Book Preview: ‘Klaus: The Art Of The Movie’ (Exclusive Gallery)

The first hand-drawn feature from a major U.S. studio in years has, unsurprisingly, produced one of the most interesting art-of books in some time. Klaus: The Art of the Movie sheds light on the long development and unorthodox production of Netflix’s first original animated movie, Sergio Pablos’s Klaus.

The 192-page coffeetable book explores the design of Klaus through a wealth of visual materials, including concept art, behind-the-scenes photos, and final renders. It discloses the team’s inspirations, from far-flung Scandinavian locales to the film Batman Begins, and unpacks their approach to reviving 2d animation at big-studio scale. The final chapter focuses on the development of the movie’s groundbreaking lighting and texturing tools.

Authored by Animation Magazine editor Ramin Zahed, who has become something of a specialist in the animation art-of book genre, the book draws on interviews with a wide range of animators, designers, effects artists, and other members of the production team — not least Pablos himself. There’s also a foreword by veteran animator James Baxter, who worked on the film (and currently heads Netflix’s in-house animation studio).

Klaus: The Art of the Movie, which is published by Titan Books, will be released in the U.S. on December 10. Pre-order it on Amazon.

Below, Cartoon Brew presents a gallery of exclusive images from its pages.