Kubo and the Two Strings is shaping up to be one of the major contenders in the animation contest of 2016. An epic action-adventure set in a fantastical Japan from stop-motion animation studio LAIKA. The film is directed by Travis Knight and will be released via Focus Featuers on August 19th. Here’s the latest trailer:
Archive for April, 2016
Latest Trailer for Laika Stop-Mo Animation Feature “Kubo and The Two Strings”
April 29th, 2016 
Jerry Beck 
Posted in Independent 
Tags: Laika 
Comments Off on Latest Trailer for Laika Stop-Mo Animation Feature “Kubo and The Two Strings”
REVIEW: “Ratchet & Clank”
April 29th, 2016 Charles Solomon Ratchet & Clank, a new CG feature based on a long-running PlayStation game, hits the screen with a clunk. Even for viewers who’ve never played the game, it feels stale and derivative, with elements that recall Star Wars, The Incredibles, The Phantom Menace, Tiger & Bunny, George Pal’s Tulips Shall Grow, The Simpsons, and pretty […]
The Academy’s 25th Anniversary Screening of Disney’s “Beauty And The Beast”
April 28th, 2016 Jerry Beck Eight-time Oscar-winning composer Alan Menken and three-time Oscar nominee and Honorary Academy Award recipient Angela Lansbury will join voice actors Paige O’Hara, Richard White and Robby Benson, supervising animators Andreas Deja, Mark Henn and Glen Keane, key story artist Brenda Chapman, Oscar-nominated producer Don Hahn, and director Gary Trousdale onstage for a 25th anniversary celebration […]
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Must-See Chinese Animated Feature Trailer: “Big Fish & Begonia”
April 19th, 2016 Jerry Beck Coming out on July 8th in China, Big Fish and Begonia is an elaborate animated feature directed by Liang Xuan and Zhang Chun. According to this Chinese website, the film was 12 years in the making – and partially funded through crowd sourcing.
ANIME REVIEW: “Eden of the East: The Premium Edition”
April 10th, 2016 Charles Solomon American animated characters sailed unscathed through the financial meltdown of 2008 and its after effects: Po could afford all the dumplings he could eat, Hiro and his friends had the cutting-edge technology and supplies they needed, and Hiccup wasn’t underwater on his father’s hut. Their Japanese counterparts wrestled with problems of money and motivation in […]
INTERVIEW: Margie Cohn, Head of Dreamworks TV Animation on Leading the Studio to 23 Emmy Nominations
April 9th, 2016 Leslie Combemale As anyone in the animation industry, and indeed anyone who follows the world of film and animation knows, an Emmy Award nomination is always to be celebrated. Multiply that by 23, and you can imagine the party-like atmosphere happening at DreamWorks TV, after the news they were nominated for daytime Emmys in a wide variety […]
Posted in DreamWorks Tags: DreamWorks Comments Off on INTERVIEW: Margie Cohn, Head of Dreamworks TV Animation on Leading the Studio to 23 Emmy Nominations Funimation Puts Anime Feature “The Empire Of Corpses” In Limited Theatrical Release
April 9th, 2016 Jerry Beck Funimation’s anime pick-up The Empire Of The Corpses, is getting a limited U.S. theatrical run this month. Based on the Project Itoh zombie steampunk novel, the story has been adapted to anime by Wit Studio (Attack on Titan) with Ryoutarou Makihara directing. Funimation is placing the feature in select theaters on April 19th & 20th in select U.S. cities.
Posted in Anime Tags: Anime, Funimation Comments Off on Funimation Puts Anime Feature “The Empire Of Corpses” In Limited Theatrical Release FIRST LOOK IMAGE: Guillermo del Toro’s “Trollhunters”
April 7th, 2016 Jerry Beck Just released this morning, with the news of Guillermo del Toro’s Masterclass at Annecy, this sneak peek image of Guillermo del Toro’s Netflix original series Trollhunters from DreamWorks debuting later this year. According to the press release: DreamWorks Trollhunters will unleash a new, fantastical world wrapped around the residents of the fictional suburb of Arcadia who make a startling discovery […]
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An Open Letter From Mary Costa (The Voice of Disney’s “Sleeping Beauty”)
April 4th, 2016 Jerry Beck On behalf of Mary Costa – the legendary voice of Princess Aurora in Walt Disney’s Sleeping Beauty (1959) – I am posting this open-letter to her many fans and friends. Please join us in granting this very special birthday gift to Ms. Costa. We wish her our very best – and may she enjoy many more years of […]
What The Comcast-Universal Purchase of Dreamworks Could Do For Classic Animation
Congratulations, Universal. You’ve just acquired Dreamworks Animation and all the Intellectual Property it controls. This is a purchase that places you in a stronger position to compete against the Disney company, its movie and theme park business and its massive global merchandising operation. Competition is good – and I wish you the best of luck […]