Seattle-based production studio World Famous has partnered with Make-A-Wish Alaska and Washington to grant an unprecedented wish for six-year-old Alexis, who recently battled acute lymphoblastic leukemia. Alexis wanted to create a cartoon that would tell her own story in a way her friends could understand and bring awareness to pediatric cancer.
That cartoon topped SHOOT’s quarterly Visual Effects/Animation Chart, delivering an uplifting message apropos of the spirit of this holiday season.
The World Famous team rallied together to bring Alexis’s story to life. The resulting three-minute film, Alexis’s Wish, is a powerful yet whimsical fairy tale starring Princess Alexis as herself battling the dragon “Kemia” with the help of her family and friends.
Alexis’s Wish tells her tale starting at the age of three when we see her with friends at a party celebrating her birthday. But lurking in the weeds is a disease embodied in a foreboding creature. She is stricken by the dragon “Kemia” but soon learns that she cannot run away from the disease but instead has to fight it, with the counsel of a hospital nurse who transforms into a fairy godmother-like being. The nurse/fairy godmother tells Alexis of a magic wand she needs to obtain but the quest will make her weak and she will lose her beautiful hair. Helping Alexis in that quest are her family and friends—friends who at first left her alone when she was sick, afraid that they too would get the disease. These friends, though, overcame their fear and rallied to aid Alexis. Ultimately we see Alexis well again and blowing out the candles on her birthday cake as she turns five years old.
Following Alexis’s lead
“We really wanted Alexis’s involvement at every stage of the process—from story to design to even having her come in for a VO session to play herself,” said World Famous executive creative director Daniel Brown, who directed the short film. “It’s her story, so we really wanted her to inspire everything that happens in the film.”
Juan Carlos Arenas, World Famous art director/character designer, shared, “Alexis got really into the creative process and kept surprising us with smart design choices that were right for the story throughout. For instance, we knew how much she loved bunnies, so we went over the top with them in one scene.”
Brown added, “Juan created some lovely designs and backgrounds—it’s almost like a storybook in some ways. We wanted to be true to his initial drawings, so we focused on using traditional methods but in digital environments, so everything was pencil tested and then finished in Photoshop and After Effects.”
Although Alexis conceived the premise of the film and provided input on the main characters and general aesthetic choices, the element of surprise was the cornerstone of this unique filmmaking journey, which would culminate on the big screen upon her seeing the finished piece for the first time ever.
Actress Jamie Chung (Big Hero 6 and Once Upon A Time) donated her time to provide voiceover for the film. Jason Staczek of Madrona Music wrote and produced the original orchestral score.
Alexis’s Wish made its world premiere on October 24th at the Cinerama in Seattle. The premiere kicked off with a red carpet event highlighted by paparazzi and special appearances by Chung and former Seattle Sounders FC player Roger Levesque, who arrived at the soirée as “Prince Charming.”
World Famous donated its time and resources primarily after-hours to complete the film. The hard costs were funded by the Seattle Sounders FC, Alexis’s official wish sponsor. The film is being made available on the Make-A-Wish website.
“In our chapter’s 30-year history, we have never had a wish quite like Alexis’,” said Barry McConnell, president and CEO of Make-A-Wish Alaska and Washington. “We are so proud to partner with World Famous to bring her ideas to life and to grant a wish that has the potential to touch so many other children living with cancer in our community and beyond.”
