PBS Kids will premiere a new hour-long Nature Cat special on Monday, January 18. Packed full of “a-ha” discovery moments, the special features four all-new 11-minute adventures that encourage children ages 3-8 to go outside and explore, while learning about a variety of scientific topics along the way. Parents and guardians will also get a kick out of the special all-star SNL guest cast, which includes Taran Killam, Bobby Moynihan and Kate McKinnon.
Also in Nature Cat news, the show’s official site at pbskids.org/naturecat is offering up fresh digital content. With the new “Racing Rapids” online game, kids can use systemized thinking skills to build a racing boat to take on a fun floating adventure with Nature Cat and his friends.
Spoiler Alert! Disney XD has released an official mid-season trailer for smashing CG series Star Wars Rebels. Check it out below and be sure to catch all-new episodes of the space-faring adventure show beginning Wednesday, January 20 at 9 p.m. ET/PT.
Cartoon Network will welcome back the Autobots and their various mechanical foes for a second season of Hasbro Studios’ Transformers: Robots in Disguise, slated for a Q1 2016 debut.
“Transformers: Robots in Disguise continues to be a massive hit with kids across the country, launching with an outstanding debut season on Cartoon Network,” said Stephen Davis, Hasbro’s executive VP and chief content officer. “Season two will bring back Bumblebee and his Autobots team for all-new action-packed battles, fun-filled adventures and other humorous new characters with vibrant personalities that made season one a hit with kids. We continue to listen to our viewers’ feedback and are bringing back many fan-favorite characters, as well as some great surprises we know kids of all ages are going to love.”
In season two, fan favorite character Bumblebee will take up the leadership of the Autobots as the team prepares to face villains intent on unleashing more destruction than ever. The action-adventure cartoon is aimed at kids 6-11 and emphasizes teamwork, companionship and the importance of standing up to wrongdoers.
For over 10 years, ShortsHD has been bringing the Oscar nominated short films in the Animation, Live Action and Documentary categories to audiences across the globe with exclusive theatrical runs. This year’s nominees will be arriving in cinemas January 29, giving you the chance to check out the competition before the Awards Ceremony on February 28.
In addition to the theatrical run, ShortsHD is making the Animation and Live-Action shorts available to buy online and through VOD/Pay Per View platforms including AT&T, DirecTV, Vubiquity, InDemand, Comcast, Cable Vision, XBox, Sony, Century Link, Vimeo, Frontier and Google Fiber. More information on watching On Demand is available here: www.shorts.tv/theoscarshorts/online-and-vod/#online-1
Best Animated Short Oscar Nominees
BEAR STORY
Country of origin: Chile
Directed by: Gabriel Osorio and Pato Escala
TRT: 11
Every day, a melancholy old bear takes a mechanical diorama that he has created out to his street corner. For a coin, passersby can look into the peephole of his invention, which tells the story of a circus bear who longs to escape and return to the family from which he was taken.
PROLOGUE
Country of origin: United Kingdom
Language: English
Directed by: Richard Williams and Imogen Sutton
TRT: 6
2,400 years ago, four warriors — two Spartan and two Athenian — battle to the death in an intense struggle witnessed by a little girl, who then runs to her grandmother for comfort.
SANJAY’S SUPER TEAM
Country of origin: United States
Language: English
Directed by: Sanjay Patel and Nicole Grindle
TRT: 7
Young Sanjay, a first-generation Indian-American, is obsessed with television, cartoons and his superhero action figures. He is reluctant to spend time in daily prayers with his devout Hindu father, but a flight of imagination helps him develop a new perspective that he and his father can both embrace.
WE CAN’T LIVE WITHOUT COSMOS
Country of origin: Russia
Directed by: Konstantin Bronzit
TRT: 16
Two best friends have dreamed since childhood of becoming cosmonauts, and together they endure the rigors of training and public scrutiny, and make the sacrifices necessary to achieve their shared goal.
WORLD OF TOMORROW
Country of origin: United States
Language: English
Directed by: Don Hertzfeldt
TRT: 17
A little girl named Emily is taken on a fantastical tour of her distant future by a surprising visitor who reveals unnerving secrets about humanity’s fate.
Calling all schools, training institutions and recruiters: Now is your last chance to submit your information for a free listing in Animation Magazine’s soon to be published 2016 International Education and Career Guide.
This special supplement, the next evolution of Animag’s longstanding annual School Guide, will feature stories and blueprints for navigating a career in Animation, VFX, Games and the emerging worlds of Augmented and Virtual Reality.
Like our global guide to schools before it, the printed edition of the Education and Career Guide will be distributed at major industry events worldwide throughout the year in addition to being mailed to our many high school and college library subscribers. Free listings will also be available online following publication.
Mature audiences animation outfit Augenblick Studios (Ugly Americans, Wonder Showzen, Superjail) has kicked off production on an original R-rated feature film, The Adventures of Drunky. Directed by Aaron Augenblick from his original concept, the project will be the first animated feature to be produced in Brooklyn.
“The Adventures of Drunky is everything I love about cartoons,” says Augenblick. “It’s hand drawn, surreal, and funny as hell.”
The film follows Drunky (voiced by Sam Rockwell), a barfly who finds himself in the middle of a cosmic be between God (Jeffrey Tambor) and the Devil (Steve Coogan) over the fate of the Earth. With his life destroyed, Drunky must travel through Heaven and Hell to rescue the girl he loves (Nina Arianda) and save the world, with the help of an alley cat (Tyler the Creator) and a demon (Dave Attell).
The voice cast also includes Abby Elliot, John Leguizamo, Jon Glaser, Jay Pharoah, Noel Wells, James Adomian, Larry Murphy, Rachel Butera and Randy Pearlstein. Augenblick Studios’ Lisa Thomas and Kris Wollinger are producing along with James Elfer and Daniel Shepard of Cartuna. Peter Lengyel and Adam Belfer will exec producer. The screenplay was written by Aaron Bergeron.
Genius Brands International is producing a new tween girls-targeted entertainment and licensing brand, SpacePop.
“Tween girls live in a world of their own, inspired by music and fashion and friendship,” said Amy Moynihan Heyward, President, GBI. “SpacePop is a whole new galaxy for tweens, created by some of the most accomplished talent in music, fashion and storytelling, delivered in a way that naturally corresponds to how tweens consume media today. Two spirited, music driven segments will be released every week to tell the tales of four galactic space princesses, along with a comprehensive body of new original music that will also be distributed separately”
The music- and fashion-driven property will feature original music by multiple Grammy Award-winning record producer Ron Fair and singer-songwriter Stefanie Fair, original character and fashion designs by Han Lee (HLL Design, Bobby Jack) and stories developed by Emmy-winning head writer Steve Banks (SpongeBob SquarePants).
Created and developed by GBI, SpacePop is aimed at girls ages 7-12. Production has begun on a run of over 100 animated shorts to be digitally distributed, in line with the target demographic’s mobile-driven viewing habits. Production is being spearheaded by GBI’s chairman and CEO Andy Heyward (Inspector Gadget, Sabrina the Teenage Witch).
The property has already inked a Master Publisher deal with Imprint, part of Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group. The first title, Not Your Average Princesses, is a middle-grade novel with graphic novel inserts, written by Erin Downing and illustrated by Jen Bartel. The first book will land in July, with a second scheduled for January 2017.
“We are thrilled to be recognized by the Academy, alongside such a great group of animated films. We are grateful for the dedication and passion of our talented team of animators and artists, as well as our brilliant cast – Jennifer, Tom and David. Thank you to the Academy for recognizing our film.” – Charlie Kaufman, co-director/producer/screenwriter, Duke Johnson, co-director/producer and Rosa Tran, producer
Boy and the World
GKIDS
“I am so honored and happy to have our film recognized by the Academy, I have no words. Thank you! It was a great year for animation around the globe, and the Academy’s continued recognition of our work will continue to inspire.”
– Alê Abreu, director
Inside Out
Disney-Pixar
“We are beyond grateful to the Academy for honoring us with these nominations – especially in a year with so many fantastic movies. On behalf of the cast, crew and team at Pixar we would like to say…THANK YOU! We’re lucky to work at a studio that allows us to make movies that are colorful, fun, personal — and emotional.”
-Pete Docter, director & Jonas Rivera, producer
Shaun the Sheep: The Movie
Aardman Animations / Lionsgate
“It’s mind blowing where Shaun has got to in the last 10 years. I’m very proud on behalf of myself, my co-director Mark Burton, and team Shaun!”
— Richard Starzak, writer/director
When Marnie Was There
GKIDS / Studio Ghibli
“I am delighted and honored that When Marnie Was There has been selected by the Academy as a nominee for ‘Best Animated Film’ of 2015. The selection of the film truly is a tribute to the entire production staff of the film, to whom I express my sincere appreciation. I will continue to endeavor to make films that will be seen and enjoyed by many people. Thank you very much for this honor.”
– Hiromasa Yonebayashi, director
Jonas RiveraPete DocterAle AbreuHiromasa YonebayashiRichard Starzak and Mark Burton
The Jim Henson Company has finalized a clutch of new agreements for three of its popular preschool series: multiple Daytime Emmy Award-nominated Dinosaur Train, Sid the Science Kid and Pajanimals.
Henson has secured multiple key territory deals for Dinosaur Train, including in Europe where Buena Vista has acquired seasons 3 and 4 for Disney Channel in Germany; Watchever GmbH picked up season 2 for Austria, Germany and Switzerland; Multithematiques acquired season 3 for France; and ERT in Greece has picked up the first season. In Canada, TFO licensed season 3 for French speaking audiences, while Knowledge Network gets seasons 3 and 4 for British Columbia. SIC picked up seasons 1 and 2 for Angola and Mozambique; Emirates Cable TV & Multimedia acquired seasons 3 and 4 and renewed season 1; Swen Entretenimientos picked up season 1 for Brazil; and ABC Australia has already begun broadcasting the first season.
Deals for Sid the Science Kid season one have been made with Mediacorp (Singapore), Nagase Brothers Inc. (Japan), ERT (Greece) and TV Film International Inc. (Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Dominican Republic, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay). Emirates Cable TV & Multimedia acquired SVOD rights for season two and renewed season one for UAE.
Last but not least, Pajanimals got picked up by MTV Oy in Finland. The show has also been snapped up by ERT, RTB Brunei, POD Worldwide (Thailand), Emirates and Swen.
Who are you callin’ cuddly?! There’s more than meets the eye to fuzzy white rabbit Snowball in Illumination Entertainment’s The Secret Life of Pets — arriving in theaters July 8. Illumination and Universal Pictures are teasing the upcoming CG comedy-adventure with a newly released clip featuring the butt-kicking bunny voice by Kevin Hart.
In this fifth fully animated feature collaboration, the studios which brought you Despicable Me present a fast-paced, hilarious thrill ride following the secret lives that domesticated pets lead each day while their humans are away at work or school. The film stars Louis C.K., Eric Stonestreet, Kevin Hart, Ellie Kemper, Lake Bell, Jenny Slate, Bobby Moynihan, Hannibal Buress and Albert Brooks.
The Secret Life of Pets is directed by Chris Renaud (Despicable Me and Despicable Me 2), co-directed by Yarrow Cheney and written by Brian Lynch, Cinco Paul & Ken Daurio. Illumination founder and CEO Chris Meledandri serves as producer with his longtime collaborator Janet Healy.
One of Britain’s most admired stars of stage, film and television Alan Rickman has died in London at age 69. The acclaimed performer, whose turns as Severus Snape in the Harry Potter films cemented his pop culture legacy, passed away Thursday, January 14 “surrounded by family and friends,” according to a statement from the family. Rickman had been struggling with cancer.
Rickman became a regular feature of Hollywood blockbusters after a breakout performance as antagonist Hans Gruber in 1988’s Die Hard — he was offered the part just two days after arriving in Los Angeles, at age 41. He performed other iconic villain roles in Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves (1991) and HBO’s Rasputin (1995), for which he won a Golden Globe, Emmy and SAG Award.
The London-born actor also had highly rated turns as a leading man, memorably opposite Emma Thompson as Col. Brandon in Sense and Sensibility, in Love, Actually and in BBC’s The Song of Lunch. He also starred opposite Juliet Stevenson in 1991’s Truly, Madly, Deeply, and made his directorial debut with his 1995 adaption of The Winter Guest. He played with self-referential humor in his role for the sci-fi comedy Galaxy Quest, as a classically trained thespian best known for his supporting role as an uptight alien.
In the course of his busy 30-year acting and directing career, Rickman did occasionally lend his distinctive, Shakespearian-trained voice to animated characters. He performed as the Caterpillar for Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland — a role which he reprised for the upcoming sequel, Alice Through the Looking Glass. Rickman can also be heard as Marvin the robot in 2005’s Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy and in guest starring roles for Back at the Barnyard (General Alien) and King of the Hill (King Philip).
Rickman’s star power also lead to him to be sent up on shows like The Simpsons and, memorably, in the “Alan Rickman’s voicemail” bit on Family Guy.
Santa Monica visual effects studio ArsenalCreative is expanding its creative team with the hiring of award-winning artist Andy Bate as the Head of 2D and Lead Visual Effects Supervisor. Bate joins the company from a52 where he was a senior flame artist.
“Andy is an established artist whose work is timeless,” said ArsenalCreative Managing Partner Mark Leiss. “With our recent growth, I felt this was the perfect opportunity to invite Andy on board to continue the excellent work ArsenalCreative is known for. He is exactly the type of talent we have been seeking to drive us to the next level.”
Bate brings over 15 years of industry experience to his new position. He began his career at The Mill London, transferring to the company’s Los Angeles studio in 2009. He worked at a52 for three years. Bate’s portfolio includes campaigns for brands including Nike, Adidas, Powerade, Xfinity, Microsoft, Hyundai, Verizon and Beats by Dre and contributed to work by agencies like Wieden & Kennedy, Black Ops, BBDO, Team One and Saatchi & Saatchi. During his career he has been honored with multiple awards, including an Emmy, Cannes Lion – Gold and Clio Gold for his work on Procter & Gamble’s “Best Job.”
Industry veteran Pam Lifford, previously EVP of global licensing for Quiksilver, has been named President of Warner Bros. Consumer Products, effective February 1. The announcement was made by Diane Nelson, President of DC Entertainment & Warner Bros. Consumer Producer and President & Chief Content Officer for Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment, to whom Lifford will report.
Lifford is charged with overseeing all WBCP business functions, including domestic and international licensing, worldwide marketing, business and legal affairs, finance and retail business development related to WBCP’s high profile portfolio of hit franchises. WBCP properties include DC Comics’ Batman and Superman, Harry Potter, The Hobbit, Looney Tunes, Scooby-Doo and many others. Lifford succeeds Brad Globe, who is stepping down after over a decade at the job.
Lifford will work directly with Nelson and the WBCP executive team to optimize Warner Bros.’ upcoming slate of film, television and animation properties. She will continue to build WBCP’s themed entertainment business, as well as identify new opportunities within the studio’s content library. Lifford will also work with colleagues at Turner via Cartoon Network and Boomerang to support and build the Company’s overall kids’ businesses.
Widely respected in the consumer products industry, Lifford carries over 25 years of experience in the business. She spent 12 years at Disney, where she rose through the ranks to become Executive Vice President, overseeing the global home, fashion and infant category. Her resume also includes posts with Road Runner Sports and Nike.
Viacom International Media Networks and Mexico’s Televisa have extended a content deal which will deliver 400 hours of Nickelodeon content south of the border. The agreement is part of a clutch of sales secured ahead of the NATPE market.
The deal includes rights for Televisa to air seasons one and two of Harvey Beaks, season one of Pig Boat Banana Cricket and seasons one through three of Penguins of Madagascar. Popular live-action kids and tweens shows are also part of the agreement.
Televisa also picked up more than 40 hours of Comedy Central’s South Park and multiple live-action and unscripted series from VIMN channel portfolios.
The organizers for the 2016 GLAS Animation Festival — taking place March 3-6 in Berkeley, California — have completed the official selection film list. Culled from over 1,400 submissions, the 65 animated films that will be competing in the Narrative, Non-Narrative, Graduate, Undergraduate and Commissioned Shorts categories reflect the state of indie animation worldwide.
GLAS will be announcing special programing details in the coming weeks, as well as the picks for the Children’s Competition, U.S. Competition and International Showcase. Visit www.glasanimation.com/animation-festival for details.
Narrative Competition
Peripheria – David Coquard Dassault (France)
Waves ‘98 – Ely Dagher (France)
Yùl et le Serpent – Gabriel Harel (France)
Leftover – Sarolta Szabo & Tibor Banoczki (France)
Oripeaux – Sonia Gerbeaud & Mathias de Panafieu (France/Belgium)
Teeth – Holbrooks: Tom Brown & Daniel Gray (UK/Hungary/USA)
The Master – Riho Unt (Estonia)
La Chair de ma Chère – Calvin Antoine Blandin (France)
Life with Herman H. Rott – Chintis Lundgren (Estonia/Croatia/Denmark)
House of Unconsciousness – Priit Tender (Estonia)
Haircut – Virginia Mori (France/Italy)
Maku – Yokiro Mizushiri (Japan)
Monkey Love Experiments – Ainslie Henderson & William Anderson (UK)
Mynarski Death Plummet – Matthew Rankin (Canada)
Snowfall – Conor Whelan (Ireland)
Swallow – Xi Chen (China)
We Can’t Live Without the Cosmos – Konstantin Bronzit
Non-Narrative Competition
L’Œil du Cyclone –Masanobu Hiraoka (Japan)
With Joy and Merriness – Jeanne Boukkra (Belgium)
Dark Mixer – Hirotoshi Iwasaki (Japan)
Five Minute Museum – Paul Bush (UK)
Sonambulo – Theodore Ushev (Canada)
Goodbye Rabbit, Hop Hop – Caleb Wood (USA)
A Place I’ve Never Been – Adrian Flury (Switzerland)
London-based CAKE and Australian production company Cheeky Little Media announce the appointment of licensing and merchandising agents for new animated series Bottersnikes and Gumbles in key territories.
Lisle International in the U.K. and Eire and The Fusion Agency in Australia will be tasked with seeking out licensing partners in all core categories. They will begin by introducing the property to interested companies at the London and Nuremberg Toy Fairs at the end of January.
Based on the books from author S.A. Wakefield and illustrator Desmond Digby, Bottersnikes and Gumbles is a 52 x 11 CG comedy series aimed at kids 6-9. It follows three Gumble heroes — Tink, Bounce and Willi — who can squash and stretch into any imaginable shape. They love to “gumble” all day long, enjoying crazy, stretchy capers around their junk valley while avoiding their stinky, grumpy, lazy neighbors the Bottersnikes.
Bottersnikes and Gumbles is a Netflix original series produced by CAKE, Cheeky Little Media and Mighty Nice Productions, co-produced with CBBC (UK) and Seven Network (Australia). Already airing on Seven, the show will launch on CBBC in July, with global Netflix premiere scheduled for this year in all markets excluding Australia and UK, which will join in 2016 and 2017, respectively.
Smash-hit animated feature Frozen will give fans an extra sweet Valentine, making its broadcast debut on Disney Channel on February 14 at 7 p.m. (ET/PT).
Directed by Chris Buck and Jennifer Lee, Frozen hit theaters in 2013 and became the highest grossing animated film of all time, raking in over a billion dollars worldwide. The magical, musical CG adventure also took home two Academy Awards (Best Animated Feature and Best Original for Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez’s “Let It Go”), the Best Animated Feature Film Golden Globe, five Annie Awards and two Grammys.
Additionally, the film’s enchanted snowman Olaf (voiced by Josh Gad) will make a special appearance on hit kids’ series Sofia the First on February 15 on Disney Channel (at 11:30 a.m) and Disney Junior (at 7 p.m.) Also featuring returning guest stars Megan Mullally as Miss Nettle, Eric Stonestreet (flying horse Minimus) and Hugh Bonneville (narrator), “The Secret Library: Olaf and the Tale of Miss Nettle” will be the second installment in a four-part story.
The episode will bow on the WATCH Disney Junior app and website on Feb. 8.
HBO will premiere a new animated series from production house Duplass Brothers TV, Animals, on Friday, February 5 at 11:30 p.m. ET/PT. The adult-targeted series debuted the first two episodes at last year’s Sundance festival, leading to an order for two seasons from the network.
Created by advertising creative Phil Matarese and Mike Luciano and produced by Mark and Jay Duplass, Animals turns the spotlight on the lowly urban-dwelling creatures trying to get by in New York City. Projecting human existential crises and questionable morals on lovelorn rats, gender-questioning pigeons and bedbugs going through middle life, the show is largely voiced by Matarese and Luciano with guest voices from the likes of The League stars Katie Aselton, Mark Duplass, Nick Kroll and Jason Mantzoukas, and Childrens Hospital‘s Rob Corddry and Molly Shannon.
Animals is being animated by Starburns Industries, which also delivered stop-motion indie feature Anomalisa and hit 2D Adult Swim series Rick and Morty.
