6 Brand New Hotel Transylvania Clips

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Moments ago we posted six brand spanking new clips from Disney and Tim Burton's black and white stop-motion film, Frankenweenie. Now, at the other end of the spectrum, the hilarious, lively and colourful end, we have six equally new clips from Sony Picture Animation's Hotel Transylvania!

Collider has our back again and brings us the six, almost continuous, clips as one video, which you can check out above! The clips focus on the comedy, and while it's hard to glean much emotional resonance or depth from these clips, it sure looks like fun! The voice acting and chemistry is top-notch, and the comic timing is strong. However, the highlight of all of the clips for me is the animation.


When I say animation, I mean it in the literal sense - as opposed to when it's often used interchangeably to describe graphics. When reviewing The Art and Making of Hotel Transylvania, I said how much thought had clearly gone into poise and movement, and it definitely shows here. Look at Dracula, look at his fluid movements and how the cape is almost an extension of him: it's spectacular! Director Genndy Tartakovsky's stylised traditional-animation experience has clearly translated well!

Hotel T is released a week today, on 28th, in the US, and on 12th October in the UK, and stars the voices of Adam Sandler, Kevin James and Selena Gomez.

Check out the clips above, and let us know what you think! What do you make of Hotel Transylvania so far?

Chuck Jones' 100th Birthday!

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We're a day late, but the sentiment remains just as strong.

Yesterday would've marked the 100th birthday of the animation legend, Chuck Jones. The revered Looney Tunes director, though, tragically passed away just over a decade ago at the ripe old age of 89. The world lost an animation legend that day; Chuck Jones was, and still is, one of the most respected men in animation.


The director of some of the most famous Looney Tunes shorts, including many Bugs Bunny ones; the creator of the fantastic pairing of Wile E. Coyote and Road Runner, and oh so much more: Chuck Jones is to Looney Tunes, as John Lasseter is to Pixar. In a world of filmmakers ever trying to distance their animated work from its comical origins, eager to push boundaries to the sophisticated and the complex, here was a man whose work had all of the above, yet was proud to call them cartoons.

The animation community is bursting with celebrations of the great man's life and work. Chuck's daughter Linda hosted a "Chuck Jones Centennial Celebration Film Festival" yesterday, which included screenings of some of Chuck's best and most beloved work, and guests like Disney legend Eric Goldberg (co-director, Pocahontas) and Cartoon Brew's Jerry Beck. Later tonight, the Chuck Jones Center for Creativity is hosting a fundraiser, called "Creativity Season", hosted by film critic Leonard Maltin and with guests including Eric Goldberg, Kelly Asbury (Shrek 2) and Rob Minkoff (The Lion King) - at the time of writing there's one ticket left, going for $100. And finally, this coming Wednesday (26th) CalArts will host "Chuck Jones at 100", again screening Chuck's films, with words from Toy Story director John Lasseter, and proceeds to "benefit the Joe Ranft CalArts Alumni Scholarship Fund and the Chuck Jones Center for Creativity." (Event listings via Cartoon Brew.)


Chuck Jones is, and always will be, a legend, and we'll leave you with his most self-aware, and of his best, Looney Tunes cartoons, Duck Amuck. Because, what this short does is it shows how timeless and indestructible a good character, like the ones Chuck crafted, is, how legendary Looney Tunes is, and it gets you thinking about who's behind the ink and the lines, and that's Chuck Jones.



"Animation isn't the illusion of life; it is life!" - Chuck Jones
To read more about Chuck's legendary life and career, check out our Bitesized Biography of him.

Jake's Takes Interview with the Cast and Crew of Frankenweenie

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The most original interviewer around, Jake Hamilton, the host of the self-titled Jake's Takes is back with more great interviews. Last month Jake interviewed the cast of Laika's ParaNorman, and today he brings us interviews with the cast and crew of the similarly spooky Frankenweenie.

Questions fielded to director Tim Burton included asking what the key differences between Frankenweenie now, and the original short film from 28 years ago that famously lost Burton his job at Disney, are, to which he responded:

"I love stop-motion animation, so the idea of doing it black and white, 3D, stop-motion, and adding the other kids, the other monsters, and teachers, things that I was thinking about, the kind of memories that are all sort of based on this thing: it felt like a whole new project for me."
Burton also spoke about the emotional heart of the film and the importance of friendships with pets - both for him and for Victor in the film. Jake also spoke to cast members Martin Short, Catherine O'Hara, Martin Landau, Atticus Shaffer and Charlie Tahan who spoke very passionately about the project, touching on the importance of doing the film in stop-motion, and working with Tim Burton. And Martin Landau's Mr. Rzykruski promises to be powerful and hilarious!

Jake's great at asking curve-ball questions and really coaxing his interviewees into expressing their passion for the project - nice touch having the video in black and white too! And jeez, from watching The Middle, who would've guessed Atticus Shaffer was so smart?

Frankenweenie promises to be a great addition to a great year for animation when it opens on 5th October in the US and 17th October in the UK. Check out the 21-minute video interview compilation above!

UPDATED - Selick in Talks to Take Shademaker to Laika

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Director Henry Selick (left) and Laika CEO Travis Knigt (right)
IndieWire is reporting that The Nightmare Before Christmas director Henry Selick is in talks to take his, previously tentatively titled, Shademaker, to Laika!
The project was being produced by Selick's Cinderbiter/ShadeMaker Productions, alongside Brain Trust members from Pixar, until news recently broke that Disney had pulled the plug. Claims were that the film's story wasn't where Disney wanted it to be and that production was lagging. The rumours emerging today though claims that Selick is shopping the idea to Laika, whom he previously worked with on 2009's Oscar nominated Coraline.
IndieWire also offers up some rumoured details about the film's plot and style:

I'm told that the once-titled "ShadeMaker" is the story of two brothers, and that it takes Selick's special brand of surrealism into a new direction. The sets are spectacular (especially Central Park) and they've been and they've been making use of a similar Rapid Prototype 3D printer for replacement heads that Laika introduced on "ParaNorman."

It's a shame that Selick's deal with Disney fell through - it might lead to awkwardness if/when he returns to make the planned adaptation of Neil Gaiman's The Graveyard Book - but the film certainly seems a good fit for Laika and we know they work well together! Be sure also to check out our review of Laika's latest film, ParaNorman!

Via Craig Good and HitFix.
UPDATE: 27/09/2012 - 00:07 (GMT)
Times look dark Selick fans, and not good, Coraline, dark. /Film reports that whilst Henry Selick did meet with Laika, the talks "went nowhere and Laika will not fund its former director’s project." First Showing also reports that the film, apparently now titled The Shadow King, is not being taken on by Laika, and is seemingly done for.
Selick supposedly sent a memo to the team at Cinderbiter, saying that Laika chief Travis Knight couldn't figure out a financially sound way to continue production on the film. Selick could shop the film around some more, but following knock-backs from his two biggest options, it might be time, sadly, to move on.
Sad news for sure, especially so short after hearing that Digital Domain's closure meant the end of The Legend of Tembo. But here's hoping it gets picked up somewhere else in the near future, and we here at A113Animation wish the very talented Mr. Selick and all on the Cinderbiter crew all the best in whatever they go on to next!

Review Round-Up - Frankenweenie and Hotel Transylvania

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Following precious few releases in the first half of the year, it's been a strong summer for animation, with great films like Brave and ParaNorman - oh, and there was The Lorax too I guess. Coming up in winter we have DreamWorks' Rise of the Guardians and Disney's Wreck-It Ralph - as well as Pixar's 3D re-release of Monsters, Inc. But right now, as we turn towards autumn, we've got two big releases (and, finally, the UK release of Madagascar 3): Hotel Transylvania and Frankenweenie.
Check out our recaps, reviews coverage, and thoughts after the jump break!

Due on 28th September in the US, and at a more Halloweeny time of 12th October in the UK, Hotel Transylvania is the latest film from Sony Pictures Animation, the studio behind the brilliant Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs (Smurfs? What Smurfs?). Directed by Samurai Jack and Dexter's Lab creator Genndy Tartakovsky, the film has undergone a lot of directorial changeovers (six to be exact), but if anyone can make it work, it's Genndy Tartakovsky. One thing we observed in the 'Art of' book and the six recent clips, is the considered and wonderfully stylised animation - it looks to be a visually wonderful film! 
The critical consensus, so far, though, isn't all too positive. About halfway between the glacial reception of The Smurfs and the enthusiastic one of Cloudy. It currently sits at 56% on Rotten Tomatoes, some of the critiques from top critics being:
"even after years of development, the studio still doesn't have much more than a concept to offer, enlisting TV toon maven Genndy Tartakovsky ("Samurai Jack") to direct a stale overprotective-dad story set within a location that could easily house a more inspired mix of characters and events." - Peter Debruge, Variety
"Despite the proven talents of first-time feature director Genndy Tartakovsky (Dexter’s Laboratory), writers Peter Baynham(Arthur Christmas) and SNL vet Robert Smigel, and a voice cast headed by Adam Sandler and Andy Samberg, the collaboration falls flat virtually from the get-go, serving up half-hearted sight gags that have a habit of landing with an ominous thud." - Michael Rechtshaffen, The Hollywood Reporter
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Then, due on 5th October in the US, and 12th in the UK, another spooky film on the horizon is Tim Burton's Frankenweenie. One of my most anticipated animated films of the year, the black and white, stop-motion film promises to be touching, nostalgic and... well, awesome! The first animated film that Burton's directed since 2005's Corpse Bride, the film actually revives a 28 year old idea that once got the Alice in Wonderland director fired from Disney. And be sure to check out the six brand new clips for this too!
The response to Frankenweenie is definitely more positive, currently sitting at 77% on Rotten Tomatoes. But it isn't without its criticisms; to look at the same publications, responses to Frankenweenie include:
"A black-and-white stop-motion toon that pays loving tribute to Hollywood creature features of yesteryear, this beautifully designed canine-resurrection saga feels, somewhat fittingly, stitched together from stray narrative parts, but nonetheless evinces a level of discipline and artistic coherence missing from the director's recent live-action efforts." - Justin Chang, Variety
"Although this nominally clever take-off of Frankenstein, about a boy's successful effort to “re-animate” his late pet dog, is distinctive as the first black-and-white 3D stop-motion animated production of this new three-dimensional era, it is nonetheless imaginative in a highly familiar and ultimately tedious way." - Todd McCarthy, The Hollywood Reporter
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We're excited for both films though, so keep your eyes here for reviews of the films next month!

Finding Nemo 3D Premire Pics

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As Finding Nemo returns to theaters (this time in 3D, of course) tomorrow, the premiere took place on Monday at the El Capitan theater. Check out some pictures from the event below.

John Lasseter (executive producer) and Andrew Stanton (writer/director)

Willem Dafoe (voice of Gill), Albert Brooks (voice of Marlin), and John Lasseter (executive producer)

Allison Janney (voice of Peach) and Andrew Stanton (writer/director)

As you can see, many of the voice actors from the film where present to see the classic undersea adventure in the new format, as well as director Andrew Stanton and the big boss himself, John Lasseter.
Don't miss out on Finding Nemo 3D during its short run in theaters! Even if you skipped Beauty and the Beast,  The Phantom Menace, and Titanic, this is one re-release that you must see (or should I say, sea)!

Finding Nemo 3D Now In Theaters!

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The wait is over folks. More than nine years after its original release in theaters, Pixar's classic Finding Nemo has returned to theaters after being converted to 3D. This marks the first Pixar 3D re-release after the Toy Story/Toy Story 2 double feature in 2009. Also, Partysaurus Rex, the third in the Toy Story Toons series, is now playing alongside Nemo 3D in theaters.
You might be wondering if it's worth paying to go see a film that you've likely seen many times before, with the only difference being that it's playing in 3D this time. You might even be one of those people that find 3D overrated and may see no point whatsoever in all these re-releases that we've been getting lately. However, this is Finding Nemo we're talking about, one of the most visually-stunning films to ever come from Pixar - and quite possibly one of the most visually-stunning films that have ever been made in general. There's nearly no doubt in my mind that this film, with all its aquatic settings and vibrant colors, would look absolutely breathtaking in 3D.
So my advice to you would simply be: go see it.