To anyone who knows the enchantment of animation, many of the people in this new documentary are superheroes. Among the generous abundance of studio clips and nearly a dozen on-camera interviews, all have something of value to add: animation artists, historians, and celebrities, including Mulan’s Ming-Na Wen, who narrates. But in chronicling the saga of […]
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“Jellystone!” Creator C.H. Greenblatt: “This Show is a Love Letter”
July 21st, 2021 
Greg Ehrbar Writer, director, storyboard artist and voice actor C.H. Greenblatt has developed a following among animation enthusiasts for his work on series like Spongebob Squarepants (on such pivotal episodes as “Band Geeks,” “I Had An Accident,” “Squidville” and this writer’s favorite, “Krusty Krab Training Video.” As the creator of popular, acclaimed animated series like Chowder and […]
REVIEW: “The Puppetoon Movie 2” Blu-ray/DVD Set
February 3rd, 2021 Greg Ehrbar Sometimes true treasures come along to remind us that we haven’t seen everything. The latest are a stunning cache of George Pal’s Puppetoon shorts that have just been unearthed. Acclaimed by critics, the public and some of the biggest stars over 70 years ago, many of them vanished, as if forever. Even the ones with […]
“Howard” – Disney Doc Salutes a True Hero of its Storybook Kingdom
August 14th, 2020 Greg Ehrbar Howard Ashman didn’t send giant slithery monsters into the clouds to save the earth, nor did he conquer hordes of intergalactic invaders. His triumphs are the stuff of dreams, the kind of accomplishments proven powerful by the test of time. Two-time Oscar nominee Don Hahn was determined to make sure no one forgot that. A […]
Oscar-Nominated Leslie Iwerks on “The Imagineering Story”
November 13th, 2019 Greg Ehrbar Animation enthusiasts will immediately recognize the last name. Leslie Iwerks is the granddaughter of the tectonically influential Ub Iwerks, Walt Disney’s Oscar-winning early studio partner who singlehandedly animated Steamboat Willie, Oswald the Lucky Rabbit cartoons and developed a myriad of technological advances that continue to enhance entertainment. Documentarian Leslie Iwerks’ path is to shed light […]
“DuckTales” Cast is Over the Moon About the New Season
September 2nd, 2019 Greg Ehrbar Interlocking plot twists. Complex, divisive character relationships. Mind-bending sci-fi-fantasy predicaments. Yet comedic and slyly satiric. Not, Stranger Things or Game of Thrones (or ponytails or cottontails) – no, its Ducktales. Yet for those who haven’t kept up, it isn’t so intense that it requires charts and graphs to catch on. It’s still Ducktales. (Woo-oo.) This […]
INTERVIEW: Actors Scott Adsit and Ryan Potter of “Big Hero 6: The Series”
September 1st, 2019 Greg Ehrbar Few things are more gratifying for those who enjoy animation than to discover that the people behind the characters are just as engaged as the people watching at home. With Ryan Potter and Scott Adsit of Big Hero 6: The Series the passion for their characters, their intimate knowledge of each storyline, and the shared […]
INTERVIEW: For Jodi Benson, Voicing Ariel was the Ultimate Sea Change
February 26th, 2019 Greg Ehrbar Feature animation flipped on its tail three decades ago, when Disney’s The Little Mermaid premiered and ushered in a “second golden age.” Today, the new Walt Disney Signature Edition of The Little Mermaid appears in stores and online, and whether seeing for the first or 400th time, it never ceases to wield its gentle power, […]
INTERVIEW: “Trolls: The Beat Goes On” Executive Producer Matt Beans
January 18th, 2018 Greg Ehrbar The animated feature Trolls is one of six new series that DreamWorks Television Animation has prepared for Netflix, and while it’s a slam dunk for tots, you might also like it more than you think. The TV version has the same elements of fantasy, music, goodness and niceness, but there’s a layer of character-driven comedy […]
Interview: “Gumby” comics writer Jeff Whitman
January 4th, 2018 Greg Ehrbar This time, the puns are fitting: the flexibility of Gumby has made him one of pop culture’s most resilient images since he leapt from Art Clokey’s dexterous fingertips over 65 years ago. From his first appearance in the film Gumbasia, Gumby was as innocent as he was sophisticated, as surreal as he was homespun. Gumby […]
INTERVIEW: “Porky Pig” Voice Bob Bergen
December 11th, 2017 Greg Ehrbar He’s been the voice of Porky Pig for 27 years now, with so many credits he ranks #4 of the All-Time Top 100 Domestic Box Office Stars. Yet the one thing animation fans have never asked Bob Bergen is, how many kinds of ‘Porkys’ has he voiced? BOB BERGEN: That’s a really good question, because […]
INTERVIEW: Alec Baldwin, Star of “The Boss Baby”
August 14th, 2017 Greg Ehrbar Few actors have stepped back to the plate and scored as many home runs on the media landscape as Alec Baldwin. He’s an Emmy hopeful for his satirical take on you-know-who on Saturday Night Live, the “quizzzmaster” of Match Game, a longtime podcaster, best selling author—and the voice of a diapered CEO in DreamWorks’ The […]
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INTERVIEW: Disney’s “DuckTales” reboot
August 11th, 2017 Greg Ehrbar Executive Producer Matt Youngberg and Story Editor/Co-Producer Francisco (Frank) Angones are well aware that they have big duck shoes as they reboot the classic animated TV series, DuckTales. But if from the initial response at ComicCon is any indication (the panel at ComicCon was well over capacity), they’re off to an encouraging start. Their show […]
INTERVIEW: Dav Pilkey, Author of “Captain Underpants”
June 3rd, 2017 Greg Ehrbar It took two decades for author P.L. Travers to allow Walt Disney to bring her “Mary Poppins” books to the screen and it took about as long for Dav Pilkey to grant DreamWorks (or any studio) the rights to produce Captain Underpants—The Epic Movie which opened this weekend. “I was approached throughout the run of […]
INTERVIEW: TROLLHUNTERS Composer Tim Davies
April 4th, 2017 Greg Ehrbar One of the most in-demand orchestrator/arrangers (and now composers) in Hollywood, Tim Davies’ massive credit list includes La La Land, Frozen, Jack Reacher, Ant-Man and video games like Batman: Arkham City. For Netflix’s Trollhunters, series creator Guillermo del Toro brought Tim into composing for TV animation for the first time. GREG EHRBAR: How did your […]
