I'm Jerry Rees, Director of "The Brave Little Toaster" - ask me anything.

BLANKET MADE ME CRY EVERY TIME.

Here's a shot of the voice of Blanky, Timothy E Day. A natural actor! http://imgur.com/5d300

How did you make one of the saddest movies of all time?

Surrounded by creative people who all felt the blend of joy and tragedy that bonds our life experiences...

Jerry,

Your movie scared the living shit out of me as a child. Why did you have to make the air conditioner so scary when he "died"?

This.

Every time I drive past a junkyard and see the big hanging magnets I have an involuntary shudder.

I had that whole connection with inanimate objects as characters while we were making the film. I was walking through a back alley to get to a restaurant and came across a broken TV that was tossed out. I felt sorry so sorry for it! Wondered how it felt? How long it had faithfully given entertainment to its owner...

I credit your film with making me feel for every inanimate object I see or own. When I was 10, I cried when one of my socks fell into a river and floated away. I'm 19 now and still haven't gotten the heart to get rid of any old stuffed animals because I'm afraid of having them watch me let go of them and them feeling abandoned. Same goes for other random things. I don't think it's really a good or bad quality, just something that I've always felt after seeing that movie as a kid. Good stuff. Going into film myself. I'd love to make something as awesome as you did!

You know, I think we tend to attribute personality to many objects around us. They are, after all, part of our lives - both day-to-day and in memory. Some remind us of those who gave them to us or a different place we lived, etc. They do tend to take on personality for us in the process.

Several moments where the main characters are presumed to be "lost forever"...

The Frankenstein butcher electrician...

The screen turning completely red right before the human owner is about to be crushed...

I can appreciate good animation, music and story, but I think I came across this film when I was far too young, it freaked me out quite a bit too.

That's because it was a good movie. I don't remember any movies from my childhood that didn't move me in some way. When filmmakers make kids movies the safe and reassuring way, they turn out to be unrelatable, completely disposable nothingness. Disney almost exclusively makes those kinds of movies now because those are the movies parents buy tickets for. What I love about Pixar's success is that their movies have adult concepts and moving stories and they don't treat their viewers like hyper-sensitive idiots.

Brave Little Toaster is a classic because of how god damn scary it could be when the characters you grew attached to were put in peril. It was the same for the end of Toy Story 3, when there was a veritable holocaust for toys and they all embraced each other in anticipation of death. That's a good story and kids should have good stories.

I recall how Walt Disney used to show no fear - in Snow White, the Queen drinking the potion and turning into the Witch with the room spinning wildly. Snow White herself falling into a coma. Pinocchio watching Lampwick transform into a donkey was INTENSE! And Pinocchio himself drowned, face down. Fables have always been a way to move through our darkest fears to a place of hope. Notice that Air Conditioner finally gets repaired by Rob, who has grown tall enough to touch him - the very moment Air Conditioner has been waiting for :-)

Well.... Hello there.

Fancy meeting you here!

Holy crap, I loved "The Brave Little Toaster".

That being said, having recently watched the movie again, I realized just how dark in tone that movie seems. What inspired you to take what could have been a bright and cheery adventure and turn it into something... darker?

Also, that junkyard scene/song. Did the producers really care about how morbid that was?

Well, I figured that these characters, as charming as they were, were dealing with an ominous world. Their fear of being obsolete rings true for all of us at one time or another as well. I asked our voice actors to keep the characters believing their world - never playing it for laughs. And David Newman, in writing the score, tapped into an inherent sadness in being abandoned and seeking reunion. I think all of us making the film took the attitude of being the characters rather than just observing the characters. If you ARE an old car headed for the crusher, that's some dark business! Anyway, the ultimate survival, after the adventure, gives the proper exhale... I think Wilhite in particular was really excited that we were taking chances.

The scene where the Air Conditioner lost his cool and exploded scared me silly as a kid. I have very fond memories of watching Brave Little Toaster with my little brother though.

At least the Air Conditioner got repaired by Rob later on. Freon tears of joy :-)

[deleted]

Good one :-D

Yeah it really scared me, too. Especially as a kid, having something sentient (especially adult-like, like the AC unit with a mustache) lose its cool and self-destruct is really unsettling. But that's what sets it apart as a work for kids, too, I think: it didn't cross a line with morbidity, but it did create a real world with real problems that was still accessible by kids.

Respect your comments. Critic David Edelstein wrote a deep review for The Village Voice back when I'd first finished the film. He totally got all the underlying adult layers. Also the Film Freak wrote an awesomely in-depth review. Much appreciated in all cases.

I had no idea there were plans for a Brave Little Toaster remake, so i went digging and apparently Watterman Entertainment are doing it.

So the people who are remaking one of the movies that is basically embedded in my brain from childhood... Made the Alvin and the Chipmunk movies.....

no. no no no no no no no no....no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no noooooooo....

no

no

no

no

noooooo

To actually contribute to the thread, i just want you to know the graveyard scene STILL haunts me today; not complaining, you obviously knew what you were doing because i felt really bad for those singing cars.

I recommend a sudden influx of letters, calls, emails, etc, to Watterman Entertainment demanding that they bring Jerry Rees on board or face a major cinematic flop. If the fans shout loud enough, occasionally they are heard.

Heartfelt thanks... Truly... Maybe they would get the idea of how the marketing could work for them -

The new sequel to "The Brave Little Toster" brought to you by the Writer/Director of "The Brave Little Toaster".

Makes a certain amount of sense.

Just wanted to say thanks, Brave Little Toaster and Star Wars were my two favorite movies as a kid

Well thank you! The whole Toaster crew really cared about the project and put tons of effort and creativity into it. But the real joy is discovering years later that the audience found an emotional connection with it. That's what it's all about :)

Even if they remake it, it will NEVER take the place of yours. My future children will watch YOUR version.

Wow, now that's loyalty. Toaster is proud :)

Was that difficult to deal with? I seem to remember that TBLT was made in the 80's, but didn't get fans until it aired on The Disney Channel in the 90's. I can't imagine not getting attention for quality work, only to be discovered later.

We screened Toaster at the Sundance Film Festival. Several judges told me that behind closed doors it had been considered the best film that year. But they were afraid that no one would take the festival seriously if they awarded top prize to a "cartoon". But they wanted me to know how much it was secretly admired. I said "Thanks. I guess..." Then the Disney Channel (which had bought the rights for cable) purposely moved their air dates forward so as to kill our theatrical release. Skouras, an art house film distributor had stepped forward to release us in theaters. They would play to college and young adult crowds in evening shows only - no matinee. They really "got" the film. But the channel insisted on putting it on the air before Skouras could get us in theaters. Even though a theatrical release would have made cable and home video more valuable. I met my lawyer at Sundance that year. He had seen the film and asked if I could use any assistance. I said "yes! Our theatrical release is getting touched." He tried to help out. Said it was as unusual a situation as it seemed. Really weird. But he tried. Great guy by the way, and still my lawyer, Peter Nichols.

So all of us who made The Brave Little Toaster watched the theatrical release we had been waiting for dissolve. It was as if we were sinking in the swamp with the characters. And no Elmo to snatch us out at the last minute! We all hurt for a long time.

Then as time went by, there was this magic - we started seeing the characters here and there. In kids' drawings on walls. In schools and in offices. We realized that an audience was beginning to discover our story and connect with our characters. Big smiles all around!!!

And holy cow, what a shock - a wonderful shock - to have college and post-college aged young people approach now with fond memories of the film all these years later. It is a gift from you all that is deep. Tonight is part of that. Thanks to you all...

I'm a bit older (40s), and didn't see The Brave Little Toaster until my daughter got a copy in the mid-late '90s, but I loved it. A friend (the father of one of my daughter's friends) once described it as "The Wall for kids". I think that description is quite apt.

Nice...

That lonely flower scene...Can you tell us a little more about it?

Most people remember the air conditioner or the clown scene,, but THIS was the scene that really touched me.

For those of you who don't know, the scene goes like this: All the main appliances are singing a happy-go-lucky song with the anthropomorphic woodland creatures. The Toaster runs off (for some alone time?) and bumps into a single flower in the middle of the dark woods. The flower sees it's reflection in the Toaster and falls in love with what it perceives to be another flower returning it's affection. The Toaster tries to explain that it's only a reflection, but to no avail. Finally the Toaster gives up and walks away leaving the flower to wilt. The Toaster looks back once, sees the flower dying, and guiltily proceeds to walk away.

EDIT: The Flower Scene

Okay, the flower. Here's the way it went.

There's the night in the thicket. Poor Blanky gets full of stickers and everyone is just cranky. Arguments all around, and the Radio drawing his own "zone" of privacy in the dirt that no one shall cross! And Blanky is feeling like the insecurity blanket even more than usual. He crawls to Lampy seeking snuggles. But Lampy calls him a fuzzball and tells him to get his own place to sleep. Blanky finally tries to snuggle with Toaster. But even the long-suffering, warm Toster is in no mood to cuddle with Blanky and pushes him away. Blanky is left all alone. Vulnerable and unprotected.

Next day in the meadow, there is mayhem. But amidst the mayhem is the flower. The flower is painted exactly the same yellow as Blanky, by the way. Like Blanky, it tries to snuggle with Toaster - the difference being that it sees its own reflection and falls in love with the "other" flower. There is no way Toaster can possibly help the flower. After trying to reason with it, then pushing it away, Toaster retreats, then peers back to see the vulnerable lonely flower wilt. Toaster is at a loss, there was no way to help...

The very next moment, Toaster sees Blanky being pulled down a hole by a bunch of mice. Immediately Toaster jumps to protect the vulnerable Blanky. Last night, Toaster had pushed him away. But now Toaster comes to the rescue - protecting it.

When Lampy teases Blanky, Toaster step up to protect him again.

Blanky returns the kindness by making himself into a tent for the group to use as shelter.

Later, Lampy has noticed that Toaster is being nice to Blanky and asks why.

Toaster does her best to explain. But underneath it all, seeing the vulnerable little yellow flower wilt when she shoved it away has made her feel like never shoving vulnerable little yellow Blanky away again. To keep Blanky safe. To keep Blanky from "wilting". In the case of the flower, there was no way to help. In the case of the blanket, there is.

This use of two vulnerable characters - both painted the identical color - both seeking cuddles - both being pushed away - one wilting emotionally - one wilting literally - was an emotional path of change for the Toaster.

Great question! Will get into it in a few minutes :-)

I would just like to say thank you, you changed my childhood. I still today remember the fascination I had with brave little toaster...

That is so cool to hear PBD3ATH! Thanks :-)

EVERY single time I was out sick/fake sick back when I was in elementary school, my mom would take me to rent this movie. I didn't want to own it, thinking it would lose it's magic if I could see it whenever I felt the urge. Instead, it was the sacred artifact I had to retrieve in my quest for recovery. Each viewing of BLT resulted in a complete rebirth of my soul. Not to mention, I'd estimate my mom has spent enough money equivalent to a U-haul's worth of copies...

For that, I thank you, and ask you this: knowing the impact your film had as a tangible artifact in my life personally, what would you say your personal equivalent in your own life would be?

What a wonderful observation and memory green lighter! And what an intriguing question. For me, it wasn't an artifact I could touch, but a yearly ritual. Back when I was a kid - before there were even videos/DVDs to rent - there was a yearly broadcast of "The Wizard of Oz" on TV. Since it only happened that one time, the entire family would gather. It was something to anticipate, then relish in the moment, then remember. Funny, after it became available for constant viewing in beautifully restored splendor, it didn't seem quite so special. I go longer than that year between viewings. Still love it though!

Will you be my best friend? :D

Guess so. Why not?

If you could be my friend too, I would be soooooo happy.

Well okay. I do want you to be haaaaaapy!

Since you want people to be happy, I have a big question! I, like many others, grew up with this movie and it's still one of my favorites. It's a mature story for adults and an awesome movie for kids and as you get older it has deeper and deeper meaning. My question: does a negative still exist for a potential blu-ray release? I love old animated movies on blu-ray because they really look fantastic, and this being one of my favs, I am taking advantage of this opportunity to ask this!

Yes, a prize for best segue! Sadly, I don't know the answer. The VHS and DVD both wobble terribly at the beginning. The film itself - as we screened it at Sundance and other festivals - did NOT wobble at all. My best guess is that the worn print, after the festival run, was used to master the VHS, which was simply duped to DVD. I really wish you guys could see it the way it looked after a fresh wet-gate print back then. It was nice.

Which musical number was your favorite in the film? The junkyard scene/song left a particularly big impression on me as a kid.

I agree with you about the junkyard song. The sadness of each character having a last musing about their life before getting crushed... But I must say that I liked some of the other songs, because I got to sing all the Radio parts. Lovitz was busy on Saturday Night Live, so I sang his parts for him. Fun :-)

That must have been awesome! Thanks for the answer, the Brave Little Toaster was, and still is, my favorite animated movie of all time. Best of luck with this whole situation and any future endeavor of yours.

It was pretty cool. Your kind words warm my heart - must say. Ciao for now.

Terrible what they're doing with the remake. The system sometimes sucks.

What would you say, besides BLT, has been your proudest artistic achievement?

Thanks. I've had a lot of fun since. I think Cinemagique in Walt Disney Studios Paris is a highlight experience for me. Really had a blast making it with Julie Delpy, Martin Short, Tchecky Karyo and Alan Cumming. It's have magic trick and half romance. Happy that it won a THEA award for Disney. http://www.jerryrees.com/page6/page6.html

Urban legend has it that the movie was based on actual appliances. I would love to get in touch with Blankie and send some love! Do you have contact info?

I'm plugged into that whole scene. I'll give Blanky your message :)

Man, this movie was huge for me growing up. BLT has some moments that can be pretty scary/emotionally charged for a young viewer. Do you think you would have been able to make a movie like that today?

I think the ONLY reason I was able to make that tone of a movie was because we were off the studio grid. No studio would EVER have let us do that. At the time it was just nuts, including having improv comics from adult comedy clubs doing voices. Now that aspect happens all the time. And with the progress of films like "UP", which dealt with a miscarriage and aging and having a spouse die - yes, there is hope of doing a film with darker layers - with the right backing...

What are your hopes for the remake? Do you want it to crash and burn and blow up in their face(s), or do you hope that they will make a BLT that does justice to the original.

Frankly, I hope they get in touch with me. I've been developing a sequel. It would leave the original intact - allow it to be a one-of-a-kind - and move the story into a new phase while being true to the characters and introducing new characters as well. I'd like to write and direct the feature based on the story I already have in development. If they feel it is good business and is more pleasing to the fans, maybe it could come to pass.

hey jerry--now that all this has played out the way it has, what do "industry big names" say in response? I mean, what steps, if any, can be taken to try to win back ownership of it all? And if that can't be done, could you somehow wiggle in creative influence somewhere?

I think they're still hopeful that anyone moving forward with the project will realize that there's value in inviting the Director of the original on board. The fans over the years have declared the original their favorite hands down. You'd think it would make good business sense - get the guy who hit the previous home run up to bat again.

Also, since the fans have been in touch with me over the last several years, and giving such wonderful feedback on the original, you'd think it would make good sense from a marketing/social space standpoint. You'd think making the fans happy would matter when you're dealing with something that means so much to so many people.

The Big Names are thinking on it...

perhaps it's just that the "mystery entity" isn't cognizant of the recent resurgence in BLT's popularity and that it was simply a coincidence that he grabbed it when he did. hopefully he'll see the value in connecting with you about it, fingers crossed!

Hey, you never know. Fan opinions can make a difference in some cases.

To quote Toaster, "Well, at least we try to be optimistic."

Here's a marketing idea for them -

A sequel to "The Brave Little Toaster!" Brought to you by the Writer/Director of "The Brave Little Toaster!"

Not a question, but just an FYI: We're having a "Traumatizing Childhood Movie Night" this weekend, and when we asked "what movies should we watch?", "The Brave Little Toaster" shot to the top of the list immediately.

Carry on.

Noted!

Carrying on...

Why a toaster as the main character and not another appliance?

The Toaster is warm enough to put up with everyone else. And the other characters seeing themselves reflected in its surface, feel an immediate kinship. At least that was our theory :)

Oh my gosh, this was one of my favorite movies as a kid, totally fan girling right now!! :D <3 Who is your favorite character(s) from BLT?

Wow, I can't pick out one or two. They were really a family. I love the whole family. I was even fond of the Air Conditioner. He blew out because he felt separate and had always been out of reach of the Master. At the end, when Rob repairs him he sheds a few freon tears and is complete...

Hello Jerry, LOVED your film!

I'm a huge animation fan. What I want to ask you is: do you have any plans to do other animation feature films? What ideas have you played around with?

Also: could you say a few examples of animation that you truly consider outstanding? It can be from films, tv cartoons or whatever.

Thanks!

Hi felipeahmed, thank you so much!

I have 5 animated features in various stages of development. They span CGI, stop motion, and fantasy melding of live and CGI. Each one is very different, but all character driven with an offbeat route to the heart.

I've always admired Miyazaki. "Spirited Away" in particular. Love Brad's "Iron Giant" and "Ratatouille". Loved John's "Toy Story", and Pete/Bob's "UP". "How To Train Your Dragon" was a nice surprise too. And I love delicate experiments like "Madame Tutli-Putli" too - very personal expression.

Ciao ;-)

Do you remember what appliances were used a model for each character or were they more generically based? I always loved Blankie. And I have to say, the junkyard scene had me in tears as a kid. It was a moment that pushed me from one level of maturity to another, once realizing one's own mortality is coming.

The Kirby 500 series is very close to our Vacuum. Toaster was pretty much a simplified Sunbeam. Radio was like a distillation of lots of bakelite radios into one. I remember there was some discussion among the producers about putting eyes and a mouth on Radio. I pointed out that since he was a clock-radio, he already had a face. And his speaker, is his mouth. Glad they let go of the literal face idea. Blanky's feel - not his model really - was like an insecurity blanket, because he was without his child to cuddle. Lampy was just a good ol' bendy-neck. Thought he was bright, but he could be pretty dim sometimes.

Re the junkyard. It's interesting that we were able to deal with mortality in a way that totally made sense (because cars really do get crushed there) but also went to extremes we could never have gotten away with if we'd used anything but inanimate objects.

You made an awesome kid's movie, my friend. One that held a love that was deeper than moon-eyes and trying for a first kiss. One that had danger, and fear, and sacrifice in a way that didn't insult the young, but didn't try to give them too much at the same time.

Hrmm...questions...what was your favorite movie as a child?

Poetry! Much respect, SauisAll. Hmm... as a child I think "The Wizard of Oz" had a huge impact. Heartfelt and scary as hell and sweet.

Well I don't remember the movie too much. I guess I would have to ask how do you decide to make a movie about talking appliances? Not that it was a bad idea, its just random.

Si-Fi author Thomas Disch wrote a novella by that name. Didn't write it for kids. Seemed cool. Director Roland Joffe (The Killing Fields, The Mission) told me that our film moved him to tears - something he never expected from talking animated appliances. Check it out sometime.

Speaking of toast, light or scorched?

I like a little bit of scorch at the edge.

First I'd like to say that I absolutely loved Brave Little Toaster when I was little. I have a question as well. How does it feel to know that your clown scene has scarred countless kids (including me) for life? Thanks for your time. :)

Wonder if shares dropped in the whole Clowns For Parties business after that scene? Toaster's dream is steeped in symbolism. Like the stuck toast in its own slots causing the smoke that grabs the kid. And the flames from its own malfunctioning that brings the fireman clown and the attacking forks to dig out the stuck toast, etc. Just tried to get in the mind of a Toaster that's feeling a tinge of guilt for the separation from its owner...

Great work on a great movie!

Many thanks, sweetdrjoe :-)

I was scared when in the movie there was this magnet that would put the appliances in a smasher.

Yeah, that magnet was pretty relentless!

Who was the inspiration for the flower scene in BLT?

Check other posts - I did a long discussion of the flower scene somewhere in here. Cheers :-)

Regardless of how the new BLT turns out; are you planning to ever release a book/collection of animation and behind the scene stories on the original Brave Little Toaster? I know this film has a lot of interesting backstories like how Lasseter was involved in the original pitch and eventually was let go by Disney. I also would love to know any stories about Joe Ranft; that guy's an inspiration.

Possibly. In the meantime, the best researched and written piece ever done on our film was by Daniel Schweiger. He wrote the liner notes that accompany David Newman's score for BLT. Most people don't realize that there's a 20 page article in there - not just about the music, but about the era, and the history of whole project! Here a link that I put on my site, where you can find lots of behind-the-scenes Toaster stuff:

http://www.jerryrees.com/page27/page27.html

Joe was a dear friend. Here we are in my Toaster office in LA:

http://imgur.com/nScHU

It's after 2am, so more stories will have to wait until tomorrow. Thanks nrt :-)