D Magazine has an in-depth profile on the Dallas-based animation studio Reel FX and its CEO Steve O’Brien. In 20 years, the studio has grown from animating direct-to-video films like Hasbro’s G.I. Joe titles and the Open Season sequels to producing its first theatrical feature, Free Birds. With voice acting by Owen Wilson, Woody Harrelson […]

Theme park enthusiast Jeff Lange is keeping viewers updated on the festivities at Walt Disney World to promote Monsters University. On YouTube, he shows Mike Wazowski and Sulley projected onto Epcot’s Spaceship Earth as part of the park’s Monstrous Summer All-Nighter. In another vid, Lange walks viewers through the Monsters University display at Hollywood Studios, […]

ITunes is offering some noteworthy freebies for families and animation enthusiasts. Toy Story: Smash It! has unveiled a free Lost Episode version, sure to please fans of the similar block-breaking game Angry Birds. Meanwhile, Surf’s Up, Spongebob! is iTunes’ free book of the week. The book’s synopsis reads, “SpongeBob eagerly accepts Sandy’s invitation to go […]

With the summer movie season kicking off this weekend, Sony Pictures is starting to put their marketing muscle behind The Smurfs 2. Of course, no good movie campaign nowadays would be complete without social media integration. Hence, the studio has enlisted the newest member of the original “blue man group”: Social Smurf, voiced by Extra […]

Among marketing materials for Monsters University, one of the most frequently shown scenes involves a college-aged James P. Sullivan introducing himself to roommate Mike Wazowski. Monsters, Inc. fans have taken issue with this footage, since the 2001 hit has Mike joking to Sulley, “You’ve been jealous of my good looks since the fourth grade, pal!” […]

Our friends The Rotoscopers have scooped new promotional artwork for DreamWorks Animation’s How to Train Your Dragon 2. In addition to images reported last week, their assortment features the characters Hiccup, Toothless, Astrid and a slew of new creatures. Directed by Dean DeBlois, How to Train Your Dragon 2 is expected to enter theaters June […]

Walt Disney Studios announced today that Planes will have a special screening at this year’s EAA AirVenture Oshkosh, the nation’s largest gathering of aviation enthusiasts. The screening will take place at Wittman Regional Airport in Oshkosh, WI, on Friday, August 2 – one week before the film hits theaters nationwide.

Audiences who made The Croods this year’s first animated blockbuster can now pre-order the film on Amazon.com. The film will be available to own via 3D or standard Blu-ray combo packs, with the latter containing a plush toy of the character Belt for a limited time. Directed by Chris Sanders and Kirk DeMicco, The Croods […]

/Film looks at how Pixar crafted the actual university of Monsters University. To make the college as believable as possible, artists considered the many sizes and species of its monstrous students, whether it meant placing smaller stair steps on top of larger steps or having a section of the campus underwater. In related news, another […]

At CinemaCon last week, Fox released new information about DreamWorks Animation’s How to Train Your Dragon 2. During the sequel’s presentation, a teaser trailer was shown that surprised audiences by revealing an older version of the first film’s young protagonist, Hiccup. Now PerezHilton.com has artwork showing Hiccup’s new look as well as the film’s first […]

Most folks know the yellow, pint-sized comic relief characters of Despicable Me 2 only as “Minions.” However, a new series of character banners found on eBay reminds that each Minion has his own name, whether it’s the cupcake-loving Stuart or the befuddled Dave. Meanwhile, the Internet Movie Poster Awards has a new Russian poster for […]

At his insightful blog, veteran Disney animator Floyd Norman recalls working on the cancelled Huck’s Landing, which was to be loosely based on Mark Twain’s classic character Huck Finn. As work commenced in the ’80s, the film’s production team included Kathy Alterie as art director, and Duncan Majoriebanks, Bruce Smith and Chris Bailey as animators. […]

A feature film version of Aardman Animations’ TV series Shaun The Sheep is in the works according to Deadline. Studiocanal is financing the film. “The family film, written and directed by Richard Starzak and Mark Burton, will see the titular character and his flock venture into the big city to rescue their farmer”.

Our friends The Rotoscopers got a look at a preview video for Disney’s Frozen before the Mouse House had it pulled offline. Luckily they have screencaps so you can still check out some of the art. “The video appears to have been made or cleared on 7/25/12, which is a few weeks before Destination D […]

Director Dan Scanlon talks with USA Today about making Monsters University. “If there’s a message [in the movie], I think it’s that sometimes you have to discover who you really are, instead of what you’re expected to be,” Scanlon explains. “It might be a slightly heavier theme than the first movie, but I think kids […]

At the bottom of yesterday’s announcement for the Ratchet & Clank movie, it was revealed that Blockade Entertainment is adapting the Heavenly Sword video game into a direct-to-video computer animated film. Now IGN is offering more info on the project. Produced by Brad Foxhoven and David Wohl, Heavenly Sword will be written by Todd Farmer, […]

D23 reports that Walt Disney Animation Studios will be premiering a new Mickey Mouse short titled Get A Horse! at the Annecy Animation Festival on June 11. The “never-before-seen short” will feature Walt Disney himself as the voice of Mickey Mouse. “This black-and- white, hand-drawn short follows Mickey, his favorite gal pal Minnie Mouse and […]

On Monday, Animated Views brought you details on The Little Mermaid 3D Diamond Edition, including cover artwork for the three-disc Blu-ray set. Now Amazon has posted artwork for the release’s two-disc Blu-ray combo pack, which consumers may purchase with or without a digital copy. The site is also offering a coupon for five dollars off […]

As the Professor might say when delivering not so good news, “Good news, everybody!” Futurama has been cancelled… again. Entertainment Weekly reports that the now Comedy Central program will come to an end on September 4th. The series originally ran on Fox from 1999 to 2003 before being revived in 2007 after fan outcry. After […]

Animated Views has a new batch of images from The Snow Queen, courtesy of Wizart Animation. Based on Hans Christian Anderson’s classic tale, the film tells of Gerda and her journey to find her brother Kai in a wintry wonderland ruled by the titular villain, who wishes to destroy all artists and their successors. The […]

Fox has confirmed that the Peanuts film being made by Blue Sky Studios will be CG and 3D, according to Animation Magazine. “The Peanuts script was written by Charles Schulz’s son Craig Schulz, his grandson Bryan Schulz, and Bryan’s screenwriting partner Cornelius Uliano”.

Film Music Reporter says that first timer Dominic Lewis will score the upcoming film Free Birds. “Lewis has previously worked together with [composer John] Powell and composers Henry Jackman and Hans Zimmer, providing additional music for such films as Rio, Rango, Kung Fu Panda, X-Men: First Class and Wreck-It-Ralph“.

Confirming earlier reports, Disney today officially announced The Little Mermaid Diamond Edition will be released on DVD, Digital, Blu-ray, and 3D Blu-ray on October 1st. The full press release, with more details on pricing and special features, and the cover art can be seen here:

As part of his eagerness to release more movies that will be financially successful in China, DreamWorks Animation CEO Jeffery Katzenberg announced that he plans to bring The Tibet Code to the big screen, Deadline is reporting. Described as an “Indiana Jones-style adventure,” the movie is based on a series of Chinese novels set in 9th […]

TV networks are usually secretive about how their pilots become series. But Amazon.com is letting viewers choose which of its 14 pilots will receive a full season. Animated titles in the lineup include the adult comedy Supanatural as well as kids series Positively Ozitively, Sara Solves It, Creative Galaxy, Teeny Tiny Dogs and Tumbleaf. During […]

At CinemaCon on Thursday, Fox gave an animation-heavy presentation to promote upcoming projects from Blue Sky and DreamWorks Animation. On the Blue Sky front, the animation house unveiled its newest opening logo, which features Scrat of Ice Age fame. It also treated the audience to teaser trailers for Rio 2 and Peanuts. The latter trailer […]