Pablo Berger (‘Robot Dreams’) explains how he expanded details from the original graphic novel [Exclusive Video Interview]

Charles Bright
·3 min read
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Pablo Berger’s journey to making “Robot Dreams” started nearly 15 years ago when he came across the original graphic novel in 2010. He liked getting wordless graphic novels so that he could share them with his daughter who hadn’t yet learned to read. “I loved it. It was amazing. It became one of my favorites and put it back on the shelf of my graphic novel collection. In 2018 I was having a coffee, took the book, read it, but this time when I got to the end I was deeply moved. I was in tears and it really had never happened before to me reading a graphic novel,” he tells Gold Derby during our recent webchat (watch the exclusive video interview above).

From there, he knew he had to make this movie despite having never made an animated project before. Due to the graphic novel having a very simple design, Berger was able to expand on the world it took place in including setting it in the 1980s in New York City. By setting it in Manhattan, Berger was able to pay tribute to the 10 years he lived in the city including the years he spent studying at NYU’s film school. It was especially rewarding to see the reaction of the book’s author, Sara Varon, at the Toronto Film Festival. “She just grabbed me in tears and said, ‘It’s amazing. You told the same story but it’s so different.’ I really feel proud of it. I really wanted to protect the soul and the theme, basically the reason that I made this film.”

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“Robot Dreams” centers on Dog, who lives by himself in his NYC apartment. After seeing an ad for a robot friend, Dog eagerly orders one. After assembling Robot, the two become best friends and Dog takes Robot out to see the city. A later trip to the beach turns dangerous for Robot and the subsequent events could mean the end of his friendship with Dog. The film has been nominated for the Oscar for Best Animated Feature and will be released widely throughout the US later this year.

Berger and the team from the film were ecstatic over receiving their Oscar nomination back in January. He’s also realized that the full weight of the achievement didn’t hit him until a while after the announcement. “At the time you don’t realize what it means. You just get this immense happiness because I think of all the five years and the process and you think about the team. So many things come like flashes to you. I think my smile increased a few inches on both sides. I think my mouth is already bigger.”

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