The Young Adult novel The Extincts, written by British author Veronica Cossanteli, will become the first animated feature from Cirrina Studios. The adaptation will be directed by Epic’s William Joyce, an author and illustrator in his own right, for a 2019 release.
The Extincts follows the madcap adventures of George Drake, a boy who goes to work on a farm hidden deep in the woods where he discovers a hidden cache of extinct and mythological creatures, one of which escapes and terrorizes the town in which he lives.
Joyce won a Academy Award in 2011 for the short animated film The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore. The Extincts will be produced by Cirrina president David Lipman and The BFG‘s Michael Siegel. The film will enter pre-production in June at Dwarf Animation Studio in France, founded by Olivier Pinol.
“Feature animation is one of the cornerstones of Cirrina Studios broad ambitions,” said Lipman. “I’m thrilled to partner with Olivier and Dwarf, we’ve assembled an unbelievably talented group of artists and technicians to make a ‘studio quality’ film with a unique look and global appeal.”
