Bluey’s Daley Pearson on how losing his brother inspired his new film: ‘He was the best thing ever to me’
Allen, the first live-action film from Pearson’s Ludo Studio, follows a man who met an alien as a kid – and becomes obsessed with bringing him back Get our weekend culture and lifestyle email If, for whatever reason, you want to feel a bit sad, think too hard about what Elliott from ET would have been like as an adult. Or Coraline, or Matilda, or Chihiro, or those kids in Mary Poppins. The most amazing thing that…
Key points
- Daley Pearson's new Netflix film Allen, co-created with Ludo Studio, is released on 12 November.
- The film follows Petey, who befriends an alien as a child and becomes obsessed with bringing him back.
- Pearson says the death of his brother Liam, who died of cancer aged 26, inspired the film's themes.
Daley Pearson, co-founder of Brisbane production company Ludo Studio, has co-created a new Netflix family film called Allen, released on 12 November. It is the first live-action film from Ludo Studio, the company behind Bluey. Pearson co-directed the film with Jeffrey Walker and co-wrote it with Sophie Miller.
The story follows Petey, played by TJ Power, who meets a friendly alien as a child in the Sunshine Coast town of Coolum Beach. The pair are best friends for a month until Allen is summoned home. Decades later, Petey remains obsessed with bringing Allen back, and the alien eventually returns.
Loss of his brother
Pearson said the film is tied to the death of his older brother Liam, who died of cancer aged 26 when Pearson was 13. He said Liam was "the best thing ever to me" and that the film is about the feeling of losing something and wanting it back so badly that you stop moving forward.
Pearson said he listens only to old songs, keeps old toys around the Ludo office and watches only old movies, which connects him to a past that no longer exists.
He was my best friend, the best thing ever to me
— Daley Pearson
Making the alien
Pearson said the alien took years of intensive development, and that an early animatronic version was "frightening". The final Allen is a puppet with visual effects added for his expressions and movement.
Pearson said Bluey never felt like it could be paused during production. He said the show's success has put more pressure on the studio because it is now known as the team behind Bluey.
