Feb 20, 2017

Cinesite to make animated feature starring comedy icon Harold Lloyd

A cartoon version of film comedy icon Harold Lloyd will star in a new series of animated features being developed by Cinesite Studios in partnership with the Harold Lloyd Estate and Comic Animations.

During his legendary comedy career, stretching from the mid-1910s through the late 1940s, Lloyd made nearly 200 features and one-reelers, helping craft the language of film comedy, along with contemporaries like Chaplin, Keaton, and Laurel & Hardy.

“Today's films and filmmakers stand on the shoulders of Harold Lloyd with his innovations and unparalleled sense of story, camera and comedy,” said Dave Rosenbaum, Cinesite's chief creative officer, who will develop the adaptations with Eamonn Butler, Cinesite's executive animation director, and Suzanne Lloyd, granddaughter of Harold Lloyd and the owner of his film library.

The new features plans to draw on Lloyd's rich legacy of physical comedy, including classic bits like these:

“By donning unassuming glasses, Harold Lloyd became the boy next door everyone could relate to and he shot to stardom to enchant and entertain generations of film fans,” said Suzanne Lloyd. “I appreciate the opportunity to work with Dave Rosenbaum, Eamonn Butler and all the talented people at Cinesite to bring Harold's comedy genius to the world in a new and innovative way. We need laughter now more than ever.”

Comic Animations, which is Cinesite's content creation and intellectual property arm, has previously announced a couple of other feature animation projects due to go into production at Cinesite. The first, Riverdance, is based on the Irish dance troupe, and the second, Imaginary Friend, is inspired by a song recorded by kid-hop artist Secret Agent 23 Skidoo. The latter film is being produced by Jeremy Renner and Don Handfield's The Combine, along with Straight up Films and Comic Animations.