The Looney Tunes are having a rough time. First Pepe LePew exit stage left, then Lola Bunny finds herself in the cross-hairs. Are the rest of the crew on a hit list too?
…Lots of Looney Tunes Tribulations Read More »
A selection of the best animation articles including news, opinions, and features from around the world for the week beginning the 31st of May, 2020. Featuring a Zoolander animated series, The Simpsons’ aspect ratio error, how a film gets stuck in development hell (and how it escapes), how similar Beastars is to Zootopia, and more!
…Animation Articles: 31 May, 2020 Read More »
A selection of the best animation articles including news, opinions, and features from around the world for the week beginning the 24th of May, 2020.
…Animation Articles: May 24, 2020 Read More »
Great TV is everywhere nowadays, at least that what everyone is telling me. Creators are pushing boundaries, genres are being stretched, and cultural barriers are falling. If only it were all true! Great TV is like Punk Rock in more ways than one, and what is on our screens nowadays isn’t inspiring me to get a leather jacket, or a mohawk.
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Great TV is Like Punk Rock, But Our Screens Are Filled With Adult ContemporaryRead More »
Great TV is Like Punk Rock, But Our Screens Are Filled With Adult Contemporary Read More »
Baiting title aside, Mickey Mouse really is more popular than Bugs Bunny. He sells a lot more merchandise, appears in far more places around the world and is lauded as a mascot for the company that operates ‘The Happiest Place on Earth.’ Bugs never even got such opportunities and yet as a character, he is far superior to Mickey. Why is that?
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Why is Mickey Mouse More Popular Than Bugs Bunny?Read More »
Why is Mickey Mouse More Popular Than Bugs Bunny? Read More »
Halfway through the year already??? Well, have some more week links, and don’t forget to check out the archives for more that you may have missed.
Coming via the Kidscreen iKids blog but surely trumpeted elsewhere too is the news that Amazon is moving ahead with it’s original series as chosen by viewers. Of interest to us are the three animated properties as the post details as well as when we can expect to see the first episodes; later this year is all we know for now.
Fred Patten over on Cartoon Research has a very thorough and insightful post about translation and the comedy of errors that can result. That’s something that continually seems to haunt animation. Live-action has less of an issue because, quite simply, less of it travels across borders thanks to its lower cost. Animation, being as expensive as it is, seems to require international sales in order to succeed and that means a lot of translation. Latin-based languages aren’t too difficult, but once you cross the Pacific, things get tricky; a fact that Fred’s post does much to enlighten us about.
Animation is tough business, and the latest casualty is the Australian studio that produced Happy Feet 2:
Unfortunately, the only story Dr D managed to share was Happy Feet Two. The continual slate of production that had been anticipated failed to materialise, and the 650 or so staff who had been hired (mostly on contract) at the peak of production dwindled in the months after to about 50. In more recent times, it is believed fewer than half a dozen people were employed by the company.
Animator Robert Kohr is hard at work on his latest short film. Entitled ‘Europa’ after Jupiter’s moon, he recently posted some character models. Here’s the character Cindy:
In a rare self-referential link, Michael Sporn read my post on Animation Scoop questioning the race for the easy dollar among major animation studios and posted his own, well-measured thoughts. The topic is of concern to me primarily because the gold rush that animation currently is has lead to a lot of formulaic films that I fear will result in audience burnout and an industry downturn.
[blackbirdpie url=”https://twitter.com/SmallLindsay/status/338030011212759042″]
[blackbirdpie url=”https://twitter.com/my2k/status/339137959322320898″]
[blackbirdpie url=”https://twitter.com/thatbilloakley/status/339503271305678849″]
[blackbirdpie url=”https://twitter.com/frankrause/status/340485411073826817″]
[blackbirdpie url=”https://twitter.com/AmosPosner/status/340540806400184320″]
Gotta love that sly Looney Tune humour.
Week Links 21-2013 Read More »
Too often it seems that when cartoon characters make the leap into animated commercials, the quality isn’t quite up to par with the original material. Thankfully, sometimes one gets out that really shines and this Weetabix ad from 1992 is no exception.
Emulating the classic Looney Tunes shorts of the late 40s and early 50s, it condenses an entire plot from the usual 7-8 minutes down into under 45 seconds. It’s all accomplished, quite amazingly without much loss to either the characters or the plot (although naturally Weetabix plays a starring role) and it manages to maintain the high level of screwball comedy that the shorts were famous for. Enjoy!
Looney Tunes Weetabix Commercial from 1992 Read More »
Since I’m on my honeymoon this week, enjoy some of the finer stuff I’ve collected on my tumblelog over the last 4 years or so.
I’m not even kidding! If someone out there would like to make a decent-sized print that I can hang on the wall, I will gladly give you money for it. It is, of course, from the classic shirt, Rocket Squad.
This Needs To Hang in my Office Read More »
As this picture clearly demonstrates.
Anyone care to guess why this example works so well?
Character Sundays: The Don’t Make ‘Em Like They Used To Read More »
I simply couldn’t let Halloween pass without mentioning a character with at least some connection to the holiday and I think a witch will suit just fine.
There’s not a lot to say about Witch Hazel except that she is constantly scheming but is ultimately thwarted by her own mistakes. She’s a quirky mix of you loveable old grandmother and a wicked witch. By far the funniest aspect to her character is her giggle. It’s as if she’s a schoolgirl and not an ancient old crone!
By far the best way to appreciate her is to watch her. Here she is in the absolute classic short, Broomstick Bunny. The whole short is a setup to the never-in-doubt ending but is hilarious nonetheless.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NTJNTQdjouM
Character Sundays: Witch Hazel Read More »
