Travis Knight is set to direct adaptation of the fantasy novel Piranesi for Laika – GeekTyrant

Stop-motion animation studio Laika has acquired the rights to the best-selling fantasy novel Piranesi Through Susanna Clarkeand Laika founder Travis Knight is set to direct an animated film adaptation.

Knight is the director behind it Kubo and the two strings, Bumblebeeand the next one Masters of the universe movie. He is a very talented filmmaker, and Piranesi will be a great project for him.

Awarded the Women’s Prize for Fiction in 2021, the story for Piranesi is set in a dream-like alternate reality and follows Piranesi, ‘whose house is no ordinary building: the rooms are infinite, the corridors endless, the walls are lined with thousands and thousands of statues, each different from all the others.

“Within the labyrinth of halls an ocean is imprisoned; waves crash up the stairs, rooms are flooded in no time. But Piranesi is not afraid; he understands the tides as he understands the pattern of the labyrinth itself. He lives to explore the house.”

There is one more person in the house, “a man called The Other, who visits Piranesi twice a week and asks for help in researching A Great and Secret Knowledge.

“But as Piranesi investigates, evidence emerges about another person, and a terrible truth begins to unravel, revealing a world beyond the one Piranesi has always known.”

Knight shared in a statement: “Piranesi is a treasure and very dear to me. As a filmmaker, I can hardly imagine a more joyful experience than wandering through the worlds Susanna dreamed of.

‘She is one of my favorite authors of all time, and with PiranesiSusanna has created a beautiful, devastating and ultimately life-affirming work of art. I am humbled that she has chosen LAIKA as her home.”

Clarke said of the project: “Animation is one of my favorite things. I’m inspired by so many animated films; and LAIKA has produced such extraordinary work – films like Coraline And Kubo and the two strings, full of beauty, wonder and strangeness. I am very happy with that Piranesi has found a home with them and I can’t wait to see what they do.”

I don’t know the book, but this sounds like a very cool and fascinating story. It’s another perfect project for Laika to take on and I have no doubt Knight will do a fantastic job bringing this story to life.