Happy Birthday Pixar! (with Link Round-up!)

It was 25 years ago today that the best movie studio of all-time officially came into being. Above you will find their original logo--it would soon be replaced, however, by a cute little lamp named Luxo, Jr.

Over at Cartoon Brew you can read Pixar's full, original press release from February 3, 1986. It is very interesting to see what the studio thought of themselves then, without having known how successful and iconic they would become.

At The Pixar Blog you can read the wonderful story of Pixar's creation from David A. Price, author of The Pixar Touch.

Anywho, in honor of Pixar's illustrious 25 years (and having being my favorite film studio of all-time), here is a massive Pixar link round-up for your reading pleasure:


Probably the most exciting bit of news is that Randy Newman will perform his Oscar-nominated song from Toy Story 3, "We Belong Together," live, during the Awards ceremony on February 27. Also performing will be Mandy Moore and Zachary Levi accompanied by Alan Menken with their piece "I See the Light" from Disney's Tangled. I am much more excited for Mr. Newman's performance since, as you know, the music from Tangled didn't exactly knock my socks off, whereas I just loved all of the songs from TS3. Just writing this post got the chorus of "We Belong Together" stuck in my head . . . again.

While we're on the subject of the Academy Awards and the third Toy Story, it's worth mentioning that Lee Unkrich and Teddy Newton (director of Day & Night) will both be on-hand at a symposium at the Smuel-Goldwyn Theater in Beverly Hills on February 24 to join all other nominees in the Animation categories in order to "discuss their films' development and their creative processes as well as present clips illustrating their techniques." Let's hope these discussions will be recorded and uploaded to the worldwide web so we can all get our Pixar-thirsty, grubby little mitts on 'em.

Now, while we're on the subject of Day & Night, it has recently won the VES (Visual Effects Society) Award for Outstanding Achievement in an Animated Short. It is no surprise that the short won for its visual effects--it definitely broke several barriers in the field by combining classic 2D animation techniques with the world of CG... TS3 was also nominated, but lost to How to Train Your Dragon.


Above, you will find a picture of Tom Hanks recording his voice for an upcoming Toy Story Toons short, most definitely the short that will be attached to Cars 2, whose synopsis can be found here. He is surrounded by the energetic crew of animators (turned directors): Angus McClane, Bobby Podesta, and Scott Clark.

Speaking of Pixar shorts, in a recent interview with AWN, Reher of Pixar, leaked some info about future Pixar shorts. Reher told AWN that:

It's funny, the new film we're finishing production on now, which will be attached to Brave in 2012, it's three characters and two sets, and man, how easy it is. It's different, there're no gags…

It's beautiful, it's lyrical, it's very different from all the other ones. It's amazing how easy it can be when you just have 3 characters and 2 sets."

Read the rest of the larger discussion with Newton, Reher, and Wellins for more interesting tidbits on Pixar, their short films, and the overall process.


It has long been said by many that Lee Unkrich looks like Office regular Andy Bernard (played by the always-funny Ed Helms). To secure any and all suspicions, Mr. Unkruch went to the set of The Office and took the above photo, tweeting: "Amazing day visiting set of The Office. How is it that all these people are so incredibly cool and friendly? Reminded me of Pixar." This is not the first time that Pixar and The Office have united--Woody and Up and numerous other Pixar-related themes and characters have made their way onto the show in the past. Being a huge Pixar and Office fan, I think it is all very, super cool.

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That's all the Pixar news out there for now! (Unless you call the constant "leaking" of new Cars 2 characters news. If that's the case, head over to TPB for the scoop).

Once again, Happy Birthday, Pixar! It's been 25 wonderful years of great films, whimsical stories, and truly timeless characters.

I cannot wait to see what the next 25 years will bring . . .

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A Big News Day: Great 'TS3' Concept Art, Galifianakis meets Muppets, and Indiana Jones in 3D

With so much news coming out of Hollywood today, I decided to post a bunch of links instead of 10 different, shorter posts. I hope you don't mind.


This first bit of news is my favorite: Cinematical has posted a large gallery of exclusive, never-before-seen Toy Story 3 concept art. It was given to them to promote the upcoming DVD/Blu-ray release (which I can hardly wait for! It's this Tuesday...), and is really great artwork. I wish I could draw like they do at Pixar... Anyways, see two pieces of the concept art above, and the rest of it here.


Above you will find a "first look" at the upcoming Dr. Seuss adaptation, The Lorax. Danny DeVito will be starring as the title character (Yes! I love Danny's work.), and will be joined by Ed Helms, Zac Efron, and Betty White. It is being made by the same people who brought you the recent adaptation of Horton Hears a Who!, so, unfortunately, don't expect much from this production...


In an interview with the lucky folks over at Hero Complex, Christopher Nolan divulged some very intriguing information... He has revealed the title for the next installment of his incredible Batman saga will The Dark Knight Rises, and that the villain will not be The Riddler, as was previously believed by, oh, everybody. He has also thrown Mr. Freeze and a reprise of The Joker out for the count. I think he should have Danny DeVito reprise his role as The Penguin. That would be awesome. Nolan also discussed the fact that he does not want to shoot the film in 3D, but in the IMAX format. Thank goodness for that.


This piece of news might tie with the concept art for my most favorite: Zach Galifianakis will be in the new (currently untitled) Muppet movie!! I cannot believe it. My favorite actor is going to be featured in a reboot of one of my favorite things, the Muppets. Maybe I died and went to heaven? It's entirely possible--this news is just that exciting.

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Some other, slightly less noteworthy odds and ends:

Sir Elton John and Lady Gaga will team up for the song "Hello Hello" which will be featured in the upcoming Touchstone film Gnomeo and Juliet. I love E.J. Such great music.

The Hobbit, directed by Peter Jackson, will be shot in New Zealand.

Unlucky for those of us who actually appreciate quality films, Mr. James Cameron has announced that he will be creating Avatar 2 and 3 as his next two films. Fantastic (add sarcastic tone)...

LucasFilm will be re-releasing its Indiana Jones franchise in 3D. Just as I felt with the Star Wars re-release, this is a good and bad thing. At least now I'll have an excuse to wear a fedora and bullwhip to the movie theater...

Piven to play the villain in Spy Kids 4.

Boba Fett's invoice. Just because. (Oh, and it's awesome.)

Off-Hollywood: An artisanal pencil sharpener: "I'm going to have this nice, authentic, considered reaction with your pencil," Rees said. "I just want to treat it with respect. And get it really freaking sharp."

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Well that's all of the news I found for you today. I hope you learned something new and had some fun while wasting some time. I still can't believe that Zach Galifianakis is going to be in the next Muppet movie... Anyways, have a nice day, and be sure to keep checking back at Disney, etc. for all of your news regarding Disney, Pixar, Entertainment, and everything in-between.

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Link Roundup: 3D Pirates, 'Mission: Incredible,' and More

There has been a recent flood of Disney- and Pixar-related news, so I've decided to do a brief post composed of links to send you off to consume all of the latest and greatest news from the world of Disney.

First, Blue Sky Disney is reporting that the new Pirates film, On Stranger Tides, will be filmed and released in 3D. This is not very surprising, since almost all tentpole films for the near future are being released in 3D. I'm not a big fan, but that's what seems to be happening...


Next, Blue Sky is providing further speculation regarding Brad Bird's live-action directorial debut on the next installment of Mission: Impossible. I can only hope that he's right; I would love to see Bird take on a big budget, live-action film.


While we're on the Pixar side of things, the summer issue of D23 will feature three different Toy Story 3 covers, with Buzz, Woody, or Jessie. The magazine will also "take readers to the sets and story rooms where Toy Story 3 was created".


Finally, watch this clip from Toy Story 3. It is an extended scene from the trailer of when Barbie meets Ken.

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Another Link Roundup: Dumbo, Toys, and Neil Patrick Harris is Seeing Blue

There's usually a manageable amount of Disney news to report on, but today there was simply an avalanche of great things in the world of Disney. This post will point you in the right direction so you can read all about it.



The Official Disney Parks Blog has released the above video to tell us all about their upcoming attraction, the Silly Symphony Swings.


Last year, The Magic of Disney Animation at Disney's Hollywood Studios showcased tons of great stuff from Up. This year, they are showcasing Toy Story 3 props, artwork, etc. Read about it over at The Pixar Blog.


The New York Post is reporting that the next Disney film that will be ported to the glittering lights of Broadway is Dumbo. This is pretty surprising, and I don't know if I quite buy it. A stage production of the classic Disney film would be just too weird.


Above you will find the newest Toy Story 3 character, Twitch. Read more here.

Stitch Kingdom has a great roundup about Disney's recent domain name purchases. They allude to possible new productions, including Cars Toons, Ant Man, and more.


This final piece of news is, frankly, the most exciting. Neil Patrick Harris, it has just been said, will star in the upcoming Smurfs film! Mr. Harris has to be one of my favorite actors with a great sense of humor and a lot of talent when it comes to singing (hopefully he'll have a musical number in the Smurfs film). The Smurfs movie will be about real people, like Harris, stumbling upon the world of little blue people.

That's all the Disney, etc. news there is for today, but keep checking back. You just never know what might happen when it comes to Disney, Pixar, Movies, and everything in-between.

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Day One of D23 and Other News

With the D23 Expo underway, as well as the Disney Studio always wheelin' and dealin', I've got a lot of news for you. Right here, right now:

• This first piece of news is Disney-related, but not D23-related. Guillermo Del Toro, one of my favorite writer/directors of such films as Hellboy and Pan's Labyrinth, has opened up an animation studio. This studio is known as "Disney's Double Dare You!". That's right: Disney's. One of Hollywood's best obscure/creepy filmmakers has opened an animation company within the walls of Disney Studios. The studio will be under the watch of Dick Cook and (hooray!) John Lasseter. Del Toro is very busy with his current slate of upcoming films, but will direct for DDDY (Disney's Double Dare You!) in the future. The current project at DDDY is Trollhunters, written (but not directed) by Guillermo who is also producing. So what should we expect from this new studio? Will the films be truly creepy, or just Coraline creepy? Will they appeal to kids, or to adults? I don't know...

• The Associated Press is reporting that 'Pirates 4' is officially official. It has a real title: "Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides," and Johnny Depp is, of course, its star. The film will be released in 2011. I can't wait! Although I am not a huge fan of the 2nd and 3rd 'Pirate' films, I do love the character of Jack Sparrow.

• The D23 Expo is going on right now! To see what happened on day one, I'd recommend you check out the following links:

1. WDWNewsToday; Some stuff from the CarsLand room, and, mostly, the Disney Legends ceremony.
2. Disney and More: The really great-looking Imagineering Legends session.
3. Cinematical has an article about Tron at the D23 Expo, as well as a huge gallery of pictures from it.
4. The LA Times documents both days of the expo thus far, but mainly the stars that showed up, which include John Travolta, Johnny Depp, and Tim Burton. (The OC Register has a similar article.)
5. Jim Hill discusses an upcoming D23 presentation which will showcase what The Muppets ( I sure do love those little guys) will be up to in the next couple of years.

There is even more Disney news out there. Upcoming Pixar is reporting that Cars 2 is going to be a "Hitchcockian Spy Thriller." Their source is Mr. Lasseter who is quoted to have said:

Mater, who we know from the series of cartoon shorts Mater’s Tall Tales (more on that in our blog in a minute) is prone to exaggeration, gets involved in a "Hitchcockian" case of mistaken identity, saves the life of a British secret agent called Finn McMissile (who looks a heck of a lot like an Aston Martin) and becomes embroiled in a huge spy thriller. Only no-one believes him.

And, finally, here is the newest trailer for the upcoming Disney film, The Princess and the Frog. This movie keeps looking better and better:



That's all the news for now, but stay posted since we still have more Expo news headin' your way.

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Lots and Lots of News Links (D23 Expo, Toy Story, and More)

My apologies for not keeping up with the news lately, but I have been awfully busy. It won't happen again...

Anyways, in the week or so that news has been absent from Etc., a lot has happened when it comes to Disney. So, instead of writing an article on each piece of news which would encumber me with so much work that I'd miss new news, I will provide you with a bunch of links to other reliable and great Disney blogs. Enjoy the links. Click away...


Here are a slew of D23 links. You know, the expo in Anaheim? You might have heard of it...

• Pixar (and therefore John Lasseter) will be present at the D23 Expo and will provide thousands of Disney fans with information all about their upcoming releases. Read about it here.

• Blue Sky Disney has two articles about the upcoming expo. The first discusses the new, expanded, and complete schedule of the huge event in Anaheim. The second is all about the supposed planned presence of Stormtroopers at the upcoming event, suggesting a Star Tours 2.0 announcement. Very interesting...
  

Miscellaneous Disney (and Pixar) News...

• Speaking of Lasseter, everybody's favorite Bigwig of Pixar/Head of Imagineering/Computer Animation Pioneer/General Great Creative Disney Guy has just been, after years at the Academy, elected secretary of the American Motion Picture Association of Art and Sciences. They've also got a new president, but not anyone as exciting as 'the Lasseter.' The Pixar Blog's got this one covered, too.

• The great star of Disney's original Alice comedies has recently passed away, and Jim Hill has a wonderful obituary-type article. Enjoy.

• Jim Hill also has an article about recently registered domain names by the Walt Disney Company which would suggest a whole slew of new (and not too great) projects. Read it here, if you dare.

• Above you will find the incredibly simple yet funny poster of the upcoming Toy Story/Toy Story 2 re-release. I sill absolutely love the idea of using the little green aliens as the mascot for the release. October had better hurry up.

• I have always loved my iPhone, but now I love it even more now that I can play Toy Story Mania! (my favorite DCA attraction) anywhere, anytime. If you own one of Apple's little mobile gems I suggest purchasing the application from the App Store.

• I'll finish up this set of links with a link to Cartoon Brew's article entitled "Zemeckis to ruin Yellow Submarine." As you have probably deduced already, Disney and Zemeckis plan to release a remake of the classic Beatles flick, MoCap style. Read all about it on CB right here.
  

Once again, sorry about the lack of news recently, but this post has brought you completely up-to-date, as will my future and prompt news articles that you'll find right here at Disney, etc.

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Disney (and Pixar, of course) Link Roundup

With Up's release far behind us and Toy Story 3's release getting nearer but still far off, the Pixar news is beginning to shift in favor of new things. To prove my point, here is the big news; Jim Hill Media has discovered that the domain of monsters2.com has been recently picked up by Disney. This could only mean one thing: a Monsters, Inc. sequel! The site contains nothing right now, as does any other news regarding the previously-rumored sequel. But, as if that wasn't exciting enough, the Mouse has also purchased the following, very intriguing domains (each with several variations):

• WorldWarRobotTheMovie.com (and other variations)
• BeverlyHillsChihuahuaTwo.com
  
• OhSayCanYouPee.com
• MaryPoppinsOffer.com
• SnowWhiteLowPrice.com
• And, the weirdest... The TigerKing.com
  
  

Ponyo, the latest from genius Hayao Miyazaki, has its full-length trailer right here for you to see. It is a re-telling of the Hans Christian Andersen tale The Little Mermaid, although this tale is one of a goldfish who wishes to become human and finally gets his wish granted. Watch the trailer above. The film will be released later this month, courtesy of Walt Disney Pictures, and will feature the voice talents of Noah Cyrus, Frankie Jonas, Cate Blanchett, Matt Damon, Tina Fey, Cloris Leachman, Liam Neeson, Lily Tomlin and Betty White.

Here is a picture straight from Lee Unkrich's (director of Toy Story 3's) Twitpic page. It is pretty cool: a countdown of Toy Story 3's release.

That's about all the updates there are for now... Except one last thing I will leave you with. If you have any love or interest in early Disney ventures and things, you will find the story of Carl Stalling very interesting--I discovered it only a few days ago and was very surprised. Although he is famous for his wonderful arrangements and scores he wrote for Looney Tunes (where he wrote a score a week for 22 years), that isn't where the musical genius got started. He broke into showbiz when he befriended a young and bright-eyed Walt Disney who needed a composer for Plane Crazy and Gallopin' Gaucho. Stalling fit the bill and got the job. Disney and Carl then went on to discuss whether the animation or music should come first; this led to the breakthrough of Silly Symphonies where Stalling wrote the music before the animation took place. This seems very odd, but is very interesting when you think about it. Later on, in 1936, Stalling left with his friend from his Disney Days, Iwerks, to go work for Warner Bros. and Leon Schlesinger...

Funny story, eh?

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Satisfy Your Thirst for 'Up'

Well folks, we are on the home stretch! Less than one week until Pixar's next movie is released! Up was absolutely phenomenal (read my full review here), but there are still new bits of news regarding it coming out as its release gets nearer. Here is a comprehensive list of links for you to read if you want to stay up-to-date on Up!


Pixar didn't win the most prestigious award from Cannes, the Palme d’Or. However, they did win the most prestigious dog award, the Palm Dog award. Dug is the real reason for the diamante color with "Palm Dog" embroidered on it that was awarded to one of Pixar's own. Dug was up against a Nazi poodle from Tarintino's newest film Inglorious Basterds.


USA Today has a really great new set of Up- and Pixar-related articles and interactive timelines. They are extremely in depth, very interesting and thought-provoking, and packed full of information and colorful pictures. I recommend looking into it. The interactive timeline is here, and the Up article is here.

Here's a brief video of Michael Giacchino, the composer for the scores of The Incredibles and Ratatouille and, of course, Up:



However, even though the announcements regarding the soundtrack of Up have been fantastic, there is some bad news. The Pixar Blog is reporting that there will be no physical CD of the soundtrack, only a digital download. Very sad, especially since it is my favorite Pixar album cover so far.


The projection site for Up is now live. The site is made for projectionists and features information regarding aspect ratios, etc. and everything that you need to know to run Up in a movie theater. But, even more exciting, the site features the phrase "The trailer for Toy Story 3 is supplied as a single separate encode"! Yay! We will get to see the Toy Story 3 teaser before Up!



Above is a short 'Roundtable Preview' all about the A Bug's Life Blu-ray release.


More Toy Story 3 news! Remember that bear on the floor of the room in the Up teaser? The one that will presumably be in the next Pixar flick? Well, it has been 'confirmed' that the bear's name is Lotso, and that he is going to be a villian in the new Toy Story. Although this seems very plausible, remember that we are still in rumor country, seeing as the film is still over a year from its release date.


Here is a fantastic gallery of never-before-seen (unless you've seen the film) stills from Up! See one at the top of the post, one directly above this paragraph, and the rest of them below! Oh, and, if my memory serves me correctly, the first still of the construction worker with the mustache features the character voiced by John Ratzenberger. Also, if you couldn't tell, the fourth photo is from the beginning of the film, and features Carl and Ellie as child

Well, that's all the Up news there is for now! As always, be sure to check out my review if you haven't yet. Or, you could always just wait 5 days and see Up for yourself!






Squirrel! Just 5 days . . .

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