A pair of big announcements from our friends at Cartoon Brew: Warner Brothers has just released the first teaser trailer for Happy Feet 2, set to premiere this November. No word yet on the sequel’s plot, but it has been confirmed that Elijah Wood, Robin Williams, and Magda Szubanski will reprise their roles from the first film, along with new voices Matt Damon, Brad Pitt, Hank Azaria, and Pink. Also from Cartoon Brew recently: “Simba, Mufasa, Nala, Timon and Pumbaa are back and better than ever this fall when Disney’s The Lion King roars into theaters and homes in breathtaking 3D. A special two-week theatrical extravaganza kicks off Sept. 16, 2011, showcasing the Oscar®- and Golden Globe®-winning film on the big screen in Disney Digital 3D™ for the first time ever, and its highly anticipated home entertainment debut kicks off October 4, celebrating the Diamond Edition release of the epic movie The Lion King in high-definition Blu-ray™ and Blu-ray 3D™.”
Animation
Meet the New Panda’s Director
Cartoon Brew has posted an article with pictures and a video interview with Jennifer Yuh Nelson, director of Kung Fu Panda 2 — which, to remind you all, is coming to theaters this Friday, May 27th. According to the article, Ms. Nelson may well be the first woman to direct a major Hollywood animated feature on her own. Ms. Nelson has already made quite a name for herself in animation — check out her resume’ from the studio’s press release! Most recently (prior to this new feature, that is), she directed the 2D dream sequence which opened the first Kung Fu Panda movie.
image c. 2011 Dreamworks Animation
The 2010 Ursa Major Award Winners
The winners of the 2011 Ursa Major Awards — for the best in anthropomorphic media, as decided by the fans — were announced on Friday, May 13th at Morphicon in Columbus, Ohio. From the Ursa Major Awards web site: “More formally known as the Annual Anthropomorphic Literature and Arts Award, the Ursa Major Award is presented annually for excellence in the furry arts. It is intended as Anthropomorphic (a.k.a. Furry) Fandom’s equivalent of the Hugo Award ® presented by the World Science Fiction Society, mystery fandom’s Anthony Award, horror fandom’s Bram Stoker Award, and so forth. Anyone may nominate and vote for candidates for the Awards. These Awards are decided by the fans, not by a committee”. More than 1,300 fans from around the world took part in voting for their favorite furry and anthropomorphic media in ten categories. In reverse order, the winners for 2010 were:
Best Anthropomorphic Game: Disney Epic Mickey, Developed by Junction Point Studios.
Best Anthropomorphic Published Illustration: The cover for Shadow of the Father (by Kyell Gold), illustrated by Sara Palmer.
Best Anthropomorphic Magazine: Heat #7
Best Anthropomorphic Comic Strip: Housepets! by Rick Griffin
Best Anthropomorphic Graphic Story: Twokinds by Tom Fischbach
Best Anthropomorphic Other Literary Work: FurPiled #4 by Leo Magna
Best Anthropomorphic Short Fiction: Bridges by Kyell Gold (released as a novella by FurPlanet Books).
Best Anthropomorphic Novel: Shadow of the Father by Kyell Gold, published by Sofawolf Press
Best Anthropomorphic Dramatic Short Work or Series: Wallace & Gromit’s World of Invention, created by Aardman Animations.
Best Anthropomorphic Feature Film: How to Train Your Dragon, directed by Dean DeBlois and Chris Sanders, released by Dreamworks Animation.
Visit the Ursa Major Awards web site to find out more about the nominees in each category, and also how to participate in the awards yourself.
Coming Soon: The PB&J Network
Our good buddies Cartoon Brew have announced the formation of a new cable TV network, to be known as The PB&J. According to them, Luken Communications (owners of the Retro TV channel, which has been airing much of the Filmation cartoon archive) and Classic Media (owners of… well, a whole lotta stuff!) are partnering up to create the new channel. According to the PB&J press release, “The 24-hour network, set to launch in the US this summer, will feature Classic Media titles from the 1950s, ‘60s, ‘70s and ‘80s. Those include The Archie’s, Mr. Magoo, The Lone Ranger, Gumby, and Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids. PBJ will be available to broadcasters, cable and satellite providers”. Plus, according to the Cartoon Brew folks, “If they have the Classic Media library, this new channel could also air the Harveytoons (Casper, Herman and Katnip, et al), the Jay Ward library (Rocky and Bullwinkle, Dudley Do-Right, etc.), Roger Ramjet, Underdog, Felix the Cat, Rankin-Bass Specials, UPA’s Boing Boing Show, Dick Tracy cartoons and Magoo’s Christmas Carol – among others… “. At the end of the Cartoon Brew article is a link to a You Tube video with an introduction — apparently not official — to the new network. Stay tooned.
New Japanese CGI
Recently Cartoon Brew posted a new trailer for an upcoming Japanese animated film called Friends — Mononoke-jima no Naki (or Friends — Naki from Mononoke Island). According to various comments that follow the trailer, “the film is based on the Japanese fairytale “Naita Aka-oni, or The Red Ogre who Cried”, where two ogres (or demons) – red ogre Naki and blue ogre Gunjo – find a human child, which starts off their adventure.” Various other creatures of Japanese myth and legend find their way into the adventure, including a kitsune. Though comparisons to Disney/Pixar’s film Monsters Inc. are obvious, according to reports the film is actually closer to Shrek — with a good amount of Duncan & Mallory and Dragonheart thrown in. The film was directed by Takashi Yamazaki, and it’s set to be released by Toho Studios this December.
image c. 2011 Toho Studios
European Cartoon Pilots
On April 27th, Cartoon Network Development Studio Europe (in London, UK) released six animated pilots for possible new cartoon series. The pilots were actually started back in 2009, under the creative direction 0f Timothy Bjorklund (who had previously directed American shows like Teacher’s Pet and Brandy & Mr. Whiskers). The first original cartoon to come out of the studio since is called The Amazing World of Gumball. Cartoon Brew has a preview of all six pilots up on line, though the reviewer had decidedly mixed feelings about them. Still, furry fans might want to check out things like Elliot’s Zoo by David Needham, The Furry Pals by Rikke Asbjorn, and Verne on Vacation by Sylvain Marc. Make your own decisions.
Rumblewick, the Movie
Recently (as in March), Dreamworks Animation announced they have begun work upon a new film called Rumblewick. ” Director Tim Johnson (Over The Hedge, Antz) and writer Jim Herzfeld (Meet the Fockers, Meet the Parents) are collaborating on the feature project, which is inspired by the children’s book, My Unwilling Witch (The Rumblewick Letters) by Hiawyn Oram and Sarah Warburton. DreamWorks Animation development executives Chris Kuser and Gregg Taylor are overseeing the project at the studio. Rumblewick will follow the adventures of a magician’s rabbit for whom the invitation to learn real magic and train as a witch’s familiar seems like a dream come true! But the dream becomes a nightmare when he discovers he’s really a pawn in a game between rival witches. Having learned the hard way that when something seems too good to be true it probably is, he must outsmart them both to save his fuzzy little hide.” No word yet on a planned release date, but stay tooned!
image c. 2011 Dreamworks Animation
A Polar Bear is Coming to New York
The next project for Anthony Bell (director of last year’s Alpha and Omega) is an animated film called Norm of the North. It stars Rob Schneider (Deuce Bigalow, Male Gigolo) as the voice of Norm, a polar bear who (along with his lemming friends) ends up in New York City, “where Norm becomes the mascot of a corporation he soon learns is tied to the fate of his homeland”. The writers, Daniel and Steven Altiere, have previously written several furry-themed direct-to-video sequels, including Scooby Doo! The Mystery Begins and Dr. Dolittle: Million Dollar Mutts. Now in post-production, Norm of the North is set for release by Lionsgate Films in 2012.
More Furries Voting!
Voting has closed for the 2011 Ursa Major Awards, celebrating all your favorite furry stuff from 2010. Can’t tell you who won yet — that’ll be announced at a special awards ceremony at Morphicon, taking place May 12th through 15th in Columbus, Ohio. Definitely looks as if there will be some surprises though! We can tell you that this year over 1,300 fur fans from around the world took part in voting for their favorite furry-themed movies, TV series, comic strips, games, and more. That’s a growth of more than 200 voters from last year! As usual, visit the Ursa Major Awards web site to find out more about the award winners and nominees, past and present.
