Films

The Haunting. © and courtesy of DreamWorks SKG.

AWN Animated Box Office Report. July 23-July 25: Newly released DreamWorks SKG's The Haunting, with digital effects by ILM, finished first in the U.S. weekend boxoffice race, grossing an estimated $33 million. Also newly released, The Walt Disney Company's Inspector Gadget, with digital effects by DreamQuest, finished second, grossing an estimated $22 million. Warner's Wild Wild West, with digital effects by ILM, finished seventh, grossing an estimated $5.4 million for a total of $104.2 million; Disney's Tarzan finished ninth, grossing $4.8 million for a total of $152.4 million; and Lucasfilm's Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace finished tenth, grossing $4.3 million for a total of $402.8 million which makes it the third highest-grossing film of all-time after Titanic and Star Wars, the original 1977 classic. . . July 30-August 1: Warner Bros.' newly released shark thriller, Deep Blue Sea, with digital effects by ILM and Cinesite, finished third, grossing an estimated $18.6 million at the U.S. weekend boxoffice for a total of $24.7 million. DreamWorks SKG's The Haunting, also with digital effects by ILM, finished fourth, grossing an estimated $15.1 million for a total of $63.8 million; The Walt Disney Company's Inspector Gadget, with digital effects by DreamQuest, finished fifth, grossing an estimated $14 million for a total of $47.7 million; Lucasfilm's Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace finished ninth after eleven weekends in release, grossing $3.4 million for a total of $408.6 million; and Disney's Tarzan finished tenth, grossing $3 million for a total of $158.3 million. . .

August 6-August 8: It was a rough weekend for Warner Bros.' newly released The Iron Giant at the US boxoffice. The Iron Giant, directed by Brad Bird, was the first 100% animated film to be released since June's South Park, but despite nearly unanimous praise from critics and fans, it finished a lackluster ninth with a gross of just $5.7 million. This compares unfavorably even with Warner Bros.' previous animated feature release, Quest For Camelot, which was considered a disaster and opened with $6 million in May 1998. Other animation related films in the top ten: Buena Vista's newly released supernatural thriller The Sixth Sense, with visual effects by Dream Quest, finished first, grossing an estimated $25.8 million; Warner Bros.' shark thriller, Deep Blue Sea, with digital effects by ILM and Cinesite, finished fifth, grossing an estimated $11 million for a total of $45.3 million; Universal's newly released superhero parody Mystery Men, with digital effects by POP Film and Rhythm and Hues, finished sixth and grossed and estimated $10 million; The Walt Disney Company's Inspector Gadget, with digital effects by DreamQuest, finished seventh, grossing an estimated $8.4 million for a total of $64 million; DreamWorks SKG's The Haunting, with digital effects by ILM, finished eighth, grossing an estimated $6.3 million for a total of $77.2 million. Also, after twelve weeks in the top ten, Lucasfilm's Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace finished twelfth, grossing $2.2 million for a total of $412.8 million. . .

he Iron Giant. Courtesy of Warner Bros.

August 13-August 15: It was another rough weekend for Warner Bros.' The Iron Giant at the US boxoffice. Directed by Brad Bird, the film finished tenth, grossing an estimated $3.8 million for a total of $12.6 million. Other animation related films in the top ten: Buena Vista's supernatural thriller The Sixth Sense, with visual effects by DreamQuest, finished first again, grossing an estimated $26.1 million, which is actually more than last week's $25.8 million, for a total of $70 million; Warner Bros.' shark thriller, Deep Blue Sea, with digital effects by ILM and Cinesite, finished sixth, grossing an estimated $6.7 million for a total of $57.1 million; The Walt Disney Company's Inspector Gadget, with digital effects by DreamQuest, finished seventh, grossing an estimated $6.2 million for a total of $76.1 million; Universal's superhero parody Mystery Men, with digital effects by POP Film and Rhythm and Hues, finished eighth and grossed an estimated $4.9 million for a total of $19.5 million.

Star Wars Lights Up The International Boxoffice. Lucasfilm's Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace took in $16.5 million in 24 territories over the weekend, bringing its foreign total to $154.3 million. In its second weekend in the UK, it finished first and grossed $8.1 million, which was 70% of the market, for a total of $32.7 million in 11 days alone! It finished first for the third straight weekend in Japan, as it grossed $4.5 million, for a total of $39.1 million. DreamWorks' The Prince Of Egypt grossed $758,000 to bring its foreign total to $118.2 million; and Disney's Tarzan grossed $6.1 million in 18 territories, bringing its foreign total to $31 million as of July 27, 1999.

Disney and Texas Instruments executives gather for a press conference about the digital screening of Tarzan. From left to right: Phil Barlow, Paul Breedlove, Thomas Schumacher, Bob Lambert and Bob England.

Tarzan Goes Digital. Walt Disney's animated feature, Tarzan, became the first-ever major feature release to be produced, mastered, and exhibited digitally when it opened on Friday, July 30 at the following theaters: AMC's Pleasure Island multiplex at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida, AMC's Media Center North 6 in Burbank, California, and the Edwards Irvine Spectrum in Irvine, California. According to Bob Lambert, senior vice president of new technology and new media for The Walt Disney Company, "Tarzan was the ideal choice for these historic engagements; the film is unique in that it was produced digitally from start to finish, and is being distributed digitally, as well. The resulting image quality is exceptional." Check your local papers for more information or visit www.tarzan.com. Star Wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace and An Ideal Husband were the first major features to be exhibited digitally, but neither were produced entirely in digital form as was Tarzan.

Filmworld Announces Gunga Din. Newly-formed, Los Angeles-based FilmWorld Inc. Chairman Menahem Golan and President John Daly have announced the first of many films they will jointly produce. Gunga Din will be based on Rudyard Kipling's story about a young Indian boy's adventures with the British Army in India. The screenplay is by James Silke and Joseph Goldman, and the film's release is projected for the 2000 holiday-season in theaters throughout the world. Golan has had a film career spanning more than thirty years in which he has directed and produced several films, including Death Wish 3 and Captain America. Golan will work with Daly, who has executive produced several successful award-winning films such as Platoon and The Last Emperor.