Utilizing the Library

Based on past results, this iteration of Beauty and the Beast should do big numbers.

...

Added to which, the trailers have gotten huge on-line viewership, and the anticipation level is high. So the Mouse has another winner, correct?

Animated Features' Running Totals

Always good to know how audiences and the world marketplace are liking the current batch of long-form cartoons. As of tonight:

RUNNING TOTALS -- DOMESTIC -- (GLOBAL)

Sing -- $257,405,085 -- ($463,705,085)

Moana -- $240,115,596 -- ($530,115,596)

Trolls -- $152,737,834 -- ($338,247,563)

Trolls has been out thirteen weeks and owns a solid domestic run. A dozen years ago, DreamWorks features regularly topped $200 million in domestic grosses. But then the box office blahs set in, and DWA features were lucky to nose past $100 million. So $152.7 million? Pretty damn good.

Moana turns out to be Musker's and Clements' strongest entry in years, and will likely close in on $600 million before the movie's theatrical run is over. Meantime, Sing has leap-frogged past the island princess after six weeks of distribution, and proves to be yet another winner for Illumination Entertainment.

The Birth of Warner Bros. Animation

Professor Tom Sito informs us:

Jan 28, 1930 - Warner Brothers Cartoons Born.

Leon Schlesinger, the head of Pacific Art and Title, signed a deal with several unemployed Disney animators who had left Walt to form their own studio to draw Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, but had been stiffed by their contacts.

Leon Schlesinger had connections with the Warner Bros. since he helped them get funding for the 'Jazz Singer'. They created Leon Schlesinger's Studio Looney Tunes, in imitation of Disney's Silly Symphonies. Their first character was Bosko, but eventually they would create Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Porky Pig, Pepe LePew and more.

The Warner brothers purchased Schelsinger's studio during World War II. Unlike Walt Disney, the Warners never regarded animation as anything but a side line, and allowed a bunch of early Warns shorts to fall into the public domain.

Also unlike Disney, Warner Bros. has gotten in and then out of the animation biz through the years.

WB Cartoons downsized in the early sixties and disappeared entirely in 1969. Relaunched as Warner Bros. Animation in 1980, it has been a presence in the making of cartoons ever since, but its potency has ebbed and flowed. WBA was little more than a cipher until the 1990s, when it plunged into animated series for TV in a major way.

Warner Bros. Animation has been a major player ever since, and today has close to a dozen series in work. Theatrical features, however, are something else again. In the 1990s, Warners launched Warner Bros. Feature Animation, but after a servies of under-performers (one of being the iconic Iron Giant) the division closed its doors. Today, Time-Warner is again in the feature animation business with Warner Animation Group (WAG). How it will fare over the next few years is really anyone's guess. To date, its track record is spotty.

The Cartoon Productions Among Us

Being a post about productions happening in L.A.'s Cartoonland, the following will have omissions and possibly errors, because they happen. And because I'm no longer plugged into the day-to-day hubbub of animation production, but have to rely on spies and stoolies willing to talk. Also, too, the internet. ...

BENTO BOX

Bob's Burger

The Awesomes (Atlanta)

Legends of Chamberlain Heights

various pilots

The studio has two Southern California locations in Burbank and North Hollywood. Also facilities in Atlanta and Canada.

CARTOON NETWORK STUDIOS

Wee Bare Bears

Ben 10 (newer version)

Power Puff Girls

Samurai Jack (10 episodes -- in post production)

Steven Universe

Mighty Magiswords

OK KO (Let's Be Heroes)

Summer Camp Island

Various unannounced series, including a prime time offering.

Clarence (wrapping up)

Regular Show (wrapping up)

Adventure Time (wrapping up)

Uncle Grandpa (wrapping up)

CN's L.A. County Studio snugs up against the Burbank Police Department in Burbank, California. CN also has a studio in Atlanta. Many "Adult Swim" offerings are done by non-signator sub-contractors because "doing it on the cheap" is an operating philosophy.

DISNEY TELEVISION ANIMATION

Mickey Mouse shorts

Star Vs. The Forces of Evil

Pickle and Peanut

Sofia the First (wrapping)

Elena of Avalor

Duck Tales

Country Club

Olaf's Frozen Adventures

Mickey and the Roadster Racers

Milo Murphy's Law

Big Hero 6: The Series

Muppet Babies (CG)

Three Caballeros

The Lion Guard

Wicked World

Disney TVA is located in Glendale on Sonora Avenue ... and next to the Burbank Airport in what is known as "Media Center North". The division is outsourcing more of its shows as a cost-cutting move (studio overhead ain't cheap). L.A. subcontractors include Wild Canary, Rough Draft Studios, and Titmouse/Robin Red breast.

DISNEY TOON STUDIOS

Planes 3

Animation veteran Mark Dindall is at work on "Planes 3".

DREAMWORKS ANIMATION

Larrikins

Captain Underpants (wrapping in Canada)

How to Train Your Dragon 3

Shrek 5

B.O.O. - Bureau of Otherworldly Operations

Puss in Boots 2

Madagascar 4

With the purchase of DreamWorks Animation by Universal, changes are ongoing, with various management changes (Chris deFaria comes aboard; Chris Meledandri will be a more active consultant, focusing in "Larrikins" to start with). Expect changes at both DreamWorks Animation and Walt Disney Animation Studios. At both places there have been layoffs over the past few months.

DREAMWORKS ANIMATION TV

All Hail King Julian

The Adventures of Puss in Boots

Rocky & Bullwinkle

Vegitales (Louisiana)

Dinotrux

Voltron

Home

Dragons, How to Train

(new version)

Harvey Girls

Trolls

Spirit Riding Free

DWA tv continues to produce a variety of series for Netflix distribution. The division is located in Glendale on multiple stories of a skyscraper on Central Avenue. It has been a large employer of animation and CG artists since it was created four-plus years ago.

FOX ANIMATION

The Simpsons

Family Guy

American Dad

Fox Animation hs two locations: one in Burbank at the Pinnacle on Alameda, and a larger facility on Wilshire (los Angeles) where "American Dad" and "Family Guy" are produced.

FUZZY DOOR PRODUCTIONS

Seth MacFarlane's production company, headquartered in Beverly Hills, developing various live-action and animated projects.

HASBRO

Stretch Armstrong

Transformers (winding down

Micronauts (scripts in L.A., most of production at Hasbro subsidiary Boulder in Ireland)

My Little Pony (scripts in L.A., production in Canada)

Hasbro recently moved to the Yahoo complex next to the Burbank Airport. Before the move they were further north in a building shared with Film Roman/"Simpsons".

MARVEL ANIMATION

Spiderman (newer iteration)

Avengers

Guardians

Marvel Animation, a Disney subsidiary, has two animation facilities in Glendale, on and near Flower Street. Marvel Animation will be moving to a new location on Main Street in Burbank the middle of the year.

NICKELODEON

Bunson Is A Beast

Fairly Odd Parents (last of new episodes wrapping in Canada)

Sponge Bob Square Pants

Loud House

Harvey Beaks

Ninja Turtles (new version)

Shimmer & Shine

Pinky Malinky

Glitch Tech

Hey Arnold (long form)

Rocko (long form)

Henry Danger

Nickelodeon has recently consolidated animation staff from Third Street in Burbank and Brand Boulevard in Glendale to its new skyscraper on Olive Avenue in Burbank.

RENEGADE

Tom & Jerry

Renegade is a non-signator animation studio in Glendale California. It has done sub-contract work for WB Animation, also provided content for the website "ABC Mouse".

SHADOW MACHINE

Bojack Horseman

Shadow Machine is located in the east Valley, yet another non-Guild studio.

SPLASH ENTERTAINMENT

Run by Mike and Liz Young (and a non-Animation Guild studio), Splash is located in Warner Center out in the west San Fernando Valley. Recent projects: "Norm of the North" (feature) and "Kulipari: An Army of Frogs (series). If you know what they are currently working on you are more knowledgable than Hulett.

STARBURNS INDUSTRIES

Rick and Morty

Animals

Starburns in located in Burbank; "Rick and Morty" is a Guild show, its other projects are non-Guild.

TITMOUSE/ROBIN RED BREAST

Big Mouth

Nikko and the Sword of Light

Moonbeam

Son of Zorn

Future-Worm!

Goldie and Bear

Hanazuki: Full of Treasures

Megalopolis

The Venture Brothers

Super Jail

Titmouse/Robin Red Breast is located on Lexington Avenue in Hollywood, with anothe facility in New York. They were an early sub-contractor for DreamWorks Animation tv, and have also worked on a variety of Disney shows, Netflix shows, some of which are listed above.

2 STOOPID BUDDIES STUDIOS

Super Mansion

Robot Chicken

2 Stoopid Buddies is yet another east San Fernando Valley studio, located in Burbank. It's a non-Guild studio.

UNIVERSAL CARTOON STUDIOS

Curious George

Chipmunks*

Land Before Time*

In the past few weeks, UCS moved to the DreamWorks Animation campus in Glendale. At least, the Curious George unit did.

WALT DISNEY ANIMATION STUDIOS

Wreck-It Ralph 2

Gigantic

Frozen 2

Zootopia 2

Let's take it for granted, Hollywood culture being Hollywood culture, that any feature that grosses $1 billion or more will automatically generate a sequel before many years have passed. No self-respecting conglomerate will do anything different. (What do you think this is?! 1943?)

WARNER ANIMATION GROUP (WAG)

The Lego Movie Sequel

Scooby-Doo

Smallfoot

The Lego Ninjago Movie

The Lego Batman Movie (completed)

Warner Animation Group recently lost one of their top execs (Chris deFaria) to DreamWorks Animation; the Time-Warner division is located in Hollywood near Melrose, on the Warner Bros. lot, and on the Warner ranch.

WARNER BROS. ANIMATION

Unikitty

Bee Cool Scooby Doo

Wabbit

Bunicula

Justice League Action

Mike Tyson Mysteries

Teen Titans Go!

DC Girls

Green Eggs and Ham

Wacky Races

Warner Bros. Animation has locations at three Burbank locations: the Warner Ranch, the Pinnacle, and the Burbank Studio (formerly NBC Studios).

Trends in Los Angeles animation? Television animation is roaring and will continue to roar. The big drivers here are the new media players Netflix and Amazon. Both are ramping up their kids' content. My informants tell me that Amazon is going to be doing a lot more children's programming in the coming moths/years.

Theatrical animation, on the other hand, is in a holding pattern. As stated above, both DreamWorks Animation and Walt Disney Animation Studios have laid off staff. Retrenchment is the order of the day. Illumination Entertainment, which does most of its production in Paris, continues to hire freelance board artists at favorable pay rates in Los Angeles to work on features.

But overall? It looks as though animation employment will be robust in Southern California for some time to come. (And look for this post to be updated over the next few days).

Ann Guenther, RIP

Ann Guenther began her career in animation as an inker on Sleeping Beauty.

In those days, she was fresh from Pennsylvania, without money or contacts in the business ... or very much artistic training. One bright morning on the Disney lot, she encountered Walt Disney. He asked her, “What are you doing here so early?”

She answered, “I get here early every morning, Mr. Disney. I have to, because I hitchhike to work.” Ann was eighteen at the time. And Walt Disney was surprised.

Ms. Guenther returned to Disney as a full-fledged background artist after working on the lot as an inker in the late 1950s, one of the first individuals to ever accomplish this feat.

Ann worked in the Disney background department when supervisor Al Dempster ran it, and went on to a career with brushes and paint that spanned decades. Among her many theatrical credits: Robin Hood, The Rescuers, Space Jam, Winnie the Pooh and The Iron Giant. Ann was also a prolific background artist for a wide array of TV shows that include Tiny Toon Advnetures, Pinky and the Brain and The Flintstones.

Ann passed away from pneumonia on January 24th. She was 79.

Imagery Award

Brad Bird gets honored by the Art Directors Guild:

Filmmaker Brad Bird has been tapped to receive the Cinematic Imagery Award from the Art Directors Guild. The honor will be presented next month at the guild’s 21st annual Art Directors Guild’ Excellence in Production Design Awards.

Mr. Bird is a talented man, so it makes sense ... even though the Art Directors Guild has never repped animated features or shorts.

If John Lasseter receives a trophy from the ADG, why not Brad Bird? It's only fair.

If You're In The Market ...

Animator Frank Thomas's Flintridge house, built in 1949, was put up for sale this week.

The line of prospective purchasers forms there on the left