Christmas Tails will be a 3D live-action/CG hybrid film narrated by
Orson Welles.
Yes, you read that correctly, and yes, he's been dead for twenty-five years. This really sounds strange, but we're talking nothing but the truth!
So, they all thought an old recording of Orson Welles narrating a children's Christmas novel is kind of – gone with the wind.
THR reports that Drac studios will use recordings made in 1985, the year of Welles' death. On the tapes, Welles narrates Robert X. Leed's book
Christmas Tails, about “how Santa's dog saves Christmas.”
Well, ok, we all know that Drac Studios are best known for a special effects and makeup shop for movies like
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, so there's nothing to be surprised about, and this could, perhaps, be interesting to see.
So, they should now create the dog heroes and a fantastical North Pole with computer graphics, and since we all know their creative team has won Oscars for Bram Stoker's
Dracula, Mrs. Doubtfire and
Benjamin Button and was nominated for
Titanic and
The Passion of the Christ among – seems like there's nothing to be suspicious about.
Drac president Harvey Lowry said: “This is a substantial find.
It's something that a filmmaker dreams of. People see this as their last opportunity to act in a movie with Orson Welles”.
And yes, we must admit that this sounds interesting and like a nice Christmas TV present, but on the other hand, it's also a little bit…exploitative?
Welles' voice will be interspersed throughout the movie, much in the same way Boris Karloff's voice was used in the 1966 animated version of
How the Grinch Stole Christmas but you could wonder for a second – who actually approved the whole thing, or, if you wish – we can all guess would this kind of project be something that Welles would accept to do (if, of course, he was alive)?
Anyway, guys from Drac Studios seem to be very excited about the upcoming
Christmas Tails and producers are looking to release it for Christmas 2011.
Until then, stay tuned and check the latest information about this project, right here!