animated-news

New Kaena: The Prophecy pictures

My Stuff and News has new pictures from Kaena: The Prophecy. The film will begin its limited release in US theaters on July 9, 2004.

Disney Concert to play Leeds, UK

Toon Zone reports that {{link http://forums.toonzone.net/showthread.php?t=114727 Disney in Concert: A Magical Night Of Music And Film}}, performed against large screen featuring film animation illustrating favorite fairytales, will play its European debut in the UK’s Roundhay Park in Leeds on August 14 and 15.

Skwigly looking for contributions

‘Muppet2004’ posts in the {{link http://animation.skyblueproductions.net/showthread.php?s=&threadid=492 AN Forum}} that the UK’s {{link http://www.skwigly.co.uk/ Skwigly Magazine}} is looking for online article submissions.

Howl's Moving Castle trailer and clips!

‘WolfTooth’, ‘Athena’ and ‘Anvil’ in the {{link http://animation.skyblueproductions.net/showthread.php?s=&postid=3644#post3644 Animated News Forums}} all point to various teasers and trailers available online for Miyazaki’s latest, Howl’s Moving Caslte.

Spidey and Gadget DVDs reviewed…

Over at DVD Toons, Rand Cyrenne is happy to meet up with old friend {{link http://www.dvdtoons.com/reviews/313 Inspector Gadget}}, but is less impressed with the way he has aged on disc, while Rodney Figueiredo is left with a better impression of Marvel’s 1990s animated spin on {{link http://www.dvdtoons.com/reviews/314 Spider-Man Vs. Doc Ock}}. Gadget is out in […]

A quick 2D Expo report: Debunking a Pixar rumor and more

Animated News was able to attend ASIFA-Hollywood’s 2D Animation Expo yesterday at Woodbury University in Burbank, and while there was not too much to be gleaned from the proceedings in the way of animation-related news, we did learn from Jim Capobianco of Pixar that there is no truth to the rumor that Pixar will be […]

Robin's Patch Of Orange

Robin Joseph, a student of animation currently going on to make his final year film, has let us know about his new site, {{link http://www.patchoforange.com/ Patch Of Orange}}. Check out his site for examples from Robin’s portfolio, concept art, links and caricatures, including Nightmare Before Christmas creator Tim Burton (right)!

Get ready for Zombie Pirates…

Stop-motion animator Marc Spess has “finally got around to putting up a site” for his short film {{link http://www.zombie-pirates.com/ Zombie Pirates}}, started two years ago with a friend. Images, storyboards, an animated test video and news updates are available on the site, which the duo hope to use to raise enough funding to make their […]

"Heavy Metal magazine meets The NeverEnding Story"

TV Guide.com has an interesting review of the rather interesting Kaena: The Prophecy, a movie which was “originally conceived as a video game,” and featuring the voice talent of Richard Harris and Kirsten Dunst. Thanks to Kristin for the heads up.

Introducing Disney's FastPlay and EasyFind Menus

Below is a transcript of a Buena Vista Home Entertainment press release announcing new “ease-of-use” DVD features that will be appearing first on Disney’s The Three Musketeers.

Animated Maya from Mexico

Maya is a feature film project helmed by Mexican director Ricardo Arnaiz, whose goal is to promote the Mayan ancient culture. The movie will use traditional 2D techniques as well as CG. This is one of the most ambitious projects of Mexican cinema, featuring an all Mexican talent crew. The story integrates fictional elements in […]

Vince Vaughn to play Racer X?

Variety via Animation World Network is reporting that Vince Vaughn (Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story) has pitched to Speed Racer producers Joel Silver and Richard and Lauren Shuler Donner his take on the film which would have him playing Racer X. He would also executive produce on the project. Vaughn’s take focuses on family struggles […]

Disney "reducing investment" in films

Reuters indicates that in a small conference with Deutsche Bank investors, from Disney’s Burbank headquarters, Disney CEO Michael Eisner stated, “We are reducing our investment in our film businesses.” According to Disney President and COO Bob Iger, “If we are going to invest money on entertainment, I think there are better ways to spend than […]

New Sky Captain trailer now online

Yahoo! Movies has the new trailer for Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow, which will open in US theaters on September 17, 2004.

Ramsey to adapt Dragonball Z for Fox

Variety, via Coming Soon!, reveals that screenwriter Ben Ramsey (The Big Hit) will adapt Dragonball Z for the big screen for 20th Century Fox. The popular series upon which the movie will be based follows “an adult humanoid alien who’s just discovered that he was sent to Earth to blend in and destroy our population […]

Jonathan Frakes speaks Thunderbirds

At IGN FilmForce, Jonathan Frakes speaks about his new film Thunderbirds. “I think we are all pretty conscious that there is a way to tell the story of the Thunderbirds for the fans, and there is a way to tell the Thunderbirds as a family action movie. If you happen to be a fan, you’ll […]

Shrek 2 breaks another record, in France

DreamWorks SKG Fansite reports that Shrek 2 broke box office records on it’s opening day in Paris, France, attracting 78,069 seats in comparison to Finding Nemo‘s draw of 50,261 seats. Grossing $39 million overseas and $382 million in North America, expect Shrek 2‘s domestic total to be around $410-420 million, with the overseas total being […]

Poppins DVD looking good

Okay, here we go: {{link http://www.showbizdata.com/contacts/picknews.cfm/35921/JULIE_ANDREWS_SAYS_POPPINS_DVD_IS_SUPERCALIFRAGILISTIC Showbiz Data}} is the first to announce that the 2-disc Special Editon of Mary Poppins is going to be “Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious”. Speaking briefly to star Julie Andrews, she says that she was “staggered” watching the film again while recording an audio commentary. “It’s not at all creaky; it’s not at […]

DVD Toons on Teacher's Pet

Weighing in with their review of Disney’s {{link http://www.dvdtoons.com/reviews/312 Teacher’s Pet}}, DVD Toons agrees that it is better than than its box-office bomb nature suggests and deserves a second breath of life: “It’s refreshing to see good old-fashioned cartooning again, without the obvious CG distractions – everything here is refreshingly ‘lo-tech’. The story’s scope certainly […]

Disney postage stamps arrive

The Orange County Register has a brief article showing the Disney postage stamps featuring Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck and Goofy, Bambi and Thumper, Mufasa and Simba from The Lion King, and Pinocchio and Jiminy Cricket that have previously been reported at Animated News. Free subscription required to read article online.

Animation Nation; Dark Horse partners Image Ent.

Toon Zone has a couple of interesting links up today, including news on {{link http://forums.toonzone.net/showthread.php?t=114570 Singapore’s upcoming Animation Nation}} festival for independent animation, and the {{link http://forums.toonzone.net/showthread.php?t=114574 announcement}} by Dark Horse Entertainment and Image Entertainment that will see the two companies join up to produce and distribute theatrical features, direct-to-video titles, animated content and soundtracks […]

AWN on this year's Licensing…

{{link http://mag.awn.com/index.php?ltype=pageone&article_no=2135 Animation World Network}} has a report on the recent Licensing Show, with a look at the new TV properties, upcoming animated features and direct-to-DVD titles. Also on the site, reviews of three new animation-related {{link http://mag.awn.com/index.php?ltype=pageone&article_no=2137 books}}: Bill Plympton’s Sloppy Seconds, Gary Baseman’s Dumb Luck and Danny Fingeroth’s Superman on the Couch. Finally, […]

Review of World of Tomorrow today

In a positive, early look at Sky Captain and the World Tomorrow, Moriarty at Ain’t It Cool News writes, “Even unfinished, this is a very pure and uncomplicated piece of entertainment.” The critic goes on to say, “Is this a perfect piece of transcendent film art that will change you life? No, of course not, […]

Vivendi Announces Robots Game

‘Monkeyboy12’ in the AN Forum has posted a link to a story at video game site IGN about the game tie-in for the upcoming film. The game is being developed by Eurocom for the PlayStation 2, Xbox, and PC and is scheduled for release along with the film in March.

Fire And Ice coming to disc

Following Fox’s release of Ralph Bakshi’s Wizards recently, it seems the director’s other fantasy epic, Fire And Ice, is also up for a DVD revival: independent company Blue Underground are listing the 1983 animated feature on their {{link http://www.blue-underground.com/future_releases.php Future Releases}} webpage. No details on specs, though BU are well aware of the collectors’ nature […]

AFI names best movie songs

The American Film Institute (AFI) announced their list of the {{link http://www.afi.com/tvevents/100years/songs.aspx top 100 movie songs of all time}}. The list includes “classics of every kind – from timeless favorites of yesteryear to contemporary tunes”, with the number one song selected being “Over The Rainbow”, from The Wizard Of Oz. Other placings of interest to […]

Curious first look

Ropes of Silicon has the first picture of the well-known monkey and the Man in the Yellow Hat from Universal’s upcoming Curious George, climbing to theaters on September 30, 2005.

Pinocchio 3000 Trailer

A new trailer (in Spanish) for Filmax’s upcoming CG feature is now available online. This futuristic take on Collodi’s book is due to bow in Spain’s theaters this coming July. An English version of the movie featuring the voices of Whoopi Goldberg and Malcolm McDowell is also in the works.

Three new Incredible pictures!

Frédéric from the French Incredibles fansite, The Indestructibles, has added three new pictures to his website, under the “Infos” section! Also check out Shane Glines’ Cartoon Retro forum for more Incredible artwork and book covers!

ASIFA's 2D Expo; Looney bonuses promised

Jerry Beck, on his {{link http://www.cartoonbrew.com/ Cartoon Brew}} website, links to the list of animated cartoon shorts to be included in the upcoming Looney Tunes Golden Collection: Volume Two set, and says “wait’ll you see the list of bonus materials”! Also on the site, Jerry is promoting {{link http://www.asifa-hollywood.org./current.html#2D ASIFA-Hollywood’s 2D Expo}}, to be held […]