Walt Disney's fully restored animated classic, CINDERELLA, which debuts on DVD Oct. 4 (Buena Vista Home Ent., $29.99), will be digitally projected during a special theatrical engagement at Hollywoods El Capitan Theatre, Sept. 15-25, 2005.
Tim Burtons CHARLIE AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY, which collected a sweet $205 million at the box office with the help of vfx from Moving Picture Co., Framestore CFC, Cinesite (Europe), Digital Domain, Darkside Effects Ltd. and Neal Scanlan Studio, makes its DVD debut on Nov. 8 (Warner Home Video, $30.97 two-disc deluxe edition, $28.98 single disc).
Special edition bonus features include:
* Five making-of featurettes:
Chocolate Dreams: Learn about Burton's vision for the film and how he adapted the story.
T-Splines LLC, leading developer of 3D animation modeling software, has begun shipping the T-Splines Maya plug-in 1.0, opening a new frontier in 3D modeling by solving two problems that have plagued the 3D modeling industry since its inception: greater surface control and seamless merging. A free trial of the T-Splines Maya plug-in Learning Edition may be downloaded at the T-Splines website, www.tsplines.com.
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences' Scientific and Technical Awards Committee will review 17 scientific and technical achievements for 78th Academy Awards consideration, according to committee chair Richard Edlund, but its not too late to submit entries. Pixar Animation Studios and Industrial Light & Magic are being considered for two achievements each.
"This list of achievements is announced to allow individuals and companies with similar technology or claims of prior art the opportunity to submit their technology for review," said Richard Edlund.
News Corp. announced today that it had signed a definitive agreement to acquire IGN Ent. Inc, a leading community-based Internet media and services company for videogames and other forms of digital entertainment, for approximately $650 million in cash. IGN and its network of sites would then be folded into News Corp.s Fox Interactive Media unit.
Gary Marsh moves up to the newly created global position of president, entertainment, Disney Channel Worldwide, responsible for overseeing development and production of Disney Channel Worldwide's entire slate of original programming - both live action and animated - leading the effort to create world-class Disney and Jetix-branded programming for kids and families around the world.
Comedy Central has acquired DREW CAREY�S GREEN SCREEN SHOW, which will premiere Sept. 26, 2005, at 9:00 pm. The live-action/animated improv comedy first aired on The WB last fall.
Comedy Central and SOUTH PARK creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone have renewed their contract in a deal that will keep the creative duo at the cable channel through the end of 2008.
Viewers may look forward to three more years of SOUTH PARK episodes with 14 new episodes each year. Parker and Stone will continue under the new agreement to write, direct, voice and edit every episode, as they have since the creation of the show.
ION Animation, Games and Film Festival 2005Los Angeles, California USADecember 2 4, 2005Deadline: September 30, 2005
The ION International Animation, Games and Film Festival will return to Los Angeles this fall and organizers are looking for submissions of animated films, machinima, game trailers, music videos, live-action short films, short documentaries, TV spots, movie trailers and films made for mobile devices such as cell phones and PDAs.
Urban Mediamakers Film Festival 2005Atlanta, Georgia, USAOctober 14-16, 2005Deadline: September 15, 2005
The Kansas City Filmmakers Jubilee 2006Kansas City, Kansas, USAApril 7-13,2006Deadline: December 1, 2005
MTV Films announced that it has acquired an option on the worldwide film rights to the award-winning, action-horror videogame property, THE SUFFERING, from Surreal Software, a subsidiary of Midway Games Inc.
Revolution Studios has optioned a comedy pitch titled HENCHMAN VS. SIDEKICK via the studios former founding partner Todd Garner's new production house Broken Road, reports VARIETY. The spoof follows the fight between a sidekick and a henchman after their respective superhero and supervillain kill each other. Writers Kathy Gori and Alan Berger hatched the idea.
LookAhead Decisions Inc. (LDI) announced the release of its breakthrough software product for videogames and animation. Locust uses proprietary simulation-based look-ahead methods similar to those used by world-championship chess programs, except it handles in realtime aspects such as uncertainty, complex time/cost tradeoffs and dozens of parallel decision-makers.
Autodesk Inc. announced that it has seen rapid demand for its Autodesk TV Suite from broadcasters and post-production houses around the globe. From Tokyo to Rome, the Autodesk TV Suite is being used to realize ideas for high-definition (HD) and standard-definition (SD) television content.
Character Animation Technologies Ltd has released CAT Version 2. A plug-in for Autodesk's 3ds Max, CAT2 is the next generation of the industry-acclaimed character system CAT (Character Animation Toolkit). CAT2 offers a unique set of tools to help game development, film and television artists produce better animations more quickly in a completely flexible environment.
ROME, the new HBO/BBC co-production, which recently debuted on HBO, boasts the mystique of Rome in 52 BC via a main title sequence created by award-winning Los Angeles visual effects and design company A52. The :90 main titles, created entirely in-house at A52, will introduce each episode.
This venture, our third with A52, proves what a powerful creative force they are, said Carolyn Strauss, president of HBO Ent.
Side Effects Software, developer of the award-winning Houdini family of 3D software, has appointed industry veteran Garman Herigstad as production consultant. Herigstad will leverage more than 19 years of experience in 3D animation and vfx at Digital Domain and Sony Pictures Imageworks to provide on-site production and training support to studios using Houdini software.
Columbia Pictures has hired former music video director David Slade to helm the horror film 30 DAYS OF NIGHT, according to the trades. Ghost House Pictures will be the production firm on the film with Sam Raimi and Rob Tapert producing. Grant Curtis will shepherd the film for Ghost House. Mike Richardson, Joe Drake and Nathan Kahane will serve as exec producers. Shannon Gaulding and Adam Milano will shepherd for Columbia.
SCI FI Channel continues to test the boundaries of imagination with WHAT IF, a speculative future project that poses intriguing scenarios of alternate realities. The program, from NBC Universal Television Studio in association with New Line Television, asks... What if a moment in time could change the world forever?
Inspired by the life and torment of Alberto Giacometti, ETERNAL GAZE is a story about an artist, his art and reciprocated love. ETERNAL GAZE is a computer-animated film about a real person in a real location. The screenplay was inspired by a combination of ideas and facts based on Giacometti's real life stories with fantasy added in.
4Kids Ent. Inc. announced its new 4Kids TV lineup for fall 2005. 4KIDS TV, which airs Saturday mornings from 8:00 am to 12:00 pm (ET) on FOX affiliates nationwide, launches its fourth season on Sept. 10, 2005.
The lineup includes the U.S. debut of MAGICAL DOREMI, BRATZ and G.I. JOE SIGMA 6. Returning to the 4Kids TV lineup with all-new adventures are well-known and popular properties ONE PIECE, WINX CLUB, TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES, SONIC X and MEW MEW POWER.
Nickelodeons popular Danny Phantom character is available for the first time as a videogame, DANNY PHANTOM: THE ULTIMATE ENEMY, which THQ Inc. has released to retail outlets throughout North America. This fast-paced, action game based on a special episode of the popular Nickelodeon television series, DANNY PHANTOM.
The videogame recreates all of Danny's TV powers, allowing players to walk through walls, shoot ghostly beams and howl a ghostly wail as he travels through time to save the world.
George Lopez will host the 2005 Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards on Sept. 11, 2005, at The Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles. Sean Hayes (WILL & GRACE) will present Jerry Lewis with the prestigious Governors Award at the 2005 Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards, which is not part of the Emmy awards network broadcast on September 18.
The March Acrobat edition of Animation World Magazine is now ready for download. The theme this time around is direct-to-video. Greg Singer sizes up the direct-to-video biz in his in-depth analysis. Joe Strike stakes a claim on Disneys direct-to-video sequels. Karen Raugust looks at HIT Ent. home entertainment empire. Rounding out the theme, Chris Panzner takes a more historical look at Japans V-cinema.
