Hellboy has appeared in countless graphic novels and comic books, prose novels and short story collections, acclaimed role-playing games and videogames, three live-action films and two animated features, and has inspired countless toys and collectibles. Now, the half-demon hero’s award-winning creator Mike Mignola is getting his turn in the spotlight in the all-new documentary Mike Mignola: Drawing Monsters. The project has just launched a month-long Kickstarter campaign, which has already surpassed its $58,000 initial goal.
The feature-length film includes never-before-seen interviews conducted with the legendary creator at his studio, drawing demonstrations, behind-the-scenes footage from comic-book conventions and interviews with some of the most influential people in entertainment, including Neil Gaiman (American Gods), Steven Universe creator Rebecca Sugar, Victor LaValle (The Ballad of Black Tom), artist Tara McPherson and comic-book superstars like Vita Ayala, Duncan Fegredo, Fábio Moon and Joe Quesada.
As one of the most successful independent comic-book creators, Mignola has inspired generations of writers and artists. Mike Mignola: Drawing Monsters provides an in-depth look at his legacy, from the beginning of his career working as an inker for Marvel Comics to his success with Hellboy. The film features never-before-told revelations from Gaiman about the Mignolaverse and the production of Guillermo del Toro’s Hellboy II, and an interview with animation star Sugar discussing Mignola’s influence on Steven Universe.
“I think everyone young and old should check out Mike Mignola’s work… It’s about using comics as a medium to redefine what comics can be,” Sugar said of the doc’s acclaimed subject.
The documentary also features Mythbusters host Adam Savage, Hellboy film actor Doug Jones and actress Vanessa Eichhotlz, novelists Christopher Golden (of the bestselling Ben Walker novels) and LaValle, Dark Horse Publisher and founder Mike Richardson, Dark Horse Editor Katii O’Brien, Marvel EVP of Creative Development Joe Quesada, comic-book writers Vita Ayala (The Wilds), Chris Roberson (Hellboy & The B.P.R.D.) and Thomas Sniegoski (Young Hellboy), and award-winning cartoonist Fábio Moon (Daytripper), as well as interviews and art demonstrations with painter Jason Shawn Alexander, Duncan Fegredo (Hellboy: The Wild Hunt), Michael Avon Oeming (B.P.R.D.: The Soul of Venice), award-winning colorist Dave Stewart and, of course, Mignola himself.
Mike Mignola: Drawing Monsters is being co-directed and produced by Jim Demonakos (founder, LightBox Expo and ECCC) and Kevin Hanna (Clockwork Girl), an American director noted for his work in feature film, animation, comic books and television.
“There’s already eighty hours of footage in the can that we have shot over the last year and a half,” said Hanna. “This is an ambitious in-depth documentary to celebrate Mignola’s legacy in style.”
“We’re bringing the project to Kickstarter to secure the financing to shoot additional interviews, edit the film and score, and bring the film to market,” added Demonakos. “We want existing fans and curious readers alike to experience Mignola’s art and his incredible world of monsters and misfits.”
The Kickstarter campaign features tiers with the Mike Mignola: Drawing Monsters film on Digital or Blu-ray, as well as a Kickstarter exclusive t-shirt, original art, a commission from Mignola himself, the opportunity to receive an executive producer credit on the film, and an incredible Hellboy Portfolio Print Set that is exclusive to the Kickstarter campaign, featuring new 9×12″ Hellboy prints by Mignola and Dave Stewart, Laurence Campbell, Duncan Fegredo, Alex Maleev, Fábio Moon, Mike Norton, Paolo Rivera, Craig Rousseau, Tim Sale and Ben Stenbeck. All the artists involved have previously drawn interiors for various Mignolaverse books.
Filming will continue and is scheduled to be completed in the fall/winter of 2021, with the finished film debuting by spring of 2022. Fans can follow the project on social @mignoladoc (Twitter/Instagram).
(L-R) Hellboy prints by Mike Mignola, Alex Meleev and Paolo Rivera
Big Screen Entertainment Group has announced a development pact for a variety of animation projects with its new production partner The Princess Network and fast-rising studio Animation Renaissance. The new fairytale themed projects will utilize the innovative work and cutting-edge technology on which the boutique animation studio has built its growing reputation.
First into production is a feature film with a fresh take on Cinderella. The as-yet-untitled movie will be co-directed by Catherine Taylor and Kimberley Kates.
An emerging British director, Taylor has been championed by the BAFTA new talent programs, received scholarships form BAFTA LA, BBFC and Film London, and is a Fulbright Scholar. Her work has screened at Oscar-qualifying festivals and won awards from diverse bodies from the BFI to horror magazine Gorezone. In addition to music videos, shorts and features, she has shot fashion films for brands like Tom Ford and Stella McCartney.
Kates is the Chief Executive of Big Screen and has spearheaded the public company’s recent further expansion into streaming, content creation and acquisitions. This is Big Screen’s first animated production in association with its newest partner, “elegant lifestyle brand” The Princess Network.
“It is going to be amazing to share this wonderful opportunity to create some animation magic and inspiring visuals together,” said Richard Culver, owner and managing director of Thailand-based Animation Renaissance.
Details of the first feature are TBA, but the production partners point out that while thousands of variations on “Cinderella” that have been told around the world over centuries, the tales’ common theme of a young woman rising above her circumstances is as relevant today as ever.
Cornelia Funke’s magical fantasy novel Igraine The Brave is coming to theaters! Oscar-winner Volker Engel, Gesa Engel and Lucia Scharbatke of Uncharted Territory are to produce together with Ulrich Schwarz and Sven Pannicke of RISE PICTURES. Igraine will be Funke’s latest hero to make the leap from page to screen, following the award-winning German author’s Dragon Rider and Inkheart tales.
Igraine The Brave will be directed by Holger Tappe (Happy Family 1 + 2, Animals United) and Volker Engel. ”Disney Legend” Andreas Deja, who has more than 30 years of experience as a supervising animator at the Walt Disney Company (The Lion King, Lilo and Stitch, Aladdin, Beauty and the Beast), will serve as animation consultant for the production. Jane Ainscough has written the screenplay, with Grammy winner Alexander Geringas delivering the music score.
RISE | Visual Effects Studios will be responsible for some of the 3D animation – as they were for the adaptation of Dragon Rider – and will establish a new RISE animation set-up in Munich for this and further projects to come. L.A.-based Robyn Klein and Jeremy Ross are on board as international co-production partners (If Anything Happens I Love You, shortlisted for the animated short Oscar). World sales are being handled by GFM Animation Ltd. in London.
Igraine The Brave tells the story of 12-year-old Igraine, the only one in her family who is not interested in magic, but is instead pursuing a headstrong plan to become a knight. Just when her brother accidently turns their parents into pigs, their beloved home Pimpernel Castle is besieged by the knight Rowan Heartless and his master, Osmond the Greedy. They plan to steal her family’s singing books of magic to become all-powerful. Now it is up to Igraine to save her family – even if it means facing giants and three-headed dragons.
Ulrich Swartz and Volker Engel
This project will see Volker and Gesa Engel relocating to Germany with their company Uncharted Territory after more than 20 years in Los Angeles. Volker Engel founded the company with his partner Marc Weigert in 1999 after winning an Oscar for Best VFX for his work on Independence Day. Since then, the company has successfully produced for major studios including Sony Pictures and 20th Century Fox, and co-produced with broadcasters such as SyFy and BBC. Their feature co-producer and VFX supervisor credits include global blockbusters Independence Day – Resurgence (2016), White House Down (2012) and 2012 (2009). Volker Engel and Marc Weigert also received an Emmy for their work on the three-part miniseries The Triangle (2005).
Gesa and Volker Engel will open the German office of Uncharted Territory in Nuremberg and run the company with producer Lucia Scharbatke, formerly of Kaamos Film. Other adaptations and original stories for animated and live-action feature films and series are in development, including more material based on books by Cornelia Funke.
Igraine The Brave is the second major international animation production for RISE PICTURES after Dragon Rider. In addition, Stowaway – a spectacular sci-fi adventure from director Joe Penna starring Academy Award nominees Anna Kendrick and Toni Colette as well as Daniel Dae Kim and Shamier Anderson – was produced by RISE PICTURES, XYZ Films (U.S.) and augenschein Filmproduktion, and will soon be released by Wild Bunch in German cinemas and around the globe on Netflix.
RISE PICTURES is the production arm of RISE | Visual Effects Studios, one of the leading players in the international VFX landscape and a successful producer/animation producer for animated features (Dragon Rider, Richard The Stork). RISE delivers state-of-the-art VFX in Germany for the world’s most successful franchises. The company has long been a part of the Marvel family (Loki, WandaVision, Avengers – Endgame, Captain Marvel, Black Panther, Captain America) as well as a “partner in crime” for such directors as Tom Tykwer (Babylon Berlin), Tim Burton (Dumbo), Wes Anderson (The French Dispatch), Guy Ritchie (The Man from U.N.C.L.E.), Gore Verbinski (A Cure for Wellness), as well as Netflix (Stranger Things, Dark), Amazon (Wir Kinder vom Bahnhof Zoo), Warner Bros. (Fantastic Beasts 3, Doctor Sleep), Walt Disney Pictures (Artemis Fowl), Sony Pictures (The Dark Tower), HBO (Westworld, Lovecraft Country) and 20th Century Fox (The King’s Man).
***This article originally appeared in the April ’21 issue of Animation Magazine (No. 309)***
Croatian director Dalibor Baric can’t believe how much attention his innovative experimental feature has been getting over the past few weeks. Ever since the Academy announced that his 2020 feature Accidental Luxuriance of the Translucent Watery Rebus was one of now 26 titles eligible for this year’s Academy Awards, a lot of people have become interested in his pensive sci-fi movie, which uses a wide variety of animation techniques to convey its strange message.
Speaking from his home in Zagreb, Baric says he began working on the movie about two years ago and wrapped everything up only a month before the COVID lockdowns. “It was almost as if my movie anticipated the post-COVID atmosphere,” he says. “There is a mention of a quarantine and, at some point, the characters were wearing masks. It’s funny how it all reflects the world now. Originally, I started writing the movie as a way of processing my thoughts, simply as a response to the everyday realities of living in our world and the fact that humanity never learns from the past.”
Dalibor Baric
Baric says the writing questioned whether his inner reality matched the exterior world. “It was all the classic questions,” he expands. “What do we know and what don’t we know … Soon, I had a lot of these mostly micro poetic segments. Somehow without thinking too much, this story emerged about this man and a woman who are fugitives from society, and this policeman who is on their trail, which is a familiar movie trope. It was simply a skeleton for me to hang the words and the visuals on.”
A True Fan of Cinema
The director, who also works as a multimedia artist and musician, says he enjoys paying homage to movies that have made an impact on him and his works. In Accidental Luxuriance, keen-eyed film fans will see references to the horror films of Roger Corman, George Romero and David Cronenberg, as well as heavier fare by Jean-Luc Godard and Andrei Tarkovsky. “We grew up with movies so we recognize the distinct language of cinematography,” he notes. “It acts like an apparatus in our brains. I love science fiction B-movies, for example, because they can explore things underneath the surface of their plots. They are labeled as harmless, unserious material, so they have more freedom. They can dig beneath the surface.”
Accidental Luxuriance of the Translucent Watery Rebus
The filmmaker says he always feels better after seeing his favorite movies. “They always give me something,” he notes. “For example, I felt richer, safer and better when I watched Hiroshima Mon Amour. So, in the same way, I want to touch filmgoers on a human level. Someone wrote me that my movie overwhelmed them and caused them to contemplate deeply. I think that’s what I was trying to achieve.”
Baric says his affection for these low-budget sci-fi movies goes back to his childhood, growing up in a small coastal village. “We had a small theater in town, so I went to the movies a lot,” he recalls. “I saw most of the ‘80s blockbusters, but I also saw a lot of exploitation movies, because they were cheaper to get in town. I grew up with a lot of those movies, but I didn’t understand all of them.”
Accidental Luxuriance of the Translucent Watery Rebus
In addition to those low-budget movies, Baric says he loved to read European and American comic books. “I loved Heavy Metal magazine and was crazy about DC and Marvel comics. My first obsession was comic books like Spider-Man and Fantastic Four, long before I got into heavy, slow-burn movies by Ingmar Berman and Tarkovsky!”
He picked up his animation and computer skills working at an animation studio in Zagreb. “I worked as an in-betweener, but I also learned computer graphics and was doing Flash animation. Back then, we thought the Internet was going to open up new possibilities, but then it became systemized. Then I started to experiment with collages, and I felt the need to store all the animation and collages in one place.”
Accidental Luxuriance of the Translucent Watery Rebus
According to Baric, he produced his movie for no more than 20,000 euros (about $24,200), using Blender, Photoshop and After Effects. “I am too lazy to do frame-by-frame animation,” he says with a smile. “My animation was basic, so I found several plug-ins to achieve this oil painting look. I also added some rotoscopy and solarization of colors in After Effects. I just don’t like a clean image. I had to add crackles, grains, glitches all throughout the movie. I need the image to shake and tremble all the time. I just can’t stand a clean aesthetic. The same is true in the audio. There are no complete silences. You can always hear music, dialog or crackles of a record. Just like you can hear your blood pulsating.”
The dynamic filmmaker is pleased that his movie has been able to play in theaters in Croatia despite all the usual COVID restrictions. “There are limited screenings where only 10 or 20 people can be allowed in theaters, in six or seven cities in the country,” he says. “But, now because of the connection to the Oscars, everyone is talking about the movie here. Most people will see it just to check the hype. It is funny that in usual times, the movie would have only got some attention in small animation circles and festivals. But now to see it being talked about by a lot of people fills my cup every day. It’s a small step for humanity, a giant leap for experimental animation!”
Sixteen South Originals, the award-winning creators of TV hits Lily’s Driftwood Bay, Claude and WildWoods, have announced two tasty new additions to its development slate: Ivory Towers and Spaghetti Sisters.
Ivory Towers, an original 2D-animated preschool series written by Stephen Coulter, reflects and celebrates ageing and the preciousness of intergenerational relationships. Set in a home for elderly animals where mischief, mayhem and madness are delivered with the afternoon tea trolley, it follows four-year-old elephant Erin’s visits to her Grandpa in “The Wrinkly Ritz”, where she hears amazing stories from its residents and, together, they make new memories.
Spaghetti Sisters, an original 2D animated series for 7-11s written by Katie Lyons, tells of Fiona and Flavia Fusilli’s off-the-wall efforts to revive their family’s failing pasta restaurant. Located in the secluded and sparsely populated depths of the mountain valley, far from any potential pasta patrons (due to their dad’s insistence on carrying out the famous Fusilli tradition of throwing a meatball and building an establishment where it landed..) — the restaurant is practically broke. It’s up to the two spirited sisters to put it back on the map, while also serving some very unusual customers and dealing with a rival restaurateur further up the hill. But can their latest brainwave deliver success as well as meals?
Spaghetti Sisters
“I’m incredibly excited about our latest shows – they’re each unique with lots of comedy and heart,” said Colin Williams, Creative Director of Sixteen South. “Ivory Towers is a funny, fresh and lovely show celebrating the precious bond between grandchildren and their grandparents. And Spaghetti Sisters takes our work in a new direction: a binge-worthy series with the vibes of Twin Peaks meets Gravity Falls. But the reason I’m most excited about them is because they were each written by Stephen and Katie, my wonderful Development Producers. The opportunity to help them bring their ideas to life is a real treat and I couldn’t be more proud of them and these new shows.”
The two new shows join Sharks in Shirts, recently announced in development at Sixteen South Originals. This fin-tickling 26 x 11’ animated children’s series about a team of football-playing fish is a collaboration with a group of second-year animation students from Ulster University. While on an industry placement at Sixteen South, one of the students – 22-year-old Eílís Magennis – pitched the idea for the show, which the company liked so much they optioned it and are currently developing it with the students and funding from Northern Ireland Screen.
Based in Belfast, Sixteen South Originals create and develop original children’s and family properties for screen. They create original ideas and formats, develop book properties for screen and partner with other creators in co-developments. Their new slate will be realised in 2D, 3D, hybrid animation, live action and fur. Previous productions include Claude for Disney Junior and Lily’s Driftwood Bay for Nick Jr, KiKA and ABC.
Netflix and Skydance are programming a new anime series based on the globally successful Terminator franchise — the infamous android’s first TV animation adaptation. The series is produced in partnership with Production I.G (Ghost in the Shell: SAC_2045, B: The Beginning), who Netflix has a Production Line Deal with since 2018.
“Anyone who knows my writing knows I believe in taking big swings and going for the heart. I’m honored that Netflix and Skydance have given me the opportunity to approach Terminator in a way that breaks conventions, subverts expectations and has real guts,” said showrunner and executive producer Mattson Tomlin (Project Power, The Batman).
John Derderian, Netflix’ s VP of Japan & Anime, said, “Terminator is one of the most iconic sci-fi stories ever created — and has only grown more relevant to our world over time. The new animated series will explore this universe in a way that has never been done before. We can’t wait for fans to experience this amazing new chapter in the epic battle between machines and humans.”
“I asked my long-time friend and colleague Mamoru Oshii [director of Ghost in the Shell] what he thought about the idea of turning Terminator into an animated series. His response was, ‘Ishikawa, are you out of your mind?’” At that instant, I was confident we should get onboard,” Production I.G President & CEO Mitsuhisa Ishikawa revealed. “As huge fans, our team at Production I.G is putting their heart and souls into creating this series. We hope fans will enjoy it!”
Starring Arnold Schwarzenegger as the iconic cyborg assassin, director James Cameron and producer Gale Anne Hurd’s 1984 sci-fi actioner The Terminator launched a multi-billion-dollar franchise that encompasses six feature films — most recently 2019’s Terminator: Dark Fate — novels, comics and series, including the VFX Emmy and VES Award-nominated The Sarah Connor Chronicles and Machinima’s CG webtoon Terminator Salvation: The Machinima Series (2009).
The 78th Annual Golden Globe Awards were held Sunday night, emceed by bicoastal hosts Tina Fey in New York and Amy Poehler in Beverly Hills — returning to these illustrious duties having performed them three years in a row in 2013, 2014 and 2015 — and nominees beaming in from around the world.
The Hollywood Foreign Press Association bestowed the award for Best Motion Picture – Animated went to Disney-Pixar’s Soul from director Pete Docter, co-director Kemp Powers and producer Dana Murray. (Read all about this lauded flick in Animation Magazine‘s feature story here.) Soul was up against worthy competitors, including sibling Pixar flick Onward.
This is the ninth time Pixar Animation Studios has secured the Golden Globe; beginning with the very first win in the category’s history with Cars and most recently with Coco in 2018. With the Globes’ strong correlation to Oscar wins for animated features, the same Pixar film has taken both prestigious prizes seven times.
Powers is the first Black first-time director to win any Golden Globe in the awards’ long history, and the second Black director to win for animation (following Peter Ramsey for Spider-Verse in 2019). He also served as Soul‘s co-screenwriter with Docter and Mike Jones.
Docter is celebrating his third win in this category, with his shiny new award set to join Golden Globes for Up and Inside Out on the shelf. Docter and Murray accepted the honor over video. Powers had recorded a speech which was played on a tablet held by Docter — he offered thanks to the studio and filmmakers’ supportive families, saying of the winning film: “Our story is universal.”
As previously announced, this year’s special honors were awarded to Jane Fonda (Cecil B. deMille Award) and Norman Lear (Carol Burnett Award). Satchel and Jackson Lee, children of Spike Lee and tonya Lewis Lee, are the 2021 Golden Globe Ambassadors.
Soul also outshone the all live-action competition in the Best Original Score – Motion Picture category, which went to composers Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross (also nominated for Mank) and jazzy musical consultant Jon Batiste. The Midnight Sky, Tenet and News of the World were nominated.
2021 Golden Globe for Best Motion Picture – Animated
The Croods: A New Age (DreamWorks/Univ.) Director: Joel Crawford
Onward (Disney-Pixar) Dir: Dan Scanlon
Over the Moon (Netflix, Pearl, Keane Studios) Dir: Glen Keane
WINNER: Soul (Disney-Pixar) Dir: Pete Docter, Kemp Powers
Wolfwalkers (Cartoon Saloon, Melusine; Apple TV, GKIDS) Dir: Tomm Moore, Ross Stewart
A beautiful Ukrainian wood nymph’s fantastic adventures are at the heart of the upcoming CG-animated feature Mavka. The Forest Song. The lovingly crafted movie, which is produced by Ukrainian media group Film.UA and its subsidiary Animagrad Animation Studio, promises to be quite a cultural event when it is released in theaters in 2022. The film’s producers Iryna Kostyuk and Egor Olesov were kind enough to give us a sneak peek at their exciting new project.
Kostyuk and Olesov point out that the film’s key sources of inspiration are Ukrainian and Slavic mythology as well as some of the literary classics of the region, including The Forest Song, a famous poem by Lesya Ukrainka. “Our main character is a unique, complex and powerful female icon that has never been brought out to the world before, especially in animation form, which is universal language,” says Kostyuk. “Mavka is a creature of ancient legends transformed into a symbol of undying love by the genius of poetess Lesya Ukrainka. While the animated movie is rich in Slavic authenticity and charm, we believe that its central plot and themes have universal appeal for audiences of all ages.”
Adds Olesov, “Mavka is quite a well-known character in Ukraine. That’s why the power of the brand is huge locally, which allowed us to ink and get out into a nationwide retail numerous licensing deals well in advance of the premier of the actual movie, which is truly a unique case. Ukraine celebrates Lesya Ukrainka’s 150th birthday nationally in 2021 and this significant cultural event holds a lot of meaning for our team and this project. Thus, a number of events will be held by our team with the support from state institutions such as the Ministry of Culture of Ukraine and State Film Agency.”
Mavka. The Forest Song
The Spirit of Preservation
The producers also point out that the film carries out two important missions that are close to their hearts. “One is spotlighting environmental issues in Ukraine, raising awareness of the extinction of endangered species of flora and fauna of the region, some of which are featured in the movie,” says Kostyuk. “The other is exporting the diversity of Ukrainian and Slavic heritage worldwide. This is why our project is supported by the Ministry of Culture of Ukraine, the State Film Agency, as well as World Wildlife Fund, Ukraine.”
Directed by Oleksandra Ruban and Oleg Malamuzh, the project’s animation is produced mostly at the Animagrad studio in Kyiv. According to the producers, more than 200 people are involved in the production process. The film will certainly have a strong presence at the upcoming European Film Market in Berlin in March as well as other movie events throughout the year such as Cannes and American Film Market.
Mavka. The Forest Song
Of course, producing the movie as the world was dealing with the COVID pandemic had its share of challenges. “We don’t have a full-fledged market in Ukraine of modern high-quality 3D animation, so Animagrad studio faces the challenge (as well as the national responsibility) of creating it,” says Olesov. “Producing European and even better quality of animation at a sane cost — is our competitive advantage. The Animagrad strategy is to release our movies both locally and internationally and introduce our series of movies with unique, powerful female characters which are either based on real characters or popular iconic myths. Our first movie The Stolen Princess centered on Mila, the Princess of Kyiv, which we’ll follow up with Mavka, and then we have Roxelana, who saves the world from a global war. Our first movie, The Stolen Princess, has already blazed the trail by being released in more than 50 countries.”
The producers also point out that although animation in Ukraine is relatively young, the industry is growing at a rapid pace and shows lots of potential. “Ukrainian studios are successfully working on commercial and festival animation films,” notes Olesov. “Several Ukrainian animation projects, feature films and series have shown quite a lot of promise in recent years both locally and internationally. There are many talented artists in Ukraine and animated content can travel around the world and open up many interesting business and cultural opportunities for Ukraine. We are absolutely open to effective international partnerships and hope that in the near future, we’ll be able to share with the world many new interesting stories through animation.”
Mavka. The Forest Song
Both producers are quite passionate about their film’s environmental message. “One of our goals was to spotlight the issues of deforestation in Ukraine and the extinction of rare animal and plant species,” explains Kostyuk. “To raise awareness, Mavka’s forest will be populated with some animals from endangered list, such as a lynx, bison, a black stork and a brown bear, and some of them play quite a role in the plot. We used real Ukrainian forests as location references for the film. During the script stage, our Mavka team used consultants from WWF Ukraine, who held lectures, workshops and an expedition to forests for our animators, so that the magical forest and its inhabitants in the animated feature felt as authentic and alive as possible.”
“We also initiated a long-term charity project titled ‘Save the Lynx!’ in support of the Eurasian lynx and its extinction,” she adds. “The money raised by this campaign, including part of the proceeds from the sale of licensed goods under the Mavka brand, is used to study the population of this rare species. This campaign won a United Nations Global Compact in Ukraine Partnership for Sustainability Award.”
Also high on the list of the production’s initiatives is using the movie to spread awareness of Ukrainian culture and literary classics. “We have all the support of the state, which recognizes the importance of the project to the nation as well as its international potential,” notes Kostyuk. “The project has twice received funding from the State Film Agency of Ukraine first in September 2016 and then in October 2020. The state has been helpful throughout this project and a lot of plans are set for 2021 to coincide with the 150th anniversary of The Forest Song‘s author.”
Mavka. The Forest Song
A Cultural Emissary for Ukraine
Special attention has also been paid to the film’s visual language, which celebrates Slavic ornaments, symbols, ancient runes and patterns from Ukrainian embroidery. Experts from the leading ethnographic research institutions of Ukraine (the Department of Folklore Studies of the National University, the Ivan Honchar Museum and the Museum of the History of Ukrainian Fashion) worked with the team to interpret them for the film’s state-of-the-art 3D CG animation.
When all is said and done, the producers would love audiences to feel inspired by their film’s fascinating heroine. “Mavka brings another strong female character into Ukrainian and European animation,” they point out. “Our hope is that the audiences worldwide will be inspired to ‘be like Mavka,’ that is, to share her values and adopt her style, which is visually expressed in the combination of themes of nature and authenticity in a modern interpretation. The animated film’s ability to appeal to a wide family audience was appreciated by international buyers and distributors long before its release. The distribution rights have been acquired by 10 companies covering more than 20 countries in Europe, the Middle East and North Africa. In short, the most exciting thing about our project is that Mavka will give the audience something new — a world that has ever been seen in the world of animation before.”
Animagrad/Film.UA Group’s Mavka. The Forest Songwill have a strong presence at the European Film Market in Berlin this week. For more info about the movie, visit mavka.ua.
Eddy for Nuke 2.7
Fluid simulations are a big deal in visual effects. They are used extensively for smoke, fire, explosions, water, etc. There isn’t a summer tentpole film that doesn’t have these. They are complex and take a lot of time to calculate. They take a lot of time to write to disk and take up a lot of disk space. Plus, the way VFX workflows are setup always requires a lot of time and feedback from supervisors or clients … there are always notes.
So in 2015, four smart guys (Andreas Söderström, Christoph Sprenger, Niall Ryan and Ronnie Menahem) founded the company VortechSFX in Wellington, New Zealand in order to tighten the iteration cycle by moving fluid simulations into the compositing stage within Nuke — and to increase calculation speeds by throwing everything to the GPU. And Eddy is the result.
In a nutshell, Eddy works inside of Nuke’s 3D world — very much like you would in a more traditional package like Houdini or Maya. And it works in a similar way to other fluid packages, using a volume of voxels to calculate movement of the fluids with forces, temperature, buoyancy, etc. Although, you can also generate lighter volumes using math and noise nodes to create things like clouds or fog, to atmosphere that don’t require complex simulations.
The second part of Eddy deals with lighting and rendering these volumes. The renderer is also on the GPU, and can render in both scanline or progressive modes. So, iterating on the lighting and shading can be quick in progressive mode so you can see how it is fitting into the comp and dynamically tweak for better integration — because you are already in your comp. The render does support AOV output including Deeps — the benefit being that you don’t necessarily have to write out the deep data to disk, but instead calculate at render time. These benefits may vary depending on your GPU capacity versus your network speed and size.
Incorporating into a traditional pipeline is crucial for the usefulness of a tool and Eddy has plenty of hooks to work within various workflows. It is able to bring in Alembic and OBJ files for interaction of volumes with animation. Importing and exporting VDB files are supported, so traditional volume solves from, say, Houdini, can be imported to be rendered or drive other features in Eddy. Python and API hooks are available for larger facilities to work with Eddy— or expand on it.
The latest release (2.7.0) includes nodes that expand on integrating particle systems to better control Eddy-generated particles within the Eddy ecosystem including how particles are emitted, affected by forces and even particle channel manipulation.
Overall, Eddy is an incredibly powerful and fast tool, and while it won’t supplant full hero FX (and it’s not designed to), it moves a lot of the lighter lifting downstream. Arguably, dust hits, chimney smoke, cold breath, fog and such make up the majority of FX work — quantitatively speaking — and Eddy can take care most of that work in Nuke, allowing the FX department to destroy cities. It has a bit of a learning curve, but for those already familiar with putting together fluid systems, it’s not much of a leap, and because it lives in Nuke, it’s possible to have Eddy artists putting together subscripts that compositors can bring into their comps. If Nuke is already part of your ecosystem, and you are doing a lot of smokey, steamy, fiery stuff, you may want to look into this.
Foundry’s Mari 4.7
Mari, along with its competitor in crime Substance Painter/Designer, have really changed the landscape of texture painting and look development. And now with Mari up to 4.7 in its development cycle, the workflows have been established and tools are now being incorporated that refine those processes and make the experience even more effective and efficient for the artists. Not to mention how artists work together in a team.
The primary addition in Mari 4.7 is called Custom Procedurals. It’s sort of like sharing materials, but much more elegant. In the past, when you developed a look for something you like — say, a dirt that looks pretty cool — you would tell people, “I have this pretty cool dirt!” and they’d say, “Send it on over!” But when you sent it over, the node network would be messy, not named effectively, and some textures and resources would be missing. With Custom Procedurals, you are bundling up your network and expose the key parameters people need to use it. It’s like a Gizmo in Nuke (or Mari for that matter), and people coming from Houdini would recognize the approach like making Houdini HDAs. But unlike Gizmos, Custom Procedural can be added to a shelf and used as a node or in a layer, if that’s your preferred workflow. Just make sure that your Geo-Channels are set if the Custom Procedural is dependent on them. The procedurals can be set to be used as a color, scalar to drive math in channels or masks. Thanks to Mari, artists can access your dirt from the shelf, and they don’t have to deconstruct your messy node network (no judgments!).
Material Isolation is another new feature, one that I find incredibly useful for look dev. It’s one of those things that makes you ask, “How did we do this before?” This is mainly a display thing, but the information it provides the artists is incredible. Material Isolation gives you a way to view components of your material with a Current Material shader in the context of the lighting. Meaning: instead of looking at the end result of the shader on a model— which, let’s face it, can get quite slow quite quickly — you can look at the underlying base shader, then the shader that makes up the flecks of paint and then the decals, and so on — to see how they look not as a flat shaded object, but with the renderer. This is all done without the burden of turning on and off different layers. Plus, with material in isolation, you can refine it and see what the changes are doing, without the “pollution” of the other layers.
The new release’s other important additions include: a revamped shelf UI for viewing, organizing, and searching for materials, textures and masks. Saving out bake points has also been made more efficient by providing a spreadsheet-type system for selecting and editing parameters for baking out multiple streams— and tools have been put in to bake files to TX files for specific renderers.
Mari is incredibly robust, and more so the beefier the CPU and GPU hardware you throw at it. In the past, Mari was significantly more expensive than Substance, but with subscription-based pricing systems, the two are starting to have parity.
Foundry’s Modo 14.2
Modo is Foundry’s modeling tool which was first introduced in 2006. It is an incredibly powerful tool, but doesn’t get as much play as it should — at least in the visual effects and animation world. It was already a powerful direct modelling tool, and by Modo 10 it had incorporated procedural modelling as well. And now, for 14.2 — the third release in 2020, there are noticeable advances in nearly all of the areas— modelling, texturing, rigging and rendering.
For direct modeling, we have a bunch of tools to assist in beveling (change a square edge to a sloping one) and chamfering (cutting away to make a symmetrical sloping edge), which are definitely tricky when trying to maintain proper topology. In 14.2, there is a Chamfer Edit allowing you to go back into a chamfer to make adjustments (also available as a procedural node). You can chamfer problematic sharp corners to clean up ugly corners. And for making control loops on close edges as you prep for Sub-Ds, the Mitering Offset gives you control to add in those extra edges quickly and easily.
In procedural modelling, MeshFusion is really the touchstone for how clean and quick Boolean operations can be. In 14.0 Foundry an embossing toolset was added for complex Booleans — but once you completed the operation, additional operations were difficult. But a Bezier (parametric) sharp corners function in 14.2 provides more control and functionality to continue to modify the results after the initial Boolean.
A number of weight map tools were added to control the distribution of maps. Weight maps provide control when you apply operations to the model to act as a mask for how much of the operation will affect the vertices. Grow weight expands the map. Border allows you to use the weight map as an edge for other maps. Flood will give you a kind of height selection assessing vertices by height, and then assigning verts to the map. Jitter makes a map of random values based on parameters you provide through a curve interface.
Modo 14.2’s UV mapping now includes Real World Size as an option. I am normally focused on VFX use — in which the real-world scale does get used — but Modo is big in the world of product development, where digital prototypes of things will eventually become real things, and so seeing what objects will really look like is crucial. AxF (Appearance Exchange Format) materials come from X-Rite scanners for reproducing real world materials, and Foundry has made sure that Modo supports the materials and the corresponding real-world scales.
As mentioned before, beyond modelling, Modo has other features like rigging and animation. A 14.2 rigging feature that I found to be some outside-of-the-box thinking is the Rig Clay. In most rigging workflows, control splines are provided for animators to easily grab — which is much more convenient than grabbing the internal bones and such. But it can make for cluttered viewports. Modo embeds the controls into the mesh, so that when animators hover over areas, they highlight. And when the animator moves the highlighted area, the character deforms in the way the rigger had intended.
I’m really just skimming the highlights of 14.2, and you should really check out the advances for the entire Modo 14 series. There is really a bit for everyone. And personally, while in my day job, I’m frequently in other 3D software packages, I really do prefer the modelling workflow of Modo. It just feels nice and intuitive.
DreamWorks Animation’s return to this fantastical prehistoric world — given an evolutionary twist by director Joel Crawford — is one of the bright sparks that kept international box offices going this winter. The Croods encounter their biggest challenge yet when they join forces with the Bettermans, a family of sophisticated homo sapiens, to escape extinction. [Universal, $30 4K/$25 BD/$20 DVD]
The visually stunning follow-up to Ne Zha follows the celestial army commander of legend. Banished 10 years to the mortal realm for disobeying the gods and sparing his demon quarry, Jiang Ziya is given another chance and must face his decision once more. The Chinese box office hit comes home with a new English dub starring Christopher Sabat. [Well Go USA, $30 BD/$25 DVD]
The Comic Book History of Comics author-illustrator duo Fred Van Lente & Ryan Dunlavey return for a five-part recap of our favorite medium! The first three issues now available cover animation’s origins; icons like Betty, Mickey and Bugs; and the redefinition of cartoon cool with UPA and Chuck Jones. (Complete the set in March with chapters on Saturday morning classics, the rise of Japanese anime and Pixar’s CG revolution.) [Kindle/comiXology, $4 each]
Relive Elsa’s thrilling quest to uncover the origin of her powers (with the help of Anna, Kristoff, Olaf and Sven, of course!) in this too-kawaii graphic novel adaptation. The Arendelle adventure is reinterpreted by established shoujo artist Arina Tanemure (Phantom Thief Jeanne, Full Moon) in classic black-and-white manga style. [VIZ Media, $15]
The Works of Hayao Miyazaki: The Master of Japanese Animation
Japanese travel and culture writer Gael Berton explores the personality of one of animation’s greatest legends and his collaborators, deciphering the profound themes and poetic messages of Miyazaki’s work, movie by movie. [Third Editions, $30]
The Works of Hayao Miyazaki: The Master of Japanese Animation
Disney nuiMOs
The darling, dressable micro-plushes introduced in Disney Stores in Japan have arrived in NorAm and Europe, bringing collectible fashion fun at a manageable price. The cuddly Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Daisy, Stitch and Angel were given looks by celeb stylist Maeve Reilly for their global debut. New characters, outfits and accessories (co-branded with Loungefly, Spirit Jersey, Ashley Eckstein and more) are on the way! [shopdisney.com; $18 per plush, outfits/accessories start at $13]
So, you’ve recently graduated or are going to be graduating soon and you’re not sure how to go about finding a good animation or visual effects job, or at least the right one for you. If it offers any comfort, you’re not alone.
But truth be told, the single most important ingredient needed to brew the magical formula of being happy in your career while simultaneously increasing your chances of finding just the right position at just the right company lies within the answer to the following question:
What is your ‘passion purpose?’
In other words, what is it that you really want to do? Forget settling. Settling is what happens when you don’t have anything better to do. And as someone pursuing a career in the animation and/or visual effects field, you clearly have lots of better things to do.
Listing Is a Virtue
Do some serious soul-searching and create a list, circling the top one or two things that you would be completely smitten doing which could potentially occupy 50-80 hours per week for the next 10 years of your life. If nothing on your list truly inspires you to commit to this level, keep searching until you find something that does.
Next, create as long of a list as possible of companies (at least 25) that may have this position available. Create a spreadsheet of resume submission guidelines, contact information, deadlines and other pertinent information so that you have all the required content organized by company and ready to go.
Start with a Pole, Finish with a Net
When seeking employment opportunities, you should always pursue the ideal scenario first. Start with the top three most dreamed about companies on your list. Do all the research on these companies and the position as you possibly can, talk to as many people at these companies as you possibly can, and find out as much as you possibly can about their interviewing, review and hiring processes so you can be as prepared as possible with your application and subsequent call back or interview.
Now, chances are, your top three dream companies are probably on many people’s top three dream companies list. Most people shoot right for the top because those are the most visible if not the most obvious targets. But keep in mind that Pixar, Disney, DreamWorks and the like only have so many positions available in their company, not to mention a never-ending torrent of applications that could seemingly keep them busy sifting for the next several millennia.
In other words, competition for jobs at blockbuster animation studios is fierce. So, if after putting your best foot forward you do not receive a call back and/or are not invited to schedule an interview, keep your chin up and be open to exploring the other options on your list. After all, isn’t pursuing your passion purpose and being happy and fruitful in your career far more important than the status of the company for which you work? Obviously, there can be overlap between the two, but maybe ask yourself this question: would you rather sweep floors at a top-three dream company or would you rather be the animation director of really cool projects at a smaller company?
The reality is that people rarely land their ultimate dream job right out of college. This is often something that takes time, practice, experience, credentials, referrals and good fortune. So don’t let initial rejection dissuade you from pursuing your dream career even if you don’t land a dream job at your dream company right out of the gate.
Instead, expand your reach. Broaden your target base. Instead of using a fishing pole with a single line, focusing only on one small area, expand your reach with a net. Look for companies that may be a little more off the mainstream radar but have really great things happening nonetheless. As long as you can land as close as possible to your passion purpose, you’re off to a golden start.
Martin Grebing is the president of Funnybone Animation Studios. He can be reached at www.funnyboneanimation.com.
South Park is gearing up for a second coronavirus-inspired special. The irreverent toon is serving up an hour-long South ParQ The Vaccination Special on MTV2 on Wed. March 10 at 8 p.m. The show is a follow-up to South ParQ The Pandemic Special, which was a huge ratings winner.The special finds the residents of South Park clamoring for the Covid-19 vaccine. A new militant group attempts to stop the boys from getting their teacher vaccinated. In the previous special, Randy took advantage of a growing pot market as he came to terms with his role in the Covid outbreak.
Loud Family: Louder and Prouder
Disney+ Offers First Look at ‘Loud Family: Louder and Prouder
Disney+ has unveiled a “First Look” at its much-anticipated show The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder. The show’s original creator/executive producer Bruce W. Smith and executive producer Ralph Farquhar are back along with co-exec producer and story editor Calvin Brown. The animated series features the voices of Kyla Pratt as Penny, Tommy Davidson as Oscar, Paula Jai Parker as Trudy, Payton as Suga Mama, Karen Malina White as Dijonay Jones, Soleil Moon Frye as Zoey Howzer and Alisa Reyes as LaCienega Boulevardez. Cedric the Entertainer is returning as Uncle Bobby.All of the original Proud Family episodes are available on Disney+.
Sony Developing Hybrid Fantasy With Will Gluck and Keith Bunin
Sony and the Peter Rabbit movies director Will Gluck are continuing their hybrid movie adventures. Deadline reports that Gluck and Jodi Hildebrand of Oliver Bridge Entertainment are working on a new family hybrid feature with Sony. The movie, which is titled Constance, is based on an original (undisclosed) idea by Onward writer Keith Bunin. Gluck’s first Peter Rabbit movie was a huge success worldwide. The film made over $351 million worldwide in 2018. The film’s sequel Peter Rabbit 2: The Runaway is scheduled for a theatrical release on June 11, after a few month’s delay due to the pandemic..
Gluck’s other well-known credits include Easy A and Annie. He also exec produces the Hulu series Woke and Sneakerheads. Bunin, who co-wrote Onward with director Dan Scanlon, is a noted playwright, whose credits include the upcoming George Clooney-directed Delorean, as well as The Coast Starlight, The Busy World Is Hushed, The Credeaux Canvas and the World Over. Gluck is also working on an English-language adaptation of Toho’s If Cats Disappeared from the World.
Bluey
Robert Irwin Guest Stars in ‘Bluey’ (Feb. 26)
Disney Channel’s beloved doggie from down under encounter will meet another scion of a famous Aussie family in the new episode premiering Friday, February 26 in the Disney Junior block and on DisneyNOW. In “The Quiet Game,” Bluey makes her first trip to the movies; Mum reminisces about when Bluey was a baby; Muffin comes to visit wearing a cone (to stop sucking her thumb!), and Bluey and Dad, Bandit, have a birthday cake mishap…and more! Robert Irwin — son of the late celebrity wildlife champion Steve Irwin and younger brother to Bindi — guest stars as “Alfie,” a helpful store clerk who saves the day.
Nickelodeon is getting ready to woo fans of puppet comedies with its new offering The Barbarian and the Troll. The series, which is set to premiere on Friday, April 2 at 7:30 p.m., follows the misadventures of Evan, a bridge troll in search of adventure, and Brendar, a fierce female warrior on a quest to defeat the evil demon who has imprisoned her brother. (The show was originally titled Brendar the Barbarian.)
The series stars Spencer Grammer (Rick & Morty) as the voice of Brendar, Gothmoria’s most feared and revered warrior; and Drew Massey (Mutt & Stuff, Sid the Science Kid) as Evan, a bridge troll with a dream of becoming a singer. Joining Massey as puppeteers and voice talent are Colleen Smith, Allan Trautman, Sarah Sarang Oh, Nicolette Santino, Peggy Etra, James Murray and Jeny Cassady. The show also features the voice of comedian Gina Yashere.
The Barbarian and the Troll is co-created and executive produced by Mike Mitchell (Trolls, The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part) and Massey. Mitchell also serves as the show’s primary director. Production of The Barbarian and the Troll for Nickelodeon is overseen by Zack Olin, senior VP of liveaction; and Shauna Phelan, senior VP of live-action scripted content.
The Barbarian and the TrollThe Barbarian and the Troll
Shout! Studios invites home audiences to embark on an extraordinary journey with The Prince’s Voyage, when the acclaimed animated feature debuts on a two-disc Blu-ray Combo Pack and Digital on May 18. Directed by French animator Jean-François Laguionie (The Painting, Cannes Palme d’Or winner Rowing Across the Atlantic) and Xavier Picard (King Arthur and the Knight of Justice), The Prince’s Voyage centers on a monkey prince named Lauren who finds himself lost and injured on an unknown river. He is rescued and abducted by a young man, whose scientist parents were chased away by their community because they believed in th existence of other monkey civilizations.
A production of Blue Spirit Productions (Oscar-nominated My Life as a Zucchini) and Melusine Productions (Wolfwalkers), The Prince’s Voyage screened at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival, Rotterdam International Film Festival, New York Animation First and Chicago International Film Festival to great audience enthusiasm. Laguionie received an Honorary Cristal Award at the 2019 Annecy for his illustrious career in animation.
Available for the first time on North American home entertainment shelves, The Prince’s Voyage Blu-ray Combo Pack contains insightful bonus content and is a must-have for collectors and animation enthusiast, including an interview with Lacuionie and Picard and a study of the pivotal Ice Flow sequence.
Audiences can also enjoy the second season of Cartoon Network’s acclaimed series Infinity Train, which arrives on DVD on May 25.
Every train car is an adventure, and nothing is what you expect! Created by Owen Dennis (former writer and storyboard artist from Cartoon Network’s Emmy-nominated series, Regular Show), the critically acclaimed Infinity Train: Book Two will be released on DVD on May 25, from Warner Bros. Home Entertainment. Developed through Cartoon Network’s award-winning Global Artists program, Infinity Train’s original short provoked immediate attention, garnering more than 5 million views on its YouTube page to date.
Infinity Train: Book Two follows Mirror Tulip, an escaped reflection from the mirror world, and Jesse Cosay, a 14-year-old jock from Arizona. As the pair finds themselves on the run from the mirror police, themes of identity, friendship and peer pressure arise. Fans can retrace their epic journey with all 10 episodes from the second season — as well as over an hour of bonus features including commentaries, animatics and an image gallery — with the Book Two DVD ($14.97 SRP USD / $18.94 CAN). All seasons of the Cartoon Network Studios-produced series is also available to stream exclusively on HBO Max (Book Four coming soon).
Disney+ has picked up all five season of ZAG and ON Kids & Family’s popular show Miraculous — Tales of Ladybug & Cat Noir (130 x 22-minute package). Disney Channels worldwide (excluding the U.S., Brazil, Australia, Canada, Korea and China) have also acquired seasons four and five of the show, which are slated to premiere in the summer of 2021 and 2022 respectively.
Recently, Disney Channel and Disney+ debuted the first of two big-budget animated TV Events, Miraculous World: New York, United HeroeZ. In the U.S., the Friday night movie premiere on Disney Channel on September 25, 2020, ranked #1 for the week across all cable TV with Girls 6 – 11; and #1 across all TV in its timeslot in the same demio, and in Germany, the movie ranked #1 on Disney Channel during the “Miraculous Day” Weekend Event Premiere on November 7, 2020. The second movie, Miraculous World: Shanghai – The Legend of Lady Dragon, will debut in 2021.
“Disney has been a key partner in bringing Miraculous Ladybug to audiences everywhere, and we are grateful for their creative support and trust for this next chapter. We are excited to be extending our relationship to Disney+ and to be part of their compelling new platform,” commented Jeremy Zag, founder and CEO of ZAG. “We are naturally delighted by the impressive ratings for the first of the TV Event premieres and grateful for the support of our Miraculous fans who tuned in.”
“We have a particular history with Disney: they are the first partners of Miraculous, the most passionate and committed!,” add Aton Soumache, co-founder and CEO of ON kids & family. “Today, our success around the franchise allows us to strengthen our partnership, notably through Disney+, expand the Miraculous World thanks to the TV Events and many new superheroes who will come and surprise us; and to establish it proudly over time.”
Set in modern day Paris, the series follows the adventures of two seemingly typical teens with secret identities, Marinette and Adrien, who magically transform into superheroes, Ladybug and Cat Noir. As secret superheroes, Ladybug and Cat Noir are partners in the action. But in the daytime, Marinette is just a normal girl and Cat Noir will do anything to support and impress Ladybug, but he does not know this is Marinette from his class.
Created by Thomas Astruc, Miraculous was first introduced in the fall of 2015 on French broadcaster TF1. Since then, it has become a popular digital franchise with over 22 billion views on YouTube. The theatrical feature Miraculous Ladybug and Cat Noir: The Awakening is scheduled to debut either in the fall 2021 or spring 2022. Co-production partners on the two new seasons includeFrance’s ZAGTOON (The World of Zag) and Method Animation (part of ON Kids & Family), Brazil’s Globosat and Italy’s DeAgostini Editore S.P.A., in collaboration with Disney Channel EMEA, French broadcaster TF1, and Japan’s Toei Animation.
Montreal/Madrid-based distributor Pink Parrot Media has picked up the intl. distribution rights to Al-One SRL’s CG-animated feature Trash. The announcement was made by Pink Parrot’s VP and head of sales Tania Pinto Da Cunha. The distributor will begin selling the 88-min. family adventure at this year’s European Film Market (March 1-5).
Directed by Luca Della Grotta and Francesco Dafano, Trash centers on the adventures of a variety of disposed garbage items that seek a new life in their pursuit of a mythical recycling bin. As Della Grotta points out, Trash is not a feature film just for children. But at the end of the day, the future is in their hands. We wanted to send a message aimed at tomorrow’s generation who is also showing a lot more interest is this matter.” The movie was released in Italy last fall by Notorious (notoriouspictures.it).
“In addition to the beautiful animation and great values, we immediately saw so many things that we liked about this film. It’s an ecological fable!” adds Pinto Da Cunha. “The fact that it speaks directly to kids and addresses a valuable topic that they can easily relate to — the importance of recycling and taking care of our planet. The story is done is a fun and entertaining way that allows them to relate while providing an inspiring key message through storytelling.”
During the EFM, Pink Parrot Media will also pursue the pre-sales of it’s CGI animated feature film Butterfly Tale, a coproduction between Carpediem Film & TV in Canada and Ulysses in Germany, which is now in production. PPM’s other titles include projects in financing: German-Belgium-Canada animation feature coproduction Elli! and the Canada-India feature film Mandala as well as some completed titles such as the 2D animation The Red Scoll and live-action movies My life as Lotta, My Grandpa is an Alien and Matti & Sami. For more info, visit pinkparrotmedia.ca.
A new stage production based on Hayao Miyazaki’s Oscar-winning masterpiece Spirited Away will be presented in Japan’s Imperial Theater in February and March. The production will then tour to Osaka (April), Fukuoka (May), Sapporo (June) and Nagoya (June and July).
This new production is written and directed by Tony and Olivier Award-winning director and honorary assoc. director of the Royal Shakespeare Company, John Caird (Les Misérables, Nicholas Nickleby, Daddy Long Legs), who has been an admirer of the film for many years.
The play centers on Chihiro, a 10-year-old girl who is moving with her parents to their new home. They lose themselves in a mysterious world of fantastic spirits, ruled over by the sorceress Yubaba, who turns Chihiro’s parents into pigs. After a series of bizarre and dangerous challenges, including the loss of her identity, Chihiro must use all her wits to survive in this strange place and return to the human world. The story of her struggle and resilience is a timeless gift to all of us, but especially to those striving to live through these present difficult times.
“I feel so excited and privileged to be working on the first ever stage adaptation of Sen to Chihiro,” says Caird. I have for many years now regarded Miyazaki Hayao as one of the pre-eminent geniuses of world cinema and the greatest ever proponent of the anime form. I share a belief in all the most dominant themes of Miyazaki’s work, themes that are at the core of the Sen to Chihiro world – care for the environment, reverence for nature, a belief in the force of the good spirits within us and the empowerment of young women and men to change the world for the better.
Caird adds, “The double casting in the part of Chihiro will give me the chance to work again with the brilliant and charming Kamishiraishi Mone, with whom I had such an exciting collaboration on Knights’ Tale, and now affords me the same opportunity with the greatly talented, vivacious and moving young actress Hashimoto Kanna. I must have spent a thousand hours working on Sen to Chihiro and look forward to spending many thousands more.”
“We, Hayao and I, both liked John’s vision. He is a person we can trust. I am looking forward to seeing Chihiro grow on stage under his direction,” says Studio Ghibli’s Toshio Suzuki, the film’s producer. “I could tell how much he adores this story from his delighted face when I gave him a No-Face (Kaonashi) piggy-bank.”
Chihiro will be double-cast by Kanna Hashimoto and Mone Kamishiraishi. Kanna, who has starred and appeared in many films, will be making her long-awaited stage debut. Mone, known internationally for voicing in the film Your Name, has been delighting Japanese audiences with her versatile acting and singing talents.
Russian animation projects will have a robust presence at the 2021 European Film Market, taking place online this year from March 1-5 (www.efm-berlinale.de/en), thanks to the country’s audiovisual promotion body Roskino and the support of the Russian Cinema Fund. Eight companies will be presenting 23 animated feature films and series under the virtual Russian umbrella during the market.
Among the highlighted projects on offer:
Ginger’s TalefromRussian World Vision has been selected for the EFM Screenings this year, having made its domestic premiere on February 4. The movie is directed by Konstantin Shchekin and centers on a kindhearted craftsman, Potter, who finds a magic flintstone that turns him into a rich and cruel person. In order to get the stone back, the Evil Queen decides to kill him. Coming to the rescue is Potter’s betrothed, Ginger, a tireless and resourceful girl whose loyalty helps save Potter from the Evil Queen, remove the magic spell and keep love alive.
Set within a traditional, storybook kingdom, Wizart’s The Warrior Princess delivers a female empowerment message that rewrites the classic fairytale narrative. The lead character, Mila, defies the long held “princess” stereotypes to embody contemporary and timely themes of individuality, courage and conviction. Mila is a voice of inspiration for young girls to fearlessly follow their own path, be true to their heart and shape their own destiny… whatever that may be. Due for release in Autumn 2021, the studio’s latest feature is directed by Alexey Zamyslov. (Read more.)
Directed by Denis Chernov, Riki Group’s CG-animated comedy feature Finnick follows the adventures of a 13-year-old girl named Christine who befriends a Finn, a magical and mischievous spirit who lives in her new house. This creature is fond of nasty jokes and he enjoys playing tricks on the people — but despite their differences, Finn and Christine will have to team up and work together to solve a big mystery and save the city. Due out in 2022.
The Formula for Water (Soyuzmultfilm) is set on a decaying planet where humans and deformed creatures struggle to survive on floating islands in an endless sea. This post-apocalypse romance follows Dana, who sets out on a journey to save her kidnapped father, a scientist who created a machine that may restore the drinking water reserves on the planet. To do that, she will have to team up with travelling circus performers led by the handsome and enigmatic Mago. Directed by Indar Djendubaev. Release date: 2023.
One of the projects available for co-production, Spaceportfrom Parovoz Animation Studioand directed by Kirill Fedulov is a sci-fi comedy series for tweens set in the distant future. The story centers on three outsiders — a human boy, a big alien and a sour robot — who spend their time in the intergalactic Spaceport selling ‘fast-but-healthy-food’, and constantly getting themselves into bizarre misadventures. Aimed at tweens, the show puts a comedic twist on the fears, mistakes and bouts of stubbornness that come with growing up.
Other fresh titles worth checking out are Amagama Studios’ series The Fairy-teens; four projects from 100 KILOWATT – Homies, Eager Beaver, Nick The Inventor and Magic Kitchen; and Zabezoo’s flagship project Zabezoo (Ears n’ Tail).
Irina Mastusova
Irina Mastusova, CEO of the Russian Animated Film Association, took some time during the busy EFM preparations to tell us more about the state of the industry in the Russian Federation.
Animag: Is this a particularly busy year for animation studios in the country? It seems like there are lots of new titles in production!
Irina Mastusova: During the pandemic, many studios promptly transitioned to the work-from-home model. We have also seen many new VOD platforms pop up, so animation content is really in demand right now. Despite all the hardships and due to the government support, we managed to increase the number of animation releases. The overall production speed has not decreased; right now, we have about 150 animation series and more than 20 animation features in production.
This year, Russian animation was also highly evaluated by the American Academy of Motion Pictures: shorts My Galactic Twin Galaction by Alexander Svirskii and Naked by Kirill Khachaturov, as well as the feature The Nose or the Conspiracy of Mavericks by Andrei Khrzhanovskiy, were among the Oscar long-list nominees. We are very serious about increasing our production volume and taking our rightful place at the international market.
What are the biggest challenges of introducing these movies to the global market?
Russian animation is being exported to more than 160 countries, with our films having been translated into more than 60 different languages. Russian cartoons’ views are counted in billions! But right now, we can see many animated films being produced all around the world, that’s why our main challenge is the global competition. We have to create something unique and make Russian animation a strong brand. It is important that we establish a solid support system from the government side, which has already become more and more tangible by the year.
Are Russian studios mostly focusing on CG-animated movies? Are there any 2D projects in development?
Of course, now most of the projects in our animation industry are made in CG, and Russian studios are constantly searching for new techniques and creative ideas in order to produce content that’s competitive at the global market. Most of the popular animated series, like Masha and the Bear, Kikoriki, The Fixies, Moonzy and His Friends, Barboskiny, Space Dogs, The Snow Queen, Fantazy Patrol and Be-Be Bears are made in CG.
At the same time, Russian kids are very fond of cartoons made in 2D. That’s why in Russia, Kikoriki — one of the most successful animation projects of all time — was re-created in 2D specially for its new launch on the HDKinoPoisk platform. And of course, such popular animated series as Kid-E-Cats, Prostokvashino, Squared Zebra, and Orange Moo Cow were also created in 2D.
Does the Russian government provide funding for these titles?
The government supports animation on a regular basis. We have financial aid from both the Ministry of Culture, which normally sponsors series and independent projects, and the Cinema Fund, which mostly finances features. During the pandemic, the government provided additional funding to support the national movie industry. It also did a lot to improve the animation infrastructure. Due to tax benefits implemented in 2017, within the last three years animation studios managed to increase their output by 30 percent. And for the second year in a row, the government provided additional support for the production of unique author’s full-length films and children’s and youth movies.
This interview was edited for clarity of language.
During the Television Critics Association’s Winter Press Tour Thursday, Hulu presented the company’s lineup of upcoming original programming including the new adult animation series Marvel’s M.O.D.O.K., as well as an early third season renewal for fan-favorite Animaniacs from Steven Spielberg. Live-action debuts and renewals include Iron Mike from the I, Tonya team (8 eps.), awards darling The Handmaid’s Tale S4, Love, Victor S2 and the third, final season of Aidy Bryant’s Shrill.
“With returning seasons of award-winning comedies and dramas, Hulu’s 2021 slate of Original series truly has something for everyone,” said Craig Erwich, president of Hulu Originals and ABC Entertainment. “We’re incredibly excited to welcome back the stories and characters fans have connected with in The Handmaid’s Tale, Shrill, Animaniacs and Love, Victor, while taking viewers deeper into the character of Mike Tyson in Iron Mike and bringing animated but deeply human characters to life in Marvel’s M.O.D.O.K.”
Following a successful first season and practically blowing up the internet, Animaniacs has been renewed for a third, zany season on Hulu consisting of 10 episodes. The series garnered the most social mentions of any Hulu Original to date over its season one opening weekend proving that fans can’t get enough of watching Yakko, Wakko and Dot as they wreak havoc and mayhem in the lives of everyone they meet. The second season of Animaniacs will debut later this year.
Synopsis: After returning to their beloved home, the Warner Bros. Water Tower, the Animaniacs waste no time in causing chaos and comic confusion as they run loose through the studio and beyond, turning the world into their personal playground. Joining Yakko, Wakko and Dot are fan-favorite characters Pinky and the Brain who will also return to continue their quest for world domination.
Hulu, Amblin Television and Warner Bros. Animation join forces again to extend the legacy of the iconic, family friendly animated series. Steven Spielberg returns as executive producer of the series, with Sam Register, President, Warner Bros. Animation and Cartoon Network Studios, Amblin Television Co-Presidents Darryl Frank and Justin Falvey also serving as executive producers. Wellesley Wild serves as showrunner and executive producer. Gabe Swarr serves as co-executive producer. Animaniacs is produced by Amblin Television in association with Warner Bros. Animation.
Hulu’s new adult animated comedy series Marvel’s M.O.D.O.K. premieres all 10 episodes Friday, May 21. In the show, the megalomaniacal supervillain M.O.D.O.K. (Patton Oswalt) has long pursued his dream of one day conquering the world. But after years of setbacks and failures fighting the Earth’s mightiest heroes, M.O.D.O.K. has run his evil organization A.I.M. into the ground. Ousted as A.I.M.’s leader, while also dealing with his crumbling marriage and family life, the Mental Organism Designed Only for Killing is set to confront his greatest challenge yet!
The series stars Patton Oswalt, Melissa Fumero, Aimee Garcia, Wendi McLendon-Covey, Ben Schwartz, Beck Bennett, Jon Daly and Sam Richardson. Marvel’s M.O.D.O.K. is created and written by executive producers Jordan Blum and Patton Oswalt. Brett Crawley, Robert Maitia, Grant Gish, Joe Quesada, Karim Zreik and Jeph Loeb also serve as executive producers.
Netflix is releasing the soundtrack for Craig McCracken’s acclaimed new series Kid Cosmic on Friday (Feb. 26). The charming toon’s music is composed by Andy Bean, an Emmy-nominated songwriter, composer, and multi-instrumentalist specializing in music for animation.
For Kid Cosmic, Bean created much of the soundtrack under the guise of a fictional ’70s psychedelic garage punk band: Dr. Fang & The Gang. The propulsive rock and roll score combines with the show’s distinctive art style to create exhilarating musical-action sequences unique in children’s television.
As Bean tells Animation Magazine, “Craig described his vision for Dr. Fang & The Gang to me more than five years ago, and I started writing songs in character as the group immediately — even before I knew any other details about the show. We wanted the music in Kid Cosmic to sound like it was being pulled from an old record in The Kid’s collection. This is that record!”
Andy Bean in his studio.
Bean began his career as one half of retro duo The Two Man Gentlemen Band, first performing in New York City’s parks and subways before taking the act on the road for the better part of a decade. The duo’s irreverent songwriting and high-energy live performances won them a fiercely devoted (if modestly sized) following across the United States and Europe.
Through his work with the band, Bean landed his first composing gig scoring McCracken’s Emmy-nominated Disney animated series Wander Over Yonder. His frantic banjo-driven sci-fi scores and heartfelt songwriting for the show earned him two Annie Award nominations.
Bean is currently the composer and songwriter for Disney’s international hit preschool series Puppy Dog Pals, and songwriter for Disney Junior’s Muppet Babies reboot (for which he received his first Emmy nomination). Between the two, he’s written over 300 songs across dozens of genres and scored over 100 episodes.
Kid Cosmic and the Sonic Courage
Kid Cosmic follows the adventures of a quirky, imaginative kid who lives with his grandfather, Papa G, in a small desert town in New Mexico. His life turns upside down when he acquires superpowers after finding five magical gemstones. All 10 episodes of the show’s first season are available for streaming on Netflix.
The soundtrack album Kid Cosmic and the Sonic Courage will be available to stream on Spotify and Deezer on Friday. Find direct links here.
