By Renee Dunlop for CGSociety
“The Brothers have a real sink or fly daring when it comes to aesthetic choice,” says David Tattersall, BSC, in describing the unique look directors Andy and Larry Wachowski were after for their live action resurrection of the classic animated series Speed Racer.
Originally broadcast in the late 1960s and early ‘70s, Speed Racer was the English language adaptation of the Japanese anime series Mach GoGoGo. Created by anime pioneer Tatsuo Yoshida, the series was one of the first anime programs to find success in the West. The easy translation of the series for American consumption was in part due to Yoshida’s affinity for American popular culture. Inspired by Viva Las Vegas and Goldfinger, Yoshida gave his characters Western physical attributes, including Speed’s Elvis-style black hairdo and racing neckerchief as well as sports cars loaded with gadgets straight out of the James Bond franchise.
Unlike domestically produced animation of the era, Speed Racer was an action program with fast cars, fist-fights and plot lines that often involved corporate conspiracies and dark family secrets. US audiences welcomed the show eagerly and it enjoyed a long run in syndication, but in other countries, such as Germany, the program was considered too violent and pulled from broadcast.
“I wasn’t aware of the source material having grown up in England,” says Tattersall, but added that he was thrilled when producer Grant Hill called to offer him the project. “I was flattered, just to be thought of and the chance to work with the Wachowski brothers is a great opportunity. That was my main interest. I almost didn’t care what the show was about because it was a chance to work with Larry and Andy. I have a great respect for them and their work.”
From his initial conversations with the directors, Tattersall knew the project would break new ground visually. The Wachowskis are
best known for their dark and gritty Matrix trilogy, which forever altered the look of action movies. Since Speed Racer is a family movie, it marks something of a departure from their previous work and Tattersall said they embraced the opportunity to create something new.
“It’s quite different to what the Brothers are known for because it is aimed at a younger audience,” explains Tattersall. “It’s lighter and brighter. It’s got these outrageous racing sequences and monkey kung-fu and a lot of humor—it’s quite different from the Matrix.”
For this project, the Wachowskis wanted to explore an aesthetic that ran contrary to expectation. According to Tattersall, they wanted a look that was “super deep-focus, super color-saturated and very smooth, clean and sharp—quite different to the gritty, grainy, realistic thing that is happening in cinema at the moment.
“The Brothers are very techno-savvy fashionistas—they follow all the fashions and the trends, but they’re also sort of pioneers themselves,” Tattersall explains. “They like to sort of mix and match and there’s a lot of anime iconography dotted throughout this project.”
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