Animation Magazine

Tag: featured

  • Sue Nichols, Influential Disney Story Artist, Dies Age 55

    Influential animation visual development and story artist Sue Nichols Maciorowski died on September 1 in East Longmeadow, MA, at just 55 years old. A sparkling creative force behind many Walt Disney Feature Animation classics and contemporary favorites — from Hercules to Moana Nichols Maciorowski had been battling an aggressive form of breast cancer for several years.

    In a tribute posted online, Nichols Maciorwoski’s family noted: “Sue may be gone but her legacy remains with us in the credits of many Disney films and publications she contributed to as an accomplished artist. Since she was eight years old, she knew she wanted to be a Disney artist and drew on sidewalks and walls and entered many contests. Her work can be seen in East Longmeadow town books and anniversary memorials. Her latest design was the seal commemorating the 125th anniversary of East Longmeadow.”

    Disney Animation remembered the late artists on its Twitter feed, adding a thread of posts detailing Nichols Maciorowski’s work behind the scenes that fed into the onscreen visuals fans around the world have fallen in love with.

    The thread continued:

    • On Beauty and the Beast, she contributed to both visual development and story and created early visual development artwork for Aladdin. From there, she provided character design and visual development on The Lion King, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Mulan, and Lilo & Stitch.
    • On Hercules, she created a style guide that defined Greek design, and supervised the look of the film across layout, animation, effects, color styling and more. The title “Production Stylist” was created for her, as no one had done a similar role before at Disney Animation.
    • For The Princess and the Frog, she suggested Harlem Renaissance artists such as Aaron Douglas as inspiration for Tiana’s song “Almost There,” helping storyboard and design the stylized sequence. Most recently, she created early character designs of Maui for Moana.
    • From Animator and Director Eric Goldberg: “She will be sadly missed by those of us who had the good fortune to work with her, but her influence on those films will be there forever.”

    Nichols Maciorowski has a lifelong passion for drawing, and got her first paid animation gig while a student at CalArts in the latter half of the 1980s. While still working on her BFA, she was hired onto the My Little Pony at Marvel Productions before hopping over to Emmy-winning Muppet Babies. Her entry into the hallowed halls of Disney Feature Animation was concept art and R&D on Aladdin before the movie got the green light. She then joined producer Don Hahn’s teams on Beauty and the Beast, learning the finesse of storyboarding from Annie Award winner Ed Gombert. The rest, as they say, is history.

    Over the course of her career, Nichols Maciorwoski took on many diverse creative roles — from director, art director and head of story to children’s book illustrator, toy designer, costume/set designer and lecturer. Outside of Disney and Pixar, she had worked with major kids’ and entertainment companies including Marvel, Hasbro, Turner Feature Animation, LeapFrog and UglyDolls. Before her death, she had been freelancing out of her home in Massachusetts.

    We highly recommend visiting Nichols Maciorowski’s website, www.mothernichols.com, and scrolling through her decade-by-decade filmography, where the passionate storyteller shared many anecdotes, career lessons and insights from her time working on these beloved films.

    Nichols Maciorowski is survived by her husband, Chester “JR” Maciorowski, her children Stephanie and Jonathan Maciorowski, both parents, three siblings and their spouses, eight nieces and nephews, and many dear friends.

    In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Sue’s name to Baystates Ray of Hope, which supports people with breast cancer in Massachusetts and raises funding support for breast cancer research.

    [H/T Tom Sito, InsideTheMagic]

    The Princess and the Frog
    The Princess and the Frog
    Hercules
    Hercules
  • Pinewood Atlanta Teams with MBSi, Fuse & SGPS/ShowRig on Pioneering Virtual LED Stage

    Pinewood Atlanta Teams with MBSi, Fuse & SGPS/ShowRig on Pioneering Virtual LED Stage

    Pinewood Atlanta Studios, the 700-acre full-service film studio in Georgia that is home to cinematic tentpole features and more than 50 production related businesses, has partnered with the innovation arm of MBS Equipment Company, MBSi; full-service production solutions, Fuse Technical Group; and staging and rigging design experts, SGPS/ShowRig; to offer filmmakers the latest innovation in stage technology.

    Built on existing LED wall mechanics used in The Mandalorian and X-Men, this innovative permanent LED Process Stage offers films and shows of any budget the opportunity to produce virtual imagery at the highest quality of production value in the industry.

    The group’s first installment of this technology at Pinewood Atlanta is an LED car process system that can be expanded to fit any production need, as well as be transferred to any stage on the 700-acre Atlanta lot. The rig enables production to capture shots with a virtual background, including traditional action shots set in a vehicle with a moving background. This technology was designed by the group to eliminate the need for traditional car process trailers and set-builds, and to help reduce cost and time for productions of any scale.

    By fall of 2021, the technology will expand to a permanent stage installation in Pinewood Atlanta’s recently announced Phase IV facilities, with a capacity of up to three cameras.

    “LED virtual production technology offers tremendous opportunities for filmmakers; whether it’s car process work, live set extensions or interactive lighting effects,” said Erik Messerschmidt, ASC, who has earned a reputation for implementing emerging production technologies in collaboration with filmmaker David Fincher and others. “This particular technique is valuable in the age of COVID, when insert cars and extensive location work are compromised or otherwise impossible.”

    The group’s on-site installation eliminates additional rigging and operational costs for those shooting at Pinewood Atlanta Studios as every production crew is provided with on-site guidance by a team of experts. That team is headed by pioneers in lighting, rigging and innovation, including Jeffery P. Soderberg, MBSi; Fred Waldman and Todd Patience, Fuse; and Michael Krevitt, SGPS/ ShowRig.

    “We’ve made it our objective to equip our facilities with the most advanced filmmaker-friendly technology in the industry. This new solution is designed to help our great storytellers produce the kind of amazing imagery they are known for creating, while significantly reducing friction in the production process,” said Frank Patterson, President and CEO of Pinewood Atlanta Studios.

    “We’re excited to bring this stage to life, with capabilities that we expect will transform the way we make movies and content,” said Jeffrey P. Soderberg, at MBSi. “We’ve already utilized nascent iterations of this stage for major studios on some of the most cinematically compelling projects, and we’re happy to now offer it to a broader group of filmmakers through this joint venture.”

    Pinewood Atlanta Studios is the go-to, purpose-built, full-service film and entertainment site for content creators looking for world-class studio facilities, experienced technicians, locations and incentives in the greater Atlanta area. Set across 700 acres, Pinewood Atlanta Studios has expanded to more than 1 million square feet under roof, with 18 sound stages ranging from 15,000 to 40,000 square feet and an extensive 400-acre backlot.

    Virtual LED stage
    Virtual LED stage
  • SAG-AFTRA Members Approve TV Animation Agreements

    SAG-AFTRA Members Approve TV Animation Agreements

    In national voting completed today, SAG-AFTRA members ratified the 2020 SAG-AFTRA TV Animation Contracts with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers. Members approved the new agreements by a vote of 87.68% to 12.32%.

    “This is a strong, future-focused agreement with significant gains for our members,” said SAG-AFTRA President Gabrielle Carteris. “It applies scale wages to more productions, lowers budget thresholds for half-hour HBSVOD programs and delivers additional money for the use of interstitial programs in new media.”

    “The industry is changing, and our contracts are changing with it,” said SAG-AFTRA Chief Contracts Officer Ray Rodriguez. “Building off of our successful TV/Theatrical negotiations, the new animation contracts position members to grow residuals from subscription streaming services — the area of greatest growth.”

    The agreements — which went into effect July 1, 2020, and will continue through June 30, 2023 — cover animated programs produced for network television, basic cable and streaming platforms such as Hulu and Amazon Prime.

    Gains include:

    • Wage increases of 2.5% in the first year, 3% in the second year and 3% in the third year.
    • A 26% improvement in residuals for high-budget animated programs made for subscription streaming services like Amazon Prime and Hulu.
    • A further reduction of the budget threshold that triggers high-budget coverage for half-hour animated programs made for subscription streaming services, from $550,000 to $500,000. Scale wages apply to non-high-budget subscription video-on-demand programs of 11 minutes and longer with a budget of at least $25,000 per minute.
    • A 1% increase in the contribution rate to the SAG-AFTRA Health Plan and optional wage diversions in the second and third years that allow the union to shift 0.5% from the wage increase to the contribution rate for the SAG-AFTRA Health Plan or the SAG-Producers Pension Plan/AFTRA Retirement Fund.

    The previous TV Animation Contracts were set to expire on June 30, but were extended until July 30. Virtual negotiations with the AMPTP began on July 27. Rodriguez served as lead negotiator for the union and Bob Bergen and David Sobolov co-chaired the member-led Negotiating Committee.

    sagaftra.org

  • ‘Angry Birds Bubble Trouble’ Pops Off on Amazon FreeTime Unlimited

    ‘Angry Birds Bubble Trouble’ Pops Off on Amazon FreeTime Unlimited

    Rovio Entertainment announces the first season release of Angry Birds Bubble Trouble, a bite-sized 3D-animated series where the young Angry Birds flock – Red, Bomb, Chuck, Stella and Silver – let their imaginations go wild in their beautiful bubble garden packed with surprises. They play games and solve problems together, all the while getting into all kinds of trouble.

    Season one (20 x 1′) has premiered exclusively on Amazon FreeTime Unlimited, with wider distribution planned at a later date.

    Angry Birds Bubble Trouble
    Angry Birds Bubble Trouble

    Inspired by the world of the Angry Birds Dream Blast mobile game, the series has been produced in partnership with Los Amigos — composed of studios Hype (Brazil), PunkRobot (Chile) and Red Animation Studios (Peru) — and launches as the debut project from LatAm’s largest collective studio.

    “The production team have done a fantastic job in creating a world that’s playful, lighthearted and in keeping with the Angry Birds Dream Blast universe,” said Ville Heijari, CMO of Rovio Entertainment. “We’re delighted to reveal this series with Amazon, but to make this all happen I want to give a particular shout-out to the Los Amigos team, who were able to deliver despite these challenging last few months of lockdown.”

    “Kids around the world love playing Angry Birds games, and we’re excited to bring the Angry Birds Bubble Trouble series to our Amazon FreeTime Unlimited customers,” said Dan Nord, director, Amazon Kids & Family. “FreeTime Unlimited gives kids access to premium books, shows, movies, and games that kids love alongside customizable parental controls that give parents peace of mind. We can’t wait for families to watch Red and friends in all new adventures with Amazon FreeTime Unlimited on iOS, Android, and FireOS.”

    Angry Birds Bubble Trouble
    Angry Birds Bubble Trouble

    This latest release continues Rovio’s strategy of delivering original content, both through distribution deals and via its own Angry Birds YouTube channel, which has racked up over 4 million subscribers and 5 billion content views to date. Aside from today’s release on Amazon FreeTime Unlimited, Rovio Entertainment’s animated and video content has reached a wide audience on a host of streaming services including Netflix, where a long-form series, Angry Birds: Summer Madness, is planned for release in 2021.

  • Cartoon Forum Nixes In-Person Plans as France Red-Zoned for Travel

    Cartoon Forum Nixes In-Person Plans as France Red-Zoned for Travel

    Organizers of the 2020 Cartoon Forum, scheduled to take place September 14-17, have announced the decision to cancel the in-person event programs due to the rebound of coronavirus in Europe and in France during August. More than 6,000 new cases were reported in the country last Thursday (up from several hundred a day in May and June) spurring the government to declare the Haute-Garonne region a “red zone.”

    Even director Annick Maes explained in an email to attendees that many broadcasters had canceled their plans to attend the Toulouse event in the intervening days, while several European countries put bars on travel to France, making it difficult or impossible for producers in these territories to attend Cartoon Forum. Organizers saw over 200 cancelations in five days, with numerous requests to participate in online project pitches instead.

    The rapidly reorganized online-only version of this year’s “Business First” Forum features the following changes:

    1. Recorded pitches: Since the pitches will no longer take place on site and can no longer be recorded from Toulouse, producers are asked to record their pitch themselves or to create a presentation video.

    2. Digital platform: From September 15, pitches will go live on the digital platform each half-day, following the already established agenda. Online participants will receive a personal login for access and the videos will be available until October 15.

    3. Mobile app for projects: As announced last Friday, the mobile app displays all information about the projects. The project trailer and the evaluation form have also been integrated – which online participants commit to fill it out as soon as they watch a pitch. The app will be ready to download next week. Personal login and password info will be sent to attendees at the same time.

    4. E-catalogue, “Who Is Coming” & digital agenda: Next week, Cartoon Forum will send the link to download the e-catalogue where, as every year, the contact information of all participants will be found.

    • The “Who Is Coming” section of the website continues to be updated very regularly.
    • The agenda will not be printed, but will be available on cartoon-media.eu/cartoon-fourm as a downloadable PDF.

    5. Registration: For online participation, we offer the price of 150€ (excluding VAT). Register via the “My Cartoon” tab on the website using code DIG327.

    Maes and the team expressed their disappointment at the turn of events. “Please know how sad we are not being able to organize this Cartoon Forum and not being able to welcome you for this great meeting of European animation, as we have been doing every year for 30 years,” she wrote.

  • NZ’s Mukpuddy Snags Rights to Spike Milligan’s ‘Badjelly The Witch’

    Premiere New Zealand 2D animation studio Mukpuddy has teamed up with Media Tech Productions and secured the rights to develop Spike Milligan’s classic children’s book, Badjelly The Witch. Written and illustrated by Milligan, the writer-comedian originally came up with the tale for his own children before it was published for the wider world to enjoy in 1973.

    The studios point out that kiwi kids in particular have a strong connection to the story, from the original book to the radio play which generations of New Zealanders tuned into every Sunday on National Radio, to the stage play adapted in 1977 by Alannah O’Sullivan — the country’s most licensed show. Beyond existing audiences in NZ and the U.K., Badjelly has all the right ingredients to appeal to viewers around the world: plucky kids, a nefarious villain and a whole bunch of silly, fun characters — including a Binklebonk!

    The three founders of Mukpuddy — Ryan Cooper, Tim Evans and Alex Leighton — credit Spike Milligan as an influence on their style of humor. Growing up the kiwi kids of British parents, their great love of British humor has been clearly evident in Mukpuddy’s comedic sensibilities over the past 18 years.

    “We were throwing ideas around, thinking about existing properties that would suit our style and our humor. The second Badjelly was mentioned, we just knew we had to do it,” said Cooper. “It took quite a bit of time and work to get to this point, but now we’re here we can’t wait to see Badjelly on screen.”

    The original story, young Tim and Rose become lost in the forest while searching for their cow. In this strange place, they meet Blinklebonk the Tree Goblin, Mudwiggle the worm, Silly Sausage the grasshopper and Dinglemouse. When the youngsters are captured by Badjelly — a wicked witch who can turn children into sausages, policemen into apple pies or bananas into mice — Dingelmouse springs into action, fetching his friend Jim the Giant Eagle to come to the rescue.

    Spike Milligan (Courtesy the British Film Institute)
    Spike Milligan (Courtesy the British Film Institute)

    Milligan’s influence has been felt throughout the comedy world over the last 50 years. As a founding member of The Goon Show, his trademark silliness was cited as a major influence on Monty Python and many other stalwarts of British comedy, and has carried through to contemporary favorites from Flight of the Conchords to SpongeBob SquarePants and everywhere in between.

    Given New Zealand’s long history of love for Badjelly, Mukpuddy are uniquely positioned to tell this story in a way that will delight both new fans and those who love the original.

    “The Milligan clan are thrilled and excited to be in collaboration with the Mukpuddy team. The Muks are passionate about this project and their inspirational animation will have Badjelly flying off the page and onto the screen to dazzle the next generation. They are an exceptionally talented and imaginative outfit who we have entrusted our favourite witch to. Come on the Muks! We know Spike would be overjoyed.

    Knife, fork, and spoon lightning from us all…

    The Milligoons.”

    Originally formed in 2002, Mukpuddy began life as three animation school graduates hustling to make web-toons in a Pakuranga basement. Eighteen years on, Mukpuddy has cemented its position as one of NZ’s most successful animation studios, with a crew of 53 and numerous titles to their credit, including The Barefoot Bandits, Quimbo’s Quest, Jandal Burn, The Drawing Show and current production The Adventures of Tumeke Space.

     

    Main photo: Mukpuddy founders and animation school buddies, from left, Tim Evans,  Ryan Cooper and Alex Leighton

  • Aniventure Signs to Creative Artists Agency with Three-Picture Slate

    Aniventure Signs to Creative Artists Agency with Three-Picture Slate

    Aniventure Limited has appointed Creative Artists Agency to help identify and develop global partners for its business. CAA Media Finance will help Aniventure identify partners considering or expanding into the family entertainment marketplace that would benefit from a turnkey operation. The timing is good with an increased consumer appetite for more animated family entertainment content.

    Founded in 2014, the London-based animation production company set out to challenge industry expectations around development, production and financing of feature animations to find a new economic model driven by strong creative leadership, efficiency and new technology, much like the change brought about in 2010 with the arrival of films like Despicable Me from Illumination. The company has created a large slate of feature animation projects, of which the first three are financed and in production. Each film is original in style and tone, with high production values and A-list casts.

    Aniventure has spent the last six years building a world class team of filmmakers, experienced partners and talent around a filmmaking culture and methodology that is free from historic overhangs. This strategy is designed to deliver very high production values at a budget level that allows the finished films to be economically viable irrespective of the distribution channel chosen.

    “Reimaging how high-quality animated films are created and delivered at a better economic risk point was always going to be challenging,” said the studio’s Head of Creative, Dave Rosenbaum. “For Aniventure’s first film, we assembled a talented team of filmmakers with forward-looking vision and old fashion determination. Our Head of Animation, Eamonn Butler, and I directed the first film to simultaneously test and fine-tune our pipeline and process aimed at setting our business apart. The result is Riverdance: An Animated Adventure that should have audiences dancing in the theaters (or in their living rooms)!”

    Riverdance: An Animated Adventure (Aniventure / River Productions) based on the stage show phenomenon of the same name and featuring Bill Whelan’s multi-platinum Grammy Award-winning music is currently in post-production. The other two films in production are:

    Blazing Samurai (Aniventure / Blazing Productions), based on Mel Brooks’ classic film Blazing Saddles and directed by Mark Koetsier (The Grinch, Big Hero 6, Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa) and overseen and produced by Rob Minkoff (The Lion King, Mr. Peabody & Sherman, Stuart Little 1 & 2).

    Hitpig (Aniventure), from Pulitzer Prize-winner Berkeley Breathed, who is serving as executive producer and production designer on the film directed by Cinzia Angelini (Mila, Minions, Despicable Me 3) & Maurizio Parimbelli (Peter Rabbit, Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas).

    Riverdance, Blazing Samurai and Hitpig will be delivered 2020, 2021 and 2022, respectively.

    “Aniventure recognises the film industry is undergoing a period of change. Our company is in the right place at the right time with the right content” says Aniventure producer Adam Nagle. “The change in the market is being driven by new entrants like Aniventure which has high quality content available based on sensible economics. This has allowed Aniventure to accommodate different revenue models and business practices that new and established corporations, wishing to enter the family animation market, will need to adopt in this changing business environment.”

    Blazing Samurai
    Blazing Samurai
    Riverdance: An Animated Adventure
    Riverdance: An Animated Adventure
    Hitpig
    Hitpig
  • Nickelodeon Int’l & Nick India Set First Co-Pro ‘The Twisted Timeline of Sammy & Raj’

    Nickelodeon Int’l & Nick India Set First Co-Pro ‘The Twisted Timeline of Sammy & Raj’

    Nickelodeon International is teaming up with Nickelodeon India, a part of Viacom18 that is a joint venture between ViacomCBS and Network18, to co-produce The Twisted Timeline of Sammy & Raj. The new series marks the first collaboration between the top kids’ entertainment brand and the leading Indian kids’ category brand from India’s fastest growing entertainment network.

    “The popularity of international content is on the rise, and Nickelodeon is focused on meeting the rising demand for diverse, creative stories for a global audience. This groundbreaking partnership with Viacom18 goes beyond kids’ content, as we look to embrace greater diversity both on-screen and behind the camera,” said Jules Borkent, Executive Vice President, Kids & Family, ViacomCBS Networks International.

    Currently in production with Nickelodeon India, The Twisted Timeline of Sammy & Raj is slated to roll out across Nickelodeon International in 2021. With a mysterious time-altering app at their fingertips, the series follows the reality-bending adventures of a pair of cousin-brothers, as they pause, rewind, fast-forward and slow-motion their way into a whole host of rowdy laugh-out-loud exploits.

    Nina Hahn, SVP International Production & Development, Nickelodeon International, said, “In the creative world, geographic borders have diminished, as more content is drawn by the hands of global artists from every corner of the world. The idea for this series was developed in collaboration with the team in India as we sought a way to fuse western and eastern storytelling elements. Indian culture is very much a part of this series’ DNA, and we are eager to share those elements with our global audience.”

    The international collaboration is underway on the new 20 x 30′ 2D animated series, with animation and storyboards developing in India, scripting in progress in the U.S. and U.K., and casting initiated in the U.S.

    “Over the years, Nickelodeon India has created successful local IPs and characters that kids love. This partnership with Nickelodeon International has gone beyond the border lines of creativity and stands testimony to the success of Nick India and Nick International in creating groundbreaking content. It further reinforces the capability of the Indian Animation Industry. We are happy to partner with Nickelodeon International for this show and look forward to working together in creating this series for kids across the world,” commented Nina Elavia Jaipuria, Head of Hindi Mass Entertainment & Kids TV Network at Viacom18.

    Anu Sikka, Head Creative, Content & Research, Kids TV Network at Viacom18, added, “Kids’ imaginations and aspirations are universal and it’s this learning that has brought this show to life. The series will be showcasing stories that kids around the world will find relatable and engaging, hopefully opening up more opportunities for future collaboration. Our efforts are to make sure that kids get to experience the best of animation and that this show will stir their imagination and transport them into a new world of adventure.”

    The Twisted Timeline of Sammy & Raj is being overseen by Sikka and by Chris Rose, VP Animation for Nickelodeon International. Head writer is Jordan Gershowitz, whose TV animation writing credits include The Tom and Jerry Joy, Gigantosaurus, Taffy and Rainbow Butterfly Unicorn Kitty.

  • ‘Hair Love’ Helmer Directs Part-Animated ‘black-ish’ Special

    ‘Hair Love’ Helmer Directs Part-Animated ‘black-ish’ Special

    The Johnsons and black-ish return to ABC with a one-hour television special on Sunday, Oct. 4 (10:00-11:00 p.m. EDT). The two back-to-back episodes, which will air ahead of the official season seven premiere, will follow the Johnsons as they navigate the upcoming election, with Junior (Marcus Scribner) embarking on his journey as a first-time voter and Dre (Anthony Anderson) launching an exploration into local politics.

    The special will be presented in part, in a series first, as an animated episode. Oscar winner Matthew A. Cherry (Hair Love) is set to direct.

    (Airdate/time may change due to NBA Finals. An official premiere date for the highly anticipated seventh season will be announced shortly.)

    In “Election Special Pt. 1,” (10:00-10:30 p.m. EDT), Junior is excited for his first time voting, but discovers he has been purged from the voter polls so he does a deep dive into why – trying to understand the systems in place for voter registration. “Election Special Pt. 1” is directed by Cherry and written by Eric Horsted.

    Then, in a special animated episode, “Election Special Pt. 2,” (10:30-11:00 p.m. EDT), Dre’s colleague Stevens (Peter Mackenzie) makes an ill-advised decision to run for Congress, so Dre enlists his family’s help and campaigns against him but gets caught up with fundraising and private interest groups. “Election Special Pt. 2” is directed by Cherry and written by Graham Towers & Ben Deeb.

    Matthew A. Cherry
    Matthew A. Cherry

    In its upcoming seventh season, black-ish will continue to tell stories that shine a light on current events through the lens of the Johnson family, addressing the global pandemic, systemic racism and the movement for social justice and equality.

    The series stars Anthony Anderson as Andre “Dre” Johnson, Tracee Ellis Ross as Rainbow Johnson, Yara Shahidi as Zoey Johnson, Marcus Scribner as Andre Johnson Jr., Miles Brown as Jack Johnson, Marsai Martin as Diane Johnson, Laurence Fishburne as Pops, Jenifer Lewis as Ruby, Peter Mackenzie as Mr. Stevens, Deon Cole as Charlie Telphy and Jeff Meacham as Josh.

    ABC’s black-ish was created by Kenya Barris and is executive produced by Barris, Courtney Lilly, Laura Gutin Peterson, Anthony Anderson, Laurence Fishburne, Helen Sugland, E. Brian Dobbins and Michael Petok. The series is produced by ABC Signature. ABC Signature is a part of Disney Television Studios, alongside 20 th Television and Touchstone Television.

  • TeamTO Allies with France TV, Super RTL to Greenlight ‘Jade Armor’

    TeamTO Allies with France TV, Super RTL to Greenlight ‘Jade Armor’

    Maverick European kids entertainment company TeamTO has partnered with leading kids platforms France Télévisions (France) and Super RTL (Germany) on its animated action comedy Jade Armor (26 x 22′). The series is now in full production at TeamTO’s Paris and Valence studios, with the first episode slated for delivery in fall 2021.

    “France Télévisions is particularly proud to include Jade Armor in its animated kids line-up. This series is an excellent example of what a female heroine can bring to action adventure: a different way of looking at confrontation with antagonists and how to use the powers in her possession,” said Tiphaine de Raguenel, Director of Youth Programming and Animation, France Télévisions. “The talent of creator and director Chloé Miller makes the most of the martial arts techniques in the action scenes. In his own way, Jackie Chan paved the way for highly choreographed fights, and Jade Armor continues that path with even more determination. She has no desire to do it like a boy, a value that France Télévisions wants to share with its 3-12 year-old audiences on Okoo.”

    Super RTL’s Content Director, Martin Gradl, commented, “Jade Armor has all the ingredients Super RTL was looking for: a strong and relatable female lead, stories full of adventure, filled with humor and fun, positive role models and relationships characterized by friendship, family and the idea of great teamwork. We are delighted to be part of the creation of this amazing new show.”

    “We developed Jade Armor with passion and care for its original female lead’s point of view, led by our talented director, Chloé Miller,” noted Corinne Kouper, TeamTO Executive Producer. “Chloé’s vision and passion for anime adds an original spin to this show, with nuanced and comical characters that bring a fresh voice to kids TV. Our teen hero Lan Jun finds herself saddled with new responsibilities that she takes on with a humour and personality. We are excited to work on our first 22-minute stories which will give us time to get to know the characters and reveal the backstory.”

    Jade Armor (26 x 22’) is an action comedy starring an unlikely teenage girl hero with an even unlikelier set of powers — and one awesome high-tech armor suit! The last in a long line of strong and powerful women, Lan Jun’s life takes an unexpected turn when she puts on a mysterious bracelet sent anonymously through the mail. Like the legendary superhero of the same name, Lan Jun is immediately encased in a suit of Jade Armor. With her kung fu talents suddenly levelled up, it’s now Lan Jun’s turn to embody this epic hero. Together with the help of her friends Theo and Alisha, and the mystical Beasticons that accompany the armor, Lan Jun must contend with both an evil array of super villains and the even more challenging trials of teenage life.

    In order to bring Lan Jun’s inner girl-power and comedic heart to life, TeamTO EP Kouper has assembled an all-star, all-women team: Showrunner and co-creator Chloé Miller, head writer MJ Offen and co-developer Mary Bredin.

    A 30-year maverick in the field of CGI, Corinne Kouper was twice honored by the Cartoon Forum Tributes as Producer of the Year, in 2010 and 2015. She has also received two Emmy Awards and one Pulcinella Award in her long career of creating hits such as Mighty Mike, Angelo Rules, Yellowbird, Zoe Kezako and Rolie Polie Olie. Kouper is President and founder of Les Femmes S’Animent, France’s equivalent of Women in Animation.

    Chloé Miller is a graduate of the Beaux Arts Saint Etienne and renowned animation directors graduate school La Poudrière. She directed Emmy-nominated Angelo Rules and was art director for Babar and the Adventures of Badou and TeamTO’s acclaimed feature film Yellowbird.

    MJ Offen is a writer-producer with experience developing work for Disney, Nickelodeon, Cartoon Network, Spinmaster, Warner Bros., The Jim Henson Company and other kids’ content leaders. She was head of story for Mattel’s Girls Brands, including Barbie, WellieWishers and Monster High.

    Development Executive Mary Bredin developed and co-executive produced Emmy-nominated Justin Time and Netflix Original True and the Rainbow Kingdom, and co-created Guru Studio’s Pikwik.

    Jade Armor
    Jade Armor
  • ‘Ben 10 vs. The Universe: The Movie’ Blasts Off Worldwide Oct. 10

    ‘Ben 10 vs. The Universe: The Movie’ Blasts Off Worldwide Oct. 10

    Cartoon Network’s Ben 10 takes on the whole galaxy (literally!) when Ben 10 vs. The Universe: The Movie premieres worldwide Saturday, Oct. 10. The TV movie will be available for fans across the globe with the U.S./Canada airing taking place at 10 a.m. ET/PT, only on Cartoon Network.

    The movie will also be released digitally on Oct. 11 on all major platforms as well as on DVD Oct. 13 by Warner Bros. Home Entertainment.

    Ben 10 vs. The Universe: The Movie will focus around a blast from Ben’s past returning to do double the damage on Team Tennyson and planet Earth itself, forcing Ben to go interstellar to save the day. Meanwhile, Gwen and Grandpa Max team up to help protect the world in Ben’s absence. But when our boy hero is confused for the villain in space, Ben must figure out a way to get back to Earth to help save it!

    New episodes of Ben 10, currently in its fourth season, will begin airing the week of Sept. 13, kicking off with a half-hour special taking fans on a journey to Tokyo. Premieres will air every day that week at 7 a.m. (ET/PT) through Sept. 18, as well as being available on the CN App and VOD.

    Ben 10 has been watched by 2.7M kids thus far in 2020 on Cartoon Network and Boomerang, according to info fromNielsen. The series is produced by Cartoon Network Studios and created and executive produced by Man of Action Entertainment (Big Hero 6, Generator Rex), with John Fang (Mixels, Generator Rex) as executive producer.

    Ben 10 vs. The Universe: The Movie
    Ben 10 vs. The Universe: The Movie
  • Arcana Partners with Gasolina on ‘My Brother the Monster’ Co-Pro

    Arcana Partners with Gasolina on ‘My Brother the Monster’ Co-Pro

    Vancouver-based IP house Arcana Studio has partnered with international development and production company Gasolina Studios in Mexico City on the upcoming television series My Brother the Monster. Arcana Studio and the Mexican Institute of Cinematography (IMCINE) are both equity investors in this Canada-Mexico co-production. Created by Ernesto Molina, Arcana CEO Sean Patrick O’Reilly wrote all the episodes and is producing the series with Gasolina’s Joe Alanís, with both companies having episode directors from both of their respective countries.

    My Brother the Monster is a 26 x 11′ family-friendly animated series aimed at children ages 6-8. The series follows Mombou, a furry creature from outer space who is adopted by a human family after his pod crashes on Earth. The show is intended to be a ‘slice of life’ comedy that demonstrates the value of friendship and human relationships.

    “We have all faced challenges during this pandemic and we are thrilled to announce a new project that has given both our Canadian and Mexican staff a tremendous sense of hope for the future,” said O’Reilly. “Even more so, to write and produce a story that reasserts the family-friendly values during this time feels incredible.”

    “My Brother the Monster is a show about resilience, creativity, friendship and inclusion. With some much uncertainty in the world, we look forward to communicating these concepts with a global audience,” said Alanís. “We thank our highly talented team from across the Americas for bringing our beloved characters to life.”

    Gasolina picked up the project in 2018, after the series had participated in the Pixelatl Ideatoon pitches (check out the previously released teaser below).

    My Brother the Monster is slated for worldwide release in early 2022.

    My Brother the Monster
    My Brother the Monster
  • HBO Launches VR Event Series ‘Lovecraft Country: Sanctum’ Spotlighting Black Artists

    HBO Launches VR Event Series ‘Lovecraft Country: Sanctum’ Spotlighting Black Artists

    To celebrate the highly anticipated new series Lovecraft Country, HBO has announced Lovecraft Country: Sanctum, a series of exclusive virtual reality events transporting invited guests into a world inspired by the show. The series airs Sundays at 9 p.m. ET/PT on HBO and is available to stream on HBO Max.

    In a first-of-its-kind, groundbreaking social VR event series, 100 select influential voices will experience three events consisting of immersive theater, escape rooms, art installations, puzzles and a live concert via the Oculus Quest headset, all inspired by Lovecraft Country. The events will be simultaneously run on the social VR platform VRChat, which allows guests to talk and interact with each other in real time within the environment, and streamed to the world via YouTube Live. Viewers on the YouTube Live stream will be able to interact in real time, solving riddles to trigger spells that directly impact the experience.

    Lovecraft Country: Sanctum
    Lovecraft Country: Sanctum

    “We were very inspired by the deeply layered and dynamic world Misha Green has brought to life in Lovecraft Country and wanted to create a digital experience for fans that is just as innovative as the series itself,” said Dana Flax, VP Program Marketing at HBO. “We’re so thrilled to be partnering with The Mill on creating a virtual reality ‘secret society’ in Sanctum. So much of Lovecraft Country is rooted in the idea of travel as a catalyst for self-discovery. Sanctum provides a way for fans to come together virtually and safely in a unique new place and experience incredible performances that further explore themes and ideas from the show. These virtual events also give us the special opportunity of spotlighting the work of Black artists in celebration of this very important series.”

    Guests will experience voiceover performances by series stars Jonathan Majors, Courtney B. Vance and Michael Kenneth Williams; afrofuturist art installations by David Alabo, Devan Shimoyama and Adeyemi Adegbesan; a theatrical performance inspired by the words of James Baldwin, adapted by Lovecraft Country writer Shannon Houston and performed by star Jurnee Smollett; and an exclusive VR concert given by a soon to be announced artist.

    Lovecraft Country: Sanctum
    Lovecraft Country: Sanctum

    Sanctum was developed in partnership with HBO by creative production partner and experience studio The Mill, whose team of artists, coders and strategists developed the experience during global lockdown, in close collaboration with HBO’s marketing team.

    “We created Sanctum as a space to expand the possibilities of what the future of theatre, games, art installations, concerts, and live events can be,” said Rama Allen, Executive Creative Director at The Mill and lead creative on the Sanctum experience. “It is an alternate universe, built for Social VR, that tests, and exceeds, the boundaries of what we believe possible. We sought to create a space in partnership with Black artists and voices that centers on the Black experience. We chose Social VR because it is the most transportive medium to lift us from the isolation of quarantine, to coexist in a rarefied location. This technology can erase geography to bring us together.”

    Fans can view Sanctum via YouTube Live during the following dates and times this Fall:

    • Event #1: Garden of Eden Thursday, September 3, 10 p.m. ET/ 7 p.m. PT
    • Event #2: An American Dream Thursday, September 24 10 p.m. ET/ 7 p.m. PT
    • Event #3: Music of the Cosmos Monday, October 19 10 p.m. ET/ 7 p.m. PT

    For more information please visit LoveCraftSanctum.com

    Read more about Lovecraft Country in Ramin Zahed’s VFX story for the latest issue of Animation Magazine here.

  • Musa Brooker Named Creative Director of Six Point Harness

    Musa Brooker, whose career in both stop-motion and 2D animation has included some of the most acclaimed animation projects of the past two decades, has been named creative director at L.A.-based animation studio Six Point Harness.

    Brooker joined Six Point Harness in 2019 to provide creative and artistic leadership on an upcoming high-profile animated streaming series, and quickly became an indispensable part of the team, particularly as the company transitioned into remote production. Brooker will continue leading the creative direction of the undisclosed series, for which Six Point Harness is providing animation production, and will oversee the development and production of additional upcoming projects.

    “Musa is a phenomenally talented creative director, whose work has inspired both audiences and fellow animators, and he is also a peerless leader with years of experience as an animation instructor,” said Six Point Harness CEO Brendan Burch. “That makes him particularly invaluable to our creative teams as we develop new ways to collaborate and challenge ourselves to excel in a new work-from-home structure.”

    Brooker is an adjunct associate professor at the University of Southern California’s John C. Hench Division of Animation and Digital Arts, where he has taught for 10 years. Previously, he was a stop-motion animation instructor at CalArts, from which he received an MFA in experimental animation in 2008. While at CalArts as a student, Brooker also was named a Jacob K. Javits Fellow.

    Prior to receiving his advanced degree, Brooker, a Philadelphia native, had helped create unforgettable stop-motion animation for such projects as Elf (2003), Celebrity Deathmatch and The Simpsons. Brooker’s career has also included work on the Robot Chicken Star Wars specials and Tumble Leaf. He held positions at Will Vinton Studios, Stoopid Buddy Stoodios, Shadowmachine and MTV Animation – where he worked on Daria – prior to launching a career as an in-demand freelancer specializing in stop-motion and traditional animation. He made his solo directorial debut in 2012 with the 16-minute animated musical The Story of Pines from singer Alison Sudol, which he also co-produced and co-wrote (watch it here).

    Brooker said he is particularly excited to be returning to traditional animation after an acclaimed career in stop-motion: “I spent about 20 years in stop-motion and I absolutely love it and the experiences it gave me, but 2D animation was really my first love, so it’s a thrill to be at Six Point Harness and working on such fantastic 2D projects.”

    The newly appointed Creative Director joined Six Point Harness last year as the studio was delivering its work on the Oscar-winning short Hair Love, and says he is impressed with the company’s commitment to representing many views and voices. “Diversity is one of the things I love most about Six Point Harness – it might be the most diverse company I’ve ever encountered in terms of its crew, which is incredibly refreshing.”

    Brooker joins Six Point Harness’s founding creative director Greg Franklin in overseeing projects for the studio, whose current and recent productions include Cosmos: Possible Worlds and the upcoming Season 2 of Adult Swim’s Lazor Wulf; the Oscar-winning animated short Hair Love; Amazon’s Guava Island; and animated sequences for such series as HBO’s Backstories, AMC’s Dietland and ABC’s Black-ish.

    www.sixpointharness.com

  • Fangs for the Memories! ‘Jurassic World: Camp Cretaceous’ Trailers an Unforgettable Summer Vacation

    Fangs for the Memories! ‘Jurassic World: Camp Cretaceous’ Trailers an Unforgettable Summer Vacation

    Netflix has debuted the official trailer and interactive site for upcoming kids’ action-comedy Jurassic World: Camp Cretaceous — the first animated adaptation of Michael Crichton’s iconic sci-fi tale. In the spot, we meet our intrepid young protagonists and the counselors of their disastrous Isla Nubar camp experience. The 8 x 22′ CG series produced by Universal Pictures and Amblin Entertainment, with animation by DreamWorks, premieres September 18.

    Jurassic World: Camp Cretaceous
    Jurassic World: Camp Cretaceous

    Set against the timeline of the blockbuster film Jurassic World, Jurassic World: Camp Cretaceous follows a group of six teenagers trapped at a new adventure camp on the opposite side of Isla Nublar. When the events of the film unfold and dinosaurs are unleashed across the island, each kid realizes their very survival rests on the shoulders of themselves and their fellow campers. Unable to reach the outside world, our six teens will go from strangers to friends to family as they band together to survive the dinosaurs and uncover hidden secrets so deep they threaten the world itself.

    The series stars Paul-Mikél Williams as Darius, Jenna Ortega as Brooklynn, Ryan Potter as Kenji, Raini Rodriguez as Sammy, Sean Giambrone as Ben, Kausar Mohammed as Yaz, Jameela Jamil as Roxie and Glen Powell as Dave

    Emmy- and Annie-nominated duo Scott Kreamer and Aaron Hammersley (Kung Fu Panda: Legends of Awesomeness) are showrunners on Camp Cretaceous; exec producers are Steven Spielberg, Colin Trevorrow, Frank Marshall, Scott Kreamer, Aaron Hammersley and Lane Lueras.

    Jurassic World: Camp Cretaceous
    Jurassic World: Camp Cretaceous

    Simultaneous with the trailer launch, the show’s official interactive website also went live — giving fans the chance to experience a behind-the-gates look at Jurassic World: Camp Cretaceous: The brand new state of the art adventure camp is waiting to be explored at CampCretaceous.com, where visitors can tour the campgrounds, get up close with dinosaurs and, as Mr. DNA says, experience the wonders of science!

    Once inside, checkout the tree top cabins, the incredible zipline and pop into the genetics lab located deep in the jungle of Isla Nublar. Time your visit correctly and you might catch the rare moment a dinosaur egg hatches. The site is filled with exciting first looks inside Camp Cretaceous. From listening into ranger communications across the island to getting a glimpse of top secret files on Dr. Wu’s computer, there is so much for Jurassic World fans to explore as a family including easter eggs, games and downloadable activities.

    Jurassic World: Camp Cretaceous
    Jurassic World: Camp Cretaceous
  • Star-Studded Animated Bloodbath ‘To Your Last Death’ Hits Disc Oct. 6

    Star-Studded Animated Bloodbath ‘To Your Last Death’ Hits Disc Oct. 6

    Following a wildly successful run on the global film festival circuit — netting over two dozen awards and 60 nominations — Coverage Ink and Quiver Distribution have announced the home video release of Jason Axinn’s To Your Last Death. The blood-splattered, timewarped animated family drama will be available nationwide October 6 on Blu-ray. It is currently available on a number of digital and cable platforms, including iTunes, Amazon Video, Vudu, Comcast, Spectrum and Cox.

    To Your Last Death combines a wildly imaginative script with eye-popping animation. The film is anchored by a first-class voice cast: Morena Baccarin (Deadpool, Firefly, Gotham) as the mysterious Gamemaster, Ray Wise (Twin Peaks, Batman: The Killing Joke, Robocop), Dani Lennon (The Love Witch, Bite Me), Bill Moseley (House of 1000 Corpses, Repo! The Genetic Opera, The Devil’s Rejects) and William Shatner (Star Trek franchise, The Practice) as the sadistic Overseer.

    To Your Last Death
    To Your Last Death

    “What drew me to this project was how dark it was. This idea that we can be finger puppets, that somebody could be up there, wreaking chaos in our lives… Obviously, it’s a fantasy world, and it’s always fun to do something that’s completely unrealistic and at the same time plays with themes from reality,” Baccarin shared. “I enjoyed this character because one could say she’s evil — she’s doing these terrible things — but she’s really just doing her job. It’s not about emotion, and it’s not about being mean or terrible to people. It’s about entertainment and, in a weird way, I thought it would be really fun to attempt vocally to do that.”

    “If you can make people feel that they could die horribly, that’s scary. That’s close to the bone,” added Shatner.

    To Your Last Death
    To Your Last Death

    To Your Last Death had its world premiere at the Arrow Video FrightFest in London, beginning a global tour of critical and audience acclaim. The film has won accolades including Best Film at the Northeast Film Festival Horror Fest and Horror Avenue Film Festival, Best Horror Film at Vidi Space Film Festival, Bloodstained Indie Film Fest and the Big Apple Film Festival, Best Supporting Actor (Wise), Best Villain and Best Writing at Hexploitation, Fearmaker of the Year at Spooky Empire, and Best Feature Screenplay and Best Sound at FilmQuest. To Your Last Death was also nominated for Best Feature at the Pasadena International Film Festival in addition to Best Feature, Best Director and Best First-time Filmmaker at HorrorHound.

    To Your Last Death was produced by Coverage Ink Films and directed by Jason Axinn, from a script by Coverage Ink’s Tanya Klein and Jim Cirile. Axinn produced alongside Cindi Rice and Paige Barnett. Klein, Cirile and John Frank Rosenblum served as executive producers.

  • Juried Emmys: Tartakovsky Scores 4th Win Amid Animation Achievement Awardees

    Juried Emmys: Tartakovsky Scores 4th Win Amid Animation Achievement Awardees

    The Television Academy announced today the juried award winners for the 72nd Emmy Awards in categories from Animation, Choreography, Interactive Programming and Motion Design. The juried awards for these categories will be presented at the 2020 Creative Arts Awards ceremony on Thursday, Sept. 17, streaming on Emmys.com.

    The 2020 Creative Arts Emmy Awards will stream on Emmys.com for four consecutive nights beginning Monday, Sept. 14, through Thursday, Sept. 17, at 8:00 p.m. EDT/5:00 p.m. PDT with a fifth broadcast ceremony on Saturday, Sept. 19, at 8:00 p.m. EDT/5:00 p.m. PDT on FXX. All five shows will be produced by Bob Bain Productions.

    In Outstanding Individual Achievement in Animation, Genndy Tartakovsky received his fourth Emmy win for his Primal series, while the show’s art director Scott Wills won for the third time and character designer Stephen DeStefano received his first award. The category was rounded out by two more first-time winners: Jill Dykxhoorn and Dan MacKenzie.

    This is the second Emmy win for Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s HITRECORD and Brian Graden Media and a first win for ARVORE Immersive Experiences in the Outstanding Innovation in Interactive Programming category. In the Outstanding Motion Design category, Leanne Dare received her second Emmy win, with Eben McCue, Sebastian Hoppe-Fuentes and David Navas all receiving their first win.

    And Mandy Moore received her third Emmy win with her award for Outstanding Choreography for Scripted Programming, for Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist.

    Archer
    Archer

    Outstanding Individual Achievement in Animation:

    Archer • Road Trip • FX Networks • FX Productions | Jill Dykxhoorn, Lead Background Artist

    Cosmos: Possible Worlds • Vavilov • National Geographic • Possible Worlds LLC in association with FOX | Dan MacKenzie, Character Animator

    Genndy Tartakovsky’s Primal • Spear and Fang • Adult Swim • Cartoon Network Studios | Genndy Tartakovsky, Storyboard Artist

    Genndy Tartakovsky’s Primal • Spear and Fang • Adult Swim • Cartoon Network Studios | Scott Wills, Art Director

    Genndy Tartakovsky’s Primal • A Cold Death • Adult Swim • Cartoon Network Studios | Stephen DeStefano, Character Designer

    Cosmos: Possible Worlds
    Cosmos: Possible Worlds

    Outstanding Innovation in Interactive Programming:

    Create Together • YouTube • HITRECORD, Brian Graden Media, YouTube Originals | Sam Wasserman, Executive Producer; Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Executive Producer

    The Line • Oculus • ARVORE Immersive Experiences | Ricardo Laganaro, Director; Ricardo Justus, Executive Producer; Edouard de Montmort, Executive Producer

    Outstanding Motion Design:

    Inside Bill’s Brain: Decoding Bill Gates • Netflix • A Concordia Studio Production | Leanne Dare, Creative Director; Eben McCue, Animator; Sebastian Hoppe-Fuentes, Animator; David Navas, Animator

    Juried categories require all entrants to be screened by a panel of professionals in the appropriate peer group with the possibility of one, more than one or no entry being awarded an Emmy. As a consequence, there are no nominees but instead a one-step evaluation and voting procedure. Deliberations include open discussions of each entrant’s work with a thorough review of the merits of awarding the Emmy.

    The announcement follows the reveal of the 72nd Emmys key art on ABC’s Good Morning America Tuesday morning.

    The 72nd Emmy Awards
    The 72nd Emmy Awards
  • ‘Meet the WalkerZ’ the Vegan Zombies Nextdoor

    ‘Meet the WalkerZ’ the Vegan Zombies Nextdoor

    Shadow Valley Productions, LLC, a creative-driven branded entertainment company, today introduces a delightful, but highly-unusual, vegan zombie family to young audiences in a newly released teaser for the new animated comedy series, Meet The WalkerZ. Check it out at www.meetthewalkerz.com

    The animated project, based on the Jonathan Sanborn comic-book series The Adventures of Zombie Dog and adapted for all media by head writer Grant Boucher, is targeted towards children ages 6-11 years and is currently in production on an initial 4 x 22-minute miniseries to introduce the amazing characters and world to young audiences.

    Shadow Valley is also currently pursuing multiple licenses for the brand and most recently appointed leading licensing agency, Firefly Brand Management, as the North American licensing agent for the highly-anticipated entertainment property.

    Meet the WalkerZ is a family-friendly comedy about a wonderfully unusual vegan zombie family that wins a game show and gets a rare opportunity to be the first family of their kind to live a “life” in human society. The Walker Family, led by noble dad Ed, features grandma Betty, son Ryder, fun-loving daughter Gigi and, of course, their outrageous trouble-making, meat-loving zombie dog named JJ. The animated adaptation is set to bring fun, family value-based adventures to the screen as JJ and the Walkers learn to adapt to their new neighborhood (and not so friendly neighbors) while constantly attempting to stay meat-free!

    “What really drew me to produce Meet the WalkerZ was realizing the potential the comic book had to create a very unique and diverse line-up of characters cuddled by fun-hearted family-values all of which is hidden behind an unusual zombie (but extraordinarily friendly) lifestyle,” noted Jeremy L. Christensen, co-creator and producer. “I held onto and carried around the comic for four years knowing there was no way I was not going to make this into something remarkable and fun for all.”

    The production team is led by Shadow Valley production executives Jeremy L. Christensen and Saber Christensen, producers Jonathan Sanborn and Candy Kuo. The animation team, consisting of DreamWorks and Disney animators and New York Times best-selling authors, have maintained production cost and changed the production workflow by using an internally created Unreal Engine 4 pipeline resulting in beautifully stunning visual content.

    Shadow Valley Productions is an award-winning creative-driven branded entertainment company dedicated to developing and creating family-value driven content for TV, SVOD and feature films. The production team boasts over 20 years of industry experience working notably on Hacksaw Ridge and the live-action Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles reboot.

    The award-winning animation team lead, Evan Mayfield, has worked with DreamWorks and Disney the Tinkerbell animated movie series, G-Force, Spies in Disguise and others. Head of the Art Mat Broome has over 30 years creating branded franchises for Marvel (X-Men), DC (Batman), Sony (H1Z1) and Image (Wildcats). The diverse writing team led by Grant Boucher, coming from Digital Domain, Blue’s Clues and That 70’s Show, have won multiple New York Times Best Selling Authors Awards (David Wolverton in 1999 and Carol Lynch Williams in 2009).

  • Ramsey Naito Named President, Nickelodeon Animation

    Ramsey Naito has been named President of Nickelodeon Animation, it was announced today by ViacomCBS Kids & Family President Brian Robbins, to whom Naito will continue to report. In this position, Naito oversees the network’s animation content across all formats and platforms — spanning linear, digital, TV movies, theatrical motion pictures and SVOD.

    Formerly Executive Vice President of Animation Production and Development for the Nickelodeon Group, Oscar-nominated producer Naito joined Nickelodeon in 2018 and has since overseen a renaissance at the studio of animation content and production in scale and creativity.

    “Ramsey has led the transformation of our Animation Studio through the combination of impeccable creative vision and on-point business instincts, and her appointment to President reflects the scope of talent and soul she brings to our organization,” said Robbins. “In very short order, she has re-energized and rebuilt our animation teams while bringing in a string of new talent, storytellers, artists, production teams and voice actors to elevate Nick’s overall animation output and leadership position even further.”

    Naito has been a driving force in bringing new projects, top talent and key partnerships to Nickelodeon Animation, to further bolster its content pipeline across preschool, kids, theatrical and its studio business. Notable projects include the highly anticipated Star Trek: Prodigy from Nickelodeon and CBS Television Studios; best-selling book adaptations Real Pigeons Fight Crime, produced by James Corden and Ben Winston, and the critically acclaimed Big Nate; Tiny Chef, in partnership with Imagine Kids+Family; Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles theatrical motion picture in partnership with Point Grey Pictures’ Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg and James Weaver, helmed by Jeff Rowe; PAW Patrol: The Movie, targeting a 2021 release; and the first-ever SpongeBob SquarePants spinoff Kamp Koral: SpongeBob’s Under Years.

    Simultaneously, Naito manages the day-to-day operations of Nickelodeon’s current series and development slate, overseeing the network’s key franchises including: SpongeBob SquarePants, The Casagrandes, The Loud House, Baby Shark, Blue’s Clues & You!, Santiago of the Seas, the upcoming Rugrats reboot and the recently announced original series Middlemost Post.

    To continue growing Nickelodeon’s animation business beyond linear, in 2019, Naito oversaw the network’s multi-year output deal with Netflix to produce original animated feature films and television series, based both on the Nickelodeon library of characters as well as all-new IP for kids and families globally. This deal marked an expansion of the existing relationship between the companies, which has already brought several popular titles to Netflix, including animated specials Rocko’s Modern Life: Static Cling and Invader Zim: Enter the Florpus, and specials based on The Loud House and Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

    Building an inclusive and diverse culture at the animation studio and developing emerging and homegrown talent has been a strong point in Naito’s mission throughout her time at Nickelodeon. Naito has brought in more than 500 new employees across dozens of animation productions, and since employees began working remotely in March, over 150 new positions have been filled with studio productions operating virtually at 100%. Nickelodeon currently has over 40 animated shows in production across series, its studio business and movies, and is pacing to nearly double its production slate by end of 2020. Under Naito’s leadership, Nickelodeon also held its first-ever virtual job fair this year, garnering nearly 6000 attendees globally, exemplifying a commitment to hire inclusively and to reflect authenticity and diversity in storytelling.

    Prior to Nickelodeon, Naito oversaw production on Paramount Pictures’ upcoming theatrical Sponge on the Run, slated to debut on CBS All Access early 2021. Naito produced DreamWorks Animation’s Oscar-nominated feature, The Boss Baby, while also earning her a PGA nomination for Outstanding Producer of Animated Theatrical Motion Pictures. Prior to DreamWorks Animation, Ramsey worked as a producer for Blue Sky Studios, at Cartoon Network as Head of Movies and at Nickelodeon Movies as Vice President of Development & Production. Her executive and producer credits include: Scooby-Doo! The Mystery Begins (2009), Barnyard (2006), The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie (2004), The Wild Thornberrys Movie (2002), Hey Arnold! The Movie (2002), the Oscar-nominated Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius (2001), Rugrats in Paris: The Movie (2000) and South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut (1999).

    Naito is a member of Women in Animation, the Producers Guild of America and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. She received her Bachelor of Fine Arts from Maryland Institute College of Art and her Master of Fine Arts from the California Institute of the Arts. Naito is based in Nickelodeon’s Burbank, Calif. studio.

  • Director Hisko Hulsing Discusses the Cutting-Edge Hybrid Animation of Amazon’s ‘Undone’

    Director Hisko Hulsing Discusses the Cutting-Edge Hybrid Animation of Amazon’s ‘Undone’

    For many years, Dutch animator and rotoscope expert Hisko Hulsing has been a familiar figure in the festival circuit around the world. Best known for his award-winning shorts Junkyard, Seventeen and HBO’s documentary Kurt Cobain: Montage of Heck, Hulsing has been directing Amazon’s innovative show Undone for the past two years. He oversees the innovative production design and directs a team of animators at Amsterdam’s Submarine studio and works closely with Austin-based studio Minnow Mountain to produce the animation. He was kind enough to take a break from a long day to chat about his work on the series:

    Hisko Hulsing
    Hisko Hulsing

    Congrats on the worldwide success of the first season of Undone. How are things going with the second season?

    Well, I just finished directing an episode from my home studio in Amsterdam. It’s about four a.m. here. But things are going well, thanks to Zoom technology! Mostly everyone works from home these days.

    Can you tell us a bit about your experience directing the first season of the show?

    For the first season, I would fly to L.A. to direct the actors on the set in West Hollywood. We would be on the set for 13 hours or so each day. Then I’d have to review everything with the team in Texas and Amsterdam. We had about 150 people working on it overall. We used Shotgun to share everything and review and share all the material. Of course, problems can come about. But limitations can push our creativity in a way.

    How did you initially get involved with the series?

    The producers from Tornante reached out to me because of my background in hybrid and rotoscope animation. At the time, I was on the verge of quitting animation for good. I was so fed up with the extremely hard work and I was thinking about becoming a portrait painter. But then I read the script on a plane, and I was laughing and crying. The show was everything that I wanted to do in a way. This level of writing was so layered and intelligent. Then I met the show co-creators Raphael Bob Waksberg (BoJack Horseman) and Kate Purdy and we were completely on the same page. Then, after the show was sold to Amazon, I knew that I couldn’t leave Amsterdam. But they said, “We can build something around you.” They came to Amsterdam and we connected them with the pipeline at Submarine.

    Undone
    Undone

    Tell us a bit about the team in Austin.

    Well, the studio in Austin is Minnow Mountain and the show producer, Tommy Palotta, who produced A Scanner Darkly and Waking Life, agreed that it was necessary to do the show via rotoscope technology. At Submarine, we did all the storyboards, ink and paint, designs and compositing, 3D, etc. and the linework rotoscopy was done in Texas [led by co-producer Craig Staggs]. The recordings were done in Los Angeles at ShadowMachine.

    What were some of season one’s biggest challenges?

    The biggest challenge was to hire nine painters, which I recruited from all over Europe. They had to emulate my style, so it took some training and developing. But this was so much smoother than my previous project, which was the Kurt Cobain documentary from about five years ago. I was so arrogant that I thought I could produce all the animation. It became such a nightmare. I was doing all the painting and the storyboards and trying to organize everything. Undone was so well organized. The only tough part was the communication. Conference calls can become stressful, and of course, you are working hard for 14, 15 hours a day. It’s not stressful, it’s just hard.

    Undone
    Undone

    Now that the show has been one of Amazon’s most acclaimed projects, what are you proudest of?

    I am really pleased that we managed to pull it up: We were able to deliver three hours of good animation. As a director, I always find things that I’m not completely satisfied with, because I’m a perfectionist. The audience may not even notice those things. What I’m most happy about is that we were able to finish all the episodes and all the ingredients were great: The writing, the actors, the artwork was terrific. I really thought we couldn’t miss. On top of it all, it really moved me. I cried when I watched the second episode, and I thought, well, I cried, so others will probably cry, too.

    Can you talk about the animation tools that were used?

    Well, we used Shotgun to manage the production. We used TVPaint to do the 2D animation.  For the 3D animation, we used projection mapping over oil paintings done on canvas. We photographed those paintings and then used the Dutch open-source program Blender. We also used Nuke for compositing and Premiere for editing.

    Can you tell us anything about the second season?

    Yes, we’re very busy working on it and we had to push through during the summer, despite the challenges of the pandemic era. There were so many issues we just had to laugh about it now, but we are succeeding despite them all. Right now, I’m in Amsterdam and directing the live shoots which are done in L.A. via zoom.

    Undone
    Undone

    How did you say sane during the lockdowns?

    I live here with my wife and son, and things have become more lively now. My son is a violinist and he was applying for a conservatory, and everything was done via Zoom. I stayed inspired by watching a lot of movies at home. We watched “Joker” together and I was blown away by its cinematography and brilliant acting.

    What would you say are your biggest cinematic influences?

    It would have be “Rosemary’s Baby.” I think it’s genius to have the story told through the point of view of the Mia Farrow character, who thinks she has been raped by the devil. It doesn’t matter if it really happened or not. It’s her vision of the truth. We went with the same approach in “Undone,” because we don’t really know if our main character Alma (voiced by actress Rosa Salazar) is schizophrenic or is really traveling through time and space and meeting her father. Both possibilities are valid, because they are her experiences. I am also inspired by 17th century Dutch painters. I am a huge movie fan, so I draw inspiration from many live-action films.

    You can watch the entire first season of Undone on Amazon. The second season will likely arrive in late 2021 or early 2022.