Friday, May 28, 2010

Last of the Maytime Linkfests

More animated this and that.

Warner Bros. Animation continues to rev up its super hero division.

The Hollywood Reporter reports that Cartoon Network will be unveiling Green Lantern: The Animated Series in 2011, coinciding with the live-action Green Lantern movie, which will hit theaters in June of that same year.

The Green Lantern cartoon series represents yet another facet of DC Entertainment and Warner Bros.’ plan for total brand-expansion. Yesterday we reported on DCE/WB’s latest plans for their slate of upcoming superhero movies ...

This is known as "synergy" in the moving picture business.

Homer Simpson tops some list or other. (And are we really, truly supposed to care?)

... Entertainment Weekly did a pretty fine job of putting together their list of The 100 Greatest Characters of the Last 20 years. But that doesn't mean there's not some room for dissent.

The pick of Homer Simpson as the best character over the last 20 years is fitting: he's actually been around for 20 years. Sure, diehard fans will tell you "The Simpsons" isn't what it once was, but for a single character -- particularly an animated one -- to sustain such a presence in popular culture over such a long time is truly remarkable. ...

(Well, hey. Look at Mickey Mouse.)

Peter Keefe, RIP

Peter Keefe, an animation executive and producer best known as the creative force behind the iconic children's TV series "Voltron," died May 27 of throat cancer in Rochester, N.Y. He was 57.

During the past two decades, Keefe created, produced and sold more than 600 half-hours of children's and family entertainment programming, shows that were watched by hundreds of millions while generating hundreds of millions of dollars in business. ...

Disney/Pixar Presents a Video Introduction to Pixar Canada.

Meantime, Wall Street speculates about what the Mouse will be doing with ABC.

... "I've been anticipating a new wave of consolidation in the TV and radio broadcasting business. And the notion of Disney selling ABC fits into that picture," said Paul Kagan, chief executive officer of PK World Media.

ABC, third of four networks in the ratings race, recently overhauled its prime-time lineup -- the second year in a row it revamped its schedule during the upfronts season, when broadcasters negotiate with advertisers ...

Just because Disney is backing away from hand-drawn cartoons, doesn't mean others aren't giving it a shot.

Check out the french trailer for Sylvain Chomet’s new animation film, L’ILLUSIONNISTE (The Illusionist), which was written by Jacques Tati before he passed away. The animation looks really good. ...

Enjoy the elongated weekend. But wear sunscreen.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

"Just because Disney is backing away from hand-drawn cartoons..."

...so the rumors are true, then?

Steven (not Steve) said...

In Europe, as in other parts of the world, hand drawn narrative story telling, whether published or animated, is considered as much an adult art form as any other.

In America, our perception of animation in general and specifically hand drawn features is still tethered to the Disney, synonymous with family, film. As long as that holds true, we won't see a significant revival of hand drawn films here.

What we need most is, at least one very successful domestic hand drawn feature film, geared toward an adult audience. Bakshi came close, but somehow lost his momentum. Maybe the next time they try to film Will Eisner material they will be smart enough to preserve his graphic style. Spirit was a tragic missed opportunity. What were they thinking? That nobody would go to see it if it was a cartoon? Well, it wasn't, and no one saw it anyway.

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