Disney’s latest 3D flick may include some of your favourite video game characters like Bowser, Pac-Man and Sonic the Hedgehog.  However, none of this would have been possible without the guidance of animation director Rich Moore.

But even if you’ve never heard of Moore before, chances are you’re familiar with some of his work.  Having directed episodes of The Simpsons and Futurama, he is actually an accomplished director with two Primetime Emmy Awards under his belt.

Speaking about his new film Wreck-it Ralph during a phone call, Moore let us in on what it was like to create a movie about video games.

Wreck-It Ralph focuses on the bad guy:

An underdog story, the film surrounds Wreck-It-Ralph, a video game villain with dreams of becoming a hero.  Tired of being overshadowed by good guy Fix-It-Felix, Ralph goes on a quest that ultimately brings havoc to the whole arcade he lives in.

Believe or not, “hero” Fix-It-Felix was originally supposed to be the star of the film. But when Moore and screenwriter Phil Johnston weren’t really getting traction with the project, they scrapped the idea and decided to focus the movie on Wreck-It Ralph instead.

“In a feature, the main character has an arc, a journey. They learn something or something changes in that character,” Moore says. “It was tough to build a nice comedic story with a lot of heart around (Fix-it-Felix).”

The flick features appearances by 190 characters and the voice talents of some of Hollywood’s biggest names:

Featuring cameos by Sonic the Hedgehog’s Doctor Eggman, Street Fighter’s Chun-Li and even Paddles 1 and 2 from Pong, the film also includes original characters voiced by John C. Reilly, Sarah Silverman, Jane Lynch and Alan Tudyk.

While working with everyone has been a treat for Moore, he was particularly pleased to have Reilly on board as the title character of Wreck-It Ralph.

Reilly, who was nominated for an Oscar for his work in Chicago, was so invested with his role that he even asked Moore to meet with the animators who created his character.

“(Reilly) was so hands on and so instrumental in fleshing out who Ralph is and what he’s like. Every character he plays feels like a real human being. You really care about his characters and you want them to achieve what it is that they want and desire.” Read more…

Skrillex is joining in on the magic of Disney.

Announced on Thursday during Comic-Con, director Rich Moore announced that  Skrillex will be writing music for his upcoming Disney animation film ‘Wreck-It-Ralph.’

Calling the DJ  “one of my favourite performers.” Moore also gave attendees a 10-minute preview of the film, which is based on vintage video games and includes characters from Super Mario Bros., Pac-Man, Sonic the Hedgehog and Mortal Kombat.  John C. Reilly, Sarah Silverman and Jane Lynch are just some of the actors providing voices for the animated characters.

While Skrillex hasn’t revealed what the songs will sound like for ‘Wreck-It-Ralph’, the dubstep artist will also be composing material for upcoming film Spring Breakers, which stars Selena Gomez, James Franco and Vanessa Hudgens.

But don’t expect to get your headbanging on in the theatre.  At the time of the announcement, he tweeted, “it’s more or less traditional scoring…dont expect dance floor bangers!”

While Disney and Skrillex seem like odd pairing, I can’t help but be excited.  It’ll be interesting to see what he comes up with.