Animation Magazine

Author: Ryan Ball

  • Toon Scribe Zeke K Joins GigaPix

    Writer Zeke K has been hired as head of development for emerging independent animation house GigaPix Studios. In addition to bringing a number of his own properties to the company, he will lend his talents to four animated features already in development at the Chatsworth, Calif.-based studio.

    A 12-year industry veteran, Zeke K co-developed and wrote episodes of Cartoon Network’s Powerpuff Girls. He also scripted installments of the network’s Dexter’s Laboratory, Megas LXR and Foster’s Home for Imaginary Friends, and was head writer for the first season of Nickelodeon’s My Life as a Teen-age Robot.

    Zeke K was also involved in original series development for Sony, Disney, Curious Pictures, Film Roman and Dick Clark Prods. In addition, he consulted for MGA Ent. on the computer-animated TV series based on its Bratz doll line.

    In the pipeline at GigaPix are the adventure/comedy Junk Bots, an irreverent bunny fantasy pic titled Twilight, the sci-fi thriller Alien SAR and a superhero spoof titled Hypnopig.

  • VU Games on Ludlum’s Case

    Look out, Tom Clancy, there’s another intrigue writer sneeking over the border and into the lucrative interactive entertainment field. Vivendi Universal Games (VU Games) today announced that it has acquired exclusive global rights to publish games based on the spy novels of Robert Ludlum, the acclaimed author of such bestsellers as The Bourne Identity and The Bourne Supremacy.

    “Properties like Bourne and Covert One naturally lend themselves to video games, and we are excited to bring Robert Ludlum’s stories to life in a way that has never been done before,” says Jeffrey M. Weiner, CEO of Ludlum Ent. “Our long-term partnership with VU Games underscores our belief in the creativity and vision that the development team will bring to these exciting new projects.”

    Ludlum, who died in 2001, remains a hot commodity in Hollywood. The phenomenal big-screen success of The Bourne Identity and The Bourne Supremacy has led to film adaptations of The Chancellor Manuscript, coming in 2006 from Paramount Pictures, and The Bourne Ultimatum, slated for release in 2007 by Universal Pictures. Other Ludlum yarns to make it to the screen over the years include The Osterman Weekend (1983) and The Holcroft Covenant (1985). His books have sold more than 290 million copies worldwide.

  • Yu-Gi-Oh! GX to Duel on Cartoon Net

    4Kids Ent. announced that Yu-Gi-Oh! GX, the next incarnation of the popular animated action series, will debut on Cartoon Network in October. The company says the show will feature a new, brighter look designed to appeal to a younger audience.

    Set a generation in the future, Yu-Gi-Oh! GX will chronicle the lives of students at the famous Duel Academy, where hundreds of children learn the intricate art of dueling. The school is heavy on tradition, but things are about to get turned upside-down as a new, powerful duelist arrives with the incoming class.

    "It’s a great extension for the franchise and we’re confident that fans of the original series will fall in love with GX as much as first time viewers will,” says Alfred R. Kahn, chairman and CEO of 4Kids Ent.

    Cartoon Network has not announced a specific air date for the premiere episode of the series, which will be supported by a major trading card program and an extensive licensing and merchandising campaign.

  • Studio B Animates Pucca

    Canadian toon house Studio B has begun production on the 78×7 Flash series Pucca, based on characters created for animated e-cards by Korea’s Vooz Co. Ltd. The show is the first Flash-animated series commissioned by Jetix Europe and will air on its channels in 2006.

    Pucca, the daughter of a Chinese restaurant owner, gets into one adventure after another in pursuit of her one true love, a ninja-in-training named Garu. In addition to being chased by Pucca, Garu has to deal with the villainous Tobe and his ninja gang as they try to recover an ancient magic potion.

    Studio B is working with Warner Bros. Animation on the action/comedy Johnny Test, and recently wrapped production with Star Farm Prods. on 12 two-minute webisodes based on the Edgar & Ellen children’s books by Charles Ogden.

    The studio recently sold the third season of its original series, Yvon of the Yukon, to Nickelodeon Asia. This month, the broadcaster begins airing episodes of the comedy co-produced by Top Draw Animation. Seen in 14 countries, the show currently airs on YTV and CBBC in Canada, Nick Latin America and Nickelodeon Australia.

  • Muppets, Lovecraft Debut on Disc

    This week’s batch of home video hatchlings offer some heart-felt puppet fun with a rag-tag bunch old friends and a strange animated trip courtesy of one of the masters of horror/fantasy literature. The Muppets’ Wizard of Oz and arrive on disc, as does Guerrilla Prods.’ unique adaptation of H. P. Lovecraft’s The Dream-Quest of Unknown Kadath.

    The Muppets’ Wizard of Oz is a made-for-TV comedic retelling of Frank L. Baum’s classic tale featuring all of Jim Henson’s creations and guest stars Queen Latifah, Quentin Tarantino, Jeffrey Tambor and David Alan Grier. This extended version includes 20 extra minutes not shown during the original ABC broadcast earlier this year. Bonus materials include outtakes, bloopers and a making-of featurette. The Buena Vista Home Entertainment release carries a suggested retail price of $24.99.

    If it’s classic Muppets you crave, you can pick up The Muppet Show: Season One, Buena Vista’s four-disc set featuring all 24 episodes from the late ’70s. The $39.99 purchase also gets you such extras as Jim Henson’s original pitch reel, “Muppet Morsels,” the original pilot and a promotional gag reel.

    The first feature-length film from Portland’s Guerrilla Prods., The Dream-Quest of Unknown Kadath employs limited animation to bring one of Lovecraft’s few novels to the screen. The film follows the adventures of Randolph Carter, a brave dreamer in the Land of Dream, as he navigates a terrifying landscape of ghouls, zoogs, Shantak birds, nightgaunts, dholes, evil priests and moonbeasts as he searches for his beloved Sunset City. The company first pressed a limited release of 1000 copies of the pic, which sold out in six months.

    “We’ve really punched it up,” says Kadath director Edward Martin III. “We’ve re-mastered the soundtrack in Dolby Digital, added more bonus features, pulled out many scenes that were very loosely animated and re-animated them completely from scratch, included some very neat DVD-ROM content, and just overall have made this an even more attractive product than the first release.”

    Bonus features include short film adaptations of the Lovecraft stories The Call of Cthulhu and The Testament of Tom Jacoby. There’s also a Kadath making-of slideshow, trailers and a teaser for the company’s upcoming live-action horror feature, Flesh of my Flesh. The disc sells for $18.98 and can be ordered at www.guerrilla-productions.org/Merchandise.html.

  • Golden Compass Finds New Director

    British filmmaker Anand Tucker (Hilary and Jackie) has taken over for Chris Weitz (Antz) as director of the vfx-laden fantasy pic, The Golden Compass, according to Daily Variety. The New Line film is the eagerly awaited first installment in a planned trilogy based on author Philip Pullman’s young adult series, His Dark Materials.

    Featuring exotic settings and shapeshifting creatures, Compass is reportedly New Line’s most ambitious project since Peter Jackson’s adaptation of Tolkein’s The Lord of the Rings saga. When the technical challenges proved too much for Weitz, such veteran helmers such as Ridley Scott and David Cronenberg were considered, but a surprise move put the lesser known Tucker in the driver’s seat.

    Though his 1998 indie biopic, Hillary and Jackie, was a critical success, Tucker’s followup has been a long time coming. He directed Steve Martin, Claire Danes and Jason Schwartzman in an upcoming comedy titled Shopgirl, based on a novella by Martin. Tucker tells the trade he is a big fan of Pullman’s award-winning books and has been aggressively lobbying for the Compass job since New Line acquired the rights.

    It’s becoming a trend for studios to put tent-pole action and fantasy films in the hands of indie directors, who are collectively establishing a solid track record. Peter Jackson (Heavenly Creatures) and Christopher Nolan (Memento) hit it out of the park with The Lord of the Rings and Batman Begins, respectively, and Barbershop director Tim Story gave 20th Century Fox a big summer hit with Fantastic Four. Meanwhile, spectacle go-to guys have been stumbling with big-budget efforts such as Ridley Scott’s Kingdom of Heaven and Michael Bay’s The Island.

    The Golden Compass is being overseen by New Line’s Toby Emmerich, exec VP Mark Ordesky and senior VP of European production Ileen Maisel.

  • IDT Plucks Pixar, DreamWorks Alumni

    Emerging animation powerhouse IDT Ent. is beefing up its toon unit with two new high-profile hires previously employed at competing studios. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the company has appointed former Pixar exec Bob Taylor as exec VP of animation finance and Academy Award-winning former DreamWorks Animation exec Nick Foster as chief technology officer. The news comes shortly after IDT snatched DreamWorks’ head of artistic recruitment and development, Frank Gladstone, to serve as VP of artistic development.

    IDT Ent., a New Jersey-based division of IDT Corp., has a deal with 20th Century Fox to crank out two CG features each year starting in 2007. One animated movie IDT has in the works is Yankee Irving, the film Christopher Reeve was directing at the time of his death. Set in a 1930s America populated with a mix of human and non-human characters, Yankee Irving is described as a father-and-son love story in which a little boy must overcome life’s difficulties. At last reporting, IDT was hoping to have the film distributed sometime in 2006.

    IDT Ent.’s subsidiaries include animation studios Film Roman, Mainframe Ent., and DKP Studios, as well as distributors Anchor Bay Ent., Manga Ent. and IDT Ent. Sales (IDTeS). The company is also a principal investor in Canadian CG producer Mainframe Ent. and owns a minority stake in Stan Lee’s POW! Ent.

  • SplutterFish Renders Brazil 2.0

    SplutterFish LLC debuted the Brazil Rendering SystemVersion 2.0 for Autodesk 3ds max and VIZ at SIGGRAPH last week in Los Angeles and plans to release it to the public this fall. This latest edition promises to streamline artist workflow with comprehensive tools for managing settings, while adding system improvements to reduce memory footprint for optimal speed and performance when combining disparate high-end features.

    Significant new advancements to Brazil r/s 2.0 include rendertime displacement, 3D motion blur, implicit surface rendering, core-level caching and on-demand buffer generation for irradiance, baking and nearly infinite data handling.

    “Brazil 2.0 is stronger all around," says SplutterFish CEO Scott Kirvan. "I cannot stress enough the great care we took in designing our rendering architecture to be able to easily expand and adapt as powerful new technologies develop and artist demands evolve.”

    The Brazil Rendering System was used most recently in such blockbuster films as 20th Century Fox’s Star Wars III: Revenge of the Sith and Dimension Film’s Sin City, as well as Blizzard Ent.’s the top-selling World of Warcraft video game. SplutterFish products are currently available from the company and its international reseller representatives, accessible through www.splutterfish.com.

  • Madden NFL 06 Hits the Turf

    The most successful sports video game franchise in history is back with Madden NFL 06, which arrives at retail today under the EA SPORTS banner. EA says it has updated its passing game for the first time in ten years with the all-new QB Vision Control and QB Precision Placement functions, and introduces the all new NFL Superstar mode that lets players experience what it’s like to be a gridiron MVP.

    The QB Vision Control allows players to scan the field, look off defenders and make perfect throws within the quarterback’s unique field of vision. QB Precision Placement then allows the ball to be placed exactly where the player wants it. There’s also the all-new Truck Stick Control, which delivers big hits on offense to break tackles, flatten defenders and clear a path to the end zone.

    The NFL Superstar mode is a single-player function that allows players to earn one of more than 60 personas ranging from NFL MVP to movie star. Players make choices that involve hiring an agent, getting drafted into the NFL, visiting tattoo parlors, picking movie roles and getting the chance to play in the coveted EA SPORTS Madden Bowl.

    Fantasy Football fans will also enjoy the integration of EA SPORTS Fantasy Football. For the first time, players can check their fantasy scores, get trade notifications and earn trophies in Madden NFL 06. Players can also share files via their EA Lockers, which are essentially online memory cards that can be made accessible to friends.

    Madden NFL 2005 was the top-selling sports video game of the year, moving more than six million copies in North America. Madden NFL 06 promises to continue that success as pre-sell reservations outpace last year’s. The release will be further highlighted by this year’s EA SPORTS Madden Challenge, being played exclusively on the Xbox starting August 27th in Las Vegas with a $100,000 grand prize at stake. The tournament runs on published dates in each city. Additional details and official rules are available at www.maddenchallenge.com.

    Developed by EA Tiburon in Orlando, Florida, Madden NFL 06 is now available for PlayStation2, Xbox, GameCube, Nintendo DS and Game Boy Advance. The PC version will be released on August 17 and PSP title will launch on Sept. 20. The game is rated “E” (Everyone) and lists for $49.99 for consoles, $39.99 for PC and Nintendo DS, and $29.99 for Game Boy Advance. More information can be found at www.madden06.com.

  • PBS Home Video Lands Jay Jay

    Porchlight Ent.’s poplar CG preschool series, Jay Jay the Jet Plane, has been acquired by Paramount Home Entertainment and PBS Home Video. Under a partnership launched last year, the entities will distribute and market a minimum of two new titles per year in North America under the PBS KIDS label. The home video re-launch, set for spring 2006, also promises to deliver a new look for the high-flying property.

    Created by Deborah and David Michel, the Jay Jay TV series has its title flyer and his airplane friends finding fun and adventure in the magical Tarrytown Airport. The 3D-animated show is produced by PorchLight Ent. and Modern Cartoons, and airs in more than 50 countries. In the U.S., the series is seen daily on PBS stations and currently consists of 80 12-minute episodes, with 10 new installments in production for a fall 2005 debut. In addition to innovative interactive learning concepts, the new season will feature a new Hispanic airplane character to help kids learn Spanish words.

    More information on Jay Jay the Jet Plane and other PBS KIDS shows can be found at www.pbskids.org and www.pbskidsgo.org, while video resources for educators are available at www.shoppbs.com/teachers. PorchLight Ent. can be found at www.porchlight.com.

  • Okada Named Square Enix Prez

    Daishiro Okada has been named president and COO of Square Enix Inc., the publisher of Square Enix interactive products in North America. Okada, who has also been appointed to the company’s Board of Directors, replaces outgoing president and COO Ichiro Otobe, who will assume new responsibilities at Square Enix Co. Ltd.

    The company says the appointment of Okada is part of its efforts to expand business in the North American market. “Mr. Okada is a seasoned executive who will be a key force in capturing the full potential of Square Enix’s abundant collection of high quality digital content,” comments Yoichi Wada, president of Square Enix Co. Ltd. “With the landscape of the industry moving at an extremely quick pace, his extensive experience as a corporate executive and rich background in both the technology and financial sectors will successfully lead our North American business.”

    Okada joined Square Enix Co. Ltd. in January of 2005 as senior exec. Before that, he was representative director and COO for a Japanese technology firm and built a successful career as a banker with Deutsche Bank AG Group Japan and The Industrial Bank of Japan (currently, Mizuho Financial Group).

    Headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, Square Enix Co. Ltd. is home to such best-selling video game franchises as Final Fantasy andDragon Quest. More information on the company and its titles can be found at www.square-enix.com/na.

  • Artists Sought for Graphic Novels

    Hollywood-based publisher Galaxy Press has plans to turn author L. Ron Hubbard’s 10-volume science fiction saga, Mission Earth, into the biggest graphic novel series and is holding a contest to find illustrators. The comics are slated to begin rolling out to the public in the fall of 2006 to coincide with the 20th anniversary of the New York Times Best-Selling book series.

    Galaxy Press president and publisher John Goodwin comments, "As a result of this contest, we hope to find a suitable graphic artist to assist in the design and production of the graphic novels based on Mission Earth: The Invaders Plan, the first volume of the Mission Earth series."

    Entries from professional or amateur fiction artists interested in illustrating one or more of the graphic novels will be accepted until September 30, 2005. To qualify for review, submissions should depict at least one scene from any of Hubbard’s Mission Earth novels, widely available in bookstores and libraries.

    Entry forms are available by request via e-mail to info@galaxypress.com. No entry fees or purchases are required and submissions will not be returned.

  • DisneyToon Names Wolfe Publicity VP

    Daily Variety reports that Elizabeth Wolfe has been promoted to the post of VP of publicity for DisneyToon Studios, the Mouse House’s prolific producer of moderately budgeted theatrical-release and direct-to-video features.

    In her new role, Wolfe will oversee all areas of publicity and serve as a go-between for publicity teams at Buena Vista and other Walt Disney Co. departments. Talent relations and special charity projects will also fall under her supervision.

    Wolfe has been with the Walt Disney Co. for 11 years. She previously served as director of of national publicity for Buena Vista Pictures Marketing, where she worked on campaigns for such blockbusters as Toy Story, The Lion King, Tarzan and Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl.

  • U.K. VFX Houses Offer Free Training

    Aspiring visual effects artists who live in the U.K. can take advantage of a free, seven-month course being offered by Escape Studios and six major U.K. post houses. Applications are being accepted for the Visual Effects Production Grade (VFX PG), a training program that starts in October. Eligible applicants must be experienced Maya users and E.U. Nationals.

    The VFX PG combines five months of full-time training and two months devoted to work placement in the post-production industry. Not only is the training free of charge, but students will also be paid. The course relies on monies from the Skillset Film Skills Fund, made up of lottery money via the U.K. Film Council and industry investment from the SIF production levy. Also supporting the program are leading U.K. vfx studios Cinesite, Double Negative, Framestore CFC, Glassworks, the Mill and the Moving Picture Company (MPC).

    Applicants are asked to send a cover letter, CV and showreel that demonstrates Maya skills to Escape Studios (www.escapestudios.co.uk.) The deadline is Aug. 22.

  • Universal, Cartoon Network Revisit Land Before Time

    The newly minted Universal Studios Home Entertainment Family Productions (USHEFP) has begun work on 26 episodes of The Land Before Time, a new animated TV series based on the popular theatrical and home video movie franchise. The show will debut on Cartoon Network in 2007, followed by a DVD roll out by Universal.

    Over a 17-year period, 11 Land Before Time feature-length movies have been released on home video, Selling more than 60 million units worldwide and generating more than a billion dollars. The new TV series will employ a combination of 2D character animation and 3D backgrounds to continue the adventures of young dinosaurs Littlefoot, Cera, Ducky, Petrie, Spike and Chomper.

    Also in the works at Universal is The Land Before Time: Day of the Flyers, the 12th installment in the direct-to-video series. Universal Studios Consumer Products Group will handle a worldwide licensing program for both the feature and TV series.

    The original Land Before Time feature, directed by Don Bluth and exec produced by George Lucas, was released theatrically in November of 1988 and went on to earn more than $84 million worldwide before spawning one of the most successful direct-to-video franchises of all time.

  • 4Kids Hears Magical DoReMi

    The anime series Magical DoReMi will make its U.S. debut vi FOX’s 4Kids TV block on Saturday, Sept. 10, at 8 a.m. (ET). Aimed primarily at a younger girl audience, the show about kid witches is 4Kids Ent.’s latest acquisition from Toei Animation, which produces Dragonball, Digimon and One Piece, among others.

    Magical DoReMi follows the adventures of Dorie, Reanne and Mirabelle, three inquisitive girls who stumble into an old witch’s shop and end up becoming apprentices. With help from their magical fairies, wands and musical melodies, the three seek to become full-fledged witches by learning to cast spells and unlocking the secrets to friendship, love and courage.

    "At 4Kids, we are continuously looking for ways to broaden our audience and reach a younger, more female-skewing demographic," says Alfred R. Kahn, chairman and CEO of 4Kids Ent. "That’s what made Magical DoReMi so attractive to us."

    More than 200 episodes of Magical DoReMi have aired in Japan over a four-year span, making it one of the longest running anime series for girls. As part of the four-hour 4Kids TV Saturday morning programming block, it joins such popular girl power shows as Winx Club and Mew Mew Power. The CG-animated Bratz series, based on the hugely successful doll line, will also join lineup this fall. Boys will get the all-new G.I. Joe Sigma 6 when the season starts.

  • Kong ’33 DVD Details

    Warner Home Video is set to make a lot of fans very happy when it finally releases the original 1933 King Kong on DVD for the first time this November. Due out Nov. 22, just a couple of weeks before director Peter Jackson brings his remake to theaters, the DVD boasts a feast of bonus features fit for the king of Skull Island himself.

    The fully restored King Kong will be available as both a two-disc special edition ($26.99) and a two-disc, tin packaged collector’s edition ($39.98) featuring a 20-page reproduction of the original souvenir program and postcard reproductions of vintage theater one-sheets. Other bonus materials to look for include RKO Production 601: The Making of Kong, the Eighth Wonder of the World, a new seven-part documentary written by Animation Magazine contributor Ron Magid. Peter Jackson is featured in the doc, sharing his knowledge of the original production and discussing how it inspired him to make movies.

    Hardcore Kong fans are well aware of the infamous "Spider Pit" sequence, which was cut out of the film following an early screening in Santa Monica, Calif. The scene followed the famous sequence where Kong rolls the men off the log and into a chasm. Those who survived the fall were then besieged by giant stop-motion animated spiders in the original print. Studio execs thought the arach attack was bad for the pacing of the picture and the footage was removed, never to be seen again. However, viewers will get to see a recreation on the DVD.

    Also included in the DVD are a documentary on Kong director/creator Merian C. Cooper and commentary from legendary stop-motion animator Ray Harryhausen, Mighty Joe Young star Terry Moore and vfx whiz Ken Ralston. Harryhausen was a protégé of Willis O’Brien, the pioneer who created the animation effects for King Kong and The Lost World (1924).

  • Pixar in Second Quarter Slump

    The Wall Street slogan, “When E.F. Hutton talks, everybody listens,” can more appropriately be applied to Pixar Animation Studios these days as its quarterly reports are among the most closely followed by the financial sector. This week, that attention is focused on a steep 66% dip in earnings for the company’s second fiscal quarter. The slump is being blamed on lower-than-expected Incredibles DVD sales, which forced the company to adjust its financial guidance last month.

    For the quarter, Pixar reported revenues of $26.4 million, compared to $161.2 for Q1, and earnings of $12.7 million, down from $81.9 reported in May. Revenues for the six months ended July 2, 2005 stand at $187.7 million, with earnings at $94.6 million, or $0.77 per fully diluted share.

    Despite the disappointing results, Pixar is waxing optimistic about its reputation and its future. “We’re very pleased with the overall performance of The Incredibles, which is by far the highest-selling DVD in 2005,” says CEO Steve Jobs. “Cars is almost completed and is looking fantastic, and we have no doubt that it will be one of our best films to date.”

    The Incredibles’ failure to meet expectations is symptomatic of an industry-wide slump in DVD sales. DreamWorks experienced the same woes with Shrek 2, and other studios’ titles have been moving off shelves slower than in previous years.

  • SIGGRAPH NEWS9 is No. 1 at SIGGRAPH

    Filmmaker Shane Acker’s list of kudos grew on Thursday when the SIGGRAPH Computer Animation Festival jury gave "Best of Show" to his acclaimed CG short, 9. The film has already commanded the attention of Hollywood and is set to become a feature film produced by Tim Burton for Focus Features. Acker will direct the big-screen adaptation.

    The 32nd conference on computer graphics and interactive techniques drew 29,122 artists, research scientists, developers and academics from 81 countries to Los Angeles this week. Highlights for attendees included the Electronic Theater and animation festival, where the cream of the crop of digitally created works screened throughout the convention.

    Other films to receive jury honors were Fallen Art by Tomek Baginski (Platige Image of Poland) and La Migration Bigoudenn by Eric Castaing, Alexandre Heboyan and Fafah Togora (Gobelins, l’ecole de l’image of France).

    ACM SIGGRAPH also presented three awards at the conference to recognize individuals who made a significant contribution to the computer graphics community. Tomoyuki Nishita of the University of Tokoyo received the prestigious Steven Anson Coons Award for Outstanding Creative Contributions to Computer Graphics for his work on rendering of natural phenomena, while Jos Stam, a senior research scientist at Alias, earned the Computer Graphics Achievement Award for his pioneering work on subdivision surfaces and on fast Algorithms for the simulation of natural phenomena (fire, fluids, gases,etc.) Ronald Fedkiw of Stanford University was given the Significant New Researcher Award for his contributions to the field of computational fluid dynamics.

    In the Emerging Technologies showdown, “Touch Light: An Imaging Screen and Display for Gesture-Based Interaction,” developed by Andy Wilson of Microsoft Research, was selected by Laval Virtual France for presentation at its conference in late April. Touch Light is a unique transparent display using computer vision technology to enable new applications in gesture-based user interface, video conferencing, augmented reality and ubiquitous computing. In turn, the exchange program will have two members of the SIGGRAPH 2006 conference planning committee travel to Laval France in April to select a winning installation to display at SIGGRAPH 2006 in Boston.

    For information on how to participate in the next SIGGRAPH, see the call for presentations at www.siggraph.org/s2006.

  • Midway Game for Ant Bully

    Midway Games has acquired multi-territory video game publishing rights to Warner Bros.’ upcoming CG animated feature, The Ant Bully. Through the deal with Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment, Midway will shrink young gamers to the size of ants on console, handheld and PC platforms.

    Produced by Playtone Prods., in association with DNA Prods., The Ant Bully is based on John Nickle’s popular children’s book of the same name. The book tells the tale of a young boy who floods an ant colony with his water-gun, and is magically shrunken down to insect size and sentenced to hard labor in the ruins. Before returning to normal stature, he comes to appreciate the selfless nature of the ants and learns a valuable lesson about tolerance and empathy.

    The movie is being directed and produced by John A. Davis (Jimmy Neutron, Boy Genius), with Playtone Prods.’ Tom Hanks and Gary Goetzman also producing. Keith Alcorn is exec producer. The all-star voice cast will include Nicolas Cage, Julia Roberts, Meryl Streep, Paul Giamatti, Lily Tomlin, Cheri Oteri, Alan Cumming, Regina King, Ricardo Montalban and newcomer Zach Tyler Eisen.

    The Ant Bully will be released simultaneously in IMAX 3D and conventional 2D formats on August 4, 2006.