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Hi everyone, it’s Maddie here!
A couple of weeks ago I was invited to represent It’s A Lovely Life at a press roundtable and panel for Dreamworks’ Trolls at San Diego Comic-Con. I’ve always loved being involved in my mom’s work, and as much as we all contribute to this site, this was my first solo assignment… and I was so excited!
From the creators of Shrek comes the most smart, funny, irreverent animated comedy of the year, DreamWorks’ Trolls. This holiday season, enter a colorful, wondrous world populated by hilariously unforgettable characters and discover the story of the overly optimistic Trolls, with a constant song on their lips, and the comically pessimistic Bergens, who are only happy when they have trolls in their stomach. Featuring original music from Justin Timberlake, and soon-to-be classic mash-ups of songs from other popular artists, the film stars the voice talents of Anna Kendrick, Justin Timberlake, Russell Brand, James Corden, Kunal Nayyar, Ron Funches, Icona Pop, Gwen Stefani, and many more.
DreamWorks’ TROLLS is a fresh, broad comedy filled with music, and heart and hair-raising adventures. In November of 2016, nothing can prepare you for our new Troll world.
We started the day bright and early, and made our way over to Hall H for the Trolls panel. Now, Hall H is touted as having the longest line at Comic Con, and it certainly does. People line up overnight for most panels to even get a chance of seeing one! Fortunately for us, we had reserved seating.
Chris Hardwick, our moderator, came out and thanked everyone for coming. Then he announced the featured guests: director Mike Mitchell, co-director Walt Dohrn, producer Gina Shay, Justin Timberlake (who plays Branch), and Anna Kendrick in the role of Poppy.
We were treated to exclusive clips from the movie, including this one below. Doesn’t this movie look awesome?!
Shortly afterward, it was announced that we would be attending a surprise panel for another Dreamworks movie: The Boss Baby! The Boss Baby stars Alec Baldwin in the titular role of the Boss Baby himself. Other guests of the panel were Tom McGrath (the director), and Ramsey Ann Naito (the producer). The Boss Baby also stars Steve Buscemi, Jimmy Kimmel, Lisa Kudrow, Patton Oswalt, and Miles Bakshi.
DreamWorks Animation and the director of Madagascar invite you to meet a most unusual baby. He wears a suit, speaks with the voice and wit of Alec Baldwin, and stars in the animated comedy, DreamWorks’ The Boss Baby. The Boss Baby is a hilariously universal story about how a new baby’s arrival impacts a family, told from the point of view of a delightfully unreliable narrator, a wildly imaginative 7 year old named Tim. It is written by Michael McCullers and based on a book by Marla Frazee. With a sly, heart-filled message about the importance of family, DreamWorks’ The Boss Baby is an authentic and broadly appealing original comedy for all ages.
We were also treated to exclusive clips from The Boss Baby and they are hilarious! I know my mom is going to love this movie and we are planning to see it together and then again with the rest of the family!
Later that day we headed back to “base camp” to prepare for our roundtables with the panel members from Trolls and The Boss Baby.
The Boss Baby panel members went first. Alec Baldwin was hilarious and very intelligent, and it was super cool to hear about the process of making The Boss Baby from the very beginning from Tom McGrath and Ramsey Ann Naito.
The Boss Baby is based on the relationship between older and younger siblings, which is something I totally relate to! No matter how hard it can get to deal with my sisters, I still love them all the same!
Tom said that when he originally thought of a person (before the casting process had even started) to play the role of The Boss Baby, he immediately thought of Alec Baldwin. In my opinion, he definitely made the right choice.
After the roundtable, we all took a group photo!
Next up was a roundtable with the cast of Trolls. This was a cast of incredibly funny people with such great chemistry and love for what they do. They also talked quite a bit about the full process of making the movie. Walt Dohrn has been a part of the project for three years, while Gina Shay has been working on it for five! A preliminary script for the movie was worked on for two years, but was scrapped in favor of the one that actually came to fruition.
A big part of Trolls is its soundtrack, and with both Justin Timberlake and Anna Kendrick (as well as many other big musical names, including Gwen Stefani and Icona Pop), that’s kind of a given. The panel members talked about how cohesiveness in the soundtrack was very important to them, and the musical numbers in the clips we were shown, as well as at the roundtable (Justin sang part of a Madonna song for us) were fantastic and really fit with the movie!
Then we took another group photo!
I had such a fantastic time at this event, and I hope you all check out Trolls on November 4th 2016, and The Boss Baby on March 31st, 2017! I know I’ll be there with the rest of my family! I can’t wait for my parents and little sisters to see them both!
It looks like she had a blast. And does she ever look grown up! I’m super excited to see Trolls. I used to play with the dolls when I was a kid.
This looks like a fun event to attend. I will have to make sure I check out Trolls and The Boss Baby.
I hadn’t heard about this movie yet. It looks like it will be cute. I remember playing with Trolls when I was little.
This looks like it’s going to be a really cute movie! I bet Comic Con was a lot of fun!
Trolls looks like a really fun movie.
How much fun is that to get your first solo assignment? Looks like this movie will be super cute!
Ahhh you don’t know whose phone “jesse” was holding, do you? It’s the haunted mansion wallpaper and I NEED IT.
I love Alec Baldwin. He has the best voice and I can’t wait for Boss Baby. Looks like a fun way to spend the day. I’ve never been to Comic Con, but I always watch panels on YouTube and it is crazy to see how excited fans get.
I remember the trolls when I was a kid! My kids want to see this movie. I think it will be fun to see it with them!
That looks so fun. I totally want to see this movie!
This looks like such a fun experience! I loved trolls as a kid and they still look just as lovable. Boss Baby looks like a great movie. I can’t wait to see it.
What a fun experience! I remember playing with trolls when I was little and look forward to seeing the movie with my own children.
I’m happy you had the opportunity to attend this event. Boss Baby seems like it’s going to be a great movie.
Looks like a fun time! The Trolls movie looks like it could be really cute. Boss Baby sounds like it will be very funny. I’m glad there are some good ones about to come out in the future!
What fun. I love the event photos. I’m looking forward to seeing Trolls.
This sounded like a lot of fun! I’ll be keeping an eye out for more news on Trolls. It sounds like a cute movie.
Wow, that looks like it’s going to be really colorful. My niece heard about it already and is looking forward to seeing it.
What an exciting event! I can’t wait to see Trolls with my family!
This sounds like a fun time. I have always loved trolls and even started a collection for my daughter before she even knew what they were.
Is this the movie with Justin Timberlake’s new song in it? I love that song. This is going to be so adorable and what a hit they have on their hands.
What a fun day! I mean, who wouldn’t have a great time at comic con anyway! This is awesome and I can’t wait to see the trailers for both movies. I’m sure it’s awesome!
My daughter would love this. I remember buying these Trolls for her when she was little and she did amass quite a collection! I am happy to learn that your daughter had a great time. What an experience for her!
Those talks look awesome! I’ve always wanted to go to comic con. And Chris Hardwick is a hilarious person, I bet that panel was amazing.
Did you say Trolls? Oh, I used to play them when I was a kid. It would be so fun if my son will be playing them too.
I never had any troll toys although my younger sisters did. My kiddos have never had any trolls either, yet they really want to see this movie. Go figure lol! Thanks for sharing. Looks like a fun trip!
How fun, what an experience it must have been for you! These two sounds like a great movie, I can’t help but get excited! And YAY for Trolls!! (flooding with childhood memories here! lol)
What a fun day! I can’t believe you sat down with two of my favorites … Justin and Anna. I am pretty sure I would have fainted. I also love that you were introduced to Boss Baby, I had no idea this movie was coming out. Great day, thank you for sharing!
Can’t wait to see/hear Anna Kendrick in Trolls. I loved her in the Pitch Perfect films!
What an amazing opportunity! I have always wanted to attend a Comic Con show. And the Trolls movie looks adorable, it is on our list to see!
Wow! What an awesome experience! I really want to see this movie when it comes out.,
Dreamworks really offer something special to the audience. I can’t wait for this!
It must be fun to attend to events like this. It’s awesome that your daughter is following your footspteps.
I can not wait until this movie comes out! I don’t know who is more excited, me or my son!
It sounds like you had a blast at the Comic Con which hopefully some day I will be able to go with my sons. Dreamworks Trolls and The Baby Boss are two things I will have to check out for sure. Thanks for sharing your experience and the movies.
This must have been an amazing experience being able to go to comic con and seeing a preview of these movies! I can’t wait to see these with my kids!
Looks like a blast! I havent heard of the movie yet, but I used to play with the little troll dolls!
These look like they are going to be great movies. I had not heard of The Boss Baby before. The trailer looks hilarious.
My kids are excited to see the Trolls movie. I will have to show them the trailer for The Boss Baby. I think they will love it.
I’m so excited for “Trolls”! I got a sneak peek at it during CinemaCon and I can’t wait until it comes out. This is my first time hearing about “The Boss Baby” and that sounds really funny, so thanks for the introduction!
I can remember Trolls from when I was younger. I think I might have had a pencil topper or two that were Trolls. I never dreamed that someday they would make a movie out of them. That should be interesting.
SO jealous! I wish I could have gone to this! Looks like it was a blast!
Looks like she had a GREAT Time! I have ALWAYS wanted to attend Comic-Con! Trolls looks AWESOME!
I love great family movies! Its one of my favorite nights, pile up the blankets, get some popcorn, and put in a great movie! I cannot wait to see this movie with them!
Looks like you had an amazing time. Fun stuff! I can’t wait to see trolls…and boss babies looks good too
If this movie was created by the man who carted Shrek, then it has to be good!! I would love to go to Comicon…what a a fun (and funny) experience.
Looks like you had so much fun! I’ve never been to Comic Con…
What great events, covered with terrific expertise by the very talented Maddie. I hope to see these movies this year.
Now that sounds like a fun visit. The movie sounds cute too.
What a fun event. I got excited when I heard there will be a movie. Can’t wait to see this.
Trolls looks like it will be a fun movie. I’m planning a trip to visit my niece in late November so hopefully I can take her to see it.