Jemaine Clement is all over Annecy Animation Festival this year with three projects. The main one is Kiri and Lou Go Raaa!, backed by the New Zealand Film Commission. Kiri and Lou Go Raaa! is New Zealand’s first-ever claymation film. The film, written by Harry Sinclair, also stars Olivia Tennet (The Lord of the Rings). Two other projects Jemaine Clement lends his voice to are LAIKA’s Wildwood, and the sci-fi epic, Rogue Trooper, which had its world premiere at Annecy Animation Festival on June 22nd.

I spoke with Jemaine Clement about Kiri and Lou Go Raaa!, the What We Do in the Shadows sequel, Avatar 4, his upcoming projects and more.

Demet Koc: You have so many films this year here: Rogue Trooper, Kiri and Lou Go Raaa!, and then you have Wildwood. You’re so busy!

Jemaine Clement: We all did them at different times, so this has been over a couple of years. Rogue Trooper was about almost 2 years ago, and Wildwood was about 4 years ago when I recorded that.

Yeah, animation takes so much time.

Jemaine Clement: I wasn’t that busy, but it’s gonna be a busy few months of them coming out.

You’ve been together with Kiri and Lou for a long time. How do you feel about the character? Where do you put it?

Jemaine Clement: I guess it’s like the smallest thing I do as in it doesn’t take long for me to do it. It’s a small show like for small people, and it’s really sweet and cute. I always enjoy doing it. I love the music so much written by Don McGlashan, who’s one of my favorite musicians. He and Harry [Sinclair], the creator of this, were in a band called The Front Lawn who everyone mentioned was a big influence on me. I love that band. So, I’m always happy to do it. It’s the smallest thing, the smallest creature… The characters, I think aren’t about that big. I’ve never even seen them in real life.

You also are kind of like, one of the faces of New Zealand. Do you feel a responsibility for that? When people think of New Zealand, a lot of people think of you.

Jemaine Clement: Yeah, right. Back when we were doing Flight of the Conchords, me and Brett would be touring around the world. We would just attract New Zealanders. New Zealanders would see us and come over [saying] we’re from New Zealand, that happens less often now, I used to feel it more. In America, a lot of New Zealanders that have lived there said no one could understand what we were saying until they watched the show.

I think I got into [the New Zealand projects] thanks to you and Taika [Waititi]. I would watch What We Do in×the Shadows, then I watched The Hunt for Wilderpeople, and I saw a paranormal show. I can’t remember the name.

Jemaine Clement: Wellington Paranormal.

It’s so interesting, and it’s so nice. It’s refreshing too because everything is so nice in the shows.

Jemaine Clement: People are nice to each other.

Yeah, exactly. Since you’re so much into animation, have you ever thought of making an animated show of What We Do in the Shadows? Maybe an anthology?

Jemaine Clement: Of the TV show, I talked to a company about it. They wanted to make an animated What We Do in the Shadows, but I feel like my work with FX was that one show and I think we’ve ended our relationship with FX. I feel like I’ll move on now. But yeah, it did come up.

We’re writing another What We Do in the Shadows movie, like a sequel to the movie. Alright…

Back to Rogue Trooper, the animation is so different because it’s so realistic, it’s video game style…

Jemaine Clement: And it’s also a very different process because it’s performance capture, you know, the dots on your face.

Yeah, I saw a picture of you.

Jemaine Clement: Yeah, right. And so we all act as a cast together and everyone in the cast is there on set together, whereas a thing like [Kiri and Lou Go Raaa!] or Wildwood, we will record it separately. And in Rogue Trooper, we’re getting up and we’re acting like when we go and move around, it’s like crawling on the ground.

Was it fun?

Jemaine Clement: Yeah, it was fun. It was really fun but it’s a crazy schedule on that because we recorded it all in 8 days, the whole film. We usually have more time, but I love the world they made – the way they plan it.

How did you get involved in this project?

Jemaine Clement: It’s usually the same, like my agent will send an email and there’ll maybe be a letter that it’s got to be you, but I can’t remember it for this one. But I’m a big [fan]. When I was 13, from like 12 to 15, I used to read that comic a lot.

You’re also reunited with Matt Berry in it, you are scene partners. It was such fun. I enjoyed both of you on screen.

Jemaine Clement: I love working with Matt. He’s great.

He’s always a delight to see, yeah,

Jemaine Clement: I think he’s got one of the funniest voices in the world. Maybe the funniest voice in the world.

In the last week alone, I showed like 3 people the What We Do in the Shadows clips of Matt Berry to convince them to watch it, because it’s amazing.

Jemaine Clement: She speaks the bullshit! (Imitating Matt Berry)

New York City. (Imitating Matt Berry) I often say Tucson, Arizona.

Jemaine Clement: I’ve heard that quite a lot. It’s so funny because it’s like those three words we’ve heard millions of times in New York City, but the way he says that, he makes it so fun, and I wrote that part for him. And I didn’t know him yet, I was writing the pilot, and then we worked on a movie together called [An Evening with] Beverly Luff Linn, I said to him, “I’m writing something for you. I hope you do it.”

I’m glad it happened.

Jemaine Clement: Me, too!

I quote What We Do in the Shadows a lot because it’s a comfort show for me.

Jemaine Clement: That’s good. I love hearing that.

You also have been in Avatar. Are you in the upcoming one too?

Jemaine Clement: Apparently, yeah. I don’t know for sure.

But you hope so?

Jemaine Clement: Yeah! And in the last scene in Avatar 3, I’m running off and it’s like, “Wait, what happens next?” He’s like, “We’ll see you,” James Cameron. “We’ll see you in movie 4.” I was like, “OK, news to me.” But you know, it could be rewritten, who knows… But, it’s also really fun to do that. That’s the biggest thing I did, and the smallest one [is Kiri and Lou Go Raaa!]. It’s really small.

You said you had like 4 hours in the booth.

Jemaine Clement: Oh, no! We do it over 4 hours at a time. But Wildwood was about 4 hours in the booth for me. But the kids who are playing the main parts would have many, many.

I am really excited to see Wildwood because it looks so good.

Jemaine Clement: Yeah, it looks amazing. They generally only do 4 hour sessions for animation because your voice gets tired and your voice changes if you do it for too long. It’s always a lot of shouting and screaming.

Does it become tiring?

Jemaine Clement: Yeah. There’s a lot of energy too because you’re transmitting. You don’t get a break in the same way because on a film set, they have to change where the cameras are, but when you’re in the booth, you don’t have to do that so you’re just constantly going.

What else do you have coming?

Jemaine Clement: Moana, the live action. And there’s a movie. It’s a co-production, but it’s a New Zealand movie by Andrew Niccol, he’s most known for writing The Truman Show and Gattaca. He’s a New Zealander and he wrote this movie called I Object about this kid who sees faces and normal things, he sees [inanimate objects] talking to him. So I play a soda can in that. What else? Oh, Alice and Steve’s show that just came out last week on Disney Plus.

This interview has been edited for clarity.

Special thanks to Sylvia Guirand and New Zealand Film Commission for arranging this interview.