Sony Announces 2017 & 2018 Animation Slate: Genndy Tartakovsky Isn’t Done With ‘Hotel Transylvania,’ Will Direct Third Film in Franchise

In a move signaling an expansion of its output and increased year-round production across multiple platforms, Sony Pictures Animation has formerly laid out its 2017 project release slate through 2018 – with a lineup that includes five theatrical features, three television series and one direct-to-video movie.
“I could not be more proud of the way Kristine Belson has rebuilt Sony Pictures Animation into the boldest home for animation in the industry,” added Tom Rothman, Chairman of Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group.
Sony Pictures Animation’s slate includes a diverse mixed slate of original stories and popular franchises, some previously announced, each with its own unique style and tone, underscoring the Studio’s pledge to develop projects aimed both inside and outside of the Sony Pictures Animation family brand intended for traditional, as well as online, distribution platforms.
Among the news in today’s announcement: Genndy Tartavakosky will be returning to direct 2018’s Hotel Transylvania 3; Bob Persichetti will make his feature directorial debut on the Phil Lord & Chris Miller animated Spider-Man feature; and Sony Pictures Animation will partner with Ivan Reitman and his production company Ghost Corp on the new 2018 animated television series Ghostbusters: Ecto Force. Also, a Hotel Transylvania: The Television Series will air on Disney Channels worldwide in 2017. Include Emojimovie and faith-based film The Star.
Complete press release with further details follow.
“We are meaningfully stepping up our level of production, while creating an environment that fosters the best talent,” Kristine Belson, President of Sony Pictures Animation, said in a statement. “Our goal is to enlarge our presence in the animation landscape with a uniquely diverse slate, and our strategy to get there is to let artists drive the movies creatively.”

Genndy Tartakovsky

After directing the first two films in the franchise, Sony Pictures Animation announced this afternoon that Genndy Tartakovsky (Dexter's Laboratory, Star Wars: Clone Wars) will return to direct Hotel Transylvania 3.
Many industry observers had expected that Tartakovsky would not return for the third installment, especially after Sony killed Tartakovsky’s pet project, a CGI Popeye reboot. Further, Tartakovsky’s creative instincts on the Hotel Transylvania films sometimes clashed with those of star and executive producer Adam Sandler, a battle that was confirmed in emails that were made public during the Sony leak.
Still, it’s hard to argue with success and it’s in everyone’s best interests to have Tartakovsky involved with the franchise: Hotel Transylvania 2 grossed $473 million globally, making it the second-highest grossing Sony animation film after The Smurfs and the bigget opening ever for a domestic September release.
Acknowledging the surprising turn of events, Tartakovsky said in a statement, “I thought I was done exploring the world of Hotel Transylvania after the first two films, but while I was away from the franchise finishing my TV show Samurai Jack, an idea sparked that I got really excited about and made it irresistible to return and helm myself this third adventure.”
Michelle Murdocca will produce the film again, and Adam Sandler will executive produce and return as the voice of Dracula. Michael McCullers (Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me, Boss Baby) is writing the screenplay, and Selena Gomez and Andy Samberg will revive their roles as his vampire daughter Mavis and her human husband Johnny, respectively.
Sony has slated the third installment of Hotel Transylvania for September 21, 2018.

THEATRICAL FEATURES

Smurfs: The Lost Village -- a fully-animated comedy that delivers a fresh new take on the famous blue creatures and marks a return to the tone and style of the beloved comic book creations of Peyo—hits theaters April 7, 2017. The feature is directed by Kelly Asbury (Shrek 2, Gnomeo & Juliet), produced by Jordan Kerner (The Smurfs 1 & 2, Charlotte’s Web), co-produced by Mary Ellen Bauder Andrews (HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA) and written by Stacey Harman and Pamela Ribon, based on the characters and works of Peyo. The voice cast includes Demi Lovato as Smurfette, Jack McBrayer as Clumsy, Joe Manganiello as Hefty, Danny Pudi as Brainy, and Rainn Wilson as Gargamel, with Mandy Patinkin as Papa.

Emojimovie: Express Yourself will offer a surprising and comic take on the secret world of our phones and the beloved characters that have become daily necessities in global interpersonal communication. The feature, targeting an August 2017 theatrical release, is directed by Anthony Leondis, produced by Michelle Raimo Kouyate, and written by Anthony Leondis & Eric Siegel.

The Star (working title, and formerly The Lamb) is scheduled for a December 8, 2017 theatrical release. The computer-animated feature is directed by Oscar nominee Timothy Reckart (Head Over Heels); executive produced by DeVon Franklin, Lisa Henson, and Brian Henson; co-produced by Jenni Magee Cook; and written by Carlos Kotkin and Simon Moore. In The Star, a small but brave donkey and his animal friends become the unsung heroes of the greatest story ever told, the first Christmas. Sony Pictures Animation produces in association with The Jim Henson Company. This is Sony’s first foray into faith-based animation (the studio has an established reputation for producing successful faith-based live-action films).

Spider-Man (untitled) -- From Phil Lord & Christopher Miller, the geniuses behind The Lego Movie and 21 Jump Street, comes an animated Spider-Man feature slated for theatrical release December 21, 2018. The film is being written by Phil Lord. Avi Arad, Amy Pascal, Phil Lord & Christopher Miller are producing; Craig Sost is co-producing. Bob Persichetti (head of story on Puss in Boots and The Little Prince and the original director on the upcoming Playmobil movie) is directing.

ANIMATED SERIES

Ghostbusters: Ecto Force -- A brand-new animated television series that will further expand the Ghostbusters cinematic universe and focus on a new generation of Ghostbusters in the year 2050 who capture ghosts around the world with help from local teams -- and some very cool gear! The younger-skewing Sony Pictures Animation series project is being creatively spearheaded by Ivan Reitman and his production company Ghost Corps. Ghostbusters: Ecto Force is eyeing an early 2018 debut.

Hotel Transylvania: The Television Series is targeted for a 2017 airdate. The animated television series, produced in partnership with Corus Entertainment’s Nelvana, will focus on the teenage years of Mavis, Dracula’s daughter, and her friends. It will be airing on the Disney Channel worldwide.

Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs is slated for its television series incarnation airdate in 2017. The 2D animated small-screen series, produced in partnership with DHX Media and commissioned by TELETOON in Canada, will expand on the adventures of the computer-animated feature films and will air on Cartoon Network in the U.S. and Turner channels across EMEA, APAC and Latin American markets.

DIRECT-TO-VIDEO

Surf’s Up 2: Wavemania will debut on home entertainment in the Spring of 2017. Directed by Henry Yu and produced by Michelle Wong, the follow-up to the 2007 Oscar nominee will hit the shores in time for the 10-year anniversary of the franchise. The project is in partnership with WWE Studios and Sony Pictures Home Entertainment. The voice cast includes WWE Superstars John Cena, The Undertaker, Triple H, Diva Paige and Mr. McMahon as an infamous big wave riding crew of penguins known as The Hang 5 which Cody Maverick convinces to let him join on their journey to a mysterious surf spot where legend has it they’ll find the biggest waves in the world.

Senior Vice Presidents of Development Michael Lachance (Emojimovie: Express Yourself, Ghostbusters: Ecto Force), Jenny Marchick (The Star, Hotel Transylvania 3) and Mike Moon (untitled animated Spider-Man) are in charge of creatively spearheading the Sony Pictures Animation slate.

Guru Studios Joins Production, GKIDS Heads to Exec Produce and Distribute Cartoon Saloon's "The Breadwinner"

Toronto’s Guru Studio and GKIDS, the well-known New York-based distributor of international animated features, have come onboard the production of two-time Academy Award nominated animation studio Cartoon Saloon’s The Breadwinner, which moved into animation production last month.
Guru, which produces TV series like Netflix’s Justin Time and the Nick Jr. series Paw Patrol, will contribute to the production of the film. Additionally, two artists from Guru will take on major roles: Stuart Shankly (Ever After High, Song of the Sea) will serve as assistant director, spending several months in Ireland at the start of production, and Sanatan Suryavanshi will work as production art supervisor, alongside Cartoon Saloon’s sequence director and art directors, to develop the look of some of the film’s key sequences.
“Guru was the clear choice when considering Canadian animation studios to work with,” said producer Anthony Leo, of Aircraft Pictures, an existing Canadian partner on the film. “They will bring another level of creativity and artistic vision to this picture.”
Guru’s president and creative director Frank Falcone and EVP content and strategy Mary Bredin will serve as executive producers on the film.
Established in 2000, Guru's mission is to entertain children around the world with innovative storytelling. Guru specializes in the visual and conceptual development of story and character driven projects using industry-leading digital production techniques to tell traditional and non-traditional stories. The Breadwinner is the studio’s first feature film.
"We are thrilled to be collaborating on this important story to ensure it reaches children and parents around the world," said Guru's Frank Falcone.
“Engaging an audience through the power of storytelling in a full length feature is an exciting challenge and we have an amazing opportunity here to work with such a talented creative team,” added Guru's Mary Bredin.

Also announced this week, GKIDS, which distributed Cartoon Saloon’s previous Oscar-nominated features The Secret of Kells and Song of the Sea, has increased its involvement in the film. The company’s two figureheads, CEO/founder Eric Beckman and SVP of distribution David Jesteadt, will come onboard as executive producers.
For GKIDS, it is the first time they are serving in a producing and financing capacity, in addition to distribution. They’ve slated The Breadwinner for a fall 2017 theatrical release in North America.
“We’ve been long-standing friends with everyone at Cartoon Saloon since those heady days when we celebrated our first Oscar nomination together for The Secret of Kells, and again five years later for Song of the Sea,” Beckman and Jesteadt said in a statement. “We knew we needed to be involved with The Breadwinner once we learned Nora [Twomey] would be bringing Deborah Ellis’ beautiful and compelling story to the big screen. We’re thrilled that this film marks our first foray into the creative process and we look forward to supporting Nora and the team in bringing their vision to audiences everywhere.”
The Breadwinner is based on the award-winning, best-selling young adult novel of the same name by Deborah Ellis, telling the story of Parvana, a brave young girl living under the Taliban regime in Afghanistan who, after her father’s unjust and unfair imprisonment, cuts her hair and disguises herself as a boy in order to provide for her family and become the breadwinner. Ellis wrote the screen story, and Anita Doron contributed the screenplay. The film, according to its producers, “celebrates the culture, history and beauty of Afghanistan with a cast that includes many performers of Afghan descent.”
The Breadwinner is directed by Cartoon Saloon’s Nora Twomey, who co-directed The Secret of Kells alongside Tomm Moore. A powerful and riveting story of self-empowerment and imagination in the face of oppression, The Breadwinner boasts the breathtaking hand-drawn animation that has made Cartoon Saloon one of the world’s most well-loved and respected animation studios.
The Breadwinner is produced by Aircraft Pictures’ Anthony Leo and Andrew Rosen, Cartoon Saloon’s Tomm Moore and Paul Young, and Melusine Productions’ Stephan Roelants. It also has involvement from Canada’s Aircraft Pictures and Luxembourg’s Melusine Productions (Song of the Sea, Ernest & Celestine), and is being executive produced in association with Angelina Jolie Pitt’s Jolie Pas Productions.
An official Ireland-Canada-Luxembourg co-production, The Breadwinner will be produced with the participation of Telefilm Canada, the Irish Film Board, Film Fund Luxembourg, the Harold Greenberg Fund, Shaw Rocket Fund, the OMDC and the BAI along with Gaia Entertainment and the Artemis Rising Foundation. Published by Groundwood Books, The Breadwinner novel has been in print for over 15 years and is recommended reading in numerous middle schools throughout the U.S., Canada and Europe.

GKIDS Takes Picking Up North American Aquirement Rights to Laudenbach's Daring French "The Girl without Hands" Feature at Cannes

GKIDS has announced today that it has bought North American rights to an upcoming animated feature, according to a report by Variety. Most of the independent animated films that GKIDS acquires for distribution have undeniable artistic merit, but its latest pick-up, The Girl Without Hands (La Jeune fille sans mains), might be among its most experimental and adult acquisitions, pushing the envelope for the type of animation that the already-daring distributor has made available to American cinemagoers.

Written and directed by French auteur/filmmaker Sébastien Laudenbach, the 76-minute feature is based on an infrequently adapted Brothers Grimm fairytale and produced by French production company Les Films Sauvages. In hard times, a girl is sold to the devil by her miller father. Protected by her purity from the archfiend, she escapes from the Devil who, in revenge, ends up having her hands cut off. The film uses a distinctively uncompromising and sophisticated graphic style, more common to short films than features, emphasizing line drawing over rendered figures. Facial features are suggested with spare brushstrokes, and figures are often drawn incomplete (though it all makes perfect sense when the drawings are viewed in motion). To get a sense of how unconventional the film’s style is, just take a look at these four consecutive drawings of the main character:

The deal was reportedly negotiated by Eric Beckman, President and CEO, and David Jesteadt, SVP Distribution for GKIDS, and Agathe Valentin, head of international sales for Pyramide International.

“Dave and I were both blown away. The film has an utterly transporting beauty and poetry, while the story unfolds with the powerful dream logic of a fairytale, taking you into the darker, deeper, primal origins and emotional core of the Grimm’s tales,” said GKIDS co-founder Eric Beckman to Variety. “With magic and cruelty, sublime beauty and tenderness, The Girl Without Hands is at once timeless and unlike anything you have seen before, a stunning example of the potential of the medium of animation as a powerful cinematic art form for adult moviegoers.”

GKIDS will release the film in North America at a yet-to-be-announced date. The deal was negotiated with Pyramide International, one of the top art house distributors in France, which acquired world sales rights to the film last month. It’s a unique pick-up for Pyramid, too, marking the first time that they’ve ever sold an animated feature.

The purchase was made following the film's world premiere last week as part of the ACID program in Cannes, a parallel selection of films that is independent of the Cannes Film Festival and aims to support emerging filmmakers and independent works that might be overlooked by the main festival. Laudenbach’s film will next screen in competition at the Annecy International Animation Festival in June this year.

Laudenbach was also the recipient of an Emilie Reynaud Prize in 2015 for Daphne ou la belle plante, which he co-directed with Sylvain Derosne.

Laudenbach, who is making his feature-length debut with this project, has been directing animated shorts since the ’90s, including films like Les yeux du renard; Journal, which won a Clermont-Ferrand Fest Youth Prize in 1998; and the black sand-animated short Vasco, which screened as part of the Cannes Critics' Week in 2010 and is embedded below:

Pixar's "Inside Out" Wins Best Animated Feature Oscar; "Bear Story" Wins Academy Award for Best Animated Short; "Bear Story" and "Ex Machina" Makes Animation History at the Oscars

It was a night of firsts at the Oscars, at least in the animated shorts category.

As predicted, Pixar Animation Studio's Inside Out won the Oscar statuette for Best Animated Feature, beating out Starburns Industries’ Anomalisa, directed by Charlie Kaufman and Duke Johnson and produced by Rosa Tran; Brazilian independent feature Boy and the World, directed by Alê Abreu; Aardman’s Shaun the Sheep Movie, directed by Mark Burton and Richard Starzak; and Studio Ghibli’s When Marnie Was There, directed by Hiromasa Yonebayashi and produced by Yoshiaki Nishimura.
Director Pete Docter and producer Jonas Riveras accepted the award with inspiring words to all kids out who feel conflicted by their inner thoughts. It marks the eighth time in nine years that a Walt Disney Company film has won the animated feature Academy Award. Toy Story's Sheriff Woody and Buzz Lightyear made the announcement.

Gabriel Osorio and Pato Escala’s CG film Bear Story topped the short animation category, which also included Prologue by Richard Williams and Imogen Sutton, Sanjay’s Super Team by Sanjay Patel and Nicole Grindle, We Can’t Live without Cosmos by Konstantin Bronzit, and World of Tomorrow by Don Hertzfeldt.
Director Gabriel Osorio, accepted the Oscar from... The Minions (!?). The film claims a number of firsts, including the first-ever win for a Chilean film at the Academy Awards, as well as the first time a film from Latin America has won the animated short category.

Bear Story’s tale of a bear separated from his wife and son is a political allegory about the way that families were torn apart under Chile’s notorious dictator Augusto Pinochet. Osorio acknowledged the film’s subtext during his acceptance speech when he dedicated the film to his grandfather and “all the people like him who had suffered in exile. We really hope that this must never happen again.”

On the visual effects side, Ex Machina took home Oscar gold, beating out the VFX teams from Mad Max: Fury Road, The Martian, The Revenant and box office juggernaut Star Wars: The Force Awakens. The Academy Award for visual effects was shared by Andrew Whitehurst, Paul Norris, Mark Ardington, and Sara Bennett. Bennettt is a co-founder of Milk VFX, which provided the film’s vfx along with Double Negative, Utopia, and Web FX. She is only the third woman ever nominated in the category, and the second woman to win the Oscar for visual effects in the 86-year-history of the category, which was earlier labelled the special effects category.
The last woman who was nominated in the visual effects category was Pamela Easley for her work on the 1993 movie Cliffhanger.

Congratulations to all the winners!

The full list of nominees and winners is shown below:

Performance by an actor in a leading role

• Bryan Cranston in Trumbo
• Matt Damon in The Martian
• Leonardo DiCaprio in The Revenant -- WINNER
• Michael Fassbender in Steve Jobs
• Eddie Redmayne in The Danish Girl

Performance by an actor in a supporting role

• Christian Bale in The Big Short
• Tom Hardy in The Revenant
• Mark Ruffalo in Spotlight
• Mark Rylance in Bridge of Spies -- WINNER
• Sylvester Stallone in Creed

Performance by an actress in a leading role

• Cate Blanchett in Carol
• Brie Larson in Room -- WINNER
• Jennifer Lawrence in Joy
• Charlotte Rampling in 45 Years
• Saoirse Ronan in Brooklyn

Performance by an actress in a supporting role

• Jennifer Jason Leigh in The Hateful Eight
• Rooney Mara in Carol
• Rachel McAdams in Spotlight
• Alicia Vikander in The Danish Girl -- WINNER
• Kate Winslet in Steve Jobs

Best animated feature film of the year

• Anomalisa -- Charlie Kaufman, Duke Johnson and Rosa Tran
• Boy and the World -- Alê Abreu
• Inside Out -- Pete Docter and Jonas Rivera -- WINNER
• Shaun the Sheep Movie -- Mark Burton and Richard Starzak
• When Marnie Was There -- Hiromasa Yonebayashi and Yoshiaki Nishimur

Achievement in cinematography

• Carol -- Ed Lachman
• The Hateful Eight -- Robert Richardson
• Mad Max: Fury Road -- John Seale
• The Revenant -- Emmanuel Lubezki -- WINNER
• Sicario -- Roger Deakins

Achievement in costume design

• Carol -- Sandy Powell
• Cinderella -- Sandy Powell
• The Danish Girl -- Paco Delgado
• Mad Max: Fury Road -- Jenny Beavan -- WINNER
• The Revenant -- Jacqueline West

Achievement in directing

• The Big Short -- Adam McKay
• Mad Max: Fury Road -- George Miller
• The Revenant -- Alejandro G. Iñárritu -- WINNER
• Room -- Lenny Abrahamson
• Spotlight -- Tom McCarthy

Best documentary feature

• Amy -- Asif Kapadia and James Gay-Rees -- WINNER
• Cartel Land -- Matthew Heineman and Tom Yellin
• The Look of Silence -- Joshua Oppenheimer and Signe Byrge Sørensen
• What Happened, Miss Simone? -- Liz Garbus, Amy Hobby and Justin Wilkes
• Winter on Fire: Ukraine’s Fight for Freedom -- Evgeny Afineevsky and Den Tolmor

Best documentary short subject

• Body Team 12 -- David Darg and Bryn Mooser
• Chau, beyond the Lines -- Courtney Marsh and Jerry Franck
• Claude Lanzmann: Spectres of the Shoah -- Adam Benzine
• A Girl in the River: The Price of Forgiveness -- Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy -- WINNER
• Last Day of Freedom -- Dee Hibbert-Jones and Nomi Talisman

Achievement in film editing

• The Big Short -- Hank Corwin
• Mad Max: Fury Road -- Margaret Sixel -- WINNER
• The Revenant -- Stephen Mirrione
• Spotlight -- Tom McArdle
• Star Wars: The Force Awakens -- Maryann Brandon and Mary Jo Markey

Best foreign language film of the year

• Embrace of the Serpent -- Colombia
• Mustang -- France
• Son of Saul -- Hungary -- WINNER
• Theeb -- Jordan
• A War -- Denmark

Achievement in makeup and hairstyling

• Mad Max: Fury Road -- Lesley Vanderwalt, Elka Wardega and Damian Martin -- WINNER
• The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed out the Window and Disappeared -- Love Larson and Eva von Bahr
• The Revenant -- Siân Grigg, Duncan Jarman and Robert Pandini

Achievement in music written for motion pictures (Original score)

• Bridge of Spies -- Thomas Newman
• Carol -- Carter Burwell
• The Hateful Eight -- Ennio Morricone -- WINNER
• Sicario -- Jóhann Jóhannsson
• Star Wars: The Force Awakens -- John Williams

Achievement in music written for motion pictures (Original song)

• “Earned It” from Fifty Shades of Grey
Music and Lyric by Abel Tesfaye, Ahmad Balshe, Jason Daheala Quenneville and Stephan Moccio
• “Manta Ray” from Racing Extinction
Music by J. Ralph and Lyric by Antony Hegarty
• “Simple Song #3” from Youth
Music and Lyric by David Lang
• “Til It Happens to You” from The Hunting Ground
Music and Lyric by Diane Warren and Lady Gaga
• “Writing’s On the Wall” from Spectre
Music and Lyric by Jimmy Napes and Sam Smith 

Best motion picture of the year

• The Big Short -- Brad Pitt, Dede Gardner and Jeremy Kleiner, Producers
• Bridge of Spies -- Steven Spielberg, Marc Platt and Kristie Macosko Krieger, Producers
• Brooklyn -- Finola Dwyer and Amanda Posey, Producers
• Mad Max: Fury Road -- Doug Mitchell and George Miller, Producers
• The Martian -- Simon Kinberg, Ridley Scott, Michael Schaefer and Mark Huffam, Producers
• The Revenant -- Arnon Milchan, Steve Golin, Alejandro G. Iñárritu, Mary Parent and Keith Redmon, Producers
• Room -- Ed Guiney, Producer
• Spotlight -- Michael Sugar, Steve Golin, Nicole Rocklin and Blye Pagon Faust, Producers -- WINNER

Achievement in production design

• Bridge of Spies -- Production Design: Adam Stockhausen; Set Decoration: Rena DeAngelo and Bernhard Henrich
• The Danish Girl -- Production Design: Eve Stewart; Set Decoration: Michael Standish
• Mad Max: Fury Road -- Production Design: Colin Gibson; Set Decoration: Lisa Thompson -- WINNER
• The Martian -- Production Design: Arthur Max; Set Decoration: Celia Bobak
• The Revenant -- Production Design: Jack Fisk; Set Decoration: Hamish Purdy

Best animated short film

• Bear Story -- Gabriel Osorio and Pato Escala -- WINNER
• Prologue -- Richard Williams and Imogen Sutton
• Sanjay’s Super Team -- Sanjay Patel and Nicole Grindle
• We Can’t Live without Cosmos -- Konstantin Bronzit
• World of Tomorrow -- Don Hertzfeldt

Best live action short film

• Ave Maria -- Basil Khalil and Eric Dupont
• Day One -- Henry Hughes
• Everything Will Be Okay (Alles Wird Gut) -- Patrick Vollrath
• Shok -- Jamie Donoughue
• Stutterer -- Benjamin Cleary and Serena Armitage -- WINNER

Achievement in sound editing

• Mad Max: Fury Road -- Mark Mangini and David White -- WINNER
• The Martian -- Oliver Tarney
• The Revenant -- Martin Hernandez and Lon Bender
• Sicario -- Alan Robert Murray
• Star Wars: The Force Awakens -- Matthew Wood and David Acord

Achievement in sound mixing

• Bridge of Spies -- Andy Nelson, Gary Rydstrom and Drew Kunin
• Mad Max: Fury Road -- Chris Jenkins, Gregg Rudloff and Ben Osmo -- WINNER
• The Martian -- Paul Massey, Mark Taylor and Mac Ruth
• The Revenant -- Jon Taylor, Frank A. Montaño, Randy Thom and Chris Duesterdiek
• Star Wars: The Force Awakens -- Andy Nelson, Christopher Scarabosio and Stuart Wilson

Achievement in visual effects

• Ex Machina -- Andrew Whitehurst, Paul Norris, Mark Ardington and Sara Bennett -- WINNER
• Mad Max: Fury Road -- Andrew Jackson, Tom Wood, Dan Oliver and Andy Williams
• The Martian -- Richard Stammers, Anders Langlands, Chris Lawrence and Steven Warner
• The Revenant -- Rich McBride, Matthew Shumway, Jason Smith and Cameron Waldbauer
• Star Wars: The Force Awakens -- Roger Guyett, Patrick Tubach, Neal Scanlan and Chris Corbould

Adapted screenplay

• The Big Short -- Screenplay by Charles Randolph and Adam McKay -- WINNER
• Brooklyn -- Screenplay by Nick Hornby
• Carol -- Screenplay by Phyllis Nagy
• The Martian -- Screenplay by Drew Goddard
• Room -- Screenplay by Emma Donoghue

Original screenplay

• Bridge of Spies -- Written by Matt Charman and Ethan Coen & Joel Coen
• Ex Machina -- Written by Alex Garland
• Inside Out -- Screenplay by Pete Docter, Meg LeFauve, Josh Cooley; Original story by Pete Docter, Ronnie del Carmen
• Spotlight -- Written by Josh Singer & Tom McCarthy -- WINNER
• Straight Outta Compton -- Screenplay by Jonathan Herman and Andrea Berloff; Story by S. Leigh Savidge & Alan Wenkus and Andrea Berloff

Happy 75th Birthday, Hayao Miyazaki!

Happy birthday to Japan’s most successful and influential animated filmmaker of all time, Hayao Miyazaki, who turns 75! The Japanese animation legend was born today, January 5, in 1941. If you’re looking for a way to celebrate, you can watch all of his animated features on Amazon’s new Blu-ray boxset. I’ll take the opportunity to recommend reading this revealing profile article about the man Miyazaki from a 2005 edition of The New Yorker.

Watercolor sketch by Miyazaki for “My Neighbor Totoro.”

Disney Sets Hour-Long Final Episode of "Gravity Falls" Airing For Feb. 15th.; Creator Alex Hirsch Explains Why He’s Ending the Show After 2 Seasons

The Emmy Award-winning quirky, popular Disney XD animated series Gravity Falls will reach its final showdown with a highly anticipated one-hour series finale episode that will air Monday February 15th (7:00 p.m., EST/PT).

Gravity Falls is coming to an end — a decision made by the show’s creator, Alex Hirsch.

“There’s no easy way to say it so I’m just going to say it: Gravity Falls is coming to an end,” Hirsch wrote on his Tumblr. 

“Gravity Falls” creator Alex Hirsch. (Photo by Greg De Stefano.)

“The first thing to know is that the show isn't being cancelled [in any way],” the frequently-flanneled series creator Alex Hirsch wrote on his Tumblr. “It’s being finished. This is 100% my choice, and it[’]s something I decided on a very long time ago. I always designed Gravity Falls to be a finite series about one epic summer- a series with a beginning, middle, and end. There are so many shows that go on endlessly until they lose their original spark, or mysteries that are cancelled before they ever get a chance to payoff.”

Hirsch has promised fans that these last episodes are leading to a finale that will answer some, but not all, questions about the show’s mysteries.

“I wanted Gravity Falls to have a mystery that had a real answer, an adventure that had a real climax, and an ending that had a real conclusion for the characters I care so much about,” the 30-year-old CalArts graduate wrote. “This is very unusual in television and a pretty big experiment, and Disney for their part has been enormously supportive. I know that hits are rare in this business, and its hard to let one of them go, so I’m so grateful that this company has had the vision to let me start (and end) the show the way I always wanted to.”

Disney XD released its own statement confirming the show’s end saying:

“Alex Hirsch had a masterful plan for the stories and characters of Gravity Falls and, through 40 episodes and 17 shorts, he and a team of outstanding writers, artists and actors consistently delivered an inspired and unique story. Alex made the decision to conclude the story at this time, and while we’re disappointed we all won’t have the opportunity to explore more of the Gravity Falls world, we respect his creative vision.”

Hirsch has left the door open for future Gravity Falls revivals, writing, “[J]ust because I’ve finished the story I wanted to tell doesn’t necessarily mean we will never see Dipper, Mabel, & Stan again. It means that this chapter is closed, and that I, at least for now, am personally done telling their story.”

He has not announced a new project, but encourages his fans to follow him on Twitter for future news.

Gravity Falls ‘Weirdmageddon 3: Take Back The Falls’

In the episode titled "Weirdmageddon 3: Take Back The Falls," Ford discovers Bill's true motives and then a final confrontation with Bill leads to the family's ultimate fate and greatest sacrifice. Starring Jason Ritter ("Parenthood") as Dipper and Kristen Schaal ("The Last Man on Earth") as Mabel, the animated adventure-comedy series was created and is executive-produced by Alex Hirsch. The series will continue to be presented daily on Disney XD and Disney Channels around the world.

Disney Publishing will release the official Gravity Falls: Journal 3 that appears within the TV series and is an integral part of the "Gravity Falls" story, in July 2016. 

Additionally, celebrating the series finale, a half-hour program introducing exclusive facts about the series, featuring special commentary from Hirsch and hosted by "Gravity Falls" character Time Baby, will air Monday February 8th  (8:00 p.m., EST/PT) on Disney XD. 

And finally, Disney XD will present a 68-hour marathon of Gravity Falls episodes beginning Friday February 12th (11:00 p.m., ET/PT). The new interactive game Gravity Falls: Take Back The Falls, allowing players to help Dipper and Mabel save the world, will launch on WATCH Disney XD in mid-February.
Since its premiere in June 2012, Gravity Falls has captivated millions of kids and families with its comedic storytelling, unique mysteries and beloved characters. In the U.S., it is the #1 series in Disney XD's history in total viewers and all target kid and boy demographics, and accounts for the network's Top 10 regular animated-series telecasts of all time in Kids 6-11 and the Top 6 in Boys 6-11. In addition to two Emmy Awards, the series won this year's Children's British Academy of Film and Television Award (BAFTA) and has garnered two Annie Awards.
Inspired by Hirsch's real-life adventures with his twin sister, Gravity Falls follows twin brother and sister Dipper and Mabel Pines on an adventure of a lifetime when they spend the summer with their great uncle, Grunkle Stan, in the mysterious town of Gravity Falls, Oregon.
In addition to Ritter and Schaal, Gravity Falls stars Hirsch as Grunkle Stan and Soos, and Linda Cardellini as Wendy. The recurring cast includes J.K. Simmons as Ford, Will Forte as Tyler the Cute Biker, Jennifer Coolidge as Lazy Susan, Stephen Root as Bud Gleeful, T.J. Miller as Robbie, Gregg Turkington as Toby Determined, Kevin Michael Richardson as Sheriff Blubs, Keith Ferguson as Deputy Durland and Thurop Van Orman as Li'l Gideon Gleeful. Renowned guest stars throughout the series' two seasons have included Neil deGrasse Tyson, Nick Offerman, Larry King, Nathan Fillion, Alfred Molina, Patton Oswalt, Lance Bass, Coolio and John Oliver.
Gravity Falls is produced by Disney Television Animation, and carries a TV-Y7 parental guideline.

I can't believe I'm saying this, as a fan of Gravity Falls, but I like this idea. A show like Gravity Falls, one with an ongoing storyline building toward a designated finale, isn't meant to go on and on forever. In fact, I think Western animation needs more of this-- more limited-format series that tell in-depth stories. I hate it when a good cartoon goes on until it inevitably sucks hard enough to get cancelled for low ratings. I hate how that's the usual intent for shows in this country. I love Hirsch for fighting the system. I figured it would end now, considering the events in recent episodes. While I'm sad to see it go, I admire Hirsch's decision to stop the show while it's still in it's prime and not drag it out.

I love Gravity Falls. Alex Hirsch ran with the opportunity given to him to make one of the best animated series we've seen on Disney. And he did it his way. I would like to thank Alex Hirsch and everyone else involved for making such a great and phenomenal series. It will be missed. Whether he comes back with the Pine family, or another project with a whole set of new characters, I know it will be awesome. It's been a wild ride, and I'm looking forward to his return after a nice deserved break and what's next for Hirsch's team. Godspeed Alex!