Plans are firming up for the sequel to "Frozen," which is in the planning stages and is a definite "Go." Just to call it something, for now, I'll call it "Frozen II." For those who need to know the obvious and not-so-obvious facts about the sequel:
"Frozen II" (or whatever they choose to call it) will not be out before 2018 at the absolute earliest. Disney has three major feature films in line ahead of it and there simply isn't room on the schedule before then - and likely for some time afterward. My own guess is that the sequel will appear during the holiday season in 2020, but it could be a year earlier or even later.
Kristen Bell and Idina Menzel will both return.
Jennifer Lee will return to direct.
Olaf will return and probably get a new girlfriend - who may factor into the story significantly.
The characters will have new costumes, certainly Elsa and almost certainly Anna.
Aside from that, everything is guesswork and will remain so until Disney releases a trailer or artwork, which likely won't be before 2018 at the earliest. While the prospect of a sequel is exciting, don't hold your breath, this isn't happening for some time yet.
UPDATE: The first official teaser trailer for "Frozen 2" is below, released on February 13, 2019.
Walt Disney: Money Doesn't Excite Me. It's always a good time of year to remember Walt Disney. It doesn't have to be his birthday.
Imagine the freedom to indulge your creativity like Walt Disney. He managed to create an entire industry - animated feature films. His characters remain as vibrant as the day he created them.
The animation field is ready for "the next best thing." Let's face it: animation basically hasn't progressed that much since the Disney Golden Age. Yes, the techniques have improved, the colors are better, everything is more "real." However, you basically are looking at caricatures of people and things in a 2D environment. I even would bet you that I could show a few "improvements" that are nothing of the sort.
You may not buy that argument, because new animation is undeniably snazzier, with better audio (a vastly overlooked aspect of modern animation) and lots of computer techniques that get the look sharper. However, what the industry really needs is to break out of the 2D world and actually present a more realistic portrait of, well, reality. That would be a game-changer... if done right.
So far, I haven't seen much progress in that area. I am not a fan of 3D television or 3D films, but the animation is one area where 3D could make a huge difference. Combine it with virtual reality, and it may be revolutionary. A promising pioneer in the field is Penrose Studios.
Eugene Chung and staff working on "Allumette."
Eugene Chung, a money guy ("venture capitalist") who sipped some coffee at Pixar, is behind Penrose. He is credited as a "writer and director" at the studio, so he is a creative type as well. Chung hooked up with Oculus, the virtual reality outfit, which then got acquired by Facebook, and maybe that's where a lot of that money came from. Chung seems to only stay at places briefly; he was out of Oculus after only about a year to found Penrose not much more than a year ago. So, this is brand new and in a state of flux.
It is too early to say where this new field of animation is headed. I could throw more facts at you about this, but the proof will be in the pudding. 3D is one of those things that keeps getting hyped and then disappoints, so let's not get all excited to no purpose. Virtual reality, combined with stellar animation, would be a completely new sort of experience that will be worth checking out. In my very casual opinion, though, virtual reality itself still needs a lot of development to really realize its potential.
So far, Chung has been involved with only two films: "Lost," a short film that Oculus and he worked on; and "Allumette," a full children's story that Chung and his team worked up after he left Oculus and began Penrose. Allumette is what we are all waiting to see, and it is not out yet anywhere as far as I can tell. Chung posits that "this is that next major medium of human storytelling." Well, that's a pretty grand statement. We shall see. I am willing to give them a chance, and that isn't always the case.
There is some interactivity involved with "Allumette." While it is very minor, there is a point or two where you can actually move around within the story and open up different views, not just different angles of the same thing. Virtual reality gives you that kind of true 3D experience, which is a lot different than what we usually think of as 3D film, with things flying at the screen and so forth. I can't review "Allumette" yet, because I haven't yet seen it. You have to wear one of those obnoxious headsets, or perhaps just big glasses, which is a downer. Anyway, the details will sort themselves out. I am just giving a head's up that something new is coming down the road, and you may be interested when it gets here. I sure am.
So, I'm not sure what to think about this yet. I like the entire concept of a marriage between virtual reality and animation. I don't particularly like the bulky VR viewers that you have to strap to your head and the fact that it could make a lot of people nauseous. With "Allumette," the medium is the message, as the famous saying goes. I'm not interested in the story, which I'm sure is very pleasing and novel, but in the technique. Unfortunately, pictures cannot do this justice. Let's just say you'll have to see this to believe it, so if you are into animation, you may want to make that a priority at some point. Unfortunately, we all still have to wait for it.
To absolutely nobody's surprise, Walt Disney Pictures' "Inside Out" won the Oscar for a best-animated feature film. There was absolutely no suspense to the award whatsoever. To be frank, this was a weak year for animated feature films, with no "Ratatouille" in view, let alone a "Frozen." I can think of several great animated films of recent years, such as, oh, "Wreck-It Ralph" for example, that were more enduring than "Inside Out." In a weak year, though, the big-study favorite invariably wins. It was a safe choice and was deserved. Kids love it. Congratulations to the winners, superb execution.
"Bear Story" won for best short, which was a minor (but welcome) surprise. Well-deserved, but a surprise considering that it was up against a Pixar film. The animation was indifferent by modern standards (which are quite tough to stand out from), but the story was told well and the tale touched the heart if you let it (the bear works through sadness and regret and marches on). Really, that is what film - not just animation - is all about. It also is something that I personally found lacking in "Inside Out" despite its brilliant technical execution.
I personally like the choice of "Bear Story," which required some actual thought and originality from the Academy members. It was a nice recognition of the wide range of animation today throughout this great big world.
The official synopsis for "Bear Story" (Historia de un Oso) states:
"Every day, a melancholy old bear takes a mechanical diorama that he has created out to his street corner. For a coin, passersby can look into the peephole of his invention, which tells the story of a circus bear who longs to escape and return to the family from which he was taken."
"Bear Story" was made by Gabriel Osorio and Pato Escala at Punkrobot Studio. In my preview of the Oscars, I went on and on about how my sentimental choice would be a win from one of the foreign efforts, and Bear Story - from Chile - fits the bill nicely (financed in part by the Chilean government).
Well done, Academy!
"Inside Out" also was up for a Writing (Original Screenplay) Oscar. It did not win. This did not surprise me at all. The whole concept behind "Inside Out" is a hoary cliché that goes back over 40 years when Woody Allen did an extended riff on it. It was fresh then, not so much now. In this case, the true honor really was to be nominated.
ANIMATED FEATURE FILM
Anomalisa
Boy and the World
Inside Out - WINNER
Shaun the Sheep Movie
When Marnie Was There
SHORT FILM (ANIMATED)
Bear Story - WINNER
Prologue Sanjay’s Super Team We Can’t Live Without Cosmos World of Tomorrow
"Big Hero 6" from Disney won the Animated Feature Film in 2015. This year's field is a relatively weak one. Pixar's "Inside Out" is a favorite for that Oscar in 2016. The Animated Short Film field does not have a clear favorite, but Pixar also has an entry there - "Sanjay's Super Team" - and that will be a strong contender.
The 88th Academy Awards ceremony will take place on 28 February 2016 at 7 p.m. EST.
My personal picks - meaning the ones I think will win - are "Inside Out" for Animated Feature Film and "Sanjay's Super Team" for Animated Short Film. Yes, another good year for Disney. Its quality is just too great to mess with these days.
My sentimental picks - meaning what I wish would win - are "Boy and the World" and "Bear Story." This is just because of the odds against them even being made - in South America! - and nominated were so great. The animation is in great shape south of the border, but nobody can compete with the Disney machine on even terms. Richard Williams is just phenomenal and kudos to his nomination so many decades after "A Christmas Carol," I love it when the legends return for another bow.
The biggest injustice was "The Peanuts Movie" being snubbed, but I admit that it was kind of just what you would expect from a, well, "Peanuts" movie. With that exception, I think the nominations were appropriate. Several foreign-made films ("Boy and the World," "Shaun the Sheep Movie," and "When Marnie Was There") were nominated, illustrating the health of the global animation industry.
ANIMATED SHORT FILM
Bear Story dir. Gabriel Osorio, pro. Pato Escala Prologue dir. Richard Williams, pro. Imogen Sutton Sanjay’s Super Team dir. Sanjay Patel, pro. Nicole Grindle We Can’t Live Without Cosmos dir. Konstantin Bronzit World of Tomorrow dir. Don Hertzfeldt
ANIMATED FEATURE FILM
Anomalisa dir. Charlie Kaufman and Duke Johnson, pro. Rosa Tran Boy and the World dir. Alê Abreu Inside Out dir. Pete Docter, pro. Jonas Rivera Shaun the Sheep Movie dir. Mark Burton and Richard Starzak When Marnie Was There dir. Hiromasa Yonebayashi, pro. Yoshiaki Nishimura
As widely expected, "Inside Out" also nabbed a nomination for Best Original Screenplay.
