With Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse set to swing into theaters this summer, Sony Pictures Animation is also set to release a short set in the same, um, Spider-Verse as the highly anticipated film, according to Variety.
- The new short will be titled “The Spider Within” and it is set to premiere at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival this June.
- The short will see Miles Morales “struggle to balance his responsibilities as a teenager, friend and student while acting as Brooklyn’s friendly neighborhood superhero. After a particularly challenging day living with these pressures, Miles experiences a panic attack that forces him to confront the manifestations of his anxiety and learn that reaching out for help can be just as brave an act as protecting his city from evil.”
- “The Spider Within” is a product of Sony’s new mentorship program, LENS (Leading and Empowering New Storytellers).
- LENS was launched internally last year and the new program “aims to provide high-potential candidates from underrepresented groups an opportunity to gain valuable leadership experience.”
- Within the LENS program, creators and producers Michelle Raimo Kouyate and David Schulenburg guide four candidates as they work together to produce a short animated film.
What they’re saying:
- Michelle Raimo Kouyate and David Schulenburg: “We feel honored and privileged to have been given the opportunity to give shape to the inaugural launch of the LENS program. We are incredibly proud of how the hard work of all four filmmakers — Jarelle Dampier, Khaila Amazan, Clara Chan and Joe Darko — has paid off. They far exceeded all expectations as they stepped into their leadership roles and created a remarkable short. We are very grateful to be part of a studio that is doing meaningful work to give voice to varied groups and to the studio leadership — Kristine Belson, Michelle Grady, Pam Marsden and Paul Martin — who gave rise to this program and supported us every step along the way.”
- LENS filmmakers Jarelle Dampier, Khaila Amazan, Clara Chan and Joe Darko: “The LENS Program was life-changing for all of us – it allowed us to achieve a goal that we felt was very far away. Seeing diverse representation in leadership roles really makes a difference because it shows the next generation of filmmakers that the barriers are being broken down. Animation is the most collaborative art form there is, and it takes a special place to open its doors and foster creatives who have the potential to tell great stories, but haven’t been given their chance to shine. We are so grateful for this experience and the opportunity to create something meaningful, and we can’t wait to share it with the world.”
About Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse:
- Miles Morales returns for the next chapter of the Oscar-winning Spider-Verse saga, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse. After reuniting with Gwen Stacy, Brooklyn’s full-time, friendly neighborhood Spider-Man is catapulted across the Multiverse, where he encounters a team of Spider-People charged with protecting its very existence. But when the heroes clash on how to handle a new threat, Miles finds himself pitted against the other Spiders and must redefine what it means to be a hero so he can save the people he loves most.
- The cast includes:
- Shameik Moore
- Hailee Steinfeld
- Jake Johnson
- Issa Rae
- Daniel Kaluuya
- Jason Schwartzman
- Brian Tyree Henry
- Luna Lauren Velez
- Greta Lee
- Rachel Dratch
- Jorma Taccone
- Shea Whigham
- Oscar Isaac
- The film is directed by Joaquim Dos Santos, Kemp Powers, and Justin K. Thompson, from a screenplay by Phil Lord & Christopher Miller, and David Callaham.
- The film is produced by Avi Arad. Amy Pascal, Phil Lord. Christopher Miller, and Christina Steinberg, with executive producers Bob Persichetti, Peter Ramsey, Rodney Rothman, Aditya Sood, Rebecca Karch, and Brian Bendis.
- Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse swings into theaters (and the Multiverse) on June 2nd, 2023.