Animation Magazine

Author: Ryan Ball

  • Madden NFL 06 Scores in Stores

    Electronic Arts’ Madden NFL 06 sold more than 1.7 million copies during its first week of availability, giving it the biggest week-one launch in the hugely successful franchise’s 16-year history. The title is developed by EA Tiburon in Orlando, Florida.

    EA is also riding high on the success of NCAA Football 06, another EA Tiburon title that debuted in July and became the month’s top-selling game for PlayStation 2. Between these two releases, the company says football fans have played more than 1.5 million PlayStation and Xbox Live games through the EA SPORTS Nation network.

    The Madden NFL series has sold more than 45 million copies to date and remains the most popular interactive football franchise of all time. Developed in Orlando, Florida by EA Tiburon, Madden NFL 06 is available for PlayStation 2, Xbox, GameCube, Nintendo DS, Game Boy Advance, PC and mobile platforms. The PSP version is set to launch in September. The game is rated “E” (Everyone) and carries a suggested retail price of $49.99 for consoles, $39.99 for PC and Nintendo DS, $29.99 for Game Boy Advance and $3.99-$9.99 for mobile applications, depending on the handset and terms of usage. More information on the game can be found at www.madden06.com.

  • Jolie Aboard Zemeckis’ Beowulf

    Daily Variety reports that Angelina Jolie has joined the cast of director/producer Robert Zemeckis’ upcoming animated adaptation of the classic Old English epic poem, Beowulf. The pic will employ Sony Pictures Imageworks’ performance capture technique employed in Zemeckis’ The Polar Express and next summer’s Monster House, which Zemeckis is exec producing with Steven Spielberg.

    Crafted by an unknown sixth-century Anglo-Saxon scribe, Beowulf casts its title character as the one man who can defeat Grendel, a monster terrorizing a Danish kingdom, and his scaly, cave-dwelling mother.

    In the film, Jolie will lend her voice and motion-captured performance to the role of the Queen of Darkness, a temptress who jeopardizes Beowulf’s quest to the throne. The cast also includes Ray Winstone (Sexy Beast), Anthony Hopkins (Hannibal), Brendan Gleeson (Troy) and Robin Wright Penn (The Princess Bride). Beowulf will be Jolie’s follow-up to the Robert DeNiro-directed Universal feature, The Good Shepherd, co-starring Matt Damon.

    Scripted by Roger Avary (Silent Hill, Pulp Fiction) and Neil Gaiman (MirrorMask, Coraline) Sony’s Beowulf is one of two adaptations in the works. Archlight films’ live-action version, titled Beowulf and Grendel, is nearing completion and stars Gerard Butler (Andrew Lloyd Webber’s The Phantom of the Opera, Reign of Fire) as the celebrated monster slayer. The timeless story has also been animated for the small screen with HBO’s 1998 TV special, Animated Epics: Beowulf, produced by Christmas Films, HBO and Right Angle.

    Zemeckis and his Imagemovers partners are negotiating distribution deals with Paramount (domestic) and Warner Bros. (overseas).

  • Flock Migrates to Exec VP role at THQ

    THQ Inc. has appointed veteran video game industry exec Kelly Flock to the newly created position of exec VP of worldwide publishing. Reporting directly to THQ president and CEO Brian Farrell, Flock will oversee the company’s publishing activities, including product strategy, marketing and sales stating later this month.

    Flock’s 20 plus years of experience in video game publishing, sales, marketing and licensing includes stints as president and CEO of Sony Online Entertainment, president of 989 Studios and president of Sony Interactive Studios America. He also served as general manager of LucasArts Entertainment Company where he managed the game division of Lucasfilm Ltd.

    "I’ve been following THQ with great interest since the late 90s, and have been very impressed by the company’s success with both licensed product and original intellectual properties,” Flock comments. “THQ’s management team has positioned the company to take significant advantage of the coming great leap forward in next-generation hardware. I look forward to applying my expertise and passion to THQ’s goal of dramatically expanding its leadership position in the video game industry.”

  • Kids Animate for TELETOON

    As part of the summer Camp TELETOON program, a dozen kids ages 9-12 have begun animating public service announcements in a series of hands-on workshops at Arts Umbrella in Vancouver. The young animators will develop three broadcast-quality PSAs covering issues important to them for air on Canada’s TELETOON in early December.

    This is the second year for the community-based initiative, a partnership of TELETOON, Arts Umbrella and Vancouver’s Studio B Prods. Last year saw participants animate PSAs informing viewers about the environment and bullying. Candidates for the program are children who previously attended animation courses at Arts Umbrella, a visual and performing arts institute for young people ages 2-19.

    The 13-day curriculum has students work in three groups to create the animated spots. Under the guidance of program coordinators, these aspiring cartoonists use cutouts, clay animation and hand-drawn special effects to get their points across. Sound elements are added at Dick & Rogers Sound Studio and editing is completed at Studio B. This year’s Camp TELETOON program runs through Aug. 24.

  • Proud Family Movie Debuts Friday

    The Proud Family, Disney Channel’s popular animated comedy series about an off-beat African American clan, expands with an all new feature-length special premiering Friday, Aug. 19, at 8 p.m. (ET/PT). Guest stars will include R&B recording artist Omarion and Emmy-winning talk-show host and actor Arsenio Hall.

    Omarion will voice the role of a young rapper named 15 Cent, who develops a crush on Penny (Kyla Pratt) when she and her friends are recruited as backup dancers for a charity performance. Penny’s protective father, Oscar (Tommy Davidson), forbids her to participate in the event and instead takes the entire family on an all-expenses-paid island vacation courtesy of the mysterious Dr. Carver (Hall). The trip ends up being an elaborate plot to steal Oscar’s secret snack formula and take over the world with an army of evil peanut-like creatures. Hall will also voice the part of Uncle Bobby, a soul-singing one-hit wonder.

    Also joining the cast of series regulars for the movie are Soleil Moon Frye (Punky Brooster), Jeremy Suarez (Brother Bear), Carlos Alazraqui (Reno 911), Carlos Mencia (Mind of Mencia) and hip-hop recording artist Big Boy.

    The Proud Family is created by Bruce W. Smith, who serves as exec producer along with Ralph R. Farquhar, Willard Carroll and Tom Wilhite. Smith directed the TV movie from a script by Farquhar, Calvin Brown Jr., John Patrick and Stiles White. Production for the property is handled by Jambalaya Studio.

    The Proud Family Movie will also air in September on Toon Disney, and the soundtrack will be released by Walt Disney Records sometime in August. The series airs daily on Disney Channel and Saturday mornings on ABC.

  • G7 Animation Revs Up More Biker Mice

    Gang of Seven (G7) Animation has begun pre-production on 26 all-new episodes of Biker Mice from Mars, the hit animated series from the early 90s. The show is a co-production of U.K.-based brand management company Criterion Licensing Ltd., creator/exec producer Rick Ungar’s Brentwood Television Funnies Inc. and Philippines Animation Studio Inc. (PASI).

    The new series follows Throttle, Modo and Vinnie back to Earth as they attempt to recover the stolen Regenerator–a device vital to the continued survival of Mars–which has fallen into the hands of Chicago billionaire developer Ronaldo Rump.

    "The update of Biker Mice provides opportunities to expand the characters and landscape of the series while continuing the irreverent humor which made the show so popular the first time around." says G7 principal and production head Tom Tataranowicz, who serves as exec producer.

    The production reunites Tataranowicz and Ungar, who worked closely together on the original Biker Mice series and other animated projects, including numerous series based on various Marvel characters. Tataranowicz’s G7 partners include such respected animators as Tom Sito, Rich Arons, David Armstrand and Dennis Venizelos. The company will provide all pre-production and post-production services for the new show.

  • Cartoon Network’s Tickle U Enrolling

    Cartoon Network is set to debut its new pre-school programming block, Tickle U, on Monday, Aug. 22. The two-hour frame will feature a line-up of original animated series every Monday through Friday starting at 9 a.m. (ET/PT).

    Tickle U’s media-based curriculum is designed specifically to help pre-schoolers develop a sense of humor in order to better handle life’s challenges. For parents and caregivers, the block will feature the "Mommy Bar," a one-of-a-kind graphic feature that offers helpful information about programming and childcare.

    Hosted by three computer-animated 3D ghosts, the programming lineup will spotlight animated series from around the world, including Peppa Pig, Yoko! Jakamoko! Toto! and Gerald McBoing Boing. According to Cartoon Network, commercial interruptions will be brief and limited to the top and bottom of each hour.

    Children and their caregivers can also go to the Tickle U web site (www.TickleU.com) to find age-appropriate activities such as memory games and print-and-play items based on the shows. In addition, the site will offer parents tips and expert advice on the benefits of humor and how to foster laughter for their families.

  • Batman Begins DVD Crusade in October

    Bob Kane’s Dark Knight flies from the pages of DC Comics to the big screen once again in Batman Begins, a box-office hit scheduled to make its way to home video on Oct. 18. The two-disc deluxe DVD edition promises to be a good one, packed with plenty of behind-the-scenes docs and a bevy of other bonus features.

    Directed by Christopher Nolan (Memento, Insomnia), Batman Begins stars Christian Bale (Equilibrium, American Psycho) as Bruce Wayne and his caped alter-ego in a story that explores the origins of the Batman legend and his emergence as a force for good in Gotham. The cast also includes Gary Oldman (Bram Stoker’s Dracula), Katie Holmes (The Gift), Cillian Murphy (28 Days Later), Ken Watanabe (The Last Samurai), Liam Neeson (Star Wars: Episode I–The Phantom Menace), Michael Caine (Alfie), Morgan Freeman (Million Dollar Baby), Rutger Hauer (The Hitcher) and Tom Wilkinson (In The Bedroom).

    The release will come packaged with Detective Comics #37, a 72-page comic book featuring the very first Batman story, Batman: The Man Who Falls, as well as Batman: The Long Halloween, a chilling excerpt that also inspired the film.

    Fans can explore the DVD menu via an interactive comic book. Special features will include the making-of documentaries Genesis of the Bat: Batman Incarnations from the Mid-1980s to the Present; The Journey Begins: Creative Concepts, Story Development and Casting; Shaping Mind and Body: Fighting Style; Gotham City Rises: Production Design; Cape and Cowl: The New Batsuit; The Tumbler: The New Batmobile; Path to Discovery: Filming in Iceland; and Saving Gotham City: The Monorail Chase Sequence. Other extras will include a DVD ROM Batman Begins mobile game demo, Easter eggs, a photo gallery and a character/weaponry gallery.

    Batman Begins raked in more than $200 million at the North American box office alone and surpassed The Matrix: Reloaded to become the highest-grossing digitally re-mastered IMAX release. To date, the film has earned $14.5 million on 72 IMAX screens worldwide.

  • Wallace & Gromit to Debut at Toronto

    Wallace & Gromit–The Curse of the Were-Rabbit from Aardman Animation and DreamWorks Animation will have its North American premiere at the 30th Toronto Int’l Film Festival. Attendees who love stop-motion animation will have plenty to drool over with Tim Burton’s Corpse Bride also debuting at the fest.

    Directed by Nick Park, creator of the Academy Award-winning Wallace & Gromit clay-animated shorts, and Steve Box, this is the first feature-length outing for the cheese-loving Englishman and his faithful canine companion. The film features the voices of Ralph Fiennes and Helena Bonham Carter as socialites who get caught up in Wallace and Gromit’s scheme to save the annual Giant Vegetable Competition by ridding the village of a veggie-devouring beast.

    Wallace & Gromit—The Curse of the Were-Rabbit is produced by Peter Lord, David Sproxton, Nick Park, Claire Jennings and Carla Shelley. An Aardman Features production, the film will be distributed worldwide by DreamWorks and hits North American theaters on Oct. 7. Read about the making of the movie in the October issue of Animation Magazine, coming soon to newsstands and Barnes & Noble locations.

  • Pixar Story Man, Voice Killed

    Pixar head of story Joe Ranft, who also lent his voice to such hits as Monsters, Inc, Finding Nemo and The Incredibles, was killed in an automobile accident Tuesday. The voice behind Heimlich the caterpiler in A Bug’s Life and Wheezy the Penguine in Toy Story 2 was 45 years old.

    Since story is king at Pixar, many co-workers considered Ranft the heart of the leading animation studio. The CalArts grad hitched up with Disney in 1980 and worked on the home video release, The Brave Little Toaster, serving the story department and voicing to the character Elmo St. Peters. He then went on to storyboard and co-write such Mouse House favorites as The Rescuers Down Under, Beauty and the Beast, The Lion King and Fantasia 2000. Ranft received an Oscar nomination for co-writing 1995’s Toy Story with John Lasseter, Pete Docter and Andrew Stanton.

    According to The Hollywood Reporter, Ranft was a passenger in a car that ran off the road while traveling northbound on Highway 1. The driver was also killed, but a third occupant was able to escape with minor injuries.

    A Pixar spokesperson Wednesday told NPR that Ranft was fond of teaching and that the principles which guided his storytelling will live on through his students. The enduring popularity of the Disney and Pixar productions will also ensure that his work is enjoyed by fans of all ages for decades to come.

  • Ship Date Set for Game Boy Micro

    Gamers who want fun on the run will no doubt be lining up to buy Nintendo’s new Game Boy Micro when it ships to retail on Sept. 19. The miniaturized version of the Game Boy Advance will come in both silver and black versions retailing for $99.99.

    Game Boy Micro measures 4 inches wide, 2 inches long and 0.7 inches deep. Weighing in at 2.8 ounces, it rides comfortably in a shirt pocket but promises all the gaming power of previous Game Boy Advance models. It features a bright, 2-inch screen and plays all Game Boy Advance games. Owners can even swap out three different faceplates to personalize their units.

    Faceplate options for the black Game Boy Micro will include sleek silver, orange flames and green camouflage. Those who purchase the silver one will be able to choose from slick black, dark blue "ammonite" and ladybug on a large, pink gerbera daisy, depending on mood. More information on the Game Boy Micro can be found at www.gameboy.com.

  • Winners Named in Second Life Developers’ Competition

    In Linden Lab’s online 3D virtual world known as Second Life, members of the growing community are always trying to outdo one another with their customizable characters, business dealings and fanciful creations. That competitive spirit was recently spotlighted by the second annual Game Developer’s Competition, which has 16 teams trying to develop the best game in the Second Life space. Renowned game designer and programmer Doug Church (Ultima Underworld, System Shock, Thief), who is currently with Crystal Dynamics, judged the competition and winners were announced today.

    One of the coolest things about this contest is seeing how far Second Life has come as a development platform," says Philip Rosedale, CEO and founder of Linden Lab. "Today, as a result of the openness of the authoring tools and the efforts of thousands of people, games are materializing that combine ambitious scripting, innovative content and the ingenuity of many to create what may well be a new class of games. It wouldn’t surprise me to see some of these games get published outside of Second Life, further demonstrating that Second Life is a great tool for building and prototyping your development ideas.”

    Competitors this year were given “extra credit” tasks including injecting experiences with narrative and collaborative gameplay, and integrating a backpack or wearable object providing players with scoring information and inter-player communication. After 3 months of development time, six projects were chosen for evaluation by Church.

    First Place went to Primmies, an interpretation of the popular RTS/puzzle genre. The development team led by Jeffrey Gomez created a game that has players guide their intrepid band of Bills, Bettys, Boomers and others through traps, mazes and the Second Life environment itself.

    Team leader Gary Bukowski and crew took second place for EVA, a work of immersive fiction with alternate reality game elements. The game is set inside Second Life, though some game elements take place outside of the world. Players soon find others who have pooled their efforts to solve puzzles and document a sprawling trail crossing websites, blogs, email/chat conversations and other interactions.

    Taking third place is Tiger Crossing, the team behind The Board. An evil magic board game has taken over the city, turning all residents into playing cards and forcing outsiders to walk its tiled paths. Players must overcome obstacles, vanquish opponents and solve puzzles to complete quests and earn medallions that unlock the final boss battle.

    Honorable mention was given to Riddle City Ransom (team leader Satchmo Prototype), Krytterz (team leader Kermitt Quirk) and Podlets (eam leader Lumpy Tapioca). A full list of results and more info can be found at http://secondlife.com/developers/contest2005.php.

  • Hollywood Fest Fetes Howl’s, War, Batman, Sin

    This year’s Hollywood Film Festival will honor Hayao Miyazaki’s Howl’s Moving Castle with the Animation of the Year Award. The fest, which takes place Oct. 18-24, will also see top kudos go to Paramount’s War of the Worlds, Warner Bros.’ Batman Begins and Dimension’s Sin City. The awards will be handed out at the Hollywood Awards gala ceremony on Monday, Oct. 24, at the Beverly Hilton Hotel.

    Miyazaki’s previous animated feature, the critically lauded Spirited Away, took top toon honors at many festivals worldwide before receiving the Best Animated Feature Oscar for 2003. Howl’s Moving Castle, released in North America by Disney, is sure to be one of this year’s big awards season competitors. The film is a love story about an 18-year-old girl trapped in an old woman’s body and a magician who undertake a magical adventure on an enchanted walking castle.

    War of the Worlds will be honored with the festival’s Hollywood Visual Effects of the Year Award. Director by Steven Spielberg’s summer blockbuster features vfx work by Industrial Light & Magic. The team was led by senior visual effects supervisor Dennis Muren, who has been nominated for twelve Oscars and has won six times. His credits include Jurassic Park, Terminator 2: Judgment Day, The Abyss, Innerspace, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, Star Wars: Episode V–The Empire Strikes Back and Star Wars: Episode VI–Return of the Jedi.

    Batman Begins will take home the Hollywood Sound of the Year Award. The film’s supervising sound editor is David G. Evans, whose film credits include Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life, Die Another Day and the David Cronenberg pics Spider, Crash, M. Butterfly and The Fly.

    The Hollywood Make-Up of the Year Award will be bestowed upon Sin City from directors Frank Miller and Robert Rodriguez. Industry legend Gregory Nicotero (Ray, Kill Bill) helped bring Miller’s graphic novels to the screen with prosthetics that transformed actors Mickey Rourke and Nick Stahl into depraved denizens of Basin City.

    Other industry professionals to be honored for achievements in their respective fields this year include Oscar-nominated cinematographer Pawel Edelman, Academy Award-winning editor Walter Murch, Oscar-winning costume designer Colleen Atwood, Academy Award-winning production designer Grant Major and casting director Avy Kaufman.

    Screenings for the 2005 Annual Hollywood Film Festival will take place at Arclight Theatres in Hollywood. More information can be found at www.hollywoodfestival.com.

  • Nextoons Kicks Off Sunday

    The Nicktoons Film Festival returns for a second season beginning Sunday, Aug. 21 at midnight (ET)/9 p.m. (PT). Created in partnership with Frederator Studios, the week-long festival of shorts will showcase works submitted by animators worldwide, leading up the unveiling of the top-ten and the grand-prize winner on Sunday, Aug. 28, on Nicktoons, Nickelodeon’s 24-hour animation network.

    "We are excited to showcase the high level of global talent and their contribution to the world of animation," comments Nicktoons VP and general manager Keith Dawkins. "We received an overwhelming response from our first festival and this year’s response has been even bigger with a greater number of entries including submissions from more countries such as Russia, Africa, India and New Zealand."

    Fred Seibert, president of Frederator Studios, adds, "Nextoons is quickly becoming one of animation’s most important festivals thanks to the work of hundreds of filmmakers and the incredible reach of the Nicktoons network. Frederator Studios is proud to be along for the ride."

    Nextoons: The Nicktoons Film Festival consists of seven half-hour specials that will repeat throughout the month of September. Shorts to be featured in the first episode are La Rèvolution des Crabes by Arthur de Pins, Hobbies–Model Bus Collector by Nick Mackie, Runaway Bathtub by Annie Poon, Unmarked by Justin Foo, Those Scurvy Rascals from Blue-Zoo Prods., Her Teddy Bear by Ji Eun Lee and Blue Dress from Chungmin Moon.

    Animators were asked to submit animated shorts no longer than ten minutes that combined a unique look, great character designs and a funny plot. One winner will be chosen by a grand jury and awarded a $10,000 cash prize. Other awards will include Producer’s Choice, Student Animator and Viewer’s Choice. Viewers can vote online at www.nicktoons.com through the month of September. The winner will be announced on September 18.

    This year’s panel of Grand Jurors included Star Wars Icon and animation voiceover workhorse Mark Hamill, Avatar: The Last Airbender creators Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko, Academy Award-nominated filmmaker Mike Gabriel (Walt Disney Prods.’ Lorenzo), previous Nicktoons Film Festival Producer’s Choice Award winner Elizabeth Ito (Welcome to My Life) and ten-year-old cartoon connoisseur Noah Webb.

    Seibert serves as Nextoon festival director, along with Rita Street, managing director of Radar Cartoons, and Eric Homan, VP of creative affairs for Frederator Studios. Christina Vann of Nicktoons is exec in charge of production.

  • Sin City, Simpsons New on Disc

    Directors Robert Rodriguez and Frank Miller seamlessly blended live actors with completely digital backgrounds and effects to bring Miller’s trio of graphic novels to the screen in Sin City, a neo-noir thriller sure to make a killing on home video. Also new this week is the sixth season of The Simpsons and the animated feature My Neighbors the Yamadas from Studio Ghibli co-founder Isao Takahata.

    Sin City’s eye-catching CG imagry was created by TroubleMaker Studios, The Orphanage, Café FX and Hybride. Daniel LeDuc, who served as visual effects supervisor on Rodriguez’s Spy Kids movies and Once Upon a Time in Mexico, again took the vfx reins. Based on three of Miller’s graphic novels—Sin City, The Big Fat Kill and That Yellow Bastard, the film features an all-star cast in a series of interweaving stories that take place in the gritty world of Basin City. The all-star cast includes Bruce Willis, Mickey Rourke, Jessica Alba, Clive Owen, Nick Stahl, Powers Boothe, Rutger Hauer, Elijah Wood, Rosario Dawson, Benicio Del Toro, Jaime King, Brittany Murphy, Michael Clarke Duncan and Carla Gugino.

    If you’re looking for the extras-packed DVD release of Sin City, this isn’t it. What you get is a behind-the-scenes featurette with Rodriguez, Miller and guest director Quentin Tarantino, as well as stars Willis, Alba, del Toro, Murphy, Owen, Rourke and Dawson. The Dimension Home Video release comes with four different collectable covers and lists for $29.99.

    One home video series that never disappoints in the area of bonus materials is FOX’s The Simpsons. In fact, Matt Groening and crew are slow in releasing volumes because they want to record commentary tracks for every episode. Such is the case with The Simpsons: The Complete Sixth Season, a four-disc set featuring all 25 episodes and an introduction by Groening. The show’s creator is joined on commentary tracks by producers David Mirkin and Mike Scully, as well as key cast members including Dan Castellaneta and Yeardley Smith. Also included is the television special Springfield’s Most Wanted, deleted scenes and an animation showcase featuring animatics with illustrated commentary and storyboards. The set from Fox Home Video carries a suggested retail price of $49.98.

    Fans of Hayao Miyazaki’s animated features may want to pick up director Isao Takahata’s My Neighbors the Yamadas. The film celebrates the little victories in life as Takashi Yamada and his wacky wife, Matsuko, navigate their way through the ups and downs of work, marriage and family issues. They share their tumultuous household with a sharp-tongued grandmother, a teenage son who wishes he had cooler parents, and a pesky daughter whose voice is unusually loud for someone so small.

    The DVD includes the original Japanese language track and an English track featuring the voices of Jim Belushi, Molly Shannon and David Ogden Stiers. There’s also a featurette that goes behind-the-microphone with voice talent from the film and complete storyboards. Released by Buena Vista Home Entertainment, the disc lists for $29.99.

  • Hahn Named Nick’s Int’l Development VP

    MTV Networks has appointed Nina Hahn to the newly created position of VP of international development for Nickelodeon. Based in London, she will report to Marjorie Cohn, exec VP of Nickelodeon U.S production and development, and Steve Grieder, senior VP of Nickelodeon International.

    In her new role, Hahn will be responsible for developing relationships and partnerships to seek out kid-focused content and talent for Nickelodeon’s channels around the world. She will coordinate and drive the development process, spearheading new production models, managing productions from pilot through series and representing the creative needs of Nick outlets.

    Cohn comments, "Nina will be connected with everything that we’re creating in the U.S., and will ensure that we’re maximizing all opportunities for our global channels. She’ll also funnel new content initiatives back into the U.S., expanding our current pipeline with the best, freshest, and most innovative creative out there."

    "Nina’s expertise and skill will play a crucial role in helping source the next big thing from around the world, and develop that into a viable and powerful new proposition for our Nick channels," adds Grieder. "She’ll play an integral role in generating new content to fuel our global needs, as we face growing demand from our rapidly expanding network."

    Hahn is a seasoned producer and development consultant who brings to Nickelodeon more than 15 years of experience in the global kids and family television business. She has been involved in all phases of the creative development and production process both in the U.S. and internationally.

    Nickelodeon reaches nearly 300 million households in 167 territories worldwide via Nick channels, branded program blocks and broadband services across Africa, Asia and the Pacific Rim, CIS/Baltic Republics, Europe, Latin America and the U.S. The company’s portfolio of international businesses also includes Nickelodeon Movies and global licensing and merchandising for popular franchises such as Rugrats, Blue’s Clues, Dora the Explorer and SpongeBob Squarepants.

  • PlayFirst Goes Off on WildTangent

    PlayFirst, home to such popular downloadable games as Diner Dash and Oasis, has signed a global licensing and distribution deal with fellow online video game publisher WildTangent. The agreement will see WildTangent feature PlayFirst titles on its popular game portal, WildGames (www.wildgames.com).

    Through the partnership, both companies are hoping for greater exposure by reaching new audiences. PlayFirst will be included in WildTangent’s PC OEM solution, dubbed Game Console. As part of WildTangent’s existing OEM relationships, trial versions of PlayFirst titles will be pre-loaded on new computers beginning in 2006.

    “The PC OEM arrangement with WildTangent will help PlayFirst reach its target audience–the mass market–in a whole new way,” says Rich Roberts, VP of sales and business development for PlayFirst. “Many people still don’t realize they can turn to the Internet to find great games. By bringing ours to the desktops of new PCs, we educate these consumers about the downloadable model plus the level of quality and fun they should come to expect from publishers.”

    The casual games industry has grown from no revenue only four years ago to more than $200 million today. According to industry analyst firm IDC, the category is expected to hit the $1 billion mark by 2008.

    PlayFirst publishes downloadable titles via more than 450 of the world’s top online game destinations. The company provides independent game developers with end-to-end support, funding projects from concept to completion. Founded in 2004, PlayFirst is funded by venture capital firms Mayfield and Trinity Ventures. More information on the company can be found at www.playfirst.com.

    WildTangent publishes hundreds of top-selling online titles from its own WildStudios, as well as the other leading casual game developers. The company’s Web Driver platform, comprised of authoring, compression and delivery technologies, claims more than 100 million users. WildTangent can be found online at http://www.wildtangent.com.

  • Disney’s Timeless Tales Woven on DVD

    Among this week’s new home video releases are the first two volumes in the Walt Disney’s Timeless Tales collection. Each disc contains a handful of classic animated stories from the Disney vaults, including appearances from Mickey Mouse and other favorite characters.

    Walt Disney’s Timeless Tales: Volume 1 includes 1990’s The Prince and the Pauper (directed by George Scribner), in which Mickey plays dual roles. Also featured are the Oscar-winning shorts, The Three Little Pigs (1933, Burton Gillette) and The Tortoise and the Hare (1934, Wilfred Jackson), as well as The Grasshopper and the Ants (1934, Wilfred Jackson) and The Pied Piper (1933, Wilfred Jackson).

    More Academy Award winners from the 1930s are featured in Walt Disney’s Timeless Tales: Volume 2, namely Ugly Duckling (1939, Jack Cutting) and The Country Cousin (1936, David Hand and Wilfred Jackson). Also included are Ferdinand the Bull (1938, Dick Rickard) and The Wind in The Willows (1949, Clyde Geronimi). Each Buena Vista Home Entertainment release lists for $19.99 on DVD.

  • Adult Swim Orders More Chicken

    If you’re a fan of Robot Chicken on Cartoon Network’s Adult Swim, you’ll be happy to know that the broadcaster has ordered a second season of the stop-motion spoof fest, according to Daily Variety. A total of 20 new 15-minute episodes are in production for air in the spring.

    Created and exec produced by actor Seth Green and pal Mathew Senreich, Robot Chicken features action figures and other toys brought to life a frame at a time to poke fun pop culture staples. Celebrity guests who lent their voices to last season’s installments include Scarlett Johansson, Burt Reynolds, Ryan Seacrest, Mark Hamill, Seth McFarlane and Macauley Culkin. Green, who provides the voice of Chris Griffin on FOX’s Family Guy, also voices characters in this irreverent collection of short vignettes.

    Robot Chicken’s stop-motion animation is directed by Seamus Walsh, Mark Caballero and Chris Finnegan of Screen Novelties in Los Angeles. The show, which draws an average of nearly a million viewers each week, airs regularly on Sundays and Thursdays at 11:30 p.m. ET/PT on Cartoon Network.

    Adult Swim, rated separately from Cartoon Network, recently claimed top ranking in total day delivery of adults 18-34 among all ad-supported cable outlets.

  • Pirates Toon Scores Mexican Bounty

    The new 3D animated feature, Pirates en el Pacifico (Pirates in the Pacific), plundered some box office booty with its debut in Mexico. According to Daily Variety, the first theatrical release from television network TV Azteca, in partnership Cinepolis, raked in around $260,000 on 100 screens, besting Miyazaki’s Howl’s Moving Castle and competing live-action family flicks.

    Made for roughly half a million dollars by Peruvian production outfit AlpaMayo Ent., Pirates is expected to take in a tidy $2 million at the box office before arriving on U.S. soil this fall. Azteca America will begin distributing the film in Los Angeles in October. The toon previously ran in very limited release in Lima and Bolivia

    AplaMayo’s film Dragones (Dragons), will be distributed by TV Azteca next year. The broadcaster is actively acquiring other independent productions for its fledgling film production and distribution arm.