December Animation Tidbits [#2]

Another round of bits...

How To Spoil Your Dragon

A recently released image showing Cate Blanchett's
character.

How To Train Your Dragon 2's trailer is right around the corner, but we all may have to avoid it. I got word from a good friend of mine, who found a source suggesting that the trailer might spoil a major twist in the film. It's said to be all Fox's doing, and that the people at DreamWorks begged the marketing department not to spoil said "mystery".

Attention Animation Fans: There is a new HTTYD2 Trailer coming out soon. Don't watch it unless you want the story's big mystery spoiled.
— Mygames19 (@Mygames19) December 14, 2013

I know the source isn't exactly reliable, but for those who don't want to be spoiled, it's better to assume it is. http://t.co/W3ZUb99Wxl
— Mygames19 (@Mygames19) December 14, 2013

If this turns out to be true, all I can say is: Really Fox? Really?

People just don't have a clue when it comes to marketing animated films, do they? That teaser was so excellent, suggesting that Fox was going to market DreamWorks' films correctly since Paramount did poorly at doing so in their final years with the studio. I mean come on! This is a highly anticipated sequel to a highly acclaimed animated film, and this is what you're going to do?

I hope it's all a rumor…

Moana Madness

Like that logo for Walt Disney Animation Studios' upcoming Polynesian-set adventure? Well, it's fake. You can tell too, with the two swooshes above and below the "Moana" text looking so basic and the Disney logo being in white, which contrasts heavily from everything else.

Also, people thought that these were newly leaked pieces of concept artwork… They aren't…

And it seems like people are just discovering this upcoming Ron and John project. I don't mean to brag (if you've been reading prior to May, you have the same bragging rights), but I've known about this for a while.

The good thing is, people know it exists. It's presumably not due out until 2018 (going by Blue Sky Disney's notes), but it's good that the word has gotten out somehow. The only post-Big Hero 6 film that Disney has officially mentioned or announced is Zootopia, but they didn't outright say that the film is set to open on March 4, 2016. Smart move, because if you ask me, picking a date for an animated film very early on might be detrimental to the production.

Keane Gets Work!

Wow… Already! Apparently he's set to work on a commercial for Motorola, going by a mysterious email Cartoon Brew's Amid Amidi received.

Now, how long until it's announced that an animated feature enters development at Glen Keane Productions?

90s Revival

On January 20th, Cartoon Network will take us back to the City of Townsville with a Powerpuff Girls special titled "Dance Pantsed"…

As the poster implies, this special will be done in a completely different animation style and will also feature Ringo Starr as a character named Fibonacci Sequins, an over-the-top mathematician. Hmmm, I wonder if he'll sing a song! Oh wait, he will! "I Wish I Was a Powerpuff Girl"!

Color me excited.

Also, the premise…

In 'Dance Pantsed', why is Mojo Jojo kidnapping a mathematician, an opera singer and a badger? To steal Chemical X, of course, and to finally take over Townsville. But when the Powerpuff Girls thwart his plan, he invents an evil video game called “Dance Pants R-EVILution” to control their minds and bodies to fulfill his evil plot! The Professor must visit his dark dancing past to save his girls so they can save all of Townsville!

It's good to see Cartoon Network revisiting one of their classic 90s shows, and while the new art style might leave some fans upset, I'm certainly looking forward to it. Here's hoping the writing is as good as the original show. Plus, Ringo Starr… You can't go wrong.

~

Will you check out the How To Train Your Dragon 2 trailer when it comes out? Do you think it will end up being spoilerific? When do you think Disney will officially announce Moana? What do think Glen Keane will work on next year? Does the upcoming Powerpuff Girls special excite you? Or not?

Sound off below!

Box of Brilliance

A new trailer for LAIKA's The BoxTrolls has unexpectedly arrived!

This is no ordinary trailer either, and I must say, distributor Focus Features made something truly cool here! Rather than going for a stupid trailer that is a hodgepodge of antics and kid-centric jokes (like ParaNorman's near-disastrous trailer), they instead decided to craft something that could help audiences appreciate the beauty of stop motion animation and LAIKA's work in general. No dialogue or announcers, just a song and footage of the animators and artists at work… What more could you ask for?

Anyways, it's always staggering to see how much goes into their films and it's also a nice callback to the days when Disney would put behind-the-scenes footage in their trailers for their films in the 1990s. Showing the audience small bits of what goes into making animated features is such a great idea for trailers, and the fact that they're doing this for a stop motion film makes me very happy.

Now hopefully the full trailer, which should explain the story and whatnot, will make the film look like something worth seeing and not a bogus kiddie flick that's too scary for kiddies but yet too silly for adults. ParaNorman would've been the hit it should've been had it not been advertised that way, so hopefully The BoxTrolls is LAIKA's deserved box office break out. It's high time a film like this does well and changes the game for mainstream feature animation.

What did you think of the trailer? Great idea? Or would you have preferred to have seen more story-based stuff? Sound off below!

Going Way Back

The trailer for DreamWorks' Mr. Peabody & Sherman has finally arrived!



It's a pretty decent trailer at best, no great shakes. That being said, I already like Mr. Peabody and I think Ty Burrell did a good job voicing him, judging by what we have been given. The design of the WABAC machine is great, and the brief glimpses at the time periods the characters will be visiting look nice. The animation works very well too, combining a simplistic, retro character design style with some good art direction.

Best of all, the film does not look like a stupid Alvin and the Chipmunks/Smurfs-style modernization of the original. Sure, it's a little amped up for today's audiences, but it looks to be fun rather than something that'll bombard you with toilet humor (save for the stupid Sphynx butt joke at the end) and pop culture references. I knew DreamWorks would do this film right.

Also, Patrick Warburton! Seems like it's been a while since he's been in an animated film! Well... A big one at least, he was in Space Chimps and the Hoodwinked! sequel, but yeah...

It looks like a fun little diversion, a nice little treat before the epics of How To Train Your Dragon 2. What did you think of the trailer? Sound off below!

Raising The Stakes... Again

The teaser trailer for Captain America: The Winter Soldier, the third installment of Marvel Studios' second phase of their cinematic universe, has surfaced...



It kicks off with a bang and a shred of humor, but then afterwards, it takes on the mood that the great but misleading Iron Man 3 trailers used. The trailer makes it quite obvious that the stakes are being raised, big time. Of course, they would have to do so for this film. Thor: The Dark World, on the other hand, "looks" like the further adventures of Thor with a pinch of darkness. Of course, I'm waiting for the film to prove me wrong, but for now the trailers surprisingly aren't doing a thing for me... And I loved the first Thor, and I guess I may be in the minority for loving it.

Anyways, what they are showing here looks fantastic. The final shot of the titular villain is great, the Helicarrier crashing into the ocean was a nice money shot, plus from the looks of it, the action will be pretty intense. I've heard things about the Comic-Con footage, and how those who attended the presentation felt that the action was on par with The Avengers. That'll probably work very well in its favor, considering that Iron Man 3's action was a mix of big blow-em-up thrills (particularly the third act) and clever, smaller-scale escapades (Stark sneaking into the Mandarin's mansion). Thor: The Dark World's action looks to be Thor's action, but amped up.

They also give us a taste of Rogers' unease with what S.H.I.E.L.D. is planning to do, which was mentioned in the Comic-Con footage descriptions. The glimpses at the Falcon, Cap's new suit and some of the new characters were also great additions. In all, it's a pretty solid teaser. Definitely Iron Man 3-like in a sense, except less "end-times" in its mood.

Iron Man 3's teaser was criticized by some for being more on the Nolan Batman side, since there wasn't a scrap of humor and the whole trailer was accompanied by descending music that suggested despair rather than fun. Personally, I liked that trailer a lot because it wasn't trying to be brooding or dark (everyone called it "The Iron Man Rises"), I thought it was basically saying, "Tony Stark is in big trouble this time!" The second trailer was more thrilling, and it ends with a funny bit.

This teaser, I feel, is like Iron Man 3's teaser except it suggests that the film will be more fun and more of a thrill ride than a bleak film - yet I still feel that things are going to get hairy in this sequel. So far, Cap in the modern world looks like it'll make for a damn good movie. Marvel knows what they're doing...

I'm really looking forward to this installment. What do you think of the teaser?

The Event

To the people at Disney marketing... I have one thing to say...

Now that's how you do a trailer!



That all being said, I'm not watching it again for fear of any potentially spoilerific shots. Despite my criticisms of Disney's marketing department, I have to hand it to them... I was in awe during this trailer, because it got a lot of things right and it made the film look exciting. I'd say it's their best (spoiler stuff aside) trailer since Brave's final theatrical trailer; if we exclude spoilery stuff, the best one in a while.

It featured at least one song, and it dominates the last half of the trailer. That was truly great. There was even text saying "The music"!

The trailer also said "Experience the greatest Disney animated event since The Lion King"... Okay, I'm glad they said animated event, because every film of theirs as of late is an animated event, but the whole Lion King thing is all subjective of course. But it's a good way to entice audiences to see it since The Lion King is often named the best Disney animated film by many.

The mix was mostly even, but I'm just happy to see a trailer where the story was the main focus and not the gags. Disney marketing may realize that this routine won't work this time around given how a lot of family-friendly animated comedies just didn't do so well at the box office this year, so it was great to see them differentiate this film from the rest. Now if only this was done for trailers as far back as 2008, when Bolt was coming out. Hopefully they keep it up for their future films, now that the studio is financially successful again and the next slate of films delivers a boatload of promise.

Given their expertise with viral marketing, this trailer shows that Disney's marketing department people do have the ability to cut very good, effective trailers.

So yes... Watch it!

More From the Animated Birds

More stuff on Free Birds and Rio 2...

The theatrical trailer for Turkeys... I mean, um... Free Birds, arrived yesterday alongside Frozen's trailer...

While I'm looking forward to this film, I think this trailer is just another typical animated film trailer that doesn't make the film look that good. In fact, I think the first trailer is much better in terms of the editing and structure. Also, the "Hold Onto Your Nuggets" tagline? Please...

Oh well, that's typical animation marketing. I have a feeling that this film will surprise me in some way. What do you think of the trailer? Are you looking forward to this film? Or not?

USA also gave us a first look at Rio 2 earlier this week...

From the images and plot details, it sounds decent. There's probably going to be lots of wacky comedy and whatnot (expected from a Blue Sky film), and probably lots of pop music to go with the samba. Also, the daughter having an iPod (pictured above) only reminds me of the iPod's prominence in the studio's previous feature, Epic.

Anyways, it's great that they aren't completely rehashing the first film, which I did enjoy very much. I like the idea of more macaws and Nigel returning, he was one of the best things about the first film if you ask me. I'm not exactly sure if I'm looking forward to this sequel or not, given that 2014 has us animation fanatics spoiled with the likes of How To Train Your Dragon 2, The BoxTrolls, Book of Life, Big Hero 6. I guess if this was coming out this year, I'd be anticipating it more.

I'm just getting tired of the American animation marketplace being saturated with goofy family-friendly comedies, but Rio was one done right and maybe the sequel will be the same. What do you think?

Melted

Well here it is folks, the theatrical trailer for Walt Disney Animation Studios' Frozen...



And to be honest, it's not that bad of a trailer... Okay, it isn't perfect, not even great by any means... But it does its job, audiences will go see it because it essentially looks like "Tangled Mach II". It's the typical animated film trailer: Frenetic, joke-centric and it probably doesn't give you a feel of what the film will ultimately be like. But at least there's some pretty animation to gaze at here, and there are some moments that generate excitement.

This will probably be the only time I'll watch it, but here it is... Enjoy!

Sequences

Full scenes in animated films as trailers? Yes, this is something that I believe should be done with more animated films...

A little history here...

In 1993, Walt Disney Feature Animation didn't have something ready for release for the movie theaters all around the world. Their King of the Jungle project, retitled The Lion King at this point, had run into major league story problems. As a result, they couldn't have it ready by its planned Thanksgiving 1993 release date. Disney animated films were now an annual holiday season event after the success of Oliver & Company in 1988 and they'd have one film ready every autumn... But The Lion King would break that trend and soon Disney animated films were big summer events.

Disney went about marketing this film in a very unique way... A trailer for the film wasn't even a trailer per se. In fact, it was the entire opening sequence of the film! Audiences saw "Circle of Life" unravel before them in the theaters. It certainly drummed up anticipation! Pocahontas' early trailer that debuted with the sorta-kinda re-release of The Lion King in fall 1994 was the full "Colors of the Wind" sequence.

Rarely do studios do this, and after the mid-1990s, it wasn't much of a thing anymore. Disney did this one more time in 1999 for Dinosaur, as the trailer attached to Toy Story 2 had that incredible opening sequence and then in 2001, Fox made a brilliant decision by showing moviegoers the first couple of minutes of Ice Age before the film hit theaters. That hilarious sequence with Scrat immediately got audiences to think, "Gotta see that!"

Some 11 years later, Disney pulled a Lion King on us when marketing Pixar's Brave last spring. A slightly shorter version of the archery tournament sequence was unspooled in early 2012 and boy did it amaze! Now I really wish that this was sort of a common once-in-a-while thing for Disney and Pixar, and maybe even DreamWorks.

To be honest, I'd like to see a first act sequence instead of a frenetic, messy trailer for Frozen or something from Pixar like The Good Dinosaur. Sequences that don't give away way too much (one of my biggest problems with Pixar's trailers), and ones that I'd actually take the time to watch over and over. It's just a great way to hype up your film and show audiences why they should see it, rather than pelting them with quick cuts of scenes and barrage of jokes and action scenes. That's what trailers for other animated films are supposed to do.

Earlier this year, I had suggested that Disney should make trailers that make it very clear who made the film since their upcoming films are computer animated. Frozen's teaser begins with "From the creators of Tangled and Wreck-It Ralph", which is sort of a good start... But what happened to the trailers for Disney films that would show montages of the classics? Remember when the numbers were a big deal? Disney's 30th full-length animated motion picture event! Remember that lovely montage that was released on YouTube by Walt Disney Animation Studios when Tangled came out? That montage that showed all 50 of the classics? Why wasn't that part of a trailer for Tangled?

But all of that aside, Disney and Pixar (to some extent) would really differentiate their work from the rest with some trailers that had sequences. DreamWorks could do it too, given the quality of their films nowadays. How To Train Your Dragon 2's teaser might be a scene from the actual film, and if it is, bravo to DreamWorks and Fox. I think a sequence, a well-picked one, would really gear audiences up. It would make the film feel like an event, and that's what Disney Animation films need these days... That "event status". These films aren't "hits of the week", they are something more and the marketing needs to accentuate that...

Out of the Box

LAIKA's third film, The BoxTrolls, is not due out until the autumn of next year... But that's not stopping Focus Features from getting the word out right now with a teaser! Despite what I may think of the way they advertise LAIKA's films, I will commend them for actually drumming up buzz a year and a half before the studio's next film even opens.

Since Universal's international distribution arm wants to be unfair and block it from YouTube in your country, you'll have to head over to iTunes to give it a watch for the time being...

Taking the Pixar route, this teaser shows us a fun little set of jokes, the setting and the BoxTrolls themselves. This will probably not be in the finished film. Visually, it's a lot like ParaNorman with its unconventional human designs, fun troll designs and the jagged, asymmetrical architecture. I absolutely loved that building style in ParaNorman. In this Victorian setting, it looks wonderful and refreshing. Aside from the usual lovely animation, this teaser is already notable (and soon, it'll be controversial) for its overt nods to same-sex couples.

LAIKA already got heat for a particular reveal in ParaNorman (which I won't spoil for you if you haven't seen it), so I imagine that this film will get some flack right off the bat. LAIKA isn't afraid to do this, though, and good for them I say. Being a studio whose films don't get the really wide audience that most other animated films get, they can somewhat slip under the radar with something like this. It begs the question: When will other studios do that? Or something similar?

All that aside, this is a great little teaser and the film is going to be another gem. LAIKA showed us with two back-to-back masterpieces that they a "new Pixar" of sorts, a studio that's going to try new things whilst also delivering good films. Their films may not be box office smashes, but they are a refreshing break from a lot of the animated films that litter the landscape today.

A Winner or a Turkey?

Well, we finally got the first trailer for Reel FX's debut theatrical animated feature film Free Birds, formerly known as Turkeys...

Despite the competent animation and the irreverent tone (which I particularly liked), I'm just not really impressed. Seems like it is what I feared it would be... I just don't like the whole plot. I mean, turkeys going back in time to stop people from eating turkey for Thanksgiving? Then again, why would a big mainstream animated film be a thinly-veiled 90-minute PETA video saying "Don't eat turkey"? I'm certain the writers will pull off something unexpected with this concept, but right now I'm just not feeling it.

What's your take on this trailer and the film itself?

Thawed...

It's finally here folks, the teaser trailer to Walt Disney Animation Studios' Frozen! Chances are, you probably already saw it, but... Here it is!



Surprisingly enough - well to me, at least - this teaser seems to be very, very divisive. Some think it's a cute, hilarious little teaser. I certainly thought so. Others really dislike it, criticizing it for many things - one criticism being that it is too much like the Ice Age teasers that focus on Scrat. Others may have been let down simply because it doesn't feature the leads... Well, I saw that coming so I can't complain myself. Some don't like the fact that the reindeer Sven is too much like Tangled's Maximus. Okay, I can see why some would be upset because the idea of this character is essentially a repeat of what made that character hilarious. I too was worried that this film would be a rehash of that 2010 film, and yes Sven is a little too much like Maximus except he has a different attitude. But Olaf is no Pascal, and the two are definitely going to interact in different ways, so I didn't have a problem with that. Others just simply dislike it, to the point where they are writing off the whole film...

Ummm, it's a teaser! It's very likely that none of this footage will even be in the finished film. Olaf and Sven could very well be hilarious in the final product, supposedly they aren't annoying comic relief sidekicks (some people were lucky to see a screening recently) and they do add to the story. That's all I'm looking for, and the slapstick between the two made me laugh. I'm sure it'll make audiences of non-animation fanatics laugh too, because most of the marketing for these films cater to them anyway. (No matter how bad it may be to us.)

But I'm just baffled at the fact that some people are already not looking forward to the film simply because of this teaser. Does anyone remember Tangled's wretched teaser? I remember cringing at what I saw on the hot night of June 18th in 2010, waiting for Toy Story 3 to unspool before my eyes. Lots of people hated it, from the Shrek-esque dialogue to the seemingly cynical attitude. Oh, and Rapunzel's hair beating up Flynn Rider as if it were alive? And this teaser is making people not want to see this film? I'm sorry, but I think that's unfair. If anything, the Tangled marketing as a whole should've taught us all a lesson... Never trust marketing that much! Also, let's not forget a lot of bad/meh Pixar teasers that make the films look lame. Finding Nemo, Cars and Ratatouille, anyone?

Anyways, I give props to the marketers for actually putting "From the creators of Tangled and Wreck-It Ralph" in the trailer, at the beginning no less! It's about damn time, too, because people confuse the two studios. Disney marketing needs to separate Disney Animation from Pixar and make their work stand out, seem unique and make it look like it's worth seeing. Some of us may not like this teaser, but it's going to work in the long run. People will be hooked.

If there's one little gripe I had with the teaser, it's that it doesn't really show how beautiful this film will look since we only got an icy lake and the surrounding tundra. It's pretty enough, but I would've liked to have seen more. That's just me, though. I also predict (this will probably be obvious) that the marketing will hide the fact that this is a musical and it may focus on action/humor only.

What did you think of this teaser? Good? Horrible beyond belief? Hilarious? Meh? Sound off below!

Breaking The Ice

Surprise, surprise! Disney has kindly told us on the Facebook page for Frozen that the film's teaser is coming in 5 days! Yep, we all knew it would be attached to Monsters University, and now we're finally going to see it a few days before Pixar's college prequel bows in theaters.

From what I've heard, this teaser won't feature the lead characters. This implies that it'll feature the two sidekicks, Kristoff's reindeer Sven and the hapless snowman Olaf. Whatever is shown, I hope it's funny and I also hope that we get a good look at the film's art direction.

Are you ready for awesomeness? I know I can't wait to see what it looks like!

To The Sky?

Looks like the UK got a brand new trailer for Planes, the DisneyToon-produced spin-off of the Cars franchise...



This film is nice to look at, I will admit that. The animation is good for a DisneyToon production and the flight sequences will look like they'll be well-staged and exciting. Like the Cars films, I love the character designs... It must be the car/auto/machine nut in me, really. It's eye candy, that's for sure. The sizzle reel actually impressed me and I actually got a little excited about the film after watching it, but that excitement kind of vanquished after seeing this trailer...

To be honest, I wasn't fond of everything else on display here. I don't have a problem with the story or the characters, that all seems okay. It's the tone and some of the humor, it's too childish for my taste. I am well aware that two of my associates at The Rotoscopers saw the film itself at a test screening and said it was plain good fun, but I didn't really see that in this trailer... All I really saw was a kiddie flick. A lot of the jokes misfired for me (especially the one John Cleese's Bulldog character cracks at the end), but I'm not this film's target audience... Unless Lasseter intended this spin-off to be a genuine family film and not a kids-only flick. It really looks like a children's film to me, and it will thrill the younger set, obviously.

There's nothing wrong with that, really. Like I've said many times here, I'm glad that the franchise is being expanded by others so that Pixar doesn't have to do it. I'm just hoping that this film is the only theatrical installment in this spin-off series, because a sequel is definitely coming. Disney can keep milking it while Pixar can do whatever they want, and the franchise can also pay for bigger things as well. I'll probably skip this when it theaters in August...

What were your thoughts on this trailer? Do you think the film looks like fun? Or disastrous? Sound off below!

Out in the Cold [Update]

Walt Disney Animation Studios' Frozen, their 53rd feature, is opening in theaters this autumn. November 27th, to be exact. Let's see... What we know so far?

It's a musical fairy tale based on Hans Christian Andersen's The Snow Queen, and it's been in the works for a while. Chris Buck, co-director of Tarzan and Surf's Up, is the lead director. The co-director is Wreck-It Ralph scribe Jennifer Lee. Kristin Bell, Idina Menzel and Jonathan Groff will provide voices. We know what the plot is, who the main characters are and who will be doing the score and the songs.

So what do we have so far in terms of marketing materials and stuff like that?

Well got the official logo last year and one piece of concept artwork, in addition to many drawings and sketches. Then we got these rather unappealing character posters which were confirmed to be fake, but the character designs on there are said to be final. In fact, these same poses were used on a German site for Disney... Unless that was a big mistake.

Other than that, no teaser poster, no teaser, no first images or anything. Let's take a trip back to April 2012. What did we know about Disney's Wreck-It Ralph at the time? There was a logo that was revealed as far back as the summer 2011 D23 expo along with a plot description, cast and crew details, an arcade cabinet of the film's Fix-It Felix, Jr. game, lots of concept artwork and near-final images. Folks who attended that D23 expo got to see the first six minutes of the film, some of which was actually animated. That same first six minute portion was also shown at the April 2012 CinemaCon. The film also got its minimalist 8-bit teaser poster in the middle of the month.

Yet Frozen seems to be... Hidden. We've heard very little about it lately. You'd think Disney would've released a teaser poster or image by now, but I don't understand why there is nothing of the sort that's out yet. If I can recall correctly, in early 2010, Tangled's first images were up. The poster didn't arrive till after the teaser debuted in the summer, but still... Why is Disney holding out on us? Is it possible that they just want to market whatever is coming out first? I get that they had to promote Iron Man 3, Monsters University and The Lone Ranger in the first quarter of the year. I get that the last of three especially needed a boatload of marketing... But we could've at least gotten an image or a poster for this film. The teaser trailer is most likely coming in June, since Disney seems to be taking this route lately with their animated films: The teaser for Tangled debuted in June 2010, the film opened in November. Ditto Wreck-It Ralph in 2012. At this year's CinemaCon, nothing was revealed. Nothing. Will they show something at this year's San Diego Comic-Con? Hopefully, but that'll be after the teaser premieres. (That is, if it does come out in June.)

Other than that, there doesn't seem to be as much buzz for this film. The skeptical side of me says it has to do with the recent layoffs at Walt Disney Animation Studios and the marketing staff, maybe the marketing people don't want to plug this one very early on and will wait it out, assuming that it'll do good because it's a Disney animated film and a fairy tale adaptation at that. All I expect is an aggressive marketing campaign after the teaser trailer premieres, much like Tangled and Ralph's campaigns.

However, it could be because Disney was too busy promoting the summer slate. Iron Man 3 was of course going to get a lot of marketing muscle, ditto Monsters University. Both are hugely anticipated films. Then the rest of the effort was going into The Lone Ranger, a risky-as-hell $250 million Western that most likely needs to make over $600 million to break even! It might not even do that with all this marketing behind it! So the lack of promotion for Frozen right now is a bit understandable, but there still could've been some images or something highlighting it at CinemaCon. Disney's been very... Well... Hush-hush about this icy flick.

Which is strange, because in my eyes, this seems like a much easier sell than Wreck-It Ralph. Disney made sure to get the word out on that film very early on, but for this film, it seems like they're holding back. Is it possible that they're assuming it'll be another Tangled-sized success? Perhaps. Do they think that it'll do well by default, regardless of when they start really promoting it? Maybe. But it seems like they're not excited about this project... There should be lots of buzz right now. Now with the teaser and poster for Thor: The Dark World out of the way, it is now time for them to get the ball rolling.

Will we see some form of marketing for Frozen next month? Will we get a poster, a teaser or an image? Or more news on the film's details? Sound off below!

Update: Just as I posted this, some footage was leaked! The video even featured director Chris Buck! There was completed animation along with storyboards, unfinished animation and... Pencil tests! From what was shown in completed form, it looks like what was achieved with Tangled in terms of the look was taken up to eleven. Not only does it looks different from the fake posters, but it looks like a computer animated hand-drawn film... If that makes any sense. Paperman seemed to be a testing ground for this, rather than a later feature. Maybe this style is what Walt Disney Animation Studios will turn to for the future, though it would be nice if they kept the classic style of hand-drawn animation. I will say, I'm very very happy with this style. Traditional and innovative at the same time, just what I expect from Disney. The video was expectedly and quickly taken down by Disney. Does this mean we'll get an official one soon?

William Jardine of A113 Animation managed to get a still from the video... Just look at it!

Beautiful... Just beautiful... I also like what Buck had to say about the story itself. Things like "heart", "intense action" (kind of thought that we were going to get that given some earlier plot details) and something along the lines of a "new level for storytelling for Walt Disney Animation Studios". That little preview really got me excited, so hopefully we'll get an official one or something similar soon!

Quick Super Bowl Trailer Thoughts

A change of pace, but I felt I would comment on this year's Super Bowl trailers. Sadly, no trailers for ANY animated film showed up. I was at least expecting something from The Croods or Epic. Monsters University had a spot that oddly only aired in Canada, and it's nowhere to be found online at the moment.

Nope, the only things that were presented this year were the summer's heavies and only one pre-summer blockbuster season release.



Oz the Great and Powerful (opening March 8th) - Mostly eye candy, but man does it look nice. How it will hold up in the writing department, I don't know. That being said, I'm looking forward to this.



Iron Man 3 (opening May 3rd) - I loved what I saw in this spot, but it was only one scene, and I felt a bit jipped because the spot ended with "See the extended preview on Facebook". How about this? Show the entire thing, it wasn't that long anyway. The extended spot was mostly stuff we've seen before: The destruction of Stark's Malibu, War Machine and action... Very little Mandarin though. Hopefully the next trailer has all this and more. I don't doubt it will.



Star Trek Into Darkness (opening May 17th) - A good spot, containing lots of action and glimpses at our villain in thirty seconds. Though I wasn't overly fond of it, I'm still anticipating the film thanks to the great trailer.



Fast & Furious 6 (opening May 24th) - Car action and explosions, what more could you ask for? I'm actually somewhat anticipating this film. Must be the 15-year-old in me that just wants to sit back and enjoy high octane action.



World War Z (opening June 21st) - Not hooked. Saw the trailer and this, it looks very generic if you ask me. That being said, the zombies having super-speed is a nice break from the slow and uncoordinated zombies. It still doesn't excite me...



The Lone Ranger (opening July 3rd) - Disney really is backing this up with some aggressive marketing, and you know what? That's good. They screwed up badly with John Carter, so now they're at least trying with this. It may not make back that hefty budget, though. Content? Well there's lot of action here, and I must say, it got me more excited for this film than both trailers did.

Overall an okay batch, but I would've liked to have seen more. With only 6 spots, 2012 has it beat with 8. 2011 had much more. I was hoping to see spots for Oblivion, The Croods or heck... Even G.I. Joe: Retaliation, but Paramount already invested in a Super Bowl spot last year (of course, back when it was on track for a June 2012 release). Warner Bros.' output was nowhere to be seen as usual; I would've liked to have seen something for Man of Steel.

What were your thoughts on the trailers? Sound off below!