In the heart of Portland, Oregon, Forest Park serves as a city-centered slice of untamed nature. Colin Meloy—lead singer of the Decemberists and writer of the middle-grade series Wildwood—found the thick, 52-acre woodland to be a fantastical backdrop that needed no distant imagination. His story tracks a Portland teenager named Prue as she ventures into the Impassable Wilderness to save her infant brother, who has been seized by a murder of crows. With LAIKA’s new film version now out, viewers receive a digital invitation to explore that woods and, consequently, the odd wilds of the Pacific Northwest.
Mapping the woods in real life
Meloy’s appreciation for what he calls “mythogeography” began during his childhood in Montana. “I remember going out into the woods in our backyard, or into the mountains, and being like, ‘Oh my god, there’s nobody here,’” he says.
When he and illustrator Caron Ellis (who also happens to be Meloy’s wife), began working on the series in the 2000s, the couple was living in the Forest Park neighborhood and spent a lot of time walking the area trails. The surrounding environment, along with Celtic, British, and Scottish mythology, inspired the story. “When you fly over Portland in an airplane, and you see Forest Park, it looks enchanted, because it’s surrounded by such dense human development,” says Ellis. “Like, what’s going on in that giant forest in the middle of a city?” Meloy adds that the park feels wild and unspoiled, despite the fact that it, like many forests in Oregon, was clear-cut less than a century ago.
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Placing a narrative within an actual location and then broadcasting it adds a further dimension for local residents. In Wildwood, the historic Pittock Mansion, linked to Forest Park by nearby trails, is reimagined as the administrative hub for the South Wood’s inhabitants. Residents of Portland can visit the playground where Prue’s baby brother is seized, then gaze across the river at the enigmatic city-edge forest, sharing the creators’ curiosity about what unfolds there.
Nelson Lowry, the production designer for LAIKA, offers a distinct viewpoint on the film. He resides in Linnton, situated directly beneath Forest Park and close to St. John’s Bridge. “Forest Park is literally like my backyard,” Lowry explains, noting that this marks the first occasion he has crafted a movie set in his own neighborhood. “I had great access to the reference. I just went up into the woods a lot.”
The making of the stop-motion woods
LAIKA’s interpretation of the story extends beyond the Impassable Wilderness to include other outdoor locations in Oregon. A flight atop a giant eagle takes the character past the Painted Hills, Haystack Rock, Mount Hood, and the Columbia River Gorge. However, the central focus of the visuals remains within the forest.
The stop-motion animations of the woods are breathtaking. The team faced a difficult challenge in making the environment feel authentic. Lowry created a topography to represent the centuries of detritus that compose a forest floor. The builders placed sonotubes to stand in for fallen trees. They added chunks of material and covered the structure with a blanket to visualize the shapes of a natural environment.
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The trees and plants are representative of Oregon’s native flora. Lowry studied these species during the film’s creation. The movie’s Elder Tree is modeled after a real oak near the designer’s home. Despite the countless hours spent in Forest Park, the designer continues to find surprises in the area.
Lowry notes that nature changes with every visit. A person may hike the same trail twice and experience two different woods. The way in differs from the way out. The scenery looks different during each journey. This change is one of the wonderful aspects of nature.
Published October 22, 2026 03:40AM, Wildwood’s debut encourages audiences to reflect on the qualities that render a forest magical. An enchanted wood ought to be verdant, strikingly beautiful, seemingly impossible, and teeming with untamed life. It should inspire awe, cause you to decelerate and notice the unfurling ferns and soaring trees. You may find your thoughts wandering in step with your movements, creating space for the crisp quiet that only a forest can provide. Occasionally, you might glance over your shoulder, just to be certain.
