About "A Pleasantville Christmas"
Is "A Pleasantville Christmas" based on anything?A Pleasantville Christmas is based roughly but very lovingly on a book that we used to read when we were little, a small red picture book written and illustrated by Tasha Tudor, entitled "A Doll's Christmas." The book is all about a pair of well-loved dolls who live in a lavishly furnished mansion, complete with fireplaces, plants, beds and beautiful ballgowns. The book follows the two dolls and the girls who own them as they prepare for the Christmas party and for Christmas eve. When we were little our mom would read that book to us and we'd ask her to substitute the two girls' names with "Greta" and "Willow" so we could pretend that we were them and that we had that same doll setup that was so beautiful and realistic. I still find it hard to believe that now we have pretty much recreated that exact dream with our own dolls. Hopefully by sharing this movie we can inspire more girls just like us to continue to imagine and play with their dolls.
See the book here: Tasha Tudor's Christmas Dollhouse
Is the movie made with Stop-Frame animation, like your last ones?
The movie is not stop-frame animation this time, like our last few movies. It is made through a new method, which we like to call "doll handling," which is basically just playing dolls, but with as little hand and human showing as possible so that you can follow the story without noticing the humans handling the dolls. The result is a multi-layered, smooth picture where the dolls can be far more realistic and expressive than they can ever be with stop-frame animation. It brings out small intricacies in their personalities that would never come out otherwise. Also, it gives it a wonderful warm feeling of imagination and play, as if you were right there in the room, playing dolls with us on Christmas Eve.
How long did the movie take to make?
This movie took a little over a year to film, edit and perfect. A lot of the music on the movie's soundtrack was also written and recorded by us, so that also took a few more months. The movie is a result of long days and long hours full of love for this project and the magic of Christmastime and the holiday season.
Where can I learn more about the characters?
A Pleasantville Christmas is a movie about all of the characters of Pleasantville, who you can read all about on our main website, www.ourdolls.net. There you can see what their houses look like during Spring, Summer and Fall, as well as read many different photo stories and watch more videos about their adventures.
Where can I buy the music that is in the movie?
You can buy the music written by us on our new CD called "Christmas." You can buy it on our site right here: www.gothardsisters.com. The rest of the music was written by either Mannheim Steamroller or various artists. If you want a specific song and can't figure out what it is, email us at [email protected] and we will try to find it for you!
How many people worked on the movie?
Four people total. Our mom helped out with the doll handling occasionally, but besides that us three sisters did all of the doll handling, filming, set decorating, sewing, staging and editing.
See the book here: Tasha Tudor's Christmas Dollhouse
Is the movie made with Stop-Frame animation, like your last ones?
The movie is not stop-frame animation this time, like our last few movies. It is made through a new method, which we like to call "doll handling," which is basically just playing dolls, but with as little hand and human showing as possible so that you can follow the story without noticing the humans handling the dolls. The result is a multi-layered, smooth picture where the dolls can be far more realistic and expressive than they can ever be with stop-frame animation. It brings out small intricacies in their personalities that would never come out otherwise. Also, it gives it a wonderful warm feeling of imagination and play, as if you were right there in the room, playing dolls with us on Christmas Eve.
How long did the movie take to make?
This movie took a little over a year to film, edit and perfect. A lot of the music on the movie's soundtrack was also written and recorded by us, so that also took a few more months. The movie is a result of long days and long hours full of love for this project and the magic of Christmastime and the holiday season.
Where can I learn more about the characters?
A Pleasantville Christmas is a movie about all of the characters of Pleasantville, who you can read all about on our main website, www.ourdolls.net. There you can see what their houses look like during Spring, Summer and Fall, as well as read many different photo stories and watch more videos about their adventures.
Where can I buy the music that is in the movie?
You can buy the music written by us on our new CD called "Christmas." You can buy it on our site right here: www.gothardsisters.com. The rest of the music was written by either Mannheim Steamroller or various artists. If you want a specific song and can't figure out what it is, email us at [email protected] and we will try to find it for you!
How many people worked on the movie?
Four people total. Our mom helped out with the doll handling occasionally, but besides that us three sisters did all of the doll handling, filming, set decorating, sewing, staging and editing.