November 1- 5, 2000 News

Wednesday, November 1, 2000

Rugrats in Paris Premiere on Sunday
The world premiere of Rugrats in Paris - The Movie will take place this Sunday at the Mann Chinese Theatre in Hollywood. The premise of the story is as follows:

"Chuckie's dad Chas starts dating again, and its Chuckie's wish to find a new mom. When Stu Pickles is summoned to EuroReptarland, an amazing new amusement park in Paris, to work on his Reptar invention, Tommy, Chuckie, Angelica, Phil, Lil, Baby Dil, Didi and the whole gang tag along to the city of romance. But the Rugrats' big adventure turns out to be more than glamour, fashion and smelly cheese.

Chuckie learns that when it comes to princesses and potential mommies, things are not always what they seem, and for Chas, finding the right woman can be difficult in any language. As the Rugrats' travels take them from the Eiffel Tower to Notre Dame and everywhere in between, the babies learn new lessons about courage, loyalty, trust and above all, true love."

The original Rugrats - The Movie was a monster at the Box Office, becoming the first non-Disney animated film to ever gross over $100 million in the US. The "G" rated film will open nationwide on November 17, 2000.

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Lloyd in Space to Make Disney Saturday Mornings
"Disney's Lloyd in Space," a new series from Walt Disney Television Animation and the creators of "Disney's Recess" will premiere in early 2001 as part of the "Disney's One Saturday Morning" lineup on the ABC Television Network, it was announced today by Jonathan Barzilay, senior vice president and general manager, ABC Children's Programming.

"Disney's Lloyd in Space" follows the day-to-day dilemmas of Lloyd, a space station-bound, alien teenager who must -- as all teens do -- endure the often confusing transition toward adulthood.

"We are thrilled to have 'Lloyd in Space' joining our lineup, and that executive producers Paul Germain and Joe Ansolabehere can continue connecting with kids on ABC," said Barzilay.

Executive producers Paul Germain and Joe Ansolabehere are the team that created the series, "Disney's Recess." The pair previously teamed on Nickelodeon's "Rugrats," where Germain served as the series' co-creator, developer, head writer, voice director and supervising creative producer while Ansolabehere was the head story editor.

Produced by Walt Disney Television Animation, "Disney's Lloyd in Space" is designated as children's educational and informational programming. It premieres in early 2001 within the "Disney's One Saturday Morning" lineup on ABC.

Thursday, November 2, 2000

Disney Animation Criticized at Indian 'Week of the Masters' Event
According to The Hindu:

"There's the whole world of independent American animation film-making. And then there's Walt Disney. And the twain shall not meet. In fact, they shall take potshots at each other at every opportunity. This fact of life of the U.S. animated scene was brought home vividly to the predominantly Indian audience on Day Two of the `Week with the Masters' event organised by Toonz Animation, at the Technopark, here.

When noted animation film-makers, Mr. R.O. Blechman, Mr. David Fine, Ms. Joanna Priestley and Mr. Bill Plympton shared the stage during a panel discussion on Adult Animation, their common view was that commercially driven enterprises like Disney and to a lesser extent Warner Brothers, provided fat budgets but few opportunities for creativity. In fact, if you are an independent film-maker, ``doing your own thing'' means doing it different from Disney..."

Click here for the full story.

Click here for a different article about "A Week With The Masters"

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Rugrats in Paris to Have Three TV Prequels
In a unique marketing effort to help boost interest in the upcoming Rugrats in Paris movie, Nickelodeon Movies/Paramount Pictures will air three prequel episodes of Rugrats on TV to prepare viewers for the movie.

The special episodes, focusing on Fall's seasonal and life changes, introduce Grandpa's new lady love, Lulu -- voiced by Debbie Reynolds -- along with the robotic Reptar. Stu Pickles' animatronic invention sparks interest from a new French theme park, Reptarland -- and leads to big screen adventures for the whole gang in the city of romance, Paris.

Nickelodeon will air the special episodes Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, November 7-9 (8:30-9 p.m. ET/PT) in primetime; Saturday, November 11 (8-9:30 p.m. ET/PT) in SNICK as a 90-minute Nick Flick titled "Acorn Nuts and Diapey Butts;" and Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, November 13-15 (7:30-8 p.m. ET/PT).

In Part 1, titled "Diapey Butts," Angelica (Cheryl Chase) warns the babies that Fall is a time of change. When Grandpa Lou (Joe Alaskey) decides to move to a retirement community -- due to a mishap caused by the animatronic Reptar Stu built for the Fall Festival Parade -- the babies fear she's right. Meanwhile, to Chuckie's (Christine Cavanaugh) dismay, his dad Chas (Michael Bell) is subjected to a "makeover" at the hands of Betty DeVille (Kath Soucie) to lure the ladies.

In "Fall Stinks," Tommy (E.G. Daily) decides Grandpa left because of Reptar, so the babies bury their Reptar toys. When Tommy goes to tell Grandpa, he finds social butterfly Lou's been salsa-danced onto a paramedic's gurney. Meanwhile, Chas steps out with an outlandish array of women.

In "Don't Poop on my Parade," the Rugrats try to stop Fall and its changes by foiling the Fall Festival Parade, and Grandpa's romance with Nurse Lulu blooms in and out of the hospital. But it's the towering Reptar, wreaking havoc in the streets and taking the tots on a wild ride, that brings everything to a screeching halt -- and impresses the heck out of Reptarland's French representative.

Picking up where the TV prequel leaves off, in Rugrats in Paris - The Movie, Stu Pickles (Jack Riley) is summoned overseas to work on Reptar, and Tommy, Chuckie, Angelica, Lil & Phil (Soucie), Baby Dil (Tara Charendoff) and the whole boisterous bunch tag along. It's Chuckie's wish to find a new mom, and wishes come true in Paris, though for Chas, finding the right woman can be difficult in any language. As the Rugrats travel from the Eiffel Tower to Notre Dame and everywhere in between, they learn lessons about courage, loyalty, trust and above all, true love. In addition to voice talent from the series, the film features celebrity voices including Susan Sarandon, John Lithgow -- and Reynolds, who will recur next year in the TV series.

Rugrats in Paris opens across the nation on November 17, 2000.

Friday, November 3, 2000

New Unnamed Series Coming From Mainframe
Mainframe Entertainment and Studio B Productions announced this week that the two Vancouver-based animation studios are entering into a co-production agreement to develop an original series utilizing both traditional and computer animation. The unnamed project will take advantage of each studios' strengths, creating the most seamless blend of cel and CG animation for television.

"Since its inception Mainframe has been a world leader in 3D animation. With our new partnership we now have the opportunity to combine a perfect set of complementary skills between our companies and to create a fresh, innovative style of programming for the international market," said Chris Bartleman, Partner of Studio B Productions.

Mainframe Entertainment Inc. is a computer animation studio, producing long-form CGI for television and feature films. Mainframe has had six computer animated television series on air in the North American market, on YTV, ABC, the Cartoon Network, Fox Kids and Fox Family Channel. The company is currently in production on 26 half-hour episodes of Action Man(TM), an all-CGI television series that began regularly scheduled broadcasts on Fox Kids and YTV in August and the all-new Heavy Gear(TM) television series, based on the popular video game. As well, the studio is working on a large-format stereoscopic feature film, based on Gulliver's Travels, scheduled for release in 2001 at IMAX 3D theatres. Founded in 1993, the company employs over 300 artists, animators, technicians and production personnel, and has won many prestigious awards for its creative and technical innovations, including an induction into the Smithsonian Institute.

Studio B Productions is a Vancouver-based animation studio founded by artists Chris Bartleman and Blair Peters. Since its beginnings as a two-man operation in 1988, the Studio has grown to include a team of over 100 artists, writers and producers working in a high-energy, creative environment.

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Canadian Cartoon Finally Gets Animated
According to the Montreal Gazette:

"It took 30 years, a broken marriage, assorted body parts, a few faulty starts and a flood, but Lynn Johnston's animated cartoon series is finally ready for the small screen.

Johnston is the creator of For Better or for Worse, the most popular cartoon in The Gazette, and a syndicated feature that appears daily in more than 2,000 newspapers throughout Canada, the U.S. and 23 other countries. Her portrait of the Pattersons - who bear more than nodding resemblance to her own family - has earned many accolades, including the Order of Canada and a Pulitzer Prize nomination. On Saturday night, her animated characters, who've already appeared in occasional specials, will get a regular half-hour slot on Teletoon, Canada's cartoon network. Each show includes three short episodes drawn from different phases in the life of the Pattersons, with Johnston as on-air host tying the vignettes together..."

Click here for the full story.

Saturday, November 4, 2000

"The Simpsons" Reaches 250 Episodes
According to USA Today:

"With The Simpsons' 250th episode coming Sunday, the question arises: Just how long can the longest-running prime-time cartoon keep going?

''I thought we would start and then live forever,'' Simpsons creator Matt Groening says. ''But that's how I feel about life, which obviously is untrue.''

Maybe, but this is animation we're talking about, and Groening and executive producer Mike Scully have given up trying to predict the expiration date of Springfield's most famous -- and infamous -- family. '

'I joined the show at the beginning of season five. My feeling then was that I was thrilled to get a chance to be on the show before it was over,'' Scully says. ''Nobody was talking about season 12'...

Click here for the full story.

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Chicken Run Game Released on Gameboy
THQ Inc. today announced the release of Chicken Run for Game Boy Color. Developed by Blitz Games, the game is based on last summer's animated film, Chicken Run, which is scheduled to release on home video and DVD this Thanksgiving. Chicken Run for Game Boy Color is now available at major retail outlets nationwide.

"Chicken Run, the movie, is a family hit grossing over $170 million worldwide so far and holds tremendous crossover appeal to our Game Boy Color audience," stated Germaine Gioia, vice president, licensing, THQ. "Chicken Run for Game Boy Color is the perfect addition to our growing library of games for the handheld system's core audience."

"The story of Chicken Run -- a flock of chickens trying to escape Tweedy's Farm before they're turned into chicken pies -- is the perfect interactive adventure," said Rick Rekedal, Head of Toys and Licensing for DreamWorks Consumer Products. "We're delighted to have worked with THQ and Blitz Games on the Game Boy Color release."

Chicken Run for Game Boy Color is a mission-based adventure that allows players to maneuver through 24 levels as the movie's hero, Ginger. Just like the movie, Ginger's objective in the game is to lead the chickens of Hut 17 and the rest of the chickens on the farm in their escape from the perils of the Tweedy's chicken pie machine. As Ginger leads her friends to freedom within the movie-inspired environments, the difficulty will increase and players will have more access to roam in each successive level. Players will play through both the farmyard area and in the pie machine dodging obstacles such as the Tweedy's guard dogs, the farm's searchlights and steam from the pie machine.

Sunday, November 5, 2000

Charlie's Angels Can't Topple Toy Story 2
Charlie's Angels opened huge over the weekend, bringing in an estimated $40.5 million, making it the second highest grossing non-summer movie of all time in the U.S. The achievement didn't come close to the #1 highest grossing non-summer movie of all time -- Toy Story 2.

Last November, Toy Story 2 opened huge, bringing in $57.4 million in its first three days of mass reease in the U.S. That's nearly $17 million more than the now second place Charlie's Angels. Toy Story 2 went on to make a huge $245.8 million at the Box Office to become the second highest grossing animated film of all time, about $68 million behind The Lion King, which made $313 million to secure its place on top in the Top 10 Animated Films of All Time.

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