Robot Soldiers, Puss In Boots In 2010, & Bye Bye Besson

Ousted Disney Exec To Command Robot Soldiers

(Hollywood Reporter)        The Disney studio chief who was laid off
last July amid a major restructuring has set up her first post-Disney
project at DreamWorks.

Nina Jacobson, the former president of Buena Vista Motion Pictures,
will produce the sci-fi thriller "Dominion" through her studio-based
Color Force shingle.

The story centers on a human who is chosen to command an army's
first-ever platoon of robotic soldiers.

Jacobson said she sparked to the idea of "Dominion" because of the
scope of the story. "It's a film that will require a real visionary
director, and it's a project that has a lot of big-movie elements,"
Jacobson said.

Ben Ripley, who became an in-demand writer when his high-concept
sci-fi time-travel spec "Source Code" sold to Universal Pictures, is
writing the screenplay.

Jacobson signed a three-year, first-look deal at DreamWorks in
December. She was a surprise casualty when Disney announced it was
cutting 650 jobs as part of a long-awaited strategic shift toward
making more movies aimed at a broad audience.





Movie Director Michael Bay Plans $25 Million FPS

(news.filefront.com)          The L.A. Times is reporting that Michael
Bay, acclaimed director of Armageddon and the upcoming Transformers,
has started plans to create a first-person shooter. This isn't the
first time Bay has shown an interest in video games; he was even
recently attached to direct a film based on Prince of Persia. As
co-chairman of Digital Domain Inc., Bay appears to be doing this to
help expand the company, mostly known for special effects, into other
markets.

I have to say, I'm a little wary about all these movie directors
suddenly jumping on the game-making bandwagon. The last game I can
think of that was directed by a film director was Enter the Matrix,
and that one ended up in bargain bins in less than a year. I'd like to
be cheering on Digital Domain, but all they really have going for them
is a handful of directors who have never created a game before. Well,
at least those games will have some awesome cut scenes.

Source: http://news.filefront.com/movie-director-michael-bay-plans-25-million-fps/





No Watchmen for Keanu Reeves

(comingsoon.net)         Despite rumors to the contrary, Club-Keanu
received word from Keanu Reeves' manager, who said that Keanu had been
offered a role in Zack Snyder's Watchmen but turned it down.

Watchmen, created by writer Alan Moore and artist Dave Gibbons, was
released as a 12-issue comic book in 1986 and is one of the most
critically acclaimed series in the genre. The comic is a
crime-conspiracy story that provided the first realistic look at the
behind-the-heroics lives of superhero archetypes.





Scorpion King Sequel Ready to Rock

(moviehole.net)         A sequel to the 2002 "Mummy Returns" spin-off,
starring The Rock in the lead role, is indeed in the works.
"Highlander" director Russell Mulcahy is attached to direct.

Since it was a DVD magazine I was reading where I saw the Universal
advertisement – and most of the franchises mentioned on that ad were
DVD franchises – I'd say this one's going direct to DVD. Wouldn't
expect The Rock to wanna smell what it's cooking, either.

Truth be told, I'll watch it. I liked the first film – thought it was
better than "The Mummy Returns" in many ways. Also thought The Rock
was great in it (some of his scenes with Michael Clarke Duncan were
awesome) and that the character had a compelling backstory.

I'm not a huge fan of Mulcahy's movies – though I do admit to loving
"Highlander". His "Highlander II : The Quickening" tainted him, in my
opinion. He did do OK on films like "Ricochet" and "The Shadow"
though, so ya never know, he might pull one out of his hat here. Then
again, depending on whom they get to play the lead, it mightn't much
matter who's behind the loudspeaker.





Hellboy 2 Starts Principal Photography

(Universal Pictures)       Principal photography has begun on the
action-thriller Hellboy 2: The Golden Army from writer/director
Guillermo del Toro and film producers Lawrence Gordon (Hellboy, Lara
Croft: Tomb Raider, Die Hard), Lloyd Levin (Hellboy, United 93) and
Mike Richardson (Hellboy, Gone). The film will be released on August
1, 2008.

Del Toro, who most recently brought the Oscar(r)-winning elaborate
fantasy Pan's Labyrinth to the screen returns to helm the second
installment, starring Hellboy alums Ron Perlman (Outlander, The Mutant
Chronicles), Selma Blair (The Fog, In Good Company), and Doug Jones
(Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer, Pan's Labryinth).

With a signature blend of action, humor and character-based spectacle,
the saga of the world's toughest, kitten-loving hero from Hell
continues to unfold in Hellboy 2: The Golden Army. Bigger muscle,
badder weapons and more ungodly villains arrive in an epic vision of
imagination from del Toro.

Hellboy 2: The Golden Army will film in both Budapest and the United
Kingdom, with post-production based in London.





The Dark Knight's New Improved Batman Suit

Take a look:  http://www.comingsoon.net/news/movienews.php?id=21042





Robert Mark Kamen Penning CG Animated Gatchaman

(comingsoon.net)      Robert Mark Kamen has been signed to write the
screenplay for the upcoming CG-animated motion picture Gatchaman, it
was jointly announced today by Imagi Studios Co-CEO & Chief Creative
Officer Francis Kao and Co-CEO Douglas E. Glen.

Kamen will work closely on Gatchaman with producer Lynne Southerland
and director Kevin Munroe ("TMNT"). Scheduled for completion in late
2008, Gatchaman will expand the visual boundaries of CG animation
through dynamic camera work and action sequences.

"Imagi is breaking exciting new ground in the animation industry by
making big action movies in pure computer graphics. It is a privilege
to be working with such an innovative team of artists," Kamen said.

A veteran writer who has authored 18 produced feature films since
1979, Kamen's credits include Taps, The Karate Kid and its sequels, A
Walk in the Clouds, The Power of One, Lethal Weapon 3, The
Professional, The Fifth Element, Kiss of the Dragon, Bandidas, "The
Transporter" movies and the upcoming Taken, starring Liam Neeson.
Kamen has enjoyed a writing partnership with the prolific French
producer and director Luc Besson for 14 years.

"We are thrilled to have Robert on the 'Gatchaman' team. His
commitment to creating strong characters, as well as his vast
experience in the action genre, make him a perfect fit for this
groundbreaking animated movie," Southerland said.

Based on the successful Japanese anime franchise created by Tatsuo
Yoshida ("Speed Racer") in 1972, Gatchaman revolves around a team of
five young superhero ninjas who must save the world from alien
occupation. With over 200 TV episodes, Gatchaman has delighted fans
around the world for more than 30 years. The property's popularity in
the U.S. stems from domestic versions of the show, including "Battle
of the Planets" and "G-Force."





Film-derived Games Fail The Screen Test

(columbiatribune.com)          In all of video gaming, few groups of
games are hated as widely as motion picture licensed games. Although
not technically a genre because of the diversity of their gameplay
features, movie games tend to be united by one key factor: almost all
manage to take a well-known gaming genre and screw it up.

"E.T.," "The Matrix" and "Jurassic Park" all delighted fans on the big
screen, but on the small screen they had gamers throwing controllers
in anger or shaking their heads in disgust. Whether it is the horribly
slow and pixelated "Wolfenstein"-esque gameplay of the SNES "Jurassic
Park" or the game-freezing glitches and shoddy programming of "Enter
the Matrix," the games become a chore to play through and can't even
retain the fun-to-watch essence of the movies. In fact, Atari's "E.T"
has become something of a legend in video gaming, considered by some
to be the worst game of all time.

The problem, it seems, with movie video games is that many of them are
quickly cobbled together from pieces of other games and none of them
try to do anything different. Case in point is "Batman Returns" for
the SNES, a decent game in its own right. Most of "Batman Returns" is
lifted directly from Capcom's "Final Fight," even down to similarly
designed life bars, and the other part is a bland battle racing game
similar in play to the NES title "Mach Rider."

The other bad thing about movie games is they are generally so low in
quality that gamers reject new ones out of hand, sometimes passing by
solid titles. "The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay" was
a great Xbox game that blindsided most gamers because no one really
thought it had a chance of being good. Luckily, "Riddick" was not
destined for obscurity, as it sold enough copies to grace Xbox's
Platinum Hits collection and reversed the paradigm by being better
than the movie it was based on.

Like them or not, however, movie games will be sticking around. Even
with their poor reputation, publishers see them as a way to make a
quick dollar off hot franchises or summer blockbusters, and they often
sell well enough to gamers who don't know any better. "Pirates of the
Caribbean: At World's End" has already made its debut on multiple
systems, and soon "Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer" and
"Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" will grace their
respective consoles. I hope they're at least decent games, but I doubt
I'll try them myself.





Shrek Character Set For His Very Own CG Movie

(canada.com)         A spinoff from Shrek is in the works and Antonio
Banderas couldn't be happier.

The people at DreamWorks want to create a new animated film especially
for his much-loved Puss In Boots character, with 2010 being eyed as
the release date.

The 46-year-old Banderas first heard about the idea a couple of years
ago following the international success of Shrek 2, a movie that
introduced Puss to audiences.

Antonio Banderas never really believed that his Puss In Boots
character, would be so popular. He thought Puss would be in one
episode and then leave the series.

"At the beginning, it came out as an idea to do a television movie,
but then they thought about it and they saw the possibility of just
creating a film with him. I know they already have a script."

However, DreamWorks also wants Banderas to continue as part of the
ongoing Shrek franchise along with Mike Myers, Eddie Murphy and
Cameron Diaz.

Banderas, who supplies the voice for the swaggering Puss in the
current Shrek the Third, says the fourth and fifth films are already
in development, and that current plans are for his Puss's solo outing
to be released after No. 4.

"I would love to have the opportunity to develop more of the
personality of this cat," Banderas admits. He adds that he's still
surprised that he's had the chance to supply the voice for any
animated character.

"I came to this country 17 years ago without speaking a word of
English. The last thing I thought was that anyone would ever call me
to use just my voice. So it was very surprising at the beginning."

When Banderas first started recording Puss's voice during the making
of Shrek 2, he was also in previews on Broadway for the award-winning
stage musical, Nine. That caused a near crisis when Banderas strained
his voice while recording the Shrek 2 sequence in which Puss chokes on
a hairball and tries to get it out of his throat.

"That night, I couldn't sing. All the girls in the cast were saying:
'What happened to you, man? Do you have a hangover?'"





Besson Promotes Last Film Before Retirement

(bruneitimes.com.bn)          FRENCH film-maker, writer and producer
Luc Besson is in Japan to promote his latest film Arthur and the
Minimoys.

He has previously announced that the movie, which is his 10th, would
be his last.

"The thing is just that I am tired and a little dried up.

"There is an old saying in French, 'If you have nothing to say, just
shut up'," 48-year-old Besson told a press conference.

"After 30 years I do not have enough strength to do another film
because it is a hard job and you have to be sure to come with
something fresh, not to repeat yourself."

The Weinstein Company has acquired rights in all English speaking
territories to the CGI animated family film, which is based on Luc
Besson's best selling children's book by the same title.

The screenplay was adapted by Besson, the award winning writer,
director and producer behind such movies as The Fifth Element, The
Messenger: The Story of Joan of Arc, La Femme Nikita and the diving
movie that launched him, Le grand bleu.

Last month, Reuters revealed Besson aimed to float his production
company, EuropaCorp, on the Paris stock exchange.

EuropaCorp has made or helped produce 45 films since 1999, including
Transporter 2 and more recently the animated children's movie Arthur
et les Minimoys.

Besson controls EuropaCorp via his holding company Front Line,
according to a document filed with France's AMF stock markets
authority.

The company currently has eight movies that are either in post
production or being shot, including Taken, being directed by Pierre
Morel and starring Liam Neeson, the document said.

In its last financial year, ended March 31, EuropaCorp made a profit
of €8 million ($16m) on sales of €159 million. Agencies





The First Special Effects Oscar Went To...

(blogcritics.org)       In 1940, when the first Oscar for Special
Effects was awarded, the winner was neither The Wizard of Oz nor Gone
with the Wind. Although both of those motion pictures were nominated
for the then-new Academy Award for Special Effects, the trophy was
given to Edmund H. Hansen, Fred Sersen and Roger Heman, Sr. for The
Rains Came. This Myrna Loy film was nominated for six Oscars, but
walked away with only one.

At the time, visual and sound effects were lumped into the same
category. After the Academy came to the conclusion that the film with
the best sound effects did not necessarily feature the best visual
effects (and vice versa), the Special Effects category was split into
those two divisions beginning with the 1963 ceremony.




It's Tough Being A Chinese Animator

(chinapianzi.blogspot.com)          Vancouver Film School recruiting
reps were in Beijing this past week talking to potential applicants
for their film, television and animation/vfx programs. While their
time in Beijing was limited, one recruiter described an applicant's
animation portfolio (completed as part of her master's degree at
Beijing Film Academy School of Animation) as "the best she had ever
seen".

Sigh. Let's just assume that this is an accurate indication of the
calibre of local talent and not merely an attempt to flatter an
aspiring animator into shelling out additional tens of thousands of
dollars in tuition fees. What are we to make of this dicovery that
some of the world's finest young animators live in a country where the
state of the animation industry is so enfeebled that it can barely
string together a 5 minute demo reel? Is it any wonder that a woman
with an advanced degree in her art would even consider investing in
additional training abroad?

But let's look at her options. On the one hand, a school like VFS is
well-versed in the "real-world" standards and requirements of industry
employers and could very well prepare her for an interview with a
North American studio. But on the other, what are the odds of this
student being able to find a job with a Canadian or US-based studio
right out of school in such a competitive marketplace? Failure to do
so means only one thing: a return to the China market and the prospect
of making 5-6,000RMB per month (if she's lucky) in a studio she was
probably over-qualified for in the first place.

It's tough being a Chinese animator. It's even tougher being a good one.

Source:  http://chinapianzi.blogspot.com/2007/03/its-tough-being-chinese-animator.html