BREAKING: Pixar's next two features announced! (And the next Toy Story Toon.)

Ba-reaking news! At D23, Pixar has just announced its two next features, which will come out after Brave and Monsters University.

The first is the long-rumored feature all about dinosaurs. It's slated for November 2013, and will be directed by Pixar veteran Bob Peterson, who co-directed and was a writer on Up (and voiced Doug). It'll be co-directed by Peter Sohn of Partly Cloudy, and produced by John Walker who was a producer on The Incredibles.

Pixar explains the feature:

What if that life-changing asteroid missed Earth? Director Bob Peterson’s hilarious tale depicts a world where dinosaurs never went extinct.

The feature will show what would have happened if the dinosaurs hadn't become extinct and kept evolving and populating the planet. Very interesting premise, although there isn't that ironic hook like a rat that cooks or a lonely robot. Still, I'm excited to see Pixar tackle the prehistoric (yet modern?) frontier.
The second feature, coming May 30, 2014, sounds very, very strange. Helmed by Docter, director of Monsters, Inc. and Up, the film sounds very experimental:

From director Pete Docter comes an inventive new film that explores a world that everyone knows, but no one has seen: inside the human mind.

Ronnie del Carmen will co-direct with Jonas Rivera producing. IndieWIRE claims that TS3 penman Arndt is taking on this unique script, said to be "about the formation of ideas."

Ideas? The mind? Strange . . . Very un-Pixar, since I can't imagine children enjoying a film that sounds so odd. It also sounds especially off for Docter, whose films thus far have been immensely character-driven. Still, I'm very excited to see a film so inventive from one of the most inventive studios of all-time.

Also announced is the next Toy Story Toon, titled Small Fry. DIrected by BURN-E's Angus MacLane, it'll be attached to The Muppets this November. Here's the short premise from The Pixar Times:

"Looks like Buzz Lightyear is left behind at a fast-food restaurant and must find his way back home. In doing so he encounters some less popular, happy meal-like toys. One of those toys, a Mermaid of sorts, will be voiced by Glee's Jane Lynch."

It'll feature, as you can see, new toys and will be centered around Buzz. Should be really funny and clever!
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Very exciting stuff. I can't wait to see all of this awesome stuff from such a great studio! (Oh, and my tour of the studio will soon be chronicled right here, for your reading enjoyment . . . )

More D23 news to come!

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Mystery Pixar Pic to Hit Theaters in 2013 (UPDATED)

Deadline.com reports that Pixar is cooking up another blockbuster that is set to take over the movie screens of the world on November 27, 2013. All that is currently known (at least outside the Pixar story factory) is that it's a new, original story and not a sequel.

I've got the date set on my calendar!

UPDATE: Some buzz around the Inter-Nets suggests that this project may be the mysterious Pete Docter/Dinosaur film we've been hearing about recently, especially since Pixar had a dinosaur-themed night at their studio back in April, featuring a screening of Spielberg's Jurassic Park.

Stay tuned as I learn more about this rather interesting announcement....

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New 'Monsters, Inc.' pic will be prequel: 'Monsters University'

Disney has just confirmed at the CinemaCon theater industry show in Las Vegas that on Novermber 2, 2012, we'll all be treated to the lovable antics of Mike, Sulley, and all of our favorite monsters once again.Well, maybe not all of the monsters...

After all, the announcement also revealed that it will, as leaked by rumors some time ago, be a prequel to Monsters, Inc., and be titled Monsters University.

The movie will follow Mike Wazowski and James. P. Sullivan at Monstropolis' University of Fear. As put by Disney's executive vice president of worldwide distribution Dave Hollis:

Obviously everybody knows at this point Mike and Sulley are amazing friends—the best of friends—but as it turns out, in this story, that wasn’t always the case. From the moment they met at university, they could not stand each other. This story takes you through the ups and downs, and how they overcame their own differences.

Of course, Billy Crystal and John Goodman will reprise their roles of Mike and Sulley, and even Buscemi's Randall is going to be making an appearance.

I am very excited to see this new Monsters film! Although I wish Pixar would focus more on original stories (like the upcoming film, Brave), Monsters, Inc. is my favorite Pixar film, so I'm naturally incredibly excited for its prequel.

As stated before, it will be released on November 12 of next year, and I can't wait!

Source: EW

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'Up' writer Tom McCarthy's new movie is a WINner

A couple of nights ago, I attended a pre-screening and Q&A for the upcoming film Win Win. The movie stars Paul Giamatti, Amy Ryan, and Melanie Lynskey, and is summarized by Fox Searchlight Pictures as follows:

Disheartened attorney Mike Flaherty (Giamatti), who moonlights as a high school wrestling coach, stumbles across a star athlete through some questionable business dealings while trying to support his family. Just as it looks like he will get a double payday, the boy's mother shows up fresh from rehab and flat broke, threatening to derail everything.

Although the plot synopsis sounds rather dry and uninteresting, the film is phenomenal. Right off the bat, you really care for Giamatti's character. He is out of shape, in financial trouble, but tries to do right by his family and his business. You also care a lot for the teenage lead Kyle--he is the victim of a drug-addicted mother and her abusive boyfriend. The story of Win Win is uplifting, well-crafted, and makes you feel a range of emotions, from fear and love and hate to sadness and joy. And that's what a good story should do. Watch the trailer below:



After seeing the film, we were treated to a wonderful Q&A with director Tom McCarthy and the film's co-star Alex Shaffer. Tom McCarthy, as you probably know, is the co-writer of Pixar's Up along with Pete Docter and Bob Petersen.

Tom discussed parts of his experience with Pixar during the Q&A which I found very interesting. Apparently, Mr. McCarthy was contacted by Pete Docter to help on Up's story because Docter liked McCarthy's film The Station Agent.

Another interesting parallel that I drew between the story of Win Win and Up, is they both rely on laws that apply to the elderly. Paul Giamatti's character is an attorney for, well, old people. He makes sure they are cared for, deals with their estates, etc. This fact and the laws themselves are one of the main plot points of Win Win--the structure of the story relies on the laws and their effects. As you will likely remember, Carl Fredricksen's call to adventure in Up is when he is forced to leave his home after assaulting a construction worker. This plot turn, too, relies on laws that apply to the elderly. Someone in the audience asked Mr. McCarthy about this similarity, and he discussed that he has a friend back in New Jersey who is an attorney for the elderly (and who is incredibly passionate about the subject). This friend gave advice during the development of Up and, having never written a creative word in his entire life, co-wrote Win Win with Tom McCarthy. It is a very bizarre thing to have as a common thread through your films, but Tom pulled it off wonderfully. He has two movies which rely on laws pertaining to the elderly, yet they are both incredibly different, and very, very good.

The other aspect of the Q&A that blew my mind was Alex Shaffer. He is the lead of Win Win, who plays a damaged teenager with nothing good in his life except for wrestling. Alex's performance is spectacular; I totally buy that he is a lost, hurt, and lonely kid trying to find where he "fit in." That's why I was very surprised to find out that before Win Win, Alex had never acted before in his life. He was cast for his wrestling talent (he won the state championship in New Jersey several years ago), not his acting ability. He told us about how he worked with an acting coach, and then discussed how amazing it was to work with Paul Giamatti and Amy Ryan. His story is really great--that one audition with Tom McCarthy drastically changed his life forever. I promise he'll get more parts in the very near future....

Anyways, I just wanted to share some of the interesting things I learned from Tom. I highly suggest that you go out and see the film when it is released in your state (it is an indie film, so it doesn't have a national release date). Win Win will make you laugh hysterically, make your eyes water a little bit, and, most importantly, it will make you think about yourself and your own life. Go out and see Win Win, and don't forget about the connection it has to everyone's favorite studio, Pixar.

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'Toy Story 3 Short: 'Day & Night'

After a year of speculation and rumor, Pixar has finally made the details of their upcoming short public. It is called Day & Night, and will, of course, precede every showing of Toy Story 3. Here is the official synopsis from ComingSoon.net:

When Day, a sunny fellow, encounters Night, a stranger of distinctly darker moods, sparks fly! Day and Night are frightened and suspicious of each other at first, and quickly get off on the wrong foot. But as they discover each other's unique qualities--and come to realize that each of them offers a different window onto the same world--the friendship helps both to gain a new perspective.

Very interesting! A simple idea with tons of comic potential (the basic yet perfect Pixar formula). It is sure to be another beautiful, entertaining short. I especially like the style of animation apparent on the title card shown above (click for a high res version). It is reminiscent of the retro animation from the 1950s. The actual short will no doubt be CG, but I still like the style of the title card.

The short is being directed by artist and character designer Teddy Newton. This is his directorial debut at Pixar. And, the most exciting bit of all, the short will be scored by none other than Michael Giacchino! If you follow Disney, etc. then you'll know that he is my favorite composer (The Incredibles, Ratatouille, Up, Partly Cloudy, Star Trek, Lost, Fringe, etc.). I cannot wait to hear what he has done for Day & Night.

Obviously, this short is not the dinosaur short I had previously thought it to be. This makes me want to think that the dinosaur short is either the upcoming short for newt, or it may even be a feature of its own. Mike at The Pixar Blog points out that it could possibly be the unannounced 2013/2014 Pete Docter feature project, with Greg Dykstra as co-director.

More news is sure to surface in the coming months as Toy Story 3's release gets ever closer. Keep checking back for more news all about Toy Story 3, Disney, Pixar, Movies, and everything in-between.

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The 37th Annie Awards' Winners

Getting lost in the sea of celebration resulting from Up's Best Picture nomination by the Academy is the list of winners at the 37th Annual Annie Awards. The big winners were Up and Fantastic Mr. Fox:

Best Animated Feature
Up (Pixar Animation Studios)

Best Animated Television Production
Prep and Landing — (Walt Disney Animation Studios)

Best Home Entertainment Production
Futurama: Into the Wild Green Yonder

Best Animated Short Subject
Robot Chicken: Star Wars 2.5

Best Animated Television Production for Children
The Penguins of Madagascar (Nickelodeon and DreamWorks)

Character Animation in a Feature Production
Eric Goldberg for The Princess and the Frog

Character Design in a Feature Production
Shane Prigmore for Coraline

Directing in a Feature Production
Pete Docter “Up” — Pixar Animation Studios

Writing in a Television Production
Daniel Chun - The Simpsons: Treehouse of Horror XX

Writing in a Feature Production
Wes Anderson and Noah Baumbach - Fantastic Mr. Fox

Go here for a complete list of winners (and nominees).

I am very surprised (and pleased) about Robot Chicken and Futurama's wins. I am also very glad that Eric Goldberg's talents were rewarded; Louis really was a great, well-designed and -animated character. Also, unexpectedly, Prep and Landing received several awards.

Congratualtions to Disney, Pixar, and all of the other winners at this year's Annie Awards!

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'Up' Nominated for Best Picture!

For the first time since Beauty and the Beast, an animated feature has been nominated for the Best Picture at the Oscars! As you might have guessed, this feature is Up.

This is great news! Even if the film doesn't win the Oscar for Best Picture (which it very well might), this is still a huge success for Pete Docter, Pixar Studios, and animation as an art form. Congratulations, Pixar!

Stay tuned for a complete list if nominations, as well as my predictions.

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Unkrich's Pixar Stuff to Benefit Haiti

Lee Unkrich is helping out the people who are suffering in Haiti by auctioning off his great collection of Pixar things he has accumulated over the years. Each item is being auctioned separately, and they include crew jackets from numerous Pixar films, baseball hats, T-shirts, signed art, and even specially made Monsters, Inc. Jones Soda. I'd like to stress that these charity auctions are being created and handled personally by Lee Unkrich, director of Toy Story 3, and are not being organized by either Pixar or Disney. Also, it is important to note that 100% of the final sale price will go to the Clinton Bush Haiti Fund. There are some real treasures being put up for auction and I would encourage you to take a look at them. After all, it is for a great cause.

Check out The Pixar Blog for more information and a statement made by Lee.

Very cool.

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Tons of Awards for 'Up'

Up was the best film of 2009. Luckily, it is obvious that as the awards season gets into high gear, the majority of the critics agree. First, Up was given the Rotten Tomatoes Golden Tomato Award, recognizing it as the highest rated film of 2009 at 98%. Up was then recognized as the Favorite Family Movie of last year at the 36th annual People's Choice Awards. And, finally, Up won the Best Animated Feature Film and the Best Score at the Critics' Choice Award.

I sure hope that Up keeps going strong through the Golden Globes and the Oscars. Way to go, Pixar!

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