Animation Scoop

INTERVIEW: Inside Network TV’s Biggest New Fall Show “Krapopolis”

September 13th, 2023

Jackson Murphy

Ancient Greece animated comedy Krapopolis debuts with a one-hour series premiere Sunday September 24th at 8pm on FOX. Rick and Morty co-creator Dan Harmon’s latest show joins this fall’s Animation Domination lineup of long-running The Simpsons, Bob’s Burgers and Family Guy. Executive Producer Steve Levy and Supervising Director Pete Michels believe Krapopolis will become as much of a fixture as those other programs, thanks to the writing, the cast, the look and confidence from the network. (This Animation Scoop Q&A was edited for length and clarity.)

Jackson Murphy: I watched the first three episodes. This show has been a long time coming. How does it feel that it’s finally here and not only that you’re already renewed for Season 2 but also Season 3?!

Steve Levy: (laughs) It’s a relief that it’s finally coming out. We started making this show in the very beginning of COVID. We’ve been living and breathing this show every day since the beginning of COVID. Getting the additional season pickups speaks volumes about FOX’s support of the show and their belief that this is something really special, which helps fuel us on the creative side, pushing the boundaries of what we’re capable of doing — both in animation and in the writing. And pushing FOX S&P to let us do a little more than what they’re typically used to. Hopefully we get a Season 4 pickup maybe even before the show airs! That would be fun. We would love to be able to continue making this show for as long as we can. And we’re psyched to see people become fans of it and react to it.

INTERVIEW: Cracking Da Vinci’s Code With “The Inventor”

September 11th, 2023

Jackson Murphy

Jim Capobianco co-wrote Pixar’s Ratatouille, earning him an Oscar nomination. He then directed follow-up short Your Friend the Rat, which won him an Annie Award. Now, after years at that animation studio and working on other projects including Mary Poppins Returns, Capobianco has made a stop-motion animated feature about the life of Leonardo Da Vinci. The funny, sincere and moving The Inventor opens in select theaters this Friday September 15th. (This Animation Scoop Q&A was edited for length and clarity. Photo Credits: Curiosity Studio.)

Jackson Murphy: I love everything that your movie says and does. Congratulations on it.

Jim Capobianco: Thank you, man.

Call For Entries: 51st Annual Annie Awards

September 11th, 2023

Jerry Beck

ASIFA-Hollywood announced its Call for Entries today for the 51st Annie Awards set for Saturday, February 17, 2024 at UCLA’s Royce Hall.

Honoring excellence in the field of animation, the 51st Annie Awards cover 37 categories including Animated Feature, Animated Feature-Independent, TV/Media Production, Sponsored Production, Short Subject, and Student Films, along with Achievement and Honorary awards.

To review this year’s rules and submit your projects, please visit https://www.annieawards.org. Entries submitted for consideration will be from animated productions that were released in the United States between January 1, 2023, and December 31, 2023. Exceptions, which can submit with or without a United States release, are short subjects, special projects, sponsored productions, student films and grand prize winners from Annie Award qualifying festivals.

“Make Mine Music” To Be Included In The 100-Film “Disney Legacy Animated Film Collection”

September 10th, 2023

Jerry Beck

The Walt Disney Company announced today the release of the Disney Legacy Animated Film Collection, featuring 100 animated films from Disney, Walt Disney Animation Studios, and Pixar, packaged together in a beautiful hardbound, self-standing three-volume set that unfolds into your own storybook.

As part of Disney’s 100th anniversary celebration, a limited number of sets will be available for pre-order only on Walmart.com beginning September 18, each including a numbered certificate of authenticity.

FIRST LOOK: Miyazaki’s “The Boy and the Heron”

September 7th, 2023

Jerry Beck

GKIDS, the acclaimed producer and distributor of award-winning animation from around the globe, announced today it will bring The Boy and the Heron, the highly anticipated new film from legendary, Academy Award-winning Hayao Miyazaki, to cinemas nationwide on December 8, 2023. The latest feature from Japan’s celebrated animation house, Studio Ghibli, begins special preview engagements on November 22 before expanding to cinemas nationwide and in Canada on December 8, 2023. As with previous Studio Ghibli titles, the film will be released in its original Japanese with English subtitles, as well as a new English language version.

INTERVIEW: Class Is In Session At “Tiny Toons Looniversity”

September 7th, 2023

Jackson Murphy

Back to School season is the perfect time to unveil the highly anticipated new Tiny Toons Looniversity series. It premieres this Friday September 8th on Max and Saturday September 9th at 9am on Cartoon Network. Co-Showrunner and Co-EP Nate Cash and three of the talented voice actors, David Errigo Jr., Eric Bauza and Tessa Netting, join me for this Animation Scoop Q&A to discuss being star pupils in this cartoon Looniverse and what fans and newbies to the franchise can expect. (These interviews were edited for structure, length and clarity.)

Jackson Murphy: Nate, this show is so ambitious. How do you set-up a university?

Nate Cash (Co-EP and Co-Showrunner): It was a lot of hard work. From an art direction standpoint, too. Filling out the campus. Deciding what the style of the campus was going to be. We leaned into the old show for a lot of the main buildings. But we did expand it out to do the entire campus. And with each episode that takes place on campus… it was super fun.

TEASER: Aardman’s “Chicken Run: Dawn Of The Nugget”

September 5th, 2023

Jerry Beck

The cat – or should we say chicken – is finally out of the bag. Sure to ruffle feathers once more is the return of Melisha Tweedy, better known as Mrs. Tweedy and Ginger’s arch nemesis in the stop-motion animated sequel, Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget. Catch a first glimpse of Mrs. Tweedy, voiced by accomplished stage, film and television actress Miranda Richardson, who has refashioned herself for a new era of fowl-play in the teaser trailer out today. Also joining the cast is British actor, comedian, director and screenwriter, Peter Serafinowicz who voices Reginald Smith. Serafinowicz voices a humorless businessman and along with Tweedy poses a new and bigger threat to chicken-kind.

INTERVIEW: Aaron Ehasz, Justin Richmond and Villads Spangsberg: Gutsy Storytelling for “The Dragon Prince”

September 1st, 2023

W.R. Miller

Fantasy stories are a means to convey ideas. Or with its characters, inspire directions for life. Or encourage new ways of thinking. Or expand the imagination. All from realms of make-believe. One can name Animal Farm, The Lord of the Rings, The Chronicles of Narnia, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, even The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy in provoking the minds of their readers.

The Dragon Prince is no exception. It tackles subjects that some might find … challenging.

INTERVIEW: The Wait Is Over For “Ernest & Celestine: A Trip To Gibberitia”

August 28th, 2023

Jackson Murphy

10 years ago, hand-drawn film Ernest & Celestine, about the unlikely pairing of a bear and a mouse, charmed moviegoers and Academy members. It earned a Best Animated Feature Oscar nomination alongside Hayao Miyazaki’s final film at the time, The Wind Rises, and CG blockbusters Frozen, The Croods and Despicable Me 2. This Friday September 1st, GKIDS will release a sequel feature in theaters, with the title characters on their biggest and most meaningful journey yet. Here’s my conversation with the directors of Ernest & Celestine: A Trip to Gibberitia, Jean-Christophe Roger and Julien Chheng. (This Animation Scoop Q&A was edited for length and clarity.)

Jackson Murphy: Jean-Christophe, what did you love about these characters the very first time you saw them?

Jean-Christophe Roger: Well, it’s an example of, “How far can a friendship go between two so different people?” Celestine has big dreams. Everybody would say, “It’s not possible.” But Ernest would never say that. Ernest loves Celestine. He wants to make her happy. He wants to make everything happen even if it’s not possible. I love this kind of relationship, and the drawings of Gabrielle Vincent, who is so wonderful. I always dreamed to work on that project. I was so lucky to work with Julien on the series and now this new feature film.

TRAILER: Netflix “Leo”

August 23rd, 2023

Jerry Beck

Actor and comedian Adam Sandler (Hotel Transylvania) delivers signature laughs in this coming-of-age animated musical comedy about the last year of elementary school – as seen through the eyes of a class pet. Jaded 74-year-old lizard Leo (Sandler) has been stuck in the same Florida classroom for decades with his terrarium-mate turtle (Bill Burr). When he learns he only has one year left to live, he plans to escape to experience life on the outside but instead gets caught up in the problems of his anxious students — including an impossibly mean substitute teacher. It ends up being the strangest but most rewarding bucket list ever. The film debuts November 21st on Netflix. Here’s out first look:

Animation Educators Forum To Support Six Faculty Projects

August 21st, 2023

Jerry Beck

ASIFA-Hollywood’s Animation Educators Forum (AEF) is proud to announce the six recipients of this year’s AEF Faculty Grants program. This year’s recipients were selected from a pool of creative, talented artists and filmmakers from across the United States. Applications for this year’s grants were received from educators from Australia, Canada, the West Indies, Wales and the United States.

AEF Faculty Grants are designed to provide support for individuals or groups with reasonable expenditures associated with research, scholarly activity or creative projects in the field of animation. Grants are open to both full- and part-time faculty at accredited post-secondary institutions.

INTERVIEW: “Jelly” Is Robin Budd’s Jam

August 16th, 2023

Jackson Murphy

Emmy-winner Robin Budd (director of the Beetlejuice animated series and Disney’s 2002 Peter Pan sequel Return to Never Land) presents a new animated short film that recently premiered at Montreal’s Fantasia International Film Festival. Budd gives me the 411 on the Nelvana Produced Jelly in this Animation Scoop Q&A. (This interview was edited for length and clarity.)

Jackson Murphy: Molly is unhappy with her job. She’s inspired to take chances and enjoy her life and be a rebel. Where did [your] inspiration for “Jelly” come from?

Robin Budd: Well… (laughs) the actual inspiration came when I was cleaning out a bathtub drain. I was pulling out all this guck and hair, and it was disgusting. As I pulled it out I thought, “What if this stuff I pulled out became a monster?” I’ve always loved monsters who are a surprise… in that they’re sympathetic characters. In this case, it grew into, “What if this ugly-looking monster was quite beautiful inside and had insight into Molly’s personality?” Developed the character with setting-up a structure where she was very unhappy with her job. She was doing repetitive work that was just a pale imitation of what she’s capable of. She was trapped in this pattern. For me, that’s being trapped in rigid thinking. It’s repetitive. It’s not creative. The opposite of that would be fluid and expressive and unbridled thought and creativity. And that’s what I wanted for her. Jelly is Molly. Each of us has that voice inside that wants us to break free and be expressive… be ourselves.

REVIEW: “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem

August 15th, 2023

Martin Goodman

In writing this review, I found limiting the piece to a simple assessment of the movie challenging. Three levels of critique are to be considered; teasing them apart proved adequate to explain only one aspect of Mutant Mayhem in light of the interplay between the factors involved. Therefore, I present my readers with part review, essay, and commentary. While this may seem overblown to some, this animated feature is more complex than it looks, with the unifying theme being evolution.

NTERVIEW: Teeing-Up “One-Of-A-Kind Marcie”

August 14th, 2023

Jackson Murphy

The Peanuts/Apple partnership continues to flourish. New 40-minute special Snoopy Presents: One-of-a-Kind Marcie premieres this Friday August 18th on AppleTV+. Executive Producer Craig Schulz (son of “Peanuts” creator Charles Schulz) and Director Raymond S. Persi (who also voiced Flash the Sloth in Zootopia) discuss the impact of Marcie, her new special and the entire “Peanuts” brand. (This Animation Scoop Q&A was edited for length and clarity.)

Jackson Murphy: Craig, I want to [first] ask you about the relationship between the Peanuts brand and Apple over the last few years. From your perspective, how has it been?

Craig Schulz: We’ve put a lot of content out there, between “The Snoopy Show”, “Snoopy in Space” and the co-view specials, which goes under the heading “Snoopy Presents”. “Marcie” is No. 5 in our series. I think we’ve done a lot of great things, and Apple has put a lot of content out there for the world to see. This stuff shows in over 100 countries, so it’s pretty impressive.

Animation Educators Forum Announces 2023-24 Student Scholarship Recipients

August 11th, 2023

Jerry Beck

ASIFA-Hollywood’s Animation Educators Forum (AEF) is proud to announce its scholarship recipients for academic year 2023-24. A record breaking 96 applications were received, with 11 students selected, both graduates and undergraduates, from eight states and three countries. The total scholarship funds ($44,000) will be distributed evenly, will be used to cover costs for necessary software and hardware, creative and academic research, and tuition.