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House Special Launches in Portland
A new commercial studio, House Special, launched in Portland, Oregon last week. The company was started by Lourri Hammack, Kirk Kelly and Al Cubillas, who ran Laika's former commercial division Laika/house.
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LAIKA Chief Surprises Comic-Con Crowd By Saying He Wants To Do Hand-Drawn Animation
At a presentation for LAIKA's third stop motion feature "The Boxtrolls," LAIKA's CEO Travis Knight told San Diego Comic-Con audiences that he hopes to make a hand-drawn animated film at some point in the future.
7 Quirky Animation and Comic-Related Programs At This Year’s San Diego Comic-Con
Comic-Con International: San Diego is almost upon us, and the organizers have released the event's mammoth program schedule. The madness, taking place from July 24-27, includes hundreds of panels, discussions, art demos, and screenings, with everyone from Buzz Aldrin to Betty White getting their moment to shine.
Criterion Will Release ‘Watership Down’ on iTunes
Criterion is adding another animated to its collection: Martin Rosen's "Watership Down."
‘Mouse in Transition’: And Then There Was…Ken! (Chapter 4)
I was back in Don Duckwall's office, exchanging insincere smiles with him. I had been on "The Fox and the Hound" with Larry, Woolie, and everybody else for half a year. But now Don wanted me to go on another assignment.
Disney Junior To Premiere ‘Lion King’ Spinoff Series in 2015
"It's kind of like "The Lion King" meets "The Avengers," says Nancy Kanter, general manager of Disney Junior, when describing their upcoming preschool series "The Lion Guard."
The One Thing That Could Save DreamWorks Animation: China
At least one DreamWorks animated film has lost money for the past three years in a row: "Rise of the Guardians" in 2012 had an $87 million writedown; "Turbo" in 2013 resulted in a $13.5 million writedown; and this year's "Mr. Peabody & Sherman" caused a $57 million writedown. This is rather obviously not a sustainable trend from a business standpoint, and investors are beginning to worry about the studio's long-term prospects.
DreamWorks Animation 20th Anniversary Exhibit Debuts in Melbourne
“DreamWorks Animation: The Exhibition” opened last month at the Australian Centre for the Moving Image (ACMI). Clearly inspired by “Pixar: 20 Years of Animation,” which was shown at the Museum of Modern Art in New York back in 2005, the DreamWorks show includes over 400 items, and covers the studio's twenty-year history right up to the present—there are displays about "Mr. Peabody & Sherman" and "How to Train Your Dragon 2," which will be released next month. It is the largest exhibition in the twelve-year history of the ACMI.
British Studios Locksmith and Double Negative Plan To Make CG Features
There are big developments in the UK animation industry in the wake of a much-heralded tax break received by the British animation industry that went into effect last year. Sarah Smith, the former creative director of features at Aardman Animations, is setting up a studio named Locksmith Animation. She bills it as the UK’s "first high-end CGI feature animation studio," and it is focused on creating a long-term slate of films for worldwide distribution.
The Best Thing You’ll Ever Read About Pitching Animation Ideas
Mark Mayerson, a TV show creator, animator, and teacher, has written what may be the single best thing I've ever read about the contemporary animation pitching process.
Sony Demands Removal of Open-Source Indie Short ‘Sintel’ From YouTube [Updated]
Sony Pictures has demanded the removal of the CGI short film Sintel from YouTube due to a claim of copyright infringement. One small problem: they don't actually own anything in the film.
‘Dexter’s Lab’ Comic Will Be Published by IDW
Next month, IDW, the publishing company that partnered with Cartoon Network last year for the comic book revivals of "The Powerpuff Girls" and "Samurai Jack," will be adding "Dexter’s Laboratory" to their library of monthly titles.
‘Birds of Paradise’ Looks to Cash In On ‘Rio 2’
On April 1st, Lionsgate Home Entertainment will release "Birds Of Paradise" on DVD exclusively at Walmart and Redbox. If the film looks and feels suspicously like Fox's "Rio" franchise, well...that's the point. One of the film's PR people sent us a press release that states matter-of-factly that "Birds of Paradise" is "timed to the theatrical release of 'Rio 2.'" The latter Blue Sky Studios-produced movie will be released on April 11.
Disney Just Released ‘Frozen’ and ‘Get A Horse!’ on iTunes
The window between theatrical releases and home entertainment distribution continues to shrink. Disney is releasing the HD version of "Frozen" on iTunes today, February 25th, while the film still remains in the top ten at the American box office.
Richard Linklater Will Remake ‘Incredible Mr. Limpet’
Richard Linklater, currently nominated for an Oscar for "Before Midnight"'s screenplay, is making strides on the Warner Bros. remake of "Incredible Mr. Limpet," a project with which he has been involved since 2011.
Michael Sporn, A Passionate Film Director, RIP
Animator and filmmaker Michael Sporn, a man who represented the spirit and vitality of New York's animation scene as much as any other single individual, passed away from pancreatic cancer on January 19. He was 67.
“Frozen” Jumps to Second Place In Its 10th Weekend
Boosted in part by a sing-along version that was released into theaters, Disney's "Frozen" jumped back into second place this weekend, an amazing feat for a film now in its 10th weekend of wide release.
Why DreamWorks Animation Bought AwesomenessTV
If you're still wondering why DreamWorks Animation spent $33 million last spring to buy the YouTube channel AwesomenessTV, an article about Netflix in the latest issue of the "New Yorker" offers an explanation that I found to be succinct and worth sharing.
Watch “Cloudy with A Chance of Meatballs 2” End Credits
Among the abundant visual delights of last year's "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2" was the expertly executed end title sequence, which has now been posted online.
Animation Oscar Nominations: Full Coverage
See which animated features, shorts, and VFX films from 2013 are nominated for an Oscar!
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