Thursday, March 18, 2010

The People's Links

One more linkfest, with Dear Leader showing the way (DL , by the by, is not the kid in the coonskin cap ...)

... [B]eneath Kim Jong-il’s sinister regime of Mafiosos, the Dear Leader has a heartier side: he sells comic books and animation to raise government funds—and to brainwash the masses.

Every year, a state-owned publishing house releases several cartoons (called geurim-chaek in North Korea), many of which are smuggled across the Chinese border and, sometimes, mysteriously end up in university libraries in the United States ...

‘These books are mostly geared toward children, unlike South Korean comic books [manhwa], which are often aimed at adults,’ says Park Jae-dong, one of South Korea’s most famous cartoonists who once drew for the Hankoryeh, a left-leaning newspaper in Seoul.

In almost every cartoon, those who stay faithful to Juche have happy endings; the others aren’t so lucky. The villains fit outlandish stereotypes. Americans are usually depicted with big noses, German Nazis as wearing swastikas and Japanese with glasses and buck teeth ...

Stereotypes?! Who could stoop to such things? What depraved animals! ...

For Mr. Burton, it's back to his roots.

... [D]irector Tim Burton has found a new 3D project. He will direct a stop-motion animated film based on Charles Addams' original ghoulish cartoon drawings of The Addams Family. Illumination Entertainment, the Universal-based family film unit headed by Chris Meledandri, has acquired the underlying rights of the Addams drawings, once a staple of The New Yorker magazine.

(This is a feature I want to see.)

There's a bit of casting news on Sony's Smurf hybrid feature.

... Hank Azaria — best known for ... numerous characters he voices on The Simpsons ... will lend his voice to the character of Gargamel, the evil sorcerer and arch-nemesis of the Smurfs.... Furthermore, pop star Katy Perry will voice Smurfette, while George Lopez and Alan Cumming will play two of the other little blue guys. ...

DreamWorks is leaving nothing to chance for its new dragon epic.

... Wal-Mart will be the exclusive U.S. retailer of nearly all licensed Dragon products, excluding the later DVD release, among other items. The two sides didn't disclose an estimate of the financial value of their arrangement, which they described as broader in scope than past efforts. Wal-Mart will carry more than 100 licensed "Dragon" products, more than twice as many as it has ever sold at the launch of a DreamWorks picture at the time of its theatre debut. ...

Variety takes note of the shutdown of different cartoon studios.

In the wake of Friday's closing of ImageMovers Digital, the animation business has been hit by a double-whammy of bad news.

Monday night Toronto-based animation/vfx studio C.O.R.E. Digital Pictures closed its doors, effective immediately, then Tuesday animation studio Cookie Jar Entertainment, which has a three-hour Saturday morning animation block on CBS, laid off 35 staffers, mostly in its animation department in Toronto.

The closings in California and Toronto expose a paradox: While California's animation and visual effects studios lament the lack of tax incentives to keep their work from fleeing the Golden State for Canada, there's buzz north of the border that Canada's tax incentives aren't entirely working for companies there, either.

C.O.R.E. gathered its staffers Monday evening and told them the company was closing immediately, and there is some doubt about if and when staffers will be paid their last two weeks' salary. ...

Cookie Jar gobbled up DIC Entertainment a year and a half ago.

Last and saddest of all: Davy Crockett passes away; boomers mourn.

Fess Parker, ... who launched a craze for coonskin caps as television's Davy Crockett, died Thursday of natural causes. He was 85.

Family spokeswoman Sao Anash said Parker, who was also TV's Daniel Boone and later a major California winemaker and developer, died at his Santa Ynez Valley home. His death came on the 84th birthday of his wife of 50 years, Marcella ...

(The L.A. Times provides a lengthy obituary here.)

Have a productive Friday.

36 comments:

Anonymous said...

Okay now I'm so confused it was announced earlier that Pixar just renamed their upcoming film The Bear and the Bow to the new title Brave.

Clarification?

Anonymous said...

Yes, it was retitled. Is that enough clarification? Lasseter retitles everything nowadays.

Didya guys see that Megamind teaser? What a piece of shit, eh? EH? Embarrassing.

Sotiris said...

1) Hank Azaria will be PLAYING Gargamel for the Smurfs film, not just providing a voice. He’ll be live action

http://animatedviews.com/2010/neil-patrick-harris-gargamel-wont-be-animated-in-smurfs-movie/

2) I saw the teaser for Megamind, didn't like it. No one did. The character animation looked too mo-cap as well.

3)Does anyone know if the Princess and the Frog DVD/Blu-ray sold well?

4)Any news regarding WDAS?

Anonymous said...

Does anyone know if the Princess and the Frog DVD/Blu-ray sold well?

I heard it's doing very well, but there is no word on how much has been sold just yet.

Any news regarding WDAS?

Well all we know for now is they're finishing the production for Tangled and working on the new Winnie the Pooh sequel. Oh and John Musker and Ron Clememts are working on a secret project that hasn't been put into production yet.

Aurora Dawson said...

Oh and John Musker and Ron Clememts are working on a secret project that hasn't been put into production yet.

Is the film they working on Ramayana?

Anonymous said...

Is the film they working on Ramayana?

Possibly, we have no clue as of now. But seriously that would be awesome if they were though.

Anonymous said...

Lasseter retitles everything nowadays.

I wouldn't say it's all Lasseter. He was just, oh how do I say this without it sounding cliched... He was just following orders.

Remember, he is only a creative director along with Catmull, but they can get overturned by the CEO and Executives. Hence, may be the reason why titles were changed and films were shelved.

Anonymous said...

The way JL tells it, he has a free reign to do what he thinks is best. That was part of his deal to agree to the merger. Anyone who thinks JL and Catmull are puppets of the Disney execs is a fool.

Anonymous said...

I can tell you unequivocally that the decisions made at WDAS are made final by Lasseter.

Tangled, Bolt, Robinsons, Brave: all retitled under his orders.

Anonymous said...

Anyone who thinks JL and Catmull are puppets of the Disney execs is a fool....

...or they actually work at FA. In story.

Anonymous said...

Anyone who thinks JL and Catmull are puppets of the Disney execs is a fool.

I wouldn't be all surprised if Lasseter and Catmull are just following orders. I mean it's very possible that Disney execs have some say so on what's being made.

JL is cool and all but all this rename Rapunzel and The Bear and the Bow (which is supposedly called Brave around the studio) just doesn't fit. I mean was he really persuaded by the Disney marketing team to change the name just to appeal to more boys?

Following orders sounds more plausible right now.

Anonymous said...

I can tell you unequivocally that the decisions made at WDAS are made final by Lasseter.

This is true, Lasseter has to make the final decision on just about everything.

Following orders sounds more plausible right now.

Well it may seem plausible right now, but doesn't mean Lasseter has contributed to this nonsense.

Is the film they working on Ramayana?

Possibly, we have no clue as of now. But seriously that would be awesome if they were though.


Ramayana? What film is that? And is it supposed to be traditionally animated or CGI?

Anonymous said...

I saw the teaser for Megamind, didn't like it. No one did.

Apparently, that "artistic revolution" that Dragons was going to cause at DW is on hold for at least one or two more movies... ;)
(And according to one post on another board, "I spot the One Dreamworks Facial Expression at the 20-second mark, and the 70's Cliche' Song at the 35.")

but all this rename Rapunzel and The Bear and the Bow (which is supposedly called Brave around the studio) just doesn't fit. I mean was he really persuaded by the Disney marketing team to change the name just to appeal to more boys?

Think it was just that the title was too vague:
The changes were being talked about long before Princess and Frogs, and they may have thought "The Character & the Noun" was too repetitious twice in a row.
Also, didn't project as much of a fantasy-adventure vibe with an A-B plot--Who was the story about? Was the bear an archer? (Although "Brave" still sounds a bit too Pocahontas.)

This is probably the only case where the change to a non-descriptive all-encompassing adjective tense actually DID help the movie's marketing/identification.

Anonymous said...

I honestly don't mind The Bear and the Bow being changed to Brave. People are reacting negatively towards it are probably mad cause the whole suddeness of the title changes. I think we all find it a little bit eerie that they occurred around the same time.

Ramayana? What film is that? And is it supposed to be traditionally animated or CGI?

Ramayana is a Hindu epic that was once being considered to become an animated film for Disney (in a similar vein to The Snow Queen). There are rumors that this is the film that John and Ron are working on at WDAS. And it's traditional.

Anonymous said...

Pixar just renamed their upcoming film The Bear and the Bow to the new title Brave.

Oh I can't wait to hear what Floyd has to say about this. Do i hear Rapunzel: Salvation II: The Bear Strikes Back?

Floyd Norman said...

Forget film titles. Maybe the Walt Disney Company needs a name change.

Tim said...

Rest in peace, Mr. Parker.
I'm wearing my coonskin cap at half mast today.

Anonymous said...

This is probably the only case where the change to a non-descriptive all-encompassing adjective tense actually DID help the movie's marketing/identification.

(Although in Pixar's case, just more of an "Up"-grade.)

Anonymous said...

Rest in peace, Mr. Parker.

Thank you Tim for staying on topic. Though the above conversation is interesting.

Ramayana is a Hindu epic that was once being considered to become an animated film for Disney (in a similar vein to The Snow Queen). There are rumors that this is the film that John and Ron are working on at WDAS. And it's traditional.

This is very interesting project. But I think it will be highly unlikely if it's made. Right now WDAS is falling to pieces with the whole ANIMATION APOCALYPSE going on around the studio. Lay-offs, shutdowns, name changes, films being shelved, animators scared out of their wit on who will be fired next. It's like we're on a crazy game of survival.

I can tell you unequivocally that the decisions made at WDAS are made final by Lasseter.

True but that doesn't mean John can be controlled. His paycheck gets signed by guess-who, Disney. So this whole talk about puppets wouldn't be further from the truth. All this craziness makes me wonder if John or Ed became the Disney CEO. Would it be better or worse?

Anonymous said...

Jeez, WDAS is not that bad. From my perspective, Tangled looks really, really good and morale is pretty decent.

You cant listen to all these anonymous posters. Its almost always employees or ex employees with a grudge; in other words, biased.

Im really happy at Disney and have been for a long time

Anonymous said...

Jeez, WDAS is not that bad. From my perspective, Tangled looks really, really good and morale is pretty decent.

Yeah I know, just wanted to play up the drama cause that's all these people here respond to, needless drama. And Tangled does look good and I can't wait for the official teaser to be released. My one complaint (that's also everyone's complaint) it's name, I will always know it as RAPUNZEL not Tangled.

Its almost always employees or ex employees with a grudge; in other words, biased.

Agreed, most people on these comment boards complain, but isn't that why they're there for people to express their opinions. Besides those anonymous posters don't sound like they're holding a grudge, it sounds like they're having a "spirited" debate.

Anonymous said...

So John Lasseter has said that he wants to bring Disney back to its former glory. I mean he tried to make The Princess and the Frog amazing, but fell short. He wants to make The Snow Queen. I think Lasseter's main problem is that he doesn't know how to quite work with the musical genre.

Also I heard that Lasseter has worked with Trousdale and Wise in the past, interesting. Wonder if he kept in contact with them.

Anonymous said...

Snow Queen is not being made, period, and that is Lasseter's decision.

large file transfer said...

All we know for now is they're finishing the production for Tangled and working on the new Winnie the Pooh sequel. Oh and John Musker and Ron Clememts are working on a secret project that hasn't been put into production yeah.

baby gifts said...

The changes were being talked about long before Princess and Frogs, and they may have thought "The Character & the Noun" was too repetitious twice in a row. Also, didn't project as much of a fantasy-adventure vibe with an A-B plot--Who was the story about? Was the bear an archer?

T. Rama said...

This is very interesting project. But I think it will be highly unlikely if it's made. Right now WDAS is falling to pieces with the whole ANIMATION APOCALYPSE going on around the studio. Lay-offs, shutdowns, name changes, films being shelved, animators scared out of their wit on who will be fired next. It's like we're on a crazy game of survival.

S. Trad said...

All we know for now is they're finishing the production for Tangled and working on the new Winnie the Pooh sequel. Oh and John Musker and Ron Clememts are working on a secret project that hasn't been put into production yeah.

D. Rad said...

The changes were being talked about long before Princess and Frogs, and they may have thought "The Character & the Noun" was too repetitious twice in a row.

chicago veneers said...

I honestly don't mind The Bear and the Bow being changed to Brave. People are reacting negatively towards it are probably mad cause the whole suddeness of the title changes. I think we all find it a little bit eerie that they occurred around the same time.

seduce flirt  said...

The changes were being talked about long before Princess and Frogs, and they may have thought "The Character & the Noun" was too repetitious twice in a row. Also, didn't project as much of a fantasy-adventure vibe with an A-B plot--Who was the story about? Was the bear an archer?

high temperature wire said...

Also I heard that Lasseter has worked with Trousdale and Wise in the past, interesting. Wonder if he kept in contact with them.

chicago personal injury attorneys said...

I think the changes that were made were outstanding. I as a viewer would definitely appreciate the efforts.

video game consoles said...

The way JL tells it, he has a free reign to do what he thinks is best. That was part of his deal to agree to the merger. Anyone who thinks JL and Catmull are puppets of the Disney execs is a fool.

Get Your Ex Back said...

The change in the name of the Walt Disney was astonishing but at the end of the day the quality of the cartoon matters and not the name.

Six Pack Abs said...

Its very interesting project. But I think it will be highly unlikely if it's made.

B. Jack said...

I think it will be highly unlikely if it's made. Right now it is falling to pieces . Lay-offs, shutdowns, name changes, films being shelved, animators scared out of their wit on who will be fired next. It's like we're on a crazy game of survival.

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