Preston Mutanga , who is only 14 years old , worked on his Lego segment ofSpider - Man : Across the Spider - Verseduring his school day ’s spring shift and at night ( after he terminate his prep ) .
It’s no secret thatSpider-Man: Across the Spider-Verseis one of thebest moviesof 2023. It’s already had one of the biggest box office debuts of the year, and it’s currently thehighest rated movie of all time on Letterboxd.
A sequel toInto the Spider-Verse, this movie follows Miles Morales/Spider-Man (Shameik Moore) as he enters a wild adventure through the multiverse where he encounters a team of Spider-People, including Gwen Stacy (Hailee Steinfeld), who are charged with protecting its very existence.
Like the first movie,Across the Spider-Versedoes an impeccable job of telling this story of Miles, diving deeper into the multiverse, and utilizing various animation styles incredibly well.
WhileInto the Spider-Versehad some amazing moments when it came to animation,Across the Spider-Verseseems to dial it up to 11. By utilizing various Earths, the movie is able to use so many different animation styles, and it’s honestly so impressive.
In fact, theAcross the Spider-Verseteam wanted the movie to feel like you werejumping from one comic book to another. So, in order to achieve an authentic feeling of different animation styles, various artists were brought in who had worked on other Spider-Man comics, other animated films, and more.
The various animation styles make it so when Miles and Gwen arrive at the Spider Society, you can really feel how it’s a celebration of ALL the Spider-Man stories and everything coming together.
While I could sit and talk about theAcross the Spider-Verseanimation for literal hours, there’s one amazing behind-the-scenes fact about a particular moment that I can’t stop thinking about.
At one point in the movie, we see an Earth where everything is made out of Legos, and it’s there where we meet Lego Spider-Man (Nic Novicki).
It’s a sequence that earned a lot of laughs in my theater when I saw it — it was just executed so perfectly and was a great nod toThe Lego Movie.
Well, it turns out the Lego section ofAcross the Spider-Versewas actuallyanimatedby 14-year-old Preston Mutanga, who was hired by Sony to work on this specific sequence.
Preston caught the attention of writers Phil Lord and Christopher Miller after here-created the firstAcross the Spider-Versetrailershot-by-shot using 3D animation and Legos.
The trailer, which Prestonshared to Twitterandhis YouTube pagein early 2023, went viral, with over 700k views on the video on Twitter alone.
“It blew us all away, including some of the best animators in the world,” Christopherrecalled in a recent interview with the New York Times.
Like, it’s literally a perfect re-creation.
One more side-by-side because I’m simply so impressed:
At the time, Phil andAcross the Spider-Versedirector Kemp Powers evencommentedon the video, with Philsaying, “Well done!!! Where were you in 2014 [whenThe Lego Moviewas released] oh wait you were 6.”
I was closely observing the picture ;)
Fans of Spider-Man and theSpider-Versewere so impressed as well, even asking Preston when he’d start working for Sony:
Ha ha , Thanks , I ’m still in school but hopefully soon . :-)
So, when Phil, Christopher, and the rest of theAcross the Spider-Verseteam decided to include a Lego universe as part of the movie’s exploration of the multiverse, producer Christina Steinberg reached out to Preston and asked if he wanted to animate it.
After being contacted by Sony (and verifying that it was, in fact, a real job offer), Preston’s dad built him a new computer and bought him a state-of-the-art graphics card so he could render his work faster.
So, Preston got to work. He worked onAcross the Spider-Verseduring his school’s spring break and then on school nights (after his homework was done). He would also meet with Christopher, who would check Preston’s progress and provide input.
Speaking about how magical it was to work with Preston, Phil told the New York Times, “The Lego Movieis inspired by people making films with Lego bricks at home. That’s what made us want to make the movie. Then the idea inSpider-Verseis that a hero can come from anywhere.”
He continued, saying, “And here comes this heroic young person who’s inspired by the movie that was inspired by people like him.”
You can follow Preston on Twitterhereand check out hisYouTube channelfor even more amazing videos — like when here-createdtheStranger Things"Running Up That Hill" scene.
And you can read Preston’s entire profile with the New York Timeshere.
LegoMe_TheOG / YouTube / Viayoutu.be
