I thought this film had stunning visual effects. The backgrounds look like watercolor paintings and the scenes of the garden and the assortment of wildflowers in the yard were beautiful. The film could use some improvements though.

The year 2011 was a good year for animation.  I have seen some “Perrific!” entertaining films with rich storyline and characters, dazzling visuals, and lively music.  But overall, 2010 was a stronger year for animation than 2011, the three Oscar-nominated films Toy Story 3, How to Train Your Dragon, and The Illusionist all got 4.5 starfish from me!

My favorite animation feature films of 2011 are: Kung Fu Panda 2, Puss in Boots, Rio, and The Adventures of Tintin, all received 4 starfish from me.  I enjoyed interviewing the directors of Kung Fu Panda 2 and Puss in Boots from DreamWorks Animation earlier this month at the Annie Awards for Animation in Hollywood. 

The Oscar-nominees are Kung Fu Panda 2, Puss in Boots, Rango, Chico & Rita, and A Cat in Paris.  I haven’t seen the last two films, both are foreign and from smaller studios. Chico & Rita is too “mature” with adult content, unsuitable to watch for me according to the publicist.  A Cat in Paris has not been released, but the art looks interesting. 

Because these two films are hardly seen by most people, I don’t think any of them has a chance of winning the Oscar. Just ahead of the Oscars on Feb 26, 2012, here is my prediction for the Best Animation Award.

 

2011 was a great year for animated short films. All of the shorts that were nominated for the Oscars had artful animation. My first film, Ingrid Pitt: Beyond the Forest, (http://ingridpitt.co.uk)  in collaboration with Oscar-nominee Bill Plympton, was actually among the initial 45 animated shorts that qualified for an Academy Award! See the AWN list:

http://www.awn.com/news/short-films/academy-screens-next-oscar-winning-animated-short

I went to various film festivals in LA and San Diego, showed my film at DreamWorks Animation, and got to see all the nominated short films, thanks to Shorts International, the distributor of all nominated shorts and my own film.  My review and filmmaker interviews below for the 5 nominees are in the order from my least favorite to my favorite, with a prediction of Oscar winner at the end.

On November 18^th 2011, my mom and I went to the Creative Talents Network (CTN) Animation Expo. It was the third year for this event, although it was the first time for me. When we arrived at the entrance of the Burbank Convention Center where this event was held, we were enthusiastically greeted by Dan Sarto, the Publisher of Animation World Network (AWN) where I am an expert blogger on animation films and events. He told my mom earlier that he really enjoyed CTN Expo which focused on the artists, and it’s a lot easier to meet people than at a huge event like the Comic-Con.

Have you ever wondered how Santa delivers millions of presents in a single night?  The 3D animation film Arthur Christmas (Aardman production for Sony Pictures Animation) will reveal exactly how things work in Santa’s mysterious Arctic Headquarters. In this movie the clever idea of multiple generations of Santa Clauses is introduced for the first time. In a busy underground snow fortress, countess elves operate advanced technology to calculate how many presents are given, children’s locations, and how naughty or nice they have been, while the Claus family is busy as well, managing the letters and elf teams.

Have you ever wondered what the life of a young journalist is like? Of course, you could probably hear my story, but my career as a journalist is far less dangerous, mysterious, and exciting than that of Tintin, a boy reporter with spiky orange hair in the movie “The Adventures of Tintin” directed by Steven Spielberg. In the film based on a comic, Tintin is a well-known public figure for being a skilled reporter and detective. He and his faithful dog Snowy had solved many a puzzling mystery together, but none as confusing as the Secret of the Unicorn.

Have you ever wondered if orphans have dreams and aspirations of their own? In Hugo, a Martin Scorsese 3D film opening TODAY, based on the book, The Invention of Hugo Cabret, Hugo Cabret (Asa Butterfield), the 12-year-old son of a deceased clockmaker, lives in a bustling Parisian train station secretly winding the clocks, filching pastries from cafes, and stealing parts from a toy shop to repair a broken mysterious mechanical man called the automaton that his father found in the attic of a museum. But, one day he gets caught by the toy store’s bitter old owner, Georges (Ben Kingsley), who takes his most valuable possession, a notebook with the schematics and instructions to repair the automaton. Hugo’s secret life of hiding in the walls and clocks, stealing to survive, and his most cherished possession, the automaton, are in imminent danger of being revealed. As Hugo struggles to fix the mysterious machine, the secret of the automaton and its origins deepens as he makes a new friend, Isabelle, the bookish, clever goddaughter of Georges, evades an inspector intent on sending him to an orphanage, and eventually finds his own place in the world.

 

In Happy Feet 2, Mumble the emperor penguin from Happy Feet has a chick of his own, whose name is Erik. But Erik just can’t get the right rhythm in dancing. At the same time global warming has caused a huge iceberg to seal off all the entrances to Emperor Land. Mumble must find a way to help get the emperor penguins out safely and at the same time dealing with his parental issues. Also, the film incorporates several new characters, such as elephant seals like Bryan the Beachmaster, new chicks, a puffin named Sven, and Will and Bill, the two krill.

 

I give this film 3.5 starfish. I enjoyed the story and I liked the messages about global warming and “thinking outside the swarm.”  I especially liked Will and Bill’s story because it shows how Will wants to understand and explore the world and take risks in the pursuit of adventure. Bill is very cautious and is more of a voice of reason to Will’s actions.

 

 

Most people know and love Puss in Boots, the charismatic feline companion of Shrek, but who knows his mysterious past? Puss in Boots, a new animation from DreamWorks reveals the thrilling adventures the swashbuckling orange tabby went on before he met the ogre. The film is a clever mash-up of many well-known nursery rhymes and fairy tales such as Jack and the Beanstalk, Mother Goose, and Humpty Dumpty.

 

 

Of all Comic-Con panels and events, my #1 favorite was the “Phineas and Ferb” panel, it was “Perrific!”!  I attended a similar panel at Comic-Con in 2010 for the first time, and asked questions during the Q&A.  This year, I got invited to a special one-on-one press interview with the creators and voice talents of my favorite TV show! On the panel, there were the two creators of the show, Dan Povenmire and Jeff “Swampy” Marsh; as well as voice talents Vincent Martella (Phineas), Ashley Tisdale (Candace), Dee Bradley Baker (Perry the Platypus).