A YDA delivery for Vanessa Stachel

How did you get into directing/animating?

Since early childhood, I've loved films! I grew up with all the Disney 2D animated movies and adored those. Especially the spooky and villainous characters made a big impression on me, as I was scared but also fascinated by them. So I made my first "animated films" when I was around 9 years old. (That was rather a kind of slideshow of pictures I had drawn and me then reading the characters’ voices to it.) 

I tried myself at acting but realised I liked it even more when I could create the worlds myself, so I made my first films with a Mini DV cam when I was 15. Mainly silly music videos or trashy horror films with my sisters and best friends. 

I studied Communication Design first, worked as a Designer/Motion Designer, and then finally applied to the prestigious Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg to study directing, which had been my original plan all along since I was 15. And it worked out, yay!

ABOVE: Mr Frogula.

What was the inspiration behind the animation?

Of course, films like Laika's ParaNorman or Tim Burton's Corpse Bride have their rightful place in my collection of inspirations, but I liked the puppet style of Aardman Animation's Robin Robin a lot and also wanted to create fuzzy felt animals. 

For Frogula's character, I was inspired by the classic Bram Stoker's Dracula by Francis Ford Coppola from 1993 and also the Dracula character from the 2004 Van Helsing movie. For Stella the moth, I don't have a direct inspiration. She's a brainchild of mine :)

Tell us about the shoot. How many people were involved? Was it a team from the film school?

We needed lots of help for the project, especially with set and props building, so overall 54 people were directly involved in making the film. I'm super thankful for each and everyone who was part of the journey! 

We had a fun and busy miniature workplace all summer of 2023 at our film school. Our nine animators were mostly Filmakademie/Animation Institute students, but we also found awesome team members outside from film school through social media or personal contacts.

ABOVE: Stella the moth.

What has the audience feedback been like for the film?

I think what I am most happy about is that the film really seems to bring joy to the people watching it. When there's a screening and the film is making people laugh, that's so rewarding for me as a filmmaker. Also, we got lots of feedback on how much people love the two characters. 

People are suggesting Frogula and Stella should have their own TV show, and our producer Jack's little son wants to hear new stories about the two. How cool is that? I had lots of fun writing Frogula and Stella the moth, and this fun seems to be passing on.

Mr. Frogula has been winning other awards. Can you share where you have been this year?

Yes, it has been a wild year so far! Our team always knew the film was going to be great because we loved the initial idea so much, but we did not expect it to be this successful because it is a little bit weird, and it's about a vampire frog, which might be a bit unconventional. 

This year I was in New York to pick up our Andy Award for "Best in Show - student films," and I was at the AICP Awards where we also won in the student category. I've been traveling around Germany, for example, I was in Hamburg at the German ADC, and of course, the YDA in Cannes was a blast! So cool to meet all the awesome creative people on the way and to see so much brilliant work by the other filmmakers!