GABBY takes audiences on a cinematic journey for the first time ever in Gabby’s Dollhouse: The Movie, based on the global hit streaming series. Laila Lockhart Kraner is reprising her role as the beloved Gabby, taking off on a road trip to Cat Francisco with her Grandma Gigi, played by four-time Grammy Award winner Gloria Estefan.
Trouble ensues when Gabby’s dollhouse, her most precious possession, gets stolen by the eccentric cat lady Vera (Kristen Wiig). Adventure awaits as she travels to the real world to get the Gabby Cats together and save Gabby’s dollhouse.
With a massive fanbase of kids and parents alike, tuned to 11 successful seasons, DreamWorks Animation President Maggie Cohn felt like the jump into the big screen was the perfect next step for the franchise. “Gabby’s Dollhouse is filled with endless creativity and imagination, playing out in a deeply imagined world,” Cohn says. “Combine this with a director with a vision and a passionate fanbase wanting more from the franchise, and we had a great start for our movie.”
Passionate is the apt term for director Ryan Crego, who is already immersed in Gabby’s world from the start. “Living in a house of Gabby fans—I have three small kids who are obsessed—it was super important to me to retain the charm, character and copious amounts of glitter that have made Gabby’s such a success,” Crego says.
“All while striving to give the audience (and parents) a heightened, interactive experience, unlike anything that we have seen in the modern-day movie going era. We pushed for a much bigger journey, full of surprises and a heartfelt character arc that would only be possible given the length and structure of a feature-length film. It is a big responsibility to take one of the most successful original shows in the kids’ space of the last decade and make a movie out of it. There is so much that is great about Gabby’s Dollhouse, you just do not want to break it. Make no mistake, this is not a tv special; this is Gabby and the Gabby
Cats on their biggest big screen adventure yet!
Crego feels it’s important to always have a sense of childlike wonder in everyone, not just children, and he wants Gabby’s Dollhouse: The Movie to help maintain it. “As adults, we often lose touch with that sense of play,” Crego says. “This movie is about rediscovering it and holding on to it. It is a message not just for kids, but for their parents and grandparents too.”
He also aims for this to be a memorable first for any young moviegoers seeing a film in theaters for the first time. “We wanted this to be a child’s first cinematic adventure,” Crego says. “One that has joy and music and silliness, yes, but also a sense of emotional weight and momentum.”
Not only is Gabby’s Dollhouse: The Movie the first cinematic venture for the franchise, it’s DreamWorks Animation’s first creative venture into a multi-media film. . “This is DreamWorks Animation’s first hybrid feature,” Cohn says. “But it is more than that. It is an imaginative, interactive, in-theater experience, and I cannot wait to see kids and their families singing, dancing and ‘pinch pinching’ along.” Crego adds: “I hope kids leave the theater inspired to create and sing and play, and that they are left with the reminder that creativity is not something you outgrow. It evolves and deepens and, if we are lucky, it never leaves us.”
A fun family journey awaits as Gabby’s Dollhouse: The Movie arrives in Philippine cinemas on September 24.
