Yesterday was another Hat Building day for me; wandering around I saw short snippets of Tangled playing on various computer screens ...
The art direction continues to knock me out. And I saw some new cuts from the end climax of the picture that I found stunning.
Except for a few odds and ends, the pictures is pretty close to done. A lot of the lighting and finaling crew are rolling off into unemployment. There were a lot of empty desks in the offices lining the halls. As one of the survivors related about his departed roommate:
"He went through the Kubler Ross thing, mad about it, gradually accepting it. He'd been here a bunch of years, so it was hard. But what do you do?"
Probably cyle through the Kubler Ross thing, and move on with your life.
Meanwhile, animation is slated to wrap on Winnie the Pooh on or about October 4th. Management told the animation crew that there was some extra money for animation on the end credits, so character animation in and around the end-credits is being done.
The time-frame for Pooh's animation was expanded a bit, from September to early October, so I'm speculating that the original budget (reputed to be $35 million) was also expanded. (By how much, I donno. Production budgets often have fictional elements in them, so it's difficult for a civilian to say.)
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well let's hope Tangled and Pooh are a success. I'm rooting for WDAS to get back in the game.
So I expect we'll have a new project confirmed in a couple of weeks.
I don't expect to hear any confirmed projects until after Poohs release.
I hope to be proved wrong.
with pooh finishing after the cg project what will any of the survivors of 2D be doing while inside the hat?
Working on Ron & John's new film I guess.
No...that's going to be all CG.
I suposse Chris Williams' KING OF THE ELVES or the (very different Disneyish) Musker & Clemets project... or the male classic tale from Chris Buck project.
And then of the end of Tangled prodution, the green-light of REBOOT RALPH.
But I insist that if TANGLED is a great success, SNOW QUEEN will BACK in production, sooner or later, but in CGI, sure, by Dean Wellins??.
Ron and John's next is hand drawn, not CG. Just to clear that up.
For pete's sake, please people let Snow Queen go. Just let it go.
Can anonymous speculators please not post what their guesses are? Or at least clarify that you aren't a Disney employee and you aren't leaking stuff. Thanks.
Employees, if you don't know what's going on about upcoming unannounced projects, ask those questions internally. We've got plenty of internal avenues to talk about upcoming stuff.
Right as you may be, it's socially awkward to act as the internet police, Bruce. If I were an employee at Disney, I'd think you were being pretty obnoxious and condescending.
But then again, maybe you're the producer on the film, and it's your place to say something like this.
But from what I can tell, no one gave away any secrets on this comment thread that hasnt been public knowledge for some time.
ron and john's project is definitely cg
I'm not the internet police. I'm a guy asking for a courtesy and using the word please. I'm not setting any rules. It's not my blog, nor am I producing any movies.
I am no more acting as the "internet police" by posting what I did, than you are acting as the courtesy police by telling me I'm being condescending.
The reason I posted it by name was that it felt strange to be complaining about anonymous posters while being anonymous.
What are we arguing about anyway? Revealing "secrets" about mouse house movie projects? I'm afraid there aren't any to speak of.
However, we could sure use some "secret" projects inside the big empty warehouse called, the hat building.
Disney directors Ron Clements aond John Musker are developing a hand-drawn project, not a cg project.
The feature is in early development, and the company hasn't announced anything on it.
Hope that clears up misunderstandings.
With all due respect Floyd, it gets awfully tiring hearing you dog disney all the time. And it's even more confusing hearing you say there isn't anything in development. You know that isn't true (don't you?).
yes, didn't Steve just post about this -
http://animationguildblog.blogspot.com/2010/09/alameda-and-riverside-cartoon-studios.html
With all due respect, Anonymous, I'll continue to dog Disney because I'm not an employee -- I'm a shareholder.
Disney is not some little start up with limited resources. They're a mega-corporation that's been dragging its butt for far too long.
Beating up on Disney? Get use to it.
So Floyd, do you blame Iger or Lasseter for this foot dragging???
You missed my point.
What exactly are you complaining about? There's a blockbuster movie on the horizon (Tangled), lots of stuff getting produced (shorts that cant be mentioned by name on this site), a hand-drawn feature wrapping up (Pooh), a hand drawn feature in the works (Ron and Johns), and 3 other features in development.
So I ask again, what are you complaining about? Honestly? They layoffs? You make it sound like there's NO people are left at WDAS, and that is blatantly not true.
Or were you just taking pot shots for fun? If thats the case, let's all point and laugh at your beloved Pixar's mis-management for not having Cars 2 ready for production and having their employees sit around for months with nothing to do and almost nothing but sequels on the horizon.
A cheap shot is a cheap shot, and Im just calling you out on it.
Oh, please! "Rapunzel's" been around so long I've had grandchildren grow up during that film's development and production.
But honestly, do you really think the unit is well managed? There should have been tons of stuff in development these past few years. Had there been, they'd be ready to go now. Clearly, Disney is resting on it's laurels, and that's not good. It's even worse for the employees, who are now regarded as dispensable assets.
Beloved Pixar? What's all that about? Pixar is NOT a competitor. Disney owns Pixar!
Mismanagement, whether Disney or Pixar isn't good. In any case, sounds like you love it there. Best of luck in your career.
Sure, things arent perfectly managed at Disney but neither are they at other places (which is the sole reason I mentioned Pixar's shortcomings; even the best arent perfect).
But I'd like to point out that Disney is poised to be in the best position it has been in in years, and despite a mountain of odds against it, is finally making good films again. Say what you want about Rapunzel, but after several regime changes, it got done, and boasts the best looking CG humans ever. With any luck, the Box Office receipts will further solidify Disney's resurgence.
So for me it's no longer stylish to dog Disney. The tides are changing, and theres nothing wrong with recognizing something good when you see it.
I already listed other reasons to be in Disney's corner, and besides some personal vendetta, Im not sure why anyone (much less a "Disney Legend") wouldnt want to be rooting for the folks at Disney Animation right now. Feels like a betrayal.
Maybe thats why Im sensitive.
Dude, no one's more in Disney's corner than myself. Hell, I worked with the old man, and only want the best for this company.
But, I'll tell you this. He sure as hell wouldn't be pleased with some of the stuff going on in his company today.
And, please get off this Disney as the "Underdog" thing. They're a monster company that can do anything they damn well please. If they want to do great things there's nothing stopping them.
They don't need cheer leaders - they already have power. They've got incredible resources. All they need to do is use them.
I think you're barking up the wrong tree here Floyd. No one of executive importance reads this blog, and thats who you have your beef with. So telling artists they work in an empty warehouse and have no projects to work on just comes off as a smarmy, off-the-cuff insult (besides being incorrect).
And dont kid yourself, WDAS IS the underdog. Disney corporate (you know, Bob and Rich) barely know WDAS exists. I wish I were joking. There's an extremely tight leash on WDAS expenses, and Tangled was their last try before the film woulda been canned. And public opinion of Disney is "close the doors and let Pixar make the movies." They havent had a hit in years. Everyone expects Disney to fail. Thats not an underdog?
Anyway. Im rooting for Tangled and Pooh, and for Disney, and I think you should too. But whatever.
Disney is being mismanaged~ and ironically its from the beloved man who thought he could save it~…john lassetar
John has failed one of the most important goals he set out to do with disney... a director driven studio..artist driven enviornment..
John simply wont let any of the directors make any decisions..and most of them if they don't follow his "notes", are simply demoted from their position.. this is fairly evident in most of the leadership that hasn't been handpicked by him..
Ironically why is pixar putting disney in a box that they themselves rebelled against in the beginning?
Why does the child of a wife beating father often go on and beat his wife as well?
It's human nature and takes a mature and ethical person to break the cycle.
I dunno, but for me, Im not listening to someone who cant even spell the man's name correctly.
Change takes time, and believe me, Disney is changing for the better.
Anonymous, you said change takes time. However, that change must begin at the top.
No one is beating up on Disney. If anything, Disney is beating up on itself. Ignoring the legacy. Ignoring the tradition. Roy Edward Disney is gone, and simply putting his name on the building changes nothing.
Of course Disney can change. Of course they can do better. But, do you honestly believe they want to? Their token efforts are not impressive, and Walt wouldn't find them impressive either.
The truth is the most important thing, not the name of your false "god". Everybody is going to be happy if Tangled results to be a success. But this, doesn’t mean the guy didn’t make huge mistakes. All his words are just marketing.
Of course Disney can change. Of course they can do better. But, do you honestly believe they want to? Their token efforts are not impressive, and Walt wouldn't find them impressive either.
I guess I dont know what you're talking about specifically. I do think Disney is heading in the right direction, after years of heading down the wrong path. The last 2-3 years has shown the most promise.
I think Tangled, despite the name change, is the best thing to come out of Disney in a decade, maybe more. Personally, I think its better than any Disney film since The Lion King. Thats got to be a good thing, right?
I want "Tangled" to do well, and I'm sure many feel the same way. However, Walt's creative and innovative enterprise has sadly morphed into a huge marketing and distribution company with it's eye on nothing but the latest stock tally.
You can go for innovation and creativity -- or simply chase a buck. Every company makes that choice. A few can do both and do it well. Apple for example. However, Steve Jobs, much like Walt Disney - does not compromise or follow trends.
We're back to leadership, aren't we?
.. why wont john let disney be a director driven studio? Things would change for the better if john and ed stood behind the artists.. instead of trying to put them in a box
Its just ironic that the same creators of toy story.. who would preach about how films should be director driven.. and hated sequels that didn't warrant sequels.. are the same people who wont let disney be director driven.. and are promoting the tinkerbell movies
Pixar isn't director driven either, don't kid yourself
Yes, it is. Perhaps if you actually worked with him instead of spreading fanboi rumors then you'd know that. Working at Disney is hugely frustrating right now, but it's also far more creative than before John and Ed arrived. The hits haven't materialized the way we had hoped, but the collaborative atmosphere is miles ahead of what it was. Once we finally have a hit the moral will improve, but while we struggle everyone wants or seems to be piling on. As the saying goes: "Success has many fathers, failure is an orphan."
Lighten up people, this is hard enough work without the anonymous talkbackers whining or spewing venom.
@ Animated Response
They are not rumors.. they are true! Almost every director who hasn't been handpicked by john have been demoted or let go.. that is a fact! Its hard to believe if you actually worked with him that you would be that blind..
Has it really been more creative since they came? Being creative is having the freedom to do so.. instead of tailoring everything to the tastes of john.. who believe me is not always right!
Personally, I think floyd would agree that marc davis would have flipped out watching john promote the tinkerbell movies
Once we finally have a hit the moral will improve
This attitude is a fundamental part of the problem. If only hits generate good morale, then the division is doomed.
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