• Monsters, Inc. Jumps at the Box-Office!

The Disney/Pixar tooner Monsters, Inc. managed a fantastic 71% jump this weekend to $6.5 million in ninth place, bringing its total cum to $236.3M. Only $10M to go before it passes Toy Story 2 as Pixar's biggest hit ever! Meanwhile, Jimmy Neutron grossed $15.0M (+8% compared to last weekend), totalizing $42.2M so far.
 
 
• Disney CEO Reportedly Unhappy With Treasure Planet

Jim Hill reports to the Orlando Weekly that while "test audiences evidently just can't get enough of" Lilo & Stitch, Michael Eisner "ordered that new scenes be put into production [for Treasure Planet] and new dialogue be recorded to lighten up the pivotal character" Jim Hawkins. "That epic, animated adventure -- a space-going version of Robert Louis Stevenson's adventure classic, "Treasure Island" -- has been in production for more than four years now. But only after viewing the nearly completed cartoon this past October did Disney CEO Michael Eisner realize how dark and dour portions of the project had become. Eisner reportedly had big problems with the portrayal of one of the characters, Jim Hawkins, carried over from Stevenson's original novel. According to those who are now saddled with reworking the project at the last minute, Eisner found the animated version of Hawkins to be 'too mopey'. Stranger still, Eisner has insisted that the number of swords featured in the film be significantly reduced.  And pirates -- whether they work in outer space or not -typically carry swords. But in this post-September 11 era, when even a box cutter can be viewed as a dangerous weapon, characters brandishing cutlasses in what is supposed to be a fun family film don't seem all that funny anymore. Which is why numerous Disney animators in Burbank spent most of December frantically reworking various scenes for Treasure Planet, removing every sword they could find."
 
 
• Sequels In the Works for Lilo & Stitch & Bears

In that same article, Jim Hill announces that Disney Television animation already is hard at work putting together a direct-to-video sequel to the yet-to-be-released feature Lilo & Stitch. "Bears also has been penciled in for the direct-to-video sequel treatment. But, given all the story problems Bears continues to have, it's iffy whether the original film or its sequel will ever see the light of day. Given that the movie isn't due to hit theaters until at least 2004, animators still have years yet to fix that film's numerous problems."
 
 
• The Brizzi Brothers Helming Moby Dick for Dreamworks?

According to 'Banana' at the Feature Animation Forum, the extremely talented French duo, who have been working on several aborted Disney projects (including a very dark take on Don Quixote) before leaving the Mouse House, will be directing this traditionally animated feature for Dreamworks.
 
 
• Jimmy Neutron Best Animated Film, According to CNN

CNN reviewer Paul Tatara has named Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius one of the best 10 movies of the year and the best animated movie of the year. "It slows down a bit after a strong start, but this is still the most inventive children's film of the year," says Tatara. "Although Jimmy is a charming character, the real draw is director Davis' obvious sense of wonder at the miracle of mass-produced plastic." However, CNN's other reviewer Paul Clinton praises Shrek for being "a multilayered delight for the family." Thanks to Digital Media FX for the heads up.
 
 
• Snow White Sequel?

'Mason' reports that an idea floating around for the direct-to-video sequel to Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs has Snow White and her daughter Rose visit the Dwarfs, only to find their door wide open and house in a real mess. Looks like they were kidnapped by the evil witch's step-sister Noriss -oh my!...
 
 
• Did You Know That... At the December 21, 1937 premiere of Snow White at Hollywood's Carthay Circle Theater, the celebrity-packed audience rose to its feet and cheered at the conclusion of what had been labelled until then "Disney's folly"! 

 

 

Looking Back At 2001...

The hits, in all fairness, ended up being the best animated films of the year:

• Shrek (May 18): $60M budget, $267,65M gross [and $460M worldwide], becoming the second biggest animated movie in U.S. history
• Spirited Away (July 20 in Japan): $19M budget, $216.7M gross in its home country alone, Spirited Away broke all existing records to become officially the biggest movie ever in Japan
• Monsters, Inc. (November 2):  $100M budget [and another $100 million for prints and advertising], $230M gross to date

A couple of movies did neither great nor horrible: 

• The disappointing Atlantis: The Lost Empire (June 15): $90M budget, $84M gross [over $138.60M worldwide to date]
• The atrocious Cats & Dogs (July 4): $60M budget, $93.38M gross; please, no sequel!!

The animated bombs of the year both were combos of live-action, which is not a good sign for the short-term future of the genre:

• MonkeyBone (February 23): $70M budget, $4.4M gross
• Osmosis Jones (August 10): $75M budget, $13.6M gross

... And Looking Forward To 2002!

• Beauty & the Beast - Special Edition (January 1): A new sequence based around the song "Human Again" was added for the giant screen version of this 10-year old masterpiece.
• Return to NeverLand (February 15): Wendy's 12 year-old daughter Jane doesn't believe her mother's stories about Peter Pan and Neverland until she is kidnapped by Captain Hook. This was originally developped for the direct-to-video market.
• Ice Age (March 15): a human infant  is found by a group of dysfuncional Pliestocene mammals that includes a woolly mammoth, a saber-toothed tiger, and a pair of giant sloths. Together, they try to reunite the baby with his parents. This CGI film is Blue Sky Studios's first feature-length production.
• Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron (May 24): a near-silent film set in America's Western Frontier in the 1800s, Spirit is the rousing tale of a wild and rambunctious mustang stallion and his journey through the untamed American West. If this is a success, Shrek grabs the Animated Oscar as expected, and Lilo & Stitch disappoints, Spirit might definitely establish Dreamworks as the new Disney.
• Lilo & Stitch (June 21): this non-musical tale follows the adventures of a sweet Hawaiian kid who adopts a career criminal alien, thinking it is a cute little dog. Disney placed extremely high expectations in this movie, and hope to get its animation crown back with this feature -let's hope it will, since the Mouse House is said to be much less enthusiastic about its other animated features currently in the works.
• The Country Bears: (July 26): Based on Disney's nearly 30 year-old theme park attractions, this live-action movie stars Christopher Walken, Haley Joel Osment's voice and a few hot cameos. Disney is said to be so happy about this movie that they already comissionned a sequel and are developping other attraction-based films.
• Treasure Planet (Christmas): Think "Treasure Island" set in outter space. A first review commented that the movie was overall very enjoyable, despite a weak ending.

 

Tidbits on Finding Nemo and More

French TV magazine Télé 7 Jours reveals that the Summer 2003 Pixar release will be "a modern take on 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea." It also announces the French release dates for (I'll let you guess which titles these translations stand for!) Monstres et Cie on March 20, Lilo et Stitch on June 26, Peter Pan: retour au pays imaginaire on August 21, and La planète au trésor on November 27. Télé 7 Jours also unveals some more information on the Walt Disney Studios park which open in Paris on March 16 at 9am: the ticket price will be €36 per adult (that's about $32), and give access to shows such as "Catastrophe Canyon", "Aerosmith's Rock'n'Roller Coaster" (both adapted from the Orlando MGM Park), "Moteurs... Action!" (a stunt show), "Animagique" (a dark light show based on Disney's classic features) or "the art of animation according to Disney" (following the history of animation, going back to prehistory).
 
 

Pre-Order Tickets for Beauty & the Beast - Special Edition

Find the nearest Giant Screen Theater near you playing the new version of Disney's masterpiece starting January 1, and order your ticket now from the movie's official site!
 
 

Thursday Box-Office Numbers

According to Showbiz Data, Jimmy Neutron grossed an impressive $5.09M on Thursday, taking its cumulative box-office revenues to $27.52M -the Nickelodeon feature reportedly cost a mere $23M to produce. Meanwhile, Monsters Inc. comes back up to #8 in the U.S. charts, with a total gross of $230.05M to date.
 
 

Did You Know That... Treasure Planet was originally scheduled for Fall 2002, before being pushed back to Christmas 2003, then finally set for a Christmas 2002 release.

 
 

Dreamworks To Animate Moby Dick

The very reliable Dark Horizons reports that Dreamworks Animation is about to go into pre-production on this latest adaptation of the Herman Melville classic. Moby Dick is expected to follow up the currently in production Sinbad.
 
 

New SuperBowl Image on Monsters Site

After some Thanksgiving and Christmas decorations, the movie's official site just got revamped once more -with another cute seasonal picture!
 
 

Photos from the Beauty & the Beast's 10th Anniversary Party

Check out small version at NewsCom (1, 2).
 
 

Has Eisner Lost The Disney Magic?

Fortune Magazine is raising the question: "Can [Disney CEO Michael] Eisner spark another turnaround at Disney? "Maybe I'm crazy, but I don't consider this a crisis," Eisner told me. "We're being buried a little prematurely here." The thing is, he said that back in 1999, when Fortune called Disney the "world's most troubled entertainment giant." It remains just that today. Which raises another question: If the man is The Mouse, when will Michael Eisner be held accountable for Disney's woes? "My value is in the area of making sure that everything we do is ethical, moral, and creatively of the highest quality," Eisner says. He doesn't apologize for giving notes on everything from live theater productions to Disney's TV commercials to the costumes worn by 'cast members' in the parks. "I consider myself the chief creative officer," he says. "We are a company that only succeeds or fails on the quality of its products." Typically, Eisner homes in on trouble spots like the movie studio, where he has helped turn around a business that had lost hundreds of millions of dollars in recent years. "I discovered they had no idea how you could run the business profitably," Eisner said. He's reading scripts, going to weekly meetings, pushing family-themed movies, and driving synergy; the studio has developed no fewer than three films (Country Bears, Pirates of the Caribbean, and The Haunted Mansion) inspired by Disney theme park rides. These days the businesses are a lot tougher. For one thing Disney's success brought out new competitors. "We made $1 billion from Lion King," Eisner says. "And what happens? Everybody gets into animation. Everybody!" The latest Disney animated films have been eclipsed by family-friendly fare from rival studios, including Katzenberg and DreamWorks' Shrek, with its pointed jabs at the Mouse House. Disney needs big, animated features to drive synergy. Other markets were saturated too. It turned out that the 516 Disney stores the company built in North America were too many, so more than 100 are being shuttered. The broadcasting and theme park businesses matured. "We've solidified our company, going forward," he says. "When the economy turns, and when the fear of flying goes away, when we get a couple of hits on ABC--and because of how lean we've made the company--I believe it becomes a gusher. I want to be here to take advantage of all the work we've done and all the crap we took. When it all comes out in the wash, we'll still be the premier growth company in our business." "
 
 

Box-Office Mess

Talk about confusing! Showbiz Data first issued weekend box-office results, which were later denied by Yahoo, but confirmed (to some extent only!) today by Variety. According to the majority, Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius opened to $13.8M, Monsters Inc. stood at $226.3M and Harry Potter still passed Shrek as the year's biggest movie. On Wednesday, Jimmy would be at $22.43 according to Showbiz Data, and Monsters at $227.93.
 
 

ILM Produces CGI Short Film

Cartoon Research invites us to take a look at a work in progress CGI animated short by Tom Bertino: "the short itself seems like a test - with a group of diverse characters creating a 'Mecha-Son-of-Kong' in a fantasy enviroment - but it is very entertaining and quite impressive."
 
 

First Lilo & Stitch Articles Available for Pre-Order

Amazon.com lists the "Lilo and Stitch Read-Aloud Storybook" (hardcover, April 2002), "Lilo and Stitch : Collected Stories from the Film's Creators" (paperback, May 2002), "Lilo & Stitch Jr. Novel" (paperback, May 2002), and the "Ultimate Sticker Book" (16 pages, May 2002) for which the cover is already on display.
 
 

Beauty and the Beast Characters Featured in Latest Literacy Ad 

The Laughing Place reveals that the title characters from Walt Disney Pictures' Beauty and the Beast are the latest stars of the Newspaper Association of America's literacy ad campaign. Under an image of Beauty and the Beast reading a newspaper together, the ad reads, "Reading a newspaper every day is a thing of beauty." The body copy continues, "Believe it or not, some of the most amazing stories unfold every day in a newspaper. Some have happy endings and others don't. But they all do so much to help us learn about the world we live in." The ad closes with the tagline, "It all starts with newspapers." The literacy ad is timed to coincide with Disney's 10th anniversary release of Beauty and the Beast in IMAX and other Giant Screen Theatres on January 1. The Beauty and the Beast characters are the latest in an ad campaign encouraging young people to read newspapers that includes characters from recent movies Monsters Inc., Cats & Dogs, Shrek, and Chicken Run. "This entire campaign seems to be resonating with our members and their readers," said NAA Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer John E. Kimball. "The ads are timely and fun, and have the added benefit of getting kids and their parents excited about reading newspapers. That kind of response really makes this worthwhile." NAA is a nonprofit organization representing the $59 billion newspaper industry and more than 2,000 newspapers in the U.S. and Canada. Most NAA members are daily newspapers, accounting for 87 percent of the U.S. daily circulation. 
 
 

More Direct-To-Video Sequels In The Works?

According to MovieHole, the Mouse House is currently hard at work developping two sequels to Mulan (which should team again Ming Na, Donny Osmond, Lea Salonga, and B.D. Wong), as well as Tarzan II.
 
 

Did You Know That... Clayton, the hunter in Disney's Tarzan, is also Tarzan's real last name (John Clayton)? 

 
 

Disney Hosting A 10th Anniversary Birthday Party for Beauty & the Beast Today

A press release announces that "Walt Disney Pictures celebrates the 10th Anniversary of Beauty & the Beast with a special event at the IMAX Theatre at the Bridge Cinema De Lux in Culver City, CA. Belle and Beast will join Robby Benson (the voice of "Beast") and producer Don Hahn in celebrating the film's Special Edition release.  Children attending will be dressed as their favorite character from the film, as ballroom dancers twirl the lobby, entertaining guests." Read the full release here.
 
 

Corrected Weekend Box-Office Numbers

Showbiz Data published confusing data yesterday, sorry for carrying it here! The official numbers are:

• #3: Jimmy Neutron, Boy Genius opened with $18,554,948 over 3,139 screens; that's slightly below the opening numbers for the Nickelodeon productions The Rugrats Movie ($27.321M in November 1998) and The Rugrats in Paris ($22.718M in November 2000); these were on fewer screens, but based on well-known TV series, which is not the case of Jimmy Neutron
• #10: Monsters, Inc. goes up 15% to $5,699,647 this weekend, with a total of $226,348,671 -putting the Pixar blockbuster, in box-office comparison, $14M behind Shrek, when it used to be $20+M ahead of it; additionally, Monsters is still $19M away from Toy Story 2's third spot for biggest animated movie of all time, quite a stretch considering it is nearing the end of its box-office run in the U.S.
• #59: Atlantis: The Lost Empire climbs back from number 72 and grosses $6,175 to take its box-office total to $84,037,039

Meanwhile, Harry Potter inched past Shrek to become the highest-grossing film of the year with nearly $268 million in ticket sales after 40 days in release.

 

Shrek And Monsters In Heated Oscar Race

DreamWorks is running a visionary but perhaps risky bid to secure a best picture win for Shrek, while Disney has pulled out the stops as never before to win Monsters, Inc. the animated feature statuette, Variety reports. "We're putting everything behind Monsters," said a Disney executive. "We're of course passionate about the genre -- it's what this studio stands for." Some observers said DreamWorks could be committing a tactical blunder by focusing its campaign on the best picture nomination -- the Shrek ads always request consideration in all categories, including best picture, but make no specific mention of best toon. It's an approach, observers say, that could put it in danger of losing the more attainable animated feature award. "In their trade ads for Shrek, DreamWorks mentions every category but animation -- it's as if they sort of don't want people to know the category exists," said an awards wag. "It's a pretty smart strategy if what you want is a best picture nomination." Nevertheless, Terry Press, DreamWorks' head of marketing, reiterated DreamWorks' stance that Shrek remains the best-reviewed movie of the year. "It's obvious that it's an animated film. I'm sure people will presume that Shrek' will show up in the animation category."
 
 

L.A. Times Article on Beauty & the Beast

Producer Don Hahn tells the newspaper that the upcoming special edition will be more of an interactive experience. One is drawn into the action, watching it on the larger screen rather than on video. "What makes it special is one, the screen is so huge, you feel like you are in the movie," he said. "The second thing is the social experience. You hear your audience members laugh, cry and react to a film together. We try to get the audience to forget they are looking at drawings and relate to emotions on the screen."
 
 

Jimmy Neutron Producer Talks About the TV Series

Steve Oedekerk comments to Cinescape that "the thing that hasn’t been done before is the same CGI quality that’s in the movie is what you see on TV. And that’s never happened when transferring a CGI character from film to TV, to have the same resolution. It’s going to look great. Jimmy is the first TV show to be done on this scale with 'off the shelf' software. So somebody can go out and buy the program that was used to animate the series, Lightwave 3-D, and what all this is is the first stepping-stone. As time goes on, as technology trickles down, it still comes down to [the] time and talent of who’s doing [it], but what’s great is it’s not about going knocking on a door anymore. Somebody with the talent can go out there and actually create something that is great. And that’s why we call them our garage band animators.”
 
 

Art from The Road to El Dorado

'Fred' posted a couple of very nice pictures at the Feature Animation Forum. Go check them out!
 
 

Shrek In The Hollywood Reporter's 10 Best Lists

Two critics ranked the Dreamworks CGI marvel in the top 4 movies of the year, definitely making the movie a critics' favorite. Details can be found here.
 
 

Beauty & the Beast - Special Edition on Apple Trailers

The Disney re-release now has its own page, with the large-screen trailer, on the Apple site. "The IMAX conversion process leaves the film utterly breathlessly beautiful and huge," comments AICN.
 
 

Did You Know That... Beauty & the Beast was the first animated feature to cross the $100-million mark at the U.S. box office.

 

 
 

Beauty & the Beast - Special Edition Soundtrack

This great CD now in stores contains three rare demo recordings (demos for "Be Our Guest", "Beauty and the Beast", and the original version of "Death of the Beast"), the song from the added scene "Human Again", as well as complete song lyrics and introduction written by Alan Menken. Check out the official site for more!
 
 

Easter Eggs on the Silly Symphonies DVD

DVD Review tells you what the surprises of this Disney disc are, and how to access them. Owners, enjoy!
 
 

Final Weekend Box-Office Data

Jimmy Neutron grossed $13.27M over the three-day weekend, while Monsters, Inc. now stands at $234.23M. The latest Pixar release is only $11M away from Toy Story 2's record -and topping it would mean entering the top 3 animated movies of all time!
 
 

Did You Know That... "Be Our Guest" was originally animated with Maurice (not Belle) as the guest, but the production decided not to waste such a wonderful song on a secondary character.

 

 
 

Spirit's Teaser Site Updated

The official Dreamworks page now sports an animated image of a running Spirit, instead of the still picture that was there for a couple of weeks.
 
 

Pictures from Upcoming Disney Projects

Check out Disney News for more pictures from Beauty & the Beast - Special Edition and The Hunchback of Notre Dame II (both promotional art and snapshots from the movie).
 
 

Did You Know That... Jeffrey Katzenberg called Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron "the return" to traditional animation's roots. He went on to say that this is the project he is currently most excited about.

 
 

Weekend Box-Office Estimates

The Paramount/Nickelodeon feature Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius landed in third place taking an estimated $14M from 3,139 theaters. The $23M animated film averaged a good, though slightly disappointing, $4,460 per location. Disney/Pixar's Monsters, Inc. dropped to the tenth spot with another $3.5M, despite the outtakes and holidays, confirming it will not beat Shrek's record at the U.S. box-office; still, the movie now stands to an extremely impressive $224.2M total.
 
 

Pixar's Partnership with John Ratzenberg & Randy Newman

'Joel Swaan' reports that John Lasseter told Starlog Magazine in their January 2002 edition (#293) that he would always find a role for John Ratzenberger in every one of Pixar's movies -meaning he'll very likely voice one of the characters in The Invincibles and Route 66 (he's already been confirmed as part of the voice cast for Finding Nemo).  "Incidentally," adds Joel, "he was not so enthusiastic about Randy Newman, who has scored all of their movies to date," saying the latter's involvement would depend on whether his music fits the project.
 
 

My Neighbor Totoro One of Ebert's "Great Movies"

Nausicaa.net observes that the Hayao Miyazaki feature is now part of Roger Ebert's "Great Movies" list. You can read his review of the film here.
 
 

French Site and Trailer for Spirited Away

Nausicaa.net also notifies us that Gaumont put up an official site and trailer in French for this February 2002 gallic release.
 
 

Hercules 2: The Trojan War

The Disney Animation Archive unveals the tentative title for this rumoured sequel. The site also publishes a "first" picture -which is actually a conceptual drawing from Hercules, put up on Animated Movies several months ago.
 
 

Beauty & the Beast: Disney Hit Gets Bigger

Animation World Magazine takes us behind the scenes of Beauty's large screen edition in this great article. In it, we learn that almost 200 scenes required some additional animation, effects, background painting or other details to adapt the movie to IMAX. For instance, in the wide shots during the snow ball fight, Belle's face had no detail, which on the now seven-story-high image clearly showed. About the added sequence, Nik Ranieri, the supervising animator for Lumiere, recalls, "I was really excited to be working on this character again and 'Human Again' had a good role in it for Lumiere. My first thought was, 'Can I handle this character? It's been ten years and I don't know if I can still draw him.' I got out the old model sheet and started drawing and it just started to come back. It was like visiting an old friend. I really enjoyed getting to work with him again." IGN FilmForce also published a small, less revealing feature about the upcoming re-release.
 
 

Italian Cartoon Promises Provocative "Time"

Easily Italy's most imaginative feature film cartoonist, Naples-bred Enzo D'Alo brings his characteristic respect for children and a strong social point of view to his third feature, Momo, the Conquest of Time, Variety repots. More elaborate in story, concept and drawing than either The Blue Arrow or his $9 million-grossing smash Zorba and Lucky (1998), this yarn about a little girl who saves the world from the Gray Men intent on stealing people's time is the thinking child's alternative to Hollywood Christmas fare. The sole holiday release in Italy for the Cecchi Gori Group, it stands a fighting chance against seasonal competition from Atlantis and the Italian-made Aida of the Trees, with all the credentials for doing fine biz internationally. Pic is based on a novel by the late Michael Ende; the 1984 live-action adaptation of his book The Neverending Story became a worldwide hit under Wolfgang Petersen's direction. This parentage gives a strong narrative backbone to the delightful fantasy of D'Alo's animators. Pop star Gianna Nannini contributes a rousing rock track that anchors the animation firmly in the contemporary world. Editor Simona Paggi opts for an unusually brisk pace, particularly at the beginning, that barely gives audiences time to take in the blooming array of animation, but which keeps pic's running time down to a fast and enjoyable 78 minutes.
 
 

Did You Know That... Hades was scripted as a slow, menacing character in Disney's Hercules -until James Woods auditioned for the role and impressed the casting directors with his rapid-fire style.  The script was rewritten, but Woods ad-libbed many lines. 

 

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A Hectic Month Ahead for Animated Movies!

I'll be on the move from Saturday 12/22 through late January, with only a modem connection at best. At this point I am unsure how easily I'll be able to update the site for the next month. One thing is sure: subscribers to the free Animation Mailing List will keep on receiving weekly updates, with links to the most interesting sites and articles! I'll have to cut down on member-only goodies and pictures until I get back to a fast Internet connection on January 27. So please, if you haven't done so already -and I know a lot of regular visitors haven't yet-, subscribe to the mailing list (use the form above then follow the instructions emailed to you, or email me directly if you feel lazy) in order to be kept posted on animation news, and site updates!

 
 
• Dumbo II Status

'HenryAnne', whose daughter is voicing one of the characters of this 2002 direct-to-video production, informs us that the movie is currently in voice production.
 
 
• Box-Office Preview

Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius opened Friday in fourth place with $3.7M at the U.S. box-office, but its weekend total should increase to $16 or $20M, and the movie is expected to still play strong throughout the holidays as kids are out of school. Meanwhile, Monsters, Inc. isn't as lucky and barely holds on to the top 10; it should reach about $235M at the U.S. box-office by tonight. Meanwhile, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone is expected to pass Shrek's year-leading total any day now.
 
 
• John Davis Interview from Dark Horizons

This great Australian movie site chatted with the writer/director of Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius. "Jimmy is sort of the every kind of kid we know, except he is a genius. So he has all of the same problems that normal kids have, but he either solves the problems or complicates them by virtue of being a genius and to me personally, he was a character that I could live out my childhood fantasies through."
 
 
• Shrek's Score CD: "A Thoroughly Wonderful Release"

Cinescape makes this soundtrack one of its weekly recommendations, and comments that "the symphonic score composed by Harry Gregson-Williams and John Powell (Antz, Chicken Run) is by far the duo’s most lavish and compelling work, a completely enchanting and interesting composition that gave Shrek a lot of its emotional appeal." The CD contains two songs from the movie, their lyrics, and notes from the production team.
 
 
• Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius Opens to Positive Reviews

The animated movie by Paramount Pictures, Nickelodeon and DNA Productions is playing in 3,139 theaters. Here are review quotes from newspaper critics, selected by Digital Media FX: "Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius is a Nickelodeon production, frankly aimed at grade-schoolers. It doesn't have the little in-jokes that make Shrek and Monsters, Inc. fun for grown-ups. But adults who appreciate the art of animation may enjoy the look of the picture, which is a kind downsized Toy Story, with a lot of originality in the visual ideas...", wrote Roger Ebert for the Chicago Sun-Times; "Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius is bound to make parents happy if only because of its message: 'Listen to your parents. They know what's good for you.' And it should please kids because, for most of the animated feature, Jimmy and his pals don't heed that advice, have loads of fun and get into all manner of intergalactic mayhem", adds Claudia Puig in USA Today; Paul Tatara of CNN comments that "Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius is the most delightfully original children's film of 2001. Fasten your seatbelts for further installments of a zooming, bumpy ride." Dan Via of the Washington Post writes: "Frenetic and uninvolving, the latest offering from the Nickelodeon uber-brand follows whiz-kid Neutron, his robotic dog and his demographically comprehensive classmates on an intergalactic mission to rescue their parents, kidnapped by a race of gelatinous space creepies... This boy genius should be grounded."
 
 
• Shrek Still in the Top 10 U.S. Video Rental Chart

The Dreamworks blockbuster grossed another $1.69M this week, totalizing $34.32M for video rentals only.
 
 
• A Very Merry Christmas Parade on ABC

Tune on to ABC at 10am ET next Tuesday to watch the Disney Parade broadcast from Walt Disney World Resort.
 
 
• Download Holiday Desktops

Decorate your computer screen with some Disney Park magic over at MousePlanet!
 
 
• Did You Know That... The animation of Shrek takes some cues from lessons PDI learned on Antz. Lead character animator Raman Hui, a 12 year veteran of PDI, explained how his team added touches of realism to the storybook characters.  "One thing we felt was the characters we had done on Antz were lacking a little bit of breathing," Hui said. "When they talk or when they act, sometimes you don't feel that they are breathing. That's one thing that we applied to Shrek. Whenever we hear a little bit of sound in the audio, like if Fiona is talking and she inhales a little bit, we want to make sure that that shows in her body. Another thing we did was put more emphasis on weight. Whenever they walk or they shift their body, we want to make sure that weight is showing according to the characters. When Shrek walks, we want to make sure that you can feel that he's heavy, so the body might bend a little bit more and the hip would turn to make sure that his left leg has all the weight on the foot and those kind of details."

 
 
• Jimmy Neutron Opens Today in the U.S.

"While it’s commendable that Jimmy is made using 'off the shelve' software like Lightwave, the film’s clunky mix of clever and lame jokes results in tinny entertainment that will please the kiddies but leave adults only mildly amused," Cinescape comments. "While good, it is sadly lacking when compared to the likes of Monsters Inc. and Toy Story 2. The story is slow in parts but as this is a Nickelodeon film, it is filled with all sorts of fun moments that children are sure to love," adds MovieHole. For Variety, "this sixth Paramount-Nick bigscreen venture plays very young, to kids no older than 8 or so. But since this is the same demographic that has driven the partners' Rugrats franchise, they ought to come out very nicely with this sole Christmas release aimed at the crowd too young for The Lord of the Rings."
 
 
• Universal Happy with Land Before Time Sales

Expect The Land Before Time to become The Land With No End., jokes Digital Media FX. The public continues to provide strong sales for the animated VHS and DVD series, which is in its 8th installment. The newest release of Universal's dino franchise, Land Before Time: The Big Freeze is easily outpacing sales of last year's installment, Land Before Time VII: The Stone of Cold Fire.  At the time of this article, Land Before Time: The Big Freeze was the 33rd top selling VHS on Amazon.com (out of thousands of VHS titles). The number of installments is getting so high that Universal, starting with this newest installment, has stopped labeling them with numbers (i.e. VI, VII, VIII). "This just goes to show that people of all ages can't get enough dinosaurs," said Craig Kornblau, president Universal Studios Home Video. "From The Land Before Time to Jurassic Park, dinosaur films have an extremely wide appeal because they are terrific adventure stories that the whole family can watch again and again."
 
 
• Vote for your Favorite Disney Movie...

Go figure... Disney is pushing its "100 Years of Magic" online once the party is over -better late than never! Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs is currently topping the Top 25 Movies and Top 10 Musicals, followed by The Little Mermaid and 101 Dalmatians. Cast your vote now!
 
 
• ... or Walk Down Memory Lane

Another feature was added to the official Disney site as part of its latest update: a neat feature that tells you what Disney moments marked your year of birth. Screensavers from various decades are also available for free download!
 
 
• Michael Eisner Confirms He'd Like To Buy The Muppets Company

Walt Disney Co. Chairman Michael Eisner has told a German weekly that he is interested in buying The Jim Henson Co. but that the German conglomerate that currently owns it has placed an "unrealistic" price on the company. Eisner told Focus magazine that he currently isn't in talks with the Muppet maker's owner, EM.TV, "but you can tell them they can give me a call." 
 
 
• Michael Douglas Plays President for Liberty's Kids

The actor will voice George Washington in 20 of the 40 episodes of the PBS animated series depicting dramatic events of the American Revolution, Variety reports. Dustin Hoffman, Ben Stiller, Billy Crystal, Annette Bening, Whoopi Goldberg and Walter Cronkite are set to join him on the show. The plot centers around three apprentice journos working for Franklin's paper. Liberty's Kids will bow on PBS on Memorial Day.
 
 
• Studios Feel Pinched Disc as DVD Bonus Costs Boom

Don't get too used to audio commentaries and exclusive interviews on DVD versions of your favorite films, Variety warns. Many video vets believe such extra material could start to disappear thanks to escalating costs and demands by talent and guilds. Until recently, directors and others have mostly agreed to sit at no charge for DVD interviews or commentaries to help promote the movie or for purely nostalgic or personal interests. Lately, though, producers and studios are reporting an increasing number of demands for payment by stars for audio commentaries and interviews. Studios don't lack for filler material. They can always lard discs with extras that don't require new production, such as trailers, interviews from electronic press kits and behind-the-scenes TV featurettes.
 
 
• Next Update Hopefully on Sunday

Depending on whether I have easy access to the material required for uploads. As explained at the top of this page, subscribers will receive their weekly update by mail as usual!
 
 
• Did You Know That... Many scenes from The Land Before Time were cut because they were thought too scary, dark or violent. For instance, 19 scenes were cut from the sequence where the Tyrannosaurus Rex chases the chilren into the briars and from the fight with the mother Brontosaurus.

 
 

And A Golden Globe Nomination for Shrek

The green ogre gained even more credibility today by getting nominated by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association for "Best Motion Picture - Musical/Comedy". Shrek will be competing for the award against Moulin Rouge, Bridget Jones's Diary, Legally Blonde, and Gosford Park. Of these five, only Shrek and Moulin Rouge are serious Oscar contenders -along with dramas like A Beautiful Mind, In the Bedroom, The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring or Ali. Even if Shrek gets an Oscar nomination for "Best Film" though, its chances of winning the statuette are close to non-existent -comedies don't fare too well with the Academy, plus a special Toon Oscar will be awarded this year for the first time. But that Golden Globe nomination gives Shrek a leg up in its expected battle with Pixar/the Walt Disney Co.'s Monsters, Inc., which the HFPA left off its list, in the expected battle for the first animated feature Oscar.
 
 

Official Press Release for Dreamworks' Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron

Posted by 'Fred' at the Feature Animation Forum.
 
 

Shrek Soundtrack Holds on to the Billboard 50

This week again, the album ranks #33, with over a half-million units shipped. On the other hand, neither the movie's follow-up score album nor the Rand Newman-penned Monsters, Inc. soundtrack made it to the top 100.
 
 

Another Jimmy Neutron Review

This time from Movie Headlines, which gives it a 7/10: "this film is funny and entertaining, but so are a lot of cartoons on TV. There’s really not anything in this movie that makes it deserving of the big screen treatment."
 
 

The Rise of Jimmy Neutron

Animation World Magazine published a fascinating article about the origins behind Jimmy Neutron and the impressive marketing campaign Nickelodeon is launching to push the property. Jimmy-creator and founder of DNA Productions, John A. Davis, had been tooling around with an idea ever since the early 1980s about a boy genius, who runs away from home in a homemade rocket-ship. His first short movie, Runaway Rocket Boy, garnered a lot of press in trade magazines, which brought Ace Ventura writer and director Steve Oedekerk into the mix: "I'm a huge fan of computer-generated animation, and at that time, one of the few that thought a CGI television series was even possible." Now entitled The Adventures of Johnny Quasar, DNA Productions created an expanded short based on the original demo. In the fall of 1995, their studio pitching tour began — and ended after the first stop! "It really just blew us away," says Albie Hecht, Nickelodeon's president of film and TV entertainment, and later executive producer on the feature. "The animation was so sparkling, and it has that future-retro style." Upon this reaction, Nick ordered a 13-minute pilot episode to be created. After a long period of further development, the pilot started production at the end of 1997. As part of the initial pitch, Steve Oedekerk boasted how with 3D technology, assets created for a TV series could also be used for a feature and visa versa, which Nickelodeon bought 100%. From a production standpoint, John A. Davis then suggested doing the feature first. This way Jimmy's world could be created at theatrical quality then those assets could be used on the TV series. Nickelodeon understood the technical advantage of doing the feature prior to the TV series, but was worried about not being able to build an audience for the feature without the series coming first. That's when Nick came up with the idea of creating and airing short interstitials leading up to the feature's release. After three months of pounding out a script, in the beginning of 2000, Nickelodeon gave the go-ahead to start production on the feature, Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius, which is released nationwide tomorrow.  The film's soundtrack features such popular singers as Britney Spears, *NSync, The Backstreet Boys, Lil' Romeo and Aaron Carter, Jimmy will be presented as a balloon in the Macy's New Year's Day Parade and will have an expanded line of merchandise coming in 2002. This all leads up to the debut of the TV series, The Adventures of Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius, in April 2002. When asked how he feels the series will influence the TV industry, John A. Davis says, "It will definitely raise the bar." We wish you the best of luck, Jimmy!
 
 

The Pebble and the Penguin Released on DVD This Week

Don Bluth and Gary Goldman did not hide their disappointment and frustration on this 1995 movie, and MGM/UA taking control away from them led the duo to join Fox, where they would produce Anastasia and Titan A.E.. Still, you can now buy this moderately entertaining feature on DVD -it should please the very little.
 
 

Writing Feature Animation: The Disney, Dreamworks and Direct-To-Video Way

Toon Zone brings us up-to-date on the recent panel discussion hosted by the Animation Writers Caucus: "Tab Murphy explained that Disney animated features usually go into production based on an outline or treatment, rather than a finished script. The outline is then broken down into sequences, which are divided up among teams of writers and storyboard artists. Both Irene Mecchi and Bob Tzudiker concurred that this process often leads to a phenomenon known as "sequence-itis," where artists grow so attached to tweaking their individual sequences that they forget that the sequences must link up to the story as a whole. By contrast, Len Uhley cited his experience with direct-to-video features as more akin to that of TV animation, where the writer turns in a script and has very little contact with the artists. The upside is that, due to time and budget constraints, more of the writer's material as originally written appears in the finished product. Moderator Phil LaZebnik noted that, unlike the traditional Disney process, DreamWorks insists on a finished script before going into production on a feature." You can read more at the Writer's Guild of America site.
 
 

Disney Goes High-Tech to Measure Kids for Rides

The sight of kids bursting into tears at Disney theme parks when they suddenly discover they're too short for a particular ride may soon be a thing of the past, Reuters reports. Starting in early 2002 in Disneyland California, children will be scanned with a high-tech ultrasound device that will instantly measure their height to determine which rides they can go on before leading their parents toward any line. The device works by bouncing a beam from a paddle placed atop a child's head down to his or her feet, then lights up yellow (Minnie Mouse), blue (Donald Duck), green (Goofy) or white (Mickey Mouse) to indicate height range and ride eligibility. Children will then be given corresponding colored wristbands indicating which attractions are safe for them to ride.
 
 

Osamu Tezuka's Metropolis Debuts in U.S. Theaters Next Month

Fans who can't wait for the CGI AstroBoy movie will be pleased to learn that an all new feature film based on the work of Osamu Tezuka is due in theaters next month, Comics2Film announces. On January 25, 2002 Sony Pictures will release Toho Company's Osamu Tezuka's Metropolis. The story centers on Detective Shunsaku Ban and his brilliant nephew Kenichi who investigate crimes in a futuristic society populated by humans and robots. During their investigations, Kenichi falls in love with Tima, a woman who doesn't realize she's a robot or that she's imbued with enough power to control the world. The anime feature is directed by Rintaro who directed episodes of the AstroBoy TV show as well as the feature Galaxy Express 999. Katsuhiro Otomo of Akira fame penned the screenplay. Sony will present the movie in Japanese with newly-translated subtitles.
 
 

Behind the Scenes of A Christmas Carol: The Movie

Director Jimmy Murakami talks about his life, career and new feature to Animation World Magazine: "Iain Harvey, the producer, tapped me when another director fell through. I disliked the initial script: I didn't feel it was anything different or new. So I told Iain, I would direct if I could do the film I wanted to make. He agreed and we took it from there. I feel that it will be OK. It's a hell of a lot better than the script we started with, and could be quite successful. It has weaknesses, but then all films have weak points. [What was wrong with the original concept is that] like most animated features, there was no sense of telling the story properly: no characterisation, just standard well-known characters, and it was too like Disney in terms of cuteness. Overall, it was uninteresting. So we had a couple of rewrites, and I boarded the whole thing in terms of how the drama would play. We developed the role of the mice... [In the film, much of the story is told through the eyes of two mice, effectively 'alter-egos' of Scrooge and his fiancée.]  The film is a children's film in that it includes things I think will fascinate children. I don't think they'll be bored. I'm pleased with how the ghosts express themselves in their three segments. [The saddened Christmas Past is voiced by Jane Horrocks, who was Bunty in Aardman's Chicken Run. The more joyous Christmas Present is voiced by Michael Gambon, while Murakami promises something 'very different' for Christmas Future; 'almost black-and-white.'] I also like the relations between the characters: Scrooge and the ghosts, Scrooge and Belle, his fiancée, how they interplay with each other... Scrooge and Belle's relationship was never properly exploited in other versions. In terms of animation, I think the highlights are the acting between Scrooge and Belle. The voice-track helped us a lot. [Scrooge is voiced by Simon Callow, Belle by Kate Winslet.] It helped give us those 'special moments' to move the audience."
 
 

Kate Winslet's Charity Single Posted Online 

Ananova points out that proceeds from her song "What If", from Christmas Carol: The Movie, will benefit the NSPCC and The Sargeant Cancer Care For Children. The soundtrack also features two tracks by Charlotte Church. You can listen to "What If" in low and high data rate versions -the full song was made available to subscribers in MP3 format a few weeks ago. The video can also be seen in low and high data rate versions.
 
 

Did You Know That... The Pebble and the Penguin was originally titled The Penguin Story. 

 

 
 

The Little Mermaid Tidbits

'Cybele Baker' sent in a very interesting email about the original Hans Christian Andersen tale: she explains how the Little Mermaid is "in agony every time she walks which is why she seems so graceful and delicate because she walks very carefully. Her death at the end, while sad is also uplifting because she chooses not to kill the Prince to save her own life but to allow him his happiness. H.C. Andersen's tale is all about how Mermaids do not have a soul, and when they die they become nothing but Sea Foam. But the Little Mermaid does not become Sea Foam, she is taken away by angels in Heaven at the end and given the gift of a soul because of her goodness and sacrifice." Additionally, Cybele explains that "the voice actor who does Grimsby the butler is also the same actor who was Roger in 101 Dalmatians, something the Disney folks auditioning him for The Little Mermaid didn't even know until he told them!"
 
 

Opus the Penguin To Hit The Big Screen

Variety reports that Dimension Films has acquired the rights to develop and produce an animated feature based on one of my all-time favorite drawn heroes, ''Bloom County'' character Opus the penguin. The Pulitzer Prize-winning creator of the cartoon, Berkeley Breathed, is attached to write and direct. Opus debuted in the first year of ``Bloom County'' in 1980. He appeared in Breathed's 11 bestselling cartoon collections as well as an animated television Christmas special and an exclusive line of collectible items created with American Greetings. Breathed just completed directing an animated short based on his book Edwurd Fudwupper Fibbed Big. There's no word yet on a solid production start or a tentative release window for the Opus movie.
 
 

Beauty and the Beast Premiere Last Night

The premiere for Beauty and the Beast - Special Edition was held yesterday at 7pm ET at the Loews IMAX Theatre at Lincoln Square in New York. In attendance at the premiere were Robby Benson, Paige O'Hara, Jo Anne Worley, Richard White, Bradley Pierce, Producer Don Hahn, Directors Kirk Wise and Gary Trousdale, and Composer Alan Menken, as well as Roy Disney, Vice Chairman of The Walt Disney Company. Disney described Beauty and the Beast Special Edition as follows, according to Digital Media FX: "Technology, artistry and imagination join forces to make the 10th anniversary of Walt Disney Pictures' timeless animated classic, Beauty and the Beast, a real cause for celebration.  For this special return engagement, the film makes its giant-screen debut in a digitally-remastered format with improved picture and sound quality. Adding to the excitement is a never-before-seen animated sequence featuring the song 'Human Again,' written for the original film by Academy Award-winning songwriters Howard Ashman and Alan Menken.  This newly animated scene features Belle, the Beast and an ensemble of enchanted objects (Mrs. Potts, Lumiere, Cogsworth, etc.) which express their hopes and desires to resume their human forms." The movie's large edition trailer is available for your viewing pleasure!
 
 

Status Update on Don Bluth's Dragon's Lair Movie

The director reveals on his Website that he is currently "preparing storyboards and working out the script."
 
 

First Pictures from Upcoming Hayao Miyazaki Productions

Nausicaa.net scored thumbnail images from Neko no Ongaeshi (Cat Returning Favor) and Hauru no Ugoku Shiro (Howl's Moving Castle), two Studio Ghibli animated films executive produced by Hayao Miyazaki.
 
 

Disney Park Attendance May Take Time

AP observes that if history is any indication, it may take at least two years before attendance at Disney's Florida and California theme parks returns to pre-September 11 levels. Walt Disney World's four central Florida theme parks - Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Disney-MGM-Studios and Animal Kingdom - had an attendance of 43.2 million people last year, according to estimates by Amusement Business, a trade magazine. Disneyland in California had 13.9 million visitors. The Disney parks faced slow attendance even before the attacks because of the growing recession. The analysts have predicted a 40 percent decline in operating income for the company's theme-park division in fiscal year 2002. After the September 11 attacks, attendance at the Walt Disney World Resort's parks plunged by 25 percent. Attendance at Disneyland Resort was slightly up because of the new addition of the California Adventure theme park and increased pricing promotions. It took four years after the Persian Gulf War, in 1995, before attendance at the Disney parks reached fiscal year 1990 levels.
 
 

Jimmy Neutron Trailer

Watch a small version at the movie's official site, or download the large high-quality trailer if you have a fast connection. Enjoy!
 
 

Shrek Scores Yet Another Best Picture Nomination

Shrek continues to rack up massive award nominations from film boards and critic associations, Digital Media FX reports. The latest comes from the Broadcast Critics Film Association, which nominated Shrek for both Best Picture and Best Animated Feature. Monsters, Inc. and Waking Life were also nominated for Best Animated Feature, however Shrek's additional Best Picture nomination almost guarantees its Best Animated Feature win. In a continuing controversy nearly all critic association and film boards are classifying Waking Life as an animated movie. It is widely believed that Shrek, Waking Life, and Monsters, Inc. will be the three Academy Award nominations.
 
 

Disney's BVI To Gross $1.1 Billion Overseas in 2001

Disney's Buena Vista Intl. (BVI) confirmed Monday it has joined Warner Bros. and Universal in crossing the $1 billion mark at the overseas box office this year. It's the first time since 1999 that three studios have reached the milestone. BVI, Disney's marketing and distribution unit, has passed $1 billion in each of the past seven years, winning the annual market-share race five times in that span. This year, however, Warners is likely to win thanks to Harry Potter, which already has $313 million overseas and could rival No. 2 foreign grosser of all time, Star Wars: Episode I -- The Phantom Menace, at $925.6 million. But BVI expects a fast finish from Monsters, Inc., which debuts this month in Latin America, Southeast Asia and Australia; and Atlantis: The Lost Empire. BVI president Mark Zoradi predicts his division will wind the year at close to $1.1 billion.
 
 

Did You Know That... Disney considered making Beauty and the Beast after Pinocchio, but decided against it because he thought the scenes where Belle was held prisoner were inappropriate -this was in 1940! 

 

 
 
• Jimmy Neutron Review: Great for Kids

It might not be "as cute or as sensitive as Monsters, Inc. or as funny as Shrek" according to  Coming Soon, but still "within this little animated film beats the heart of a child's imagination." The site gives Jimmy Neutron, Boy Genius 3 stars out of 5, and recommends it to anyone under 12. The CGI movie opens this Friday.
 
 
• Memo: ABC Is A Mickey Mouse Organization

In a subtle reminder to ABC employees about where their ultimate loyalty lies, Disney President and COO Robert Iger has sent a memo to the network's staff informing them that they will now be included in the company's awards program, making them eligible to receive lapel pins that celebrate "the heritage and tradition of the company." As reported by Chicago Sun-Times reporter Robert Feder today, five-year employees of the company will receive a Donald Duck lapel pin, 10-year employees, a Disneyland Castle pin; 15-year employees, a Mickey Mouse pin, and so forth. Feder speculates that the pins may soon be popping up on the lapels of ABC reporters and local anchormen.
 
 
• They Left Us This Year...

Thank you for all the joy you brought into our lives!
 
• William Hanna, 90 (March 22): Animator who with partner Joseph Barbera created such cartoon characters as Fred Flintstone, Yogi Bear and Tom and Jerry.
• Maurice J. Noble, 91 (May 18): Animator who worked on Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Bambi and How the Grinch Stole Christmas. 
• Robert Abel, 64 (September 22): A pioneer in computer animation who created award-winning commercials and special effects for Tron and other films.
• Seymour Reit, 83 (November 21): Author and illustrator who helped create Casper the Friendly Ghost, and wrote more than 80 children's books on subjects ranging from Balto, the hero dog, to the Confederate ironclad the Merrimack. 
• Faith Hubley, 77 (December 7): An animation artist and filmmaker whose work, featuring abstract images and jazz accompaniment, won three Academy Awards.

 
• Final Weekend Box-Office Data

Monsters, Inc. grossed antoher $4,980,223, registering a respectable 25% drop-off over 2,682 screens, which brings its Sunday total to $218,815,112.
 
 
• Did You Know That... Animation veteran Floyd Norman said of William Hanna that he was "one of the toughest bosses I ever worked for. He was a mean no-nonsense business man. Yet, he was one of the nicest men I ever knew. The people running animation studios today make William Hanna look like a saint." 

 
 

Monsters' Latin Box-Office Update

In Mexico, the CGI blockbuster stole the top spot from Harry Potter, with a three-day haul of $2.8 million which is the third largest animated opening there after Tarzan and Dinosaur. It is second behind Harry in Argentina though. In Brazil, a $687,000 haul for Monsters beat Shrek's opening by 13%.
 
 

Tia Carrere Talks About Lilo & Stitch

The actress explains how she came close to voicing Mulan, what she sings in Lilo & Stitch, how recording sessions were planned, and much more to Prevue Magazine: "[Lilo & Stich] is so cute! It's set in Hawaii and I play the guardian of my little sister. I've been working on it for two years. It's a much heavier film than you have ever seen from Disney, in that the girl's parents aren't present. You just sort of infer that it's the older sister taking care of the younger sister. I'm working hard, trying to get jobs, and there is a social services worker checking on the welfare of the child. I'm constantly trying to keep my head above water, so that Social Services doesn't take my sister away! It's very modern, and it's also very charming, and very poignant. [Being a Disney character] is great! I've always wanted to be a Disney cartoon character. I was really upset when Mulan slipped through there. I had heard about Mulan and thought it would be great. It has the same casting director as Lilo & Stitch and apparently she tried to get in touch with me, but I was in Slovakia shooting a film. When I walked in for the first session of Lilo & Stitch, she told me that she had tried to get in touch with me for Mulan. In the end, it all came around for a great project. Anyway, I'm more from Hawaii than I am for Mainland China. Besides, I get to sing in it too! I get to sing a Hawaiian song to my little sister -"Aloha O'e", which is a traditional Hawaiian song that was written by Queen Liliuokalani, the last Hawaiian monarch." Asked about where she is recording Lilo & Stich, Tia Carrere explained: "While I'm working on Relic Hunter, they'll pop in and say, "we've just got to get a line, or two." I was working out at rock quarry, an hour-and-a-half outside Toronto and there was huge machinery passing by. Now, my trailer's wonderful, but it's not exactly soundproof. We had this whole recording set-up in the trailer and we were waiting for the rock quarry trucks to pass, so we can get one clean line. [They actually use that line and it's not redubbed later], they are amazing. They piece it all together. Jason Scott Lee was in London, so the directors and producers flew to London to record him there. When I was in Paris, they needed a line, so they could show the animation to their hire-ups at Disney, so I was in Paris, so they had to come to Paris.  Although the character girl doesn't look like me, they videotape me as I am speaking, so they can see how my face moves, how my mouth moves. [Working for Disney] is a wonderful atmosphere, very relaxed. They crack a joke, I crack a joke. I really get to inject a lot into [my character]. I've felt very free to inject some Hawaiianisms into the film. In Hawaii, there is a dialect we speak called Pidgin. It's a bit like broken English, but it's not that you are saying different words, it's just the way that you say them. It has a different intonation. I asked them if they wanted Pidgin, since this was supposed to be Hawaiian, and they said "sure, as long as we can understand it." So, I started improvising some dialog. I gave them some local Hawaiianisms that would still hold up to the general public, but that local Hawaiians would get a chuckle because it is so "on the money" for local people."
 
 

Shrek Nominated for Best Movie the AFI Awards

The American Film Institute announced today nominations for the first annual AFI Awards in 19 film and television categories. The AFI, which is dedicated to advancing and preserving the art of film and television, will present its awards January 5 at the Beverly Hills Hotel in a live television broadcast after balloting by a 100-member jury of industry experts.
 
 
 

Return to NeverLand Article in Disney Magazine

'Mason' was kind enough to send in a transcript: "While Peter still has not grown up, Wendy, the young girl who once flew to NeverLand now has a family of her own with whom she lives in London. Her pragmatic daughter Jane is eager to grow up and dismisses her mother's stories about NeverLand. Her attitude changes when she's kidnapped by Captain Hook, and wisked off to his pirate ship the Jolly Roger. "We're trying to bring back your old friends together, have a new adventure with them and continue Barrie's story" says Chris Chase, one of the film's producers. Disney is bringing back John Henry to celebrate Black History Month; it will be shown before Return to NeverLand in theaters across the nation. Peter Pan and John Henry hammer and fly to the movies on February 15, 2002." Check out the movie's official site for more info!
 
 

Shrek To Lose Its Title as Highest Grossing Film of 2001

Analysts agree that Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone will undoubtedly beat Shrek's box-office record by year's end. The wizard already raked in $253M in the U.S., and over $313M abroad.
 
 

Christmas Episode of Chuck Jones' Timber Wolf

Digital Media FX notes that a Christmas episode of Timber Wolf, written and produced by Chuck Jones, will premiere online this morning. According to Warner Bros, "Thirty-five years after his animated classic How The Grinch Stole Christmas first aired, legendary animation director Chuck Jones has ventured back into holiday cartoons for only the second time in his long career with his newest creation Thomas T. Wolf, producing a five-and-a-half minute Christmas special titled 'Ohhh! Christmas Tree.'" Warner Bros. has seen a major increase of traffic to its Website since it began airing the Timber Wolf series. The Christmas episode will run the rest of this month, and features the voice of Joe Alaskey as Wolf and Nancy Cartwright (the voice of Bart Simpson) as Earl Squirrel.
 
 

Sinbad Rumour

According to 'Banana', Brad Pitt stepped in to replace Russel Crowe as the voice of Sinbad in Dreamworks' next traditionally animated feature. No source is mentioned, and at this point nothing can confirm this rumour, so take it for what it is. This could also be a mix-up with John Singleton's live-action movie of the same name.
 
 

Broadway Gets Booster Shot from Mayor's Office

Broadway's sagging box office is getting some very direct support from the mayor's office, Variety reports. For the first three weeks of December, the city of New York purchased some 16,500 tickets, totaling $220,000, to six box office-challenged shows including Disney's Beauty and the Beast. "It's to help support the shows that are most in danger of closing," said Jed Bernstein, president of the League of American Theaters and Producers, the Broadway trade group that appealed to the mayor's office for the emergency program. "This is the first wave. The second and third wave of buying will come in January and February." By the end of February, the mayor's office will have purchased $2.5 million in Broadway tickets, which will be distributed to theatergoers via NYC & Co. and various charitable groups. "Normally, 50% of (Broadway) tickets are purchased at least a month ahead of time," said Jan Svendsen, the league's director of marketing. "It is now 15%, which is off significantly. Right now, 50% of tickets are being purchased the same day or the same week people are attending theaters." January and February grosses remain extremely vulnerable to winter storms, more so in 2002 than in the recent past. This trend, however, does not appear to extend to Broadway's three biggest hits -led by Disney's The Lion King, which still enjoys strong advances.
 
 

Did You Know That... Elton John and lyricist Tim Rice wrote three new songs for the Lion King musical: Zazu's "The Morning Report," the hyenas' "Chow Down," and "The Madness of King Scar."

 
 

Another Award for Shrek

The Dreamworks blockbuster received the Los Angeles Critics Award for Best Animated Feature yesterday, after winning in that same category at the 2001 National Board of Review, and grabbing 8 statuettes at the latest Annie ceremony. Congratulations for this well-deserved critical success!
 
 

MPAA Rating for Return to NeverLand

No surprise there: 'Mason' reports that the Peter Pan sequel will be rated G. The movie opens in two months.
 
 

What Makes The World Go Round?

Subscribers to the Animation Mailing List will find out today! If you didn't join this free list already, fill out the form at the top of this page and get email updates filled with member-only info!
 
 

Monsters, Inc. Becomes the Fourth Biggest Animated Movie of All Time

The Pixar movie's box-office revenues will be slightly ahead of Aladdin's $217.3M tonight. Keep in mind this ranking is based on actual figures only!
 
 

Top 10 Animated Movies of All Time Adjusted for Overall Inflation

You saw yesterday what the biggest animated films would be in the U.S. if box-office figures took into account ticket price inflation. Now if we step back and consider overall inflation since 1937, the list would be completely different. Compiled by Digital Media FX, it shows that only two movies released in the past 30 years, and no CGI feature, would make the top 10. These listings will of course vary depending on whether or not you include re-releases revenues, how you calculate inflation, and other factors, but they give us the basic idea -check it out below!

• 1. The Jungle Book (1967) - $598.5M
• 2. Snow White and The Seven Dwarfs (1937) - $587.5M
• 3. 101 Dalmatians (1961) - $567.0M
• 4. Fantasia (1940) - $447.6M
• 5. The Lion King (1994) - $403.4M
• 6. Sleeping Beauty (1959) - $391.7M
• 7. Bambi (1942) - $379.5M
• 8. Pinocchio (1940) - $363.3M
• 9. Lady and the Tramp (1955) - $300.4M
• 10. Aladdin (1992) - $282.3M

 

4 of Disney's Greatest Animated Classics Are Disappearing Into The Vault

On January 31, 2002, Disney will withdraw from video shelves Pinocchio, Mulan, Tarzan and Snow White. If you didn't get your copies already, make sure to add these to your Christmas list before it's too late!
 
 

Did You Know That... The artistic approach to Mulan is based upon the Chinese "sing" style of "negative," or empty-space balanced by positive detail.

 

 
 

Top Adjusted Animated Films at the U.S. Box-Office (Ticket Price Inflation)

Would Shrek and Monsters, Inc. still be in the top 5 if box-office figures took into account ticket price inflation? You'd be surprised!  Check out this ranking, compiled by Box Office Report. The first number corresponds to the movie's actual gross, the second one to its adjusted box-office revenues.

• 1. Snow White & the Seven Dwarfs (1937) - $184.9M - $610.5M
• 2. 101 Dalmatians (1961) - $152.6M - $589.0M
• 3. Mary Poppins (1964) - $102.3M - $520.8M
• 4. The Jungle Book (1967) - $135.5M - $484.6M
• 5. Fantasia (1940) - $76.4M - $465.0M
• 6. The Lion King (1994) - $312.9M - $419.1M
• 7. Sleeping Beauty (1959) - $51.6M - $406.9M 
• 8. Bambi (1942) - $102.8M - $394.2M
• 9. Pinocchio (1940) - $84.3M - $377.5M 
• 10. Cinderella (1950) - $91.3M - $349.9M
• 11. Lady and the Tramp (1955) - $93.6M - $312.0M
• 12. Aladdin (1992) - $217.4M - $293.3M
• 13. Song of the South (1946) - $65.0M - $288.6M
• 14. Toy Story 2 (1999) - $245.8M - $271.0M
• 15. Shrek (2001) - $263.5M - $263.5M 

 

Return to NeverLand Site Relaunched

The movie's official site just got a major update, with character presentations (including Octopus, Jane's little brother Danny, and a first look at the grown-up Wendy), a cast list (with Jim Cummings voicing Turk), and wallpapers... More will be coming soon, including a song list, new screensaver, and three exclusive games. Thanks to 'Mason' for the heads up!
 
 

Monsters Falls to 6th Place This Weekend

Industry analysts expect the Pixar movie to gross around $5M over the weekend, with a respectable 24% decline that would bring its total to $219M by Sunday.
 
 

USA Today Talks Lilo & Stitch

"If there is a Disney neighborhood, this film can be found somewhere between Bambi and Dumbo," says Chris Sanders, who directed with Dean DeBlois at Disney's Florida animation studio. DeBlois adds: "The characters are very cute and very roundish," echoing Disney's classic '30s and early '40s style. That softer, retro look is enhanced by watercolor backgrounds, which Disney abandoned after Dumbo in 1941. But if Lilo and Stitch looks old-fashioned, its story will be anything but. Lilo is a little girl who lives in a small Hawaii town and whose family is falling apart. She adopts Stitch, a dog, but what she doesn't know is that he's a very bad dog — an alien, in fact. "He's rotten, and the entire galaxy is after him," DeBlois says. In effect, the movie starts where most Disney movies end: with the capture of the villain. So what does happen? We'll find out June 21, when Lilo and Stitch opens.
 
 

CGI or Traditional Animation: Don Bluth's Voice Heard

The talented director of such animated hits as An American Tail and Anastasia expressed his feelings via his official site on the future of traditional animation, in the light of the growing success of CGI projects: "The content is the most important. Regarding the medium, it is performance and presentation. But, in the end, content is more important than anything. Story Story Story and that's the hard part." Couldn't agree more! Think for a minute of the recent major releases: it so happens that the best accomplished features were CGI, but would you go see an animated film based on its medium? I know I wouldn't.
 
 

Space Ace: The Movie?

Asked about whether the rumoured Space Ace movie, based on the director's second laserdisc videogame, will ever happen, Don Bluth's reps replied: "Yes, Space Ace is also a candidate for a feature film [Dragon's Lair is currently in pre-production]. We are working on a concept at this time."
 
 

Toho Announces Next Theatrical Ghibli Films

Toho has announced that it will release Neko no Ongaeshi (A Cat Returning Favor), a film by Ghibli, next summer, Nausicaa.net reports. It is a story about Muta the cat (the fat cat in Whisper of the Heart) and Baron (the cat Baron in Whisper). They try to rescue a girl, Haru, who wonders into the world of cats. It is an adventure fantasy, and directed by Hiroyuki Morita, who is 37 year old. Toho also announced that it will release Howl's Moving Castle in the summer of 2003. It is produced by Ghibli and directed by Mamoru Hosoda, who is 33 year old.
 
 

First Predictions for the Ani-Oscar

According to Film Force, "there's no question about [Shrek] making the nominee field, it's just a matter of whether it will win or not.  DreamWorks is really pushing for Best Picture and they'll likely continue to do so.  If the Academy thinks Shrek has a real chance at Best Picture, then they might give this one to someone else. Otherwise, it's a shoe-in." This case scenario would likely make the Mouse House happy -it would pretty much guarantee the first Animated Oscar for Monsters Inc., and Dreamworks would only follow the steps of Beauty and the Beast, which is the first animated film ever -and to this day, the only one- to be nominated for Best Picture. E! Online further comments that "[the announcement of this new category] does, however, pose an interesting question for DreamWorks, which will be lobbying hard for a Best Picture nomination for the computer-animated smash Shrek. No telling what the Animated Feature category will do to the not-so-jolly green ogre's chances. But the studio said Wednesday it will continue its Best Picture push, as it touts Shrek as 'the best reviewed film of the year.' After all, a nomination for Best Animated Feature won't prevent it from being nominated for Best Picture."
 
 

Bearing All: Pooh File Unsealed

A Los Angeles Superior Court judge granted a media request Thursday to unseal the court file in a suit accusing the Walt Disney Co. of withholding merchandising royalties on one of its biggest brands, Winnie the Pooh, The Hollywood Reporter notes. The suit was filed by heirs to Slesinger, who bought the merchandising rights from Pooh author A.A. Milne in 1929. Slesinger's widow sold the rights to Walt Disney in 1961 for a share of profits. The Tampa, Fla.-based plaintiffs accuse Disney of withholding at least $35 million by failing to report more than $3 billion in Pooh merchandise such as videocassettes and computer software.
 
 

The Ogre Runs Ahead

As of Wednesday, on its 41st day of release, Monsters, Inc. had grossed $213.5M -while Shrek had already raked in $219M at this point. For a while, the Pixar movie was $20M ahead of the Dreamworks blockbuster, but it's running out of steam faster than the latter and now looks unlikely to threaten Shrek's box-office record.
 
 

Did You Know That... The Space Ace videogame failed to do as well as Dragon's Lair because it turned out to be an expensive untried product being introduced into a struggling market: featuring technological improvements (stereo sound for one), Space Ace required arcade owners to obtain a completely new game cabinet rather than just swap the ROM and laserdisc.

 

 
 

Another Beauty and the Beast - Special Edition Review

DMFx gives it a 10, calling it "absolutely amazing." Nevertheless, it adds that the addition of the "Human Again" song does not necessarily enrich the movie. Producer Don Hahn justified the decision to include it in the re-release of the Disney classic:"About four years ago, Kirk and Gary and I were sitting around talking about the Star Wars Special Edition that had just come out and Kirk jokingly suggested, 'wouldn't it be fun to do a special edition of Beauty with 'Human Again' or new material in it?' When the head of Feature Animation said he thought it was a great idea, we stopped joking and began thinking about how we could actually do it. We had storyboarded the sequence for the original production, but completely reworked it for this special edition of the film."
 
 

VHS Rental Chart Update

Shrek ranked 9 this week in the U.S. charts and grossed another $1.98, bringing its total to $32.63.
 
 

The Little Mermaid and Aladdin on IMAX Screens?

Disney has a long term plan to continue transforming its animated movies to IMAX screens as long as the movies continue to prove profitable for the company. Digital Media FX has learned that all Disney animated movies created after The Rescuers Down Under are eligible for IMAX treatment. The Lion King is already greenlighted for 2003. A Disney representative has specifically mentioned Aladdin and The Little Mermaid (though the latter was released a year prior to the 1990 Rescuers sequel) as targets for IMAX treatment. Only movies that have files stored digitally are eligible to be transformed by Disney into a big screen experience for viewers. The long-term strategy could prove a major boost to IMAX Corp. which has suffered financially from its high costs and low income. Disney, which has a vested interest in IMAX, helped the company out last year with the release of Fantasia 2000 for IMAX. Disney's Beauty and the Beast premieres on over 100 big screens (mostly IMAX) worldwide on January 1, 2002.
 
 

Fox Cancels The Ferngully 2: The Last Rainforest Video & DVD Release

No reason was given by the studio, but the good news is that the first Ferngully remains scheduled for 2/14!
 
 

Do You Know Jimmy Neutron?

Jimmy Neutron is getting the biggest launch of any Nickelodeon character since The Rugrats. The part-Bart Simpson and part-Albert Einstein character is getting his launch on December 21 in a major 3-D computer generated family movie called Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius, which features the voices of Patrick Stewart, Martin Short, Andrea Martin and Debi Derryberry. Jimmy Neutron was conceived in 1995 by Texan John A. Davis and his partner Keith Alcorn, who have a tiny animation studio in Dallas, where they produced commercials. Producer and screenwriter Steve Oedekerk (whose credits include The Nutty Professor and Ace Ventura) told Jam! Showbiz that he was immediately struck by the potential of the character: "My wife was pregnant with our first daughter and I was looking to get into something very family friendly that could still be wildly funny for adults. What we created with Jimmy Neutron is clearly for kids, but it still fulfils my obsession with entertaining adults. There's a spoof on The Blair Witch Project that kids will find funny because it is about telling scary stories around a campfire but that adults will be laughing at for an entirely different reason. That's the kind of thing that John and I aim for with the film and the TV series." Oedekerk's six-year-old daughter Zoe was the one who came up with the idea of burping-soda, one of the biggest laughs in the feature film. "My wife is thrilled I'm involved with Jimmy Neutron because our (two) daughters love it so much but she wishes I wasn't doing it in addition to all my other projects." If Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius is as big a hit as The Rugrats, Nickelodeon is hoping Oedekerk and David will be able to give them a new feature film every three years. "Given the incredible advancements in computer technology, that's entirely possible," says Albie Hecht, president of film and TV entertainment for Nickelodeon. 
 
 

Disney And Pixar's Partnership Coming to an End by 2006?

Animation expert Jim Hill wrote an interesting article for the Orlando Weekly, entitled "Estranged bedfellows". Besides pointing out to the fact that Pixar's latest production, Monsters, Inc., already grossed more than Disney's last three animated films combined (The Emperor's New Groove's $87M, Recess: School's Out's $36M and Atlantis: The Lost Empire's $83M), Jim also confirms the release dates of Pixar's last three features delivered under their agreement with the Mouse House: Finding Nemo in Summer 2003, Brad Bird's The Invincibles during the Holiday Season 2004, and John Lasseter's Route 66 in late 2005 or early 2006. What will happen after that? "Pixar Chairman (and Apple Computer CEO) Steve Jobs has been upfront about his ambitions, stating that he wants to ramp up production in order to release one new feature a year as well as move into the lucrative field of television animation. Jobs has been quoted as saying he hopes to turn his corporation, based in Emeryville, Calif., into the Walt Disney Studios for the new millennium. (...) Attempting an end-run around Jobs, Mickey approached Pixar's chief creative guru (and former Disney animator) John Lasseter with the opportunity of a lifetime. Disney offered to push aside the company's current animation studio chief, Thomas Schumacher, and set up Lasseter as the new king of Toontown. That meant he'd be responsible for riding herd on all the films Walt Disney Feature Animation had in production, all the pictures Pixar still was pumping out for the Mouse, all the direct-to-video projects the company had in the pipeline, and all Disney television animation. In other words, the works. But the real beauty of the plan was that it would have robbed Pixar of its driving force and presumably hobbled its ability to stand alone. That, in turn, might have compelled Jobs to stick with the Mouse rather than do his own thing. Unfortunately for Disney, Mickey's Machiavellian scheme didn't pay off when Lasseter turned down the offer. Moreover, when Jobs learned of Disney's behind-his-back dealings, he swooped in and signed Lasseter to an exclusive, 10-year contract. Will Jobs eventually follow through and make Pixar an independent outfit? Or will he play it safe and make the Mouse pay through the nose for the privilege of releasing Pixar's pictures after 2006? No one can say. What is certain, though, is that Disney hopes its own upcoming animated release, Lilo & Stitch (a project produced primarily in Orlando), will get people excited about traditional animation again. And that CGI won't be its undoing."
 
 

Waking Life Is Named Best Animated Film By NY Film Critics

The day after it was announced that the 74th Academy Awards would present an Oscar for Best Animated Feature, AWN reveals that the New York Film Critics Circle has chosen Walking Life as best animated film of the year. The 37-member New York Film Critics Circle is made up of New York-based newspaper, magazine and online film critics. While the awards are responsible for generating early Oscar-buzz for the winning films, the Circle is also known for their idiosyncratic picks. Last week the National Board of Review gave Shrek the nod for best animated film. The Los Angeles Film Critics Association is making its picks December 15 and the Broadcast Film Critics Association will be announcing its winners on December 18. The first Best Animated Feature Oscar means a lot to Disney and Dreamworks -but what if Waking Life brought the award home? The movie is not a front-runner, but definitely the artsiest one of all nine eligible features, and its winning would be a major slap to both studios -and give their dispute a different, lighter meaning.
 
 

Will There Be A Best Animated Feature Category for 2002?

Since a Toon Oscar will only be awarded if at least eight movies, each over 70 minutes, featuring a significant number of animated characters, and with animated scenes accounting for at least 75 percent of its running time, are released in the past year... Will we see one in 2002? The answer is: yes -that is, if studios all submit correctly their features to the Academy! Disney will be releasing Return to Neverland, Lilo & Stitch, and Treasure Planet; Dreamworks will let its Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron run free on Memorial Day; Blue Sky Studios will make its feature debut with the much anticipated Ice Age; and among other minor animated releases, Sony's Adam Sandler's 8 Crazy Nights, Big Idea Productions's Jonah: A VeggieTales Movie, Warner Bros's The Powerpuff Girls, and Paramount's The Rugrats Meet the Wild Thornberrys are all set for 2002. That's already eight, not counting independent releases or features pushed up from a 2003 slot to late 2002 in order to qualify for the Award. Two films that will likely not be eligible are Beauty and the Beast's Special IMAX Edition, for the movie was originally released in 1992, and Hayao Miyazaki's Spirited Away which premiered in Japan in 2001.
 
 

As for 2003...

Though a lot of projects by Universal and Dreamworks, among other studios, have been greelighted and set for a tentative 2004 release, at this point Disney is the only one to officially plan years ahead. As a consequence, Sweating Bullets and Pixar's Finding Nemo are the two only sure locks for 2003; Don Bluth hopes to have its Dragon's Lair feature released that year, though delays are possible; Dreamworks has several movies in the works -from the long in development hell Tusker and Tortoise Vs Hare to Shrek 2, Truckers, Madagascar, or Sinbad- but no official date has been set for any of them yet... A bit early to tell, but if the Academy Award proves to be a revenue booster for the winner, expect all major studios to back up as many theatrical releases that meet the Academy's criteria as possible (including projects initially meant for direct-to-video) and multiply submissions!
 
 

Elton John and Tim Rice's Aïda A "Masterpiece"

Christopher reviewed for Mouse Planet Disney's latest Broadway offering, and can't say enough good things about it: "the acting and singing in the show is superb", the scene design "astounding", and Aïda brings together "a wonderful plot, entertaining music, innovative choreography and memorable characters into one fascinating Broadway performance." To find out more about the show, check out its official site!
 
 

Did You Know That... Alan Menken and Tim Rice created together another musical play commissionned by Disney, entitled King David. A now out-of-print CD of one of the show's first performances was released in 1997. Despite the enthusiasm of fans, the musical was never heard of again...

 

 
 

New Spirit Image

A black and white close-up picture of the Dreamworks feature's title character can be found at JoBlo. Thanks to 'Fred' from the Feature Animation Forum.
 
 

"For Your Consideration" Shrek Ads

Official Selection at the 2001 Cannes Film Festival! Winner of 8 Annie Awards! Want an Oscar to go with it? Hard to feel sorry for Shrek, even though it deserved every bit of its success. Check out the ads Dreamworks put out in the Hollywood Reporter to seduce Academy voters.
 
 

Factoids on SharkSlayer

Dark Horizons points out to the fact that "the writers of this Dreamworks CG animated project also did the latest Freddy vs. Jason draft which New Line is flipping for, and is adapting the Danger Girl comic." So expect a unique tone for that feature! Rumour also has it that SharkSlayer is nothing more than the latest version of Dreamworks' long in development The Tank project. Announced in late 1998, Fish out of Water was to be helmed by Lance Young. Renamed The Tank in January 2000 with a rumoured 2003 release date, the feature would have centered around a group of fish who escape a little girl's fish tank and must make it back to their original pond.  Later on, public relations at PDI stated that The Tank was just a promotional flick done by the PDI's special effects division. Could SharkSlayer be the latest incarnation of this project? Time will tell! 
 
 

Autographed Life-Sized M.I. Characters for Sale

Want a -really- big Christmas gift? Then send your most generous friends over to Amazon's auction area and wish them luck! Thanks to 'Florencia' for the heads up.
 
 

Academy Award for Best Animated Feature to be Given for 2001!

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences issued a press release yesterday announcing that the 74th Academy Awards will include a category for Best Animated Feature for the first time, since nine films were declared eligible to compete: the expected winner Shrek and its strongest competitor Monsters, Inc.; the likely third nominee Waking Life -or would that be Jimmy Neutron? Box-office bombs Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within, The Trumpet of the Swan and Osmosis Jones; and independent features The Prince of Light and Marco Polo: Return to Xanadu. The eligibility of the latest, as well as that of Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius, is subject to their opening in Los Angeles prior to December 31, 2001 -Jimmy Neutron is scheduled to open December 21, and Marco Polo on December 22. The nominating process for this award will begin with a 100-member screening committee chaired by Academy Governor Tom Hanks (a Pixar buddy who is now developping his own CGI projects with Universal) and comprised half of animators and half of members of the Academy's other 13 branches. That group will view the nine films and will determine the three nominees. The nominees will be announced on February 12. The Oscar for the category will be presented to "the key creative talent most clearly responsible for the overall achievement," normally a single individual, on behalf of the entire production. In no case will more than two statuettes be presented.
 
 

Comments About the Best Animated Feature Category

Who will the third nominee be? Who would get on stage to receive the award if Shrek won? And how could it affect Disney's image? According to CBS MarketWatch, "if Monsters loses out to Shrek, it could prove to be an embarrassing moment for Disney. A Shrek victory could mean Disney could wind up missing out on the first Oscar in the very category where it has been the undisputed king for decades." Jon Bloom, who chairs the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences committee on short and animated films, said that the committee was "very disappointed by" Disney's decision to withdraw Atlantis after a paperwork error. "We're putting our horse with Monsters Inc.," admitted Disney spokeswoman Heidi Trotta. Clearly, the Mouse House will try everything in its power to nab that symbolic award. On another interesting note, only two out of the nine films eligible are completely cel-animated, and neither stands a good chance at being nominated: Marco Polo and Trumpet of the Swan. The academy decided to create an animation category last year when it was deemed the films were more a different type of filmmaking as opposed to a genre. Oscar officials are opposed to creating categories based on genres such as westerns or dramas. "Animated features are films that are exceptional but are not on a level playing field with live-action films," Jon Bloom added. "It's a different medium."
 
 

Which Animated Films Were Not Eligible for the First Animated Oscar?

According to Variety, the pictures were chosen from a submissions pool of 13, which included the Danish picture Help! I'm a Fish, Jin Roh: The Wolf Brigade, Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust and Atlantis, which Disney withdrew from the race. Disney spokeswoman Heidi Trotta explained that after the studio learned of a paperwork error in its Atlantis application, it opted to sideline the picture rather than fix the mistake. "At that point, we chose not to resubmit it and opted to put everything behind Monsters,"  commented the Disney rep. An Academy spokesman added to Daily Variety that Help! I'm a Fish, one of this year's most enjoyable animated features, was cut from the list because the picture is not yet slated for a U.S. release, one of the key stipulations for consideration. He also explained that Jin Roh was released in France too early, and Vampire never submitted official screen-credits forms.
 
 

Panel Discussion on the State of the Industry on January 18

Asifa-Hollywood's Animation Center is hosting this special event on Friday, January 18 at 7:30pm in Burbank, CA. "Join moderator Bob Miller as he discusses the state of the animation industry with three leading pundits:  Tom Sito, Jerry Beck, and Michael Mallory. From drawn cel to CGI, from TV to theatrical feature films - where is the animation industry going?" Admission is $2.00 for Asifa members and $5.00 for non-members. Call (818) 842-8330 for more information.
 
 

Did You Know That... If 16 or more eligible animated features are released in a year, not three but five could be nominated for Best Animated Feature.

 

 
 

Monsters Co-Director to Helm CGI Adaptation of Curious George for Universal

The little publicized co-director of Monsters, Inc. is in talks to turn the popular children's icon Curious George into an all computer-animated feature, Variety reports. David Silverman would shoot the project for Universal Pictures, which had spent years developing the picture with producers Brian Grazer and Ron Howard as a star-driven, live-action film like How the Grinch Stole Christmas. Curious George is one of three projects (the other two being Where The Wild Things Are and The Ant Bully) that would mark the foray by Universal into all-CGI (computer generated imagery) moviemaking. Given that Monsters, Inc. has posted a robust $212 million in domestic gross for Disney to date, Universal's renewed enthusiasm for the long-developed project is understandable. Created by Margret Rey and husband H. A. (Hans Augusto) Rey, Curious George is one of the world's most enduring and best-selling children's book characters: an irrepressible but oddly silent primate who left the African jungle to live with the enigmatic man in the yellow hat. The book, like the movie, had a bumpy start: in 1939, the newly married Reys, both Germans, had their ex-pat life in Paris interrupted by the Nazi invasion. Taking their Curious George manuscript with them, the Reys fled on their bicycles, eventually completing the book in the south of France. The Reys arrived in New York in October of 1940, and Houghton Mifflin published Curious George in 1941. When the first Curious George book was published in England in 1942, King George VI was ruler of Britain. To avoid insulting the British monarch, the decision was made to change Curious George's name to "Zozo" in the editions published in Blighty. Six more titles have since followed in the series, selling more than 20 million copies worldwide and translated into 14 languages.
 
 

Close-Up Picture from the Treasure Planet Flyer

Enjoy!
 
 

Official Site for Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron Opens!

Nothing but an image there for now, similar to the teaser poster with a strong patriotic feel on sale at eBay: have a peak, and keep checking the news to learn when it's updated! Thanks to 'Fred' for the heads up.
 
 

Song of the South Disowned by Disney

'Chernabog' reveals on the Feature Animation Forum that "a guy who used to work for Disney told me that Song of the South is going to be disowned and destroyed by Disney. Another reason why it's going to be destroyed is that it contains the word 'nigger' in it. Now I find that really, really lame: they can alter Pecos Bill rolling a cigarette but they can't reloop the [word] 'nigger' into oh, let's say 'Negro' or something like that?" The IMDB indeed confirms that "because of its extensive African-American stereotypes, this film is unofficially disowned by the Disney company." Though it is highly unlikely that copies of the movie would actually be destroyed -it is available for sale in several foreign countries-, don't expect to see it on US video shelves until new management comes to the Mouse House.
 
 

Shrek Not Among Top 6 Selling Xbox Titles

Digital Media FX reports that while official sales numbers haven't been released for Shrek on Xbox, it does not feature on the list of the top six selling games for Xbox put out by Microsoft. "We're very pleased with the consumer response to Xbox, having surpassed the 1 million mark at breakneck speed," said Robbie Bach, chief Xbox officer at Microsoft. "This substantiates our belief that gamers would make Xbox one of the hottest gifts for the holidays." Shrek, for Xbox, was produced by TDK Mediactive and is located in Calabassas, CA. The game contains four worlds, 12 levels, and 36 missions. It has a high poly count and utilizes real-time rendered cut scenes at the beginning of each mission. The cost of the game is $49.95. Even though Shrek isn't among the top 6 selling Xbox games, sales are still very strong according to TDK Mediactive. When combined with record sales of Shrek for Nintendo Game Boy Color, both games represent "a significant portion of our revenue," according to Martin Paravato, chief financial officer of TDK Mediactive.
 
 

The Hunchback of Notre Dame DVD Specs

The 3/19/2002 disc's official site confirms that the bonus features will be pretty much the same as those released internationally:

• Audio commentary by directors Kirk Wise and Gary Trousdale and producer Don Hahn.
• "Topsy Turvy Underground" Game: add all new sounds to customize hilarious scenes from the movie.
• The Making of The Hunchback of Notre Dame: discover how the filmmakers brought the wonder and majesty to Disney's 34th animated Classic.
• Sing-Along Song "Topsy Turvy"
• Multi-Language Reel - "A Guy Like You": see Quasi's gargoyle pals Victor, Hugo and Laverne sing in various languages from around the world.
• Digitally Remastered, Widescreen Presentation (1.85:1) , DTS 5.1 Digital Surround Sound, Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound
• French and Spanish Language Tracks

 

Crouching Star Plans Live-Action Mulan

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon star Michelle Yeoh is reuniting with that film's director of photography, Peter Pau, on the historical drama Hua Mulan. The Zap2it.com website reports that Pau will be making his second turn as a director on the project, which is based on the legend of the same Chinese female warrior featured in Disney's animated film Mulan. Crouching Tiger screenwriter Wang Hui-Ling is writing the script for the $25 million project.
 
 

Did You Know That... Perhaps lost in all the controversy over Song of the South is the fact that James Baskett, a Black man, was the very first live actor ever hired by Walt Disney. Allegedly, though, Baskett was unable to attend the film's premiere in Atlanta because no hotel would give him a room. 

 

 
 

ElfQuest: The Movie

Digital Media FX scored the first images of action figures based on characters from the acclaimed graphic novel series EflQuest by Wendy and Richard Pini. The feature-length animated film of the same name, produced by Europe-based Wolfmill Entertainment, is scheduled for release in late 2002 or early 2003. Mar Wolfman, who is writing the script with Wendy Pini and Craig Miller, commented to the Comics Continuum: "We're pleased with where the movie is going. Wendy is very happy, which is vitally important to us. We're in the process of trying to sell all the merchandising and make good deals for their property." The movie will focus on a conflict between humans and elves that ends in the elves' forest becoming the victim of wicked fires. Now left without a home, the elven race must journey across the desert to find a new life... Storyboards, paintings and status updates are already available on the film's official site!
 
 

Bryan Adams' Involvement In Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron Officially Confirmed!

'Ty' reveals that the Canadian singer announced in an official update to fanclub members that he was "involved with a new Dreamworks animated film project" and would be "the voice of the main character, a horse, in Spirit: Stallion Of The Cimarron slated for release May 24th. The whole story will be told from the viewpoint of the horse, with his thoughts heard as narrative. Bryan made a trip to Los Angeles over the summer and in early October to record his voice overs for the movie. Other cast voice talents include James Cromwell and Daniel Studi." Additionally, the artist confirms that he has written the soundtrack, with the original score by composer Hans Zimmer (The Lion King). The album is expected to contain at least 11 songs. Bryan has written with Mutt Lange and Gretchen Peters to name a few. The CD is also due in stores late May.
 
 

Final Weekend Box-Office Results

Monsters, Inc. grossed exactly $6,597,454 (a very respectable 28% decline compared to last weekend) over 2,288 screens. Its total after 38 days in release was, as of Sunday, $212,391,025. Shrek finally fell out of the top 60, seven months after its release!
 
 

Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius Worldwide Premiere

Martin Short, Jennifer Connely, Patrick Stewart and Pamela Anderson were just some of the stars who attended the premiere of the movie at the Paramount Studios lot last Sunday. The film, which opens December 21 in the United States, is about a young boy and his robot dog that battle evil to rescue the Earth. To learn more, check out the movie's official site!
 
 

Walt Disney Co. Releases Annual Report

You financial freaks can check out the Mouse House's full 10-K! Extract: "2001 vs. 2000 Studio Entertainment revenues increased 2%, or $95 million, to $6.1 billion, driven by growth of $316 million in worldwide home video and $126 million in stage plays, partially offset by a decline of $306 million in worldwide theatrical motion picture distribution. Improvements in worldwide home video revenues reflected strong DVD and VHS performance driven by successful animated titles including Disney/Pixar's Toy Story 2, Dinosaurs [with a nice typo!], The Emperor's New Groove and Lady & the Tramp II and stronger performing live-action titles including Spy Kids, Scary Movie, Gone in 60 Seconds and Remember the Titans. Growth in stage plays reflected performances of The Lion King in additional cities and improved performance of Aida. In worldwide theatrical motion picture distribution, the success of Pearl Harbor, Spy Kids and Princess Diaries, faced difficult comparisons to prior year titles, which included Toy Story 2, Tarzan, Dinosaur, Scary Movie and The Sixth Sense."
 
 

More on AstroBoy

For those not familiar with the anime legend, head over to FilmForce for background info and pictures from the Osamu Tezuka series!
 
 

Online Comic Strip Dandy and Company Getting Animated

Chuck Jones fan and Orlando-based cartoonist Derrick Fish began work on a short animated film based on the wacky characters of his daily WebStrip Dandy and Company. Derrick just made a small preview of his pencil test available online -very nice work!
 
 

Dazzling Gem of Animation Rediscovered

The LA Times published a fascinating article about the VHS release of the 1926 shadow-play The Adventures of Prince Achmed. This 72-minute Arabian Nights fantasy -silent save for a musical score by Wolfgang Zeller- follows the adventures of a prince, who is "young, brave and eager for adventure." German-born director Lotte Reiniger meticulously cut all the silhouette figures herself and meticulously manipulated them frame by frame for the camera (the film comprises about 300,000 camera shots). "There were not women doing animation [at that time]," observed film historian and teacher Cecile Starr, co-author of the book Experimental Animation. "She was a very talented, very daring, very determined young woman who started her film career when she was 18 years old and finished it when she was 78 or 79."  The Adventures of Prince Achmed stakes a claim to being the first animated feature, 11 years before Walt Disney's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.
 
 

Did You Know That... The working title of Dreamworks' Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron was for a long time Spirit of the West.

 

 
 

Universal Studios Ponders China Theme Park

Universal Studios is considering construction of a theme park in southern China that would compete with a Disneyland set to open in Hong Kong in 2005, executives said Monday. Officials in the border city of Shenzhen have been in talks with Universal Studios for almost a year, said Zhang Yuhua, a marketing executive at the Shenzhen Tourism Bureau. "The Shenzhen Municipal government attaches a lot of importance to this project," Zhang said by telephone. The Shenzhen-Hong Kong border has seen an explosion of traffic since Britain returned Hong Kong to China in July 1997. When Hong Kong Disneyland opens, Disney executives and Hong Kong tourism officials have said they hope to draw some business from mainland Chinese visitors. 
 
 

Brad Bird's The Invincibles In Full Production

Animator Michel Gagné mentioned on his Web site that Pixar flew him over last November 14 and 15 in order to "consult on Brad Bird's new movie. I sat down with the art director, the technical directors and Brad and talked about designing stylized FX for his new movie. I had a look at the reels and brainstormed with the team. Very busy 2-day schedule. Everyone was super nice. (...) Looks like I will be back to Pixar sporatically to design and animate on Brad's picture." Also check out Michel's gallery to see Osmosis Jones posters rejected by WB among other things!
 
 

Sharkslayer: Dreamworks' Next CGI Feature?

According to the USA Today, DreamWorks' next CGI film will be Sharkslayer. The underwater mob film planned for 2004 will feature the voices of Will Smith, Angelina Jolie and Renee Zellweger. Meanwhile, Disney and Pixar are working on their own computer-animated fish tale, Finding Nemo, for 2003. The studios previously had dueling CGI insect films in 1998, DreamWorks' Antz and Disney-Pixar's A Bug's Life.
 
 

International Box-Office Update

In its second outing in Argentina, Harry Potter surrendered its crown to Monsters, Inc., which whistled up an estimated $660,000 in three days for the industry's biggest nonholiday animated debut. Entering Japan, Atlantis: The Lost Empire picked up roughly $2.5 million in two days, the third-highest premiere for a U.S. toon behind Dinosaur and Toy Story 2. In Germany, Atlantis mustered an estimated $2.4 million in four days, including previews, a solid start matching that of The Emperor's New Groove and 20% better than Hercules.
 
 

Treasure Planet Promotional Flyer

This brochure was distributed at the French premiere of Atlantis: The Lost Empire last month at Paris's Grand Rex. It invites moviegoers to receive updates on the Christmas 2002 movie, and offers a new visual of the upcoming feature.
 
 

Sony Shoots for AstroBoy

Hoping to enjoy the same box office -- and merchandising -- riches yielded this year by hit cartoons Monsters, Inc. and Shrek, Sony Pictures is developing its first all computer-animated movie, Variety reports. AstroBoy, based on a Japanese comic book, is scheduled for sometime in 2004. The studio's Imageworks f/x facility has already begun tackling test footage, and a greenlight is thought to be imminent. The story follows a permanently youthful robot boy modeled after the deceased son of a research scientist. Originally intended to be kept a secret, the Pinocchio like character becomes a renowned superhero -- complete with devices like laser-firing fingers, uncanny hearing and jet-powered boots -- all eventually used to repulse an alien invasion of Earth. Eric Leighton, who co-directed Disney's Dinosaur, has signed a seven-figure deal to shoot from a script by Todd Alcott (Antz) and Ken Kaufman (Space Cowboys). While the Dinosaur budget was $150 million-$200 million, easily qualifying the film as the most expensive of all time on a cost-per-minute basis, the AstroBoy budget is as yet unset, say insiders. The AstroBoy project marks a policy shift for Sony. In recent months, the studio had considered selling Imageworks, but found no takers. Facing a dearth of suitors and having seen the impressive sequences created for the Stuart Little sequel, Sony brass is now eyeing Imageworks as a possible Pixar, the Disney-linked powerhouse behind the Toy Story films and Monsters, Inc.
 
 

More Stars Joining Liberty Cause

The Hollywood Reporter announces that Billy Crystal, Liam Neeson and Annette Bening have joined a cast of celebrities signing on for star voice roles in DIC Entertainment's animated Liberty's Kids, a half-hour animated strip for PBS. "The celebrity response to this show has been overwhelming," DIC Entertainment executive vp talent Marsha Goodman said. "To a person, they all feel that this show is one way they can show their love for this country and at the same time do something beneficial not only for the children of America but for the children of freedom-loving people all over the world. To paraphrase a great American hero, 'We have just begun to cast!' In the next few weeks, we will be announcing another round of celebrity casting that will be just as impressive as the ones we are announcing today." Liberty's Kids relates the events of the American Revolution through the eyes of three teenagers from different sides -- an American and French boy and an English girl. They work for Franklin's newspaper, and the story unravels as they cover the events and people who contributed to the struggle that resulted in the establishment of the United States. "This is a very challenging series to produce," creator and co-executive producer Kevin O'Donnell said. "We have the tasks of depicting the events as they really happened, presenting opposing viewpoints that appeal to international audiences and, most importantly, to do so in an exciting, entertaining way. We have an incredible team of writers and historians working in concert to achieve these goals. And it doesn't hurt to have such accomplished talent either."
 
 

Did You Know That... Several other stars already signed to provide their voice for Liberty's Kids: Walter Cronkite as Benjamin Franklin, Dustin Hoffman as Benedict Arnold, Ben Stiller as Thomas Jefferson and Whoopi Goldberg as Deborah Sampson.

 
 
• Monsters Running Out of Steam At The Box-Office, In Spite of Newly Added Outtakes

On Friday, Shrek finally caught up and passed the Pixar feature in the day-by-day box office comparisons, after 36 days in release. Despite the addition of bloopers in order to generate repeat business, Monsters, Inc.'s receipts fell by 26% this weekend, down to $6.7M. Though the $212.5M Pixar blockbuster will soon pass Aladdin as the fourth biggest animated film of all time (three of which will be CGI features released within the past 2 years!), it would need an extremely strong boost from upcoming Christmas holiday viewings to come close to, let alone beat, Shrek's record of $267M.
 
 
• Four New Conceptual Art Pictures of Stitch Pop Up on the Web

Presented by the Feature Animation Forum, they are hosted at Disney Archive.
 
 
• Did You Know That... In the original story board for Aladdin, there were two genies: the genie of the lamp and the genie of the ring. 

 

 
 

Four New Sites Added To The Database

In the past week, pages were created for the rumoured Disney animated features Selkies and The Lady of the Lake, as well as the upcoming The Ant Bully produced by Universal and Jerry Bruckheimer's Pirates of the Caribbean. More information will be added in each soon, so keep checking back!
 
 

"Worst is over" at Disney World

Comparing the current recession, fear of flying and subsequent drop in attendance to previous tough times Americans have had to face, Walt Disney Co. executives at a news conference last Thursday on Lake Buena Vista, FL said they are confident that park attendance will return to normal in the upcoming months. Since the initial 25% drop in attendance during the first five weeks after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, Walt Disney World "felt a very significant impact on our business like we saw with the Gulf War in the early 1990s or the oil embargo in the early 1970s," Walt Disney World Resort president Al Weiss said. "We've seen some recovery since that period of time and saw a good solid Thanksgiving, and we're expecting a good solid Christmas."
 
 

Alex Ross to Design 74th Oscar Poster

Artist Alex Ross will design the commemorative poster for the 74th Academy Awards Presentation, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Executive Director Bruce Davis announced yesterday. "I'm excited about this year's poster," Davis said. "We're going in a very different direction than in the past, but I think it's a look for Oscar that people are going to enjoy. We wanted the poster to incorporate our move back into Hollywood, and the more I thought about it, the more I thought it might be fun to ask a graphic novel illustrator to do it. It wasn't far from there to Alex Ross." Ross studied art at the American Academy of Art in Chicago. His work first came to public attention through the 1993 series "Marvels," a graphic novel that took a realistic look at superheroes by presenting them from the point of view of an ordinary man. With "Marvels" and subsequent titles like "Kingdom Come," "Uncle Sam" and the recent "Wonder Woman: Spirit of Truth," Ross has changed the look of graphic literature by employing a photo-realistic painted style, rather than the traditional pen-and-ink illustrations usually associated with comic books.  "I've always wanted to make these heroic figures look real," Ross explained. "I think if people can believe such heroes are possible, they might think that the good qualities they stand for are also possible. Throughout my career, I've gotten to paint some larger-than-life iconic figures - and you can't do much better than the Oscar statuette as far as icons are concerned. Oscar is a hero to a lot of people in Hollywood and I'm looking forward to bringing out that heroic quality in this poster." Alex Ross will be present when the 74th Awards poster is unveiled at a special event which will take place in early January at Hollywood & Highland. Some 50,000 copies of the poster will be distributed to movie theaters, video retailers and sponsors of the Academy Awards telecast. For the third year, the commemorative poster also will be available for purchase through the Academy's website.
 
 

Did You Know That... Disney is so pleased with the outcome of the Country Bears movie that they hired two new writers to begin work on a Haunted Mansion screenplay in April 2001.

 

 
 

Monsters Outtakes Clips Now Online

Confirmed, official: they're here! Head over to the movie's official site to watch two sneak previews of these hilarious clips now!
 
 

Jerry Bruckheimer Boards Pirates of the Caribbean

Jerry Bruckheimer will produce Disney's developing movie, based on the amusement park attractions, which will take the same comic view. Bruckheimer's arrival would seem to suggest higher visibility and even more money in the budget for the film, which had been part of the Mouse House plans to make use of properties they own rather than purchasing or developing others -The Country Bears is currently in post-production, a sequel is already in the works, and two writers were hired in April 2001 to begin work on a Haunted Mansion screenplay. Disney is hoping to launch production of Pirates of the Caribbean in 2002 on location in the Caribbean. Jay Wolpert wrote the film's script. No director has, as yet, been attached.
 
 

Charlie Brown Christmas Celebrates 37th Festive Season

The cartoon A Charlie Brown Christmas gets its 37th annual showing on US TV tonight. It will be accompanied by a special documentary about the Emmy Award-winning animation. A Charlie Brown Christmas was first aired on December 9, 1965 on CBS. Its creator, Peanuts cartoonist Charles Schulz, died in February 2000. The making-of documentary features vintage footage of Schulz at his drawing board, talking about his work, and reminiscences from animator Bill Melendez, and the children - now all grown up - who voiced the Peanuts gang. A Charlie Brown Christmas has since been dubbed into Italian, German, French and Japanese.
 
 

Monsters, Inc. Outtakes Preview?

Will these new scenes boost the Pixar blockbuster at the box-office? Let's hope so! Though it was announced earlier this week that clips from the outtakes would be available at the movie's official site and Apple Trailers starting today, FilmForce talked to a Pixar representative who commented that "apparently some lines may have gotten crossed in regards to when and how the outtakes would be made available.  It turns out, they may not show up on the website immediately."
 
 

The Lion King of Broadway This Week Again

The Disney stage production, hosted at the New Amsterdam theater on 42nd street, remains the hottest ticket on Broadway this week, with a 101.2% play and $1,035,865 in net receipts. The excellent Beauty and the Beast show, which Disney was considering closing a few weeks ago, is the eight most successful play in Manhattan with a 93.2% attendance and a weekly gross of $734,241.
 
 

Weekly Gross for Shrek in the U.S. Rental Charts

As of Sunday, December 2:
- VHS Rental: $2.65, total $30.59
- DVD Rental: $0.80, total $9.93
 
 

Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences Tribute to Walt Disney

Editors from Cartoon Research and Mouse Planet attended what appears to have been a real success!
 
 

Did You Know That... Peanuts creator Charles Schultz once admitted: "It seems beyond the comprehension of people that someone can be born to draw comic strips, but I think I was!"

 

 
 

Advance Poster for Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron...

This low quality scan is posted at eBay where the poster is on sale.
 
 

... And First Spirit Toys

Dreamworks SKG Fansite points out to Breyer Horses for a first look at the movie's merchandising. The latter site describes further Spirit's plot: "The film follows the adventures of a wild and rambunctious mustang stallion as he journeys through the untamed American frontiers. Encountering man for the first time, Spirit defies being broken, even as he develops a remarkable friendship with a young Lakota brave. The courageous young stallion also finds love with a beautiful paint mare named Rain, on his way to becoming one of the greatest unsung heroes of the Old West."
 
 

Excerpts From 1966 Obituary on Walt Disney -A Moving Step Back In Time

DigitalMediafx.com published the New York Times obituary on Walt Disney that appeared in the December 16, 1966 issue: "Walt Disney, who built his whimsical cartoon world of Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck and Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs into a -million-a-year entertainment empire, died in St. Joseph's Hospital here this morning. He was 65 years old. His death, at 9:35 A.M., was attributed to acute circulatory collapse. He had undergone surgery at the hospital a month ago for the removal of a lung tumor that was discovered after he entered the hospital for treatment of an old neck injury received in a polo match. On Nov. 30 he re-entered the hospital for a 'post-operative checkup...' Although Mr. Disney held no formal title at Walt Disney Productions, he was in direct charge of the company and was deeply involved in all its operations... Roy Disney, Walt Disney's 74-year-old brother, who is president and chairman of Walt Disney Productions and who directs its financial operations, said: 'We will continue to operate Walt's company in the way that he had established and guided it. All of the plans for the future that Walt had begun will continue to move ahead'..."
 
 

Woody Allen and Angelina Jolie on Walt Disney

In an interview with the BBC, Woody Allen recalled that one of his earliest memories is of being taken by his mother to see Pinocchio. "I always liked Disney because there's a warmth in those cartoons," Allen said. Later on, he said, he found Warner Bros.' Looney Tunes characters more appealing. "[Disney's] were not as funny to me when I grew up as Tom and Jerry or Bugs Bunny because the others were more violent and hostile and consequently funnier." Meanwhile, actress Angelina told Radio 1: "I liked Dumbo - I don't know why. My family says everybody has a favourite Disney movie that says something about you. Maybe Dumbo was always laughed at for the things that were strange about him and eventually was proud of that and that's what made him fly."
 
 

If Walt Were Alive

Mouse Planet published an interesting, though a bit bitter, article outlining "why Walt Disney wouldn't cut it as a 21st Century CEO."
 
 

Parades, Tributes Mark Walt Disney Centennial 

Reuters reports that a feast of parades, tributes and stars celebrate the 100th anniversary on Wednesday of the birth of Walt Disney, that man whose magic touch with a white-gloved four-fingered mouse launched a multibillion-dollar worldwide entertainment industry. "We're selling happiness. We don't like glum pusses or sour faces," his late brother and business partner Roy Disney remembered Walt saying of a curt employee who caught the boss's ire on the Disneyland railroad in the 1950s.
 
 

Christopher Young Scoring The Country Bears

Coming Attractions reports that Christopher Young (Entrapment, The Gift) has just started work on The Country Bears as the film's composer. Young was scoring Dragonfly but had to resign due to scheduling conflicts. As a reminder, John Hiatt willl be writing songs for the movie.
 
 

More Comments from Cameron Diaz About Shrek 2

Cameron Diaz has confirmed to Radio 1 that she has signed up for the sequel to Shrek. She says she can't wait to reprise her role as the Princess in the animated movie. Eddie Murphy and Mike Myers are also lined up to provide the voices for the second time. "I'm thrilled to work with the directors again and with DreamWorks and with the whole creators and the Shrek crew. I can't wait to hear what this message is going to be because to me Shrek was such a great message - really positive and uplifting." Cameron's character in the animated movie was both the beautiful princess and an ugly ogre. She adds that she'd like to come back as the ugly character. "I like the ogre look. I thought she was beautiful. She had big eyes and she was round and soft and delicious. I mean I loved her so, you know, as both people. Both images are who she was and, so yeah, I can't wait to see what she's going to bring."
 
 

The Great Mouse Detective In Stores Next February 5

One of my favorite Disney features will be released on video and DVD in less than 2 months! Specs for the disc have not been announed yet.
 
 

Shrek Soundtrack Climbs 10 Spots In The Billboard

Though the original score hasn't entered the top 200 yet, the movie's first soundtrack jumps from number 43 to 33 after twenty-nine weeks in the charts!
 
 

Shrek And Monsters, Inc. Box-Office Comparison

During its first 33 days of release, Shrek never once grossed under $1.5M, while it happened every other day over the past three weeks for Monsters. So far, weekend totals helped the Pixar movie keep its distance from the green ogre -until last week. If the outtakes don't convince movigoers to come back to the dark rooms, expect M.I. to run out of steam quickly and stay quite below Shrek's box-office record. But let's keep things in perspective: even with a worst case scenario, Monsters would still rank as the fourth biggest animated movie of all time!
 
 

Disney Officially Announces Beauty & the Beast's Large Format Debut

Overseeing the new animated sequence and the reformatting of Beauty and the Beast: The Large Format Cinema Special Edition were the original filmmakers -- producer Don Hahn and directors Kirk Wise and Gary Trousdale. Under their guidance, a team of Disney's top artists and technicians launched a major effort to remove dust and dirt, add detail and effects, and create new animation for the occasion. Special camera heads and film printers worked around the clock to reformat the original film for the Giant Screen and to create prints (in 8 and 15 perf formats) that would provide an unprecedented level of clarity, dimension and superior sound quality. Dick Cook, chairman of The Walt Disney Motion Pictures Group, commented on the announcement: "Beauty and the Beast will always hold a very special place in our hearts here at Disney. It was the first animated feature to ever receive a Best Picture Oscar® nomination and it helped to revitalize the art of animation and the movie musical. We wanted to celebrate the film's 10th anniversary in a big way and a Large Format release is about as big as it gets. The addition of a never-before-seen musical sequence with a great song by Ashman and Menken is further cause for celebration and we think audiences will respond in a big way to this as well. Seeing Beauty and the Beast on the Giant Screen is like seeing the film for the first time. It is a great motion picture experience and a great way to celebrate the 10th anniversary of this landmark film."
 
 

Oginality Will Liven Up Asian Animation Market

Up to 1997, Korea claimed 50 percent of the global animation subcontract market, but has since lost market share to firms in cheaper, upcoming countries such as China, Vietnam and the Philippines. With studios constantly looking for cheaper alternatives, Asian animators had to focus on building their own intellectual property and move away from contract jobs. But Korea, one of the more advanced Asian nations for animation, still had to tackle their lack of pre-production experience, a short history in marketing and distribution in the global market, limited funding, and stereotyped ideas of what animation should be, Marianne Suh, vice president with Korean-based Digital Dream Studios, told the Asia Animation 2001 conference in Singapore.
 
 

Did You Know That... Walt Disney voiced Mickey Mouse in over 100 cartoons!

 

 
 

FortuneCity Still Down

The news will temporarily be hosted on another server. Therefore, links are likely to be broken.
 
 

Cameron Diaz Officially Onboard Shrek 2

Variety reports that the 29-year-old actress just signed again to provide the voice of the princess in the sequel to Shrek, the year's highest-grossing film. Diaz is to be paid $10 million (based on factors including the picture's profits) for about a week's worth of time to lay down her lines. That's the same salary being earned by Mike Myers and Eddie Murphy. Which means that these three stars alone are already costing Dreamworks half of the first movie's total budget!
 
 

Hayao Miyazaki's Castle In The Sky To Finally Get A U.S. Release?

Nausicaa.net points out to the fact that Castle In The Sky is already available for pre-order at Amazon on VHS and DVD. No release date has been confirmed by Buena Vista yet, but this move would make sense since the movie has been dubbed by major American stars a couple of years ago and never made it to the big screens.
 
 

Walt Disney Was Born on December 5, 1901

And the world would never be the same again! The animation genius passed away 35 years ago -I was not born yet, still I feel like he's been here with me all along, don't you? Magic, love, happiness... He brought so much to our world, and a bit of his legacy is growing in each one of us! Let's celebrate this special day with positive thoughts -and, why not, a special Walt Disney page!
 
 

It's A Great, Big Beautiful Tomorrow

Close your eyes and let this message penetrate you... Walt sings with the Sherman Brothers!
 
 

Tribute to Walt Disney & the Art of Animation

Celbi Vagner Pegoraro invites us to visit his great Website Animagic, which is currently hosting a special page in English dedicated to the 100th
Anniversary of Walt Disney's birth. Celbi did a fantastic job at gathering for the event "very special messages from four artists about Walt's legacy and the art of animation", as well as "a special interview with composer & lyricist Stephen Schwartz with info about Pocahontas, The Hunchback of Notre Dame & Mulan." Thanks Celbi!
 
 

Randy Erwin Joins The Cast of Sweating Bullets

The Los Angeles Time reveals that western yodeller and all around vocalist extraordinaire, Randy Erwin, will be heard in the upcoming Disney animated feature Sweating Bullets.
 
 

Selkies: Correction on the Anna Swan Project

The Disney Archive announced earlier this week that Disney was currently working on an Anna Swan project... and assumed it was about the real life story of the 7+ foot giantess. But after further research, the site put up an erratum to explain that the animated feature would be based on a a story written by a Finnish writer Anna Swan about selkies, which sounds much more likely! "Selkies are shape shifting sea fairies usually in the form of bright-eyed seals. They are localised to Northern Scotland and the Shetland Islands. Selkies often came on to land in human form, where they would dance, especially on the night of the full moon. In taking human form the Silkies shed their sealskin, and hide them in a safe place. There are many tales from the clans of leaders taking Selkie wives by stealing their skins. The Selkies are said to make good wives but always long for the sea, and return to their seal form if they gain repossession of their skins. The selkies can be identified in their human form by their webbed fingers and toes and their ability to swim underwater for long periods of time."
 
 

Disney Adapting The Lady of the Lake

The same site finally reveals the name of the Godfried Bomans children story that Disney is trying to secure the rights for: "De vijvervrouw" in Dutch, which means Lady of the Lake (see Monday's news for plot details).
 
 

Sneak Preview of Monsters Outtakes

Walt Disney Pictures announced that "two hilarious all-new outtakes" from their hit film Monsters, Inc. would premiere today, exclusively via satellite. No further details were given. On its 32nd day of release, Monsters, Inc. starts to lose steam at the box-office and the gap with Shrek shrunk down by over $10M in one week. Perfect timing for the outtakes!
 
 

Two Songs for Treasure Planet?

'Alexis' spreads the rumour on the Feature Animation Forum that Johnny Rzeznik should be recording not one, but two tracks for the animated features. "Perhaps only one will be heard in te film and another song in the end credits."
 
 

Behind The Voices

This great new site tells you about the men and women behind your favorite animated characters, so go check it out now!
 
 

Specs of the Disney's American Legends DVD

DVD File announces that the 2/12 disc will feature a full screen transfer, English 2.0 surround mix, an American Legends interactive game, and the "Donald Applecore" animated short. Retail is $29.95.
 
 

Did You Know That... Walt Disney was much criticized throughout his career. "We are not trying to entertain the critics. I'll take my chances with the public." You go, Walt!

 

 
 

More Fortunecity Trouble

Once again, the Fortunecity server is locked and uploads are therefore impossible for now. The main page will be switched back asap, sorry for the inconvenience!
 
 

It's Official: Monsters Outtakes Premiering This Friday!

"Animated outtakes have become a signature of Pixar's films. We pioneered animated outtakes with A Bug's Life and Toy Story 2, and with Monsters, Inc. we couldn't resist doing them again. They're as much fun to create as they are to watch," says John Lasseter. A sneak preview of the outtakes will be available on the movie's official site beginning Friday. Check out the full press release here! 
 
 

Shrek Becomes The Biggest DVD of All-Time

In just over four weeks, Shrek has become the best-selling DVD of all-time. With more than 5.5 million DVDs sold to consumers in North America, the big green Ogre surpassed the previous record-holder Gladiator (which has sold over 5 million units since its release more than one year ago). Retail has purchased a total of 7.3 million Shrek DVDs and DreamWorks is continuing to manufacture new copies in an effort to avoid selling out of the product prior to the Holidays. "This unprecedented rate of sale confirms that the Shrek DVD is sought after by not only the DVD collector, but also by the wide range of Shrek movie fans including families with kids, teenagers, adults and everyone in between," said Kelley Avery, worldwide head of DreamWorks Home Entertainment.
 
 

Cameron Diaz Talks Shrek 2

Actress Cameron Diaz revealed during a press junket for her new movie Vanilla Sky that she might be singing in Shrek 2: "I don't know what they have in store for me. I just guess I just keep trying to overcome my fear about putting myself out there over and over again".
 
 

Monsters Outtakes This Friday?

Dark Horizons confirms that "theatres are set to get a new fifth reel this Friday, which probably means there'll now be outtakes during the credits." If so, expect some major promotional push within the next couple of days!
 
 

Celebrate The Muppets's 25th Anniversary This Weekend! 

AICN announces that the MuppetFest will be held by the Jim Henson Company and Creation Entertainment at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium this coming weekend. "What originally started out as a somewhat simple celebration of The Muppet Show's 25th anniversary has now blossomed into a heartfelt tribute to the creative legacy of the company's founder." This event's underlying goal is reportedly to stimulate potential buyers -which include Viacom, Warners and the Walt Disney Company- to put the right amount of money on the table to purchase the Jim Henson Company.
 
 

Shrek's Original Score In Stores Today

This 27-track CD is available at Amazon.com -and no, I don't get a commission, just love that site for putting up cover art, DVD specs and release dates before anybody else!
 
 

Finding Nemo Hint in Monsters, Inc.

Do you remember that rubber clown fish in Boo's bedroom? Orange with wide white strips? Jim Hill reveals that this is no other than the title character of Pixar's next project, Finding Nemo. "This still-in-production film deals with a boy clownfish who is kidnapped, spirited away from his coral reef home. Nemo's dad must then journey through numerous dangerous worlds -- above and below the water -- before he can rescue his boy. This upcoming Disney / Pixar project isn't even supposed to hit theaters 'til June 2003."
 
 

What Monsters, Inc. Could Have Been

In a very interesting article, Jim Hill details the different scripts developped for M.I. before it became what we all know and love. Early on, Pete Docter wanted to put a post-modern spin on that old 1950 Universal Pictures / Jimmy Stewart classic, Harvey: "only the computer programmer can see the monsters that were now bedeviling him. None of this guy's co-workers are aware of the nightmarish creatures that are now making this guy's life a living hell. Over time, the film's story would be revealed that these monsters aren't just any monsters. They were the actual physical incarnations of the computer programmer's childhood fears. Phobias that continue to hold this guy back even in his adult life. And -- as our hero dealt with each of these creatures -- he'd end up confronting one of his childhood fears. And once he did so ... That monster would disappear." Check out the rest of the story by digging "Secrets from Pixar's Closet"!
 
 

Final U.S. Box-Office Data

• #2: Monsters grossed $9,105,664 this weekend (-62%) in 3,390 theaters, for total revenues of $204,025,728 to date
• #46: Shrek with $42,722 (-52%) in 159 theaters for a total $267,652,016

 

International Box-Office for Atlantis, Monsters And Shrek

Illustrating the enduring love affair between Gallic audiences and Disney animation, Atlantis: The Lost Empire snared $4.6 million in France, the fourth-biggest cartoon bow behind Tarzan, Dinosaur and The Lion King. Atlantis collected a buoyant $420,000 in Belgium, on par with Pocahontas and slightly below Mulan, and eased by 32% in Spain for $1.9 million in 10 days. The foreign total stands at $45.5 million, with Japan and Germany -- the world's No. 2 and No. 3 markets -- opening this weekend. In its offshore premiere, Monsters Inc. nabbed $460,000 in Singapore, including previews, an animated industry record, outrunning Dinosaur. Sans sneaks, the Disney/Pixar pic was No. 2 behind the irrepressible Harry Potter, which nabbed $412,000 in its sophomore session. Last but not least, Dreamworks SKG Fansite reports that Shrek crossed the $450 million mark this past weekend in its international box office run. The ogre blockbuster now stands a chance to reach $ 1 billion in merchandise and video/dvd sales.
 
 

Tentative Platinum DVD Calendar

According to DAA, the Platinum DVD's will be coming out in the following order:

• 2001 - Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
• 2002 - Beauty and the Beast
• 2003 - Aladdin
• 2004 - The Lion King

The rest of the release calendar is subject to change, but for now is expected to be:

• 2005 - Cinderella
• 2006 - The Little Mermaid
• 2007 - Lady and the Tramp
• 2008 - The Jungle Book
• 2009 - Bambi
• 2010 - 101 Dalmatians

 

Walt's Disney's 100th Anniversary Tomorrow

And the world will celebrate as if he was still amongst us -which in more ways than one, he still is! You'll find a summarized events listing at MousePlanet.
 
 

Did You Know That... Disney executives asked the production team of Monsters, Inc. to done down the scariest element of the movie -they didn't want kids to be frightened by the characters and therefore not want to buy plush toys.

 

 
 
• Rumour About Bears's Troubled Production Debunked

A Disney insider indicated that "there is nothing true about the cancellation rumours, on the contrary." Production on this 2004 feature is reportedly going "rather well", which is good news!
 
 
• Two More Rumoured Disney Projects

'Ayame' from Disney Animation Archive confirms that Disney is trying to acquire the rights of Dutch children story written by Godfried Bomans, which follows the adventures of a young girl who decides to save the spoiled, rude prince she is in love with from the Lady of the Lake who made him prisoner. The same source reveals that, in what would be a much more surprising move, Disney is also considering turning the life of giantess Anna Swan into an animated feature!
 
 
• New Preliminary Drawing for Mulan

The very talented character designer Harald Siepermann was gracious enough to send in an original sketch of Mushu and an ancestor, drawn especially for Disney's 1998 project.
 
 
• Lilo & Stitch Being Scored

According to Alan-Silvestri.com, recording sessions for Lilo & Stitch were held this week. Animagic reports that Disney is likely to release a score album for the movie, plus a CD including songs from the movie -all six from Elvis Presley plus the new "Ahola Spirit".
 
 
• A Centennial Tribute to Walt Disney

The Beverley Hills-based Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences will trace the life and career of Walt Disney this Wednesday, on what would have been his 100th birthday. The special program will include a number of rare cartoons, home movies, innovative live-action clips as well as behind-the-scenes footage. Family members and creative talents from Disney's films and studio staff will join host Leonard Maltin on stage to share their memories of this true Hollywood original. Tickets are $5 for the general public. Click here for more details.
 
 
• "What If" Enters at Number 6 in the UK Charts

Film star Kate Winslet's single from the Christmas Carol - The Movie soundtrack, proved to be a modest success, but still outsold Geri Halliwell's latest release.
 
 
• Washington Honors Julie Andrews

Julie Andrews was one of five artistic legends to sit alongside President Bush in Washington's top theater on Sunday night, and were starry-eyed themselves as political and Hollywood heavyweights paid tribute to their glittering careers. Jack Nicholson was on hand to lend Julie Andrews a handkerchief after a Broadway medley of her songs from the musicals she made her own including My Fair Lady and Mary Poppins. Julie Andrews said receiving a U.S. honor had taken her breath away. "It means the most wonderful personal warm feeling. I think of myself as mid-Atlantic," the British-born actress said at a State Department dinner on Saturday night.
 
 
• Japanese Site for Beauty & the Beast's IMAX Edition

Just for the pleasure of the eyes... Check out the original welcome picture put up by Disney Japan to promote this January release!
 
 
• Relaunch of Digital Media FX

The animation and visual effects site will get a new design today, with more news, sneak peaks and interviews, in what promises to be its "biggest update since [its] opening", so be sure to check it out!
 
 
• Did You Know That... Probably the most painful time of Walt Disney's private life, was the accidental death of his mother in 1938. After the great success of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Walt and Roy bought their parents, Elias and Flora Disney, a home close to the studios. Less than a month later Flora died of asphyxiation caused by a faulty furnace in the new home. The terrible guilt of this haunted Walt for the rest of his life.

 
 

Temporary Track Listing for Lilo & Stitch

According to the Disney Animation Archive, the six Elvis Presley recordings featured on the soundtrack of the Disney movie will be "Hound Dog", "Devil in Disguise", "Burning Love", "I'm Coming Home", "Stuck on You" and "Heartbreak Hotel". As a reminder, an original song was supposedly written for the movie, entitled "Aloha Spirit".
 
 

Monsters, Inc. Passes $200 Million Mark

The Pixar movie grossed an additional $9.4M this weekend, bringing its cum to $204.3M. It is now the fifth biggest animated movie of all times in the U.S. behind Aladdin ($217.4M), Toy Story 2 ($245.8M), Shrek ($257.9M), and The Lion King ($312.0M). Monsters, Inc. reached the $200 million mark on Saturday, quicker than any other animated film, but it has been losing a lot of steam at the box office (falling to the fourth spot, with -49% this weekend) and will only pass Shrek if the upcoming outtakes give the movie a strong enough boost.
 
 

Atlantis Influenced By Princess Mononoke

In an interview to French magazine Nouvel Observateur, director Gary Trousdale revealed that "there are some influences that we are very proud of, like Princess Mononoke -it's true, we do love the Japanese design!"
 
 

Official Site and Cover Art for Cinderella 2: Dreams Come True

Amazon just unveiled the cover of the February 26 direct-to-video sequel to Cinderella. You can even get a peak at Lucifer's love interest in the bottom left of the picture. Also, a cute official site just opened, where you can view the trailer and enter a new sweepstake!
 
 

Fox Launches A New Animation Promotion on February 19

DVD File announces that "in addition to repricings on Anastasia and Thumbelina to $24.95, Fox will release three animated catalog faves for the first time on DVD" at $19.95 each: the excellent Ferngully, and the much more forgettable Ferngully 2: The Last Rainforest, and A Troll In Central Park. Unfortunately, the only disc featuring extras remains Anastasia, so save your money for later...
 
 

Did You Know That... About his experience working on Anastasia, composer Stephen Flaherty said: "I felt like I had just entered musical theater heaven. Angela Lansbury has been a great Broadway star since the sixties, and I'm one of those kids who grew up listening to show albums on the family stereo. And Bernadette Peters has done so many wonderful musicals."