We can’t end 2022 without a look at one of our favorite projects of the year. The hugely popular Guardians of the Galaxy franchise’s adorable little offshoot, I Am Groot, a collection of five original shorts from Marvel Studios, debuted last August on Disney+, giving fans what they absolutely craved, namely… MORE Groot! In the collection, there’s no guarding the galaxy against this mischievous toddler! Baby Groot takes center stage in his very own series, exploring his glory days growing up—and getting into trouble—among the stars.

I Am Groot is one of the few all-CG animated projects that’s been released by the MCU and is also the first full CG show of this scale that VFX studio Luma Pictures (the sole vendor on the project) has worked on.

Luma began work early – their creative involvement started during the initial development and story concept stage. With only scripts and basic animatic storyboards in hand, Luma took ownership of initial concept designs, working in collaboration with director Kristen Lepore. This type of close partnership is unusual; on larger films, vendors like Luma usually liaise with the studio’s in-house VFX supervisor, not directly with the director. In this case, Lepore even came to Luma’s offices on several occasions to shoot references and mocap with Luma’s Animation Director, Raphael Pimentel.

Read the full original article on Animation World Network.