The Newsweek section of MSNBC.com has conducted its list of the best movies of 2006. Two of the films to have a quick mention in the piece are none other than Monster House and Happy Feet, as both come “highly recommended” by the magazine.

News.com.au explains the ingredients used for the creation of Happy Feet, one of which being the visual effects composed by Animal Logic. Studying Antartica, as well as such creatures as penguins and elephant seals, digital supervisor Brett Feeney sought a “photo real effect” for the animation in Happy Feet, as directed by George Miller. In […]

Following similarly enlightening articles from JoBlo and Coming Soon, DVD Talk investigates the visual effects found in Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest, courtesy of Industrial Light and Magic. Animation supervisor Hal T. Hickel, visual effects art director Aaron McBride, and creature model supervisor Geoff Campbell take the site on a tour, explaining the […]

The Los Angeles Times notices the nearly 500 special effects that can be seen in Night at the Museum. Under the supervison of Jim Rygiel, whose work for the Lord of the Rings trilogy brought him three Oscars, Rhythm & Hues helped craft the film’s visual magic.

The Associated Press via Yahoo! Finance reviews the performance of the Walt Disney Company for the year of 2006. Under the leadership of Chief Executive Robert Iger, the company enjoyed success through such actions as the acquiring of Pixar and the distributing of video content through iTunes.

The Washington Post looks at the dancing displayed in Happy Feet. For the film, the signature moves of master dancer Savion Glover were motion-captured and transferred to the penguin picture’s star, Mumble.

TV Shows on DVD has the lowdown on the April 17 release of Spongebob Squarepants: Friend or Foe, which will contain seven episodes of the hit series. Concurrently, the site offers cover artwork for Justice League Unlimited – Season 2, coming March 20.

Atom Films displays the sequel to the popular online film, Animator vs. Animation. Lasting a little over three minutes, Animator vs. Animation 2 reveals the humorously unfortunate happenings that abound when a stick figure brings chaos to a desktop, battling the AIM man and the Firefox fox.

The Hickory Daily Record has chosen Doug ‘Mater’ Keever as one of its “people of the year.” Discovered by Pixar Chief Creative Officer John Lasseter, who was visiting Lowe’s Motor Speedway to research the racing culture, Keever’s “life-of-the-party” racing enthusiasm made him the inspiration for the comic sidekick Mater in Disney/Pixar’s Cars.

Reminding readers of the television documentary Walt Disney: Once Upon A Time, which aired on the Canadian network CBC Newsworld this past Christmas Eve, The Toronto Sun writes of the impact Europe might have had on the “Old Maestro.” Traveling to the continent twice, once as a soldier in World War I and another time […]

In its list of films that failed to attract large audiences in 2006, Variety includes the DreamWorks/Aardman collaboration Flushed Away. Noting that the movie pulled in $61 million, along with critical acclaim, the piece adds, “made more cheaply, [this] pic likely wouldn’t have made this list.” Variety suggests Flushed Away involved a budget of close […]

Better than news about terrorist attacks, natural catastrophes, global warming, murders and other crimes, The Orange County Register has as its top story today a report on the Disneyland Finding Nemo submarine attraction set to open in June 2007.

In Forbes Magazine’s countdown of “The Top 15 Holiday Movies of All Time,” The Nightmare Before Christmas comes in at #15, having grossed a domestic total of approximately $50,379,629 since its release on October 13, 1993. That figure does not include the $8,616,662 the movie’s 3D re-release has gathered thus far this year.

On December 3, The New York Times reviewed Neal Gabler’s Walt Disney: The Triumph of the American Imagination. It might be said that the editorial painted Walt in an unflattering manner, using such descriptive phrases as “largely friendless, moody, impatient…” Thus, John Culhane has responded to the review, defending Walt’s character, in a new New […]

Entertainment Weekly humorously presents two lists that Santa is more likely to ignore rather than check twice. In “Christmas with the Cranks,” ten Christmas movies with an edge are presented, including The Nightmare Before Christmas and Adam Sandler’s Eight Crazy Nights. The other article, “Seven Sinful Santas,” suggests films in which jolly ol’ Saint Nicholas […]

The New York Times covers the history of two Rankin/Bass puppets of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer and Santa Claus. Crafted from wood, felted wool and wire, the figures were created in the 60’s by Japanese puppet makers, for the television specials from Arthur Rankin Jr. and Jules Bass. Following a long journey from oblivion to […]

As projected at Coming Soon, the Buena Vista Pictures 2007 Preview reveals that Enchanted is now scheduled to be released on Wednesday, November 21. As of right now, the only other picture opening that week is the Frank Darabont thriller, The Mist. Enchanted was originally set to open against DreamWorks Animation’s Bee Movie, on November […]

Industry observer Chuck Oberleitner’s latest editorial sheds some more light on the recent removal of WDFA director Chris Sanders from his pet project, American Dog. “In animation, story is everything. At Pixar, story is practically a religion . . . “

The Los Angeles Times spotlights Dick Van Dyke’s enthusiasm for visual effects. For approximately four decades, the actor has practiced crafting special effects within his home studio. In fact, Van Dyke has even contributed visual effects to some of the projects in which he has acted, such as Diagnosis Murder and Night at the Museum, […]

Cinema Blend showcases four stills from TMNT, the next Ninja Turtles theatrical outing. In addition, the site displays the newest one-sheet for the film, which will enter cinemas on March 23.

The Los Angeles Times confirms a Jim Hill Media report published Monday, which speculated that Disney’s direct-to-video spinoff Tinker Bell may be experiencing some story problems. According to the Times, Pixar executives John Lasseter and Ed Catmull decided that the project’s script remains in need of “substantial work.” In addition, there is some concern that […]

A Wobots Christmas is scheduled to air on TBN this Christmas Day, December 25, at 2 p.m. (PST). From Porchlight Entertainment, the Holiday tale follows an orphan named Zak, who finds himself amidst a group of defective androids in their underworld home of Scraptown. More information regarding the television appearance of A Wobots Christmas may […]

PatrickStewart.org indicates that Stewart will voice the villain Max Winters in next March’s computer-animated Ninja Turtle enterprise, TMNT. Concurrently, USA Today spotlights the film, revealing that Sarah Michelle Gellar will voice April O’Neil, Chris Evans will voice Casey Jones and Kevin Smith will have a cameo as a “greasy-spoon chef.” Also, eBay sports the latest […]

Barnyard: The Original Party Animals entered fourth place on the DVD First Alert sales chart last week, as seen through The Hollywood Reporter. Meanwhile, Cars continued a steady pace at #5, while Ice Age: The Meltdown landed in the eighth position. As for The Fox and the Hound 2, the Disney sequel debuted in the […]

TV Shows on DVD announces that Avatar: The Last Airbender – Season 2, Volume 2 will arrive in stores on April 10, 2007. The package will include episodes 6-10 from the second season of the series, along with an exclusive comic book.

The following promo image tells all about the Christmas movie marathon, including several animated films, airing on the Starz Kids & Family Network this coming Christmas Eve day, December 24:

“Kinoo” at the Animated News & Views Forum has posted artwork and character designs for Walt Disney Picture’s Enchanted. Arriving from “Prince Kido” and “Unpseudoriginal” at the French message board Disney Central Plaza, the images reveal the look for the animated incarnations of Princess Giselle, Prince Edward and Queen Narissa. Update! It appears that Enchanted […]

As was reported last Friday, December 15, the teaser trailer for Shrek the Third has been released. Today, trailer is provided in a variety of formats, including Windows Media, Real Media, Quicktime, Flash, PSP and iPod. In addition, high-resolution pictures for the latest Shrek adventure are displayed, including the latest image, which offers a sneak […]

Legendary animation producer Joe Barbera, of Hanna-Barbera fame, died Monday at 95. Along with Bill Hanna, Barbera was responsible for such animated classics as Tom and Jerry, The Flintstones, The Jetsons, Yogi Bear, Scooby-Doo, and many more. The Associated Press has more info, and Cartoon Brew is posting an expanding list of memories of Joe […]

Reuters via Yahoo! News indicates that Kristina Leslie will soon leave her position as chief financial officer for DreamWorks Animation SKG Inc. Having been at the company for over ten years, Leslie will remain with DreamWorks through February 2007 to manage the reporting of the company’s end-year results.