DREAM ON SILLY DREAMER sounds awesome! I want to see this film!! And it sounds like it would make a perfect double feature with THE SWEATBOX, the film by Sting’s wife (does she even have a name?) documenting the hilariously inept production of THE EMPEROR’S NEW GROOVE. Florida animator Hugo Giraud first clued me in to DREAM ON:

Former Disney animators Tony West and Dan Lund have made a documentary about the downfall of traditional animation at Disney and the layoffs/closings of mainly the Burbank and Orlando studios. It contains some animation (I pitched in a bit) and has a couple of the big guns like Andreas Deja interviewed (as seen in the TRAILER). The film has been locked after post and it’s now seeking festival venues and distribution.

West and Lund obviously have an appreciation for the Disney animation tradition that the management at the studio currently does not have, and I’m really looking forward to seeing what they have to say in this film. The original animation created for the doc also looks like a lot of fun, and it seems like they’ve put a lot of love and care into this film (check out their “WestLund” homage logo at the beginning of the trailer).

Here’s an update to our earlier STORY about Drew Carey’s live-action/cartoon series. I’ve heard from a few folks close to DREW CAREY’S GREEN SCREEN SHOW and they both have similarly depressing news about the show’s future. Says one source: “Yes, we are contractually finishing up our last episode this week and then we’ll be disbanded like a Peruvian brothel after a police raid.” Says a second source: “I would say it is cancelled; they dropped it a few weeks ago, after the fifth episode. However we are still working on it to finish up the contractually obligated 12 episodes. So there are more left (I’ve seen some of them and as a whole they are funnier than the first five), but when they’ll ever air is a mystery. Even though some say it is on hiatus I feel it is like BATMAN BEYOND’S hiatus - a show every one swore wasn’t cancelled but when was the last time you saw a new episode air.”

Our final contest (for now). The first two people with correct answer (or what I think is the correct answer) to this simple question arriving in my email-box wins a prize. Both winners today get a copy LOONEY TUNES GOLDEN COLLECTION Volume 2. Today’s question is:

What was the last theatrical Warner Bros. cartoon short to feature voice work by Billy Bletcher?(Hint: The one I’m thinking of is on LTGC V.2)

The Contest is now OVER. Craig Davison and David Dobrydney (sp?) were the winners. The answer was: A Bear For Punishment (1951) as Papa Bear.

Well not quite.The Fox and Crow, Flippity & Flop, Sugar & Spike, and Nutsy Squirrel are a few of the characters who get a page devoted to them in a new book, The Golden Age of DC Comics: 365 Days by Les Daniels, Chip Kidd and Geoff Spear (Abrams, hardcover, $29.95).The book is an elaborate page-a-day calendar. Each spread represents a particular day, with a little informational paragraph by Daniels about a DC comics character on one side, and a huge Kidd/Spear color dots enlarged comics panel image on the other. The Fox & Crow appear on April 13th and June 21st.Of course there are numerous of pictures of Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman from dozens of golden age comics - but how often do we see images of Dodo and the Frog (a favorite of mine - drawn by animator Otto Feuer) in a coffee table book?

This past weekend, three out of the top four movies at the North American box office - THE SPONGEBOB SQUAREPANTS MOVIE, THE INCREDIBLES, THE POLAR EXPRESS - were animated films. I’m too lazy to do research, but I’d be willing to bet that this is the first time it’s ever happened. Meanwhile, in Japan this past weekend, Hayao Miyazaki’s latest animated film HOWL’S MOVING CASTLE set a new Japanese box office record for an opening weekend, taking in 1.5 billion yen ($14.6 million).

Boy that was fast. DREW CAREY’S GREEN SCREEN SHOW, the Ron Diamond-produced TV series that mixed live-action improv with animation, is already off the WB’s schedule. I’ve heard both that it’s been cancelled and that it’s temporarily on hiatus, though it’s not clear which story is accurate. I saw the first episode and actually enjoyed it, but forgot to watch all the subsequent episodes.

Jessica Helfand weighs in on THE INCREDIBLES at DesignObserver.com. The piece examines Bird’s movie from a designer’s viewpoint. It’s a nice short read that’s worth a click.

Once again I ask a simple question. The first two people with correct answers (or what I think is the correct answer) to hit my email-box win a prize. Today I have two prizes. The first place winner gets to choose his or her prize from the two.Today’s prizes are: WACKY RACES: THE COMPLETE SERIES and LOONEY TUNES GOLDEN COLLECTION Vol.2. Today’s question is:

Which Warner Bros. cartoon director made the first cartoon to star Henery Hawk?

The Contest is now OVER. The winners are Barb Herholzer and Tyler Sticka. The answer is: Chuck Jones - in the 1942 cartoon THE SQUAWKIN’ HAWK.