Heads On and We Shoot: The Making of Where the Wild Things Are

by Michelle Quint (Editor), Spike Jonze, Dave Eggers

Maurice Sendak′s classic book Where the Wild Things Are follows the adventures of Max, a headstrong young boy who leaves home after having a fight with his mother, only to find himself in a mysterious forest bordering a vast sea. Misunderstood and rebellious, Max sets sail to the land of the Wild Things, where mischief reigns. But how do you turn one of the world′s favorite children′s books into a movie?

This film incorporates the most dynamic elements of voice performance, live-action puppetry, and computer animation into a live-action adventure story that captures the magic of the book-and takes it to a new dimension. In order to preserve the realistic nature of the film, the Wild Things are not created digitally. Instead, Spike Jonze brings these characters to life in the form of physical suits built by the Jim Henson Company. These creatures, operated by a suit performer, interact with the live actor playing Max on set in front of the camera. After principal photography is finished, CGI is being used to make the creatures completely lifelike and convincing.

HEADS ON AND WE SHOOT unveils the unique collaboration behind this highly anticipated film-the combined work of Maurice Sendak, Spike Jonze, Dave Eggers, and all the cast and crew. The book design is heavily image-based, a mix of early sketches, storyboards, character designs, and extensive behind-the-scenes photographs that show both incredible live-action puppetry and computer animation. The text includes forewords by Jonze and Eggers, interviews with the cast and crew, stories from on and off the set, and early drafts of the screenplay. The resulting book will be simultaneously a beautiful object for collectors, an insider′s guide for devotees, and an intimate window into the creative process.

Genres: Nonfiction, Film, Art

205 pages, Hardcover

First published October 13, 2009

Reviews

[El Suliman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book split into three sections (pre-production, production and post-production) describing the whole 5 year process of turning this Children's book with only a handful of sentences into a 100 minute Movie.
Plus if you turn to the post-production section, you can see a picture of me eating a banana, what more could you possibly want from a book! :P

[Andrew · Rating 5 out of 5]

Discovering the monumental level of hard work and dedication that went into making this film, at times I felt exhausted reading this making of. The emotions which shine through these pages make perfect sense, deeply reflecting a tangle of pain and love which was poured into a film adaptation of a book so greatly loved by a lot of people - myself included. A complexity of filmmaking rarely seen composed the production of Where the Wild Things Are, and fittingly so for such an emotionally complex film. Reluctant to simply bestow gushing rivers of glowing superlatives on what is one of my favourite films, based on my favourite childhood book, I'll get on to reviewing this "making of" publication. The three part format is imaginative in the way it folds in on itself like a squeeze box; a first third on pre-production ends, meets a hard cover, you flip the book over and read the second part on filming, after which you meet another hard cover, you then open a "middle section" of binding where lies the third section, focusing on post production. From the side, the volume looks to be two thin books sandwiching a third inverted book. This is a nice way to unniquely present the content, dividing the distinct stages up adequetely and essentially packaging three books into one. A commentary by the various key people involved in production runs throughout the book, alongside many great behind the scenes photos, while scribbled handwritten notes are litterered throughout adding further - often amusing - comments. I wasn't expecting such an emotionally infused book on making a film, but I should've expected it with the story in question. As a child, the Wild Things intrigued me massively: inspiring me, reflecting me, intimidating me, and loving me; as an adult, they continue to do so through Spike Jonze's brilliant film, and this "making-of" book is a worthy compendium showcasing the dedication of a film crew with a uniting cause to represent the soul of Maurice Sendak's life-affirming picture book. If you're a fan of the Where the Wild Things Are film, and at all curious about filmmaking, this unusual hardcover should sit proudly on your shelf or coffee table.

[Mia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Discovering the monumental level of hard work and dedication that went into making this film, at times I felt exhausted reading this making of. The emotions which shine through these pages make perfect sense, deeply reflecting a tangle of pain and love which was poured into a film adaptation of a book so greatly loved by a lot of people - myself included. A complexity of filmmaking rarely seen composed the production of Where the Wild Things Are, and fittingly so for such an emotionally complex film. Reluctant to simply bestow gushing rivers of glowing superlatives on what is one of my favourite films, based on my favourite childhood book, I'll get on to reviewing this "making of" publication. The three part format is imaginative in the way it folds in on itself like a squeeze box; a first third on pre-production ends, meets a hard cover, you flip the book over and read the second part on filming, after which you meet another hard cover, you then open a "middle section" of binding where lies the third section, focusing on post production. From the side, the volume looks to be two thin books sandwiching a third inverted book. This is a nice way to unniquely present the content, dividing the distinct stages up adequetely and essentially packaging three books into one. A commentary by the various key people involved in production runs throughout the book, alongside many great behind the scenes photos, while scribbled handwritten notes are litterered throughout adding further - often amusing - comments. I wasn't expecting such an emotionally infused book on making a film, but I should've expected it with the story in question. As a child, the Wild Things intrigued me massively: inspiring me, reflecting me, intimidating me, and loving me; as an adult, they continue to do so through Spike Jonze's brilliant film, and this "making-of" book is a worthy compendium showcasing the dedication of a film crew with a uniting cause to represent the soul of Maurice Sendak's life-affirming picture book. If you're a fan of the Where the Wild Things Are film, and at all curious about filmmaking, this unusual hardcover should sit proudly on your shelf or coffee table.

[Leslynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Discovering the monumental level of hard work and dedication that went into making this film, at times I felt exhausted reading this making of. The emotions which shine through these pages make perfect sense, deeply reflecting a tangle of pain and love which was poured into a film adaptation of a book so greatly loved by a lot of people - myself included. A complexity of filmmaking rarely seen composed the production of Where the Wild Things Are, and fittingly so for such an emotionally complex film. Reluctant to simply bestow gushing rivers of glowing superlatives on what is one of my favourite films, based on my favourite childhood book, I'll get on to reviewing this "making of" publication. The three part format is imaginative in the way it folds in on itself like a squeeze box; a first third on pre-production ends, meets a hard cover, you flip the book over and read the second part on filming, after which you meet another hard cover, you then open a "middle section" of binding where lies the third section, focusing on post production. From the side, the volume looks to be two thin books sandwiching a third inverted book. This is a nice way to unniquely present the content, dividing the distinct stages up adequetely and essentially packaging three books into one. A commentary by the various key people involved in production runs throughout the book, alongside many great behind the scenes photos, while scribbled handwritten notes are litterered throughout adding further - often amusing - comments. I wasn't expecting such an emotionally infused book on making a film, but I should've expected it with the story in question. As a child, the Wild Things intrigued me massively: inspiring me, reflecting me, intimidating me, and loving me; as an adult, they continue to do so through Spike Jonze's brilliant film, and this "making-of" book is a worthy compendium showcasing the dedication of a film crew with a uniting cause to represent the soul of Maurice Sendak's life-affirming picture book. If you're a fan of the Where the Wild Things Are film, and at all curious about filmmaking, this unusual hardcover should sit proudly on your shelf or coffee table.

[Parka · Rating 5 out of 5]

(More pictures at parkablogs.com)

I was pleasantly surprised with this book because it has a unique binding. If you open the book slightly looking at it from the front and top, it's bound like the letter M, with the pages fitting in the openings, on the front and back sides. It's first of its kind.

This is the movie production book is split into three sections or "books" as it's referred to on the contents page. It looks at the preproduction, production, and postproduction. Everything about the production is in, including sound mixing and the animation part. Because of the binding, you have to turn the book over to get to the third "book". Very cool.

The commentary is in conversational style, with stories and insights from the director, actors, production crew and author Maurice Sendak himself. The production process is seen from so many perspective and it's really interesting to read about all the incidents that happen behind the scene. There are horror stories like how one camera man almost drowned in the sea during the storm and logistic nightmares when Wild Things suits have to be redone because they were too heavy. There's a good deal of stories on how the crew interacted with one another, with all the crazy things they do to relieve stress.

The high resolution set photos included are beautiful and filled amazing details. There's one with a costume designer working on a foot almost the size of her body and you can see foot's skin texture, the thick veins and the slightly yellow toe nails which have some bits chipped off. It's interesting how filming is done and the location shots with crew doing their stuff.

This movie companion is very well done, extremely creative and beautifully laid out.

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is just FASCINATING. It has a lot of beautiful pictures and instead of the usual prose, it's written in dialogues between Spike Jonze, David Eggers, Maurice Sendak the crew and the cast. It is very refreshing and it gives you this internal satisfaction once you're done with it. Just like when you watch the movie.

[Maarten · Rating 5 out of 5]

I haven't seen the movie yet (it opens in the Netherlands on January 14) but this book is just as much fun on its own. It has absolutely gorgeous pictures and shows everything you would want to know about the adventure of making this film. A delightful book and a real gem on my shelf.

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

Unusually constructed "Making Of" movie tie-in title. The book is in 3 parts with 3 mini books joined together in a "W" shape. Never quite seen anything like it before.

For those that liked the movie - some great behind the scenes material and well worth a look.

[Steve Husmann · Rating 5 out of 5]

No matter what you think of the movie (I loved it) this is a fascinating look into making a film, from the earliest notion of an idea to opening night. Inspiring and daunting to see how much work goes into a film of this scale.

[Jeremy Bagai · Rating 4 out of 5]

Amazing stories about an amazing movie.

[andy orin · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like coffee table books about films I like. Purty pictures and stuff.

[Bryony · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you loved the film then you'll enjoy this book. It's full of pictures, facts and lots of information about the film production and the original book. It's a lovely looking and creative book.

[Ilse · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was so much fun! It's great to be able to get a look into the process of making a film like this one. There were so many struggles, but they kept on going, I think that's very admirable!