Filmmaker Chris Sanders had finally cracked “The Wild Robot.”Peter Brown’s middle-grade book, about an intelligent robot living in the wilderness, had been sitting on the shelf at DreamWorks Animation for a bit.

DreamWorks’ The Wild Robot — from How to Train Your Dragon director Chris Sanders — is the best animated movie of the year.

Undoubtedly it’s easier for animation studios to have an in-house style, but this isn’t the path DreamWorks Animation decided to take when adapting the illustrated children’s novel The Wild Robot by Peter Brown,

DreamWorks' The Wild Robot has emerged as a breakout success, but it is only the most recent acclaimed hit of director Chris Sanders' career.