Genndy Tartakovsky's Fixed Looks Nuts, In The Best Possible Way [Annecy 2023]
The Annecy International Animation Film Festival has a midnight program, but not really an after-hours program for panels and presentations — except when it involves Genndy Tartakovsky. The acclaimed animation maestro took the stage in the late hours of the day to present his next project, and by the end of the panel, there would be no doubt in anyone's mind that this is not a film for young audiences.
The project is "Fixed," an upcoming R-rated 2D animated movie about a dog who finds out he's getting neutered in the morning and decides to go with his friends into town and have a wild last hurrah with his balls. "If you get beyond the balls and the buttholes there's a heartfelt movie here," Tartakovsky promised. Although the footage shown was light on heart, it was heavy on laughter. Maybe it was the late hour, maybe it was the sight of dozens of canine buttholes and a couple of dangling canine testicles, but it took no time before the entire audience was loudly laughing at the footage.
In an early scene, set near the beginning of the movie, we meet Bull (voiced by Adam DeVine), who is just going to town, humping the brains out of ... Nanna's leg. When his owner catches him, Bull goes on a rampage around the house humping everything and anything he comes across, from the couch to a purse to a bowl of yogurt, like his life depended on it. Tartakovsky's sense of comedic timing from his work on projects like "Dexter's Lab" and his "Looney Tunes" inspiration is on full display. This is the closest we'll get to Chuck Jones making a raunchy comedy about dog balls, and it is a sight to behold.
Dog days are over
Genndy Tartakovsky ran the audience through the entire creative process for "Fixed," particularly the development of the film's visual style and character designs. As the maestro explained, he always wanted to make it a 2D feature, but studio executives adamantly pushed him to make it 3D instead. Thankfully, cooler heads prevailed; not only do the 2D designs and UPA-style backgrounds work wonders for the story and the characters, but as Tartakovsky put it, "Animated balls look better in 2D."
Observing the process, it's fascinating to see how jokes evolved from the page to the final animation stages. A scene between Bull and his crush Honey was shown in three stages, first with crude storyboards by Tartakovsky, then a keyframe pass, and finally a full animated pass done by Uli Mayer ("Who Framed Roger Rabbit"), with each new pass adding zany expressions and small details that added to the comedy, as demonstrated by the growing volumes of laughter in the room. Classic Warner Bros. cartoons, particularly shorts focusing on Bugs Bunny and his interactions with Elmer Fudd and Daffy Duck, are clear inspirations, and the camera work and comedic timing are proof that this approach never ceases to work.
A maestro at work
A second full clip from the film introduced Bull's friend group going to the park, although it's a far cry from a similar scene in "101 Dalmatians." Instead of fancy dogs and their owners casually walking around, all the dogs in the neighborhood rush out to the street, desperately screaming about how much they need to pee, run, take a crap, or just hump things. The dynamic between the dogs is fantastic and it really sells "Fixed" as being more than just a one-note joke. There are hints of a heartfelt comedy about old pals recognizing the end of an era, but also enough room for a gag involving dogs chasing a squirrel down the street before tearing it into hilariously bloody bits (in addition to attending a shady nightclub full of debauchery).
As joyous and raunchy as the footage presentation was, the panel quickly became somber and reflective as an audience Q&A turned into Genndy Tartakovsky reflecting on a career of highs and lows. The animator emphasized his desire for designers and animators to have the license to really morph and break standard character models with their work. For all the successful and beloved shows he's created, Tartakovsky focused more on his decade-plus journey to bringing "Fixed" to the screen, much like he did last year when "Unicorn: Warriors Eternal" premiered after almost 20 years of development.
"I'm hot right now," Tartakovsky admitted to cheers and laughs, "but I may not be tomorrow." For now, let's be happy and grateful that Tartakovsky is hot, because between "Primal," "Unicorn," and what's been shown of "Fixed" so far, the industry, the art form, and audiences alike are all better off while the maestro is still keeping busy.