Luck, the animated film about the luckiest girl in the world is on Apple TV+

Luck is the new movie from Skydance Animation studios. This family tale filled of humor, energy and of malice is a great surprisewhich made us want to meet its creator.

Sam Greenfield is the unluckiest girl in the worldyet she remains combative, ingenious and generous. When she discovers the land of luck, the young girl embarks on an adventure to bring some luck to her best friend. But with humans forbidden in this magical world, Sam’s only hope is to team up with some creatures living there.

On the occasion of the release of the film on Apple TV+ on 5 Augustwe met the dancer and choreographer Peggy Holmes, who is also the director of the movie.

Madmoizelle: I was surprised by the dose of imagination present in the film! Can you tell us how it was designed?

Peggy Holmes: Skydance Animation’s development department had done a bunch of research on icons, symbols, numbers and colors who bring good luck or bad luck worldwide. So I asked the storytelling team and the art department to take all that research and go crazy for two days. I told them not to not be limited, do not hesitate and simply have a good time. Two days later we got together and everyone shared their work. We’ve taken real-world elements and made them super fun and magical!

Madmoizelle: It was a good idea to imagine an unlucky character because it gives rise to very funny visual gags. Luck pays homage to the most classic cartoons, with these scenes where everything goes wrong, the character goes through falls and mischief, and it’s very funny.

Peggy Holmes: Yes ! We wanted Sam to be the unluckiest girl in the world. And what’s funny is thatshe keeps getting unluckythe glitches are linked again and again!

And then I have dance and choreography training. I grew up watching artists like Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton, Lucille Ball or Carol Burnett. We were very inspired by them and wanted to pay homage to them through the character of Sam. Like Charlot, Sam is very endearing because despite all his clumsinessshe never give up. And we love that about her, that she has hope.

Madmoizelle: Did you realize Luck as a choreographer? Good and bad luck are expressed through Sam’s body a lot. Whether she’s lucky or unlucky, it feels like watching a dance. His movements are linked sometimes in chaos, sometimes in harmony, but we often have the impression that all of this is a choreography.

Peggy Holmes: It’s true. I can not help myself. I’ve been dancing since I was eight years old, I’ve had a whole career in choreography. I think in rhythm, from the script to the editing. For me, it’s about knowing: how can the body, its shape, position and rhythm tell the story? It’s fun to figure things out without dialogue.

Madmoizelle: Speaking of dance, I had the impression that you were paying homage to Charlie Chaplin’s Modern Times choreography. Besides, there are a lot of mechanics in the magic world. We are really shown the system, the mechanics, the machine. Why ?

Peggy Holmes: We wanted to create a world of magic and technology where everything works perfectly. Because we do very complex things there. In the world of luck, nothing ever goes wrong. You don’t need ramps, handles or safety barriers… Everything is perfectly rhythm, synchronized. Nothing ever goes wrong!

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Featured image credit: © Apple TV