Tilly Norwood Creators Team With ‘Lion King’ Director Rob Minkoff for New Feature ‘Storm Dogs’

Particle 6, the company founded by Eline van der Velden, has teamed up with Rob Minkoff, the co-director of Disney's beloved animated classic "The Lion King," to develop a new feature called "Storm Dogs." Van der Velden is the CEO of Particle 6 and the creator behind the AI "star" Tilly Norwood. Rob Minkoff will take on the role of creative lead on the project, working closely with the CEO and the studio's team to bring the story to life.

"Storm Dogs" is an original story by Van der Velden, set in an English village during a devastating storm. The film is described as a family adventure comedy-drama, combining live-action performance with photorealistic animated characters. The film will use a performance-driven process that translates an actor's facial expressions, physicality, timing, and emotional choices into the animated characters. This process aims to shape the complete performance, from a glance or flinch to the movement of a dog's ears or tail.

The film will feature live-action performance alongside what are described as photorealistic animated characters. The combination of these techniques aims to bring a unique and ambitious vision to the screen. Van der Velden emphasizes that traditional animation methods, which rely on vocal performances and recorded video, are being used alongside these emerging AI tools.

Rob Minkoff expressed his excitement about partnering with Particle 6, praising the company's commitment to story, character, and performance. He believes that the combination of real artists and emerging tools will allow them to tackle ambitious projects while keeping creative decisions in human hands. Minkoff has spent much of his career working on animal characters who are funny, emotionally truthful, and completely alive.

He sees "Storm Dogs" as an opportunity to develop new production methods that expand filmmakers' imaginations while delivering a story filled with real jeopardy, heart, and humor.