Me and My Shadow (partially found footage of unreleased DreamWorks animated film; 2010-2017): Difference between revisions
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Revision as of 00:03, 27 November 2022
Me and My Shadow was a planned DreamWorks animated movie, announced on December 10, 2010. The film would have blended both CGI and hand-drawn animation. The film started out production well, but in 2012, the film was pushed back for the first of many times. Eventually, due to the failure of Mr. Peabody & Sherman in 2014, DreamWorks underwent corporate restructuring and laid off many animators, cancelling many projects including Me and My Shadow in the process.
A second attempt at the film was made in 2015 when Edgar Wright had signed on to co-write and direct a movie with a similar concept to that of Me and My Shadow. This second incarnation was cancelled in 2017 as the previous year saw Comcast purchase DreamWorks animation and in turn, caused more restructuring. Despite the film never releasing, it has garnered a cult following. Currently, only a few test clips of the film that shows it throughout various stages of development have surfaced.
Plot
Me and My Shadow revolves around a human named Daniel Grubb (Josh Gad), originally named Stanley, as he works in a boring lightbulb factory. His shadow wants to help Daniel by breaking the rules of the once-secret shadow world. When a crime in the shadow world puts both of their lives in danger, Shadow Dan is forced to take control of Daniel. They go on a massive adventure to investigate the crime and stop a shadow villain from leading a rebellion where shadows take over their human counterparts in the human world. Daniel would’ve had a love interest named Heidi.[1]
Development
Me and My Shadow was first announced on December 10, 2010, with a window of release being in March of 2013.[2] In early 2012, the film entered into production, and Bill Hader, Kate Hudson, and Josh Gad had signed onto the project. It was also announced that the film would be officially released on November 13, 2013.[3] Due to Mr. Peabody & Sherman gaining favorability among executives in Dreamworks, the company wanted to get Mr. Peabody & Sherman out before Me and My Shadow and as a result, Me and My Shadow was delayed yet again this time to March of 2014. With production on Mr. Peabody & Sherman being behind, Dreamworks decided to simply release Mr. Peabody & Sherman on the March 2014 release date initially given to Me and My Shadow.[4]
Cancellation
Me and My Shadow was not favored by DreamWorks executives. In 2012, DreamWorks co-founder Jeffrey Katzenberg was shown a special screening of Me and My Shadow and he had stated how it was not the "$200 million movie he had wanted."[5]
After the commercial failure of Mr. Peabody & Sherman, DreamWorks had a restructuring which saw the layoff of over 500 animators and the cancellation of many movies, including Me and My Shadow.[6]
Revival
While the higher-ups at DreamWorks were not impressed with the movie, there was still a demand. In November of 2015, Edgar Wright signed on to rework the concept of Me and My Shadow into a new story, now with the title of Shadows.[7] Edgar Wright had gone through three drafts of the movie.[8]
Edgar Wright's attempt to revive the movie would ultimately end up being cancelled due to another round of restructuring in 2016 when Comcast purchased DreamWorks Animation.[9]
Availability
Footage for Me and My Shadow has been published online in various stages of development. It is unknown how much of the footage was made of the film before the movie was quietly cancelled. It is also unknown how far in production the movie was prior to its cancellation. As of the writing of this article, only a few clips of the movie have surfaced.
Videos
Gallery
External links
- Matt Williams' Tumblr where clips have been posted. Retrieved 30 Oct '20
References
- ↑ Plot for Me & My Shadow. Retrieved 29 Oct '20
- ↑ Dreamworks announcing Me and My Shadow. Retrieved 29 Oct '20
- ↑ Article on development of Me and My Shadow. Retrieved 29 Oct '20
- ↑ Article on Dreamworks pushing Mr. Peabody & Sherman to March of 2014. Retrieved 29 Oct '20
- ↑ Animator Matt Williams recounts screening with Jefferey Katzenberg. Retrieved 29 Oct '20
- ↑ Article on DreamWorks restructuring. Retrieved 29 Oct '20
- ↑ Article on Edgar Wright signing on to work on a similar concept movie. Retrieved 29 Oct '20
- ↑ Interview with Edgar Wright about his attempt at Me and My Shadow. Retrieved 29 Oct '20
- ↑ Article on Comcast purchasing Dreamworks. Retrieved 29 Oct '20