Mickey Mouse is an cartoon character co-created in 1928 by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks.
A record 27 features have been submitted for consideration in the Animated Feature Film category for the 89th Academy Awards. The submitted features, listed in alphabetical order, are: “The Angry Birds Movie” “April and the Extraordinary World” “Bilal” “Finding Dory” “Ice Age: Collision Course” “Kingsglaive Final Fantasy XV” “Kubo and the Two Strings” “Kung Fu […]
The animated film Miss Hokusai has been one of a handful of features that has been garnering awards attention, and justly so. Gorgeously filmed, sophisticated, and meaningful, it’s a movie that should been seen and considered both the critics awards and arthouse audiences. We spoke to director Keiichi Hara about bringing famed and important feminist […]
ASIFA-Hollywood has donated $20k to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences to assist with the curation and documentation of a major collection of original production artwork, donated by Miramax, of work created for Richard Williams’ production of The Thief and the Cobbler. The collection consists of thousands of hand-painted cels, pencil animation and […]
Check these out! Disney Channels Worldwide has introduced a series of cool short-form programming, way below-the-radar, to inspire, inform and motivate kids on nutritious food choices and encourage physical activities. They are part of Disney’s company-wide Healthy Living Commitment, an initiative designed to help make healthy living simple and fun. Showcasing the work of notable […]
Although it didn’t draw much of an audience when it aired on Fox Kids in 2001, The Vision of Escaflowne (Eska-FLOW-nay, 1996) retains a loyal following, probably because this sprawling fantasy infuses sword-and-sorcery and mecha elements into the popular “magical girl” genre. Hitomi Kanzaki (Caitlin Glass) is a sensitive teen-ager who reads Tarot cards for […]
In Pixar’s Inside Out, Pete Docter and his crew reminded audiences of the human truth that even life’s happiest moments are inevitably tinged with sadness. The power and honesty of that message makes the theme of DreamWorks’ Trolls — that we’re all just chock full of happiness if we’ll just let it out–feel simple-minded. The […]
Disney XD’s upcoming animated series Big Hero 6, based on Walt Disney Animation Studios’ Academy Award-winning feature film inspired by the Marvel comics of the same name, will reunite much of the original cast for its 2017 debut. Reprising their roles are: Maya Rudolph as Aunt Cass; Jamie Chung as no-nonsense, speed genius, Go Go; […]
Animated documentaries – even partially animated ones – are in vogue these days. There have never been so many as in the last year. In the new feature doc The Wanted 18, directors Amer Shomali and Paul Cowan bring to life a remarkable story of nonviolent resistance during the First Intifada. Through a clever mix […]
My friend, entertainment writer, pop-culture historian and film music professor at USC, Jon Burlingame, has alerted me to the limited edition release of the CD soundtrack to the original series of Hanna Barbera’s Jonny Quest (1964). Jon penned the liner notes for the set. “This is the first official, authorized, JQ album,” Jon tells me. […]
The Shocking Number of This Year’s Animated Features That I’ve Seen
The answer may surprise you. None. The answer is none. Not a single film in Variety’s list of those currently eligible for the Oscar’s so much as made it within viewing distance of my eyeballs. This isn’t necessarily a comment on the quality of this year’s films. Certainly there are some very well-received among the […]