Check out the brand-new trailer for Lucasfilm’s Star Wars: The Bad Batch, an original animated series launching exclusively on Disney+. Star Wars: The Bad Batch makes its debut on Tuesday, May 4th, with a special 70-minute premiere, followed by new episodes every Friday starting on May 7th.
Archive for March, 2021
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Annie Awards Announces Presenters For April 16th Online Event
March 30th, 2021 
Jerry Beck ASIFA-Hollywood announced its slate of presenters today for the 48th Virtual Annie Awards to stream live courtesy of Variety on Friday, April 16 at 7 p.m. PST. Additional presenters to be announced. The virtual Annies link is here: http://annieawards.org/watch-it-live/. Presenters include actors Josh Gad, Matthew Rhys, Philippa Soo (Hamilton) and Eva Whittaker; Oscar winning composer, […]
24 Carrot Gold: The 50th Anniversary of Rankin Bass “Here Comes Peter Cottontail”
March 28th, 2021 Michael Lyons It’s only natural that the Rankin/Bass Studio produced Here Comes Peter Cottontail. After all, before the special airing in 1971, the Studio had made quite the name for itself, translating popular Christmas songs, such as Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, Frosty the Snowman, and Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town into equally popular TV specials. It […]
Women In Animation Launches 2021 Spring Mentorship Program
March 25th, 2021 Jerry Beck Women in Animation (WIA) is proud to announce the opening of its 2021 Spring Mentorship Program with a special focus on mentoring women of color through its proven series of Mentor Circles. With the organization’s ongoing commitment to reach 50/50 by 2025, the WIA Mentorship Program connects women and gender non-binary individuals at all levels […]
INTERVIEW: ‘The Runaway Bunny’ Director On Her Latest Sweet Special
March 25th, 2021 Jackson Murphy Amy Schatz is the eight-time Emmy-winning director of the new animated special The Runaway Bunny. This adaptation of the classic book, featuring new renditions of classic songs, is now streaming on HBO Max. Schatz discusses the casting, music and animation choices that went into making this, as well as the themes people of all ages […]
INTERVIEW: Whitney Ralls On Must-Sea “Baby Shark’s Big Show!”
March 23rd, 2021 Jackson Murphy Nickelodeon debuted Baby Shark’s Big Show! in December with a special holiday episode. Now the official series premiere of the fun family musical comedy series is this Friday March 26th at 12:30pm. Co-executive producer Whitney Ralls takes me behind the sea-nes. Jackson Murphy: I want to tell you a quick story: The first time I […]
MANGA REVIEW: “My Hero Academia: Team-Up Missions” Volume #1
March 23rd, 2021 Charles Solomon One of the big hits of the last decade, Kohei Horikoshi’s “My Hero Academia” (2014) has sold more than 30 million books worldwide. The TV series is in its fifth season, and the eagerly awaited third feature will debut this summer. Horikoshi set “Academia” in an alternate world where many children are born with “Quirks:” […]
“Looney Tunes” Showrunner Pete Browngardt Signs Exclusive Overall Deal with Warner Bros. Animation and Cartoon Network Studios
March 22nd, 2021 Jerry Beck Emmy-nominated producer Pete Browngardt has signed an exclusive, multiyear cross-studio overall deal with Warner Bros. Animation (WBA) and Cartoon Network Studios (CNS). Under this pioneering overall deal, Browngardt will develop and produce original animated programming at both WBA and CNS, allowing maximum creative flexibility to develop original material and access to the extensive character and […]
INTERVIEW: Robert Kirkman On Super New Hero Series “Invincible”
March 22nd, 2021 Jackson Murphy The Walking Dead creator Robert Kirkman is also well-known for his Invincible comic book series, an adult, grounded look at the superhero world. It’s now a new Amazon Prime Video series with a truly star-studded voice cast. The first three episodes of Invincible premiere this Friday March 26th, and Kirkman is humbled by this opportunity […]
“Egg-stra” Special: The 45th Anniversary of Rankin Bass “The First Easter Rabbit”
March 19th, 2021 Michael Lyons The First Easter Rabbit, the Rankin Bass’ T.V. Special from 1976, plays almost like a “greatest hits” from the Studio synonymous with Holiday specials. It does what the Studio is known for: providing an “origin story” for an iconic holiday figure (in this case, the Easter Rabbit). Additionally, there are other Rankin/Bass “hallmarks,” such as […]
Academy Award Nominations 2021
March 15th, 2021 Jerry Beck The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences today announced that nominations for its 93rd Annual Academy Awards. The 5 films are listed below in alphabetical order by title, with their producers and directors: Best Animated Feature nominees are: Onward (Pixar) D: Dan Scanlon Over The Moon (Netflix) D: Glen Keane Soul (Pixar) D: Pete […]
INTERVIEW: Matthew Beans On Season 2 Of Hit “TrollsTopia”
March 15th, 2021 Jackson Murphy Two-and-a-half years after I spoke with Matthew Beans about DreamWorks series Trolls: The Beat Goes On!, he’s now the executive producer of sequel series TrollsTopia. The musical comedy adventures feature characters introduced in CG film Trolls World Tour. Season 2 of TrollsTopia debuts this Thursday March 18th on Hulu and Peacock, and Beans can’t stop […]
A St. Patrick’s Pig-Out: “The Wearing of the Grin”
March 12th, 2021 Michael Lyons Anyone who thought of leprechauns as cute little creatures that bring good luck has never seen the 1951 Warner Brothers Short, The Wearing of the Grin. As it does feature leprechauns, many may consider it the perfect fare to watch as we head into St. Patrick’s Day…but it also has a darkly comedic tone that […]
INTERVIEW: “Onward” Duo On A Stunning Year And Oscar Chances
March 9th, 2021 Jackson Murphy Pixar’s Onward, from director Dan Scanlon and producer Kori Rae, was released in theaters just over a year ago, on March 6th, 2020. It’s been quite a year for the comedy adventure, from a brief theatrical run and quick transition to Disney+ to awards season nominations from the Golden Globes, Annie, Critics Choice and Grammy […]
For the Love of Lola
The latest Battle of the Century on social media in a never-ending series of them is animation related. Of course, competing social media factions will raise hell over any issue that can be seen under a microscope or picked up by tweezers, and such scraps can go on for days until the next cause celebre […]