With the June 7 release of 2019 Cesar Award nominee Pachamama, followed by its first global original animated feature, Klaus coming this holiday season, Netflix is clearly establishing itself as a player in the world of film animation. Pachamama, an action-adventure with a strong ecological message, is from writer-director Juan Antin (Mercado the Martian) and […]
Archive for May, 2019
TEASER TRAILER: Pixar’s “Onward”
May 30th, 2019 
Jerry Beck Check out the teaser trailer for Disney and Pixar’s Onward, a new original feature film in theaters March 6th, 2020, that features the voices of Chris Pratt, Tom Holland, Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Octavia Spencer. Set in a suburban fantasy world, Onward introduces two teenage elf brothers who embark on an extraordinary quest to discover if […]
First Look Images: Dreamworks New Short “Marooned”
May 28th, 2019 Jerry Beck Dreamworks has released two “first-look” images from their next short Marooned. The film is directed by Andy Erekson and produced by Jeff Hermann. Music by Amie Doherty. In addition to its World Premiere screening at the Annecy International Animation Festival (June 10th through 15th), it was announced today that Marooned has been accepted to screen […]
Talking Voices on “The Secret Life of Pets 2”
May 28th, 2019 Jackson Murphy The Secret Life of Pets 2 is set to begin taking a major bite out of the summer box office when it opens on June 7th. Recently, I sat down with several members of the star-studded cast to discuss how voice acting has become an important part of their careers. Kevin Hart has the movie […]
Annecy’s “Women In Animation World Summit” Announces 2019 Speakers
May 24th, 2019 Jerry Beck Landmark USC Annenberg’s Inclusion Initiative study results to be presented by Dr. Stacy L. Smith with French Actress/Producer Julie Gayet presenting a keynote presentation to wrap up the day May 24, 2019 – Los Angeles and Paris — Women in Animation (WIA) and Les Femmes s’Animent (LFA) are pleased to announce the program lineup and […]
GKids Aquires Makoto Shinkai’s “Weathering With You”
May 24th, 2019 Jerry Beck GKIDS, the acclaimed producer and distributor of animation for adult and family audiences, announced it has acquired North American distribution rights for the animated feature Weathering With You, the new film from director Makoto Shinkai and producer Genki Kawamura, whose previous film Your Name set box office records in Japan and around the world ($360 […]
Hulu’s “The Bravest Knight” Breaks New Ground
May 23rd, 2019 Jerry Beck Today, Hulu announced the premiere of brand-new Hulu Original animated kids series, The Bravest Knight. Based on wildly popular children’s book by Daniel Errico “The Bravest Knight Who Ever Lived,” the story chronicles a young pumpkin farmer’s adventure as he attempts to become the bravest knight who ever lived. Hulu has ordered 13 episodes of […]
TRAILER: Dreamworks “ABOMINABLE”
May 23rd, 2019 Jerry Beck DreamWorks Animation and Pearl Studio’s co-production Abominable takes audiences on an epic 2,000-mile adventure from the streets of Shanghai to the breathtaking Himalayan snowscapes. Abominable is written and directed by Jill Culton (Open Season, Monsters, Inc., Toy Story 2) and is produced by Suzanne Buirgy (Kung Fu Panda 2, Home). Peilin Chou of Pearl Studio […]
INTERVIEW: Director Chris Renaud on “The Secret Life of Pets 2”
May 22nd, 2019 Jackson Murphy Chris Renaud has been with Illumination Entertainment from the very beginning, serving as co-director (with Pierre Coffin) on the studio’s first film, 2010’s Despicable Me. He also directed 2016’s The Secret Life of Pets and is now back with the sequel, which features a superhero storyline that brought Renaud back to his roots. Jackson Murphy: […]
Posted in Illumination, Universal 
Tags: Illumination, The Secret Life Of Pets, Universal Pictures 
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Fathom Events to Release “Sound! Euphonium: The Movie” in July
May 20th, 2019 Jerry Beck Following its release in its native Japan, an all-new Sound! Euphonium story following the Kitauji High School concert band club, from the novels by Ayano Takeda, is coming to select U.S. movie theaters nationwide. From Kyoto Animation (“A Silent Voice,” “Liz and the Blue Bird,” and “Violet Evergarden”) comes the long-awaited sequel in the Sound! […]
Disney To Premiere Three New Experimental Shorts At Annecy
May 16th, 2019 Jerry Beck In what has become an annual tradition at Annecy International Animated Film Festival, Walt Disney Animation Studios (WDAS) returns with a Bonlieu Theater presentation showcasing the Studios’ latest projects, presented by the filmmakers themselves. On Friday, June 14, Head of Animation Becky Bresee and Head of Effects Animation Marlon West take to the stage to […]
INTERVIEW: Dreamworks “Harvey Girls Forever”
May 16th, 2019 Jackson Murphy The Harvey Girls are back for Season 2 of the popular DreamWorks Animation series, now streaming on Netflix. Executive Producer Brendan Hay and Supervising Producer Aliki Theofilopoulos discuss the bigger, bolder new season, starting with a title change. Jackson Murphy: The show was called Harvey Street Kids for Season 1. Now it’s called Harvey Girls […]
Happy 90th Birthday: It’s Margaret Kerry Day!
May 11th, 2019 Jerry Beck Today, May 11th, is the 90th birthday of Margaret Kerry, actress, dancer, entertainer who was cast by Marc Davis as the live-action model for Tinker Bell for Disney’s classic film Peter Pan (1953). Davis, one of Disney’s famed nine-old-men, also cast her as the Red-Headed Mermaid in the Mermaid Lagoon sequence. We here at Animation […]
REVIEW: “Detective Pikachu”
May 10th, 2019 Martin Goodman The Pokémon have been with us since 1996, long enough to have entertained a couple of generations of fans. The mythical beasties have a history in video games, anime, TV series, manga, and, importantly, feature films. None of them, however, have been quite like Detective Pikachu. The film is based on the Nintendo adventure game […]
Shout Studios and Drink TV Announce Animated “Hell Den”
May 8th, 2019 Jerry Beck DrinkTV, in conjunction with Shout! Studios and Dr. God, is announcing a new show airing exclusively on the streaming platform. Hell Den is an animated series that mixes original animation and re-dubbed cartoons in a deliciously warped and hilarious brew of social satire, musical parody, and good ol’ fashioned absurdist humor. Hell Den is a […]
