Original-Cin Q&A: PAW Patrol Director Cal Brunker on Dogs, Dinosaurs… and Snoop Dogg

By Bonnie Laufer

Director Cal Brunker is back at the helm for another epic adventure in Adventure Bay, taking the beloved franchise to prehistoric heights with PAW Patrol: The Dino Movie. Following the massive global success of the previous films, Brunker teamed once again with writing partner Bob Barlen to craft a story that delivers high-octane spectacle alongside heart and relatable life lessons for both kids and parents.

We spoke to Brunker about how his own growing kids continue to influence his filmmaking process. We also discussed the painstaking detail and dinosaur expertise required to bring realistic yet friendly prehistoric creatures to life, crafting the adorable new fan-favorite dino Rhubarb, and what it was like recording voiceovers with hip-hop icon Snoop Dogg.

PAW Patrol: The Dino Movie is in theatres August 14.

ORIGINAL-CIN: When we spoke five years ago about your last PAW Patrol movie, your kids were a lot younger and I know they influenced the script. Now that they are eight and 11, how much input did they give you toward The Dino Movie?

CAL BRUCKNER: I would say my kids have now seen enough behind-the-scenes stuff that they understand the process of making movies. They're still looking over my shoulder all the time and giving me their advice (laughs). My 11-year-old loves making movies herself, so I think it's just trying to make sure we have a movie that keeps our youngest audience entertained but also hopefully I can keep my eight and 11-year-old entertained as well.

O-C: Well, let's talk about that because it’s not just about the kids being entertained. It's also about the parents. How do you keep the PAW Patrol movies appealing for everyone?

CB: When Bob Barlen and I are writing these scripts, we're always looking for a central theme that relates both to the youngest kids and to grown-ups. This movie is about the power of perseverance, about it being OK to make mistakes, and what's important is that you keep going. That's how you learn and get better. So, I feel like that's something I would love my kids to learn but it's also something I need to be reminded of as an adult and I think that if we do our job well, that's why it resonates.

O-C: You know the pups so well by now, but bringing the dinosaurs into the story must have been an adventure. How difficult was it to animate them and not make them too scary for the kids?

CB: When we started talking about making a dinosaur movie, I was adamant that we have the dinosaurs still feel like these majestic, inspiring creatures and not too cartoony and goofy. We have a few small, funny dinosaurs, but for the most part, I was trying to capture that feeling, not the scary parts. When I first saw Jurassic Park in the theater, I was blown away and I remember thinking these were real creatures. What an amazing thing to have had on this Earth. I wanted to try and capture some of that, and so we worked hard to try and find a level of realism that obviously still fits within our movie. We brought in anatomy experts on dinosaurs, so that the bones and the muscles were all in the right place. We brought in movement experts that really helped us.

For example, we started animating the T. rex, and it just didn't look heavy enough, and we couldn't quite figure out what we were doing wrong. We brought a dinosaur expert named Stuart Samida, and he helped us with the movement. One of the things he was saying is because the T. rex is so heavy, it can't walk with its feet side by side. It needs to walk with them along the centre line so that it can balance that huge mass and also the tail offsets the walk to manage the weight of this animal. And so, lots of little details like that we brought in to make sure that there was this sense of wonder that kids would go away with seeing these creatures on screen.

O-C: Plus, they are all friendly. The dinosaurs and the pups work together in harmony. What has been the reaction from the kids that have seen the film so far?

CB: I think the kids love it. I think if you're a kid who loves dinosaurs, you don't want to see dinosaurs be the bad guy in this film. That was clear to us early on. We have one very short kind of surprise moment when the pups discover dinosaurs for the first time, but very quickly we make it clear that all the dinosaurs on this island are friendly, and the pups end up being their protectors for this movie.

O-C: Then there's little Rhubarb. Oh, my goodness! How do you create such a cute dinosaur that could be your pet?

CB: I love how you say, ‘could be your pet.’ That's what the pitch for Rhubarb was! What if Marshall, who is a puppy, got a puppy? So, the first time they meet each other, they're playing fetch. The pups embody a lot of human traits so we thought we could have Rhubarb embody a lot of puppy traits. Even the sounds he makes, the way he wags his tail, he's a very pup-ified T.rex, and that makes him extra cute because we all have puppies.

O-C: I can just imagine the merch that's going to be coming out!

CB: My daughter has already said, ‘I need a Rhubarb. You have to pull some strings!’ I said, I will do my best.

O-C: How do you choose which pup you will be focusing on? With this one, it's Marshall where we get to see his backstory and how he became part of PAW Patrol.

CB: I think it felt like a natural fit because Marshall's known as the clumsy pup, and we thought that paired nicely with this idea of embracing mistakes as part of learning and getting better. Marshall finds that his greatest strength is that he's the pup who never gives up. We thought that was a nice, understandable message for our youngest viewers. It's OK to make mistakes. Don't be afraid of messing up but be the pup who never gives up. It’s a good message for adults too!

O-C: You always get a great voice cast, but in this film you have Snoop Dogg. How did that come about?

CB: Snoop's got a large family and a lot of love for PAW Patrol, and that makes casting easy. If people have kids or nieces and nephews or anyone who loves the PAW Patrol, it makes those casting conversations a lot easier. They just want to be part of it and be cool to the youngest people in their lives. It was a thrill to get to work with him and the whole cast.

Director Carl Brunker

O-C: Do you ever get intimidated working with any of these voice actors?

CB: Maybe not intimidated, but sometimes the time you have with them is limited because they've got a lot going on so the first session is always kind of a high pressure. What are they going to be like? How's the working relationship going to be?

It's always such a joy when somebody comes out of the gate with their A-game. Snoop's a perfect example and he was up for trying anything. He was energetic and it was just wonderful. I can say that about the whole cast, and it's so satisfying when you go from never having spoken to someone before to feeling like the character is coming to life for the first time.

O-C: What do you think has made PAW Patrol so enduring?

CB: I think it comes down to that they're such good-hearted characters and the stories are non-cynical, and they're easy to understand. The characters are charming, and they're out there to help people. And I think everybody can get behind a group like that.