igor-sm (20k image)Exodus Film Group has tapped three-time Academy Award winner Jim Rygiel to make his directorial debut on the upcoming film, Bunyan and Babe. Set in modern times, Bunyan and Babe is a live-action family adventure film adaptation of the legend of Paul Bunyan, featuring the voice of Eddie Griffin (Blast!, My Baby’s Daddy, Scary Movie 3, Undercover Brother) as the CGI-animated Babe the Blue Ox. Bunyan and Babe tells the story of Bunyan’s attempts, with the help of a couple of kids, to rescue his ox from the evil clutches of a demented circus owner. Press release, with initial art for Bunyan and Babe and Exodus’ previosuly announced project Igor, here:

THREE-TIME OSCAR WINNER JIM RYGIEL TO DIRECT EXODUS’ BUNYAN AND BABE:

bunyan-babe (148k image)“In addition to the phenomenally successful Lord of the Rings films, Jim has been responsible for some of the best visual effects,” said producer Tarquin Gotch (Home Alone, Still Crazy, Curly Sue). “We are excited to have him take the helm of this film.”

“The Paul Bunyan story is a true American classic tale,” said Rygiel. “I grew up in the Midwest and have always been fascinated with the tales of Bunyan and Babe. I am thrilled to be bringing this modern day tall tale to the big screen.”

“With this film, it’s essential that the blending of CGI-animation with live-action is seamless and this is clearly Jim’s area of expertise,” says Exodus’ president John D. Eraklis.

Rygiel has an impressive resume of major effects films, winning three Academy Awards as well as three BAFTA awards for visual effects for each of The Lord of the Rings films. He was also the visual effects director on 102 Dalmatians, Anna and the King, Star Trek: Insurrection, and The Parent Trap. Rygiel is represented by Jon Levin at CAA.

Bunyan and Babe was written by Michael A. Nickles (This Is Not A Film) & Julia A. Wall. (Nickles is set to direct Exodus’ 55 Holly Star.) The Bunyan team also includes award-winning composer Basil Poledouris (Under Siege 3, The Touch, Cecil B. DeMented, Mickey Blue Eyes, Les Miserables, Free Willy, The Hunt for Red October, RoboCop). Babe‘s CGI animation is being done by Exodus’ award-winning animation team, ElectroAge.

ABOUT EXODUS FILM GROUP:

igor (141k image)Exodus Film Group was founded in 2001 in an effort to create a one-stop entertainment company capable of producing content equal in quality to the studios and networks on a realistic budget. Exodus acquires and develops intellectual properties, taking them from inception to distribution.

A division of Exodus, ElectroAge, LLC’s team of digital artists has won numerous awards for their work, including an Emmy and several Emmy nominations. Noted projects include: The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest (Hanna Barbera), Roughnecks Starship Troopers Chronicles (Sony Television), Star Trek Voyager (Paramount), Mystic Knights (Saban), The Visitor (20th Century Fox/Centropolis Television) and Deep Rising (Hollywood Pictures).

In addition to Bunyan, Exodus’ current slate of films includes: Igor, 55 Holly Star, and My Life With 3 Women which are being financed by a film fund launched by Exodus earlier this year.

Igor is an irreverent comedy with a new twist on the classic mad scientist/monster genre. Igor tells the story of a mad scientist’s hunchbacked lab assistant who has big dreams of becoming a mad scientist in his own right and winning the coveted first place award at the annual Evil Science Fair. The team includes Executive Producer Max Howard (Space Jam, Pocahontas, Lion King, Aladdin, Beauty and the Beast, The Little Mermaid, Who Framed Roger Rabbit) and animation team ElectroAge.