30 years after Jim Hensons much-loved Labyrinth was released, we chat to concept designer Brian Froud…
This article comes fromDen of Geek UK.
People wanted to come together and celebrate his life by watching that film.
Why do you think its held so dear by so many?
I cant precisely say what it is.
It obviously has its magic.
To be honest, when we finished it, we sort of thought well, is that it?
Wed always wanted to do our best and wed always wanted to break some boundaries and do something different.
I think withLabyrinth, it accrues so much more when you keep looking at it again.
Its an odd film [laughs] if I can put it that way.
Its sort of odd.
Its a performance, youre seeing performances.
The power of the babe!
The power of the babe, yes!
[Laughs]
You touch on the difference between digital images and puppetry there.
George Lucas,Labyrinths producer, famously went back and digitally tinkered with his originalStar Warstrilogy.
Is that a creative instinct you’ve got the option to sympathise with?
[laughs] No, I think you should just leave it alone.
What happens is that when they finally did Yoda as a digital thing he wasnt the same character anymore.
The great thing about puppets is that they do nothing!
We have been talking about it.
If we were going to do a thing likeThe Dark Crystal 2, how would we approach this?
I think the thing thats really interesting is to do hybrids.
A hybrid would be a puppet with some digital enhancements, something around the eyes.
Especially if youre trying to deal with what gives it soul.
All the creatures inLabyrinthare made ofstuff!
[laughs] Theyre made of dead things.
So humanity shines through the puppet because its coming from a human.
So if it were up to you, youd rule out entirely CGI sequels to either?
Well its not up to me to be saying that or not!
Both films have somethingelsegoing on in there.
That sort of shines through and I think thats why people keep responding to the film.
If you just do it via a computer and its just a story, thats not there.
Well, they were, but Jim was always looking to new horizons.
He always had plans for something else, he never sat still.
Thats the genius of him.
Do you think hed be okay with the idea of a modern sequel toLabyrinthorThe Dark Crystal?
But I think hed probably say Why dont we do somethingelse?
[laughs] Really, I dont know.
Of course now after all these years, the films have become really quite dear to peoples hearts.
If were going to return, I want to knowwhy.
I think something really interesting has to happen in the new ones.
Well wait and see.
Its been many years.
Ive done, over the years, many designs for things.
What was it he saw in you and your paintings that drew him to you?
We had this nice dinner in Hampstead and he said Do you want to come to America?
Ive got this idea for a film, could you design it?
so I went to America!
But I think it was the spiritual aspect.
It was only really once Id started I realised that.
Jim was really fascinated by the English landscape.
Were there any projects in betweenThe Dark CrystalandLabyrinthyou and Jim planned to collaborate on but rejected?
We had a couple of conversations, then unfortunately he died.
Hehadplanned to do it.
He didnt blame me for the financial disasters that the other films were!
[laughing]
How did the collaborative process work with Jim?
OnLabyrinthI just did lots of drawings and then we started development ideas for the script.
Frank [Oz] was there having meetings and wed talk about it all.
It was only much later on that I started to refine the way it was finally going to look.
It needed to be organic.
It sounds like it was a real collaboration between you, the model makers, the performers…
I knew it had to be collaborative.
I had to shape it so we understand that all the creatures are part of the same world.
Were there things that looked and read well on the page but didnt necessarily scan as physical objects?
Some of it was already built in.
Thats the dangerous moment because you’ve got the option to lose life when that happens.
My trick is to try and get the sculptors to try and put some quirkiness back in.
It is a struggle.
That was why it was five years forThe Dark Crystaland three and a bit forLabyrinth, every day.
All these sorts of things.
The behind the scenes documentaryInside The Labyrinthis great at providing a glimpse into the various processes.
I love the weird ingredients of that image.
I expect the set was full of strange combinations like that?
Well, all my memories of the set are when it was empty!
and he said What are you going to talk about?!
The end ofLabyrinthI really, really dislike.
Why that, specifically?
I did say so on the voiceover.
You must have been asked this hundreds of times but I cant not mention David Bowie.
He agreed to the part of Jareth because of your artwork andThe Dark Crystal.
Could you tell us about working with him?
He was a very nice man, he was also very funny and he laughed a lot.
And I thought, oh, were going to be alright now.
Hes going to be brilliant in this part.
You mention your son Toby playing the baby.
Hes also a great fan of those old-fashioned physical puppets and of the qualities that they can bring.
Thats a lovely connection.
If I can ask, how much is yours and Wendys house a shrine toLabyrinthandThe Dark Crystal?
I mean, with both films we just got out of there, sort of happy to get home!
[Laughing] So we dont have a lot of things.
Didnt I read somewhere that you have a goblin door knocker?
We dont even have that!
A lot of things were made of foam rubber so they just disintegrated.
Jim asked me is there anything you want?
Brian Froud, thank you very much!
