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FIRST LOOK

First Photos: WWII Claymation Film 'Jackboots on Whitehall'

by Alex Billington
January 7, 2010
Source: Twitch

Epic. Legendary. Tiny. I guarantee that if you're reading this you probably have not heard of Jackboots on Whitehall, but that's okay. It's a claymation / stop-motion animation movie out of the UK featuring an impressive voice cast including Ewan McGregor, Tom Wilkinson, Rosamund Pike, & Alan Cumming. The feature-length animated film is set in a satirical alternative history of World War II in which the Nazis hatch a plan to invade England by drilling under the English Channel and into the heart of London. But with the entire British army stuck in Dunkirk, the whole country must band together to prevent a full-on invasion.

Jackboots on Whitehall Photos

This batch of photos above comes from our friends at Twitch where they've got a few more shots I suggest checking out. I heard about this once before when Collider snagged the official poster from AFM. The sales sheet says that "Jackboots on Whitehall boasts pioneering techniques in animation." Not sure what exactly those are, but it certainly looks great. After a few fantastic stop-motion movies this year (Coraline, Fantastic Mr. Fox) I'm always excited to see more stop-motion features. Oddly, this hasn't shown at any film festivals and doesn't seem to have a US distributor yet, so we're not exactly sure when it'll hit theaters. Stay tuned!

Explore tags: First Look, Indies, Photos

TediusTed

I knew those old GIJoes could be used for the sake of art!
DoomCanoe

this looks awesome! and Alex check out Mary and Max. Movie was amazing
Xerxex

I like it, looks pretty kick ass.
Kevin

Holy Hell!!! That looks awesome!!!
Jonathan

Spell-check: entire Sorry, it was bothering me. Otherwise, this looks awesome! Can't wait!!!
Brandon

EPIC!
http://www.firstshowing.net Alex Billington

#2 - I saw Mary and Max at Sundance, really loved it, I want to watch it again!
DoomCanoe

@Alex good dude!
Bronson Doig

hell yeh World War 2 mixed with claymation. awesome combination.
http://www.vortex42.co.uk Paul J. McConnochie

This is not "claymation"... There is no clay used on screen in this production... This is called "Stop motion animation". Claymation is a sub-form of stop-motion which involves the use of clay for the sets, models and puppets... However, this film involves puppets and sets made of entirely different materials, and so has nothing to do with clay whatsoever. People often mis-use the term "claymation" when they actually mean "stop-motion".
beavis

looks interesting.
Hedgehog

@ 10 Bravo, I was gunna say somehting. But, not I don't have to. Hate when people (uneducated in the ways of animation that is) use "claymation" as a description for all stop-motion. Irritating. This looks more on par with a HIGH GRADE version of robot chicken. Everything kinda looks pieced together from the toy box of my youth. (uh, and right now, because I still have toys.. yay toys)
Anna

Guys, not only is it not claymation, it's not stop motion, either. The puppets are remote controlled and filmed in live action.
http://www.vortex42.co.uk Paul J. McConnochie

Anna - Are you serious!? Fer goodness sake - Why are the producers themselves describing it as an "animated film" then on their facebook? This is ridiculous. I mean, live-puppetry is amazing in it's own right, and I love the look of the film... But why are they lying to the public about how this film is being made??? Bizarro.
Anna

Yes, I'm serious, but they're not lying. It's both - live action puppetry and animation, cleverly worked together. Not stop motion animation, though.
http://www.vortex42.co.uk Paul J. McConnochie

Well, thanks for clearing that up then. I'll keep my eyes peeled for it on release, as it looks like a pretty cool project. Shame they didn't use stop-motion, it looks like stop-motion would have married in quite well to the live-puppetry etc. But it will be good to see something that harkens back to some of Gerry Anderson's productions.
lando

thunderbirds are go!!!!
Mimi

You're right I did some research. It is traditional puppeteering using servos to move the heads, legs and arms AND they use CGI animation to move the mouths, eyes and facial expressions. I've also heard there are massive battle scenes where they blow up a sixth scale Trafalgar Square! Their Facebook page says that they will be showing at Cannes this year and are working on a brand new website. http://www.facebook.com/jackbootsonwhitehall