ParaNorman - wikipedia ParaNorman ParaNorman Theatrical release poster Directed by Sam Fell Chris Butler Produced by Travis Knight Arianne Sutner Written by Chris Butler Starring Kodi Smit - McPhee Tucker Albrizzi Anna Kendrick Casey Affleck Christopher Mintz - Plasse Leslie Mann Jeff Garlin Elaine Stritch Bernard Hill Jodelle Ferland Tempestt Bledsoe Alex Borstein John Goodman Music by Jon Brion Cinematography Tristan Oliver Edited by Christopher Murrie Production company Laika Distributed by Focus Features Release date August 3, 2012 ( 2012 - 08 - 03 ) ( Mexico ) August 17, 2012 ( 2012 - 08 - 17 ) ( United States ) Running time 93 minutes Country United States Language English Budget $60 million Box office $107.1 million ParaNorman is a 2012 American 3D stop - motion animated comedy horror film produced by Laika, distributed by Focus Features and was released on August 17, 2012. It stars the voices of Kodi Smit - McPhee, Tucker Albrizzi, Anna Kendrick, Casey Affleck, Christopher Mintz - Plasse, Leslie Mann, Jeff Garlin, Elaine Stritch, Bernard Hill, Jodelle Ferland, Tempestt Bledsoe, Alex Borstein and John Goodman. It is the first stop - motion film to use a 3D color printer to create character faces and only the second to be shot in 3D. The film features a young boy named Norman who can communicate with ghosts. The ghosts all have unfinished business in the world of the living and Norman is given the task of ending a witch 's curse. He is too late to stop the dead from rising on the anniversary of the witch 's death and he has to appeal to the fact that he understands what it 's like to be an outcast to convince her to break her spell on the town who killed her for being different 300 years prior. ParaNorman mainly received positive reviews and was a modest box office success, earning $107 million against its budget of $60 million. The film received nominations for the 2012 Academy Award for Best Animated Feature and BAFTA Award for Best Animated Film. Contents 1 Plot 2 Voice cast 3 Production 4 Soundtrack 5 Release 5.1 Home media 6 Reception 6.1 Critical response 6.2 Box office 6.3 Gay character 6.4 Accolades 7 See also 8 References 9 External links Plot In the small town of Blithe Hollow, Massachusetts, Norman Babcock is an 11 - year - old boy who speaks with the dead, including his late grandmother and various ghosts in town. Almost no one believes him and he is isolated emotionally from his family while being ridiculed by his peers. His best friend, Neil Downe, is an overweight boy who is bullied himself and finds in Norman a kindred spirit. After rehearsal of a school play commemorating the town 's execution of a witch three centuries ago, the boys are confronted by Norman 's estranged and seemingly deranged uncle, Mr. Prenderghast, who tells his nephew that he soon must take up his regular ritual to protect the town. Soon after this encounter, Mr. Prenderghast dies. During the official performance of the school play, Norman has a vision of the town 's past in which he is pursued through the woods by townsfolk on a witch hunt, embarrassing himself and leading to a heated argument with his father Perry, who later grounds him. His mother Sandra tells him that his father 's stern manner is because he is afraid for him. The next day, Norman sees Prenderghast 's spirit who tells him that the ritual must be performed with a certain book before sundown that day ; then making him swear to complete the task, Prenderghast 's spirit is set free and crosses over. Norman is at first reluctant to go because he is scared but his grandmother tells him it is all right to be scared as long as he does not let it change who he is. Norman sets off to retrieve the book from Prenderghast 's house ( having to take it from his corpse ). He then goes to the graves of the five men and two women who were cursed by the witch, but finds that the book is merely a series of fairy tales. Alvin, a school bully, arrives and prevents Norman from reading the story before sundown. Norman attempts to continue reading from the book, to no effect. A ghostly storm resembling the witch appears in the air, summoning the cursed dead to arise as zombies, who chase the boys along with Norman 's 17 - year - old sister, Courtney ; and Neil 's older brother Mitch, down the hill and into town. Having realized that the witch was not buried in the graveyard, Norman contacts classmate Salma ( who tells them to access the Town Hall 's archives for the location of the witch 's unmarked grave ) for help. As the kids make their way to the Town Hall, the zombies are attacked by the citizenry. During the riot, Norman and his companions break into the archives but can not find the information they need. As the mob moves to attack Town Hall, the witch storm appears over the crowd. Norman climbs the Hall 's tower to read the book, in a last - ditch effort to finish the ritual, but the witch strikes the book with lightning, hurling Norman from the tower and deep into the archives. Unconscious, Norman has a dream where he learns that the witch was Agatha Prenderghast, a little girl of his age who was also a medium. Norman realizes that Agatha was wrongfully convicted by the town council when they mistook her powers for witchcraft. After awakening, Norman encounters the zombies and recognizes them as the town council who convicted Agatha. The zombies and their leader, the late Judge Hopkins admit that they only wanted to speak with him to ensure that he would take up the ritual, to minimize the damage of the mistake they made so long ago. Norman attempts to help the zombies slip away so they can guide him to Agatha 's grave, but is cornered by the mob. Courtney, Mitch, Neil, and Alvin rally to Norman 's side and confront the crowd, arguing that their rage, fear, and misunderstanding make them no different than the cursed townsfolk from long ago. Although the mob calms down, the witch unleashes her powers to create greater havoc throughout the town. Judge Hopkins guides Norman 's family to the grave in a forest. Before the grave is reached, Agatha 's magical powers separate Norman from the others. Norman finds the grave and interacts with Agatha 's vengeful spirit, determined to stop the cataclysmic tantrum she has been having over the years. Though she attempts to push him away Norman holds his ground, telling her that he understands how she feels as an outcast, that her vengeance has only made her like the ones who wronged her, and eventually forcing her to remember happier days. Having finally encountered someone who understands her plight and by remembering her caring mother, Agatha is able to find a measure of peace and cross over to the afterlife ( having the oppurtunity to be reunited with her mother ). The storm dissipates, and she, the zombies and even the Judge all fade away. The town cleans up and regards Norman as a hero. In the end, Norman watches a horror film with the ghost of his grandmother and his family, who have grown to accept Norman for who he is. Voice cast Kodi Smit - McPhee as Norman Babcock, an 11 - year - old outcast kid who speaks to the dead Jodelle Ferland as Agatha `` Aggie '' Prenderghast, a ghost of an 11 - year - old from the 1700s who was accused of witchcraft. Bernard Hill as Judge Hopkins, the leader of the zombies Tucker Albrizzi as Neil Downe, Norman 's eccentric and chubby friend Anna Kendrick as Courtney Babcock, Norman 's 17 - year - old sister and cheerleader Casey Affleck as Mitch Downe, Neil 's 18 - year - old brother and a jock ; the target of Courtney 's affections, but later revealed to be gay. Christopher Mintz - Plasse as Alvin, a 13 - year - old school bully Leslie Mann as Sandra Babcock, Norman 's mother Jeff Garlin as Perry Babcock, Norman 's father Elaine Stritch as Grandma Babcock, Norman 's ghost grandmother John Goodman as Mr. Prenderghast, Norman 's great - uncle and the town 's local eccentric Tempestt Bledsoe as Sheriff Hooper, a police officer Alex Borstein as Mrs. Henscher, Norman 's teacher Hannah Noyes as Salma, a smart girl from Norman 's class Ariel Winter as Blithe Hollow kid Bridget Hoffman as Crystal and Parachutist Ghost Scott Menville as Deputy Wayne David Cowgill as Greaser Ghost Wendy Hoffman as Gucci Lady Jeremy Shada as Pug Emily Hahn as Sweet Girl Jack Blessing as a Civil War ghost Blithe Hollow townspeople are voiced by Kirk Baily, Cam Clarke, Lara Cody, Eddie Frierson, Rif Hutton, Edie Mirman and David Zyler. Production ParaNorman was the first film that used full - color 3D printers for animation. The idea of the film came from Chris Butler, who, realizing that the zombie films, often contained a degree of social commentary, thought making such a movie for kids, could help express the challenges kids face growing up. Production of the stop - motion animation feature took place at Laika 's studio in Hillsboro, Oregon. The film was in production for three years with the animating stage of production lasting about two years, beginning in late 2009. Rather than using traditional 3D format cameras, the studio used sixty Canon EOS 5D Mark II DSLR cameras to film the movie. Ad agency Wieden + Kennedy created the advertising campaign for the film. ParaNorman is the first ever stop motion film to utilize full - color 3D printers for replacement animation, after Coraline pioneered and popularized the use of black and white 3D printers, which sped up puppet production considerably and allowed the team to make the large number of puppet faces required for the film. `` Quite often it 's the stop - motion movies that are more out there '', co-director Fell told The New York Times. `` They 're a little quirkier, they 're a little harder to pin down. '' Soundtrack Jon Brion composed the film 's score, and an accompanying soundtrack album was released on August 14, 2012. Bits of other music appear in the film, including theme music from Halloween, the Donovan song `` Season of the Witch '' ( sung by the school play cast ) and `` Fix Up, Look Sharp '' by British rapper Dizzee Rascal. `` Little Ghost '', a White Stripes song from their 2005 album Get Behind Me Satan, plays at the end, over character cards identifying the main cast. However, one track in the film ( an updated version of `` Aggie Fights '' ) was not included in the soundtrack. Release Home Media ParaNorman was released on DVD and Blu - ray, on November 27, 2012 by Universal Pictures Home Entertainment. Reception Critical response ParaNorman received largely positive reviews from critics. Review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reports that 87 % of critics have given the film positive reviews, with an average rating of 7.3 / 10 based on 173 reviews. The website 's critical consensus reads, `` Beautifully animated and solidly scripted, ParaNorman will entertain ( and frighten ) older children while providing surprisingly thoughtful fare for their parents. '' Another review aggregator, Metacritic, calculated a score of 72 based on 33 reviews, or `` generally favorable reviews ''. Justin Chang of Variety reviewed the film : `` Few movies so taken with death have felt so rudely alive as ParaNorman, the latest handcrafted marvel from the stop - motion artists at Laika. '' On the other hand, Michael Rechtshaffen of The Hollywood Reporter said : `` It has its entertaining moments, but this paranormal stop - motion animated comedy - chiller cries out for more activity. '' Box Office ParaNorman earned $56 million in North America, and $51.1 million overseas, for a worldwide total of $107.1 million. The film premiered in Mexico on August 3, 2012 opening in second place with box office receipts of $2.2 million, behind The Dark Knight Rises. For its opening weekend in North America, the film placed third with receipts of $14 million behind The Expendables 2 and The Bourne Legacy. Travis Knight, head of the studio that produced the film, believed the box office total was fine, but that it did not live up to his expectations. Gay character The film has drawn some attention for the revelation in its final scenes that Mitch is gay, making him the first openly gay character in a mainstream animated film. Nancy French of the National Review Online suggested that the film could lead parents `` to answer unwanted questions about sex and homosexuality on the way home from the movie theater ''. Conversely, Mike Ryan of The Huffington Post cited Mitch 's inclusion as one of the reasons why ParaNorman is `` remarkable ''. Co-director Chris Butler said that the character was explicitly connected with the film 's message : `` If we 're saying to anyone that watches this movie do n't judge other people, then we 've got to have the strength of our convictions. '' In 2013 GLAAD nominated ParaNorman as its first - ever PG - rated movie for its annual GLAAD Media Awards. Accolades This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. ( December 2015 ) List of awards and nominations Award Winner / Nominee Result Academy Awards Best Animated Feature Sam Fell, Chris Butler Nominated Alliance of Women Film Journalists Best Animated Film Won Annie Awards Best Animated Feature Nominated Directing in an Animated Feature Production Sam Fell, Chris Butler Nominated Animated Effects in an Animated Production Andrew Nawrot, Joe Gorski, Grant Lake Nominated Character Animation in a Feature Production Travis Knight Won Character Design in an Animated Feature Production Heidi Smith Won Production Design in an Animated Feature Production Nelson Lowry, Ross Stewart, Pete Oswald, Ean McNamara, Trevor Dalmer Nominated Storyboarding in an Animated Feature Production Emmanuela Cozzi Nominated Writing in an Animated Feature Production Chris Butler Nominated BAFTA Awards Best Animated Film Nominated Chicago Film Critics Association Best Animated Feature Won Critics Choice Awards Best Animated Feature Nominated Dallas - Fort Worth Film Critics Association Best Animated Film Won Denver Film Critics Society Best Animated Feature Won GLAAD Media Awards Outstanding Film - Wide Release Nominated Houston Film Critics Society Best Animated Film Nominated Indiana Film Critics Association Best Animated Feature Nominated Las Vegas Film Critics Society Best Animated Film Won New York Film Critics Circle Awards Best Animated Feature Nominated Online Film Critics Society Best Animated Feature Won Phoenix Film Critics Society Best Animated Film Nominated Producers Guild of America Animated Theatrical Motion Pictures Travis Knight, Arianne Sutner Nominated San Diego Film Critics Society Best Animated Film Won San Francisco Film Critics Circle Best Animated Feature Won Satellite Awards Motion Picture, Animated or Mixed Media Nominated Saturn Awards Best Animated Film Sam Fell and Chris Butler Nominated Southeastern Film Critics Association Best Animated Film Won St. Louis Gateway Film Critics Association Best Animated Film Nominated Toronto Film Critics Association Awards Best Animated Feature Won Utah Film Critics Association Best Animated Feature Won Visual Effects Society Outstanding Animation in an Animated Feature Motion Picture Chris Butler, Sam Fell, Travis Knight, Brad Schiff Nominated Outstanding Created Environment in an Animated Feature Motion Picture Graveyard : Phil Brotherton, Robert Desue, Oliver Jones, Nick Mariana Nominated Main Street : Alice Bird, Matt Delue, Caitlin Pashalek Nominated Outstanding FX and Simulation Animation in an Animated Feature Motion Picture Practical Volumetrics : Aidan Fraser, Joe Gorski, Eric Kuehne, Andrew Nawrot Nominated Angry Aggie Ink - Blot Electricity : Michael Cordova, Grant Laker, Susanna Luck, Peter Vickery Nominated Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Best Animated Feature Won See also List of ghost films Animation portal Film portal LGBT portal References ^ Jump up to : Goldberg, Matt ( June 14, 2011 ). `` Jon Brion to Score Laika 's 3D Stop - Motion Animated Feature PARANORMAN ''. Collider.com. Retrieved June 15, 2011. Jump up ^ `` ParaNorman ( PG ) ''. British Board of Film Classification. July 11, 2012. Retrieved August 27, 2016. ^ Jump up to : `` ParaNorman ''. Box Office Mojo. Retrieved February 15, 2013. Jump up ^ Buchanan, Jason. `` ParaNorman ( 2012 ) ''. Allmovie. Retrieved August 30, 2012. Jump up ^ `` ParaNorman To Open August 17, 2012 '' ( Press release ). LAIKA. May 4, 2011. Retrieved May 17, 2011. Jump up ^ Roper, Caitlin ( August 2012 ). `` The Boy with 8,000 Faces ''. Wired. ^ Jump up to : `` ParaNorman ( 2012 ) ''. Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved July 3, 2018. Jump up ^ `` 2012 Recap ( cont. ) : Losers ''. Box Office Mojo. Retrieved January 4, 2013. ^ Jump up to : `` Travis Knight ( President & CEO of LAIKA ) Talks PARANORMAN, Audience Reactions to the Film, Laika 's Future Plans, and More at the VES Awards ''. Collider. Retrieved February 18, 2013. Jump up ^ Karger, Dave ( July 18, 2012 ). `` Comic - Con 2012 : 15 Hot Movies - ParaNorman ''. Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved April 5, 2014. Norman Babcock is an 11 - year - old branded a freak because he can speak to the dead. ^ Jump up to : `` ParaNorman ''. Yahoo !. Retrieved October 25, 2011. ^ Jump up to : Rechtshaffen, Michael ( August 2, 2012 ). `` ParaNorman : Film Review ''. The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved November 25, 2012. Jump up ^ `` Jodelle Ferland ''. Focus Features. Archived from the original on October 25, 2012. Retrieved July 24, 2012. ^ Jump up to : Truitt, Brian ( July 24, 2011 ). `` ' ParaNorman ' brings together an outcast kid, zombies and John Hughes ''. USA Today. Retrieved July 27, 2011. Jump up ^ Lambie, Ryan. `` Chris Butler and Sam Fell interview : on writing and directing ParaNorman ''. Den of Geek. Retrieved 14 April 2017. ^ Jump up to : Rogoway, Mike ( August 11, 2012 ). `` Laika thinks big with ' ParaNorman, ' the second feature from Phil Knight 's film studio ''. The Oregonian. Retrieved August 16, 2012. Jump up ^ Giegerich, Andy ( July 13, 2012 ). `` Laika chases big dreams ''. Portland Business Journal. Retrieved August 16, 2012. Jump up ^ `` Canon EOS 5D Mark II DSLR Cameras Help Capture the Summer Animated Feature `` ParaNorman '' in 3D ``. August 17, 2012. Retrieved August 19, 2012. Jump up ^ Brian Heater. `` How 3D printing changed the face of ' ParaNorman ' ''. Engadget. AOL. Jump up ^ Ryzik, Melena ( January 30, 2013 ). `` Animation Basks in Oscar Spotlight ''. The New York Times. Retrieved January 30, 2013. Jump up ^ Taylor, Drew ( July 24, 2012 ). `` Soundtrack Details For Jon Brion 's Score For Ghoulish Animated Film ParaNorman ''. The Playlist. Retrieved October 31, 2012. Jump up ^ `` Paranorman Blu - ray and DVD ''. September 3, 2012. Jump up ^ `` ParaNorman Reviews ''. Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved March 5, 2018. Jump up ^ Chang, Justin ( August 2, 2012 ). `` ParaNorman ''. Variety. Retrieved August 20, 2012. Jump up ^ `` Mexico Box Office, August 3 -- 5, 2012 ''. Box Office Mojo. Retrieved August 26, 2012. Jump up ^ Subers, Ray ( August 19, 2012 ). `` Weekend Report : ' Expendables 2 ' Commandeers Top Spot, Misses Predecessor 's Mark ''. Box Office Mojo. Retrieved August 20, 2012. Jump up ^ `` '' ParaNorman '' Screenwriter / Co-Director Chris Butler on Writing the First Gay Character in a Mainstream Animated Film - diversity.nbcuni.com ``. diversity.nbcuni.com. Jump up ^ French, nancy ( August 22, 2012 ). `` ParaNorman Has Gay Sub-Plot ''. National Review. Jump up ^ Ryan, Mike ( August 13, 2012 ). `` ' ParaNorman ' : The Movie You May Not Be Planning To See, Though You Should ''. The Huffington Post. Jump up ^ `` The Film Strip : ParaNorman Says You Can be Weird but Bullying is Not Ok ''. Eurweb.com. Retrieved January 7, 2013. Jump up ^ `` ' ParaNorman ' Named First Ever PG - Rated Nominee for GLAAD Media Awards ''. January 16, 2013. Jump up ^ `` Annie Award Nominations Unveiled ''. Deadline. December 3, 2012. Retrieved December 3, 2012. Jump up ^ Beck, Jerry ( February 2, 2013 ). `` Annie Award Winners ''. Cartoon Brew. Retrieved February 3, 2013. Jump up ^ Labrecque, Jeff ( January 9, 2013 ). `` ' Lincoln ' leads BAFTA race with 10 nominations ''. Deadline. Retrieved January 9, 2013. Jump up ^ Hammond, Pete ( December 11, 2012 ). `` ' Lincoln ', ' Les Miserables ', ' Silver Linings ' Top List Of Nominees For 18th Annual Critics Choice Movie Awards ''. Deadline. Retrieved December 11, 2012. Jump up ^ `` 2012 Awards ( 16th Annual ) ''. December 2012. Retrieved December 30, 2012. Jump up ^ Kilday, Gregg ( December 3, 2012 ). `` Satellite Awards Nominates 10 Films for Best Motion Picture ''. The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved December 4, 2012. Jump up ^ Truitt, Brian ( February 20, 2013 ). `` ' The Hobbit ' leads Saturn Awards with nine nomination ''. USA Today. Jump up ^ `` Nominations for the 11th Annual VES Awards ''. ComingSoon.net. January 7, 2013. Retrieved January 7, 2013. Jump up ^ `` VES Awards : ' Life Of Pi ' Wins 4 Including Feature, ' Brave ', ' Game Of Thrones ' Other Big Winners ''. Deadline. February 5, 2013. Retrieved February 7, 2013. External links Wikiquote has quotations related to : ParaNorman Official website ParaNorman on IMDb ParaNorman at The Big Cartoon DataBase ParaNorman at AllMovie ParaNorman at Rotten Tomatoes ParaNorman at Metacritic ParaNorman at Box Office Mojo ParaNorman DVD & Blu - ray at Universal Studios Home Entertainment Official novel website Laika Feature films Coraline ( 2009 ) ParaNorman ( 2012 ) The Boxtrolls ( 2014 ) Kubo and the Two Strings ( 2016 ) Missing Link ( 2019 ) Short films Moongirl ( 2005 ) People Phil Knight Travis Knight Henry Selick Associated productions Corpse Bride ( 2005 ) King of California ( 2007 ) Slacker Cats ( 2007 -- 2009 ) A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas ( 2011 ) See also Will Vinton Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=ParaNorman&oldid=856868672 '' Categories : 2012 films English - language films 2010s American animated films 2010s comedy horror films 2010s ghost films 2010s LGBT - related films 2012 3D films 2012 animated films 2010s children 's films 2012 horror films American 3D films American animated horror films American films American ghost films American LGBT - related films American zombie comedy films Children 's horror films Films about psychic powers Films scored by Jon Brion Films set in Massachusetts Films set in the 1710s Films shot in Oregon Focus Features animated films Focus Features films Laika animated films LGBT - related animation LGBT - related comedy films LGBT - related horror films Stop - motion animated films Witchcraft in film Hidden categories : Use mdy dates from July 2013 Articles needing additional references from December 2015 All articles needing additional references Talk Contents About Wikipedia Wikiquote Български Dansk Deutsch Español فارسی Français 한국어 Bahasa Indonesia Íslenska Italiano עברית Latviešu Lietuvių Magyar Bahasa Melayu Nederlands 日本 語 Polski Português Русский Simple English Српски / srpski Srpskohrvatski / српскохрватски Suomi Svenska Türkçe Українська Tiếng Việt 中文 21 more Edit links This page was last edited on 28 August 2018, at 01 : 46 ( UTC ). 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Question: how long did it take to make the movie paranorman
Answer: three years