We’ve seen Rick and Morty in Claymation type earlier than, however by no means in a standalone Claymation quick—till now. That’s all because of Lee Hardcastle, the animator who created a string of sci-fi parodies for the smash-hit sequence earlier than Grownup Swim tapped him to create this yr’s Halloween particular.
Whereas followers watch for Rick and Morty correct to return from hiatus—the remainder of season six begins November 20—they’ll get pleasure from Hardcastle’s creepy, surreal “Summer season’s Sleepover” as a bit of vacation deal with. io9 obtained an opportunity to talk with Hardcastle over video chat to study extra. You possibly can watch the quick right here; what follows is a barely edited for readability and condensed model of our interview.
Cheryl Eddy, io9: How did you come to be concerned with Rick and Morty?
Lee Hardcastle: I used to be contacted by Grownup Swim fairly a number of years in the past to do some [station identifications], the quick 10-second issues play in between the TV applications simply to remind the viewer they’re watching Grownup Swim. I did fairly a number of of them, and that developed into doing Rick and Morty ones. I began out doing Rick and Morty parodies of mad scientist movies—like Honey I Shrunk the Youngsters, Re-Animator, The Fly. Grownup Swim simply stored asking me to do extra, so I ended up making about 36 of them, and I’ve been doing that for about three or 4 years. Then final yr they requested me if I wished to do a brief movie, in order that’s how that took place.
io9: The set-up seems prefer it’s impressed by the slumber celebration scene from season 4’s “Rattlestar Ricklactica”—however is “Summer season’s Sleepover” your unique concept in any other case? How a lot inventive management did you will have?
Hardcastle: It was all my concept, my complete factor, my venture. I often do a number of cinematic violence in animation type—I’ve continually obtained pretend blood on my fingers on a regular basis. [Hardcastle holds up blood-stained hands as proof.] So I used to be going for that angle as a result of [I thought that’s] what they had been wanting me to do. However they stated they had been having an issue with the violence and stuff, and I wished to keep away from that. In order that led me down a distinct route that I wouldn’t have in any other case have gone down. That was the one type of interference or steering. However other than that, it was fairly free rein. It was a little bit of a wierd course of as a result of I’ve by no means been requested to do something like this earlier than, so I didn’t actually know what to anticipate. [Mostly] they simply let me get on with it. It’s all the time been fairly like that with Grownup Swim, truly.
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io9: Why did you determine to make Summer season the primary character?
Hardcastle: So yeah—one element I forgot to say, once they approached me, they stated “We’d love to do a Rick and Morty one-off, however the ones we’ve executed beforehand have all the time been about Rick and Morty, so we’d love to do one which targeted a bit extra on one of many different members of the family.” In order that’s why we ended up focusing much more on Summer season and maintaining Rick and Morty within the backseat.
io9: Did the concept for setting it at a sleepover come from horror motion pictures?
Hardcastle: Yeah, precisely. Like I stated, I used to be going for a bit extra of a violent, scary angle to start with, and the preliminary concept was all the time a sleepover and issues going unsuitable, mainly. I believe it’s an excellent setting and, you realize, the concept of staying over at another person’s home—particularly for those who had been to say over at Rick and Morty’s home, the place you’ve obtained a mad scientist within the basement and one thing’s all the time going to go unsuitable. So it was an ideal state of affairs for me to only really feel secure as a narrative author.
io9: What impressed the design of the monsters?
Hardcastle: To be sincere, I used to be taking a look at Gizmo from Gremlins. I simply wished to do one thing that was a rip-off of that, mainly, and I attempted to make it as ridiculous as I might. I used to be simply making an attempt to some up with one thing I might manipulate in a foolish type of method, and that’s what I got here up with.
io9: Was The Factor additionally an inspiration? How does it really feel to be making the Halloween quick for Rick and Morty?
Hardcastle: I imply, The Factor has all the time been a giant inspiration all through my work usually. However for this one, yeah, undoubtedly with the creature turning into a much bigger creature and issues are coming out of it, that undoubtedly was impressed from The Factor. I’ve by no means been requested to do something like this, so it was fairly an honor and fairly a privilege—fairly thrilling to be acknowledged as somebody that does this type of stuff. I’ve all the time type of aspired to be a horror movie director as effectively, so it felt fairly good, fairly particular.
io9: How lengthy did it take to make this quick from begin to end?
Hardcastle: It was about 4 months all in all.
io9: There are a number of different names within the credit apart from yours, however I assume this was principally a one-man present?
Hardcastle: So, it’s a 10-minute quick movie, and I used to be feeling a number of stress as a result of I used to be truly anticipating a child as a first-time mother or father through the manufacturing. So I used to be making an attempt to complete the manufacturing and racing in opposition to the organic clock on the child arriving. To make it simpler, I got here up with this concept of going into several types of animation simply to share the workload; I obtained different animators concerned to only contribute quick little clips. [In the narrative, that worked out by having] the creature undergo totally different multiverses, totally different mediums. And in order that’s how that took place.
io9: I used to be going to ask about that, as a result of it seems like there’s no less than one part that’s CG as a substitute of Claymation. Is that the case?
Speaker 2: Yeah! There’s truly some CG in there that appears like Claymation. I wished to bridge the hole so [viewers] had been confused—am I watching Claymation or CG? Then it goes into full-blown CG. I used to be making an attempt to [go that route] so [the CG] wasn’t in your face instantly. I’ve by no means had any CG in my animations as a result of it’s not one thing that I understand how to do personally. So that is the primary time I’ve had CG concerned and obtained someone else to do it. And I’ve all the time been fairly blown away by how good it seems as effectively.
io9: There’s no dialogue within the quick, however the soundtrack is kind of fascinating. How did you do the sound design for it?
Hardcastle: They requested me if I wished any voice-over actors concerned, however to maintain issues easy, I simply stored it as a silent movie. I handed over my quick movie a yr in the past, and I used to be left at nighttime a bit of bit about what the method was going to be with the sound. After which I obtained the sound about two, three weeks in the past, and I noticed it for the primary time, and it was all a little bit of a shock for me. I’ve by no means had that course of earlier than the place somebody’s simply executed the sound for me and stated, “Properly, right here it’s.” I’ve all the time sort of been concerned, so I used to be a bit disillusioned that I wasn’t concerned within the course of. So I responded to the observe that was supplied and simply requested if I might change a number of scenes that didn’t really feel fairly proper, and I spent about two, three days simply checking out the soundtrack mainly. Then I despatched that again to them and so they simply accepted it; they didn’t actually give any suggestions, simply stated, “Okay. Nice, cool.” So yeah, the audio is fascinating as a result of it went via a little bit of a Frankenstein course of. I like that about it, I like that sense of rawness with regards to animation.
io9: So it’s a bit of bit you, a bit of bit Grownup Swim.
Hardcastle: Yeah. And the man that was doing it had actually good, polished, type of TV manufacturing library music, all that sort of factor. What I delivered to it, I sort of grunged it up a bit, and I believe that works for the narrative as a result of we’re type of leaping between two totally different worlds. So that you’re left with this type of spacey, wonky sound in comparison with a pleasant polished TV manufacturing sound. It has an excessive to it.
io9: Is the most important publicity your Claymation work has had, or what else have you ever executed previously that folks would have seen?
Hardcastle: Truly final week I used to be concerned with one other Justin Roiland venture known as The Paloni Present, which is on Hulu. And once more, I’ve by no means been requested to do a brief movie. So I did a three-minute quick that’s in that. However other than that, I’ve all the time been the sort of man that’s simply obtained a number of bits concerned in stuff. There’s a movie known as The ABCs of Demise that got here out in 2012, and I’ve obtained a brief bit in that. However most of what individuals know and acknowledge me from is my YouTube channel.
io9: Have you ever gotten any suggestions but on “Summer season’s Sleepover” from Justin Roiland or Dan Harmon or any of the opposite Rick and Morty individuals?
Hardcastle: No. [Laughs.] I used to be approached a few yr and a half in the past to do the quick, and the quantity of suggestions that I’ve had on it has been just about subsequent to nothing. I’m fairly excited for it to be broadcast as a result of I wish to know what individuals suppose!
io9: Rick and Morty followers are notoriously concerned within the present—are you apprehensive in any respect in regards to the response, or are you simply excited?
Hardcastle: I’m excited. I’m not anxious or something. It’s been such a very long time for it to return out, I’m simply joyful for it to be going out. However as for the followers, I don’t actually care an excessive amount of in the event that they obtain it effectively or not. I assume that’s all a part of the enjoyable for me. In the event that they prefer it, they prefer it… in the event that they don’t, they don’t. I’m simply actually wanting ahead to it popping out and seeing what the result’s.
Rick and Morty’s Halloween particular “Summer season’s Sleepover” debuted on Grownup Swim final night time; it’s now obtainable on HBO Max and YouTube. Rick and Morty season six resumes November 20 on Grownup Swim.
