Apparently one of the negative side effects of Communism is that it destroys your ability to discern between good and bad animation. How else to explain this bizarro-world story? The Animation Guild blog found an article in the HINDU TIMES that says GARFIELD: A TALE OF 2 KITTIES has become the highest-grossing animated feature of all-time in China with $5.8 million (US) in its first three weeks. THE LION KING had been the box office champ for the past twelve years with a gross of $5.12 mil (US). Pixar’s new film CARS opened recently with $1.35 million in China which means it’s unlikely to overtake GARFIELD at the box office.

ABC’s broadcast of Nightline last night did a report on classic cartoon censorship. I appear on camera to give a few thoughts.

We don’t usually review live action films on CARTOON BREW, but I just saw Mike Judge’s latest feature film, IDIOCRACY, and had to comment. Not so much about the film - a hilarious and scathing satire on the “dumbing down of America” - but about the way 20th Century Fox has dumped it into a release without ads (OK, there was a small one in Friday’s LA Times), no publicity, and no reviews (OK, the L.A. Times gave it a rave in Monday’s paper, four days after its opening date).The story concerns a government experiment that sends a boneheaded private and clueless prostitute 500 years into the future, where everything has been so dumbed down the soldier now finds himself the smartest person in the world. Water has been replaced by Gatorade and Starbucks sells sex and everyone has a UPC code tattooed to their wrists. It’s a more accurate prediction of our future than anything Star Trek or H.G. Wells could imagine. And it’s really funny.I’m afraid, like THE SWEATBOX and CATS DON’T DANCE, that this film will be gone by Friday. If you’re interested in laughing - a lot - go see it today or tomorrow before they pull it from release. I’m sure the film will end up, like Judge’s first live action effort OFFICE SPACE, a cult item on DVD. But I, my wife and a friend had a great time with it last night on the big screen - and we highly recommend it.

You’ve seen John Wilson’s work, but may not know his name. Wilson has had an amazing career, starting at David Hand’s studio in England in the 1940s and quickly making his mark at UPA and Disney during the early 50s. His pioneering film PETROUSHKA (pictured above) was a landmark of made-for-TV animation. He went on to co-found Asifa-Hollywood and direct the feature SHINBONE ALLEY. His biggest claim to fame are the animated music videos he did for THE SONNY AND CHER SHOW and the opening titles for GREASE.Wilson is still alive and working, in semi-retirement. I just found out that his company, Fine Arts Films, has a website that features his story, a gallery, and film clips. Check it out - a remarkable career, a remarkable man.

The Silent Clowns Film Series in New York City is beginning its 10th season with a program featuring silent cartoons on Sunday, October 8 at 2pm in the auditorium of the New-York Historical Society. Cartoons scheduled include Fleischer’s Koko the Clown in KOKO’S EARTH CONTROL (above left), Winkler’s Oswald the Lucky Rabbit in SICK CYLINDERS (above right), Sullivan/Messmer’s Felix the Cat in TWO LIP TIME, plus a live re-creation of Windsor McCay’s GERTIE THE DINOSAUR vaudeville act. All cartoons are scheduled to have live piano accompaniment. It’s not often there’s an opportunity to see films like this on a big screen with an audience and live music in the New York area, so one hopes a good turnout will encourage them to schedule more cartoons.(Thanks, Russell Handelman)

First, watch the TRAILER for this independent CG feature called TUGGER: THE JEEP 4X4 WHO WANTED TO FLY. Then, go and read this story in the ORLANDO SENTINEL about how this became the independent animated feature from hell, thanks to the film’s director, animation veteran Jeffrey Varab. What isn’t mentioned in the article is that Varab probably convinced a lot of investors to part with their money by selling this as a “Christian” project. The Christian aspect of the story comes out in the article’s comments section as well as in this post from the blog of SENTINEL film critic Roger Moore. I find it odd that the SENTINEL decided not to discuss the obvious religious aspect of the scam, especially because it’s so obvious. Even the name of Varab’s studio - Genesis Orlando - makes it evident that his whole idea was to find Christian financial backers.

UPDATE: Erif Graf writes:

I was reading the Tugger article, and I was wondering if you caught the significance of the name Iake Eissinmann. That’s the child star who played Tony in Disney’s “Escape to Witch Mountain.” He’s done a lot of voiceover work as well.

After ANT BULLY, I was certain that I never wanted to see another piece of CG animation with insects in it. That was until I saw this short film on YouTube called MINUSCULE. Conceptually, it is one of the freshest bits of animation I’ve seen in a while. The insect designs are a cross between realistic/cartoon, their environment is live-action, and the gags are pure cartoon. It’s difficult to describe because while the gags are timed very cartoony, the overall feel is more naturalistic than your average cartoon. The results are laugh-out-loud funny and the short works on every level. (Be sure to turn up the volume because the sfx are excellent as well.)

I was so impressed that I decided to find out exactly what this is. Turns out that MINUSCULE is a TV pilot co-created by Hélène Giraud (production design) and Thomas Szabo (direction). The show has been picked up and they’re currently creating 78 dialogue-less 6-minute shorts chronicling the adventures of the entire insect kingdom. The production company is France’s Futurikon and the series is slated to air in the US on Disney Channel. If the rest of the episodes hold up to the quality of this pilot, I think we’re in for something special.

Watch the MINUSCULE pilot below:

(Thanks, Peter Gelderblom)

Esteemed animation historian Michael Barrier has commented on his website about the John Sibley article in the new ANIMATION BLAST #9. Here’s what he says:

So far I’ve read Pete Docter’s piece on John Sibley, the Disney animator, in Animation Blast, and it’s an outstanding piece of work - lots of good research (I shared with Pete excerpts from some of my interviews, as I’ve done with Amid and John Canemaker and other writers I respect), wrapped up in an article that conveys extremely well Sibley’s strengths as an animator and his characteristics as a person. Pete is himself an animation pro, the director of Pixar’s Monsters, Inc., and it’s tremendously encouraging that a leading professional at the leading animation studio has such a strong sense of his medium’s history.

If you want to see what he’s talking about, order your very own copy of BLAST 9 HERE.