Laika's stop-motion animated feature "Wildwood" will open the 40th edition of AFI Fest, presented by Canva, on 21 October, marking the film's US premiere. The film is the latest project from the Portland-based studio and is directed and produced by Travis Knight, who has described the production as a sixteen-year undertaking involving hundreds of artists and craftspeople. AFI festival organisers praised the film as an imaginative, handcrafted work suited to opening the event.

"Wildwood" follows a young girl, Prue (voiced by Peyton Elizabeth Lee), who is joined by her classmate Curtis (Jacob Tremblay) on a mission to rescue her baby brother from a murder of crows, leading them into an enchanted, forbidden forest outside Portland, Oregon. The voice cast also includes Carey Mulligan, Mahershala Ali, Angela Bassett, Awkwafina, Jake Johnson, Charlie Day, Amandla Stenberg, Jemaine Clement, Maya Erskine, Tantoo Cardinal, Tom Waits and Richard E. Grant. AFI Fest's 40th edition runs from 21 to 25 October and will feature red carpet premieres, special screenings, world cinema, documentaries and short films, following last year's programme which included "Bugonia," "Christy" and "Jay Kelly."