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AWN Headline News

Headline News

Mummy Director Returns to When Worlds Collide Remake

MUMMY director Stephen Sommers has returned to Paramount Pictures and Steven Spielbergs remake of WHEN WORLDS COLLIDE, according to VARIETY. Sommers will write and direct the film with Spielberg producing. Sommers was first attached to the project in April then dropped out to helm Fox's A NIGHT AT THE MUSEUM. But he left MUSEUM in September. Alli Shearmur is overseeing for Paramount.

Headline News

Fantastic Four Sequel Gets Story & Frost

20th Century Fox has announced that director Tim Story and writer Mark Frost will return for the FANTASTIC FOUR sequel, VARIETY reports. The studio has set July 4, 2007, as the release date. Avi Arad, Bernd Eichinger and Ralph Winter will produce.

Stars Ioan Gruffudd, Jessica Alba, Chris Evans and Michael Chiklis are expected to return, having signed options for a potential trilogy. However, Julian McMahon, who played villain Dr. Doom, will not return.

The original film grossed $154 million in the U.S.

Software Headline News

Autodesk Introduces Linux-based Toxik

At the Digital Media Festival in Sydney, Australia, Autodesk Inc. launched its Toxik visual effects software running on the Linux operating system. Toxik software enables teams of digital artists to collaboratively realize feature film visual effects ideas, and is already available on the Windows operating system. With the introduction of Toxik software running on Linux, film studios and post-production facilities have more options for the back-end infrastructure and administration of their digital film pipelines.

Animation Headline News

Peter Jackson Alters Animation Credit on Kong

At last week's press junket in New York City, director Peter Jackson admitted that he changed the animation credit for Christian Rivers and Eric Leighton on KING KONG. Originally, the duo responsible for overseeing the masterful creation of the CG gorilla (with Rivers handling previs and MoCap) was given the credit: "Animation Designed & Supervised by," which appears in the production notes. However, Jackson requested that they be acknowledged as the animation directors in the end credits.

Headline News

Goblet of Fire Still Has Box Office Heat

HARRY POTTER AND THE GOBLET OF FIRE continued to lead the box office for the weekend ended Dec. 4, 2005, despite a 63% decline after the lucrative Thanksgiving holiday, racking up another $19.8M. The fourth entry in the hugely successful Warner Bros. franchise (with vfx from Double Negative, Framestore CFC, MPC, ILM, Cinesite, Animal Logic, The Orphanage, BUF and Rising Sun) has a three-week cume of $229.2M.

Dreamworks Headline News

DreamWorks Animation Banks on Lew Coleman as New President

Lewis Coleman, a DreamWorks Animation board member and former vice chairman and cfo of Bank of America, has been named president of DreamWorks Animation.

Coleman, reporting to DreamWorks Animation ceo, Jeffrey Katzenberg, will lead the company's efforts with Katzenberg and coo Ann Daly, as it continues to produce two computer-generated animated movies per year and expands its business activities in direct-to-video movies, a growing licensing business, Broadway musicals and live entertainment. All execs who previously reported to Katzenberg will now report to Coleman.

Animation Headline News

Wallace & Gromit Leads Annie Nominations

ASIFA-Hollywood has announced the nominees for the 33rd annual Annie Awards, which will take place Feb. 4, 2006, in Glendale. WALLACE & GROMIT: THE CURSE OF THE WERE-RABBIT led the list of nominees with 16, including Best Animated Feature. The film also swept the Feature Voice Acting category with nods for Ralph Fiennes, Helena Bonham Carter, Peter Sallis and Nicholas Smith. DreamWorks MADAGASCAR came in second with nine nominations.

Game Headline News

Calabazitaz Animates Spike TV “Video Game Awards 2005” Promos

Spike TVs upcoming telecast of the Video Game Awards 2005 ceremony is being promoted on the cable channel with a duo of animated TV spots in which videogame characters slug it out for bragging rights in the gaming world. The two-hour special premieres on Dec. 10, 2005, at 9:00 pm ET/PT.

Headline News

Setup Machine 2 Auto-Rigging Plug-In Released for Maya

Anzovin Studio Inc. has introduced The Setup Machine 2 for Maya, an all-new version of its automated character rigging plug-in for Autodesks Maya. The Setup Machine 2 for Maya is priced at $99 (single license). Store links, sample rigs, and demo movies are available at: www.anzovin.com/TSM2Maya.

The Setup Machine 2 for Maya enables Maya users to easily and quickly rig a wide variety of CG characters for film, television and game animation. It installs a high-quality control rig and applies accurate skin weighting to human, animal and creature models.

Work Headline News

Cartoonist, Brady Campaign Release Gun Violence Animation

The Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence has added an animated featurette to its "Shoot First Law" website. The animation offers award-winning artist Mark Fiores take on the Florida law, which took effect Oct. 1 and allows people to use deadly force in public. The animation is available for viewing at www.shootfirstlaw.org.

Headline News

Criterion Pictures Inks Non-Theatrical Deal for Nelvana Home Ent. Toons

Nelvana Home Entertainment and Criterion Pictures have set a five-year agreement for the non-theatrical distribution of titles from Nelvanas library of animated programming.

Criterion Pictures picks up distribution rights to ANATOLE (episodes 1 to 26), BABAR (episodes 1 to 78), THE BERENSTAIN BEARS (episodes 1 to 40), CORDUROY (episodes 1 to 13), FRANKLIN (episodes 1 to 78), LITTLE BEAR (episodes 1 to 52) and ELLIOT MOOSE (episodes 1 to 13), with other titles under consideration.

Headline News

Elastic Rights Snaps Up Harry and His Bucket Full of Dinosaurs for Iberia

Madrid-based Elastic Rights (ER) has snapped up pre-school toon, HARRY AND HIS BUCKET FULL OF DINOSAURS, for distribution across all platforms in Spain and Portugal (except free TV.

The 52x12 animated series, aimed at kids 2-5, is co-produced by CCI Ent. (Canada) and Collingwood OHare (U.K.) in association with Silver Fox Films (U.K.). Based on the best-selling books by British author Ian Whybrow, the enchanting series follows the adventures of five-year-old Harry and his toy dinosaur friends, which come to life when no one else is watching.

Studios Headline News

Pang Brothers Enter The Darkness

Platinum Studios and Blue Star Pictures have signed a deal with directors Danny and Oxide Pang to direct the upcoming feature film, THE DARKNESS, based on the popular comicbook published by Top Cow Prods. Inc. Platinum Studios will finance 50% of the production. Platinum, Blue Star and the Pang Brothers are jointly looking for a writer.

Henson Headline News

Jim Henson Co. Draws Up Tattooed Map

The Jim Henson Co. has hired Yuri Zeltser and Cary Bickley to adapt Barbara Hodgson suspense novel THE TATTOOED MAP, VARIETY reports.

Henson Co. principal Lisa Henson previously produced the Fox/Regency film HIGH CRIMES, which Zeltser and Bickley wrote. Janet Yang, who also produced HIGH CRIMES, will produce the film along with Henson. The company purchased the rights to the book and has hired the screenwriters with its own funds.

Disney Headline News

E. Cardon Walker, Disney's Former Corporate Leader, Dies

E. Cardon "Card" Walker, who led The Walt Disney Co. for nearly a decade and a half following the death of co-founder Roy O. Disney, passed away at his La Canada, California home on Monday, Nov. 28, 2005, at the age of 89.

Animation Headline News

Pendulum Helps Midway Pimp their LA Rush Cinematics

San Diego-based 3D animation studio, Pendulum, recently completed cinematic work for the MTV/Midway Games co-developed interactive property, LA RUSH. Nearly 16 minutes of fully 3D CGI cinematic cut-scenes introduce the viewer to the games key characters and story. LA RUSH is the sequel to Midways hit racing title, SAN FRANCISCO RUSH. Along with a huge selection of signature and real-world cars, the game also features the crew from West Coast Customs of MTVs popular PIMP MY RIDE television series.

Cartoon Headline News

Cartoon Network Starts Production on Squirrel Boy

Cartoon Network has commissioned a brand new original series, SQUIRREL BOY. The 13 half-hour animated series, from creator/exec producer Everett Peck, has started production at its Burbank-based Cartoon Network Studios and is slated to premiere in summer 2006.

Production Headline News

Fuji TV & Production IG Open Post-Production Studio

By Rick DeMott | Wednesday, November 30, 2005 at 12:00am

Fuji Television Network and Production IG have partnered on a jointly owned digital post-production studio, reports VARIETY. Opening its doors in January, Fuji IG Laboratory for Movies, aka FILM, will work on animation, live-action and, in conjunction with Skywalker Sound, sound design.

"This is our second endeavor in feature animation following the production of BRAVE STORY, Fuji TV's first animated feature," said Chihiro Kameyama, head of Fuji TV's motion picture department.

Headline News

Digital Musings From the Editor:

By Rick DeMott | Wednesday, November 30, 2005 at 12:00am

With the Thanksgiving holiday taking up most of last week in the U.S., we had only three new articles good live since the last edition of the Newswire, but what articles they were. Tara DiLullo looks at the photoreal effects work done by ILM on JARHEAD. In addition, Alain Bielik has a two-part series on the plethora of VFX that work their magic in HARRY POTTER AND THE GOBLET OF FIRE.

Disney Headline News

Disney Channel Will Be Home For Christmas

By Rick DeMott | Wednesday, November 30, 2005 at 12:00am

New holiday and Christmas themed episodes of Disney Channel's hit series for pre-schoolers, kids and tweens, are unwrapped throughout December while Toon Disney features a special Christmas movie every Friday and Saturday evening as part of its "Month of Merriment."

New Year's Eve is celebrated with Disney Channel's 8th annual viewer's choice programming event where viewers' votes determine the programming lineup for the last day of the year and the first day of 2006.

Animation Headline News

Animation to Invade Live Action at Academy

By Rick DeMott | Wednesday, November 30, 2005 at 12:00am

Alfred Molina will lead a contingent of actors including Chris Coppola, Jonathan Lipnicki and Bruno Kirby as they join a panel of animators, directors and visual effects experts in an informative dialogue on the evolution of animation, "The Animated Performance: Animation Invades Live Action," on Tuesday, Dec. 6, at 7:30 pm at the Samuel Goldwyn Theater in Beverly Hills.

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