Wes Anderson-Dissing Fantastic Mr. Fox Cinematographer Hits Hollywood Theatre Tomorrow

About five minutes after WW put its movie pages to press Tuesday, the Hollywood Theatre sent us late-breaking word that three contributors to Wes Anderson's Oscar-nominated stop-motion cartoon Fantastic Mr. Fox, including cinematographer Tristan Oliver, will be stopping by for a Q&A after Wednesday's 6:45 pm screening of the movie.

This March 3 appearance would be news enough. But it's more interesting when you remember that Tristan Oliver is the guy who publicly started cussin' with Anderson during Fantastic Mr. Fox production last fall, when the director supervised the London-based animation long distance from Paris. Here's what Oliver told the L. A. Times:

"It's not in the least bit normal," Oliver said. "I've never worked on a picture where the director has been anywhere other than the studio floor! ... I think [Anderson is] a little sociopathic ... I think he's a little O.C.D. Contact with people disturbs him. This way, he can spend an entire day locked inside an empty room with a computer. He's a bit like the Wizard of Oz. Behind the curtain."

So, dude has a lot to say. It's hard to be sure whether Oliver's tiff with Anderson is going to cause him trouble in Portland because we love Wes Anderson so much or whether it will make him a hero here because we are so over Wes Anderson. What day is it again? Anyway, the guy's here. So are key animator Brad Schiff and production designer Nelson Lowry, who we hope was somehow involved in making those terrific little fox-sized blazers.

It also seems worth noting that Oliver and company arrive in Portland during a time when local animation studio Laika is starting to make noises about a follow-up to its own Oscar nominee Coraline, though of course we're in no position to speculate about any possible connection. Besides, Wes Anderson says he's happy to work with Oliver again.