“I’ve completely fallen in love with animation…”
Interview with Post No Bills’s writer and director Robin Hays. If you haven’t read our review go and check it out!
By: Monika Pundzaite
06 June, 2018
Robin is already an acclaimed live action film producer her commercial work has been selected for Shots Young Director’s Showcase in Cannes, and in 2017 she produced her first animated short Post No Bills. The imaginative and delightful story follows the main character with a rather unique name Noodle Boy and his journey of love and fear.
When talking with Robin she mentions that she came up with the concept already 10 years ago, however not being familiar with animation and it’s workflow the idea was left at that. Despite her love for animation, diving into a world that was so unknown was scary. She eventually shared her ideas with her friend Andy Poon who worked as a co-director and an Art Director for the film. Robin explains “Over the years he [Andy] just kind of kept reminding me about it and saying “Oh we should try and bring Noodle Boy to life!”. With a bit of encouragement from friends, Robin decided that it was time to delve deeper into animation and bring Noodle Boy to the world.
Now if you’re thinking, “Noodle Boy, that a very interesting name!” I totally agree with you, it really is! The idea of Noodle Boy came from a rather obvious object, that is in a way referenced in the name itself – takeout boxes. “I love the design of takeout boxes, I really like how they look and feel and I found it to be really cute.” Thus the Noodle Boy was born.
It can be scary to step out of your comfort zone and work on something that you’re not exactly familiar with, or still trying to figure out. Robin tells us there was a lot of trial and error involved, ensuring that viewer would fall in love with the character, creating an emotional connection even in as little as 4 min (the whole movie including titles and credits are 5 min.). Even though it was a short animation we did not want to sacrifice the basic 3 tier system: a beginning, middle and an end.
If you check Post No Bills IMDB page you can see Robin Hayes name popping up in the director, producer and writer section, however, Robin modestly ascertains that in no way was it just down to her; “There were just so many people that we collaborated, so by no means is it just me, writing, directing, producing, really there was a whole bunch of amazingly talented people who brought this project to life.”
The most impressive fact is the thinking behind the no-dialogue decision. “I wanted it to be able to translate to different markets, that anybody who watches it regardless of where they are, doesn’t matter what language they speak, will be able to relate to it. That was my main intention.” Which give a very unique point of view, as body language, facial expression and music in a way is a very universal language known by all.
When asked if she would consider doing an animated project in the future Robin instantly answered “Absolutely! I’ve completely fallen in love with animation and I can’t wait for my next animated project”. I don’t think you need any more explanation, but to have a bit of patience and wait for another gem from Robin and her amazing team. Who knows maybe Noodle Boy will return?
Haven’t watched the trailer yet? Check it out now!
