You already know that I love Avatar: The Last Airbender. So naturally, I’m very excited about the sequel, expected to debut on Nickelodeon in 2012. I admit that I was also a tad disappointed that the creative team behind the original show was following it up with a sequel rather than a new project. But seeing this trailer has put my fears of a new series that’s just a retread of the previous one to rest. Sure there’s plenty of what made the original fun. But the more modern, urban setting was a pleasant surprise for me and I imagine it will help to give Korra’s story a very different feel from Aang’s. And it’s an action show with a female lead, which we can always use more of.
Posts Tagged ‘hand-drawn animation’
Monday Movie – The Last Airbender: Legend of Korra Trailer
Monday, July 25th, 2011
Winnie the Pooh – Is This The End for Hand-Drawn Disney?
Wednesday, July 20th, 2011
(Writing new entries in the Beauty and the Beast series takes a while, so don’t be concerned if a new one doesn’t show up every week. Trust me, I am working on it.)
I have not seen Disney’s Winnie the Pooh yet, so I can’t comment on the quality of the film itself. What I can comment on is the film’s performance on its opening weekend. And unfortunately, it doesn’t look good. According to Box Office Mojo, the silly old bear’s newest adventure grossed just under $8 million in its U.S. debut, putting the film in sixth place right behind Disney and Pixar’s own Cars 2 in its fourth week of release.
Why I Love Animation: Beauty and the Beast – Part Two
Wednesday, July 13th, 2011This article is part of the series Why I Love Animation: Beauty and the Beast. To jump to any other article in the series, please use the following links.
Part One – Part Two – Part Three – Chip Interlude – Part Four – Part Five
Part One – Part Two – Part Three – Chip Interlude – Part Four – Part Five
Now that you know the history that lead up to the making of Beauty and the Beast (assuming that you’ve read Part One), let’s dive right into the movie. I’ll be sharing more behind the scenes information as we go.
Belle and Beast at the Oscars
Wednesday, July 6th, 2011Part two of my Beauty and the Beast article isn’t ready yet and my backup plan just fell through. So in the meantime, please enjoy this short video of Belle and the Beast (and one stowaway) presenting the award for Best Animated Short Film at the 64th Academy Awards. Who knew that Beast wore reading glasses?
I found this clip, which I hadn’t seen since its original broadcast, in an article from the Mouse House with Brent Nachman series at Fused Film.
Why I Love Animation: Beauty and the Beast – Part One
Wednesday, June 29th, 2011This article is part of the series Why I Love Animation: Beauty and the Beast. To jump to any other article in the series, please use the following links.
Part One – Part Two – Part Three – Chip Interlude – Part Four – Part Five
Part One – Part Two – Part Three – Chip Interlude – Part Four – Part Five
Though I usually hate picking a single favorite anything, I will tell you that Beauty and the Beast is my favorite movie.
This is not a surprise to anyone who knows me and even less of a surprise to anyone who knew me as a teenager. For many years, Beauty and the Beast was my greatest obsession. I saw the film over twenty times in theaters, labored over countless drawings of the characters, purchased all manner of books, toys, posters, t-shirts, and other memorabilia, clipped out newspaper and magazine articles about the film, and dragged my family to the Disney on Ice adaptation. I’m sure that my age had something to do with just how hard I fell for the film. I was thirteen when it came out, exactly the right age to love a movie as wholeheartedly as I ended up loving this one. The film’s message of looking past appearances to the character within was also particularly resonant to an awkward teenager with little confidence in her looks. And yet, when I go back and watch it today, I feel something more than nostalgia. What I’m enjoying is not just the comfortable familiarity of something I loved when I was younger, but the amazing achievement of a dream team of talented filmmakers at the top of their game. To me, this movie remains the Disney fairy tale’s high water mark, the most perfect example of the genre.
Monday Movie – We’re Back, Baby!
Monday, June 27th, 2011Yup, Futurama is back with an all new season that started last Thursday.
Oh, and I’ve got a new article ready to go up this Wednesday.
Friday Fun Link – The Uniblog’s 12 Days of Cartoonary
Friday, April 1st, 2011
Were my computer time not so limited, I’d be commenting like crazy on my friend Crystal’s 12 Days of Cartoonary on her site The Uniblog. Cartoons featured include the Chuck Jones classics Duck! Rabbit! Duck! (pictured above) and Feed the Kitty (which I analyzed here), the Disney short Donald Applecore, Tex Avery’s too hot for the kiddies Red Hot Riding Hood, and the Coo-Coo Cola cult episode of Chip ‘n Dale Rescue Rangers. More great cartoons are on the way, so check in often.
Monday Movie – Papa Moco Jumbie
Monday, March 28th, 2011Television for preschoolers has become a huge market in recent years and animation is a big chunk of the content created for little viewers. Whole channels are now dedicated to entertaining and educating preschool kids, including Nickelodeon’s Nick Jr. Since Nick Jr. doesn’t run commercials, the time between shows is filled with games and music videos like today’s Monday Movie, “Papa Moco Jumbie.”
A lot of animation for preschoolers features very simple visuals, but this charming short straddles the line between the simple and the impressive. The designs for the boy and his father aren’t overly detailed, but there is a lot of flourish to the animation itself, such as the animation of the boy struggling to climb up onto the box, the flapping of the characters’ loose fitting clothing, and the low angle shot of the father walking on stilts, enhancing the boy’s feeling of wonder and pride at his papa’s abilities. The extra care that went into the making of this short piece is what takes it out of the realm of the merely cute and makes it something memorable and special.
The vocals for the song are provided by Khamani Griffin, a young actor who has appeared in a number of live-action and voice acting roles. I haven’t been able to discover who animated the short, so please let me know if you have any information about it. In case you were wondering, a “moco jumbie” is a stilt dancer, often seen at Carnival celebrations.
2011 Animation Oscars Wrap-Up
Wednesday, March 2nd, 2011
Another Oscar Night has come and gone and another lucky few animated films have been recognized by the Academy. I just barely managed to stay up for the animation awards this year. (This week’s Monday Movie post explains why.) As usual, I’m not taking the Oscars too seriously, but I do think they’re an interesting look at how Hollywood perceives animation and how that changes as the years go by.
Friday Fun Link – Celebrating Dwayne McDuffie
Friday, February 25th, 2011Though I don’t want my Friday post to become the Friday Memorial Link, I couldn’t let this week pass without noting the sad and sudden death of animation and comics writer Dwayne McDuffie. Judging by what I’ve seen on Twitter, the whole internet is mourning for him, and with good reason. McDuffie’s impact on the world of animation alone was huge. He played a major role in making the animated version of the DC Comics universe the powerhouse that it is today as a producer, writer, and story editor on the amazing Justice League TV series and writer of the direct-to-DVD movies Crisis on Two Earths and All-Star Superman, the latter of which was just released this week. McDuffie story edited Static Shock, the series based on the character he co-created with artist John Paul Leon. He also produced and story edited on the Ben 10 series.
In celebration of Dwayne Mc Duffie’s life and work, I’m sending you over to The World’s Finest, a treasure trove of all things DC animated. Check out their sections on Justice League and Static Shock for all the episode guides, images, and behind the scenes goodies you could ever need, including some interviews with McDuffie himself.
One more link that I can’t resist sharing: McDuffie was well known and respected in the world of comics for insisting that characters who were not caucasian males be treated as real characters and not stereotypes or representatives of an entire group of people. During his time as an editor at Marvel Comics, McDuffie noticed that a not insignificant percentage of Marvel’s African-American superheroes were following a particular pattern. In response, he submitted a bitingly humorous “pitch” that got his point across loud and clear.
