Animated Feature MARS From The Whitest Kids U’ Know To Premier At Tribeca Film Festival 2024
This week, the Tribeca Film Festival revealed the titles selected for its 2024 festival lineup, which begins June 5th. MARS, an animated feature from The Whitest Kids U’ Know, has been officially designated as a part of the festival’s Midnight section. The animated film will have its world debut at the Tribeca Film Festival on […]
Oscar-Nominated Film Robot Dreams Coming To Theaters On May 31st- From Director Pablo Berger
From Spanish director Pablo Berger, Oscar-nominated animated feature Robot Dreams has secured a theatrical release in the U.S. Coming to New York City on May 31st, the film can be seen at the Film Forum and AMC Lincoln Square. Called “exquisite… one of the best animations in recent years” by The Observer and regarded as […]
TRAILER: Pixar’s “Inside Out 2”
A new trailer and poster for Disney and Pixar’s upcoming theatrical release, Inside Out 2, dropped today. The new film welcomes new Emotions to now-teenager Riley’s mind. Joining Joy (voice of Amy Poehler), Anger (voice of Lewis Black), Sadness (voice of Phyllis Smith), Fear (voice of Tony Hale) and Disgust (voice of Liza Lapira) is […]
INTERVIEW: The 411 On “Kung Fu Panda 4”
DreamWorks’ Kung Fu Panda 4 is directed by Mike Mitchell, co-directed by Stephanie Ma Stine and produced by Rebecca Huntley. I first spoke with them back in December at the launch of the film’s first trailer. Now that I’ve seen the entire movie (which opens in theaters this Friday March 8th), here’s my new Animation […]
Annie Awards Go To “Spider-Man” and “Robot Dreams”
Sony Pictures Animation’s Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse won Best Feature honors at the 51st Annie Awards celebration Saturday night on the campus of UCLA. Spider-Man also took home an Annie for Best FX- Feature (Pav Grochola, Filippo Maccari, Naoki Kato, Nicola Finizio, Edmond Boulet-Gilly), Best Character Design – Feature (Jesus Alonso Iglesias) Best Direction – […]
Midwell – 5
November 17th, 2022 
David Derks 
30 International Filmmakers Have Been Selected For “Sony Future Filmmaker” Awards 2024
April 24th, 2024 Lauren Ashton This week, Creo was excited to announce a shortlist of 30 international filmmakers for the upcoming “Sony Future Filmmaker” Awards. The selected artists will be awarded by being invited to workshops and events on the Sony lot in Los Angeles, providing a unique opportunity to experience behind the scenes. The awards ceremony will take place on May 30th, 2024, and winners across six categories will be announced.
Established by Creo and sponsored by Sony, the sophomore edition of the major annual awards program for short films provides a gateway for the development of exceptional cinematic talent and sets out to elevate voices with an original perspective on storytelling.
Netflix Is Back At The Annecy Festival Featuring Previews Of Aardman’s “Wallace & Gromit,” Zack Snyder’s “Twilight of the Gods,” Arcane’s Making-Of, and Skydance Animation’s “Spellbound”
April 22nd, 2024 Lauren Ashton This year, Netflix will return to the Annecy Festival with a full itinerary following their recent wins and nominations. Such accolades include Oscar nominations for Nimona, a BAFTA nomination for Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget, and several wins for Blue Eye Samurai at the Annie’s this past February. In only five years after launching its first animated feature, the streaming platform achieved critical acclaim when it won an Academy Award for Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio. Netflix is also responsible for Adam Sandler’s largest animated film debut, Leo.
Annecy will feature an on-stage presentation this year called “Next on Netflix Animation: From Twilight of the Gods to Wallace & Gromit“. This presentation will include special previews of highly anticipated projects and highlights of renowned filmmakers.
INTERVIEW: Jeff Fowler On “Knuckles” And “Sonic 3”
April 22nd, 2024 Jackson Murphy Academy Award nominee Jeff Fowler (of the animated short “Gopher Broke”) directed the blockbuster first two installments in the “Sonic the Hedgehog” film franchise. He returns for “Sonic 3” (in theaters this December) and also serves as executive producer and director of the first episode of new spinoff series Knuckles. The six-episode event, with the return of Idris Elba as the voice of the title character, premieres this Friday April 26th on Paramount+. Fowler joins me for this fun Animation Scoop Q&A. (This interview was edited for length and clarity.)
Jackson Murphy: When I saw the second “Sonic” movie two years ago in theaters, it was an event for families. There were kids screaming and cheering at the end and the excitement for it all. This is a six-episode event. How would you describe “Knuckles” as an event highlight in your life and career?
Jeff Fowler: We have such an amazing time making these films and then when the opportunity came along to do sort of a spinoff and focus on Knuckles, who we all loved when we introduced him in “Sonic 2”, I think we all just got incredibly excited because there’s so many great characters in this world. We’ve barely even scratched the surface. As we move from film to film, we’re always expanding the cast and bringing in more of these fan favorite characters. And we always love teasing where we’re going at the end of the films. So to get to do a whole story around Knuckles… but also, honestly I think we all look at it like it’s a movie. It’s my same crew for the most part that does the films. I’m so proud of where we ended up — the look of it, the quality… it has everything that the movies have, and I’m so excited for everybody to see it.
Animated Feature MARS From The Whitest Kids U’ Know To Premier At Tribeca Film Festival 2024
April 20th, 2024 Lauren Ashton This week, the Tribeca Film Festival revealed the titles selected for its 2024 festival lineup, which begins June 5th. MARS, an animated feature from The Whitest Kids U’ Know, has been officially designated as a part of the festival’s Midnight section. The animated film will have its world debut at the Tribeca Film Festival on Thursday, June 6th, with more screenings to follow on June 8th and June 15th.
The first glimpse of MARS was released this week and is included below, showing a motley crew of dauntless voyagers as they journey to the planet that this feature is named after.
GKIDS Acquires Theatrical Rights To Ghost In The Shell 2: Innocence From Director Mamoru Oshii’s
April 19th, 2024 Lauren Ashton NEW YORK, NY (April 17, 2024), Oscar-winning producer and distributor, GKIDS, announced its acquisition of the North American theatrical distribution rights for Mamoru Oshii’s acclaimed masterpiece, GHOST IN THE SHELL 2: INNOCENCE. To celebrate the film’s 20th anniversary, GKIDS will release a restoration of the film in theaters throughout the nation in 4k this summer. Before the film is released nationwide, the new 4K restoration will premiere at the renowned Music Box Theatre in Chicago.
Oscar-Nominated Film Robot Dreams Coming To Theaters On May 31st- From Director Pablo Berger
April 19th, 2024 Lauren Ashton From Spanish director Pablo Berger, Oscar-nominated animated feature Robot Dreams has secured a theatrical release in the U.S. Coming to New York City on May 31st, the film can be seen at the Film Forum and AMC Lincoln Square.
Called “exquisite… one of the best animations in recent years” by The Observer and regarded as “one of the best films of the year” by The Film Stage, Robot Dreams is being released by indie distributor NEON. Writer and director Pablo Berger is a recognized Spanish director, known for the celebrated Spanish and French production of Blancanieves (2012).
INTERVIEW: “Inside Out 2” Director And Producer On Pixar Sequel
April 16th, 2024 Jackson Murphy Last month I visited Pixar Animation Studios to screen the first half-hour of the highly-anticipated Inside Out 2 and interview the film’s makers. Ahead of the sequel’s June 14th release date, I’ll have three Animation Scoop Q&A pieces. This first one is with director Kelsey Mann and producer Mark Nielsen. (The first question was asked during a press conference and the remaining questions were asked during a sit-down interview. The conversation was edited for length and clarity.)
Jackson Murphy: There’s a line Sadness says early on that’s something to the effect of, “I don’t want to mess it up. I don’t want to break it. I don’t want to burn it to the ground.” And as I heard that I thought, “How autobiographical is that when it comes to you taking on a sequel to a movie people LOVE?”
Kelsey Mann: Every movie that we do here at Pixar has a high bar. It’s nothing new. It’s been that way since I stepped through those gates on day one — feeling that pressure of needing to make something great. This feels familiar to me too because I worked on “Monsters University.” I’m following Pete Docter’s footsteps yet again, and there’s nobody’s feet I’d rather follow than that man. I feel nothing but excitement. Joy’s at my console. Of course you want to make sure that you’re doing right to everyone that loves the original film. I want to do Pete proud. I want to do everybody who loves the original proud. I’m more excited than I am scared.
Global Icons and Fleischer Studios Announce New Brand Collaborations for Animated Icon Betty Boop
April 10th, 2024 Jerry Beck The Queen of Cartoons is More Popular Than Ever with New Apparel, Accessories, Pet Products, and an Upcoming Broadway Musical
Leading brand-licensing agency Global Icons and Fleischer Studios, owner of a number of classic animated characters including Betty Boop, have entered into a wide range of new licensing collaborations for the beloved Queen of Cartoons, including upcoming launches for stylish new apparel, accessories, and pet products. In addition, dynamic new character art will be unveiled for licensees in May at the upcoming International Licensing Show in Las Vegas.
INTERVIEW: “Puffin Rock And The New Friends” And 25 Years Of Cartoon Saloon
April 10th, 2024 Jackson Murphy Cartoon Saloon, the animation house behind The Secret of Kells, The Breadwinner and Wolfwalkers, is unveiling its latest feature. Puffin Rock and the New Friends — a continuation of the popular TV series — is available to rent or purchase on Google TV, Amazon Prime Video and Apple TV beginning Tuesday April 16th. Director Jeremy Purcell and animation director Lorraine Lordan share how the movie took flight — and how it fits right in line with Cartoon Saloon’s mission — in this Animation Scoop Q&A. (This interview was edited for length and clarity.)
Jackson Murphy: Congratulations on the movie. I think it’s so sweet. I think families are gonna enjoy it. And this is a feature film adaptation / continuation of the popular Puffin Rock TV series. Jeremy, you were the assistant director on that. How did it feel jumping back into this world and these characters?
Jeremy Purcell: Great. Puffin Rock within the studio is such a loved production and people love working on it. I was assistant director on it and very happily jumped back into the movie. Lorraine was the animation director on season two. We had three or four or five people, I think, who had worked on the TV series who were very happy to kind of jump back into the movie.
INTERVIEW: “Chicken For Linda!” Directors On Annecy Winning Feature
April 9th, 2024 Jackson Murphy Chiara Malta and Sébastien Laudenbach are the directors of the new French animated dramedy Chicken for Linda! GKIDS opened the 2023 Annecy International Film Festival Cristal for Best Animated Feature winner in NYC last Friday. It hits Los Angeles this Friday April 12th and will be in other markets throughout North America later this month. The film is about a mother and daughter on a quest to make a meal that’s significant to them, chicken with peppers. Malta and Laudenbach share the ingredients for how they put Chicken for Linda! together in this Animation Scoop Q&A. (This interview was conducted over Zoom with a translator, and it was edited for length and clarity.)
Jackson Murphy: Chiara, this is a very unique and specific story. What part of the story did you come-up with first?
Chiara Malta: When you write a story, it’s nourished by a lot of bits from your life and also the lives of the people around you that are interesting. When I was a child, I was probably very unruly and stubborn, and I didn’t really like the unfairness of the question of injustice. It really bothered me. To make a movie where the adult does everything she can to make it up to their kid really gave me a lot of satisfaction. There’s a film by Luigi Comencini (“Misunderstood”) that was also an inspiration. We wanted to make a movie that gave satisfaction to children, especially by showing that adults are not always as adult as we think. And we wanted to make a movie about memory, which is always a mystery for me since childhood because memory functions by bits and pieces. We don’t know why certain memories get lost in darkness. I wanted to make a movie with Sebastien that talks about this thing that is so moving and serious while having fun — just as if it was a child making it.
Cartoon Network Launches Digital Experience For It’s Staircase
April 8th, 2024 Jerry Beck Welcome to the stairwell that tells the story of a studio…one step and sketch at a time. Cartoon Network Studios (CNS) today announced the launch of a dedicated website that will serve as the virtual home for its iconic Artist Stairwell space.
From 2000 to 2023, the CNS building in Downtown Burbank stood as a vibrant symbol of creativity and a nurturing ground for original animation and artists of diverse talents and backgrounds. It was not merely a workplace, but a canvas for imagination and innovation.
The stairwell at the previous Cartoon Network Studios
INTERVIEW: Time To Explore New “DORA” Series
April 8th, 2024 Jackson Murphy One of Nickelodeon’s most iconic characters is headlining a new series — this time in CG. “DORA” premieres this Friday April 12th on Paramount+. Executive Producer and showrunner Rich Magallanes explains what goes into making sure the returns of Dora, Boots and Swiper are satisfying for fans of the original Dora the Explorer show and a new generation of families. (This Animation Scoop Q&A was edited for length and clarity.)
Jackson Murphy: Congratulations on the series. I’ve watched a couple episodes and it brought me right back to when I was young. It’s going to be a big hit.
Rich Magallanes: Excellent. Goal achieved! We’re done.
INTERVIEW: Summer Arrives Early With “Woody Woodpecker Goes To Camp”
April 1st, 2024 Jackson Murphy The dynamic CG version of beloved cartoon character Woody Woodpecker returns in the new live-action / animated family comedy Woody Woodpecker Goes to Camp. It premieres Friday April 12th on Netflix. Here’s my Animation Scoop Q&A with… Guess Who?… the film’s Emmy nominated director, Jon Rosenbaum. (This interview was edited for length and clarity.)
Jackson Murphy: I love the Woody Woodpecker shirt you have on.
Jon Rosenbaum: When I got hired, this was the first thing that I bought and I said, “I’m going to put it on as we get closer to the final release.” So it’s been a long time coming. It was a long journey. So I’m glad I get to wear it.
Netflix “That Christmas” Announces Cast
March 20th, 2024 Jerry Beck Netflix has unveiled a stellar voice cast and brand new images from Locksmith Animation (Ron’s Gone Wrong) and director Simon Otto’s (How to Train Your Dragon trilogy) upcoming CG animated feature That Christmas. The film stars Brian Cox as Santa, Fiona Shaw (Ms. Trapper), Jodie Whittaker (Mrs. Williams), and Bill Nighy (Bill) as the residents of a charming seaside town where things turn upside down one Christmas. The film will debut on Netflix later this year.
INTERVIEW: Aaron Ehasz, Justin Richmond on “The Dragon Prince: Mystery of Aaravos”: The Right Choice for the Voice
March 20th, 2024 W.R. Miller An epic like The Dragon Prince requires a villain of epic proportions, one powerful enough, and intriguing enough, to engage the audience. This is certainly true of the Startouch Elf, Aaravos. Listen to his voice, and you’ll hear a mix of mystery and menace, arrogance and cleverness, sultry and beguiling, rhythm and yes, magic.
To find an actor capable of all those vocal qualities might be challenging. But in fact, the creators of The Dragon Prince already had Erik Todd Dellums in mind before they cast the series.
