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Disney dominated the headlines over the weekend with a flood of franchise news from D23. The company unveiled the original feature Clay, confirmed Zootopia 3, and teased Ghost Market, Frozen 3, Coco 2, and Incredibles 3. It also shared the first teaser for Bluey’s upcoming CG feature debut, outlined new Kingdom Hearts animation plans, and, according to original voice actor Brent Spiner, has a new Gargoyles animated series in development. We also spoke with legendary animator Shinya Ohira about using full animation to depict a stormtrooper’s psychological collapse in the Emmy-nominated Star Wars: Visions short “BLACK.”
Meanwhile, YouTube’s upcoming Partner Program changes look even more harmful than originally thought and could make Shorts an increasingly inhospitable format for independent animators. Beginning next year, creators will need to maintain 10 million qualified views across a rolling 90-day period to keep earning Shorts Feed ad and Premium revenue, a target fundamentally at odds with animation’s longer production timelines.
Speaking of digital-native animation platforms, Roblox is facing a bipartisan U.S. Senate investigation over child safety that could have an outsized impact across the animation ecosystem, from independent creators to the world’s largest studios.
In China, a two-person animated feature turned viral mockery into more than $2 million at the box office, outperforming The Odyssey in the territory over the weekend.
Finally, Studio Ghibli offered a revealing look at its deliberately uncertain future, including Hayao Miyazaki’s next film, the studio’s resistance to generative AI, and why it has no formal succession plan. Friends of the late Luis De La Rosa also honored the Ash Raider creator by completing and releasing his final animation tutorial.
Check out these stories and more at cartoonbrew.com.
