Fox has acquired the rights to John Twelve Hawks' FOURTH REALM book series and has hired WATCHMEN scribe Alex Tse to pen the screenplay, according to THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER.

Writing Animation For Television and the Web

X 430.5 Film & Television 3 units $520

Whether on TV, film, or computer screens, animation is a fully creative universe without limits on sets, costumes, or special effects. All it takes is your imagination--plus it's a growing field that is friendly to new talent. One day you can be creating a script about talking trucks, the next day an action show about angst-ridden superheroes or maybe a series of webisodes that are the hottest thing on the internet. This course teaches you how to think like an animation writer, starting with the all-important strategies for writing visually, and then guides you through the entire TV and Internet animation script writing process, including the building blocks of good writing: story structure, character development, and sharp dialogue. Honing in on your spec script, you learn how to find the voice and style of a particular show, pitch stories, create solid outlines, write the first draft, and deal with notes and changes, and by the end of the course, have in hand a polished sample script. Guest speakers include show runners, producers, and executives who discuss the business side of animation: how to break in, what agents do and don't do, the process of getting your script from page to the TV or computer screen, how to hook up with artists that can make your vision visual, and most of all, how to have a satisfying career in a field where your imagination is free. Enrollment limited to 16 students. $55 nonrefundable; no refund after April 15. One previous screenwriting course or equivalent experience is helpful but not necessary. Internet access required to retrieve course materials.

Instructor: Brooks Wachtel

According to the THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER, Chris McCoy and Jan Pinkava are writing the animated film LITTLE WHITE LIE.

Visionary is not an adjective I predicate often. But Q. Hayashida’s vision disturbingly invigorates our optical senses.

Universal Pictures has picked up a spec pitch from LATE NIGHT WITH DAVID LETTERMAN head writer Rodney Rothman titled THE SOMETHING, reports VARIETY.

Steven Spielberg's NINE LIVES could find a home at NBC, according to THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER.

Jon Landau, producer of AVATAR, told MTV that director James Cameron is working on a prequel novel that could hit bookshelves by the end of the year.

VARIETY is reporting that Steven Spielberg and Peter Chernin are in talks to develop TERRA NOVA, which follows a family that travels back in time 150 million years.

THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER is reporting the first story details on RIDDICK.

Summit Entertainment has hired Scott Kosar (THE CRAZIES) to rewrite VLAD, according to THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER.