Created & Production Design by: Nathan Jurevicius
Produced by: Sophie Byrne (Highly Spirited), Nadine Bates & Kristen Souvlis (Like A Photon Creative), and Ryan Greaves (Cosmic Dino).
Distributed by: Madman Entertainment.
Directed by: Ricard Cussó
Co-Directed by: Tania Vincent
Status: Released
Created over 20 years ago by unique visual artist and designer Nathan Jurevicius, the Scarygirl universe centres on Arkie – a one-eyed girl with a tentacle-like arm that gives her regenerative abilities. First conceived as a graphic novel, Scarygirl has garnered a cult following through its multiple iterations, which include collectible vinyl toys, as well as online and console video games.
“This film… was a new story… we didn’t really know a lot about her exact journey from other mediums – it was a silent graphic novel and the game had a different kind of focus.”
The idea of adapting the IP into a feature-length animation had been in development for over a decade when we were first approached by production companies Highly Spirited and Like a Photon Creative. Gravitating towards our track record for producing high-calibre animated features on tight budgets, the producers also felt our collaborative culture would provide a safe haven for the cinematic reimagining of this much-loved creation.
Sharing your ‘baby’ with a new production team always brings a sense of anxiety. Working with Cosmic Dino alleviated any worries I had. They were incredibly considerate of Arkie and the world of Scarygirl. The studio’s major strength lies in its highly creative approach to solving visually complex sequences and characters. I hope to collaborate again soon.
As an independent, all-Australian production, the challenge was achieving quality on par with the big Hollywood studios with a fraction of the budget. We called on all our collaborative powers and eked out every efficiency to maximise the potential of this exciting project.
Involvement of some of Australia’s best-known acting talent (including Sam Neill, a big moment for a certain Jurassic Park fan in the office) helped elevate the character development and dramatic tension, and we knew we needed to knock the visuals out of the park, within the production parameters. By leaning into the limitations of what CG animation does well – making strategic creative choices early in the piece to minimise technical headaches down the line – we achieved a unique look and feel within the constraints, without any sacrifice to quality.
Cosmic Dino worked closely with the IP holders, producers, and some of Australia’s top voice actors (Sam Neill, Tim Michin, Deborah Mailman, and more), delivering an end-to-end production pipeline encompassing everything from direction and story to all the technical departments like assets and LRC. The result is an award-winning film that honours Scarygirl’s foundation story, while expanding the narrative arcs with a distinct visual language.
Ricard Cussó directed the film, leading decision making across all departments. Tania Vincent co-directed, bringing a specialised focus on the look and feel of the film’s signature animation style.
Art Director Nathan Geppert worked closely with creator/Production Designer Nathan Jurevicius and our team of talented artists to sketch out the characters, scenery, and props that would make up the Scarygirl cinematic world.
Our artists drew countless panels, pitching them to the directors complete with character voices and sound effects. This collaboration-meets-friendly-competition approach ensured the best idea in the room wins, while also giving everyone a chance to put their stamp on the project.
Once storyboards were finalised, our editors stitched them together into a full-length animatic, complete with audio scratch tracks, providing a vital blueprint for all downstream departments.
Our asset experts converted the art department’s 2D designs into fully functional 3D objects. Everything you see in the final cut – from the full host of characters, every set, right down to the smallest dust mote – is the result of their craft.
Cosmic Dino’s ‘digital DOPs’ blocked out scenes, selected camera angles, lenses, and movement, focused on creating a cinematic feel reminiscent of a Hollywood blockbuster.
Going boldly where some would fear to tread, our animators opted to animate the film on 2s – creating motion on every 2nd frame rather than on all 24 frames per second. The result is a unique stop-motion aesthetic which complements the film’s unique visual style.
Getting the colours right was crucial to telling the story of the protagonist’s quest, and a key focus of the creator. Our lighting wizards rendered the natural hues of Arkie’s Peninsula and the vibrant neons of the City of Light with the utmost care and precision.
The systems that move assets and shots between each of these departments are key to running an efficient production. Our team of pipeline superstars worked tirelessly to script, code and python all kinds of creative concoctions to keep everything moving seamlessly.
Working closely with Nathan Jurevicius and Sophie Byrne – the driving force behind the development of the feature concept for many years – we ventured to capture Scarygirl’s graphic novel essence in 3D animation. The overarching objective was to pay tribute to the concept’s history, while weaving in new threads into its eclectic aesthetic tapestry in a pragmatic way.
With Ricard, Tania and Nathan taking the lead for stylistic choices, we made a key creative decision to sculpt the characters as though they were vinyl toys, with all the imperfections, seams, and restrictions to their movement that came with that. Resisting the temptation to try for a ‘Looney Tunes’ squash-and-stretch motion style – where characters break the laws of physics with exaggerated and impossible movements – or aim for a hyper-real rendering of the character (complete with well-groomed hair/fur), we honoured the project’s heritage while also minimising technical challenges.
Inspired by stop motion animated classics like Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas, we combined the characters’ toy-like texturing with an animation style that limits movement to every 2nd frame. The lack of motion blur and slightly stuttered movement, coupled with the unique rendering of skin, hair, and clothes, achieves an almost dream-like animation style reminiscent of actual stop-motion clay puppets.
