A children’s film that dares to tackle one of the most urgent adult crimes: the destruction of our planet. MouMoush, King of Plastic is a visually rich animated feature plan that approaches environmental collapse through the eyes of children, blending fairy-tale adventure with sharp political allegory. In this interview, the director Milorad Krstic speaks about the project’s state, its distinctive visual language, the choice of Transylvania as a setting, and the international journey that has taken this ambitious feature animation plan from Annecy to Berlin.

What inspired you to return to The Adventures of Liam Grant, one of your previous project, and how did it evolve into MouMoush, King of Plastic?

I wanted to create a film for a wider audience, for children and families. Since I had made a children’s picture book twenty years ago, I thought it might be worth revisiting and developing further. In the book, little Liam and his cat appeared in various places around the world (the Sahara, Australia, the Amazon River…), helping people, animals, or plants whenever they found themselves in trouble. In the film, Liam has a younger sister, Margo, the cat is still there, and of course, so is the powerful villain, Moumoush, the King of Plastic, who is ready to destroy parts of the planet just to prove he is the most powerful man in the world. He believes there will be no harm; whatever he ruins, he will rebuild − stronger and more resilient. His Eternal Plastic is truly indestructible. With the help of a time machine built by the children’s uncle, known as Uncle D, Liam and Margo, together with the cat, travel through time and space to confront the mighty villain. Supporting their fight, besides Uncle D, is a young woman, Louis Beaumond, a captain in the Paris police.

The film approaches environmental conflict through a child’s perspective. Why was this viewpoint essential for telling the story you wanted to tell?

In an age when technological civilization increasingly overwhelms the natural world, I believe that the youngest generation − Liam (14) and Margo (10) − with their childlike curiosity and innocence, will still be able to recognize injustice and wrongdoing, and will be brave enough to step into the fight for a better, more beautiful world.

Their youth brings a necessary touch of fairy‑tale wonder to the film, even as it carries a serious message about the potential misuse of science and the dangers threatening our green planet.

Why did you choose Transylvania as the setting for the story, and how does this specific place shape the film’s atmosphere and themes?

Liam and Margo were born in Paris, but their mother, a famous opera singer, was born Hungarian, in the family house in the hills of Transylvania. Liam and Margo spend their summer holidays there. Their uncle lives there as well, and he has just built a gigantic time machine on the mountain river. I have chosen this region because even today, the name Transylvania carries an aura of mystery − shaped partly by Bram Stoker’s novel, partly by the very real presence of bears and wolves roaming its forests.

Who or what does Moumoush represent within the film’s world, both symbolically and narratively?

After rising to the very top of the list of the world’s most powerful people, Moumoush simply cannot bear hearing on Breaking News that he has slipped to second place. The blow to his pride is volcanic. His vanity is as immense as his hunger for power. He behaves like the evil queen from Snow White, demanding that the mirror confirm she is the fairest of them all. History is full of rulers just like him.

Can you tell more about the animation technique and visual style?

I am a painter, and in my animated world, visual style plays a pivotal role in bringing a good story to life. My handmade characters must possess a unique visual appeal.

They couldn’t be cliché. The backgrounds must be persuasive. A perfect background can make a scene with characters in a premier plan as beautiful as a Raphael painting. The story’s visual design boasts a rich texture, blending surreal elements with meticulously planned details. Animation director Zsolt Baumgartner and technical director Levente Sipos focus on identifying the most effective techniques to bring my

vision for certain scenes to life. As defined by Levente, we use a mix of animation and rendering techniques, incorporating detailed 2D textures projected onto 3D objects − serving as graphics − alongside 2.5D drawn or painted backgrounds. The main characters are primarily animated in 2D frame-by-frame, as this approach best captures authentic movements and expressive performances. Camera settings and movements are dynamic and bold; the film’s space is often constructed from multiple perspectives, remaining innovative even within the constraints of 3D perspective. The film is being developed in a multi-format: 4K DCI scope/full frame.

Which pitching forums or industry platforms has the project already been presented at, and where do you plan to pitch MouMoush, King of Plastic next?

First, we represented the MouMoush at Annecy on the Creative Europe MEDIA umbrella stand in the organisation of CEEA. The first official pitching was at the CEE Animation Forum in Plzen. There, we won the Cartoon Movie Award, and we pitched it at the Cartoon Movie Forum in Bordeaux, where we can meet significant film industry partners.

Then we had the opportunity, with the support of NFI, to present an animatic of the MouMoush on the stand of the Hungarian National Film Institute (whose support we got for the development and pre-production) in MIFA Annecy. The result of our presence in Annecy is the official invitation from MIFA to the Annecy Animation Showcase EFM (European Film Market) 2026 in Berlin.

We are looking to hit the condition for further fruitful collaboration with the partners we are already in contact with and the new possible partners to achieve the aim of premiering the MouMoush – The King of Plastic in 2028.