Voted among TIME magazine's 100 Best Novels from 1923 to the present, a perennial bestseller over the past 20 years and widely considered the greatest graphic novel of all time, WATCHMEN is a gripping, labyrinthine piece of comic art.
Written by comics living-legend Alan Moore and featuring the iconic artwork of Dave Gibbons, it has earned an acclaimed place in modern literary history.
Alain Bielik talks with the creators of the new 3D adventure-comedy in which Prince Charming is a dragon hunter's worst nightmare.
With this week's release of Tin Man on DVD, Tara Bennett caught up with Anthem Visual Effects about efficiency, mobats and going to town on Central City.
I'VE SEEN FILMS International Short Film Festival 2008 will feature Ridley Scott (ALIEN, BLADE RUNNER, THELMA & LOUISE, GLADIATOR, AMERICAN GANGSTER), Robert Rodriguez (EL MARIACHI, ONCE UPON A TIME IN MEXICO, SIN CITY, GRINDHOUSE PLANET TERROR) and Maestro Ludovico Einaudi (DIARIO MALI, UNA MATTINA, LE ONDE, LA SCALA CONCERT, EDEN ROC, TIME OUT) as members of its International Jury.
The deadline to submit short films is March 17, 2008.
Pamela Kleibrink Thompson, in this month's "Career Coach" column, offers some suggestions for how to spend your extra day in 2008.
TUROK: SON OF STONE charges onto DVD for the first time February 5 from Genius Products and Classic Media. Presented by The Weinstein Co., this Gold Key production draws on the original 1950s comic book series, as well as influences ranging from Frank Miller to Akira Kurosawa, to create a dark, intense, epic reimagining of Turok's origin story.
Chicago Superstation WGN's 50-year-old tradition of airing classic cartoons every Thanksgiving and Christmas Eve took on new life this year when Screen Time Images restored the shorts to their former glory. Using the da Vinci Revival image restoration system and other da Vinci color enhancement tools, the Schaumberg, Illinois-based company was able to complete the task in just two weeks.
VFX Supervisor Jim Lima tells Tara DiLullo Bennett about the rigors of doing right by Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles on the small screen with feature quality effects.
BEN 10: RACE AGAINST TIME, an original live-action movie special broadcast on Nov. 21, set new records as the most-watched telecast in Cartoon Network history, according to preliminary data from Nielsen Media Research. The 90-minute live-action film delivered 3,987,000 viewers age 2+, out-performing the network's 2002 presentation of DRAGON BALL Z, which previously held the #1 ranking. The outstanding performance propelled BEN 10: RACE AGAINST TIME to the #1 telecast of the day on all television -- both cable and broadcast -- with boys 6-11 and boys 2-11.
In this month's "The Animated Scene," Joseph Gilland wonders if all this connectivity causes animators to lose connection with their work.
VFX Designer Kevin Tod Haug chats with Tara DiLullo Bennett about the escalating challenges of creating imaginative effects on Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium while juggling the work of 10 vendors.
Time Warner Inc. has announced the election of Jeffrey L. Bewkes as CEO of Time Warner Inc., effective January 1, 2008. Bewkes, who currently serves as president and COO, will retain the title of president. He will succeed Richard D. Parsons, who will remain as chairman of the board.
Tara DiLullo Bennett surveys the diverse array of vfx in such new shows as Journeyman, Chuck, Pushing Daisies and The Sarah Connor Chronicles.
J. Paul Peszko looks at how companies create CG series on a TV budget.
U.K.-based RDF Kids and Family will enlarge its offerings to include animation for the first time, reports C21 MEDIA.
The new strategy for the group's children's and family division is a significant departure from the original plan to concentrate on sitcoms, entertainment, preschool and drama. However, according to division head Nigel Pickard, the children's producer "can't really afford not to be in that market, so for the first time we're going to look at animation."
Monster Distributes is bringing three new acquisitions to MIPCOM and will be screening a number of other programs at MIPCOM Jr.
BANJO THE WOODPILE CAT (1x30), originally released in 1982, was the first independent production from legendary animator Don Bluth (THE SECRET OF NIMH, AN AMERICAN TALE, THE LAND BEFORE TIME, ANASTASIA). This is the first time that the fully restored film has been available to TV and DVD in both HD and standard-def.
Universal Studios Home Ent. announced the 13th entry in the popular THE LAND BEFORE TIME animated franchise, THE WISDOM OF FRIENDS, an all-new made for DVD feature, which will be released Nov. 27 for $19.98. Joining the adventure are Cuba Gooding Jr. and Sandra Oh.
In this month's "The Animated Scene," Joseph Gilland talking about how to pace yourself and still make the deadline.
PBS Kids Sprout, the 24-hour preschool channel, has expanded its reach to 34 million homes in the U.S. with a new deal with Time Warner Cable, reports KIDSCREEN. Time Warner will now carry the channel as part of its digital cable offerings. It has carried it as a VOD service since 2005.
Time Warner, as the second largest cable provider in the U.S., reaches 13.4 million basic cable subscribers. PBS Kids Sprout is already offered on basic cable via Comcast, DirecTV, Cox, RCN, Insight, AT&T and Verizon.
New Line Cinema has tapped Ron Livingston (OFFICE SPACE) to join Eric Bana and Rachel McAdams in the cast of THE TIME TRAVELER'S WIFE, according to THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER. Plan B and Nick Wechsler are the producers and Robert Schwentke (FLIGHTPLAN) is the director.
Joe Strike and Bill Desowitz traveled to Comic-Con, discovering that the exploding event has become everything pop culture.
For August, Chris Feldman looks at Time Bokan, The Third: The Girl with the Blue Eye and Ghost in Shell: Stand Alone Complex-Solid State Society in AWN's monthly anime reviews.
Tara DiLullo Bennett talks to production designers and art directors for three of the summer's biggest blockbusters, Ratatouille, Pirates of the Caribbean: At Worlds' End and Transformers about the role of concept art in their productions.
We finish off the month with Tara DiLullo Bennett's look at concept art from three summer blockbusters: RATATOUILLE, TRANSFORMERS and PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: AT WORLDS' END. Concept art is going more and more digital, as it bridges the gap between design and completion. And Tara has some informative conversations with Aaron McBride and Alex Jaeger of ILM and Harley Jessup of Pixar. Meanwhile, it's time to invade the Con this weekend in San Diego, so have a great time, for those of you attending.
Bill DesowitzEditor
This month in "The Animated Scene," Joseph Gilland ponders to be too busy or not too busy that is the question.
