Huge congratulations go out to Brad Bird and all of the amazing people at Pixar, as their most recent film, "Ratatouille," took home the Oscar for Animated Feature Film last night!
It's well deserved, and yet another feather in Mr. Bird's cap. I just hope he gets started on a sequel to "The Incredibles" sometime soon!
The AP has a great story up today about why Pixar's "Ratatouille" was excluded from the best picture category.
If not for the best animated feature category, it's safe to say "Ratatouille" would have been strongly considered for best picture. Brad Lewis, the film's producer, is quick to point out that he has no sour grapes with the academy _ and that he's ecstatic about the five widespread nominations.
Still, he has to wonder.
"Ultimately, it makes it perhaps too convenient for people to look at an animated film from an isolated perspective," said Lewis. "Somebody can say, `You know what? We have a place for that, so we don't necessarily have to give it broader consideration.'"
It's an interesting read and worth your time. I can understand the arguement on both sides, but I don't see why a film that's been reviewed so well shouldn't have a shot at the whole ball of cheese.
Ratatouille Best Picture Article via CNN Money
Rotten Tomatoes sat down for a quick interview with Mr. Brad Bird.
The first half of the interview is really just them begging him to validate their Golden Tomato award, which Brad almost painfully does. However it really picks up steam when he starts to talk about the next wave in blurring in animation.
Oh yeah... it's that good.
Brad Bird Interview On Rotten Tomatoes
Something is right with the world, because Pixar's "Ratatouille" was awarded the Golden Globe tonight for best Animated Picture.
While there were some other great films in the list of nominees, "Ratatouille" was nothing short of brilliant and deserves this and every other award bestowed upon it.
It even deserves some dork with a blog blubbering on about how great it is.
Congratulations to Brad Bird and everyone at Pixar!
It's official... Pixar's "Ratatouille" has now grossed over $200 million domestically.
Pixar couldn't continue the upwards trend of previous movies forever, but I have to think that they're still quite pleased with "Ratatouille," which just passed "Happy Feet" to move into the 9th spot in highest grossing computer animated films, behind "Cars."
It's sort of like how I couldn't continue to date supermodels the way I did. I'm dating a Dallas Cowboy Cheerleader now, and that's still pretty good.
My wife is going to kill me.
Just in case you're wondering, "Ratatouille" has also raked in an additional $172 million in Foreign theaters. Unless you happen to live in one of those countries, in which case the domestic box office is actually the foreign box office to you and your box office is the domestic one.
Ratatouille info at Box Office Mojo
I think it's safe to say that Ratatouille is a hit.
Over the weekend the film moved into the 10th spot on the list of highest grossing animated films (domestically). It now sits at $196 million, in terms of domestic box office haul, and is about $1.5 million away from taking the 9th spot from "Happy Feet," which it will probably manage to do in a weekend or two.
The film has also grossed $119 million in international ticket sales.
I'm sure glad to see the film break even like that. $315 million was a ridiculous budget for a CG film, and so it's good to know that whatever it makes from here on out is pure profit. I hope Pixar learns from this bullet they dodged, as this financially distarous film could have really sunk the company.
It's fun to pretend.
Box Office Mojo's Ratatouille Box Office Info
Via DavisDVD, comes some great news! First the 3D stuff...
Above is the cover for the upcoming Ratatouille DVD release, which DavisDVD has some info on, that can also be found at Ultimate Disney, including word that the film will include a new short titled, "Your Friend the Rat."
DavisDVD and Ultimate Disney also both have word on the above "Pixar Shorts" DVD, which is set to release on November 6th, and will include (in chronological order): The Adventures of André & Wally B., Luxo Jr., Red's Dream, Tin Toy, Knick Knack, Geri's Game, For the Birds, Mike's New Car, Boundin', Jack-Jack Attack, One Man Band, Mater and the Ghostlight, and Lifted.
However what I'm most excited about is the non-3D release that DavisDVD also mentions, which is the up until now VHS-only, "Opus and Bill In: A Wish for Wings that Work." 
I cannot wait for this to release, as I've only seen it one time on TV, and it was mostly over by the time I surfed by and noticed it. The site claims that there will be no extras, but it's also going to retail for only $15 bucks, so I can't complain too much.
More info on all 3 from DavisDVD
More on the Pixar releases from Ultimate Disney
If they're movies keep underperforming like this, Pixar will be out of business by the end of the week.
The dismal failure that is "Ratatouille" only made another $18 million at the box office this week, bringing its pathetic take up to $143 million domestically and $161 million worldwide, where it's still in somewhat limited release.
I actually bumped into Brad Bird at the Dollar Store this weekend buying Top Ramen and underpants. I guess he's feeling the pinch already.
Pixar's latest "Ratatouille" made an estimated $29 million at the box office this weekend, bringing it's 10 day total to $110 million.
This means that, in just two weeks, the film has already out-grossed the likes of "Surf's Up," "TMNT," and "Meet the Robinsons." Not bad for a film released just a week before the blockbuster, "Transformers" and the somewhat-surprise-hit "Live Free or Die Hard." Not only that, but the film is already close to overtaking such hits as "Knocked Up," "Ocean's Thirteen" and the latest "Fantastic Four" flick.
I'm just trying to put thing into perspective for all of the doomsayers out there who are convinced that this is the end of Pixar. Just because the film may not wind up generating the numbers that "The Incredibles" did does not mean it isn't a hit.
Numbers Courtesy of Box Office Mojo
Forget slaving away at a fancy art school for four years, as it turns out all you have to do is make some copies and draw a smiley face or two on a coffee mug.
CGSociety has a great article on Jason Deamer, Character Art Director for Pixar.
So, when Jimmy Hayward, a skateboarding friend and Pixar animator, told him that Pixar was hiring office help, he applied. “It was right after ‘Toy Story,’” he says. “I knew about Pixar because I had seen their shorts in animation festivals, but it didn’t occur to me there would be any future for me at Pixar. I thought I’d just be moving furniture.”
And, that’s what he did. Moved furniture, fetched sandwiches, made copies, sat at the front desk and walked through hallways filled with production art for ‘Monsters, Inc.’ and ‘A Bug’s Life.’ In his spare time, he doodled.
It's a great read, and always inspiring to see someone who doesn't mind getting in on the ground floor and working their way up through a company like Pixar.
I've been drawing faces on thong underpants and leaving them around my office building, so we'll see where that takes me.
EDIT: I'm an idiot and forgot the link...
CG Society Article On Jason Deamer
So I'm sure that by now you've seen the numbers from this weekend's opening of Pixar's "Ratatouille."
I'm sure you've heard that the film only had the 5th strongest opening for a Pixar film, and that the end of the world is near.
The simple fact is that Pixar couldn't keep the streak going that it had created. It's just too much to continue to best your previous film, and the fact that they did it for as long as they did, prior to the release of "Cars," is an amazing accomplishment. It should also be noted that a $47 million dollar opening is nothing to sneeze at, and I'm sure the film will go on to break the $200 million mark.
The film is amazing. Stunning even. It's a masterpiece in every sense of the word. While I'd still rank it behind "The Incredibles" and "Finding Nemo," it's nothing short of brilliant. I saw it on Saturday and will probably see it again tonight. In fact I hope to see it 3 or 4 times before it leaves theaters, simply because it's just an amazing motion picture that should be taken in on the largest screen possible.
So don't read too much into the opening numbers. The film is just as good as anything Pixar has done before, and worth every penny of your ticket.
It's Pixar. It's Brad Bird. It's a 93% overall on Rotten Tomatoes. What are you waiting for?
Can rats scamper? I would imagine everything can scamper, with the exception of maybe an elephant, but I'm pretty sure rats can scamper for sure.
Go see the film.
As everyone knows by now, Pixar's "Ratatouille" hits theaters this Friday.
With the exception of "Shrek the Third," which happens to be part of a very successful franchise and "Happy Feet" which performed better than anyone could have predicted, the recent crop of CG Films, for the most part have performed pretty softly at the box office.
TMNT - $54 million
Surf's Up - $50 million
Flushed Away - $64 million
Happily N'Ever After - $15 million
Meet the Robinsons - $96 million
While I would call "Robinsons" a hit, the others have not come close to performing at the levels of previous 3D releases. "Surf's Up" has only generated $50 million so far, and will probably stall out at around $65 million, despite it receiving a %77 overall on Rotten Tomatoes. Compare that to a film like "Madagascar," which sits at a %55 review-wise, and yet generated $194 million at the box office a mere two years ago.
There are other examples as well, but the point to all of this is that it's going to be interesting to see if the Pixar name will draw enough people back to CG to make it the same level of hit that previous Pixar films have been. Obviously films like "Shrek the Third" and "Happy Feet" proved that audiences aren't totally fed up with CG films, but films like "Surf's Up!" show that you can have a quality product and it's still not a safe bet to be a hit.
"Ratatouille's" overall score on Rotten Tomatoes, one day before release, is a 92% and so quality isn't a question (was it ever?). So if the film comes out and does well, then where do studios go from here? In other words, if "Ratatouille" performs well, then it will prove that talking animal pictures can still find an audience. Yet if we've already established that "Surf's Up!" scored well and yet didn't perform at the level expected, then what kept people from seeing that film?
My hope is that all of this will push studios to try new things, but my fear is that it will do the opposite and force them to reduce picture output and always look to the safe bet.
See you in the "Ratatouille" line this weekend.
Box Office Numbers Gathered from Box Office Mojo
Rotten Tomatoes
Official Pixar Site
Another great find from Upcoming Pixar:
Some really nice concept art pieces from Pixar's upcoming "Ratatouille" have been posted over at CanMag.
It really is amazing to look through the images and see how close they are to the film. I wonder if these were created before or after the character models had been created, or if the modelers were actually able to match the drawings that closely. I know it's possible, especially for the skilled modelers at Pixar, I'm just curious as to which came first.
Check out the article to see more concept pieces and get nice little tidbits about the film such as this:
To create a realistic looking compost pile, artists photographed and researched the way real produce rots. Fifteen different kinds of produce were left to rot and then photographed, such as apples, berries, bananas, mushrooms, oranges, broccoli and lettuce.
Sounds like my kitchen.
CanMag's Ratatouille Concept Art Page
Remy, star of Pixar's upcoming "Ratatouille" is now in a spot to help educate consumers on conserving electricity, as part of a promotion between Disney and the Department of Energy.
The Department of Energy has teamed up with Disney to bring you an energy-saving message featuring a rat named Remy and other characters from Disney Pixar's new film, Ratatouille. Watch the ad below to learn how you can make the switch today!
Look for next weeks spot in which Mickey Mouse shows you that flushing your toilet every other time you use it, rather than every time, can keep the Earth from imploding.
Ratatouille and Department of Energy Spot
Upcoming Pixar
The latest "Ratatouille" podcast from Pixar and Disney is now up for viewing.
The latest podcast based on Pixar's "Ratatouille" is now up for your viewing pleasure.
In this one, you get to hear a bunch of people complain about their horrific trip to France, in which they were forced to consume tons of amazing food and wine and take motorcycle tours of the city where all the guys giving the tour did was say things like, "There is the Eifel Tower."
That must have really sucked eggs.
In all seriousness, great podcast as always, and I have to wonder if they'll wind up rolling these all together for the bonus features on the DVD.
Ratatouille "Parlez-Vous Francais?" Podcast
The latest "Ratatouille" Podcast is now up.
This one focuses on the main human character of the film, and actually has a ton of new footage in it.
For more info and links, swing on over and visit our good friends at Upcoming Pixar.
And by "good friends," I mean, "the people who run that blog that's a lot better than this one that we stop by every morning and try to steal news from."
Upcoming Pixar's Ratatouille Podcast Info
Want to see a 9 minute clip from Pixar's upcoming "Ratatouille" film? Of course you do. Want to see a 30 second preview for that upcoming 9 minute clip? Probably not.
Leave it to Disney to preview their own upcoming preview. Now that's how you create hype...
There are a few seconds of new footage in this preview, so if you can't get enough of these little rats like me, you should at least give it a quick glance.
The 9 minute clip hits tomorrow.
Ratatouille Preview Preview on Total Clips
