Talking animals have been a mainstay of animation since the early Disney days, and modern cartoon moviemakers have taken the furry fauna to even more realistic levels thanks to many improvements in computer capabilities. But "Kung Fu Panda," DreamWorks Animation’s latest CG endeavor starring Jack Black in the title role, is a whole other animal.

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Jack Black and his character Po.
DreamWorks Animation LLC / Photo by Patrick Ecclesine
Jack Black voices Po, a clumsy panda unexpectedly chosen to fulfill an ancient prophecy and train in the art of kung fu, in DreamWorks' "Kung Fu Panda," distributed by Paramount Pictures and opening Friday, June 6, 2008.
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Not only is the film populated by a menagerie of different creatures, most with fur and all with clothing -- both difficult to design and animate -- the main characters execute complicated kung fu moves in several extended fight scenes in the movie.

Five years in the making, "Kung Fu Panda" is set in dynastic China and tells the tale of ­Po the Panda (Jack Black), who works with his dad in a noodle shop but would love nothing more than to be a kung fu master like his idols the Furious Five. But lacking the confidence and skills, the klutzy, oversize fan boy admires them from afar -- until an unexpected turn of events, and an ancient prophecy -- put him front and center in a climactic battle against a formidable enemy.

Jack Black, who recorded his part on an average of once a month over the last three years, isn’t the only marquee name lending his voice to the project. Angelina Jolie, Seth Rogen, Jackie Chan, Lucy Liu and David Cross make up the Furious Five and Dustin Hoffman is their trainer, Master Shifu. Ian McShane voices the villain, Tai Lung, and Michael Clarke Duncan is the prison commander, Vachir.

Blending their performances with the animated visuals fell to co-directors Mark Osbourne and John Stevenson. Read on to find out how they brought the fight scenes to life.

"Panda" For Sale
The "Kung Fu Panda" merchandise runs the gamut from action figures to plush toys, stickers, a Rock ‘em Sock ‘em Panda and an Activision video game. "We’ve been closely involved with that because everybody on the film loves video games," notes director Stevenson. "There are a bunch of characters that got cut from the movie that you’ll see in the game," adds co-director Osbourne.

Although there’s also a tie-in with McDonald’s, which will offer Happy Meals with toys inside, it should be noted that noodles and tofu are the mainstays of the movie characters’ diets. No carnivores in this cartoon. "Everybody is vegetarian, even our predatory characters—otherwise it got too weird," explains Stevenson.