Posts Tagged ‘Animation’
Very unexpected news from the Disney camp today: the studio has just issued a press release saying that, after production finishes on Mars Needs Moms, the Robert Zemeckis studio ImageMovers Digital will be closed in 2011.
We don’t have a lot of details on the closing right now, but a statement from Walt Disney Studios president Alan Bergman says it all:
Bob and the entire IMD team successfully built a state of the art studio and produced an amazing film, A Christmas Carol, at a time when the dynamics of the industry are rapidly changing. But, given today’s economic realities, we need to find alternative ways to bring creative content to audiences and IMD no longer fits into our business model.
In other words, the movies from IMD are quite expensive, and if A Christmas Carol is any indication, they’re not making the sort of money the new Disney regime would like. The press release says that a new production deal may be formed to continue work on the Yellow Submarine remake, but I wonder what this really means for that project.
The LA Times reports that 450 people will be laid off as operations at the studio wind down.
I’m not the biggest fan of most of the Zemeckis mo-cap films, but looking at them objectively no one could say that each hasn’t built upon the previous efforts. I couldn’t take the dead eyes of Polar Express, but by A Christmas Carol IMD was producing animation that had a lot of life. Will Zemeckis be able to carry on in the same capacity elsewhere, or will it be up to Cameron, Spielberg, Jackson and others to push mo-cap forward?
Mars Needs Moms, based on the book by Berkley Breathed and directed by Simon Wells, will open on March 11, 2011.
Here’s the full press release, via Deadline:
BURBANK, Calif. – March 12, 2010 – The Walt Disney Studios and ImageMovers Digital (IMD) today announced that they will close operations at IMD’s Marin County facility after production is completed on Mars Needs Moms. The IMD facility is expected to be closed by January, 2011.
“Bob and the entire IMD team successfully built a state of the art studio and produced an amazing film, A Christmas Carol, at a time when the dynamics of the industry are rapidly changing,” said Alan Bergman, President of The Walt Disney Studios. “But, given today’s economic realities, we need to find alternative ways to bring creative content to audiences and IMD no longer fits into our business model.”
“I’m incredibly proud of the talented team that we assembled at IMD and the fantastic work they have accomplished,” said Robert Zemeckis, one of the co-founders of ImageMovers Digital. “Their pride and dedication to making quality movies is evident in everything we have produced.”
The Studio is hoping to create a new long-term production deal with Zemeckis and his IMD partners, Jack Rapke and Steve Starkey, which will include the continued development of the Yellow Submarine project.
A new version of Heavy Metal, the 1981 animated anthology film with stories based on the comics magazine Heavy Metal (originally Metal Hurlant in France), has been batted around for the last couple years. At various points a whole laundry list of directors have been ‘confirmed’ to helm segments: David Fincher, James Cameron, Guillermo del Toro, Zack Snyder, Rob Zombie, Gore Verbinski, Mark Osborne and probably more that we’ve forgotten.
The film was dropped by Paramount in 2008, but is reportedly still kicking. David Fincher has stayed on as producer and a possible segment director, and Blur Studios, the outfit also reportedly animating the Fincher-produced The Goon, may still be involved.
Now there’s new word that the core team of Fincher, Cameron and Snyder is moving forward with the film, which will be entirely animated in 3D.
Deadline talks about the project, though in truth they don’t have many details beyond what we’ve already known. It’s in Fincher’s hands now, and he’s looking for independent financing and distribution commitments. Mike Fleming says that the film will feature eight or nine animated segments, which echoes what we’ve heard over the past couple years. He also says “all of them [will be] infused with the spirit of the erotic and violent storylines that defined the magazine,” which means, yeah, it’s Heavy Metal. (The 1981 film had seven segments, or eight if you count the opening credits sequence ‘Soft Landing’ as being separate from the framing story.)
Deadline labels this a ‘passion project’ for Fincher, but it seems more like a playground, especially with Cameron involved. All the pulp sci-fi inspirations that have always played in his work are right there in Heavy Metal, and doing a segment for the film would be a way for Cameron to make something a little lighter than his usual features. (Hopefully his playing won’t look anything like that dismal music video for Bill Paxton’s band.) Cameron’s involvement may be the one thing that can get this movie financed at this point. Maybe they can get Jason Reitman in there, too. His father produced the original film.
I only hope that a new version can echo the original’s blend of idiosyncratic animation styles. Whatever you think of the ‘81 Heavy Metal (yeah, it’s an indulgent cheese-fest that often makes no sense at all) it has some unique animation. Hopefully a 3D version won’t just gloss everything over with the same style. At least it’s likely to be better than Heavy Metal 2000, which was truly garbage.
ComingSoon has an exclusive first look at Pixar’s new short film which will be attached to Toy Story 3 on June 18th 2010. As we previously reported, it is titled Day & Night, and was directed by Teddy Newton, a storyboard artist on The Iron Giant, Character Designer for The Incredibles and Presto, who makes his Pixar directorial debut. What isn’t expected:
- We had assumed, probably incorrectly, that the short film has something to do with the boy and dinosaur art that was spotted on sculptor Greg Dykstra’s wall in behind the scenes b-roll footage for Pete Docter’s Up.
- While this is unconfirmed, the title graphic gives the impression that the shot could be a 2D animated film, and not the computer animated short film we’re use to from Pixar. If so, this wouldn’t be Pixar’s first attempt at 2D animation (see Your Friend the Rat, the short included on the Ratatouille DVD/Blu-ray release).
Again, both of the above statements are 100% assumptions on my part, and could be completely wrong. So what is it about? Here is the official plot synopsis:
When Day, a sunny fellow, encounters Night, a stranger of distinctly darker moods, sparks fly! Day and Night are frightened and suspicious of each other at first, and quickly get off on the wrong foot. But as they discover each other’s unique qualities–and come to realize that each of them offers a different window onto the same world–the friendship helps both to gain a new perspective.
Head on over to ComingSoon to see the image in high resolution.
Newton is a Cal Arts guy, very respected, considered one of the most influential visual development artists in the field of animation. Composer Michael Giacchino is providing a scrore for the short. The Academy Award-winning composer has been working with Pixar for some time, providing the score for The Incredibles, Ratatoille, Up, and short films Lifted and Partly Cloudy, so it makes sense that he might also be working on the company’s next animated short as well. In the late 1990’s, Teddy formed a partnership with Giacchino to make animated films, but they apparently couldn’t come up with the capital to make it happen.
DreamWorks Animation has released a second movie trailer for Shrek Forever After, the fourth and final installment of the Shrek franchise. The full length trailer will be attached to How To Train Your Dragon, which hits theaters on March 26th 2010. I probably shouldn’t say anything about that film, but I will say this — it is my favorite DreamWorks Animated film thus far. And if you see it in 3D, you’ll also see this new Shrek trailer attached in 3D as well.
Shrek on the other hand, I’m not really looking forward to. I’ve never really been a fan of the series (aside from the first film) and the new trailer hasn’t convinced me this is anything but another cash grab. It is interesting that they’re marketing the hell out of this sequel being “the final chapter” when it seems obvious to me and most everyone else that Dreamworks will be forced to revisit the series at some point in the future (if there is money to be made, it will happen). Watch the trailer embedded after the jump, and leave your thoughts in the comments below.
Official Plot Synopsis:
The final chapter of Shrek’s personal journey brings all of our beloved characters full circle in a way that pays creative homage to each of the previous films and the stories they told, while taking Shrek and his family and friends on a fantastic, emotion-filled journey that is funny at every turn,” said the film’s director, Mike Mitchell. “Technological innovation at DreamWorks Animation has done wonders for our storytelling capabilities and I am excited to share these with audiences when we bring Far Far Away into the third dimension for the very first time.
In “Shrek Forever After,” Shrek, who has already successfully challenged an evil dragon, rescued a beautiful princess and saved his in-laws’ kingdom, is faced with the question: What’s an ogre to do? Well, if you’re Shrek, you suddenly wind up a domesticated family man. Instead of scaring villagers away like he used to, a reluctant Shrek now agrees to autograph pitch forks. What’s happened to this ogre’s roar? Longing for the days when he felt like a “real ogre,” Shrek is duped into signing a pact with the smooth-talking dealmaker, Rumpelstiltskin. Shrek suddenly finds himself in a twisted, alternate version of Far Far Away, where ogres are hunted, Rumpelstiltskin is king and Shrek and Fiona have never met. Now, it’s up to Shrek to undo all he’s done in the hopes of saving his friends, restoring his world and reclaiming his one True Love.
Watch the trailer in High Definition on Yahoo. Shrek Forever After hits theaters on May 21st 2010.
A couple days back, Alan Cumming told MTV News that director Quentin Tarantino would be playing Papa Smurf’s right-hand man, Brainy, in Columbia Pictures’ big screen adaptation of The Smurfs. But a publicist for the Inglourious Basterds director has denied the filmmaker’s involvement.
But you would assume Cumming would know what he’s talking about considering he’s voicing Gutsy in the film. It’s also not hard to believe that Tarantino would take part in a bad film, as his acting filmography includes Little Nicky, Sukiyaki Western Django, Sleep with Me, and an episode of The Golden Girls.
The film, which is a CGI/live action hybrid, helmed by Raja Gosnell (Scooby Doo and Beverly Hills Chihuahua) is scheduled to hit theaters on August 3rd 2011. The film stars Neil Patrick Harris as a live-action character who helps the Smurfs, and a voice cast which includes Jonathan Winters as Papa Smurf, George Lopez as Grouchy Smurf, Katy Perry as Smurfette and Alan Cumming as Gutsy Smurf. Smurfs: The Movie shoots in April.
Disney and Lionsgate have released a batch of new posters for Toy Story 3 and Kick-Ass. We have a short roundup, after the jump.
Lionsgate has released two new “Call to Action” character posters for Kick-Ass on MTV. Click on through to see the posters in high res.
And check out the International Toy Story 3 Poster which brings the focus back to the original Toy Story toys. [pixarblog]
As you may have noticed over the past weeks, Disney has been teasing the release of Pixar’s Toy Story 3 by releasing more information, photos and video of each of the new characters, week by week. A couple weeks ago, we premiered an exclusive look at one of the new toys from the daycare center - Twitch.
Disney/Pixar has since released two new characters - Trixie and Stretch. After the jump you can see a large photos of Trixie and Stretch, learn some information about the new toys, and even watch video turnarounds. We’ve also included a round up of the other five new toys (seven total revealed thus far), in case you’ve missed anything along the way.
TRIXIE
Trixie, the loveable Triceratops is voiced by Flight of the Conchords‘ Kristen Schaal.
“Trixie is a perfect playmate for prehistoric playtime! Visit the era when dinosaurs ruled the Earth! Made of rigid, durable plastic and in friendly shades of blue and purple, Trixie features an expressive mouth and movable legs. This gentle Triceratops will feed any child’s imagination. Also available: Tyrannosaurus Rex, Stegosaurus and Velociraptor.”
STRETCH
The following one comes from animate:
Stretch will be voiced by Whoopi Goldberg.
Strech is a fun-loving under-the-sea octopus friend that shines in glittery purple. Kids can count her eight rubbery legs and dozens of sticky suckers that are sure to stand up to rough-and-tumble play and extreme stretching. Toss her high on the wall and watch her climb her way down! Clean in mild soap solution to remove dust and lint.
You can see the previously featured new Toy Story 3 characters below:
TWITCH
He definitely looks like an old He-Man or Ninja Turtle action figure.
[See post to watch Flash video]Meet Twitch, the insectaloid warrior, where MAN + INSECT = AWESOME! This sturdy action figure stands over five inches tall, with more than 15 points of articulation, including ferocious chomping mandibles. Use his powerful wings and impenetrable exoskeleton to evade capture! Twitch is meticulously detailed and includes his signature magical battle staff and removable chest armor. For children ages 4 and up. Other insectaloid figures sold separately.
KEN
Grab your binoculars and join Ken on a safari! A swinging bachelor who’s always on the lookout for fun, Ken sports the perfect outfit for his eco-adventure: light blue shorts and a leopard-print shirt with short sleeves sure to keep him cool in the hot sun. And after his exciting expedition, Ken will be ready to hit the dance floor in style. His accessories include matching scarf, sensible loafers and a fashion-forward gold belt. Dozens of additional Ken outfits sold separately.
[See post to watch Flash video]PEAS-IN-A-POD
Peas-in-a-Pod will quickly become a parent’s favorite on-the-go toy. The soft, plush pod secures the happy peas inside with a durable metal zipper, making it perfect for the car or stroller. The Peas-in-a-Pod plush toy also develops fine motor skills by catering to a child’s natural grab instinct. Pulling the three peas out of the pod will provide repeated enjoyment for infants and toddlers, and soon they’ll learn to put them back in! Machine washable. Not for human consumption.
[See post to watch Flash video]LOTS-O’-HUGGIN’ BEAR
Lots-o’-Huggin’ Bear is a jumbo, extra-soft teddy bear with a pink and white plush body and a velvety purple nose. This lovable bear stands fuzzy heads and shoulders above other teddy bears because he smells like sweet strawberries! With a smile that will light up your child’s face and a belly just asking to be hugged, Lots-o’-Huggin’ Bear is sure to become a bedtime necessity. Stain-resistant. Spot clean plush surface with a damp cloth.
[See post to watch Flash video]BUTTERCUP
Saddle up for fun and let Buttercup lead your child away on a magical adventure! This cuddly unicorn features velvety-soft, snow-colored fur with sparkly gold and pink accents. He sports a signature mythical golden horn and a fun-to-comb mane and tail. Buttercup’s durable plastic eyes are both charming and scratch-resistant. Hypo-allergenic. Ages 3 and up.
[See post to watch Flash video]
Official One-Pager:
TOY STORY 3 (In Disney Digital 3D™)
DISNEY•PIXAR
Genre: Animation/Comedy/Adventure
Rating: TBD
Release Date: June 18, 2010
Voice Talent: Tom Hanks, Tim Allen, Joan Cusack, Don Rickles, Wallace Shawn, John Ratzenberger, Estelle Harris, John Morris, Laurie Metcalf, R. Lee Ermey, Jodi Benson, Ned Beatty, Bonnie Hunt, Timothy Dalton, Jeff Garlin, Whoopi Goldberg and Michael Keaton
Director: Lee Unkrich
Producer: Darla K. Anderson
Writer: credit TBD
Composer: Randy Newman
The creators of the beloved “Toy Story” films re-open the toy box and bring moviegoers back to the delightful world of Woody, Buzz and our favorite gang of toy characters in TOY STORY 3. Woody and Buzz had accepted that their owner Andy would grow up someday, but what happens when that day arrives? In the third installment, Andy is preparing to depart for college, leaving his loyal toys troubled about their uncertain future. Lee Unkrich (co-director of “Toy Story 2” and “Finding Nemo”) directs this highly anticipated film, and Michael Arndt, the Academy Award®-winning screenwriter of “Little Miss Sunshine,” brings his unique talents and comedic sensibilities to the proceedings. TOY STORY 3 will be presented in Disney Digital 3D™ in select theaters.
Notes:
- TOY STORY 3 follows the return of Disney?Pixar’s “Toy Story” and “Toy Story 2” to the big screen Oct. 2, 2009—this time as a Disney Digital 3D™ double-feature.
- Director Lee Unkrich began at Pixar Animation Studios in 1994 as a film editor on “Toy Story” and continued on to “A Bug’s Life” as the supervising film editor. He made his directing debut in 1999 as co-director of the Golden Globe®-winning “Toy Story 2.” Unkrich co-directed “Monsters, Inc.” and served as co-director and supervising film editor of the Oscar®-winning animated feature “Finding Nemo.”
- The original “Toy Story” voice cast is set to return in TOY STORY 3, including John Ratzenberger (voice of Hamm), who is the only actor to voice a character in all 11 Disney•Pixar films. Also returning is Oscar®-winning songwriter and composer Randy Newman (“Toy Story,” “Toy Story 2,” “Monsters, Inc.”).
- “Toy Story,” originally released on Nov. 22, 1995, was the first fully computer animated feature film and the highest grossing movie of the year with nearly $192 million domestically and $362 million worldwide. It was nominated for three Oscars® and two Golden Globes®.
- “Toy Story” director John Lasseter was awarded a Special Achievement Award (Oscar®) by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for his “inspired leadership of the Pixar ‘Toy Story’ team, resulting in the first feature-length computer-animated film.”
- “Toy Story 2” is the first film ever to be entirely created, mastered and exhibited digitally. It was also the first animated sequel to gross more than its original, breaking opening weekend box office records in the U.S., UK and Japan, becoming the highest grossing animated release of 1999 with more than $245 million in domestic box office receipts and $485 million worldwide. It was nominated for an Academy Award® and two Golden Globes®, winning the Golden Globe for Best Motion Picture/Comedy Musical. It won a Grammy® for Best Song Written for a Motion Picture, Television or other Visual Media (Randy Newman, “When She Loved Me”).
- The creators of the beloved “Toy Story” films re-open the toy box with TOY STORY 3, a comedic and heartwarming adventure in Disney Digital 3D™, bringing moviegoers back to the world of Woody, Buzz and our favorite gang of toy characters as Andy prepares to leave for college.
We’ve known for awhile now that Disney’s upcoming fairytale animated film was renamed Tangled, even though it was based off the classic Brothers Grimm story Rapunzel, about a princess whose tower-length hair helps her to fall in love with a wandering prince. One could easily deduce that Disney was trying to appeal to a broader audience with the new title, but now an article by the Los Angeles Times spells out their reasoning precisely: getting more boys into the theater. [Above picture: Floyd Norman via the LATimes]
According to the Times, Disney executives attribute the lackluster box office performance of The Princess and the Frog ($222 million worldwide) to the fact that boys didn’t want to see a film with the name “princess” in the title. Notably, Tangled re-styles the original Rapunzel prince into Flynn Rider, an “infamous bandit” who “meets his match” in Rapunzel, who (as you can probably predict) has been re-imagined as a “feisty teen.”
Ed Catmull, president of Pixar and Disney Animation, commented on the change, saying, “We did not want to be put in a box…Some people might assume it’s a fairy tale for girls when it’s not. We make movies to be appreciated and loved by everybody.” Disney eventually settled on Tangled as a title because it alluded to “a twisted version of the familiar story and the tangled relationship between the two lead characters.” Plus, it obviously works as a reference to Rapunzel’s 70-foot long hair.
Not everyone is as upbeat about the name change though, most notably Disney and Pixar animation veteran Floyd Norman (see: Norman’s drawing above). According to Norman:
The idea of changing the title of a classic like ‘Rapunzel’ to ‘Tangled’ is beyond stupid. I’m still hoping that Disney will eventually regain their sanity and return the title of their movie to what it should be. I’m convinced they’ll gain nothing from this except the public seeing Disney as desperately trying to find an audience.
I don’t have any particular issue with Disney re-styling a classic story to suit their needs; they’ve been doing it since time immemorial, even with real-life events and people (e.g. Mulan and Pocahontas). If/when people have raised a ruckus, it’s typically been forgotten. I don’t even know if I’d want my kids to see a straight-forward adaptation of the original Rapunzel; I saw one on TV when I was a kid, and images of the writhing prince with his eyes gouged out have haunted me for the rest of my life.
What concerns me is the renewed emphasis on marketing, widespread appeal, and profitability. We’ve already seen that Disney isn’t interested in making a sequel to the wildly popular film The Proposal, which grossed $315 million worldwide. Why not? Because they can’t make toys, greeting cards, action figures, or a theme park ride off of it. When you are that focused on cross-platform marketing, I have to wonder how you can manage to keep your artistic integrity intact.
Tangled will be out in theaters November 2010.
DreamWorks Animation has released a new clip from their upcoming film How To Train Your Dragon on ComingSoon. The clip features a Viking teenager named Hiccup (voiced by Jay Baruchel) who is attempting to tie a harness to a dragon’s tail. The sequence seems like it would be a lot more impressive in 3D. Watch the clip now, embedded after the jump.
From the studio that brought you “Shrek,” “Madagascar” and “Kung Fu Panda” comes “How To Train Your Dragon” — an adventure comedy set in the mythical world of burly Vikings and wild dragons, based on the book by Cressida Cowell. The story centers around a Viking teenager, who lives on the island of Berk, where fighting dragons is a way of life. Initiation is coming, and this is his one chance to prove his worthiness to his tribe and father. But when he encounters, and ultimately befriends, an injured dragon, his world is turned upside down. The voice cast includes Jay Baruchel, Gerard Butler, Jonah Hill, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Craig Ferguson, Kristen Wiig, and America Ferrera.
Watch the trailer in High Definition on Yahoo. How to Train Your Dragon hits theaters in March 26th 2010.
Academy Award repeat offender Nick Park is currently in the planning stages of a new, feature length movie to be produced in the same plasticine stylings as The Curse of the Were-rabbit. This time, though, he’s not going back to West Wallaby Street and his cracking creations Wallace and Gromit are to be left on the shelf. Frankly, I can’t wait to find out what it is he’s dreamed up.
Talking ahead of his fifth shot at Oscar glory this Sunday, when Wallace and Gromit: A Matter of Loaf and Death goes up for best animated short, Park has revealed plans, both past and future, for working in 3D.
He told the BBC that Aardman were very nearly an early adopter of the new 3D format:
When I first saw 3D coming in I had quite an appetite to do a 3D film. We were even planning to do an IMAX Wallace and Gromit at one point in 3D but for some reason financially that got shelved.
Wow. Can you imagine that? The fingerprints would have been ten feet tall.
Going forward though, this so-called ‘Avatar effect’ would see the money for a 3D production come rolling in. I’m not as doubtful as Park himself, then, when he says:
I’d like to see a 3D Plasticine animation - I think it would really suit it. In a way I’ve been a bit sceptical, but I have a feature idea up my sleeve which I’m thinking might be 3D.
Elsewhere in the interview, Park shared his feelings on Avatar as “beautifully done, technically amazing” and I don’t think anyone can quite argue with that.
Whatever it is Park is working on, and has apparently been working on for some time, the details are still absolutely shrouded in mystery. Somebody out there must know something, surely? Bristollians, get your ear-trumpets out.
