The half-hour comedy series HOME MOVIES [AF 12/22/98] premieres Monday,April 26, at 8:30 p.m. ET/PT. The show, featuring a "SquiggleVision"technique, is being produced by Tom Snyder Productions, makers of ComedyCentral's DR. KATZ: PROFESSIONAL THERAPIST and ABC's Saturday morningseries, SQUIGGLEVISION. The show centers around a single mom (PaulaPoundstone) raising a precocious tot and an eight-year-old son who aspiresto be the next Steven Spielberg.
The Carsey-Werner Co., a dominant live-action TV production company having produced shows like COSBY and ROSEANNE, is developing their first animated show. The primetime cartoon, BOB, THE DEVIL AND GOD, is in the early development stages, and will reportedly be picked up by NBC. The show is created by Matthew Carlson (an executive story editor on WONDER YEARS, and creator of the U.S. version of MEN BEHAVING BADLY and TOWNIES). A Carsey-Werner spokesman said that the voice cast will be comprised of James Garner (God), Robert Downey Jr.
Cartoon Networks afternoon programming block Toonami will start airing the CG-animated show, REBOOT, as part of its daily Monday-Friday line-up, from 4:30 - 5:00 p.m., starting March 15. The show, which was the first entirely computer-generated cartoon, is produced by Vancouver, Canada-based Mainframe Entertainment.
The hit Japanese show POKéMON, currently in syndication in the U.S. and exclusively on Kids WB! next season, has been sold to Televisa (Mexico) and Record-TV (Brazil). Both networks will premiere the show in April/May as a five-day-a-week program. The show has also been sold to numerous other Latin American broadcasters including Magic TV and Channel 11 (Argentina), Etcetera and Chilevision Channel 6 (Chile), Caracol (Colombia), Telecorporation (El Salvador), Televicentro (Honduras), Frecuencia Latina (Peru) and Venevision (Venezuela).
Cable network FX has ordered 13 episodes of their first-ever animated comedy series, THE DICK AND PAULA CELEBRITY SPECIAL, produced by Tom Snyder Productions. The show, set to premiere in spring '99, will use a derivation of Snyder Productions' trademark computer-generated process, "SquiggleVision." The weekly half-hour series is about the behind-the-scenes goings on of a husband-and-wife talk show team (Dick and Paula). They interview contemporary stars, fictionalized characters and major historical figures.
While The PJs is stirring up controversy, Amid Amidi gives Fox's newest addition to primetime a rave review.
The new animated comedy from Eddie Murphy and Will Vinton Studios, The PJs, has been generating great ratings and some harsh words from the African-American community. A special Sunday night preview of the show on January 10 garnered an incredible 12.6/18 rating, the second-highest preview or premiere numbers in Fox history, topped only by the 12.7 from the January 1990 premiere of The Simpsons. Likewise, the show delivered strong numbers when it moved to its regular Tuesday, 8:30 p.m.
Sony Wonder's Loris Kramer relates her MIPCOM `98 experience by discussing market trends, the purpose of the event and what you should know before attending with a project.
Bohbot Kids Network (BKN) is launching the animated series "Roswell Conspiracies--Aliens, Myths and Legends" for a Fall 1999 U.S. debut and BKN affiliate debut in 2000. It's unusual format will be comprised of 20 one-hour episodes that can also be split into 40 half-hour episodes. With a production budget of U.S. $850,000 per episode, the show is described as Bohbot's most ambitious children's series to date. The science-fiction show, based on the concept that a NATO Alliance was formed to seek out and destroy alien trespassers, is aimed at kids aged 7-13.
San Francisco-based RADIUM produced a 30-second animation of the MTV logo for the network's annual MTV Movie Awards show. The sequence is being used as a lead-in to clips of nominees introduced in the show. Artist Alaina Goetz used Maya and Flame to create the piece, which was produced in just three days.
* Friday, October 2. Eagle Rock, California, U.S.A.
Occidental College hosts a free shadow puppet theater performance and concert by the company Bali & Beyond, called "Alice in the Shadows," based on stories by Lewis Carroll. The play is for an adult audience, although all ages are welcome. The show starts at 8 p.m. on the Thorne Hall Patio, 1600 Campus Road in Eagle Rock. For information call (818) 768-7696.
Joseph K. Bevilacqua highlights what's new in animation for the U.S. 1998/99 television season, from CBS to Cartoon Network.
Toronto, Canada-based TOPIX/MAD DOG created 22 animated effects sequences for the first annual Golden Marble Awards show. Director of animation William Cameron used 3D Studio MAX for 3D, and Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop and After Effects for 2D sequences, with final compositing done on Flint and Flame.
Deborah Reber relates the latest animated merchandising trends straight from New York's Licensing Show.
Through a series of pointed questions we take a look at the relationship between educators, industry representatives and students. See what Industry Reps have to say.
Kit Laybourne muses about the evolution of independent animation and looks "below the radar" for the growth of new emerging domains of digital animation.
The IBCTA panel on "Finding a Niche." Front row, left-right: moderator Fred Seibert, panelists Bill Kopp, Sue Rose, and back row: Corky Quakenbush, Brown Johnson and Mike Lazzo. Photo by and Craig Skinner/Celebrity Photo, courtesy of WAC.
As I, a hopeful creator/future filmmaker for non-violent media, planned my trip to the second year of the World Animation Celebration, there were a variety of topics at this year's International Business Conference of Television Animation (IBCTA) that caught my eye. Abuzz with energy, a standing room only crowd of people from as far as...
No, it's not "sick and twisted." It's "Spike & Mike's1998 Classic Festival of Animation," opening this Friday, April 10 at theCastro Theatre in San Francisco, California (running through April 22). Theprogram includes Pixar's Oscar-winning short, "Geri's Game," Piet Kroon's"T.R.A.N.S.I.T.," Aardman's "Stage Fright," Lasse Persson's "Hand in Hand,"Ben Gluck's "Man's Best Friend," Berad Beyreuther, Daniel Binder and RobertA. Zwirner's "Güten Appetit," Don Hertzfeldt's "Lily and Jim," Blair
Robby London discusses the importance of licensing and merchandising in regards to production with Heather Kenyon.
A new splash of fresh programming is soon to hit the airwaves. In this pivotal year of FCC rulings and vertical integration, let's see what has been produced.
A special report from Pamela Schechter detailing what's new and what's being renewed in animation on American television this coming season.
