A zombie uprising and a 300-year-old witch’s curse might be too much for most 11 year olds to overcome. That’s not the case for Norman Babcock, the unusual hero in the new stop-motion film, “ParaNorman.”

Sixteen years in the making, this ghoulish 3D charmer from British directors Sam Fell and Chris Butler tells the tale of a misunderstood outcast who talks to dead people.

The lonely boy with the big, sad eyes and gravity-defying hair is mocked by his family and bullied throughout the small-minded village of Blithe Hollow.  His only friend is the ghost of his dead grandmother, who sits each evening watching Norman devour one horror movie after another on TV.

“People think he’s weird because of this strange talent that he has,” Fell told CTV’s Canada AM on Thursday.  

“But in the end, this strange talent is what the world needs,” said Fell, 42.

Through an unexpected turn of events, Norman becomes the town’s saviour and uses his special connection to the dead to free Blithe Hollow from its age-old curse that would see it destroyed by zombies. That transformation is what gives “ParaNorman” its heartfelt connection to moviegoers of all ages.

“Norman’s just a boy – he’s not a monster,” Fell told CTVNews.ca on Thursday.

“In today’s world we often get caught up in our perceptions of people – which are often quite wrong. But Norman is so much more than any of us can know at the beginning of this story. I loved that idea right from the start,” said Fell.

Laika Studios, the makers of the 2009 animated hit “Coraline,” gave Fell and Butler free rein on this film, which shines through in the final product.

“So often you’ll find teams in Hollywood working on scripts that aren’t even finished when the film begins shooting. But this was different – this was a labour of love,” said Fell.

Stop-animation is a painstaking process, in which animators can spend a week creating three seconds of footage.

As many as 320 people worked on one painstaking scene at a time to complete this film, which began shooting in 2010.

That dedication shines in one scene, where Norman is caught in the school’s bathroom fending off an unruly ghost.

“That scene is only a few minutes long. But the animator who created it was in that bathroom for a year to get the job done,” said Fell.

Despite such technical marvels, Fell and Butler wanted the film’s timeless story to be the real focus.

“This film is about story and about great characters, not formulas,” said Fell.

“It doesn’t matter that it’s animated at all. Our goal was to tell a story that would be timeless and to people of all ages. It’s not about formulas. It’s not about rushing to churn out what studios execs think would be popular. It’s a story about a boy. It’s a story about heart. And it’s about real artistry,” he said.

If “ParaNorman” is any indication, Hollywood’s current love affair with animated pictures shows no signs of slowing down.

“It seems like there’s an animation company popping up every day now,” Michael Kowalski, an animator with Piximondo studio in Toronto, told Canada AM recently.

“It’s a popular industry to get into. It’s exciting to be part of making such fabulous imagery,” he said.

But along with that excitement, comes work -- which pros such as Kowalski and Fell know all too well.

“The animation field is growing, and I think that’s because filmmakers have found a place where story comes first. That’s something you can put your heart and soul into,” said Fell.

“It’s not about the big stars. They almost fade into the background. Story is everything -- and the work. That’s worth caring about,” he said.