How Making Online Shorts Landed Steve Cutts A ‘Simpsons’ Couch Gag Opening
Steve Cutts may not be a household name, but his viral films got him the gig of a lifetime.
Neil Emmett
Have Fear, Five Animated Horror Classics Are Here
Discover five of Cartoon Brew’s favorite creepy classics, based upon the literary works of Edgar Allen Poe, Franz Kafka, and more.
Why Audiences Loved Pixar’s First Film ‘Toy Story’
A new book explores the original, un-Disney-like goals of Pixar’s first feature effort.
Book Review: ‘Toons in Toyland’
Barney Rubble with green toenails, Yogi Bear mass graveyards, fake Charlie Browns: welcome to the weird wide world of cartoon merchandising!
Book Review: ‘Chinese Animation: A History and Filmography’
A new book seeks to remedy the lack of English scholarship on China’s contribution to the medium.
Book Review: ‘The Anime Encyclopedia’
A new edition of “The Anime Encyclopedia” aims to cover anime more comprehensively than ever before. Does it succeed?
Book Review: ‘Anime Fan Communities’ by Sandra Annett
I regret starting this review on a negative note, but it should be said that “Anime Fan Communities” is not the most accurately-titled book. Author Sandra Annett takes international anime fandom as her starting point, but she ends up engaging with a much wider range of topics.
Greg McLeod On ‘365’ and Why He Animated One Second A Day For A Whole Year
Cartoon Brew speaks to director Greg McLeod about “365,” a new short with an unusual concept.
A History of the ‘Gay Agenda’ in Animation
Bit by bit, overtly gay characters are making inroads into animation targeted primarily at children, but the fear of gay cartoon characters has existed for years.
New ‘Judge Dredd’ Series Blurs Line Between Fan Films and Official Releases
One of the most interesting things about the new “Judge Dredd: Superfiend” online mini-series is how it straddles the line between fan work and official product.
New Program In Senegal Trains Aspiring African Animators
The BBC published a video report on a new animation initiative in Africa that aims to nurture new talent from around the continent.
How Contemporary British TV Animation Went Off the Rails
British TV networks wanted to find the next “Simpsons” and “South Park,” but things didn’t go quite as planned.
Aardman’s Morph Returns In A New Online Series
Aardman’s first star, Morph, has returned in a new series of Kickstarter-backed YouTube shorts.
‘Paddington’ Trailer Generates Entire Tumblr Devoted To Its Creepiness
Based on Michael Bond’s 1958 children’s book “A Bear Called Paddington,” the live-action/CG hybrid “Paddington” tells the story of a Peruvian bear who finds himself living in London. The film will be released on November 28, 2014 in the Uk, followed by a Christmas Day release in the United States by the Weinstein Company/ Dimension Films.
Based on Michael Bond’s 1958 children’s book A Bear Called Paddington, the live-action/CG hybrid Paddington tells the story of a Peruvian bear who finds himself living in London. The film will be released on November 28, 2014 in the Uk, followed by a Christmas Day release in the United States by the Weinstein Company/ Dimension Films.
How Garfield Got His Groove Back: The ‘Garfield’ Remix Phenomenon
Poor Garfield. In his heyday, he was amongst the most beloved characters on the funny pages, his plush likenesses fastened to car windows and his sarcastic barbs adorning office walls around the globe. Then, somewhere along the line, he underwent a pop-cultural re-evaluation. Jim Davis’ strip is now something of a pariah: just look at how “The Simpsons” paired it with “Love Is” as the kind of strip that Milhouse reads. What a comedown for a character once hip enough to be quoted in “Two Tribes” by Frankie Goes to Hollywood. But yet, the orange cat has been saved from cultural oblivion by a peculiar trend: the remixed “Garfield” strip.
Animake It Software Allows Anyone to Make Animation—In One Minute
The world of animation software is dominated by a handful of industry-standard titles. However, the margins are dotted with more specialized pieces of software, often designed for animators who prefer to work outside the demands of studio production. One such program is Animake It, a piece of software that aims to provide an accessible animation experience that ties in with current trends in online content.
Book Review: ‘Stray Dog of Anime: The Films of Mamoru Oshii’
I can remember looking at anime titles in British video catalogues back in the nineties; as the pastoral fantasies of Hayao Miyazaki would not reach prominence in this country until the new millennium, UK distributors placed a strong emphasis on futuristic thrillers. The films of Mamoru Oshii certainly fit that bill.
British Studios Locksmith and Double Negative Plan To Make CG Features
There are big developments in the UK animation industry in the wake of a much-heralded tax break received by the British animation industry that went into effect last year. Sarah Smith, the former creative director of features at Aardman Animations, is setting up a studio named Locksmith Animation. She bills it as the UK’s “first high-end CGI feature animation studio,” and it is focused on creating a long-term slate of films for worldwide distribution.
This Sunday in London: Centennial Tribute to Pioneering Animator Joy Batchelor
On Sunday April 13, as part of the Bird’s Eye Film Festival, the Barbican art centre in London is set to hold an event to mark the centenary of animator Joy Batchelor. Speaking at the event will be Joy’s daughter Vivien Halas; author and former Channel 4 commissioning editor for animation Clare Kitson; BFI animation curator Jez Stewart, and film critic Brian Sibley, whose work includes books on Disney and Aardman.
Peter Gabriel’s ‘Sledgehammer’ Re-Animated by Disabled Artists
Dolphin Burger Studios, a workshop for disabled artists and animators in Brighton, England, has produced a fan-remake of the memorable stop-motion music video for Peter Gabriel’s “Sledgehammer.”
Teaser Trailer for Aardman’s ‘Shaun the Sheep Movie’
Starting out as a side character in the Wallace and Gromit short “A Close Shave” (1995), Shaun the Sheep became an unlikely franchise star. After getting his own line of merchandise and a spin-off television series (which was popular enough to spawn its own spin-off, “Timmy Time”) Shaun is set to become the subject of Aardman’s next feature in spring 2015. The film currently doesn’t appear to have a U.S. distributor.
‘Gumball,’ ‘Room on the Broom,’ ‘Peppa Pig’ Win British Animation Awards
A complete list of British Animation Awards winners with links and videos.
Book Review: A Fresh Take on Anime History by Jonathan Clements
Jonathan Clements’ “Anime: A History” differs greatly from more populist overviews of anime available in the English-language market. This book is not about the anime texts themselves, but the surrounding industry: Clements delivers a tightly-packed account of anime production, distribution and viewership from the silent era to the present day.
“Frozen” Scores Yet Another Win with BAFTA Award
The winners of the 2014 BAFTA film awards were announced today.
British Animation Awards 2014 Finalists Announced
The biennial British Animation Awards have announced their slate of nominees for 2014.
BAFTA 2014 Animation Nominations Announced
Three animated features and three shorts were nominated today for the 2014 BAFTA Awards.
Remembering British Animation Giants Harold Whitaker and Richard Taylor
Late last year, we lost two noted animation talents from the United Kingdom: Harold Whitaker and Richard Taylor. We remember their contributions to the art form.
“Random Acts”: Creating A Space for Independent Animated Films in Britain
In October 2011, Britain’s Channel 4 began airing a new initiative entitled Random Acts; this was designed as a space for …
Everything You Need to Know about Fanime
Pioneered by children, legitimized by people looking up weird stuff on YouTube, vitalized by online hoaxes, and existing entirely outside any kind of aesthetic considerations, fanime is something that could only have developed on the web.
British Animation Landscape is Robust but Underfunded, New Report Reveals
Animate Projects, the non-profit organization that supports experimental animation in Britain, has always been keen to adapt. Officially …
“Despicable Me 2,” “Room on the Broom,” “Adventure Time” Win BAFTAs
Although the BAFTA awards are generally touted as Britain’s equivalent to the Oscars, a key difference is that the BAFTAs are divided …
Joanna Quinn Bakes an Animation Cake
Joanna Quinn’s ident for the 2013 Bradford Animation Festival, which takes place this week, marks the twentieth anniversary of the …
Internet Explorer Fanart Leads To New Anime Mascot
The 2013 edition of Anime Festival Asia has an unusual contributor: Microsoft Singapore, which celebrated the event by creating a …
“Turmoil in the Toy Box” Revisited
Author Phil Phillips spent the 1980s warning parents about the occult forces in children’s TV animation. While his notoriety has passed, fear of the messages in cartoons still exists today.
“The Clangers” Will Come Back in 2015
The BBC has announced that The Clangers, a much-loved British stop motion series from 1969, will return in 2015. The new 52-episode …
How Filmmakers Use Unscripted Audio in Animation: A Survey From “Moonbird” to “Waltz with Bashir”
One of the better-known shorts made by John and Faith Hubley is Moonbird, from 1959. This film came about when the Hubleys made a secret …
How Can We Make Adult Animation Truly Adult?
The potted history of animation’s shifting demographics should be familiar. Once, animated films were aimed at general audiences. Over …
“Sarah and Duck”: TV Review
Pre-school animation appears to have something of a stigma in the United States. Cartoons targeted at children aged 6-11, such as …
Max Headroom And The Strange World Of Pseudo-CGI
Fake CG animation was a big deal in the early-1980s. What can digital animators today learn from this short-lived trend?
