Numerous covers for some of next year’s most anticipated animated films are now appearing at Amazon.com. For Shrek the Third, two titles in the mix are Mad Libs plus Storybook and Viewer. The style of the latter book has also been adopted for a Ratatouille reading, as discovered by Upcoming Pixar. The Pixar pic also […]

TV Shows on DVD observes that Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles – Fast Forward: Future Shellshock will hit stores on February 6, 2007. The 2-disc set will contain 13 episodes of the most recent series’ fifth season.

Touring the special effects facility of Industrial Light and Magic, JoBlo was treated to a behind-the-scenes look at how many of the most marvelous illusions in Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest were created. The presentation included input from Animation Supervisor Hal Hickel, Senior Digital Modeler Supervisor Geoff Campbell and Visual Effects Art Director […]

Variety spotlights digital effects company Animal Logic, which is looking to move further into animated features after its success with Happy Feet. Transitioning into a studio similar to Pixar and DreamWorks Animation, Logic currently has 550 employees, as it continues relationships with such directors as George Miller, Baz Luhrmann and Phillip Noyce.

From producer Jordan Kerner, Coming Soon has discovered the inspiration for the future Smurfs computer-animated trilogy. According to Kerner, “This is coming out of Australia. They were all over me for that. Everybody was reading me in terms of Smurf movies, but we’re not anywhere near that yet. We’re just writing the script. There’s a […]

Moviehole provides an update on the status of a sequel to the 2001 hit Cats & Dogs. In an interview with Film Monthly, director John Whiteshell admitted to no longer being involved in the project. Nonetheless, visual effects house Tippett Studios’ supervisor, Todd LaBonte, recently disclosed, “There is a sequel, we did tests for it. […]

Previewing its lineup for next year, Sony Pictures has released a brand-new photo from Surf’s Up, as seen at Coming Soon. The upcoming computer-animated penguin tale is slated for a June 8 debut.

For Ain’t It Cool News, Sylvester Stallone answers a series of questions sent in by inquisitive minds. One of those queries asks, “Is it true you’d love to work with Pixar on the Incredibles sequel?” To this question, Stallone’s answers, “I thought The Incredibles was fantastic, and although I’ve never been asked, I would love […]

Suffering a brain aneurysm, composer Shirley Walker died Wednesday evening in Los Angeles, California. She was at the age of 61. In 1986, Walker scored Disney’s Fluppy Dogs, a pilot for a rejected television series. Later, she orchestrated music for the first live-action Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles film (1990). She also orchestrated and wrote music […]

At the age of 59 years old, Timothy Hayes Rooney, son of actor Mickey Rooney, died September 23 in Hemet, California. His death was the effect of a five-year battle with the muscle disease dermatomyositis. According to the World Entertainment News Network, Rooney “was chosen as one of the original Mouseketeers for the Mickey Mouse […]

Today, the Internet Movie Database asks the question, “Of the eligible contenders for this year’s Academy Award for Best Animated Feature, which is your favorite?” Registered members of the site may vote their choice here, or simply take a look at the current results here.

The casting sheet for Walt Disney Feature Animation’s upcoming The Frog Princess has been posted at the Manhattan Theater Source forum. The list includes the names and descriptions of all the main characters to be included in the traditionally-animated film. Thanks to “Kinoo” at the Animated News Forum for the scoop!

According to Premiere Magazine‘s list of “The 20 Most Overrated Movies of All Time,” Walt Disney’s Fantasia does not live up to the hype animation fans have granted it. The article writes, “This film is a mishmash of pedantic narration and erratic tone… and, frankly, some of the animated sequences now seem dangerously akin to […]

TV Shows on DVD spreads the word on the final seasons of Justice League: Unlimited and Batman Beyond. With both two-disc sets aiming for a store release date of March 20, the Justice League: Unlimited DVD package will be greeted by heavy marketing at Carl’s Jr. and Hardee’s restaurants.

Actuacine.net offers the latest one-sheet for Arthur and the Minimoys, known as Arthur and the Invisibles in the U.S. Furthermore, the site contains several recent images for the forthcoming computer-animated/live-action adventure.

The Hollywood Reporter via Coming Soon reports that Ice Age: The Meltdown enjoyed a first-place finish on the national DVD sales chart, knocking The Da Vinci Code down to the second spot. Concurrently, on Home Media Magazine’s video rental chart, Meltdown debuted at #1 with approximately $10.3 million. In the meantime, Cars continued to have […]

Following are seven shots of the menu screens from the 2-disc Special Edition of Disney’s Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest DVD due out next Tuesday, December 5. Be to sure look for at least four Easter eggs.

The following is a promotional image with information relating to this Saturday’s broadcast of The Happy Elf on the Starz Kids & Family network:

Coming Soon summarizes the creation and impact of Walt Disney’s True-Life Adventures, using thoughts from Roy Disney. Among the memories he relays, Mr. Disney recognizes the award-winning documentaries’ long journey toward a DVD debut, as True-Life Adventures will finally be released this December 5.

As part of its “Random Spiel,” Dark Horizons indicates that DreamWorks Animation’s Kung Fu Panda has been rescheduled for June 6th 2008. The funny flick was originally planned to battle the Wachowski brother’s adaptation of Speed Racer on that year’s Memorial Day weekend.

A brand-new trailer for next January’s The Invincible Iron Man has been added to the official Marvel website. Four screenshots from the direct-to-video animated adventure are likewise displayed at the site.

DVD Active brings the lowdown on the DVD release of Sony Pictures Animation’s fall hit Open Season. “Extras will include a filmmaker audio commentary, deleted scenes, a Voices Behind the Stars featurette, a Swept Away scene deconstruction, an Inside the Animals Studio feature, an “I Wanna Lose Control” music video, interactive games, and more.” Open […]

Fans of the hit Cartoon Network series and DC Comics franchise may now experience Teen Titans 2, available for the GameBoy Advance and DS handheld systems. SCI FI Wire observes the game, collecting the views of Joe McHale, producer for Teen Titans.

SpielbergFilms.com reports that a long discussed, never-yet-realized Tintin film series may still eventually see the light of day. “A few years back, news of Amblin Entertainment’s reacquisition to the rights for the famous Tintin comic series created quite a stir online, yet recently, news of plans for the series had grown absolutely cold. While he […]

More casting information has been released regarding Luc Besson’s Arthur and the Invisibles, writes Coming Soon. Joining Freddie Highmore, Madonna, Snoop Dogg and David Bowie for the computer animated adventure are Robert De Niro, Harvey Keitel, Anthony Anderson, Chazz Palminteri, Jason Bateman, Jimmy Fallon and Mia Farrow. In other Arthur news, the Internet Movie Poster […]

Courtesy of Box Office Mojo: 1) Happy Feet with $37,038,046, averaging $9,736 over 3,804 theaters ($99,256,766 total; 2nd week) 7) Flushed Away with $5,756,455, averaging $2,196 over 2,621 theaters ($57,266,350 total; 4th week) 28) Open Season with $169,254, averaging $821 over 206 theaters ($84,194,583 total; 9th week) 42) The Nightmare Before Christmas in 3-D with […]

LA Weekly looks at the directorial career of George Miller, who helmed the box office hit Happy Feet. The article acknowledges the dark territory Feet sometimes takes its audience. In answer to this observation, Miller explains, “I wanted to push him [the main character, Mumble] to the limit, to that point where he fell into […]

Some of this year’s most successful animated films are among the nominees for the upcoming People’s Choice Awards. In fact, all three nominees for “Favorite Family Movie” are animated: Cars, Ice Age: The Meltdown and Over the Hedge. Cars also scored a nomination for “Favorite Movie.” In addition, the music of the Pixar pic will […]

Pointing to the success of The Simpsons and Family Guy, Variety breaks down why networks are eager for more animation in primetime, despite any risk the venture might bring. Series currently in the works for older audiences include Aardman Animations’ Creature Comforts and the Robert Smigel/Happy Madison production Animals.

According to Contact Music, Dick Van Dyke is fascinated by animation – and has the studio to prove it. “It started out as a hobby about 15 years ago when they first came out with a little machine that would actually do animation. I’ve been doing it ever since and now I have a room […]