Former ToonBox exec Jay Ahn and animation industry veteran Chris Henderson have launched Astro-Nomical Entertainment, a development and production company aiming to make high-quality independent animated family films. Its first project in the works is the feature film Mean Margaret, based on the children's book by Tor Seidler. Mulan co-director Barry Cook is in talks to direct, and Im Global will handle worldwide sales. Astro-Nomical will be backed by China-based…...
- 7/29/2016
- Deadline
Life on the Road
Ricky Gervais has released a new photo from "Life on the Road," a film that continues the adventures of his character of the aggressively awkward David Brent in BBC's original "The Office". The feature-length mockumentary follows Brent who is now a travelling salesman and is now attempting to get his old band, Foregone Conclusion, back together. [Source: Twitter]
Fuller House
Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen famously won't be a part of Netflix's "Fuller House" series continuation, and now it has been revealed that the Michelle Tanner character's absence will be explained away by them now living in New York City and working on building a fashion empire. The thirteen-episode series includes the rest of the cast and will debut on the streaming service next year. [Source: Variety]
Untitled Thrilla In Manilla Project
Studio 8 has secured the rights to Ang Lee's untitled boxing film about the classic 1970s Thrilla in Manilla heavyweight...
Ricky Gervais has released a new photo from "Life on the Road," a film that continues the adventures of his character of the aggressively awkward David Brent in BBC's original "The Office". The feature-length mockumentary follows Brent who is now a travelling salesman and is now attempting to get his old band, Foregone Conclusion, back together. [Source: Twitter]
Fuller House
Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen famously won't be a part of Netflix's "Fuller House" series continuation, and now it has been revealed that the Michelle Tanner character's absence will be explained away by them now living in New York City and working on building a fashion empire. The thirteen-episode series includes the rest of the cast and will debut on the streaming service next year. [Source: Variety]
Untitled Thrilla In Manilla Project
Studio 8 has secured the rights to Ang Lee's untitled boxing film about the classic 1970s Thrilla in Manilla heavyweight...
- 12/9/2015
- by Garth Franklin
- Dark Horizons
Stuart Ford’s sales-financing banner Im Global has inked a deal with Marza Animation Planet, the filmmaking subsid of vidgame developer Sega, and Pigmental Studios to handle sales on its forthcoming feature projects. The first films to come through the new pipeline will be Household Pets, an original idea by former Disney animator and Despicable Me co-creator Sergio Pablos, and Mean Margaret, based on the National Book Award-nominated children's book by Tor Seidler. House…...
- 12/7/2015
- Deadline
Stuart Ford’s Los Angeles-based company will handle international sales and broker Us deals on animation projects developed by Sega subsdiary Marza Animation Planet and Pigmental Studios.
The first two under the arrangement are Household Pests from Despicable Me co-creator Sergio Pablos and Mean Margaret (pictured) from Mulan director Barry Cook.
Household Pests is based on an original idea by Pablos about an imaginative boy and his battles with the monsters that lurk beneath his bed.
Pablos of Spa Studios and Pigmental Studios founder and CEO Marina Martins producers. Pre-production will occur in Spain and Pigmental’s studio in Washington DC in collaboration with Marza in Los Angeles.
Mean Margaret is based on the National Book Award children’s book nominee by Tor Seidler. The Nut Job producer Jay Ahn will produce and Chuck Williams will manage creative oversight at Marza.
Cook, who directed Walking With Dinosaurs that Im Global sold several years ago for parent company...
The first two under the arrangement are Household Pests from Despicable Me co-creator Sergio Pablos and Mean Margaret (pictured) from Mulan director Barry Cook.
Household Pests is based on an original idea by Pablos about an imaginative boy and his battles with the monsters that lurk beneath his bed.
Pablos of Spa Studios and Pigmental Studios founder and CEO Marina Martins producers. Pre-production will occur in Spain and Pigmental’s studio in Washington DC in collaboration with Marza in Los Angeles.
Mean Margaret is based on the National Book Award children’s book nominee by Tor Seidler. The Nut Job producer Jay Ahn will produce and Chuck Williams will manage creative oversight at Marza.
Cook, who directed Walking With Dinosaurs that Im Global sold several years ago for parent company...
- 12/7/2015
- by jeremykay67@gmail.com (Jeremy Kay)
- ScreenDaily
NEW YORK -- 20th Century Fox Studios Animation, Blue Sky Studios and director Chris Wedge -- the trio behind the computer-animated hit Ice Age -- are looking to add a heroic weasel to their menagerie of quirky 3-D characters. Fox Animation has optioned rights to Wainscott Weasel, a children's book penned by young-adult author Tor Seidler, illustrated by Fred Marcellino and published by HarperCollins. Blue Sky, the computer animation facility behind Ice Age, would produce the 3-D animated project, with director Wedge expected to helm. Seidler is likely to serve as one of the screenwriters, though writers have not yet been lined up for the project. Before handling Weasel, Wedge must first complete Robots (in production and slated for spring 2005) and Ice Age 2. The purchase price for Weasel is in the low-six-figure range.
- 11/21/2003
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Not every rodent-themed family movie is destined for success, and the use of marionettes in feature-length films has never caught on in a big way. A brief theatrical release and modest payoff on video is the best "A Rat's Tale" can hope for, with younger kids showing the keenest interest.
Based on the award-winning children's book by Tor Seidler, the Legacy release of a German production features the expertise of the 50-year-old Augsburger Puppenkiste. A trio of Americans -- Beverly D'Angelo, Jerry Stiller and Lauren Hutton -- lend their talents, but the tale is curiously lacking in almost every aspect.
Inserting the ungainly puppets into real New York landscapes and depicting several scenes with human-puppet interaction, director Michael F. Huse underscores the elemental problems of the marionettes' visible strings and limited mobility.
The rat characters designed by Augsburger Puppenkiste owner Hannelore Marschall-Oehmichen and Jurgen Marschall, particularly leads Monty Mad-Rat (voice by Dee Bradley Baker) and Isabella Noble-Rat (Lynsey Bartilson), are woefully underanimated, with unblinking eyes and unchanging expressions. An affable "canalligator" (Donald Arthur) is the most sophisticated creation and endearing character.
Hutton is the most prominent of the live actors, playing an art gallery owner who secretly does business with the rats. German stage and screen actor Josef Ostendorf is both ogre and oaf as the generic story's heavy, a businessman intent on exterminating the furry denizens underneath property he plans to develop.
While there is little in the way of fright and no violence, the story is a bit complicated for very young children. The political squabbles and class prejudices within the diverse rat population envisioned, along with the elementary spiritualism and confusing messages about greed and responsibility, make the ratty saga overtly satirical and not altogether enchanting.
In English, with some dubbing in the live-action sequences, "A Rat's Tale" is neither fish nor fowl. It's not stylized enough visually and it's not a simple story, while the occasional flurry of digital effects -- relating to three magic shells that become the focus of the uninspired plot -- are pretty but inconsequential.
Based on the award-winning children's book by Tor Seidler, the Legacy release of a German production features the expertise of the 50-year-old Augsburger Puppenkiste. A trio of Americans -- Beverly D'Angelo, Jerry Stiller and Lauren Hutton -- lend their talents, but the tale is curiously lacking in almost every aspect.
Inserting the ungainly puppets into real New York landscapes and depicting several scenes with human-puppet interaction, director Michael F. Huse underscores the elemental problems of the marionettes' visible strings and limited mobility.
The rat characters designed by Augsburger Puppenkiste owner Hannelore Marschall-Oehmichen and Jurgen Marschall, particularly leads Monty Mad-Rat (voice by Dee Bradley Baker) and Isabella Noble-Rat (Lynsey Bartilson), are woefully underanimated, with unblinking eyes and unchanging expressions. An affable "canalligator" (Donald Arthur) is the most sophisticated creation and endearing character.
Hutton is the most prominent of the live actors, playing an art gallery owner who secretly does business with the rats. German stage and screen actor Josef Ostendorf is both ogre and oaf as the generic story's heavy, a businessman intent on exterminating the furry denizens underneath property he plans to develop.
While there is little in the way of fright and no violence, the story is a bit complicated for very young children. The political squabbles and class prejudices within the diverse rat population envisioned, along with the elementary spiritualism and confusing messages about greed and responsibility, make the ratty saga overtly satirical and not altogether enchanting.
In English, with some dubbing in the live-action sequences, "A Rat's Tale" is neither fish nor fowl. It's not stylized enough visually and it's not a simple story, while the occasional flurry of digital effects -- relating to three magic shells that become the focus of the uninspired plot -- are pretty but inconsequential.
- 3/20/1998
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
IMDb.com, Inc. takes no responsibility for the content or accuracy of the above news articles, Tweets, or blog posts. This content is published for the entertainment of our users only. The news articles, Tweets, and blog posts do not represent IMDb's opinions nor can we guarantee that the reporting therein is completely factual. Please visit the source responsible for the item in question to report any concerns you may have regarding content or accuracy.