Migration’s journey behind the scenes

After a flock of migrating ducks lands on her family’s safe and cosy New England pond in the animated family adventure Migration, mama duck Pam Mallard (Elizabeth Banks, Gail in Pitch Perfect, Pitch Perfect 2, and Pitch Perfect 3, and director-producer of Cocaine Bear) works with dad Mack (Kumail Nanjiani, Dinesh in Silicon Valley S1-6) to shake off his fears so they can take their kids – tween son Dax and duckling daughter Gwen – to see the world as they fly south for the winter. Their journey will take them everywhere from New York City to tropical Jamaica, making friends and escaping dangers along the way.

Migration director Benjamin Renner says, “I’ve had experiences where I didn’t want to go, but someone encouraged me to step out of my comfort zone, and every time I did, I had a magnificent and great experience. I wanted to share that sense of reward when you have an adventure with the audience. I hope this film encourages them to embrace the wonder that awaits beyond the horizon.”

Stream Migration on Showmax now.

Get your ducks in a row

The Illumination animation studio team studied ducks (along with the other birds seen in the film) closely to understand their most endearing qualities. Benjamin reveals, “When it came to creating the look of the ducks, producer Chris Meledandri (founder and CEO of Illumination) emphasised that ducks are naturally funny and cartoony, even without any added elements. So, our goal was to capture that essence of real ducks and their comedic behaviour. I watched many duck videos and observed their movements and behaviours.”

Production also brought live ducks to the studio. “It was quite an interesting experience to have a real duck visit,” says Benjamin. “We gathered in a circle in the parking lot, and the duck was placed in the middle. It felt surreal, like the duck was the centre of attention, with all of us silently observing it. I found them relatable and funny, especially when they get grumpy and quack as they walk away.” It’s moments like that that allowed the animators to map human emotions and family dynamics onto the ducks.

In the hands of Migration screenwriter Mike White (creator of The White Lotus S1-2) the film is also specifically a duck’s-eye view of our world, so humans are treated like any other animals. Because the ducks can’t understand their language, for example, it’s just babbling on screen. The ducks also give us a unique perspective on places like New York City thanks, in part, to production designer Colin Stimpson (The Secret Life of Pets 2). For these small town birds, New York’s skyscrapers pierce the mist and clouds like the teeth of glass mountains.

Frenchman Benjamin Renner says, “Despite New York being a city that has been captured by countless filmmakers, we found a way to showcase a view that I personally experienced. Arriving in the city with morning fog and the ethereal light filtering through it was a mood I encountered during my own visits to New York. It felt fresh and different to present this perspective.”

Make way for ducklings

The young performers who lend their voices to Pam and Mack’s kids Dax and Gwen are part of the Illumination family. Caspar Jennings who plays Dax is the son of Garth Jennings, who directed the Sing franchise for Illumination. And Tresi Gazal who voices troublemaking little Gwen is the daughter of Migration’s editor, Christian Gazal (Happy Feet) .

“We initially needed a scratch [temporary] voice for the character, and using my daughter turned out to be an advantage,” says Christian. “We recorded her in our bedroom at home with a portable mic. Having her readily available for recording made it easy to fine-tune her performance.” Benjamin adds, “Whenever we had an issue with a sequence, we would find a way to make Gwen come in and make the scene hilarious or fun. I love movies that depict children as a little bit weird because children are weird. Being a weird kid myself, I find their oddness really funny.”

They’re just quackers!

Speaking of the weird kids, of all the friends the Mallard family makes along the way, the weirdest might be the Erin the Great Blue Heron (Carol Kane, who’s been everything from the grandma in the Addams Family movies to Nova in Los Espookys S1), and Delroy the Jamaican Scarlet Macaw (Keegan-Michael Key, the voice of Murray the mummy in the Hotel Transylvania films), who’s held captive by a New York restaurant’s evil chef (voiced by Boris Rehlinger).

Director Benjamin Renner says, “The idea for Erin’s character came from an experience I had in Japan, staying at an AirBnB. The host turned out to be friendly, but the house was filled with creepy porcelain dolls. I drew inspiration from that: a seemingly nice lady with hints of a darker side. I wanted to create a mix of horror and comedy, reminiscent of movies like Misery and Psycho.” Co-director Guylo Homsy (head of cinematography for Sing) adds, “We treated the heron scene like a horror movie, with slow camera motions and dark, dramatic lighting. We used Jurassic Park as a reference for the first shot we see of just the heron’s foot coming into the frame.”

Delroy, however, falls on the quirkier side of weird. “When we started working on Delroy, I saw him as a sort of Indiana Jones but played by Freddie Mercury,” says Benjamin. “He’s been trapped in a tall cage, and unlike a real parrot that’s compact, he’s long, creating a contrast between his life in the cage and his newfound freedom. Suddenly he gets to see life. Each time we see him, he invades the frame of the camera, making sure he can enjoy life to its fullest. He barely uses his wings, and when he’s flying, it’s more like a snake, expressing vitality and joy.”

Now flap those wings and fluff up your tailfeathers for the trip as you Stream Migration on Showmax now

More Illumination animation on Showmax

Despicable Me: Criminal genius Gru (Steve Carell) uses a trio of orphan girls to help execute his evil master plan but finds himself conflicted when he steps up to become a father along the way.

Despicable Me 3: After Gru is fired from the Anti-Villain League, he gets an invitation to meet his long-lost, more successful twin brother, Dru.

Hop: The Easter Bunny’s teenage son EB (Russell Brand) hops away to Hollywood, where he hopes to become a drummer in a rock band.

The Lorax: Based on the classic children’s book by Dr Seuss. In a world with no trees a young boy named Ted (Zac Efron) embarks on a journey to try and bring them back.

Minions: In this origin story, Stuart, Kevin and Bob (all voiced by director Pierre Coffin) embark on a lifelong adventure to find new villainous masters.

The Secret Life of Pets: When their owners are away, the pets will play! A Jack Russell terrier named Max (Louis CK) lands himself and his new roommate, a Newfloundland named Duke (Eric Stonestreet), on the streets and in trouble thanks to his jealousy.

The Secret Life of Pets 2: Max (Patton Oswalt) and Duke are on better terms until Max becomes overprotective of their owner’s toddler son leading to an eye-opening road trip.

Sing: Listen out for Hollywood mega-stars like Scarlett Johannson and Matthew McConaughey in this musical comedy. A struggling theatre owner holds a singing competition that becomes bigger than he could have imagined.

The Super Mario Bros. Movie: An animated adventure based on the classic Mario video game franchise. Mario (Chris Prat) journeys through the Mushroom Kingdom with the help of Princess Peach (Anya Taylor-Joy) to stop the all-powerful Bowser (Jack Black) and save his brother, Luigi (Charlie Day).