With his second feature film recently released, it felt like the perfect time to sit down with DreamWorks director Pierre Perifel and hear about his experience making animated movies. Pierre has brought a fresh artistic style to DreamWorks with “The Bad Guys” and “The Bad Guys 2.” But long before directing a feature, he was already shaping stories as an animator, animation director and short-film creator.
Pierre first found his passion for animation when he was 18. After realizing that people were actually paid to bring drawings to life, he changed his career goals from becoming a car designer to becoming an animator. He first studied at Émile Cohl, an art school in Lyon, and later at Gobelins École de l’Image in Paris, where he was at the top of his class. He landed his first job at DreamWorks Animation in Los Angeles.
Once at DreamWorks, Pierre worked on films like “Shrek 4,” “Kung Fu Panda” and “Rise of the Guardians,” along with some canceled projects. Over the years, he went from animator to supervising animator, then head of animation and finally director. His first directing project at DreamWorks was his short-film Bilby, which featured characters from a canceled movie he had previously worked on. From there, he began his career as a director.
Pierre says his inspirations range from 1990s live-action directors like Steven Spielberg, James Cameron, Jean-Pierre Jeunet and Luc Besson to comic book and graphic novel artists like Bill Watterson, Akira Toriyama, Albert Uderzo, Peyo and Hergé. In animation, he looks up most to Hayao Miyazaki and Brad Bird.
All of these influences shaped the distinct visual style of “The Bad Guys,” which stood out from other DreamWorks films with its graphic look. Because Pierre has experience in both 2D and Computer Generated animation, he wanted to combine the two to create something new. As he explained: “Animation is fantastic because it is a medium that is completely open; there is nothing that stops you from doing whatever you want. Anything that is not filmed with a rolling camera is animation.”
The idea for “The Bad Guys” came when Pierre spotted the Bad Guys comic book by Aaron Blabey on producer Damon Ross’s desk. Directing meant taking on new challenges, like learning how to write scripts and working with voice actors such as Sam Rockwell, Marc Maron, Craig Robinson, Anthony Ramos, Awkwafina and Zazie Beetz. Pierre said that his background as an animator gave him an advantage when it came to guiding animators and diving into character details. Some of the most rewarding moments for him were seeing the completed film for the first time, hearing the soundtrack ingeniously crafted by Daniel Pemberton and watching a fully completed sequence.
When asked what lessons he would take into future projects, Pierre stated, “At some point the story becomes the guide, the leader. You are not really in charge anymore. You have to let it become what it wants to become. You need to be able to flow with it.”
His advice for aspiring filmmakers is simple: you need passion. You need to love your craft and immerse yourself in your world without becoming discouraged. Don’t let the passion die out. Bring something new to the table and have your own voice.
