The Mythical World of Vikings and Dragons Comes to Life in the New ‘How to Train Your Dragon’ Featurette
For How to Train Your Dragon book series author Cressida Cowell, seeing the animated world based on her best-selling novels transform into live-action was nothing short of magical. Walking through the village of Berk or into the blacksmith’s forge was like stepping into a dream,” Cowell says. “The attention to detail—the wear on the tools, the weathered wood of the buildings—made everything feel alive. It was extraordinary.”Every aspect of production was meticulously crafted to translate the sense of wonder into realism, and at the head is original director Dean DeBlois, who’s excited to show everyone the Isle of Berk, and all its inhabitants. “I decided to revisit How to Train Your Dragon because it presented a remarkable opportunity—not only to direct a live-action film, but to return to a world I’ve genuinely missed,” DeBlois says. “These characters and this universe have stayed with me, and now we can bring them back with such authenticity and conviction that, when audiences enter this world, they’ll never want to leave.”In How To Train Your Dragon, Vikings and dragons are embittered in a generations-long feud. When Hiccup, a young Viking, befriends the Night Fury Toothless, they defy centuries of tradition, and their unlikely friendship [...]
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For How to Train Your Dragon book series author Cressida Cowell, seeing the animated world based on her best-selling novels transform into live-action was nothing short of magical. Walking through the village of Berk or into the blacksmith’s forge was like stepping into a dream,” Cowell says. “The attention to detail—the wear on the tools, the weathered wood of the buildings—made everything feel alive. It was extraordinary.”
Every aspect of production was meticulously crafted to translate the sense of wonder into realism, and at the head is original director Dean DeBlois, who’s excited to show everyone the Isle of Berk, and all its inhabitants. “I decided to revisit How to Train Your Dragon because it presented a remarkable opportunity—not only to direct a live-action film, but to return to a world I’ve genuinely missed,” DeBlois says. “These characters and this universe have stayed with me, and now we can bring them back with such authenticity and conviction that, when audiences enter this world, they’ll never want to leave.”
In How To Train Your Dragon, Vikings and dragons are embittered in a generations-long feud. When Hiccup, a young Viking, befriends the Night Fury Toothless, they defy centuries of tradition, and their unlikely friendship might be the key to saving the island from a looming threat.
The heart and soul of the film was rooted in the characters and the dragons, and realism was key in capturing all the emotional moments of How to Train Your Dragon. “The key is grounding the dragons in familiar animal behaviors,” DeBlois says. “By drawing inspiration from cats, dogs, horses and other animals, we’ve created creatures that feel authentic even though they’re fantasy creatures. Each dragon has a unique personality, and they live within a real, grounded world. Our goal was to make audiences believe in dragons as completely as they believed in the dinosaurs of Jurassic Park.”
In crafting this rich world, the filmmakers keep to heart what makes the film resonate with audiences. “My hope is that audiences who loved these characters in animation will discover them all over again, both with familiar warmth and surprising new depth,” DeBlois says. “We approached this adaptation with profound respect for what came before, while daring to imagine what could be. It’s a story that captures the magic of flying, the courage to question what we’re taught and the wonder of discovering something extraordinary within yourself. That’s what How to Train Your Dragon has always been about—and what this film delivers in a way audiences have never seen before.”
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About How to Train Your Dragon:
Cast: Mason Thames, Gerard Butler, Nico Parker, Nick Frost, Julian Dennison, Gabriel Howell, Bronwyn James, Harry Trevaldwyn, Ruth Codd, Peter Serafinowicz, Murray McArthur
Written and directed by: Dean DeBlois
Producers: Marc Platt, Dean DeBlois, Adam Siegel
From three-time Oscar® nominee and Golden Globe winner Dean DeBlois, the creative visionary behind DreamWorks Animation’s acclaimed How to Train Your Dragon trilogy, comes a stunning live-action reimagining of the film that launched the beloved franchise.
On the rugged isle of Berk, where Vikings and dragons have been bitter enemies for generations, Hiccup (Mason Thames; The Black Phone, For All Mankind) stands apart. The inventive yet overlooked son of Chief Stoick the Vast (Gerard Butler, reprising his voice role from the animated franchise), Hiccup defies centuries of tradition when he befriends Toothless, a feared Night Fury dragon. Their unlikely bond reveals the true nature of dragons, challenging the very foundations of Viking society.
Inspired by Cressida Cowell’s New York Times bestselling book series, DreamWorks Animation’s How to Train Your Dragon franchise has captivated global audiences, earning four Academy Award® nominations and grossing more than $1.6 billion at the global box-office. Now, through cutting-edge visual effects, DeBlois transforms his beloved animated saga into a breathtaking live-action spectacle, bringing the epic adventures of Hiccup and Toothless to life with jaw-dropping realism as they discover the true meaning of friendship, courage and destiny.
Credit: “Universal Pictures”
Watch the “Bringing Berk to Life” featurette:
