Cowboy Pictures is presenting a tribute to Pixar Animation Studios featuring four feature film classics from Disney/Pixar: TOY STORY, A BUG’S LIFE, TOY STORY 2 and MONSTERS, INC. The retrospective will run February 23 - March 17 in Los Angeles at the Laemmle Sunset 5 and February 24 - March 10 at The Quad in New York. All screenings are free. In New York on Tuesday, February 26, director John Lasseter will host a special evening introducing the screening of MONSTERS, INC. and two of Pixar’s short films, LUXO JR. and 2001 Academy Award nominee FOR THE BIRDS.

The U.S. President’s Day three-day holiday weekend has proved profitable for new releases as well as some films that have been on the charts for weeks. In third place, Disney’s 2D animated PETER PAN sequel enjoyed a solid $16.1M opening. RETURN TO NEVER LAND is set during World War II and finds Peter Pan on the trail of Captain Hook after the pirate kidnaps Wendy's daughter, Jane. The family-friendly film sent Disney’s other kid flick SNOW DOGS running to tenth place, where it earned just $7M for a cume of $68.4M.

Three new films held the top spots this weekend, with Arnold Schwarzenegger’s terrorist drama COLLATERAL DAMAGE leading the pack. The film, with visual effects by Digital Film Works, earned $15.1M in its first weekend out. A remake of the 1975 film ROLLERBALL managed to debut in the number three spot despite generally lackluster reviews. The futuristic actioner took in $9M. BLACK HAWK DOWN, last week’s number one film, fell to fourth. The war epic, with visual effects by The Mill and Asylum, earned $8M for a total of $86.7M to date.

The nominations for the 74th Annual Academy Awards were announced on February 12, 2002. Effects-heavy THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING topped the list with 13 nominations including Best Visual Effects alongside A.I.: ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE and PEARL HARBOR. LORD also won spots in major categories like Best Picture, Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay. Joining LORD OF THE RINGS in the Adapted Screenplay category is DreamWorks' 3D blockbuster SHREK, which was also one of three nominees in the brand new Animated Feature Film category.

The Academy of Motion Pictures Arts & Sciences has announced their nominations for the coveted Oscar award. Receiving nominations for best animated short were Ruairi Robinson’s 3D meditation on suicide FIFTY PERCENT GREY, Cathal Gaffney’s "animated documentary" GIVE UP YER AUL SINS, Pixar’s latest 3D short FOR THE BIRDS, Joe Merideth’s caveman comedy STUBBLE TROUBLE and Cordell Barker’s tale of otherworldly love STRANGE INVADERS. These films are featured on AWN with QuickTime clips, pictures and information about the films and directors.

Despite a lackluster weekend box office due to the Super Bowl, the action of BLACK HAWK DOWN, with visual effects by The Mill and Asylum, kept the film at number one for a third week in a row. The film earned $11.1M for a total of $75.1M. The rest of the box office is almost a repeat of last week, with Disney’s SNOW DOGS still in second, with $10.2M for a cume of $51.1M. In its second week of release THE COUNT OF MONTE CRISTO jumped up a spot to fourth, earning $8.8M for $23.4M to date.

Disney is becoming a giant screen fan. After the success of FANTASIA 2000 ($60.5M) and the favorable box office numbers received by the recent release of the large format BEAUTY AND THE BEAST ($12.5M and counting) is it any wonder? Now Walt Disney Pictures has decided to release its upcoming holiday animated feature TREASURE PLANET simultaneously in 35mm venues as well as in large format cinemas. This is the first time a major studio feature has been specifically formatted for both 35mm and the giant screen to receive a same day-and-date release.

ADV Films is bringing Chaos! Comics' LADY DEATH to life. Artists at SunMin Image Pictures in Asia under the supervision of director Young H. Sang will be animating the digital feature, based on Brian Pulido's original story. Set in 15th century Sweden, a wrongly accused young woman named Hope is sent to Hell where she is transformed into Lady Death and forced to battle Lucifer in his own domain. Executive producer and ADV co-founder John Ledford hopes to create a new production model with LADY DEATH that redefines the relationship between Asian animation studios and Western creators.

War drama BLACK HAWK DOWN, with visual effects by The Mill and Asylum, stayed on top of a crowded box office this weekend, earning $17M for a cume of $58.9M. Holding in second place were the talking dogs of SNOW DOGS, with $13.1M for a two-week total of $38.8M. Two new releases filled the fifth and sixth spots: THE COUNT OF MONTE CRISTO in fifth place with $11.4M and supernatural thriller THE MOTHMAN PROPHECIES, with visual effects by Cinesite, landed in sixth, earning $11.2M in its debut weekend.

Creepy thriller THE MOTHMAN PROPHECIES hits theaters Friday, January 25 featuring approximately 60 visual effects shots provided by Cinesite. Directed by Mark Pellington, the film is based on the true story of a bridge that collapsed during the 1960s. According to the legend, strange phenomena were reported prior to the collapse, including visions of the mysterious Mothman of the title. The images of the Mothman used in the film were very quick, according to Cinesite’s visual effects supervisor Laurel Klick.