Here's the latest poster for "TMNT."
It's almost like they're staring at you and saying, "Our voice acting will probably annoy the hell out of you." Either that or, "Please don't scratch your name into our shells, you jerkhole."
I was never good at reading turtles facial expressions.
Softimage has interviews now up with some of the key figures behind Blur's latest short, "Gentlemen's Duel."
Featured in the interviews are Tim Miller, Jason Taylor, JD Fievet, and Remi McGill. In case you've forgotten, Mr. Taylor did a 10 Quick interview right here on Bleeding Pixels not so long ago.
As for these interviews, they're really more infomercials for how amazing Softimage is, according to the Blur crew. This stands to reason, as the "interviews" are housed on the Softimage website. So don't get your hopes up that you'll see any clips from the short, but some plot details are revealed and you can finally see some of the faces behind Blur Studio's amazing work.
Now if only I could find a place to see the short...
Softimage's Interviews with Blur
10 Quick with Jason Taylor
The RE-Animation Blog has posted a really nice short film called, "Bungle In the Jungle."
The film has an obvious Roadrunner and Coyote feel to it, and the models and textures are very well done. The only thing that tarnished it a bit for me was the fact that the 4 minute short uses roughly 30,000 cliche sound effects for bonks, bumps, and biffs. Just watch it and you'll see what I mean.
Bungle in the Jungle Short
RE-Animation Blog
Ain't It Cool News has a handful of screenshots from the upcoming "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" film.
The jury is still out for me on this one, as the art looks superb, but the voice acting seems like it might get really annoying.
Be warned that AICN mentions how the last shot in the series could be a spoiler that you may want to save until you watch the film in theaters. I looked at the last shot and personally had no idea how seeing it spoiled anything for me, but I also was the guy who had no idea that knowing that the Titanic sank would spoil the end of that movie for me as well.
AICN's TMNT FTW BYOB!
Dreamworks found a shiny black nugget in their stocking this year, in the form of Variety's article, which lists "Flushed Away" as one of the biggest flops of the year.
The article mentions that the film, which received very good reviews, only managed to make around $61 million at the box office, despite its budget of $150 million.
Maybe they should have stuck to making clay models out of clay, rather than investing millions of dollars in high-end computers to try to get the same result. It would be like my niece hiring a New York advertising firm to help her create the construction paper bookmarks she gives us every year for Christmas.
Variety's Article on the Box Office Flops of 2006
At the risk of offending anyone I have chosen to wish you all a very joyous and wonderful Festivus.
So this blog is about 3D animated films, and I guess technically the new "Transformers" film falls somewhere into that category, so here is the new trailer:
Two more shorts from the TV show "Minuscule" are now online at YouTube.
MSNBC has an article posted about Jerry Seinfeld that reveals some plot details for his upcoming CG film, "Bee Movie."
The movie, actually, is animated and stars Seinfeld's distinctly New York voice as Barry B. Benson, a bee who leaves the hive and discovers, to his horror, that humans have been stealing their honey. While out in the wide world, Barry falls for Vanessa, a New York City florist (voiced by Renée Zellweger). "Somehow you buy that these two hit it off," Seinfeld explains. "It's sweet, it's sweet—but I don't really go for sweet. It happened, and I didn't resist. But I just go for funny."
In my best Seinfeld voice, "What's the deal with the humans stealing our honey?!?!"
More on Jerry and "Bee Movie" at MSNBC
Pixar's little rat has a new home on the web... or at least an updated one.
My hope is that the next animal that everyone in Hollywood chooses to make movies about after the rats, bugs and penguins, is the water bison. For one I think that they are a species that has been totally neglected by computer animation and for another I just think their frames lend themselves very well to comedy.
Disney's Updated "Ratatouille" Website
If you've got 5 years to kill, the new "Shrek the Third" teaser is up over at Moviefone.
I say 5 years, because that's roughly how long it took for the movie to load for me. I became a grandfather by the time it was done loading and I wasn't even a father before it began.
Thanks. I'll be here all week.
"Shrek the Third" Teaser at Moviefone
Last night we here in the Seattle area (and surrounding states) were hit with a horrible storm that brought with it flooding and wind gusts as high as 90mph on the coast (60mph inland). Power finally came back on at around 9:30am this morning, after being out since around midnight.
My wife and I were very lucky in that we are safe and suffered no real damage to our property. However, people lost their lives, homes were destroyed by massive trees that couldn't stand up to the abnormal wind, and thousands are still without power. It's a horrible mess to say the least.
Needless to say, I won't be updating the blog until late this afternoon, if at all. I'll try to get something up over the weekend, but you should expect normal updates to return on Monday. I apologize for two delays in posting in one week, but I hope you can understand.
Thank you.
CNN's Coverage of the Storm
A nice little "Christmas Card" of sorts from the folks at Sherbet.
Reminding us all not to over-eat this Holiday season!
Sherbet Seasons Greetings Spot
The RE-Animation Blog
Coming Soon has a new clip up from the upcoming "Happily N'Ever After."
For me, the jury is still very much out on this film. I actually like the art style, but the animation (and the gags) feels somewhat stiff to me. The film also gets high marks for not having voices by Whoopi Goldberg or the Olson twins.
Coming Soon's "Happily N'Ever After" Clip
EDIT #2: The link to my progress reel has now been fixed. Thank you to all none of you that let me know about that.
EDIT: As promised, here is my completed progress reel for my very first class at Animation Mentor.+of+titlecard.jpg)
Dave's Animation Mentor Class 1 Progress Reel
Original Post:
Sorry for the lack of update(s) today. I'm currently hammering on my final animation for my very first quarter at Animation Mentor.
Having just completed my first quarter (or at least I will have by Friday), I can safely say that, at least so far, Animation Mentor is worth every penny. To take a step back for a moment and think about all of the things I've learned in one short quarter makes me quite excited about what's to come at "The Ment."
If you, or anyone you know, is considering a career in animation, I can't recommend AM enough to you. In my class there are people currently working in animation (film as well as games), and others attending very well known schools such as the Academy of Art University. Everyone seems to agree that AM matches, and in most cases exceeds, any training they've received so far.
So if you've got the desire to be an animator... make sure you give AM a look.
I'll post my progress reel for you sometime this week, as well as the normal crappy blog updates you've come to expect here on Bleeding Pixels.
The Animation Mentor Website
The Website of My Class 1 Mentor, Ray Chase
Yahoo has a "trailer" for "Meet the Robinsons" posted showing three frogs from the film singing about idiots in movie theaters who ruin the experience for everyone else.
There are also some production stills and a bit of info on the site, but I'd like to focus more on the inbred, half-wit, morons who commit the acts mentioned in the video. Just once I'd like to go to a film where the jackhole behind me isn't kicking my seat, there are no teenage kids screaming out bad words because they think it's cool, and nobody vomits. The last one only happened once, but man did it stink, and I think I can safely add it to the list of things I don't want to happen again.
Meet the Robinsons Info on Yahoo!
The penguin that started it all, Opus, was supposed to star in his own 3D animated film, but now it looks as though the project may be dead (again).
According to The Business of Animation Blog:
The rumor is that planned "Opus" has died once again. The comic strip based CG film has seen its share of ups and downs, and if you believe the rumor, it is down once again.
I'm not sure that this is such a bad thing, as the film had been picked up by the Weinstein Company, and I frankly wouldn't want them to destroy one of the most beloved characters in comic strip history with a 2nd rate animated film.
The Blog goes on to state that this is just a rumor, so it's very possible the film will still get made. I guess it just depends on if the Weinstein Company can find a crew to make it for less that $100 dollars in McDonald's gift certificates.
More Info at The Business of Animation Blog
If you're willing to sit through the crap-filled advertisements over on MTV's website, they've got a new trailer up for the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles flick.
You can choose to expand the size of the trailer, thus decreasing the overall resolution/quality, but at the same time covering up at least some of the ads for "The Real World 42: Flint, MI" and various other quality programs from MTV, or you can choose to watch it at it's standard tiny resolution.
I chose the former.
"TMNT" Trailer on MTV
I was browsing the RE-Animation blog this morning, as I often do, and I stumbled upon a posting for Aja Bogdanoff's demo reel and blog.
Aja has made quite a name for herself, even in my brief time at Animation Mentor. She's done this not just by having top notch work (which she does), but by helping others in any way she can. She hosts live Q&A sessions to discuss her experinece at AM, helps out on the forum by posting tutorials, and generally provides support to the students as much as possible, even though she's already graduated. I've learned a great deal from Aja, without ever communicating with her directly.
So swing on over and check out her reel and blog... you may just learn something.
Aja's Demo Reel
Aja's Blog
The RE-Animation Blog
Animation Mentor
CGSociety has a nice article on the pig commercials that were mentioned last week on Bleeding Pixels.
There were three scenarios ordered that were stand-alone, simple stories of comical intrigue. One of them was an asian style massage parlour, another, remake of the ‘shower scene from Psycho,’ and there was also one depicting a gondola ride on the city of Venice. “This turned out to be the biggest challenge,” adds Debaene, “since it's hard to portray the city of Venice, with all it's rustic details etc, in the same style as we did the spot in the massage parlor.”
More via the link below.
CGSociety's Certus/Hoaxland Certus Pork Commercials Article
Hoaxland Website
Bleeding Pixels Previous Coverage of the Certus Pork Commercials
In case you haven't seen the video for Gnarls Barkley's "Gone Daddy Gone," here it is:
I always knew they could.
Taken from an upcoming storybook and viewer comes the first shots of the Ratatouille human characters. Also shown are a couple of other human characters and the real humans who voice them.
I'll try to get you more information on the film if they happen to release a paint by numbers set or a View-Finder disc or something.
Pixar's Official Website
What do we do here at Bleeding Pixels on a slow news day? We let you know that "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest" is out on DVD today!
While it doesn't have any of the type of 3D Animation that we normally cover here on Bleeding Pixels, "DMC" is packed full of CG to make your head swim as you try to figure out whether the scene you just saw was real or made entirely with a computer (or two).
I remember the scene where the guy with a seashell for a head gets it cut off and his seashell head is lying in the grass and his body comes and picks it up and runs off through the jungle. I looked at my wife in the theater and said, "Do you think that really happened, or do you think they did that with computers?" My wife then moved three seats to her left and sat with a big dumb jock, later telling me that if she was going to sit next to an idiot he might as well at least have big muscles.
Swing over to DVDActive to get the info on what extras will be included on "DMC," and make sure you head out to your local shop today to pick it up!
DVDActive's "Dead Man's Chest" DVD Info
In case you haven't seen yet, the nominees for this years round of Annie Awards have been released.
Best Animated Feature
Cars – Pixar Animation Studios
Happy Feet – Warner Bros.
Monster House – Columbia Pictures/ImageMovers/Amblin Production
Open Season – Sony Pictures Animation/Columbia Pictures
Over The Hedge – DreamWorks Animation
Having seen 4 of the 5 films on the list (haven't had a chance to see "Happy Feet" yet), I feel like they are all deserving in one form or another. Let's just give them each an award and then share some chocolate cake or something. Wouldn't that make the world just a bit brighter?
I think it would.
The Annie Awards
From Mark Shirra, Vancouver Film School grad, and current Pixar animator, comes "A Great Big Giant Robot from Outer Space Ate My Homework."
I love that you totally understand that story and what the kid is saying, without any word of intelligible language actually being spoken.
Oh... and I love the fart.
The RE-Animation Blog has posted some really cute commercials for a pork company.
I find that it helps if I can put a personality with the food that I'm shoveling in my mouth. Eating can get so boring day after day, but if I think to myself, "Hey... this slab of greasy bacon is probably from the butt of that one pig that was kissing the arm of that other pig on the boat in Venice. He sure was cute, and it was obvious he was totally in love with the other pig. They probably would have made a great couple and led very happy lives together until they died of old age if they hadn't been butchered and put in my frying pan," it makes my dining experience much more enjoyable.
I love bacon.
RE-Animation's Links to the Certus Pork Commercials
It was a snow day from work for me yesterday, so I totally forgot to check the DVD releases, or I would have noticed that "The Ant Bully" released.
Despite getting overall positive reviews, the film failed to attract an audience in theaters. Maybe the DVD will prove more successful for what seemed to be a very promising film from the same studio that made "Jimmy Neutron."
"Ant Bully" DVD Info at DVD Active
DVD Active has all of the info on the January 30th "Open Season" DVD release.
Extras will include a filmmaker audio commentary, deleted scenes, a Voices Behind the Stars featurette, a Swept Away Scene Deconstruction, an Inside the Animals Studio feature, an "I Wanna Lose Control" music video, interactive games, and more.
I was disappointed to see that there is no planned short to be included with the film. I'll stick pick up the DVD, as it was a fun movie, but I would have loved a short starring the rabbits.
"Open Season" DVD Release Info from DVD Active
A trailer is up for the independent animated film, "Sam and Piccolo."
To be completely honest, the trailer really isn't great. I'm not saying the film won't be, I'm saying that the trailer is constructed in a manner that just confuses the hell out of the viewer. I know there is a man in the film, and he lives with a strange orange creature, and I'm pretty sure they're farming some type of illegal drug. Then a dog appears in the bush outside their house and the orange thing cuts its hand and they lose something.
The synopsis on the official website doesn't help clear things up either:
Sam and Piccolo have always been friends. They live in an isolated valley where every day they work the land together, but when Piccolo discovers a trick to make his favourite treat grow in plenty, he is overcome by something that threatens their very existence.
Now correct me if I'm wrong, but I'm pretty sure this was also an episode of "Breaking Bonaduce."
The trailer does look promising and quite impressive for an independent, so if you have a moment, swing by and have a look.
Sam and Piccolo Website
RE-Animation Blog
The Official Breaking Bonaduce Website
Did anyone really see this one coming?
Having not seen the film myself, I can't speak on the quality of the story or art, but it just didn't seem that appealing to me from the previews. Now, according to the latest numbers from Box Office Mojo, I see the film has grossed $99 million so far at the US Box Office.
Is it the singing? Robin Williams? The Penguins? The snow? It's probably the fact that it doesn't star Whoopi Goldberg or Carrot Top, but don't quote me on that.
The simple fact is that CG movies have underperformed this year, at least by the past CG movie standards, and I don't think anyone could have predicted that "Happy Feet" would be the film to break the slump.
Congrats to the entire team at WB for having a huge hit on their hands.
Box Office Mojo's Weekend Box Office Totals
The "Arthur and the Minimoys" Trailer is now up.
Looking like a cross between "Honey I Shrunk the Kids" and "The Dark Crystal," the film actually looks like it could be a lot of fun, and I'm now actually looking forward to seeing it in theaters next year.
Now if only my vision could be realized of a film that mixes "Gigli" with "Waterworld."
"Arthur and the Minimoys" Trailer
RE-Animation Blog
Animation World Network has a really good article up right now about the budding independent animation push that's happening all around the world right now.
Blue Yonder Films' first animated picture, Hoodwinked, was self-financed and went on to success at the box office (where it generated $101 million) and on DVD. The company raised funding through a private investor and didn't secure The Weinstein Co. as a distributor until less than seven months before completion. A sequel is in development, this time financed by The Weinstein Co.
I had no idea that film made $101 million dollars. With the Weinstein Company involved, I'm guessing the budget for the sequel will double and probably land somewhere between 7 McDonald's Happy Meals and $50 bucks, so they stand to make a fortune from it as well.
Lots of good info in the article, including upcoming 3D films set to release in the next few years.
Animation World Network's Independent Animation Article
According to Variety, Dreamworks has picked up the rights to the children's book "Camp Creepy Time."
"Camp Creepy Time" is about a young boy who's sent to a summer camp.
He discovers that the haunt is little more than an alien-run smuggling operation. And the camp counselors are turning children into monsters, and shipping them off to zoos on planets around the solar system.
Sounds like an interesting concept, and I was surprised to read that the lovely actress, Gina Gershon, was the author. Seems like everyone is writing children's books these days.
Variety Article on "Camp Creepy Time"
Yet another reason why I need to move to San Francisco.
"Get ready to take a fun & informative behind the scenes, top-down ride with Pixar's most ambitious animated feature to date. A team of Pixar's creative talent, led by Lighting Technical Director Jeremy Vickery, will break down the process of what it takes to make a winning collaborative effort...concepts, component development, production fine tuning, tech tweaks...plus a few special surprises on the way to the checkered flag of completion."
Seriously... Seattle is a beautiful city, but we're more likely to get a presentation called, "Starbucks Under the Lid: The Making of Liquid Poop In A Cup."
More Info On Pixar Under the Hood: The Making of Cars
Scrat and the crew return with "Ice Age 2: The Meltdown" on DVD today.
Extras will include commentaries by Director Carlos Saldanha, Producer Lori Forte and the Production Team, an all-new Scrat short ("No Time for Nuts"), three all–new Crash & Eddie Stunts, a Crash and Eddie Blooper, introductions to the new characters, and a Silly Sid & John Leguizamo featurette.
Having seen "No Time for Nuts," I can say that short alone is worth the price of the DVD.
One final note is that Best Buy has "The Meltdown" on sale for $15.99 and Circuit City has it for $12.99 this week, so get it while it's cheap!
"Ice Age 2" DVD Info At DVD Active
Official Ice Age Website
Was anyone else as suprised as I was by the money that "Happy Feet" made in its opening weekend of release?
I don't know if it was the penguins, or Elijah Wood, or Robin Williams, or what, but this sucker managed to pull $42.3 million and take the #1 spot over the new James Bond film. In comparison, "Flushed Away" has brought in $48.8 million in two full weeks of release.
It also looks as though the steam has finally run out on "Open Season," as it hit just over $83 million for it's box office take. I guess I just assumed that an animated film with a pooping, one-horned deer would make a stronger overall showing.
It's only a matter of time before the Weinstein Company buys up rights to a 3D film about Penguins that was made in Iran in just over two weeks with a production budget of just under $17 dollars.
Weekend Box Office Numbers, Via Box Office Mojo
Put on your mittens and grab a bucket of fish, as "Happy Feet" opens today!
The film is scoring pretty well, and currently sits at a 79% overall on Rotten Tomatoes.
Here's an example of one of the good reviews:
Happy Feet is cooler than a penguin's toenails, taking what appears to be a routine animated musical comedy into rewarding, unexpected places. - Colin Covert - Minneapolis Star Tribune
And one of the bad ones:
Even the wee ones may start to notice something's amiss when the movie's theme goes from "be yourself" to 'we must regulate the overfishing of the Antarctic oceans.' No, for real. - Jordan Harper - Village Voice
So I'll leave it up to you. From everything I've read, the film is jammed full of singing and dancing, but then again, what would you expect from a film titled, "Happy Feet."
More Reviews at Rotten Tomatoes
Happy Feet Website
Click the link below to check out the new ad for the Zune player from Microsoft.
It's well done, but apparantley I missed the memo that discussed how focus groups have shown that giant, eyeball-swallowing wangs sell MP3 players.
Follow the other link to see more Zune commercials, also done in 3D, but with far less wangage.
Zune Commercial
More Zune Commercials
RE-Animation Blog
Wow... wow... wow.
I'm even going to refrain from making my usual smartass comments on this post. Just watch the short, and then watch it again... and again.
Potapych: The Bear Who Loved Vodka
From a quote over on I Watch Stuff, Ben Stiller has let the cat out of the bag for the "Madagascar" sequel.
"I think all the animals head back to New York on that plane that you know was up in the trees and then they crash in Africa and Alex gets reacquainted with his real family and it goes from there."
When I first read that I thought to myself, "Wow... that sounds kind of lame." However when you really think about it, what more could they do with this group of characters? You don't have Rocky go out and meet Meg Ryan and fall in love via email in a "Rocky" sequel. You have him beat the tar out of Meg Ryan in a boxing ring, but only after a lengthy music montage showing him training inside an active volcano.
The same goes for a film like "Madagascar." The audience for the sequel is going to expect a certain type of story arch, and it sounds like this will deliver exactly that.
I Watch Stuff
There is a really interesting article that's been posted by the Pittsburgh Post Gazette on the similarities in many of Dreamworks' and Pixar's films.
It's worth a read, as it provides a little bit of a peak into the timeline of films such as "Finding Nemo" and "Shark Tale."
In 2003, Pixar scored its biggest hit yet with the underwater adventure "Finding Nemo." But while it was in production, word reached the company that DreamWorks had its own undersea comedy in the works. Aghast senior Pixar executives privately referred to their nemesis as "Copy Katzenberg," according to people close to the matter.
Whether you're a fan of either company or not, the article is worth a glance.
Pittsburgh Post Gazette Article
Walt Disney Co is reporting that Pixar's latest offering, "Cars" sold 5 million copies in its first two days of release.
It's a great film, and worthy of such high numbers. I really just wish that it had been a two (or more) disc set right off the bat, instead of milking customers by making us by it again in two months when the special edition is released. I'm sure the special edition will come with a clever name like, "The Race for the Piston Cup Edition," or "The Take More Money from Pixar Nerds Edition," and in either case I'll buy it.
Now I just can't wait for the "industry insiders" to start talking about what a disappointment the "Cars" DVD is, since "The Incredibles" DVD had sold 8 extra copies by this point in its release.
More Info On "Cars" DVD Sales at Apple Insider
No that's not a typo. Apparantly someone over at Ain't It Cool News has seen an early screening of "Shrek the Third," and posted an early review.
Posting a review of a film that's still six months away from opening is a bit pointless, as the film could change so much between now and then. It would be like posting your review of a restaurant based on the breadsticks.
That being said, if you're ever in Washington, you should eat at Nana Carmella's, which has some of the best breadsticks I've ever tasted.
AICN's Very Early Review of "Shrek the Third"
Tired of fuzzy 3D animals? If so, make sure you check out the trailer for "The Simpsons Movie."
I am in the minority on this, but I really don't mind all of the fuzzy animal movies. I'm sure they're getting old to some people, but I feel like if a movie is good, even in a genre that's been done to death, it's still worth watching. Of course I still listen to hair metal and drive a Trans Am, so what do I know?
"The Simpsons Movie" Trailer
CGSociety has a great article up on Blur's brand new short, "Gentleman's Duel."
From the article:
Each year for the past four years the crew at the small visual effects studio Blur has created one or more award-winning short films. This year, a film that in many ways represents the studio’s most ambitious work, is once again likely to make the short list for an Oscar nomination and could go all the way. It’s the first animation from Blur in which the characters have speaking parts; in which the dialog matters.
I can't wait to see the short, and hope that it gets released in DVD form. Of course, I'm still holding out for "Charles In Charge" and "Small Wonder" to be released on DVD as well, so what do I know?
CGSociety's "Gentleman's Duel" Article
The folks at Hold the 'fone have posted the new poster for "Happily N'Ever After."
When Andy Dick is listed as the third highest star in your film, you may be in trouble.
Hold the fone's "Happily N'Ever After" Poster Info
Just a reminder that "Cars" hits DVD shelves today.
I picked up the Target exclusive 2-Pack, which has a bonus DVD. While no description is given on what exactly the bonus footage is, I can tell you what the name and running times of the bonus features are:
Behind the Wheel - 12:17
Dinner at the Big Texan - 3:21
Life-Size McQueen and Sally - 2:59
Day in the Life of a Producer - 3:11
Meet Pixar's Gear Heads - 2:41
Hot Laps In Sonoma - 3:19
Talkin' Cars - 2:23
Worldwide Cars - 3:36
Cars Alter Egos - 3:34
With no official 2-disc version of the release currently planned, this is the closest a nerd like me can get to having a 2-disc version.
Pixar's Official Website
Official "Cars" DVD Website
According to Moviehole, fans of Shrek will get to see their favorite ogre in a TV special, set to air Christmas of 2007.
Mike Myers, Eddie Murphy, Cameron Diaz and Antonio Banderas will reprise their roles from the three hit films for ABC Entertainment’s “Shrek The Halls,” an original animated special from DreamWorks Animation SKG.
For more details, swing on over to Moviehole.
Now... let's just hope it's half the classic that the Star Wars Christmas special turned out to be.
Moviehole's "Shrek the Halls" Info
