{{link http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1101031215-557062,00.html Time Magazine}} made available online a story from its December 15th print issue, which looks at the current Mouse chief’s track record and how the the Roy Disney situation might develop over the next few weeks.

After a much rumored courting of various media companies, the specialist home entertainment company {{link http://www.anchorbayentertainment.com/ Anchor Bay}} has been promised to IDT Entertainment, who own a controlling interest in Simpsons animation producer Film Roman Productions, according to {{link http://forum.bcdb.com/gforum.cgi?post=16157 The Big Cartoon Database}}. Anchor Bay serves as a “boutique” producer of rare and cult […]

{{link http://forums.toonzone.net/showthread.php?t=96699 Toon Zone}} reports that Finding Nemo continues to drawn in large audiences on its international theatrical release, pulling in another $45.9 million from 26 countries, for “a cumulative overseas gross of $283.4 million”!

Peter Jackson, readying himself for the release of the last in his epic special-effects filled Lord Of The Rings trilogy, The Return Of The King on December 17th, is already looking towards his next project, a grand re-telling of the King Kong story, as well as a long-rumored return to Middle Earth. In Berlin to […]

The {{link http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml;jsessionid=3U30OLM2B2ZYQCRBAELCFEY?type=entertainmentNews&storyID=3960532 Reuters News Agency}} has reported that Friends star Lisa Kudrow will “lend her voice to an untitled animated pilot presentation created by Jonathan Katz and Tom Snyder (Dr. Katz), under consideration at Fox, playing the mother of a family whose life is disrupted when their uncle moves in with them”.

{{link http://www.darkhorizons.com/ Dark Horizons}} picks up on a story that originally featured at {{link http://www.variety.com/index.asp?layout=upsell_article&articleID=VR1117896739&categoryID=13&cs=1 Variety.com}} (paid subscription required) about the long-in-pre-production Disney live-action/animation fairy-tale skewer Enchanted. “Kim Possible executive producers Bob Schooley and Mark McCorkle have been hired to rewrite the project for Disney and director Adam Shankman (Bringing Down The House). The film […]

The BBC this Wednesday evening will air a 40-minute documentary which looks at the current state of the animation industry, at 10.35pm on BBC1. The Imagine series (covering a wide variety of artistic and cultural projects and people) has so far been an intelligent show, going to the top people in the field for information. […]

Ray Harryhausen’s contribution to special effects cannot be overstated, with virtually everybody in the field being inspired by his armies of mythical beasts in the Sinbad films, the dinosaurs of One Million Years BC, or the unforgettable and amazingly influential skeleton gladiators in Jason And The Argonauts (see even this year’s effects-fest Pirates Of The […]

The boys, as they say, are back in town! Cartman, Kyle, Stan and Kenny all return in the latest season to hit DVD, with {{link http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B0000CABL2/qid=1070725303//ref=sr_8_xs_ap_i0_xgl74/002-1902555-2863210?v=glance&s=dvd&n=507846 South Park: The Complete Third Season}}, out on December 16th. The three-disc set features all seventeen episodes as well as “mini-commentaries” (short vocal intros by creators Trey Parker and […]

With the end of 2003 upon us and the holiday gift-giving season coming up fast, we thought we’d share what we here at Animated News thought would make great ideas for the animation fan in your life

The ever present {{link http://www.jimhillmedia.com/main/index.htm Jim Hill Media}} has a brief update on the Roy Disney/Michael Eisner situation over at Disney today, plus an announcement for a rather special event for NYC residents. “Tonight [December 4] at the Museum of Television and Radio, they’re having an event to honor Arthur Rankin, Jr. and Jules Bass, […]

In what is possibly the fastest theatrical-to-television turnaround ever, Sylvain Chomet’s Les Triplettes De Belleville (or in the UK, {{link http://www.bellevillerendezvous.com/ Belleville Rendezvous}}) will be shown on the BBC (who part funded the film) as part of their New Year’s Eve programming. Belleville, which is screening on BBC2 at 2.30pm, was premiered this year at […]

Ray Pointer, who runs the wonderful resource for older American animation, {{link http://www.inkwellimagesink.com/ Inkwell Images}}, is finally taking pre-orders for his wide collection of silent Disney and Fleischer cartoon libraries on DVD! Previously, only the Max Fleischer {{link http://www.amazon.com/o/ASIN/B000096JHT/002-1902555-2863210?%5Fencoding=UTF8&coliid=I3P5SIVJ8BIHBW&colid=23OUJ19G09P91 Out Of The Inkwell}} disc was available, being a combination of Volumes One and Two from […]

Up to the minute DVD info page {{link http://www.thedigitalbits.com/ The Digital Bits}} are usually first online with the latest disc rumors, and if not first, they’ll be able to confirm or deny reports based on their close association with the main Studios. Now, in the always entertaining {{link http://www.thedigitalbits.com/articles/barriemaxwell/maxwell112803.html Coming Classic Attractions}} column, writer Barrie […]

The {{link http://forums.toonzone.net/index.php? Toon Zone Forums}} today report on a couple of stories that just appeared at {{link http://www.nytimes.com/ The New York Times.com}}. The first, {{link http://forums.toonzone.net/showthread.php?t=95782 Studios Sue To End Screener Ban}} looks at the ongoing concern that the MPAA DVD screener ban imposed on the studios to help crack down on piracy will […]

{{link http://www.dvdtoons.com/ DVD Toons}} lets us know that 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment has announced the third season of Futurama on DVD. The four disc box set, will contain the same kids of extras that fans have enjoyed in previous sets, and should retail for $49.98. Check out the {{link http://www.dvdtoons.com/news/498 full specs}}! Also announced […]

AWN’s {{link http://vfxworld.com/?sa=adv&code=319b255d&atype=articles&id=1931 VFX World}} talks to The Haunted Mansion‘s visual effects supervisor Jay Redd on the challenge of creating 999 ghostly looks for the film, which melds live-action actors with CG-enhanced effects work.

{{link http://forum.bcdb.com/gforum.cgi?post=15576 The Big Cartoon Database Forum}} reports that two special upcoming screenings of Les Triplettes De Belleville, Sylvain Chomet’s international co-production, are to be held in Ottawa and Vancouver, representing France at this year’s European Union Film Festival. The Ottawa showing takes place tomorrow evening, at 7pm on November 29, while the Vancouver premiere […]

Jerry Beck’s {{link http://www.cartoonresearch.com/kaz.html Cartoon Research}} just posted a look at the Brazillian edition of the Looney Tunes Golden DVD Collection, which will probably frustrate those in region one land who dislike those fold-out digipaks! Coming housed in a “lunchbox”-styled case, with the discs inside as individual editions in their own keepcases, this looks like […]

Though Pirates Of The Caribbean was let off very lightly from the critical and commercial disaster that was The Country Bears, it seems that any ride-inspired film to come out from the gates of Walt Disney Pictures will be forever more compared to that Johnny Depp-led behemoth. Perhaps not letting the film speak for itself, […]

Frank And Ollie, the 1995 documentary film that peeks into the extraordinary Disney careers and personal lives of animators Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston, was put in “wide release” on November 18th, though copies have been very hard to find. Stores such as Target, KMART, Walmart, Best Buy, Circuit City and Blockbuster seem not to […]

Okay, let the bad pirate/ship puns begin: this summer’s surprise Disney blockbuster {{link http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B00005JM5E/qid=1069876840/sr=8-1/ref=sr_8_1/002-1902555-2863210?v=glance&s=dvd&n=507846 Pirates Of The Caribbean: The Curse Of The Black Pearl}} hits the shiny movie disc format on December 2nd. The always excellent {{link http://www.dvdfile.com/software/review/dvd-video_7/piratesofthecaribbeancurse.html DVD File is first online with a full review}} of the disc, which should please long-time DisneyLand […]

{{link http://www.michaelbarrier.com/index.html Michael Barrier}}, author of Hollywood Cartoons: American Animation In Its Golden Age and a contributor to the recent Looney Tunes Golden Collection DVD set, offers up his take on a couple of films still in theaters: {{link http://www.michaelbarrier.com/Commentary/Brother_Bear/Brother_Bear.htm Brother Bear}} and {{link http://www.michaelbarrier.com/Commentary/Looney_Tunes_Back_in_Action/Looney_Tunes_Back_in_Action.htm Looney Tunes: Back In Action}}. Sounds like he didn’t have […]

Craig Crumpton on the {{link http://forums.toonzone.net/showthread.php?t=95455 Toon Zone Forums}} posts a link to {{link http://www.gameinformer.com/ Game Informer}}’s site, which reports that Tim Burton’s stop-motion animated The Nightmare Before Christmas is headed to the PlayStation 2 console, courtesy of games giant Capcom. There’s an early look at a couple of screencaps {{link http://gameinformer.com/News/Screens/ScreenShots.htm?CS_pid={0E0A7CD9-063A-42F1-97CE-6EDEFD87DC32} here}} and a […]

Hopefully this first look at next summer’s Jonathan Frakes-directed blockbuster wannabe will start popping up on other sites around the web, as the {{link http://www.workingtitlefilms.com/nusite.php Working Title Films}} website is a little tricky to navigate to say the least – not the most friendly of pages to find your way around, even if the Flash […]

In the race to see who takes home Oscar gold next year, Finding Nemo seems to be taking a leaf out of Shrek‘s book and going for the big Best Picture prize itself, rather than pushing for Best Animated Feature. ‘Dalboz’, in the {{link http://animation.skyblueproductions.net/ Animated News Forums}} tells us that {{link http://www.oscarwatch.com/index.html OscarWatch}}, an […]

A little light reading for you on this rather slow news weekend: Amid Amidi’s {{link http://www.animationblast.com/ Animation Blast}} posted some early thoughts on Pixar’s new short Boundin’: “[It’s] humor-light: inoffensive, bordering on sappy, so utterly charming and sweet that it makes you feel dirty watching it. This is some of the sharpest and funniest computer […]

Timing in nicely with the release of the documentary on DVD, {{link http://frankanollie.com/ FrankAnOllie’s personal website}} has had a facelift, courtesy of new hosts Animation World Network! The site, originated and about the legendary Disney animators, features their personal tips on animation, background histories and their work, and fun with “new” characters Revilo and Nilknarf […]