast include animation veterans Steve Buscemi, Kathleen Turner, Catherine O'Hara and Jason Lee, as well as Fred Willard, Kevin James, Maggie Gyllenhaal, and Jon Heder.