Animation Roundtable features Lasseter, 'Pooh' director, and a discussion on MoCap

Briefly: Watch the Hollywood Reporter's roundtable discussion with the Animation contenders this awards season. Those in the discussion include Stephen J. Anderson (Winnie the Pooh), Jamie Beard (Tintin), John Lasseter (Cars 2), Chris Miller (Puss in Boots), Jennifer Yuh Nelson (Kung Fu Panda 2), Carlos Saldanha (Rio) and Gore Verbinski (Rango).

Make sure to watch all three parts of the discussion, which covers a range of topics, including the controversial "motion capture vs. animation" debate.

Enjoy.

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Lasseter gets star on Hollywood Walk of Fame

Yesterday, Mr. John Lasseter finally got his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

The ceremony took place on Hollywood Boulevard in front of Disney's historic El Capitan theater. Lasseter thanked many people over the course of the ceremony, but only got choked up once, when thanking the late and great Steve Jobs:

There is one last person I want to share this with, and that is my partner Steve Jobs... Without him, Pixar would not exist.

Among those at the ceremony were Owen Wilson, Don Rickles, and members of the Pixar Brain Trust, as well as voice talent-favorite John Ratzenberger. Mr. Ratzenberger insisted, as seriously as possible, that the reason he gets to voice a character in every Pixar film is an event that took place many years ago. Ratzenberger was a tap dancer at a carnival, at which he saved a child Lasseter from a tipped over funnel cake machine. Ratzenberger said, "He looked up at me and said, 'Mister, someday I'm gonna pay you back.'"

The ceremony was followed by a luncheon catered by Food Network's Guy Fieri (an individual whom I happen to find exceedingly annoying), of Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives.

The event was scheduled for next June, but was most likely bumped up to coincide with Cars 2's DVD release in a PR push.

You can now find Lasseter's name immortalized on a star at the heart of L.A. But we all knew, since Luxo Jr. first premiered all those decades ago, that his name would be immortalized not from a plaque in the ground, but from his passion and dedication to storytelling and the art-form of animation.

Congratulations, Mr. Lasseter.

Read more on the ceremony at TheWrap and LATimes.

Photo by Alex J. Berliner/ABImages

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Steve Jobs and His Legacy

Today, the world lost a truly great man.

Steve Jobs, father of Apple Computers, passed away after a long battle with pancreatic cancer.

Although he isn't with us anymore, we can rest assured that he won't soon be forgotten. He instilled in this generation and those past a love for technology. He turned something rigid and data-oriented into something beautiful and human. He made a small bunch of circuits the iPod, and proceeded to the change the world with it. Time and time again he'd shake the foundations of the computing industry with his devotion to simplicity and undying love of innovation.

But, not only did he pioneer the world of technology, but he singlehandedly assured the creation of Pixar Animation Studios at a time when nobody else would believe in them. In a press release from just moments ago, John Lasseter and Ed Catmull say:

Steve Jobs was an extraordinary visionary, our very dear friend and the guiding light of the Pixar family. He saw the potential of what Pixar could be before the rest of us, and beyond what anyone ever imagined. Steve took a chance on us and believed in our crazy dream of making computer animated films; the one thing he always said was to simply 'make it great.' He is why Pixar turned out the way we did and his strength, integrity and love of life has made us all better people. He will forever be a part of Pixar’s DNA. Our hearts go out to his wife Laurene and their children during this incredibly difficult time.

Steve was also heavily involved with Disney in the past decade or so, after all of his Pixar stock awarded him a seat on the Board once Disney acquired Pixar. Bob Iger, CEO of Disney, had this to say:

Steve Jobs was a great friend as well as a trusted advisor. His legacy will extend far beyond the products he created or the businesses he built. It will be the millions of people he inspired, the lives he changed, and the culture he defined. Steve was such an "original," with a thoroughly creative, imaginative mind that defined an era. Despite all he accomplished, it feels like he was just getting started. With his passing the world has lost a rare original, Disney has lost a member of our family, and I have lost a great friend. Our thoughts and prayers are with his wife Laurene and his children during this difficult time.

The world is certainly a little bit brighter thanks to Steve. He was a truly unique individual with a love for the minimal, a passion for technology and moving forward, and a thirst for life he shared with so many during his outstanding life.

Steve, you will be missed, but never forgotten.

Image: Courtesy of Disney/Pixar

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John Musker on the Art of Animation, Part 1: Musker's Humble Beginnings (featuring John Lasseter, Brad Bird, and Tim Burton!)

A few months ago I attended an Animation Master Class with none other than John Musker, director of The Little Mermaid, Hercules, Aladdin, and Princess and the Frog.

It was quite the experience, since, as you might guess, Musker is a wealth of information and wonderful stories.

But, before I get into any of that, I want to talk a little bit about where I attended the Master Class. The Walt Disney Family Museum, situated in a corner of the quiet little Presidio right off of the Golden Gate Bride in San Francisco, is a dream for anyone who appreciates Disney. The museum begins with a simple room, filled with Walt's various awards, some photographs, and other random memorabilia to give you a taste of what's in store.

But that's just the beginning.

You walk into the first room and are presented with loads of information, interactive video, games, photographs, artifacts, etc. from Walt's childhood. You get narrated anecdotes from Walt himself about when he was growing up, complete with animation and photographs. The museum does an incredibly good job at letting you understand every facet of every stage of Walt's tremendous life. It moves gradually trough each stage, showing off examples of the works Walt created in that time, such as the Alice shorts, Oswald cartoons, etc. Each of the 10 roooms present you with more letters, stories, pictures, merchandise, and other mementos that let you know just what kinda guy Walt was.

Oh, and the Disneyland room is marvelous, with a massive diorama of the park as it was in 1955, complete with a bunch of video and attraction posters and other fascinating things.

The museum concludes with a small TV playing broadcasts from various different sources on the day of Walt's death, accompanied by a large wall of quotations, comics, and other art from that day commemorating Walt Disney. It is a tender send-off, and a perfectly bittersweet way to conclude a journey through that man's life.

As you can tell, the museum is not only comprehensive, but exhaustive on the elaborate life of the man behind it all. You can really appreciate the museum's dedication to not telling the story of the company, but the life of the man. It is apparent that those behind the museum really care about Walt's legacy, which is no surprise since his daughter, Diane Disney Miller, is one of the museum's co-founders.

Needless to say, I loved the Walt Disney Family Museum. It is fun, interesting, and an in-depth, tender look at the life of a legend.

--

Now, on to Mr. Musker. After walking through the museum (at a pace faster than I preferred since I had to make the class), I went to the small auditorium down below, which I estimate held about 50 of us.

John Musker stood at a podium at the bottom of the small room and simply talked to us about animation and his career so far.

Mr. Musker began with his education; he received a bachelor's degree in English, with the hopes that it would make him read the types of books he'd never get around to reading otherwise. He enjoyed literary studies, but his true passions lied in the worlds of drawing and film. In fact, he drew caricatures and comics for his high school paper, and made super 8 films with his friends growing up (although they never got incredibly focused on their main film--the actor was 14 when they started the movie and 17 when they finished, since they had to end it then or they'd lose their actor when he left for college).

After graduating from college he decided that he ought to pursue his true passions, and settled on applying for a position at Disney's animation division. To get hired he had to submit a portfolio of his work, and Disney was looking specifically for good life drawings of animals. It was in Chicago, the winter following his college graduation when young John Musker went with his sketchbook to the zoo in an attempt to sketch his way to glory. However, it was so cold that he could hardly even feel his hands, let alone draw something that would impress Disney. So, he compromised by going to the local museum and using their dioramas as models for his sketches. (He also got a little distracted and drew some caricatures of the museum's guard, who looked over John's shoulder to correct his drawing by stating, "My hat has eight points on it, young man!")

Disney rejected John Musker. They told him his portfolio didn't meet their standards, calling his life drawings "too stiff." (Ha!) Then, a few months later, he received another letter from Disney recommending that he attend CalArts, since his résumé and portfolio had a lot of potential.

So, he did.

And, wouldn't you know it, he was in the same now-legendary CalArts course with John Lasseter and Brad Bird. After learning that, it came as no surprise when Mr. Musker said he learned as much from his fellow students as he did from the teachers.

Although his pursuits lie in the field of animation, Musker's real gift shines when he indulges in the art of caricature. In fact, he told the majority of his presentation through various caricatures of people he projected on a screen at the front of the room. One of the first ones he showed us was of an enthusiastic, big-haired Brad Bird with thumbs high up in the air, accompanied by a bursting speech bubble which read "We can change the world, maaaan!" I can definitely picture Brad Bird acting like that, especially in college. Very funny stuff.

That led Musker to a short anecdote. Brad Bird loved Spielberg's work, so he, Musker, and some other CalArts students went to the Cinerama Dome in Hollywood to see Close Encounters of the Third Kind when it first came out. Brad, being excitable at the premiere of such a Spielbergian movie, enthusiastically pointed out Richard Dreyfuss sitting at the front of the auditorium. He exploded from his seat, bursting with enthusiasm as he ran to greet Mr. Dreyfuss. Moments later he sheepishly walked up the aisle back to his friends, muttering "That wasn't Richard Dreyfuss." Apparently, Mr. Bird still denies that that ever happened.

So, after attending CalArts with all of those other talented individuals, John breathed more life into those animal drawings and got hired by Disney. Starting out as a straight animator, his first project was The Black Cauldron. He remarked that animators are type-cast just like actors are--some are better at animating comedy, some at drama, etc. For that reason, he was assigned the villain of the film, The Evil Horned King. After struggling for a memorable character design, John bounced around some ideas with his fellow CalArts alum John Lasseter. Lasseter asked Musker, "Have you seen Tim Burton's sketchbooks? He's still at CalArts, but there's a neat style there you might wanna incorporate with the Horned King."

So, Musker went to Tim, and the result was a slew of awesome drawings, which included gnarly horns, unique hands and eyes, and all other types of things that would have made the bad guy thoroughly more interesting. But, unfortunately, the ideas Musker pitched to the older, more traditional fellas leading the production were far too outlandish and weird--these guys were from the era of Bambi and Jungle Book and couldn't handle things as odd as hands for eyeballs or gnarly tree-horns that grew and shrunk according to the King's mood.

--
Part II coming soon! This will feature more lovely anecdotes, related to the productions of The Little Mermaid, Aladdin, Hercules, and The Princess and the Frog, as well as what Mr. Musker plans for the future. Check back soon! You won't want to miss it.

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Lasseter doesn't disconfirm 'Toy Story 4'

Since Cars 2 is set to be released this Friday in Britain, Lasseter did a brief talk on BBC Breakfast. The beginning of the conversation is nothing out of the ordinary, as he discusses the filmmaking process at Pixar that most of us are familiar with.

However, his interviewers bring up Tom Hanks' discussion of a Toy Story 4 and try to pry John for answers. He dances around the question and quickly changes the subject, never actually denying that a Toy Story 4 is in the works.

What does this mean?! Will we get yet another installment of Woody and Buzz' adventures with Bonnie's toys? Or is it all just a big conspiracy? . . . Seeing as an IMDb page for Toy Story 4, listing its release as 2015, recently popped up, it's looking more and more like we might see another Toy Story.

I'm still against another Toy Story. Sure, I trust Pixar and know that I would probably love the film they came up with, even if it was another Toy Story. But, to me, Toy Story seems to be all about companionship and "being there" for people you care about. That's why the ending of Toy Story 3 was so tear-jerking, and also a perfect place to leave the toys--they just said goodbye to Andy. They had to let him go. I think that making another Toy Story would undermine the powerful message and superb, poetic ending of the current trilogy.

But who knows? I might take it all back come 2015 . . .

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A Day in the Life of John Lasseter

Above you'll find a 25-minute documentary released by Disney entitled A Day in the Life of John Lasseter. The video was shot several months ago in March, as production of Cars 2 was winding down.

In the short featurette, you'll get to see secret passageways in John's house that lead to his train library, take a look at his private movie theater and wine cellar, and also get to witness the unique process he goes through to direct an animated film. It's definitely worth watching--you'll learn lots of new and interesting things, and will probably become even more jealous of Lasseter . . .

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My 'Cars 2' Review

Most of the things you've heard about Cars 2 are true. It's fast-paced. Action-packed. Full of Mater-in-a-foreign-country-making-a-fool-of-himself gags. It feels like a James Bond movie. However, it is missing one very important component we've learned to expect from Pixar films: heart.

The opening scene is by far the most spectacular, in which Finn McMissile makes a daring escape from an oil rig, complete with explosions, zip lines, and a roaring soundtrack.


Then, the film slowly goes downhill. Several scenes in, at the Wheel Well Hotel when Mater calls in to a talk show to defend Lightning McQueen's reputation, you find yourself asking yourself, "When is this going to end? C'mon, get to the point already!" I felt this numerous times during the movie, which not only took me out of the story, but made me rather annoyed. Very un-Pixar and poor storytelling.


But the movie's not all bad. Although you lose interest during some scenes, the plot keeps you intrigued for most of the film. You want to see Mater succeed, and you also empathize with his plight of always being the fool. It gives audience members a good message, which is to always be yourself (although the message could be taken a bit too far, for Lightning tells Mater to be himself even if he'll, say, ruin an important party or destroy a city). Also, when Lightning talks with Guido's uncle in Italy, the message gets to be very heavy-handed and obvious. In Ratatouille the message was artfully implied. WALL-E's basic moral had to be read between the lines of a robot love story. Toy Story 3's message was irreversibly intertwined with the story and plight of the characters. Cars 2's message was apparent, blatantly preached to the audience, and less impacting than that of any other Pixar film.

The score is wonderfully subtle with a different motif for each city, the animation is spectacular and hypnotizing, and the whole film was strewn with clever, city-specific jokes and gags. However, it was just missing that extra umph we've come to expect from Pixar--the heart. It felt more like a good DreamWorks movie than something under Lasseter's name. The main characters were interesting and intriguing, but every other character (including even Finn McMissile) were very flat and boring. The twist at the end is dry and predictable. I really, really wanted to like it, but I found myself wanting more. Perhaps I'm just comparing it with other Pixar films--after all, it's not that bad of a movie. Just a bad Pixar movie.

I give it a 6.5 out of 10.

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'Cars 2' Interviews Aplenty

With the release of Cars 2 less than 3 days away, the PR push is gearing up big time, and that means, in addition to reviews of the film, tons of new interviews!

I've been searching the internet for fresh interviews, and have found plenty of them for your reading pleasure. Enjoy:

Movies Online talks to Director John Lasseter about his motivations for making a sequel, the story process, 3D, and more stuff. Nothing new or incredibly exciting in the interview, but still a good read to get you excited for this Friday!

Collider has an interview with Michael Caine about the voice work he did for Finn McMissile (as well as some talk about The Dark Knight Rises). It's a good interview, in which Caine discusses the differences between live action acting and animation, this role compared to his past spy roles, etc. Good read.

CinemaBlend and ComingSoon.net both have interviews with Giacchino. He talks about the challenge with this film due to the very different atmospheres in each city, the fine line between an homage to spy films and a parody, his inspirations, etc. Two great interviews with the greatest film composer in the business today.

The Wall Street Journal has an interview with Lasseter, in which he discusses the villain of the film being "Big Oil. Obviously the interview is spoiler-filled, sobe weary, but that also means it's got some new information in it... Read it here.

Finally, Movie Viral has a roundtable (once again) with director John Lasseter. He talks about the animation process, 3D, and more... Nothing groundbreaking in this interview, either, but it'll keep your Pixar Fix at maximum levels until Friday, and that is very important.

Well, those are all the interviews I have for now! Stay tuned for more news on Cars 2 as its release gets ever nearer . . .

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Early Reviews for 'Cars 2'

Some news outlets have been treated to early screenings of Cars 2 (with surely more to come in the next few days), and now they're posting their reviews. Now we'll finally have a sense of where our expectations for Pixar's next feature should be.

Variety raves about the film, discussing how it is a "rare sequel that not only improves on but retroactively justifies its predecessor," and that the "lightning-paced caper-comedy shifts the franchise into high gear with international intrigue, spy-movie spoofery and more automotive puns than you can shake a stickshift at, handling even its broader stretches with sophistication, speed and effortless panache." Needless to say, before ending even the first paragraph of the review, it is apparent that Variety believes Pixar has another masterpiece on its hands!

The Hollywood Reporter calls Cars 2 "yet another Pixar winner." McCarthy writes that Cars 2, thankfully, doesn't rely at all on it's predecessor, claiming that the "beautifully designed sequel stands easily on its own four tires." Being a huge Giacchino fan, I can't help but mention that it's mentioned in the review that "Michael Giacchino's score has the effect of a super-charger on the film, as if it needed one." The review gives a brief plot synopsis, as well as plenty more accolades for the film.

HitFlix, a less well-known film site, isn't quite as gracious with its praise for the film, claiming that the film's logic made his "head explode." More plot details can be found within the review.

Well, those are all the major reviews that have come out so far. Stay tuned for more!

I should have known to wholeheartedly trust in Pixar--oh Luxo, will you ever find it in your heart to forgive me?! . . . I am ashamed.

Oh, and I'm also very excited to see Cars 2! (And to write a comprehensive review for all of you lovely folks.)

Less than a week away . . .

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3 Pixar Videos: 'Cars 2,' Lasseter's Hawaiian Shirt Collection, and 'Cars' LEGOs

I've stumbled across three very interesting, Pixar-related videos. Above is the first, Back into Cars 2, a video released by Pixar. It shows director John Lasseter, as well as the members of the voice cast, discussing the premise of the film and specific characters and scenes. You'll also spot some never-before-seen footage from the film. If you're as skeptical about the movie as I was several months ago, watch this featurette. It will restore your faith in Pixar and make you super-excited to see Cars 2 come June 24 . . .



Peter Hartlaub, a pop culture critic for the San Francisco Chronicle, spent a Sunday morning with John Lasseter and his wife Nancy. But not just any Sunday morning: April Fool's Day. In the above video, you'll see John himself discussing his filing system for his thousands of Hawaiian shirts, 374 of which are currently in "active rotation." They are sorted by subject matter--such as Pixar shirts, Disney shirts, Baseball (Giants, to be exact) shirts, etc. After the filing system's discussed, you'll be treated to how fun April Fool's Day is at the Lasseter's. The article goes on to discuss how down-to-earth and fun they are to hang around.



The final video is a fan-made remake of the penultimate Cars 2 trailer . . . out of LEGOs! It's a great video--very well-done.

Cars 2 will be released on June 24, in just over a month. Oh boy! . . .

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Even More on 'Cars 2'...

After the wild week that led up to Easter, I find myself having to post yet another link round-up to catch up on all the amazing news I've missed recently! I'm sorry to my loyal readers. My life has been a bit upside-down lately... But have no fear!! Normal posting has returned, and you can expect many more posts from Disney, etc.

But, for now, here are lots of awesome links (and commentary) so that you (and I) can catch up on everything we might have missed.


Stitch Kingdom has posted a ton of new Cars 2 stuff, including almost 1,000 new characters, some fun facts about the film, and some minor spoilers. Check it out here.

Also over at SK is a collection of brand new Cars 2 concept art and a series of panels showing how the development of a shot progresses--from storyboard (like the image at the top of this post) to final film.

AWN has a great interview with Lasseter all about Cars 2.


Denise Ream, producer of Cars 2, discusses the film in a recent interview with Collider. She discusses how Cars 2 is the most effects-heavy film ever attempted at Pixar. Having seen the trailers and considering the epicness of the premise, this doesn't surprise me in the least...

TPB has a tip-off that Giacchino, everyone's favorite composer, might be doing the underscoring for the short attached to next year's Pixar flick Brave. This sounds about right... Go Giacchino!!

Also at TPB is info about the awesome trip taken by the creative team at Pixar as research for the foreign escapades of Cars 2.


Finally, if you happen to be in or near Walt Disney World around May 13-15, be sure to check out Pixar weekend in Epcot! Speakers include Jonas Riviera and Michael Giacchino (!), but there will be plenty more activities, including Meet and Greets, fun activities for kids, and an awesome Pixar-themed topiary.

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That's all the Pixar news I could scrounge up for you, my beloved reader. As I've said before, the more I see about Cars 2, the more excited I am. It looks like it will be a large-scale, exciting, fun action movie. Let's just hope it's got the touching Pixar heart we've all come to love and expect.

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'Cars 2' Viral campaign

Above you will find a viral advertisement for Cars 2 released by Pixar. What on the surface appears to be a low-quality commercial for a cheesy Emeryville Car Company is actually a clue that leads to, what Mr. Lasseter calls, in sticking with the subject matter of Cars 2, "top secret" footage from Cars 2.

The video, which is accessible through cars-n-deals.com, was recently promoted at WonderCon in San Francisco.

I won't spoil the fun of finding the link for you. You'll just have to watch the above video and keep an eye out for the clue (or call the phone number if you get really stumped) . . .

(Oh, and see if you can find the awesome Pixar Easter Egg in the ad, too!)

Don't worry if it takes you a few minutes to find the clue. Especially because the secret clip is totally worth it. Trust me. After seeing that clip, I am no longer skeptical about the awesomeness of Cars 2 (which is now pretty much a certainty).

Boy oh boy do I love viral marketing campaigns . . .

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Lasseter talks 'Cars 2'

Here's a short video of John Lasseter talking about Cars 2. He discusses his inspirations, his favorite characters, and the interesting fact that Finn McMissile was actually developed for the original Cars film. It's a short, sweet, very interesting clip. Definitely worth a look.

Also, John has managed to make me a little bit less skeptical about the film, claiming it's "not a parody of a spy movie, this is a spy movie."

Thank goodness. I knew I could count on you, Mr. Lasseter.

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Another New 'Pooh' Poster

Although I still love the simplicity of the first Winnie-the-Pooh poster, this new one is great. Still minimalistic and beautifully-drawn; and we get some reassurance that they aren't drastically changing (or getting rid of) any of the characters that we all know and love.

Kudos to Mr. Lasseter. It is a breath of fresh air to see something so timeless and universally-loved being revived in such a classy and wonderfully-straightforward manner.

Just a few more months...can't wait to see it...can't wait...can't...

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'TS3' Award Updates

Everyone's favorite animated film of last year has been raking in the awards. Last night it won, to nobody's surprise, the Golden Globe for Best Animated Feature. Pixar has swept the category every year since its creation half a decade ago.

In his acceptance speech, Lee thanked everyone at Disney and Pixar, John Lasseter, Randy Newman, and the whole cast of "an animated movie that beats with a human heart." His speech was certainly the most genuine (and funny) of the evening. Watch it in its entirety here.

In addition to this honor, Toy Story 3 has been nominated for three Orange British Academy Film Awards by BAFTA, the British Academy of Film and Television Arts. The nominations include Animated Film, Adapted Screenplay, and Special Visual Effects. The awards will be presented in a few weeks on February 13 at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, London.

Also, Toy Story 3 has won a Critics' Choice Award and the Golden Tomato from the king of all film review websites, Rotten Tomatoes.

All of these honors bestowed upon Toy Story 3 are excellent and well-deserved. However, they will be small bananas compared to the Oscar for Best Picture that I am certain Toy Story 3 is going to win.

Certain!

(I hope . . .)

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'Winnie-the-Pooh' Poster

To the left you will find the newly-released poster for WDAS' upcoming film Winnie-the-Pooh.

Awesome. Just great. This poster is very minimalistic, yet tells a story all in itself. It is well-drawn, simple, and makes me want to see the movie even more. This is easily one of my favorite movie posters, well, ever!

Winnie-the-Pooh, which will be the last film out of Walt Disney Animation Studios for a few years (expect the next in 2013 or so) and the last hand-drawn film from them for even longer (2014/15), will be released this summer! I am very excited to see it; not only do I love all of the Pooh characters, but I just adore the animation style that this film is going to be re-embracing. Boy am I glad that Lasseter took the reigns on this one and prevented a straight-to-DVD, CG disaster of a film and turned it into something that I know I will love . . .

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'Cars 2' Synopsis and First Still Released!

Above you will find the very first still from Pixar's next feature film, Cars 2, opening June 24, 2011.

Check out the new official synopsis for the film here.

That synopsis makes me a tad bit skeptical. The plot seems too...normal? I'm not sure. It seems like a gimmicky premise that we'd see in a DVD spin-off or something like that. But we'll see; I won't pass any judgments just yet, especially with master story man John Lasseter on hand to direct.

Here's a gorgeous new poster for the film. And, also, stay tuned for the brand new Cars 2 trailer, debuting tomorrow at 11 AM ET/8 AM PT at Disney.com/Cars. (The trailer is also set to show before Disney's Tangled.)

(P.S. Sorry for the lack of posting lately. My internet and computer have been on the fritz this past week. But fear not! Regular posting will resume shortly...)

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'Cars 2' News!! (Lasseter directing + new logo + concept art)

The title says it all, folks. There's plenty of new news regarding Pixar's next feature, Cars 2.

First of all, contrary to what was previously believed, John Lasseter will be the director of Cars 2. Up until now, we all thought that Brad Lewis (producer of Ratatouille) was set to direct. Instead, he'll be serving as co-director, still not a position to scoff at by any means. It is possible that Lewis was going to direct at one time, but the heavily-rumored development problems probably led to Lasseter taking on a bigger leadership role. Lasseter hasn't found time to direct a feature since the original Cars, most likely due to his busy schedule as the chief creative officer of Pixar and Walt Disney Animation Studios, and principal creative adviser at Walt Disney Imagineering. He is one lucky, busy man...

Up's associate producer, Denise Ream will be producing.

The next bit of news is the above embedded video. Released by the marketing folks at Disney, it has been christened a teaser trailer/logo reveal. No surprises here; it doesn't even showcase any new footage from the film. Although Luxo, Jr. firing a laser was super cool.

Super duper cool.

I still don't know what to make of Cars 2. The first Cars is definitely at the bottom of my Pixar list--don't get me wrong, it's a wonderful, great film. But I don't think that it is of the same caliber as Monsters, Inc. or Toy Story or any of the other Pixar films. I know that Lasseter will focus on story and he knows what he's doing, but I'll remain skeptical until the film's release next year...

Finally, check out some glorious concept art (like the image at the top of this post) here, courtesy of Empire.

Cars 2 will be released in 3D on June 24th of next year.

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'Prep & Landing' Wins 4 Creative Arts Emmys

Prep & Landing, the first TV special produced for ABC by Walt Disney Animation Studios, won four Creative Arts Emmys Saturday night. This "pre-show" at the Nokia Theater in L.A. was a lead-up to the Emmys, which will air live, August 29.

Prep & Landing swept the animation categories, winning Outstanding Animation Program (Exec. Producers Chris Williams and John Lasseter, Producer Dorothy McKim, and Directors/Writers Kevin Deters and Stevie Wermers-Skelton were singled out for this award), and three Outstanding Individual Achievement in Animation (a juried award won by Background Key Designer William M. George III, Art Director Andy Harkness, and Storyboard Artist Joe Mateo).

Other winners of the night include The Simpsons, the Robot Chicken Christmas Special, and The Ricky Gervais Show.

This portion of the Emmys will air this Friday on E!, while the main Emmys ceremony will air live on August 29, with host Jimmy Fallon.

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Sequel to 'Nemo' in the Works?

Pixar has gone a bit sequel-crazy lately. Toy Story 3 just came out, Cars 2 is slated for next summer, and Monsters, Inc. 2 is just around the corner. It makes you wonder what other film continuations the geniuses at Pixar might have in the works.

Well, it just so happens that Jim Hill might have the answer. He has recently discovered that Disney has just registered various new domain names:

FINDINGNEMO2.NET

FINDINGNEMO2.ORG

FINDINGNEMO3.NET

FINDINGNEMO3.ORG

Now, of course, just registering a domain name doesn't mean that Pixar is planning on turning their popular underwater adventure into a trilogy, but it certainly means that they're thinking about it.

What would you think of a Finding Nemo 2 and 3?

Personally, I am against the idea. Don't get me wrong--I absolutely loved Toy Story 2 and 3, and I am very excited for Cars 2 and Monsters, Inc. 2, but I just love to see completely original stuff come out of Pixar. Don't you remember how you felt after, most recently, Up and WALL-E? Sure, re-visiting old friends is fun and all, but it is much more fun and interesting to experience brand new characters in a brand new, Pixar-created universe.

If they do end up making a sequel to Finding Nemo, I'm sure they'll have a good reason for it. Like Mr. John Lasseter says about sequels: "Great sequels make the original even better. Sequels that rehash the same thing make the original less good in my mind. And to me, the value of building a franchise that will last forever for a company lies in that everything you do with those characters be better than the last."

So, if Finding Nemo 2 is better than the first, bring it on Pixar. But, first, how about some brand new characters and a little bit less with the sequels? Just for now anyways...

Source: Jim Hill Media

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