Animation Magazine

Author: Ryan Ball

  • Aqua Teen Movie Served in Theaters

    Cartoon Network’s [adult swim] makes its big-screen debut this weekend with the release of Aqua Teen Hunger Force Colon Movie Film For Theaters. Rolling out in around 877 theaters across North America, the First Look Pictures release has had critics split pretty evenly down the middle, suggesting that it is likely to be a love-it-or-hate it affair. Expect some love from fans of the late-night cartoon show, especially those under the influence, and bewilderment from the uninitiated.

    Written, produced and directed by series creators Matt Maiellaro and Dave Willis under the Williams Street banner, Aqua Teen Hunger Force Colon Movie Film For Theaters reveals the mysterious origins of Master Shake, Frylock and Meatwad, the three fast-food items who come to share a rental home in New Jersey. The trio must come to the rescue when the Plutonians team with the Cybernetic Ghost of Christmas Past to take possession of an immortal piece of exercise equipment that threatens the balance of galactic peace.

    Cult film hero Bruce Campbell and Rush front man Neil Peart lend their voices to the film, joining series regulars Maiellaro (Cybernetic Ghost of Christmas Past), Willis (Carl, Meatwad, Ignignokt), Dana Snyder (Master Shake), Carey Means (Frylock) and Andy Merrill and Mike Schatz (The Plutonians).

    Despite getting some negative buzz from early test screenings, the movie has managed to garner favorable reviews from critics at such major publications as Rolling Stone, Village Voice, Newsday, the Washington Post, Premiere and the famously fickle Daily Variety. A number of reviewers applaud Maiellaro and Willis for sticking to their offbeat guns and delivering a surrealist assault on pop culture.

    Aqua Teen Hunger Force premiered on Adult Swim in September of 2001 and has delighted fans with more than 60 15-minute episodes. Box office results will decide whether or not it was a mistake to stretch it to 85 minutes, especially after the three-hour Robert Rodriguez/Quentin Tarantino double feature Grindhouse overstayed its welcome with too many moviegoers last weekend.

    Also opening in wide release today are Paramount/DreamWorks’ Rear Window-esque thriller Disturbia, Sony/Revolution’ Haley Berry/Bruce Willis suspense fest Perfect Stranger, Twentieth Century Fox’s Vikings-meet-Native-Americans actioner Pathfinder: Legend of the Ghost Warrior, Lionsgate’s Ray Liota crime thriller Slow Burn and Chicago Pictures’ high-octane car movie, Redline.

  • Triggerfish Flies to Zambezia

    Triggerfish Animation in Cape Town, South Africa is venturing into feature film production with Zambezia, a CG movie set in the Victoria Falls area of the Zambezi river. The family film revolves around the unique flora and fauna found in the lush river valley and promises plenty of high-speed chases and an exciting climactic aerial battle.

    Zambezia centers on an independent young falcon named Aero, who leaves home to join the most famous aerobatics team in Africa. Having entered the prestigious Spring Race, he finds himself in the middle of a plot hatched by egg-eating giant monitor lizards that threatens the entire island sanctuary and the future of bird life in the entire valley. In his heroic quest to defeat his formidable foes, Aero eventually comes to realize that the most important journey of life is finding the way home.

    Trigerfish has a history in stop-motion animation and recently branched out into 2D and CG production when the company was commissioned to handle all animation for Takalani Sesame, the South African version of Sesame Street. The company plans to have Zambezia ready for release in April of 2009. The pilot animation can be viewed at www.zambeziamovie.com.

  • Ricci is Speed Racer’s Trixie

    After being chained half-naked to Samuel L. Jackson’s radiator in Black Snake Moan, Christina Ricci will help the Wachowski brothers bring a cartoon favorite to the big screen. The actress has been signed to play Trixie in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ live-action Speed Racer. The title role will be played by Emile Hirsch (Alpha Dog, Lords of Dogtown).

    Based on the beloved anime series created by Tatsuo Yoshida, the Speed Racer movie will follow the adventures of young racecar driver Speed as he strives to drive his famous Mach 5 to victory while tangling with his mysterious arch-rival, Racer X. The flick promises to deliver the kind of revolutionary visual effects that have been a major part of the Wachowskis’ work since the groundbreaking first Matrix movie. Larry and Andy Wachowski are writing and directing the adaptation with usual collaborator Joel Silver producing the film under his Silver Pictures banner.

    As Trixie, Ricci will play Speed’s loyal and courageous girlfriend, who proves to be a formidable ally both on and off the racetrack. She’ll also be working with John Goodman and Susan Sarandon, who will portray Speed’s devoted parents. Ricci can next be seen in the title role of the Weinstein Co.’s fantasy-drama Penelope.

    Speed Racer is slated to for release on May 9, 2008. To see a video interview with Ricci talking about being cast in the movie, go to http://speedracerthemovie.com/.

  • Platform Fest Selections Made

    The Platform Int’l Animation Festival has released a list of short films in competition in various categories. The mix includes student films, television productions, commercials/promos, title sequences, music videos and installations. Selections for the Internet and mobile category will be announced on April 23. The festival will take place June 25-30 in Portland, Oregon, and will feature premieres, retrospectives, exclusive screenings, guest speakers, exhibitions, workshops with leading artists, parties and networking opportunities over the five-day period.

    Among the better known animated shorts to screen at the fest are Torill Kove’s Oscar-winning The Danish Poet, DreamWorks Animation’s First Flight from directors Cameron Hood and Kyle Jefferson, Alex Weil’s SIGGRAPH-winning One Rat Short, Run Wrake’s festival favorite Rabbit, Bruce Alcock’s Ottawa honoree At the Quinte Hotel, Don Hertzfeldt’s Sundance winner Everything Will Be Ok and Suzie Templeton’s stop-motion retelling of Peter and the Wolf.

    Hit TV series with episodes in competition include Nickelodoen’s Avatar: The Last Airbender, Cartoon Network’s El Tigre, Jetix’s Oban Star Racers and Aardman Animations’ Shaun the Sheep. Also getting recognition are the ad spots in between the shows, including the Ben and Jerry’s “Pints Personified” and Coca Cola “Rivalries” campaigns from Mark Gustafson.

    Oscar-winning animator John Canemaker will be among those judging the entries. Organizers want the festival to provide a platform for artists, innovation, debate and discussion. The event will also recognize other art forms, including comics, illustration, character and toy design, motion graphics, gallery art and live-action cinema. For complete list of productions in competition and other details, go to www.platformfestival.com.

  • Character Designer Mendez Lectures at AI

    The April 17th session of the Animation 21 Lecture Series at the Art Institute of California’Los Angeles will feature a session with accomplished character designer Phil Mendez. He will be on hand to demonstrate the techniques and essentials of his trade before AI and members of the Los Angeles chapter ff IGDA turn the evening’s focus to the use of 2D animation in video game development. The program will begin at 6:30 p.m. in the Big Room at the Art Institute of California’Los Angeles, located at 2900 31st Street in Santa Monica.

    Mendez started a regular comic strip in the Mercury Shopper’s Guide at the age of sixteen and, a couple years later, got hired by ad agency Dancer-Fitzgerald-Sample as an assistant art director on the General Mills account. He freelanced on comic books for Charlton Press and DC Comics in 1966, and by 1970 was working at Disney on the animated feature film Robin Hood. He then worked for Fred Calvert Prods. and Ron Campbell Films on projects including Nanny and The Professor, Sesame Street and the Great Blue Marble IBM specials.

    At Hanna-Barbara Prods., Mendez designed presentations and layout work for such series as The Flintstones, The Jetsons, Scooby-Doo, The Yogi Bear Show and Hong Kong Phooey. He was then hired by Mark Davis in 1975 as his assistant to design attractions for Disneyland where he worked on Fantasyland rides, Epcot Center and concept work for future Disney Projects.

    Phil Mendez Prods. was formed in 1982 and, through the company, Mendez designed the original presentation and characters for An American Tail and Rose Petal Place. He created the children’s shows Kissyfur and Foofur, and wrote the Scholastic Press book The Black Snowman, which has sold 1,7 million copies and won the Martin Luther King Living the Dream Award in 1991.

    Game Center partners supporting the Animation 21 Lecture Series include Alias, AMD, Animation Magazine, Autodesk Inc., Softimage, F. Dice, International Game Developers Assn.(IGDA), Luminetik Animation Studios, Motion Analysis Corp., Nvidia Corp., PC Unlimited, Peachpit Press, Pioneer (U.S.), Seagate Technology, SilverStone, Tyan Computer Corporation, wondertouch and ViewSonic. For more information on these and future events, contact Bijan Tehrani at (818) 613-4227.

  • CBS Serves DIC’s Sushi, Dinosaur

    In announcing the new Saturday Morning kids’ lineup on CBS, the network and DIC Ent. lifted the veil on two new animated show set to debut this September. Joining returning shows CAKE and Horseland in the three-hour, E/I-compliant programming block are Sushi Pack and I Was a High School Dinosaur. The lineup will also include the previously announced revivals of Care Bears and Strawberry Shortcake.

    From Tom Ruegger and Nicholas Hollander, the Emmy-winning writers/producers behind such hit shows as Animaniacs, Tiny Toon Adventures and Pinky and the Brain, comes Sushi Pack. The new show follows five crime-fighting pieces of raw fish that protect Bento Bay from over-the-top diabolical villains.

    I Was a High School Dinosaur follows five quirky teens who suddenly gain the power to transform into dinosaurs. Guided by their Yoda-like science teacher, the mysterious Ms. Moynihan, the kids learn to work together and use their unique abilities to protect the Earth from an anthropomorphic Velociraptor who is creating “mutant-saurs” and accelerating global warming in his quest to bring back the Age of the Dinosaurs.

    After being out of the public eye for a while, ’80s toy and toon sensations Cheer Bear, Funshine, Share Bear, Grumpy and Oopsy are back in the all-new Care Bears series that promises to offer a fresh and contemporary twist on the classic property. Likewise, DIC hopes to breathe new life into Strawberry Shortcake with all-new animated adventures of the popular doll and her friends in the world of Strawberryland.

    Sushi Pack, Care Bears and Strawberry Shortcake are all produced through a partnership between DIC and American Greetings. Care Bears and Strawberry Shortcake will target children ages 4-8 and Sushi Pack will skew to the 6-11 set. Premiere dates will be announced in the near future.

  • Nelvana Hops to MIPTV with Rabbit

    Corus Ent.’s Nelvana has announced the start of production on My Friend Rabbit, an animated television series based on Eric Rohmann’s 2003 Caldecott Gold Medal-winning children’s book of the same name. The series was commissioned by Treehouse, Corus’ preschool broadcast service in Canada, and will be produced by Nelvana Studios. Nelvana Enterprises will be shopping the property at MIPTV for delivery in 2008.

    Tailored to kids 3 -6, the 2D series revolves around best friends Mouse and Rabbit, whose exploits lead to humorous predicaments and inventive resolutions, opening children’s eyes to the endless possibilities of the world around them. Nelvana will initially produce 26 half hours consisting of two 11-minute adventures.

    My Friend Rabbit will make its debut this fall on qubo, the multi-platform television network launched last year by ION Media Networks, NBC Universal, Scholastic, Classic Media/Big Idea and Corus. The series will then launch on Treehouse in Canada in 2008/

    On qubo, the show will join fellow Nelvana animated series Jane and the Dragon, Babar and Jacob Two-Two, as well as Classic Media/Big Idea’s VeggieTales, and Scholastic Inc.’s Dragon. The programs air on NBC’s Saturday morning block, Telemundo and ION Networks.

  • Happily N’ever After Gets May Disc Date

    Lionsgate will release its animated feature Happily N’ever After on DVD and Blu-ray Disc on May 1. Following on the heels of the toon-loaded holiday season, the independently produced fractured fairytale had a lackluster theatrical bow in January of this year, taking in $6.8 million on opening weekend and went on to gross $19.3 million worldwide. Lionsgate is heaping on a generous amount of extra features in hopes that they will help entice consumers to discover the movie on home vide.

    Happily N’ever After takes place in Fairy Tale Land, where the age-old balance between good and evil has been thrown out of whack. When Cinderella’s power-mad stepmother rallies an unholy alliance of bad guys, it’s up to our blonde heroine to shed her damsel-in-distress trappings to lead the resistance. The voice cast is led by Sarah Michelle Gellar, Sigourney Weaver, Freddie Prinze Jr., George Carlin, Wallace Shawn and Andy Dick. The film is directed by Paul J. Bolger and written by Robert Moreland. Vanguard Films’ Oscar-winning producer John H. Williams (Shrek, Valiant) produced the pic with BAF Berlin Animation Film and BFC Berliner Film Companie.

    Both the DVD and the Blu-ray Disc releases will include an alternate ending, seven deleted scenes, more than 40 minutes of featurettes, audio commentary by Bolger, interactive games and more. In addition, Lionsgate has created customized menus that will allow viewers to choose between good or evil menu screens based on responses to a series of multiple-choice questions. The menus are hosted by animated characters Mambo (Andy Dick) and Munk (Wallace Shawn) from the movie, who provide color commentary throughout the bonus feature selections.

    Happily N’ever After will retail for the suggested retail price of $28.98 on DVD and $39.99 on Blue-ray. The release will also be at the center of an in-school program reaching 20,000 schools nationwide. Teachers will use movie clips and the fairytale theme as an educational resource to engage and teach kids some of the film’s lessons.

  • More Neverwinter Nights for Atari

    Atari Inc. today announced that developer Obsidian Ent. is at work on Neverwinter Nights 2: Mask of the Betrayer, the latest chapter in the very successful role-playing game saga set in the Dungeons & Dragons Forgotten Realms universe created by Hasbro subsidiary Wizards of the Coast. The expansion pack will be available for PC in North America this fall.

    Neverwinter Nights 2: Mask of the Betrayer will transport gamers back to the Forgotten Realms, shortly after the events detailed in the original Neverwinter Nights 2. Following the climactic battle against the King of Shadows, the player awakens alone and stranded deep beneath the earth. Surrounded by a horde of evil spirits, the player embarks on an epic adventure that reveals his or her true destiny. The expansion will offer dozens of new feats and spells; new races, base classes and prestige classes; new companions; new weapons, armor and crafting options; hordes of new monsters; and enhanced modding tools.

    “Atari’s commitment to the Neverwinter Nights franchise and the enormous community is strong,” says Nique Fajors, VP of sales and marketing for Atari. ‘We’re also making new advances in story and character development, as well as improving upon the acclaimed companion Influence System used in both Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic 2: The Sith Lords and Neverwinter Nights 2,” adds Obsidian Ent.CEO Feargus Urquhart.

    The Neverwinter Nights franchise has sold more than three million copies worldwide and has been translated into 10 languages. To date, fans of the saga, which includes the expansions Neverwinter Nights: Shadows of Undrentide and Neverwinter Nights: Hordes of the Underdark, have created more than 5,000 modifications to the original release using the award-winning toolset included with the full game. More information about Neverwinter Nights 2 can be found at www.nwn2.com.

  • More Ratatouille Treats Online

    A behind-the-scenes featurette from production of the upcoming Disney/Pixar movie Ratatouille has made its way to the ubiquitous YouTube. While most studios are ridicously guarded with detais of their upcoming releases, Disney has been smartly using the web to generate viral marketing for the CG rat pic. In this latest morsel’which originally aired as an ABC News featurette’director Brad Bird (The Iron Giant, The Incredibles) offers a nice little peek into his world as he works to bring another animated vision to the screen.

    Ratatouille stars comedian Patton Oswalt as the voice of a rodent who lives in a Paris eatery and fancies himself a gourmand and has dreams of being a chef himself. After nearly getting the business end of a few carving knives, he joins forces with a kitchen boy who can’t cook and together they set out to become the greatest chef in Paris. The movie opens nationwide on June 29, but you can catch the new behind-the-scenes footage now at www.youtube.com/watch?v=utCMr03W8wc.

  • Voice Actor Roscoe Lee Brown Dies

    After racking up an impressive list of credits on stage, in front of the camera and in the recording booth over the last four decades, actor Roscoe Lee Browne has died at the age of 81. He received an Emmy for a 1984 guest starring role on The Cosby Show, and his work will live on in a number of animated TV shows and movies. According to The Hollywood Reporter, he passed away early Wednesday at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center after a long battle with cancer.

    Most recently, Browne narrated Twentieth Century Fox’s live-action/CG feature Garfield: A Tail of Two Kitties and voiced the role of Dr. Anokye in episodes of the Warner Bros. Animation series Static Shock. He also played Mr. Arrow in the animated Disney flick Treasure Planet, and did spots on the cartoon series The Proud Family and The Wild Thornberrys. Fans of the 1995-1998 animated Spider-Man series will know him as the voice of Kingpin, a role he played in 30 episodes, but he also tangoed with The Dark Knight as Dr. Wataki in a 1994 installment of Batman: The Animated Series. Other big-screen voiceover gigs included Disney’s 1988 toon feature Oliver & Company and the 1995 movie Babe, which he narrated.

    Born in Woodbury, New Jersey, Browne graduated from historically black Lincoln University in Pennsylvania and later taught comparative literature and French there before going on to become an Obie Award-winning stage actor. In film, he worked with the likes of Alfred Hitchcock and John Wayne. He was also world-class athelete, winning the 1951 world championship in the 800-yard dash, and a respected poet.

  • Cake’s Skunk Fu! Kicks Around Europe

    London-based Cake Distribution is expanding the European reach of its animated action-comedy series Skunk Fu! with sales to France 5, NRK in Norway and RAISAT in Italy. The show was the fifth most watched series at MIPCOM Junior in 2006 and heads into next week’s MIPTV with a host of broadcast partners including Cartoon Network Asia, CBBC, Super RTL, Canal J, TG4, SVT, S4C and RTBF. Skunk Fu! will launch in Europe later this year.

    Created by Aidan Harte, Skunk Fu! (52×12) is a Cartoon Saloon, Telegael and Hoek, Line & Thinker co-production for TG4 (Ireland) and SUPER RTL (Germany). Scheduled for full delivery this fall, the show targets kids 6-12 with the adventures of a western kid learning Kung Fu from a wise old Panda in China, so that he can help the resistance fight against the evil Black Dragon and his army of Ninja Monkeys.

    A boutique distributor of animation and family entertainment, Cake Distribution handles worldwide distribution rights for Skunk Fu! Worldwide licensing and merchandising rights to the property are handled by Galleon Plc. Cake also distributes such animated properties as King Arthur’s Disasters, Edgar & Ellen, Loopdidoo, Total Drama Island and Tiny Planets, as well as the Scholastic catalogue for Europe only. More information can be found at www.cakeentertainment.com.

  • Taffy’s Fantastic Four Stretches Internationally

    Taffy Ent. has sold its new Fantastic Four animated series to the U.K.’s GMTV, which plans to air the Marvel superhero action show during Toonattik, its weekend children’s block that airs on ITV1 and CITV. In separate deals, the series was acquired by TV Globo in Brazil, MRTL in Hungary and Fox Video for Europe and Latin America.

    Based on characters created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, the Fantastic Four toon series is co-produced by France’s Moonscoop Prods. and continues the adventures of a group of astronauts who develop special abilities after being exposed to cosmic radiation and become a famous team of do-gooders.

    Following strong bows on Cartoon Network in the U.S. M6 in France and ITV in the U.K., Fantastic Four will soon be released on DVD just in time to capitalize on the publicity surrounding Twentieth Century Fox’s June 15 release of the live-action feature Fantastic 4: The Rise of the Silver Surfer.

    Operating from offices in Paris, Los Angeles, London and Shanghai, Taffy is the distribution and brand management arm of Mike Young Prods. and MoonScoop Prods. The company’s library of more than 3,000 half hours of animation includes Bobby’s World, Jakers! The Adventures of Piggley Winks, ToddWorld, Pet Alien, Titeuf, Growing Up Creepie, Mix Master, Dive Olly Dive!, Code Lyoko and Casper.

  • DECODE’s Bo On the Go! to MIPTV

    DECODE Ent. announced plans to launch new animated series Bo on the GO! at MIPTV. Produced by Halifax Films, DECODE’s sister company in DHX Media Ltd., the CG show encouraging preschoolers to lead active, healthy lifestyles has been commissioned by Canada’s CBC.

    Bo is a positive, super-energetic and inquisitive young heroine who, along with her dragon pal Dezadore, encourages children at home to go on amazing adventures by actively joining her in a variety of movements that assist her on her quest.

    ‘Helping kids have a healthy lifestyle with lots of exercise is an issue facing broadcasters around the world and this is a fun, interactive show that gets them moving around at an early age,’ says Dominique Bazay, VP of distribution at DECODE Ent.

  • FUNimation Tunes in Central Park Media

    Navarre Corp.’s FUNimation Ent. has acquired several anime titles from anime distributor Central Park Media for broadcast on the FUNimation Channel. The titles, including Revolutionary Girl Utena: The Movie and the modern classic Grave of the Fireflies, will debut as part of a new movie block on Saturday, May 5, at 8 p.m. (ET).

    Other Central Park Media properties joining the FUNimation lineup include the Record of Lodoss Wars series, Roujin Z, the Project A-ko series, Urusei Yatsura: Beautiful Dreamer.

    Established to expose a wider audience to FUNimation’s anime portfolio and Japanese animation in general, the FUNimation Channel is available to video service providers across the nation as a 24/7 linear channel and as syndicated programming through OlympuSAT, a distributor of independent digital programming networks.

    A full list and descriptions of the titles FUNimation acquired from Central Park, as well as additional information on the FUNimation Channel, can be found at www.funimationchannel.com.

  • Gatchaman, YatterMan Go Live

    Daily Variety reports that Tokyo’s Nikkatsu Studio is planning live-action movies based on the popular anime series Gatchaman and YatterMan, which were produced by Tatsunoko Prods. in the early to late 1970s. The films will lead a slate of 16 movies to be produced by Nikkatsu over the next couple of years. Tatsunoko and toymaker Takara Tomy will work with the film production company to exploit the properties through various licensing and merchandising campaigns.

    Broadcast under the titles G-Force and Battle of the Planets in English-speaking territories, the Gatchaman anime series debuted in 1972. The show revolves around five ninja superheroes who work for the International Science Organization to keep technologically advanced villains from taking control of the Earth’s natural resources. TMNT director Kevin Munroe and TMNT animation house Imagi in Hong Kong are working on a CG-animated Gotchaman movie for release in 2008.

    The animated YatterMan series first aired in 1977, introducing viewers to a pair of young heroes who fight to keep an evil gang from obtaining the Dokuro Stone, a legendary gem that many believe can reveal the location of the largest vein of gold in the world. Director Takashi Miike, who made the controversial Masters of Horror installment Imprint, has been attached to direct the live-action feature for a summer 2009 release. Miike is currently finishing Sukiyaki Western, an Asian remake of the classic Franco Nero spaghetti western Django.

  • Portfolio Flocks to Radical Sheep Toons

    Going into next week’s MIPTV market in Cannes, Toronto-based Portfolio Ent. has picked up television distribution, home video, non-theatrical and multimedia rights for five preschool programs from Radical Sheep Prods. The raft of acquisitions includes the live-action/CG hybrid series Amigo and Me, and the puppet shows The Big Comfy Couch, Ruffus the Dog, Panda Bear Daycare and Land O’ Hands. Portfolio holds worldwide distribution rights for all five series in all languages excluding The Big Comfy Couch in the U.S. and South Korea. The deal also excludes rights for English-language distribution in Canada for all five programs.

    Amigo and Me (65×5) blends live action and computer-generated animation to a tell the tales of a stuffed toy that is brought to life through the imagination of young children. Venturing through wonderful worlds drawn with crayons, the children and their six-foot-tall best friend, Amigo, learn how to work and play together. The show is designed to give kids a better understanding the physical world, encourage visual imagination and teach the importance of friendship.

    The Big Comfy Couch (100 x 30) is a mix of live action and puppetry that currently airs on Treehouse in Canada and PBS in the U.S. Ruffus the Dog (26×15), Panda Bear Daycare (26×15) and Lands O’ Hands (50×4) are all classical puppetry shows that spin imaginative storylines to foster early development and teach important life lessons.

    Other Portfolio properties include the animated comedy Carl2 ,and RoboRoach. More information on these series can be found at www.portfolioentertainment.com.

  • 4Kids Busts Viva Pi’ata Deals

    The high-definition animated TV series Viva Pi’ata is set to spill treats for more young viewers as 4Kids Ent. sews up major pre-MIPTV broadcast deals with Media Set in Italy, TV 2 in Denmark, MTV 3 in Finland and Momo Kids TV in Taiwan. A total of 26 new half-hour episodes of the CG comedy-adventure show will be available to international buyers at next week’s MIPTV market in Cannes.

    Available as a series of 52 half-hour episodes or 104 11-minute installments, Viva Pi’ata features a cast of pi’ata friends who embark on wild adventures with mysteries to solve and parties to be had on Pi’ata Island. The ensemble cast of candy-filled paper mache characters include Hudson Horstachio, Fergy Fudgehog, Paulie Pretztail and Franklin Fizzlybear, with more pi’atas being discovered on a regular basis. The animation is produced by Vancouver-based Bardel Ent.

    Viva Pi’ata currently airs on Saturday mornings in the U.S. during the 4Kids TV block on FOX. Other broadcasters that have signed on to carry the show include YTV in Canada, France 3 Television in France, RTL2 in Germany, Canal J Pay Satellite TV in France, Nickelodeon in the U.K,, Netherlands, Spain, Australia and New Zealand (pay TV in all markets except Netherlands), NRK in Norway, SIC in Portugal, MediaCorp TV12’s Kid Central in Singapore and Children’s Channel in Israel, among others.

    The property has also launched on the 4Kids TV VOD Channel, which reaches approximately 11 million homes in the U.S. on Comcast and Cox ON DEMAND. Kids can also interact with their favorite characters in a Viva Pi’ata video game that Microsoft Game Studios and Rare Ltd. launched in 2006 exclusively for Xbox 360.

    4Kids has exclusive rights to represent Viva Pi’ata worldwide across broadcast, home video, music and merchandise licensing. More information about the show is available at http://www.vivapinata.com, a virtual island where fans can find hints and tips for the Xbox 360 game, get the latest updates on the animated TV series and score exclusive extras.

  • Vicon Debuts F-Series Cams

    Academy Award-winning motion-capture system developer Vicon today announced the debut of its new MX-F40 and MX-F20 cameras. Featuring the shuttered Vicon Vegas camera sensors designed specifically for motion capture, the new cameras enable performance data to be captured at higher speeds than ever before, according to the company.

    The F-Series cameras are the latest addition to Vicon’s MX platform, with the F standing for ‘Faster Full Frame’ motion capture. The F40 and F20 will replace the industry standard MX40+, MX20+ and MX13+ cameras, but the MX3+ cameras will still be available as a value precision solution.

    “The F40 and F20 represent the world’s first and only optical cameras to include proprietary sensors that were custom designed for motion capture applications,” says Nick Bolton of Vicon. “The release of the Vicon Vegas sensor is evidence of our continuing dedication to innovation and investment in research and development.’

    The F40 is capable of capturing 370 frames-per-second at four million pixels and the F20 camera captures up to 500 frames-per-second at two million pixel resolutions. Vicon has matched The increases in speed by making an improvement in the camera’s marker throughput capacity, allowing for the capture of more subjects per trial or take. The Vicon Vegas sensor also offers a true freeze-frame shutter that makes the F-series cameras tolerant of on-set or laboratory ambient light.

    “The performance increases of the F-series cameras allow for more accurate capture where high-speed action is par for the course, such as golf swing analysis and capturing sports for game development,’ Bolton adds. ‘While other systems may hit their marker limits when attempting to capture full body, hands and facial performance in the same volume, F-series cameras excel at such levels of detail.”

    Vicon operates out of four offices worldwide, including its Los Angeles-based entertainment headquarters, a 26,000 square-foot facility equipped with three performance capture stages used by its ‘s service company, House of Moves. More info on the company can be found at www.vicon.com.

  • Warner’s Heroes, Nick’s Avatar on DVD

    Warner Bros. Animation is well represented in this week’s batch of home video releases as the complete third seasons of The Batman, Teen Titans and Scooby-Doo, Where Are You! arrive on disc today. Fans of animated action and comedy can also pick up the latest offering of episodes from the hit Nickelodeon series Avatar the Last Airbender.

    The third season of The Batman introduces a young woman named Barbara Gordon, the daughter of Gotham City Police Commissioner James Gordon, who becomes Batgirl and battles best friend Poison Ivy and other villains. To help take her down, The Joker brings in the evil Cosmo Krank, also known as Toymaker. The two-disc set contains 13 episodes and bonus features, including The Batman: Season 3 Unmasked, a feturette that highlights the new characters and explores their historical becagrounds from the pages of DC Comics.

    Teen Titans: The Complete Third Season also offers 3 episodes of the series that centers on young superheroes Robin, Starfire, Cyborg and Beast Boy. This batch of installments has the caped crusaders continuing their epic battle with arch nemesis, Slade, and his evil minions. The two-disc release also features Teen Titans: Know Your Foes, an interactive featurette that focuses on the villains of season three and how our heroes are able to thwart their plans. In addition, a feature titled One Show ‘ Two Themes offers an explanation for why the show’s musical opening sequence changes depending on the subject matter of the episode. Both this release and the Batman season three set can be had for the list price of $19.98.

    Also from Warner Home Video comes and Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!

    The Complete Third Season. This double discer offers up the final 16 episodes of the popular 1978 Hanna-Barbera series that has everyone’s favorite Great Dane solving spooky mysteries with human pals Shaggy, Fred, Velma and Daphne. In this set of installments, the Mystery Inc. gang takes on cases involving the Bermuda Triangle, a snow beast, a tar monster, a cat creature, a bottomless lake and a number of bizarre characters including Old Iron Face and the Creepy Creature of Vulture’s Claws. The set carries a suggested retail price of $34.98.

    Avatar The Last Airbender – Book 2 Earth, Vol. 2 offers another five episodes from the second season of the anime-inspired cartoon series about a fun-loving 12-year-old boy named Aang, who must forego a normal life in order to master his latent powers over the four elements and defeat the evil Fire Nation. He is joined in his perilous journey to save the world by a teenage Waterbender named Katara and her bull-headed warrior brother, Sokka. The Paramount Home Entertainment release lists for $16.99.