New Year’s Day Open Thread

By
on

2011 will be our 8th year of Cartoon Brew. We’re really excited about the site this year and we’ll be spending more time than ever building Cartoon Brew into the Internet’s premier animation destination. How would you like to see Cartoon Brew grow in 2011? What topics would you like us to write more about–industry news, international news, anime, comics, short films, TV, CGI, how-to’s? More episodes of Cartoon Brew TV? More of Brew TV’s Student Animation Festival? Should we start producing original Cartoon Brew animation content? Give us your wishlist. Animation is one of the quickest growing art forms around the world, and we plan to grow along with it.

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  • http://www.tonydistefano.blogspot.com Tony D.

    Would you spend more time with 2d work from around the world. I know here in the US, or Hollywood rather, there is not a lot going on. So it would be informative to see if 2d is as dead as Hollywood indicates. And Im talking about real 2d not flash. Also, are their many animators that still work on paper?

    • Iritscen

      Yes, I heartily second this — not necessarily more anime (there’s news sites dedicated to it already), but other international animation would be great, especially 2D.

    • 2011 Baby

      Mentioning Flash as not a real 2D art form is asking for 100 replies of debate. But for me… I would like to see more coverage of animation in places other than you would immediately think of. Video games, web series, interactive comics, installations were all mentioned … maybe there’s a website that has some gripping animation in its interface that you happen to pass by one day.

    • Stephen Levinson

      @Tony, I think you mean traditional animation opposed to flash animation. But there are tons of traditionally animated films done in flash which makes your statement irrelevant bc If you want traditional animation that’s fine, and I know I do, but it doesn’t matter what program it’s made in as long as it’s drawn frame by frame.

      • Chris Sokalofsky

        Actually I want the Brew to do the exact opposite. I think CG animation is woefully under-represented on this site, at least in a good way. People seem to prefer putting up bad cg and mocking it rather than showing good CG. I’d say it’s probably 5-1 2d to 3d shorts on the brew.

        You mentioned Animation is one of the fastest growing mediums, but the Brew is strongly slanted towards what USED to be. I think it’s high time the brew stopped with their snob-minded ideals that everything in this industry was better in the 50′s and start embracing the new, rather than the latest attempt to mimic the old.

      • 2011 Baby

        That’s one way to put it. Yes the old titles were all great and were better than what we are seeing today in a lot of areas, and we can learn from them, but how does looking back at them AGAIN help us today? We can do lots of things better today that was unthinkable decades ago!

  • http://www.bishopanimation.com FloydBishop

    I’d like to see some more coverage of video game animation. Not necessarily videogames based on animated properties, but on the actual art form of animation in video games themselves. I think it’s a huge part of the industry, with little to no coverage here. As the place for the animation conversation, I think it should be included. (I’m not talking about the Fartblaster app from Total Drama Island, either.)

    • http://robertkohr.com Robert Kohr

      Agreed. There is a huge developing industry in iOS and Android Games thats not represented and many animators and designers work on these games. There is no shame in it but for some reason the industry at large looks down on game animation. With the resurgence of indy gaming its almost on par with indy animation except that it has the potential to actually turn a profit.

  • http://www.atomicbearpress.com Brian

    There is so much animation in the world and thanks to the internet we can see samples of so much more of it. But there are projects that remain mysteries or hard to see and it would be great if the popularity of Cartoon Brew lead to ways to get a better look at them. I especially am interested in drawn 2D animation, animated feature films from other country’s and independent animated features.

    Maybe you could do a monthly profile of animation studios from other lands?

  • http://www.animationinsider.net/ Aaron H. Bynum

    More coverage of animators-doing-things-other-than-animation… The Brew covers them well, but it would be great to see the coverage continued. Quite often, animators contribute to museum exhibitions, publish art books, and collaborate with other artists in other media… news of this sort usually isn’t hyped or published anywhere but an artist’s own website, and can be tough to track down.

    • http://www.youtube.com/user/VujadeEntertainment#p/u/0/3HaupcJwAdk Steve Schnier

      I agree with Aaron. Speaking personally, although I’m trained in classic 2D animation, my work has involved 2D, ,CG, miniatures, motion control and puppets. I’ve curated two major art gallery shows – all of which pertain to and have strong links to animation. The sad thing is that none of this falls under the current CB mandate.

      You’re doing a great job – but maybe you could broaden your horizons a bit.

  • http://www.taberanimation.com Taber Dunipace

    The only thing I’ve ever felt a lack of was interviews with industry notables. We do have the opportunity to ask our own questions occasionally when a film maker posts their work, but it’s also nice to have a list of prepared questions to peruse.

    Keep up the great work guys!

  • Jorge Garrido

    I’d definitely like to see more stuff about comics, which is animation’s sister art anyway. Cartooning covers both animation and comic books, even “realistic” artists like Jack Kirby called themselves cartoonists in the old days. Killer or unknown webcomics, classic reprints, and comic book coverage would be appreciated, especially from the likes of Darwyn Cooke and John Sanford.

  • Jay Sabicer

    I’d personally enjoy seeing more work from animators via Cartoon Brew TV. The brewmasters do an excellent job of digging deeper into some of the story of the production and the background of the artists involved. It would be gratifying to see if this is where the next great animator gets their big break, given the audience this blog generates.

  • http://www.bruandboegie.co.za Mike

    More cowbell.

    Jokes but really I’d like it if the youtube links to videos could be provided so that I can view them on my mobile phone (I can only really do youtube links on my blackberry, not vimeo or embedded video clips)

    Also a few screenshots of the clips would be nice so that I can suss out before loading the clip. Internet in South Africa is still not quite as fast and cheap as it is elsewhere in the world particularly the States.

    Other than that I tend to enjoy a focus not so much of the hollywood blockbuster 3D side, like main features, but more on things I may not see advertised all over the place. The ads on cb kind of bleak me out a bit to be honest. I can get ads like that anywhere (movie x for your consideration etc…) By opening the paper or watching tv. I come to cb to find out what’s happening in animation other than the obvious ‘disney has released a movie let’s talk about it’ fare, but more about ‘some person in bizarre country x has crafted a neat animated short in this niche thing, its great and would otherwise go unnoticed.’

    Just seemed to be a much more mainstream focus as of late.

    Anyways. My 2 cents.

  • Captain Hollywood

    interviews/live q&a (perhaps with ustream) with top industry professionals.

  • http://www.classicparamountcartoons.blogspot.com ParamountCartoons

    Full Paramount cartoons with original titles from the 1930′s and 1940′s never before posted that way in full (on YouTube and stuff) and…..

    More posts by Linda Simensky! Maybe have the PBS Kids executive join forces with Jerry Beck into delieviring great classic content!

    Also, Tom Ruegger should be posting on The Brew!

    • Luke

      I agree on both suggestions, especially Tom Ruegger

  • Blasko

    I’m fascinated by European and international animated feature films — and I’m wondering if the channels for U.S. distribution are increasing. Any any updates on long-delayed projects (Norstein’s The Overcoat) would also be greatly appreciated.

  • http://www.frankpanucci.com Frank Panucci

    Entire new CARTOON DUMP shows posted online for free!

  • The Brewmasters

    Great thoughtful suggestions everybody! Keep ‘em coming.

  • A Fan of Cartoonbrew

    I’d like it if there were more posts on video game art styles and video game animation.

  • Rob

    I’ve always felt there was too many posts relying on shaming bad animation. I can’t speak for everyone, but that’s not why I come here. I can tell that Yogi Bear and its ilk aren’t for me, I really don’t need a new post every time a new trailer or poster comes out. There’s so many better looking things to be looking at.

    There will always be terrible animation, and that’s not really what I visit this blog to see.

    Also, I’m embarrassed that so many folks here lambasted Pes’s solitary post. I’d really like to see more from him if he ever comes back, and hopefully we can all be a little more open to hearing about something that’s not Pixar for five minutes.

    • http://www.davidessman.com david essman

      I agree with Rob. Less posts shaming bad animations. more posts showcasing good animation.

      I’m sure you guys get lots of people sending links to their new animated short posted online. Why not post them and give their work an audience?

    • Stephan

      No, I agree completely. I was going to write something similar below. Besides, sometimes you guys spend months mocking animation that ends up being either entertaining (Megamind) or awakens the public (Tangled).

      And I agree that bad animation is not why I come to this blog.

  • http://bakertoons.blogspot.com/ Charles Brubaker

    A revival of the “Cartoon Dump” online series, if possible.

    And more “Cartoon Brew TV” episodes, whether with rare cartoons or student shorts…

  • Brian Marshall

    I’m more of an old-school type of guy, so I’d like to see more from the Golden Age of cartoons from the 30s, 40s and 50s. I do appreciate the opportunity to see and hear about new films and such, but I prefer the classics. I second the opinion of the person who wrote to see Paramount cartoons of the 30s and 40s with as much of their original titles restored as possible. But any time there’s news of classic cartoons being re-released on DVD or whatever, I definitely want to know.

    • William

      I’m an old-school guy too, so I’d like to see more coverage of new artwork finds, photos/videos, DVD updates etc.

      Perhaps some academic commentary could accompany artwork or videos when appropriate. Many of the classic elements of Golden Age animation, as familiar as some of us are with them, never seem to make it into today’s finished product. Education might help reverse that trend as well as entertain.

  • Josh

    What if Cartoon Brew partnered with studios to present licensed animation that will never make it to DVD? (Seeing as DVDs are going away eventually anyway.) If there’s an audience for old UPA cartoons or paramount cartoons, it’s the readers of this site. I could see cartoon brew serving as a smartly curated hulu-type destination for the presentation of historical and present-day animation.

  • http://swinsea.com S.W.S

    I’d love to see more posts focusing on 2D animation and resources for aspiring animators, be them how-tos, interviews, advice, interesting opportunities, etc. You do offer a lot of this, but I’d always love to see more!

    I noticed someone mentioned that there are a lot of posts meant just to “shame” bad animation, and while a bit of snarky commentary is cool, I do find that I’ve just skipped over the last couple Yogi-related posts that popped up in my RSS feed.

    I like the suggestion of making a monthly feature of different animation studios from around the world. You could also have an up-and-coming spotlight for aspiring animators who have sent in their work and may not earn their own post, but could act as a way for them to get the feedback and attention they need to grow further. (I know this blog doesn’t focus on that, but it could be extremely valuable to those who get the bit of promotion and exposure.)

    It would also be fun to read about animation outside of film and television. I noticed someone suggested video game animation, which is what I do for a living. Of course there isn’t as much material in that area as with traditional venues, but there are some gems out there. Any unique, visually stunning game has extremely talented animators working behind it (and I’m not just talking the typical 3D style that many seem to use; there are some great 2D games out there that are pretty artsy and different, especially in the indie scene).

  • Matt Sullivan

    I’m risking a deleted post and /or censorship here… but…

    Maybe you should lose the attitude and stop whining about shows and movies BEFORE YOU SEE THEM. Just because you have an opinion, that doesn’t make it true. You should report on animation, but without the bias ( Just like real news channels used to do )

    You were WRONG about My Little Pony Friendship is Magic. It was just named best new animated show of 2010. See here:

    http://www.nickandmore.com/2010/12/31/best-new-show-of-2010-the-results-are-in/

    You judge, and you presume, and you badmouth people who work hard. You were wrong about a lot of stuff. I just wish you’d drop the elitist attitude that’s all. It makes you seem like animation snobs who are too good for the rest of the world or for animation fans.

    • Brad C

      I also sometimes think the opinions posted here are unnecessarily mean-spirited. But this is a blog, not a news channel. I kind of come here expecting a biased opinion and maybe even a little attitude, even if it’s annoying when I disagree.

      If you just want a report on animation this might not be the place to go. Sure it’s unfair to judge a film before you see it but don’t you do that with your friends? If you take away the attitude you risk losing personality, which I think is necessary for a blog.

      • 2011 Baby

        I think sometimes we aren’t sure if this is supposed to be a news blog or a personal blog. I think, sometimes, the bloggers aren’t sure either. A more defined identity would help.

      • Luke

        I think it really depends on which of the posters here are posting, I could see this place functioning as both, I don’t mind their opinions at all,

    • Sean D

      I agree with Matt! Less negativity overall, please. Cartoon brew is where I get a lot of my information about what’s going on in the industry. I think this site could be so much more than a bitch and complain voicebox. Focus on the positive. I’ve always admired Carl Kohen’s ASIFA San Francisco newsletter because he always takes an impartial stance on whatever it is he’s reviewing. If he clearly doesn’t like something, he will still laud the artists’ attempt. One of my biggest fears is that I’ll put my blood, sweat, and tears into something that I post to the web, and it’ll show up here with a snarky comment attached to it, “leading the conversation” into a feeding frenzy of hater commentators to do likewise.

    • Stephan

      Hear hear!

    • Stephan

      Plus the amount of times the blog was dead wrong (like in the case of My Little Pony) should really get it to change its attitude.

  • Yella Journalizm

    More toon gossip!! We want to know all the naughty things Mickey, Bugs and other toons (and their creators) are up to! Who’s dipping their animator’s quill into the ink & paint dept?! It would be cool to see CartoonBrew follow in the footsteps of such respected peers as TMZ or even Perez Hilton!

    Oh, and more exclamation points are needed too!!!!!!!!!

  • Michael Rosenberg

    How about some kind of a publication? I just love the idea of Cartoon Brew as a hard copy!

    I’m thinking something along the lines of a zine with exclusive articles we won’t be able to access on the site.

    • http://animatie.blog.nl Tünde

      I think the best thing about a blog is that it’s accessible to everyone on this planet. Doing ‘exclusive things’ would take that away.

      Besides, there’s already something like that; Animation Magazine.

  • Sat

    1. More history of animation. Don’t wait any special occasion to talk about little known things or people. I want to discover. More lengthy articles! How about one or two per month?
    2. Foreign/independent animation, student shorts. CB is already good with that, but keep going. With Cartoon Brew no one needs cinema or TV. Real animation is here.
    3. More Cartoon Brew TV. I heard UPA? YES. YES. I would even buy DVDs !
    4. More guest brewsters, but make them say more pertinent things than last time. How about other historians? Like someone who’s into old Japanese animation, this could be interesting. A lot of people in the comments said something about Video Games. Why not?

    So I guess I’m not really interested about the “lasted news”, though it’s cool too. It’s more about discovering everything about animation.

  • http://exclusive-cheese.deviantart.com Taco Wiz

    I’d like you to add a forum to replace the corrupt beyond repair Toon Zone forums.

  • Smudge

    I’d like to see a lot less of what’s going on in the U.S. animation industry and a lot more of what’s going on in the world animation scene–and not just feature films or any one style. 2d, 3d, stop-motion, features, shorts, British, Brazilian, Chinese, Russian, Iranian, there’s a lot more going on out there!

    Jerry, you’re a member of ASIFA aren’t you? Maybe there are people in other countries that would be willing to guest write a couple posts that showcase what’s going on in their country’s animation industry.

    • http://www.animationinsider.net/ Aaron H. Bynum

      I second this comment big time. I write regularly on animation in South Korea, France, China, and some other wonderful places where animators are stepping up their game. Resources are very, very limited for these types of news reports — short of talking to the animators themselves. If an international link could be woven into the “guest column,” then surely, we will all be enlightened.

  • Andrew Kieswetter

    I’d like to see you give more coverage to anime please.

  • Tim Douglas

    More shorts

    More interviews

    More Unknown/rare stuff (good/bad)

    More anime (its nice to see anime on a site not run by anime geeks – and I say this as an anime geek)

    International events PLEEEAAASE, I’m in the UK and it kills me every time I see a cool event I can’t make it to.

    Regular (quarterly?) forecasts & reviews on the best & worst for upcoming seasons in tv & film. There are many shows I see on tv that don’t deserve their own post but I’d love to gauge opinion on, this could cover those nicely.

    I wont lie, I enjoyed the posts about Yogi Bear etc. and I think it’s important to keep an eye on the worst as well as the best, but maybe a separate section so it’s out of the way for people who don’t like it.

  • http://www.belfry.info Martin Bell

    I’d like to see this site offer some more resources to animators. Especially a way for animators to post WIP pieces for peer feedback, an essential part of the animation process. Some thought into how this would work would be required, and I for one would be happy to offer ideas as I’m sure many others in the community would.

    And just to re-iterate some previous posts, I’d like less negativity, especially regarding CG. I’m a firm believer that animation is animation, regardless of the medium, Flash is no less valid than stop-mo and CG is no less valid than traditional work. What separates it is the quality of animation. Sure, some of it is bad and some of it is good, but let’s celebrate the good stuff and let more of the bad stuff pass us by.

  • Firoz

    Lots of great suggestions. Here are mine, some of which echo what’s already been written above.

    1. More international coverage of animation and more about what the animation industry is like in those countries. Topics could include feature films, shorts, artist interviews, industry stories etc.

    2. Would love to hear stories about how artists got into animation; any advice they have to share. I’m sure there are a lot of people who are not interested in working for a big studio but still dream of working in animation. What opportunities are there? Does making your own short open doors?

    3. I thought the Brew had a plan to feature guest posts from readers at one point? You must have an incredibly knowledgeable readership with diverse tastes. It would be great to tap into that! For example, why not draw on your readers for reports from animation or comic-book festivals you can’t attend?

    5. More artist interviews or profiles. Even personal opinion pieces by artists would be welcome e.g. Why I admire person X and how he/she has influenced my work.

    6. Maybe a little bit of educational content too e.g. an article about colour scripts from someone who’s created one. Or storyboarding – how has it evolved?

    7. Sometimes you post a video and it gets lots of comments or praise. When that happens, why not invite the creators of the video to come and do a Q&A on Cartoon Brew? In fact, a regular Q&A feature with artists would be great!

  • http://JohnTravieso.blogspot.com JT

    My wish list for 2011:
    -The student animation contest was great, especially for the purposes of creating a venue for new animators to be known. Keep those contests coming!
    -I would like to see more CartoonBrewTV. Yes on free Cartoon Dump Episodes. Yes on creating original content.
    -I have no idea how this could be done, but I vaguely remember Don Bluth saying something about how we’ve lost countless techniques in animation over the years simply because animation processes weren’t documented. Maybe CartoonBrew and the readers could dream up a way of creating an archive of animation techniques from as many animators as possible.
    -Job boards are always a good thing too.

  • http://www.classicparamountcartoons.blogspot.com ParamountCartoons

    Stop bashing every cartoon-into-live-action/CGI-film right when they announce it. Encourage friends like Stu Shostak (if they want to).

    I didn’t see Yogi Bear, but I certianly learned a lesson about forming your own opnion.

  • Maxie

    Some posts I’ve read and agreed with. Less opinion, more news.

  • 2011 Baby

    Oh, and one more thing. I love the Animated Movie Guide, but it was released in 2005! Will we be seeing an updated edition?

  • Roland Denby

    I agree with many of the posts above. There’s way to much negativity coming from the people that run this place. Articles should be unbiased and informative. Examples: the dreadful trashing of the “Yogi Bear” film by someone who hadn’t even seen the movie. Or, the dreadful bashing of “Tintin” before the flick is even released. This should be a place for news and information, not a bitchfest with opinions that aren’t really fair and called for.

  • Austen Davis

    I would like to see some original animated content from you guys.

  • Frank Ziegler

    Not sure how you would cover this, but more coverage on animation festivals other than Ottowa. Also maybe a place independent animators could show what they are working on as they post footage, other than youtube. Example… I’ve had things on youtube for 2 years but still find it hard to get the word around about what I’m doing. If I or other animators could post something here hundreds of animation folk could instantly check it out.

  • Diogo

    more anime news, and also more short films articles please.

  • http://www.goodaboy.com Rajesh

    With all due respect to those complaining about the “negativity” on here, Cartoon Brew has grown precisely because of personal opinions of its founders.

    Even the simple act of choosing to show one film over another is the act of giving an opinion with clearly states that the film shown is better than the one not shown.

    But more to the point, the reason we’re all on CartoonBrew right now, agree or disagree with Amid’s and Jerry’s opinions, is because we want to see what they post next. They’re the Howard Sterns of the animation world and them changing how they do business will kill their business (in case you hadn’t noticed the plethora of ads, recently).

    It’d be nice if we lived in a world where money wasn’t necessary, and I’m sure they’d continue running this site for free anyway, but the only reason they’re able to even consider producing new animation content is because they have the money to do it now. Something not possible 8 years ago.

    There are plenty of animation industry propaganda sites masquerading as news sites out there. Sites that implicitly suggest “it’s animation, so waste money supporting it because it means more jobs for everyone”.

    And while I can only speak for myself, I’m sure the increase in traffic to Cartoon Brew must mean something, but I’m glad there’s a place that’s willing to bash bad animated projects publicly and not be relegated as “a man-baby in his mother’s basement which no one pays attention to anyway.”

    Even if I disagree with their opinions sometimes.

    • Roland Denby

      I disagree. As stated in other posts, there are way too many criticisms thrown around about projects that the hosts never bothered to view. Case in point: Yogi Bear and Tintin. Also, it’s obvious from Jerry Beck’s comments that he has a strange disdain for Hanna-Barbera’s product. Yet, there he is at almost every opportunity discussing the studio and it’s product on everything from DVD added value material to even going so far as to write books. Enough already.

      • http://www.cartoonresearch.com Jerry Beck

        Roland – On the contrary, I love Hanna Barbera product. I wrote a book called THE HANNA BARBERA TREASURY which celebrates their legacy. I have seen the recent YOGI BEAR feature and it’s a poor children’s film. Anyone who cares or respects the classic Hanna Barbera characters could see that the filmmakers here did not put the effort they could have to make a film that might have been more aesthetically satisfying. From the character designs released early on we could smell trouble coming… and I see that same trouble coming with Tintin. I want Tintin to be terrific and a classic… but the early stills look awful to me. But hey, its just my opinion and its just my blog.

        Everyone is entitled to their own opinions and I hope you will continue to voice yours on Cartoon Brew.

      • Roland Denby

        I do not think you love Hanna-Barbera. I have read way too many cracks about their material on this blog. I have tried to mention this before on other posts, but you have edited them, or not even bothered to include them. But, I figure it’s your blog, so be it.

        Perhaps I am mistaking your posts with Amid’s regarding Yogi Bear. But, I think you were trashing the film before you even saw it. One of you said you refused to see it and then trashed it. Believe me, I am not defending the film as I have not seen it and won’t comment on whether it’s true to the property or whether it insults the property’s integrity. My post was agreeing with the other posts that also found it troublesome that this site was too damned critical.

      • Stephan

        Two of history’s most individual and successful directors are working on Tintin, between whom have about six or seven Oscars give or take, two classic trilogies, and from an animation pedigree standpoint, one of them produced four seminal tv series. Yogi Bear didn’t have anything close to that kind of pedigree.

        I mean, it is your blog, but the bashing of almost any new project that comes CB’s way is very boring and very predictable. The comments on those tend to be much more interesting than the entry.

      • http://www.classicparamountcartoons.blogspot.com ParamountCartoons

        I didn’t know you saw the Yogi Bear movie. At least you gave that awful movie a chance.

      • http://www.cartoonresearch.com Jerry Beck

        Stephan – I love most of Spielberg’s and Jackson’s films. I’m excited by the prospect of them working together to bring one of the best comics characters ever to the screen. But honestly, the still photos released so far are disappointing. Why aren’t they showing Tintin’s face? Did they even consider doing a hand drawn animated film?

        We do not bash “almost any new project that comes” our way. We couldn’t do this blog if we didn’t love the medium. We happen to have opinions – the informed opinions of two people who have seen it all. Those who prefer to read only positive commentary and raw industry information, I would direct you to Animation Magazine, The Animation Guild blog or AWN.

        Paramount Cartoons – Yeah, I saw it. I had to. It is not a film I’d recommend to anyone. It is barely passable children’s entertainment, and might make a good double-bill with BABY HUEY’S GREAT EASTER ADVENTURE (Yes, I’ve seen that too). What bother’s me most about YOGI BEAR is that it might have been a better film, and attracted more than just kiddies, if they had designed and animated Yogi and Boo Boo truer to their hand drawn roots… Look how close the lead characters in TANGLED, or the rabbit in PRESTO (the Pixar short), are to hand drawn designs. A three dimensional Yogi faithful to the Ed Benedict look is/was do-able. A missed opportunity.

      • stavner

        There’s criticizing bad animation, and there’s attacking anything as bad because it was made after Termite Terrace closed. More of the former, less of the latter this year please.

  • http://www.classicparamountcartoons.blogspot.com ParamountCartoons

    And oh, by the way, I think Cartoon Brew’s student film festival should have the winnner qualify for the Oscars. It’s a simple old meets new stragetgy. Ask the Academy for details. It could be an agreement.

  • Geoff Gardner

    I’d like to see as much and frequent focus on classic theatrical cartoons, particularly those that have not yet been released to DVD. I can’t help but think that the more we talk it up, the better our chances for someone to take notice.

  • philippe

    I find it very positive that opposite opinions confront on this site. I wish they would be more articulated than the loved it /hated it type posts, i think they are enough professionnals surfing on cartoonbrew to be very specific and detailed.

    I would also enjoy more broad foreign coverage, not the just the Hollywood-USA creations.Europe,Russia, South America, Asia, and north and south Africa…

    Thank you very much for the work you’ve provided us so far!

  • Sues

    I agree with all the comments about less negativity and less yearning for the “Golden Age.” If I wanted to read post after post about how much animation today is a shameful cesspool of bad CG, mo-cap, and terrible character design compared to the endless well of inspired beautiful animation, I could just read John K’s blog. And that’s the exact reason I stopped reading it.

    What I would like to see MORE of, is more hidden gems like trippy-as-hell Russian shorts and turn of the century animation, as well as stuff that either tries something new or utilizes a technique in a way we’ve never seen before.

    I would also love to see some calls for submissions to festivals posted, or at least a sidebar dedicated to them. I think you guys are pretty aware of how many students read this site, and there’s no better way for young animators to get out there than to have as many places to send their work as possible.

    I also have found CB to be fairly LA-centric, at least as far as events go. I know that LA is obviously the world hub for film and animation, but every time I see post after post about an event in LA I lament the fact that I live on the East Coast, even though I still know there are thriving scenes all over, from Vancouver to Austin to New York. It would be great for CB to be a place to find out about events that are at least a little closer to home, no matter where you are.

    • Iritscen

      Yes, as an East Coaster, typically whenever I see a post about an event, I say “Nah, it’s going to be in LA, why read about it and get all interested in going, before the inevitable disappointment when I read the location at the end?”

  • Justin

    Here’s an idea, you know how every Sunday you find comic strips parodying other cartoons? Well since new DVD releases happen on Tuesdays, why not post something every Tuesday about what cartoon releases were released that day and unlike the Sunday funnies, have comments posted about their opinions on certain DVD releases?

  • Kent Osborne

    The interview with Kirsten Lepore was one of the best things from the past year. More stuff like that please!

  • Michael Rianda

    I think cartoon brew is a great idea. One thing in particular, is I would love to see a greater variety of voices. I love the idea of the guest posts, but they rarely actually post, I would like to see more regular contributors. Like day to day contributors. I think it would alleviate some of the tension that goes on with this site. This isn’t a slam on Amid and Jerry, they both have made some great posts, but I think a variety of voices would only strengthen this site.

    I’m really glad to see that there has been a little bit less bashing and a little more supporting. Mindlessly slamming things is totally not beneficial to the world. If you have a legitimate critique, make it in a respectful way, it will keep the conversation more upbeat and productive, and overall be better for everyone. Anyway, I have seen a little less of that and I am totally appreciative of it.

    There have been some great shorts featured on the site and I love that. Keep that up. I also appreciate some of the straight news. I’d rather have that stuff here than have to sift through box office mojo.

    I would also love to see some more thoughtful commentary. For example, I thought Amid’s post about how the Hub network was the death of television animation was a well thought out, good, meaty post. I happen to disagree with it, but that’s fine by me, it had it’s point, it argued it, it used examples and commentary, and it encouraged a real debate. I’d like to see some more of that.

    Thanks for asking.

  • Michael Rianda

    Also, this may be mean, because I know that people spend a fair amount of time on it every week…but seriously, I cannot stand Sunday Funnies. I fucking scroll past that at breakneck speed on a weekly basis. Is anybody with me on this one?

    • http://www.cartoonresearch.com Jerry Beck

      Michael – I have to admit, I’m with you on this.

      In the past, I posted an occasional relevant print cartoon on Cartoon Brew and about a year ago decided to print all I could accumulate each week. It has since become a chore – and for the most part, an eye-sore. The comments it garnered have been mostly negative.

      So I’ve just decided to cut the feature back to once a month. It will be heavily curated, with only the few cartoons that I deem the best of each month. Look for the next installment on February 6th.

      • http://www.manwhomovedmanhattan.com Rob

        Can’t stand it either, but I wouldn’t mind it as much if the subject matter was more about the better drawn comics on a given sunday, than the arbitrary terrible comics that happen to have Mickey Mouse gags.

        It kind of goes back to a bigger issue with CB: I’d like to see more about animation in general (or even slighty-animation related but still artistically involving) and less posts about commonplace symbols of animation (Disney Characters especially) mentioned in non-animation related material.

  • Stephan

    Also, the blog would be better if it stopped censoring comments. The AVClub comment boards are often mocked (often by the AVClub itself) but it tends to have a less jilted and more interesting discussion than most blogs which let a moderator control it. The discussions happen in real time too, which is a plus.

  • http://invaderpetblog.blogspot.com Brandon Pierce

    I think it’d be nice if once a day a video for a classic cartoon (from Disney, or WB, or MGM, or anything) was posted, and there could just be an open discussion about it.

    • Stephan

      [thumbs up]

  • Mike

    I’d like to see some profiles of great animated shorts and characters from the past (Warner Bros, Disney, MGM, etc., etc…) maybe once a week or every two weeks. You know, give us some interesting tidbits about their back-stories, the animators, where we can find the shorts on DVD, etc. You could call it “Classic Brew” or something along those lines.

    Anyway, it would be much more interesting than the Sunday funnies.
    ;)

  • david

    i definitely want to see more dreamworks ads.

  • Connor M.

    I’d like to see more substantiated, thoughtful critiques rather than assuming or deciding that something is terrible long before seeing it.

    It’s fine to see a trailer for something like Yogi Bear and let out a long groan in *fear* that it would turn out like another film you disliked but it would be far more interesting if you would break down the film and give a (possibly harsh) critique rather than a baseless rant.

    Having worked on a handful of films and seen far more, the biggest lesson I’ve learned is to go into things with an open mind and as few assumptions as possible. If Yogi Bear is watchable, I’d like to know. If the technical integration with the plates is well done, I’d like to know. If there’s just one decent joke amongst dozens of flops, I’d like to know that too– but if a film looked bad and it wasn’t, I would really. really. like to know.

    That said, thanks for all the indy-animation coverage. That’s what I come here for and it’s consistently enjoyable to watch and fun to read. I’d just like a similarly open eye to be applied to the big films, too.

  • Greg Ehrbar

    It might be nice to post “talkbacks” on an even wider variety of relevant releases. Cartoon Brew didn’t exist when Fantasia was released, but the DVDs just were, so comments about the films themselves, the packages and especially the bonus features would be interesting.

    I love audio commentaries — even the not-so-good ones — isn’t it disappointing when they are not included? Maybe if enough people communicate how much they like them, it may change the research or perhaps arbitrary decisions on whether to include them. Sometimes the lack of an audio commentary affects my buying decision.

    But with something like Bambi being reissued soon, wouldn’t it be nice to read everyone’s comments about the work itself? Not all of us were there when it was first released, but it is more relevant than much that is current.

    And forgive me for suggesting this, but what about talkbacks on direct to DVD’s. At least some of them, like the last Tinker Bell movie, which was the best of the three. Not everything produced for the home market is worthy of scorn. Sometimes circumstances are what keep a film from the the big screen, not the quality (though of course not always).

    Was there a talkback for Epic Mickey? My son is crazy about it. I like the parts where Mickey “enters” his vintage films. The intro animation is like a film in itself. Surely this is worth commenting about. If this was discussed and I overlooked it, please excuse the oversight.

    Overall, this is the second website after newsfromme that I always look at when I surf the net. To paraphrase Bert Wedemeyer’s wife Rita on the Honeymooners episode called Alice and the Blonde: “Cartoon Brew certainly is a TRAAY-ZHOURE!

  • http://www.thepra.com.au Eddie White

    How bout a cartoonbrew readers awards? You have a list of say animated shorts, music vids, commercials, feature films and tv series and the readers vote on which are the best of that year in each category.

    As a filmmaker, getting nominated by my peers would be a tremendous honor. Moreso than many festivals.