Interview with the directors of Kung Fu Panda

andPOP has published an insightful interview with John Stevenson and Mark Osbourne, directors of DreamWorks Animation’s Kung Fu Panda, which is now in theaters.

Here’s an excerpt:

andPOP: Where did the idea for Kung Fu Panda come from? Did it originate with you, or did it come from higher up in DreamWorks?

STEVENSON: It was an idea that originated in the development department at DreamWorks, and it was something that people responded to when they heard the two things: kung fu – great, hardcore, use of athletic ability and discipline – and pandas – furry, cute. It was a great mix of two weird ideas, but it hadn’t found a voice. It was languishing in the world of parody –

OSBOURNE: It made everyone kind of chuckle, but nobody quite knew what to do with it, and when we came together we decided to reinvent the idea as an epic kung fu film, not a parody.

Head over to andPOP to read the entire interview.