Laika Announces New Stop-Motion Film Directed By Pete Candeland

Pete Candeland is directing an upcoming stop-motion animated feature for Oregon-based Laika, the studio announced today.

The untitled project is based on an original idea by Candeland, who joined the studio in 2023. It revolves around a theater-loving high school student who is “lured into a mystifying never-ending bacchanal in search of her missing mother.”

BAFTA-nominated screenwriter John August (Corpse Bride, Frankenweenie) is on board to write the film. His other screenwriting credits include Big Fish, Charlie’s Angels, Titan A.E., and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

​“I’m thrilled to be back in the world of stop-motion animation working with a team of incredible artisans telling stories one frame at a time,” August said in a statmeent. “Truly everything about stop-motion is time-consuming and difficult, but the results have a texture and authenticity that can’t be replicated. You can feel the fingerprints of everyone who touched it.”

Pete Candeland is best known for co-directing, with Jamie Hewlett, animated music videos for the group Gorillaz. He has done recognizable commercial work for the Rock Band video game and the BBC. Candeland was also the original director of Illumination’s The Grinch, but left before the film was completed.