In a desperate attempt to aid a lost soul, a benevolent oversized rabbit must find a way to rekindle a forgotten spark.

When a benevolent oversized rabbit finds himself at a mysteriously empty and grim house, he uncovers a solitary woman burrowed in a dark place. Not content to leave her to her current reality, he decides to motivate her catharsis, only to find that sometimes the only way out – is through. We all know Chris Sullivan as a bubbly and loving character from NBC’s hit series ‘THIS IS US’, so director Luke Boyce had to stuff him in a giant bunny suit to raise his charm to another level. But as fluffy as it seems, ‘The Pooka‘ pulls its share of highly dramatic sensations to brilliantly bring us on an unprecedented journey, despite the familiar theme at base.

I made The Pooka with a strict goal in mind: exemplify the complex nature of grief. The search for how to find connection again after loss and how that might manifest itself. Who, or what, do we go to in our deepest hour of need? When I first read the script by Alissa Dean, which was given to me by our bunny-suited lead actor, I was quite struck by the playful melancholy with which she composed this story. I wanted to paint the atmosphere with the same kind of alienation that surrounds many older children’s books, where the fantastical fights with the familiar. I wanted to explore how one might turn to the inner child to help break through the bonds of grief and I think we created something unique with that in mind.

When you are capable of going from laughs to tears with a giant bunny, you are certain to leave a lasting and memorable impression on your audience. The delivery is a much larger story cleverly compressed in an abundance of highs and lows. Chris Sullivan and Lily Rains render a grandiose performance to really set the tables, but the production team made an incredible load of work to make sure you leave off with that tingly feeling in your belly.