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So how exactly do you make an eyeball look like it's 18 years old? Copyright Disney Pixar. All rights reserved That was the challenge that Ricky Nierva faced on " Monsters University ." As the art director / production designer of Pixar's first-ever prequel, Nierva (working closely...

Earlier this week, Paul T. sent me an e-mail with an image attached that -- I'm sure -- will titillate a certain segment of the Disney fan community. Jim, Check out what I found on an animation art auction cite!! It's a bare-ass Ariel!! Copyright Disney Enterprises, Inc. All rights reserved Well...

Huffington Post -- Rich Moore looks back at the roads not taken with Disney's "Wreck-It Ralph" It was the story that artists at Walt Disney Animation Studios had been struggling to get a handle on for over 15 years. A comic action-adventure set inside of the world of video games, where...

If you listen carefully today, you can hear thousands of people around the country quietly cursing. "And why are these people cursing?," you ask. Well, that's because these folks are just now realizing it's February 13th. Which means that tomorrow is Valentine's Day. That day when...

Is it just me or has animated cartoon film making finally evolved into something else? With motion pictures like " Rango " and " The Adventures of Tintin " finding a home in the Academy Awards animated film category I can't help but wonder how these movies are all that different...

Given that " John Carter " is mostly set on the red planet, it's only appropriate that the stars who attended Wednesday night's premiere of this Andrew Stanton film ... Photo by Shelly Valladolid ... walked down the red carpet at Regal Cinemas L.A. Live . Walt Disney Pictures really...

New and a bit alarming Who 'd have ever thought that this could be? Well, " Beauty and the Beast " co-director Kirk Wise doesn't seem all that surprised that this Academy Award-winning film (which was the first animated feature to ever be nominated for Best Picture) got selected for...

The redo of Disney California Adventure Park is really coming together nicely. As you can see from these shots that Noe took yesterday, its Pan-Pacific-Auditorium-inspired entrance is getting closer & closer to completion. Photo by Noe Valladolid How close? A quick peek over that Disney-characters...

Did you catch that piece about Michael Barrier that the Huffington Post ran last week? Where this noted animation historian said that the films that Pixar produces " ... are emotionally manipulative in a fundamentally dishonest way." Well, no disrespect to Mr. Barrier (By that I mean: I'm...

Did you catch that terrific profile of Michael Giacchino that " Variety " ran yesterday? I mean, if you thought that this Academy Award-winning composer was busy in 2009 - 2010 (i.e. that's when he composed & conducted the music for " Prep and Landing ," " Day & Night...

So why exactly should you buy " Two Guys Named Joe: Master Animation Storytellers Joe Grant & Joe Ranft " (Disney Editions, August 2010)? Because this new John Canemaker book not only does a brilliant job of paying tribute to these animation legends, this 192-page hardcover contains one...

What with " Toy Story 3 " in theaters right now, " Cars 2 " due to debut next summer and a sequel to " Monsters, Inc. " reportedly in the works, one has to wonder what other follow-ups Pixar Animation Studios has planned. Well, based on the domain names that The Walt Disney...

With “Toy Story 3” earning over $365 million worldwide since this Lee Unkrich film was released on June 18 th (More importantly, with the “Toy Story” franchise having produced over $8 billion in global retail sales to date), it is sometime hard to remember that – just 15 years ago – there weren’t a whole...

I’ve often been asked this goofy question. “How would you run an animation studio if you were in charge?” Questions like this come from young people who assume I have answers. The truth is, I’m not in that position, and I don’t expect to be. However, I once ran my own business...

As I was listening to the Vikings in “ How to Train Your Dragon ” talk about how vile & nasty dragons were … I couldn’t help but think about the attitude that some animation fans have toward Dreamworks Animation . You know the people that I’m talking about. The ones who – when you say that you actually...

You’ve probably seen a lot of Joe Ranft -related material popping up around the Web over the past few days. John Musker ’s excellent story reel-based tribute to his old pal (who was tragically killed in an automobile accident back on August 16, 2005 ). No to mention the first installment of Leo Holzer...

If you’re an animation fan – a SERIOUS animation fan – you’re going to want to be in Beverly Hills on Tuesday, July 28 th . Japanese animation master Hayao Miyazaki Why For? Because on that night – and for that night only – two animation legends will be sharing a stage. John Lasseter will be hosting...

Earlier this week, it was kind of ironic that – in a headline that talked up how well “Up” was doing at the domestic box office – Variety mentioned “ The Incredibles .” Copyright Disney Enterprises, Inc and Pixar Animation Studios. All Rights Reserved “Ironic how?,” you ask. Well, in a time where this...

Some years ago, I watched helplessly as Walt Disney's animation department was moved out of their old building on the Burbank lot. You see, the new management needed room to expand, and animators took up space. So clearly somebody had to go. The Animation Building on Disney's Burbank Lot. You can wait...

You all remember Lightning McQueen and Mater from " Cars ," right ? Copyright 2008 Disney - Pixar. All Rights Reserved Well, the folks at Disney - Pixar certainly hope that you remember these two animated autos. Given that -- come the Summer of 2011 -- they're going to be starring in " Cars 2 " ... Copyright...