Wilson Coneybeare (Monster Warriors) is making his feature directorial debut with Gooby, a children’s film shooting in Barrie, ON under his shingle Coneybeare Stories. The film, which Coneybeare also penned, features Scottish veteran Robbie Coltrane (the Harry Potter movies) as the voice of the titular creature who poses as a teddy bear and befriends a lonely young boy, played by Canuck actor Matthew Knight (The Greatest Game Ever Played).

It also stars Eugene Levy (American Pie) as the boy’s eccentric teacher, and David James Elliott (JAG) as his father. Gooby is exec produced by Barrie businessman Sab Ravalli, with producers John Calvert (Earth: Final Conflict) and Nicholas Gray (Rent-a-Goalie).

Gooby is set to wrap at the end of November, with post-production to be done at Toronto’s Deluxe studios and Urban Audio. It is slated for release next summer through Seville Pictures. Porchlight Entertainment is attached as international distributor.