Brad Bird, whose films ‘The Incredibles’ and ‘Ratatouille’ both won Oscars

Many films were featured at Disney’s D23 expo this weekend, but none, including Star Wars: Episode VII, have been shrouded in as much secrecy as Tomorrowland. As referenced in previous articles the film will center on a high school girl (Britt Robertson) who must use her unique ability with technology to save her future. This is a pretty vague synopsis, and producers Brad Bird and Damon Lindelof want it that way.

At D23 the duo spoke on their disdain for spoilers and leaks. Bird compared spoilers to a heckler who shouts out the punchline to a comic’s well-crafted joke. He claims that fans can be excited about a film without needing to know every detail before its release, adding, “If you like storytelling why would you want that?” Bird even worries that eventual trailers for the film will give away too much. He commented that too many movie trailers reveal the entire story well into the third act, making it unnecessary to see the actual feature.

Lindelof once again squashed rumors that this would be an alien movie, but did confirm that they were shooting for the same level of discovery and excitement found in films such as Close Encounters of the Third Kind. Lindelof and Bird both confirmed they were going for a very specific feel for the film. Lindelof added, “When you close your eyes and think of three things that it makes you picture when I say Tomorrowland, those are the things that should be in the movie.”

Bird and Lindelof’s inspiration for the film came from a box found in the Disney archives which contained a number of curious artifacts including unusual animation reels and a counterfeit picture of Walt Disney and Amelia Earhart. This mystery box reportedly intrigued George Clooney enough to inspire him to sign on to the film. The producers put together a D23 exhibit which features the contents found in the box. Although the reason those items ended up in the box is unknown, Lindelof claims, “Our job as storytellers is to say, ‘What if everything in this box was put there for a reason?'”

In addition to producing, Bird and Lindelof have written the screenplay along with Jeff Jensen. Bird is directing the film, which is due out in December 2014.