ROCKET
A tale about fear of the unkown.
ROCKET is a children’s project that tells the story of a fragil and FRIGHTED dog.
Rocket help kids to cope with the typical anxieties and fears of the childhood. It teaches the little ones that not all fears are bad, and they are here to keep us safe and protected.
sometimes those fears are just our imagination dealing with anxieties. Something that happens a lot during this rite of passage. With fun and humor, Rocket takes children of all ages on a journey of discovering, learning and growth.
SINOPSE
Rocket is a dog that lives on an apartment with his owner Bob. Every day, at the exact same time, Bob takes Rocket, the Whippet, for a walk. And every day they go around the same blocks, following the same path.
Rocket knows his way by heart. Or, better, by nose. Like every dog, he recognizes his fellow friends of the neighborhood by the smell. By sniffing their marks on the poles, bushes and walls, he knows who was there before him. Some good friends. Some not so friendly. But all dogs of his neighborhood.
Time to go out. First stop, the pole at the fancy building's gate. A sniff and a thought pops over Rockets' head: Chuck, the Weimaraner image appears.
Good big guy. A Whippet doesn't like to fight. And a Weimaraner is a friendly trusty fellow. Next stop, the tree at the corner of the street. Another sniff: Bubbles, the Boxer. Good he's not here! Rocket quickly raise his leg and marks over Bubbles' mark. The tree now belongs to Rocket. Ha!
Then, the bush in front of the store. Easy: Bella, the Beagle. Rocket sighs. Ahh, Bella... He continues: Johnny, the German Shepherd. Bomb, the Welsh Terrier. Claire, the Poodle. All their images popping above his head. He takes his owner around, stopping at every scent, checking all his pals and enemies. At a certain point, he smells the scent of Egg, the Bull Terrier. He knows exactly what comes next, so he moves away, towards the street. Egg comes barking furiously. Fortunately, behind the house gate. It's good to know the neighborhood!
One day, something unusual happens. A big truck appears in front of the building. Men come and carry all the furniture to the truck. The apartment is suddenly empty. Rocket is taken to the car, and they go to a far, far away place. A new house. A new life. A new neighborhood.
On the same afternoon, while the men finish taking the furniture back inside the new place, his owner decides to take Rocket for a walk. Everything is different. All the smells, unknown.
They leave the house, stopping at the first pole. Rocket's is trembling with apprehension. He hesitates for a while before approaching his nose to the first pole. A balloon pops over his head, and a strange image appears, coming from the depths of his imagination: a yellow dog, with red spots, six legs and two tails. He steps back, frightened. A few steps ahead he stops at a cement bench. After a short sniff, an even more weird figure materializes above him: a big furry blue dog, with two heads. He runs away, dragging his owner by the leash. At the next three stops, he imagines more odd, bizarre, freaky dogs. Colored, giant, with several eyes, horns, wings! His imagination is flying and his legs are shaking.
On their way back (finally!) to the house, he stops at a large bush on the sidewalk. Still in sheer panic, he envisions a huge fat dog with a beak, a feathered tail, and a pink colored fur. He continues to smell around the bush, terrorized by his thoughts, until he bumps into the author of the scent, wandering at the other side of the very same bush: a small lady Chihuahua, named Daisy. He freezes in dismay and disbelief, as she gently licks his nose, and walks calmly away, together with her human pair, a lovely young feminine owner. Rocket and his owner watch as the elegant pair enter the door right next their new house. His senses had betrayed him, altered by the anxiety of the new situation.
Over the next few days, all those monsters imagined turn to be normal fellows of the blocks around him. One by one, the strange figures associated to the smells are substituted by the real figures. In a short time, he knows everyone. Some good friends. Some not so friendly. But all dogs of his neighborhood.
production
The project will have different outputs: paper book, tablet and smartphone app, AR App, animated short.
IT will be entirely produced in CGI, with fully designed, modeled, rigged, textured and animated characters, as well as digital backgrounds.
the apps will be designed to promote full interactivity with the viewer. The story is told from the perspective of the dog, with a subjective camera. In other words, the children will be free to control the dog, as it leaves home with his owner. They can take Rocket wherever they want around both blocks (the old and the new), making it possible to the kids to discover all the “smells” and they respective memories (including hidden “easter eggs”). And so experiencing themselves the suspense and anticipation of each new discovery.
For each age group, there will be a different narrative and engine. Children and parents will be asked to choose one of 3 layers, corresponding to their age. And this will take them to completely distinct experiences.
As a bonus, children will be invited to design their own “imagination dogs”, shaping the animals to their will, changing colors and textures and adding all kinds of parts and objects, like extra legs heads, eyes, horns, wings, feathers, claws, beaks, tails, necklaces etc. And naming them. Older kids will have the option to post their creations on social media or exchange them with friends. At the end, their created and exchanged dogs can be imported to the storyline.
With the use of A.R. technology, children will watch the story develop in 3D using the environment around them. The characters will move on the ground of the real world, interacting with each other. And the children will follow them around. As if they were taking a real dog for a walk.