A Shortage Of Shorts...

Animated shorts are a wonderful entertainment medium...

From the earliest stages of my childhood, I remember watching shorts.  From Sundays watching the Wonderful World of Disney, to afternoons viewing Warner Bros. shorts, I grew up getting my fix on short narratives of iconic characters that entertain me both day and night.  I especially loved Disney shorts, because they were so rare.  Unlike Warner Bros. cartoons, the shorts from the Mouse rarely aired as often and were much more cherished then the daily dose of Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck that I was overdosed on after school every weekday.

Disney still makes great shorts, as you'll see this fall when "Get A Horse!" comes out in front of "Frozen" in theaters.  It's a perfect example of how shorts are still relevant in these modern times.  And the Lamp was the only animated studio that kept the shorts alive for the most part since the mid 90s.  There have been other shorts, but they were few and far between until the public began to notice The continual inclusion of shorts in front of each new Pixar film.  It became a habit, and the habit became a standard.  And when John Lasseter took over Walt Disney Animation Studios, he started a shorts program that began to put them into production for future animated films.  Slowly, they're becoming standard for the Hat Building's features as well. And that's a very good thing.

But it's not enough.

A couple of shorts a year is simply inadequate for entertainment consumption.  Sure, a short from a Pixar film and a short from a Disney film are great to watch, but never enough.  What about all the other live-action films that Walt Disney Studios makes?  Remember when "National Treasure: Book of Secrets" had the Goofy animated short "How To Hook Up Your Home Theater" in front of it?  It added a lot of value to seeing the film.  Not that it was a bad movie, but it was an additional part that justified seeing it and getting more for your money.

Imagine shorts in front of every, or at least most of Disney's films.  It would differentiate itself from the competition by adding extra value to each film.  While other film studios would only give you the movie, Disney would give you the movie and a bonus as well.  And they all don't have to be from Mickey or Luxo.  Remember, the Walt Disney Company has many divisions even within the film division.

Pixar's Cars Toons:

Consisting mostly of shorts about Mater and his imaginary adventures, the World of Cars as much room for growth.  As well as having Maters Tall Tales, there could be other adventures in Radiator Springs or around the world with Lightning McQueen and other mechanical creations.  And from what I hear there will be, but not soon enough or enough in quantity.

Toy Story Toons:

With a fourth Toy Story film well off into the future, John Lasseter and Ed Catmull have found a way to continue the adventures of these beloved characters for audiences across the world.  The three shorts (Hawaiian Vacation, Partysaurus Rex, and Small Fry) done so far have been in next way of extending the franchise beyond the most perfect trilogy ever made on film.  The new Halloween special "Toy Story of Terror" is another way to have a longer form animated short, while still building on the stories.  One other short is actually in production now, and at least one more is being developed. I hope that they continue and hopefully expand the shorts for their endearing quality is greatly desired. After all, Pixar Canada needs more work right?

Walt Disney Animation Studio Shorts:

The Hat Building has slowly, but steadily been making shorts available for each of the current animated features.  While "Get A Horse!" is the latest creation, it's simply the latest in a line of jewels that has come out of the main division.  From "Tick Tock Tale" to  the longer form "Prep & Landing" specials, or the charming "Paperman" the work coming out of WDAS is top notch.  Now if they'll just make another hand drawn one as we'll crafted as "The Ballad of Nessie" I'll line up.  Perhaps a new Mickey Mouse cartoon, or is it dreaming too much for a Donald Duck short?  Animators start knocking on John's door a little louder please.

Pixar Animation Studios:

The Lamp is the one that gets the credit for making shorts cool again.  Not that they weren't, but suits at Disney and elsewhere would simply stick the shorts made at festivals and not even think about placing them before a film.  Pixar changed that.  They proudly put them in front of their latest release and audiences became use to that special feeling of getting something more, even when the film was enough.  From "Geri's Game" to "The Blue Umbrella", the shorts from up in Emeryville have pushed the technology to show why animation is such a unique medium.  More is a good thing here.

Marvel Studios:

Marvel already does shorts with its One Shot program, but they tend yo be extras on the DVD/Blu-Rays.  While I loved the "Agent Carter" short, it was about fourteen minutes long,  That might be too long in front if a feature, but a five or six minute animated adventure of Blade, Daredevil or Luke Cage might hit the right spot.  They've had success so far with their live-action ones, maybe it's time to gauge the publics interest with some other characters not seen yet (hello, The Runaways anyone?). Remember that two of their shorts, "Item 47" led to the series, "Agents of Shields" and a potential series, "Agent Carter" based on the short.  More Marvel magic could/should happen.



Lucasfilm:

Disney's newest acquisition doesn't have any plans for making shorts, but they should.  Imagine a short in either live-action or animation featuring adventures in that galaxy far. Far away.  I believe seeing a live-action one , but an animated one would be awesome.  The current craze at Disney North is CG, but I'd prefer a hand drawn short.  I know that there is a lot if talk about a Han Solo film, but without Harrison Ford I wouldn't find it believable in live-action.  But an animated short of Han Solo meeting Chewie for the first time?  Yeah, that I'd buy.  And they could also make shorts featuring a certain archeologist if they wanted.  I'd be in line to see that.  Or even an animated Boba Fett short in a stylized Anime design.

The possibilities are infinite...

Retro Woman...

If you've watched DC Nation on Cartoon Network before, tomorrow there's a nice surprise...

As well as shows like "Beware The Batman", the Network also had several experimental shorts.  Many of them quite interesting, including a very hip one that premieres tomorrow.  While the Bunny Suits sit around and try to figure out how to work Princess Diana into the DC Cinematic Universe, television has found a way to make a really bizarre short about the Amazon.

The new animated short done like a 70's blacksploitation film, with very good, stylized animation really is entertaining.  Hopefully, there'll be more these.  Maybe even cameo guess stars?  Would it be interesting to see Superman show up in an Afro?  Maybe the Flash and bellbottoms ?  Batman driving a big Cadillac Batmobile all pimped out? Now that would be wild.  Meanwhile, Warner Bros. struggles to figure out who'll get the next green lantern.

I mean green light...

Classic...

I love serials, I love old adventure films, and I love DC Comics...

So when Disney animator Robb Pratt created his own little short featuring a retro-50's Man of Steel, I had to check it out. It's a fun little piece that's only about a minute long, but filled with geeky, pulp love. I know exactly where Pratt is coming from with this short. This has the same look and feel that I'd want for an Indiana Jones animated series. Call up Lucas and have him get Paul Dini to work with Pratt on a series. It'd be awesome!

And classic...

Hat Tip to /Film.

Mini-Marvels...

It looks like we can look forward to a lot more unknown in the Marvel Movie Universe...

By that I mean, a lot of secondary and B-Level characters making their mark on the big screen and possibly television.

If you haven't read it, Latino Review is reporting from one of their sources that Marvel Studios and Disney are thinking about attaching short film versions of their lesser known heroes. These shorts, between 8-11 minutes would be introductory and a great way for the Mouse to gauge how much interest the public has in these characters without having to spend hundreds of millions of dollars only to find that the world has no interest in seeing them*.

I find this fascinating for one reason, this is what Hollywood used to call "Serials." This is what the inspiration for "Raiders of the Lost Ark," "Star Wars," and several other films. I look forward to this immensely. It's not known if these projects will be live-action or hand-drawn/cg animation. I would hope that will Disney's vast collection of animation, they could pull something quite enjoyable together. This might be the route that Marvel goes with that proposed S.H.I.E.L.D. animated series that is one of many ideas that the Suits are going over.

Wow, first Disney Shorts, then Pixar Shorts and now Marvel Shorts...

Pixarama...

If you love Pixar and you have cable then turn into ABC Family tonight...

The cable network is broadcasting a two-hour block of all those brilliant animated shorts that have come from the Lamp over the last decade and a half.

The shorts will runs from 7-9PM ET/PT and rebroadcast from 9-11PM ET/PT.

If you miss these, shame on you, but there are two encore broadcasts on Friday, December 18 at 10PM ET/PT and Saturday, December 19 at 6PM ET/PT.

Set those DVR's and sit back an enjoy the art of the short...

Tic Tock No...

This was a story that was going to run yesterday but something came up...

Unfortunately, this isn't good news. It appears that when Walt Disney Animation Studios' "The Princess and the Frog" comes out in November, it may not have the short, "Tic Tock Tale," in front of Musker and Clements' new musical.

There won't be enough artists at WDAS to finish it in time for the November debut. Many of those that were working on the project have been pulled to work on another hand-drawn project (one that'll be out next Valentine's Day). I know that there are more artist out there, but the Mouse is playing it conservatively and not wanting to hire any additional artist only to have them let go right after its completion. Times are tight for these divisions right now. Perhaps after December we can see some sunshine pumped into the cubicles of the Hat Building.

It's not known if there will be another classic short to take its place or if there will be a short in front of it at all, for that matter. So, barring some change in the Mouse's plans, we may have to watch Disney's return to hand drawn animation without a short to go in front of it. But again, just to make it clear, this is a delay not a cancellation of this short. It will be made and it will be shown. Just not in front of the next Disney animated film.

Developing...

Looney Tunes Versus Silly Symphonies...

There's always been comparisons like this.

You're either an Elvis fan or a Beatles fan...

You're either an Apple fan or a Windows fan...

You're either a Coke fan or a Pepsi fan...

And naturally there is the saying that you're either a Disney animation fan or a Warner Brothers animation fan.

It's really apples and oranges for me. Well, at least the animation part. As for the others, I'm an Elvis man, an avid Mac user and I prefer Mountain Dew to either of those sodas...

Most might think since I have a blog with Disney the name that I prefer the Mouse's animation. Yeah, I do really prefer it. But not in a superior way. I just happen to love the Disney classics and tone of the shorts as compared to Warner's shorts. I happen to love Warner shorts though. I think they're far more edgy than the Disney ones. My favorite Disney character is Donald and my favorite Warner character is Daffy so I guess you could say I like the wild, irreverent characters that both studios offer, but I prefer Disney's more gentle and subtle prism of viewing life. But I have a great deal of Warner Brothers animation on DVD too. I love Bugs and Porky and all those zany Looney Tunes characters. In fact, I don't think there will ever be a character voice actor as good as Mel Blanc. Ever. He's simply amazing and irreplaceable. It's also a problem for me too, because when I hear the Warners characters voiced now(especially Bugs) they just don't sound right. It's not the same with Disney characters... whenever I see someone else do the voice I don't automatically think that it sounds different. Disney's celluloid characters are simply more replaceable and interchangeable when it comes to voicing. This isn't to say that people like Clarence Nash and Jim MacDonald aren't great voices, but there are people that can do great impressions of the Disney characters and pull it off successfully. For Warner, it's simply impossible to live up to the unique interpretations of Blanc.

As for the cartoons themselves, the stylings of Warner versus Disney shorts are quite different also. The insane and crazy, tone of the Warner shorts are far more carefree and wild in story and structure. While Disney chose to tell stories within the constructed narrative of American life, Warner chose to be the rebel... the non-conformists.

I grew up seeing more Warner cartoons than Disney... they saturated my childhood. Disney showed theirs far less so maybe it was the feeling of them being so special that they only played them in a limited environment that made them feel so important. Everyday I came home from school to turn on the tube and catch Foghorn Leghorn or some other character make me forget about the bad day I had had trying to do math or science. A Disney cartoon was rare on a Sunday night if I got the chance to watch the Wonderful World of Disney. But as I've gotten older I don't compare them... there's no reason you can't enjoy a slice of Bugs with your Mickey or vice versa.

The great opportunity kids have today is to actually own what I had to wait to see after school. We can now enjoy classic animation(Warner or Disney) anytime we want... be it when you get home from school or at three in the morning when you have insomnia. And with that said, there really is only one thing left to say...

That's all folks.

Today, Was A Blustery Day...

On this day, thirty-nine years ago, "Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day is released in front of one of Disney's live-action features. It is the second of the three "Winnie the Pooh" shorts that will eventually make up "The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh" film. It wins the Academy Award for Best Animated Short... and it's my favorite of all the Winnie shorts.

Pure Disney Magic.

John Lasseter's Shorts For Sale...

His as well as many other Pixar employee's shorts are going on sale. No, they don't think they're soooo special that you'll buy their boxers or briefs... we're talking the animated shorts.

For the first time all 13 Pixar Animation Studios short films are available in "The Pixar Short Films Collection Vol. 1" on DVD and high definition Blu-ray. The disc will be available on November 6 and includes many behind the scenes interviews and never before seen bonus material featuring John Lasseter and many others that shaped the Lamp.

Get in line today... or just pre-order it.

This Fall Things Will Get Goofy...

I know some of the news I'm reporting is a few days old but I've been gone and am trying to catch up. I don't know if anyone has seen it but there is a great article over on Animated-Views.com with an interview with Disney Legends Andreas Deja and Mark Henn about the new Walt Disney Animation Studios new short "How to hook up your home theater" staring Goofy.

I can't wait to see this when it's released in the fall... possibly with Enchanted maybe? The poster for it is retro 50's check it out...



Hopefully the Studio will ramp up and do two to four of these a year... they already have six in production so I hope at least a couple of those will come out every year. I also want the other originals (Mickey, Donald and Pluto) to appear in shorts too... I would relish the chance to see Donald staring in another short!

The six in production are:

"How to hook up your Home Theater" staring Goofy, directed by Kevin Deters and Stevie Wermers.

"Golgo’s Guest" about a lonely Russian frontier guard and his encounter with a space alien, directed by Chris Williams(this is the project that landed him directing American Dog).

"Prep And Landing" the Christmas tale of two inept Elves readying a house for Santa’s visit.

"The Ballad Of Nessie" which is a stylized account of the origin of the famous Loch Ness monster.

And two other unnamed shorts that are currently working their way through the pipeline, one of which is just starting production.

I can't wait to see them all. How about you?

How To Install Your Home Theater...

Well, earlier this summer Superman Returns and in about a year Walt Disney's Goofy will return!

Four new shorts are in development at Disney: “The Ballad of Nessie,” a stylized account of the origin of the Loch Ness monster; “Golgo’s Guest,” about a meeting between a Russian frontier guard and an extraterrestrial; “Prep and Landing,” in which two inept elves ready a house for Santa’s visit; and “How to Install Your Home Theater,” the return of Goofy’s popular “How to” shorts of the ’40s and ’50s, in which a deadpan narrator explains how to play a sport or execute a task, while Goofy attempts to demonstrate — with disastrous results. The new Goofy short is slated to go into production early next year.

I always loved the Disney shorts. Donald is my favorite Disney character, but Goofy is a wonderful way to begin the shorts program again at the House of Mouse.

Disney Executive Don Haln was quoted talking about the shorts in the weekend New York Times: “The Goofy short will be very funny, but we won’t have to spend a lot of money and time on it, which won’t diminish it one bit,” Mr. Hahn said. “Obviously there’s a financial component to these films. We have to make them responsibly. But the big investment is for the long haul. We’re saying we believe in new talent and new techniques, and they’ll pay dividends in 10 to 20 years, just as we’re reaping the benefits now from the investment we made 25 years ago, training John Lasseter and Andrew Stanton and Tim Burton and John Musker and Ron Clemmons.”

And you can definately see how the situation has changed since John Lasseter has become the head of Disney animation: “I feel Disney is a very different place than it was a year ago,” said Chris Williams, a story artist who is developing “Golgo’s Guest” and “Prep and Landing,” “and the shorts program is just part of that. It’s become a very exciting place to work.”

Here's to a great future at the movies. I can't wait till the lights go down and I get to see a Disney short before a new Disney film!