Binocular Briefs - February 2025
AWN’s latest survey highlights under-the-radar animated shorts that are currently making their way through the festival circuit — or are newly available for online viewing.
Tagged With: Stop-Motion
Open call for submissions of animated films
The main focus of this year's AnimaSyros, entitled Animated Cosmos, is dedicated to space
New ‘Robot Chicken’ Special Celebrates Show’s 20th Anniversary
Coming to Adult Swim this summer, ‘The Robot Chicken Self-Discovery Special’ stop-motion comedy from Stoopid Buddy Stoodios takes aim at iconic reality shows from across Warner Bros. Discovery networks.
In CG, Event, People, Stop-Motion, Television, Voice Acting | ANIMATIONWorld, Headline News | Geographic Region: All
‘Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl,’ ‘Dune: Part 2’ and ‘Wander to Wonder’ Nab BAFTA 2025 Wins
The stop-motion comedy and ‘Dune’ sequel each take home 2 awards, with ‘Wicked’ winning twice as well, including Best Production Design, at the yesterday’s 2025 EE British Academy Film Awards gala.
In 3D, Acting, Awards, Event, Films, Music and Sound, People, Short Films, Stop-Motion, Visual Effects | ANIMATIONWorld, Headline News, VFXWorld | Special Events: BAFTAs | Geographic Region: All
Spotlight on Oscar-Nominated Shorts: ‘Beautiful Men’
Nicolas Keppens discusses his stop-motion film about the vulnerable journey of 3 balding brothers who travel to Istanbul for hair transplants.
In Awards, Guilds/Unions/Organizations, People, Short Films, Stop-Motion | ANIMATIONWorld | Special Events: Academy Awards | Geographic Region: All
Spotlight on Oscar-Nominated Shorts: ‘Wander to Wonder’
Nina Gantz discusses her stop-motion film about 3 tiny humans, stars of a kids’ TV series, whose creator dies, leaving them alone in the studio to somehow survive and continue making episodes.
In 3D, Awards, Event, Guilds/Unions/Organizations, People, Short Films, Stop-Motion, Voice Acting | ANIMATIONWorld | Special Events: Academy Awards | Geographic Region: All
‘The Wild Robot,’ ‘Arcane’ Dominate at 52nd Annual Annie Awards
Chris Sanders and DreamWorks’ blockbuster feature led the festivities with wins in 9 categories, while Netflix and Riot Games’ fan-favorite series took home 7, in a fun but emotional ceremony dedicated to victims of January’s tragic fires and highlighted by several tributes to LA’s firefighting finest, a real-time fundraiser, and 2 building-clearing false fire alarms.
In 2D, 3D, CG, Commercials, Digital Media, Diversity and Inclusion, Event, Films, Guilds/Unions/Organizations, Music and Sound, People, Short Films, Technology, Television, Visual Effects, Voice Acting, Writing | ANIMATIONWorld, Headline News, VFXWorld | Special Events: Annie Awards | Geographic Region: All
AWN’s Annie Awards Roundup: Top Contenders in Film and TV
Dig into the roster of animated feature films, TV shows, and shorts vying for wins in 36 different categories on February 8 at ASIFA-Hollywood’s 52nd annual ceremony recognizing the best in animation from the past year.
In 2D, 3D, Awards, Digital Media, Event, Films, Guilds/Unions/Organizations, People, Short Films, Television | ANIMATIONWorld | Special Events: Annie Awards | Geographic Region: All
ITFS and APD 2025 to Spotlight Stop-Motion, Swiss Artistry
Highlights for the upcoming festival include screenings of ‘Memory Hotel’ ‘Vengeance Most Fowl,’ with a masterclass hosted by Aardman’s Will Becher; ITFS runs from May 6-11.
In 2D, 3D, Call for Entries, CG, Education and Training, Event, Festival, Films, People, Short Films, Television | ANIMATIONWorld, Headline News | Blogs: FMX Conference Spotlight | Special Events: ITFS | Geographic Region: All, Europe
Signe Baumane’s ‘Karmic Knot’ Cast Announced
The Marriage Project and Studio Locomotive’s new animated feature reveals voice talent that includes Patrick Wilson, Dagmara Dominczyk, Emma Kenney, and Stephen Lang; releasing in 2028.
In 2D, 3D, CG, Films, People, Stop-Motion, Voice Acting | ANIMATIONWorld, Headline News | Geographic Region: All
Honoring Holocaust Victims Using Animation
A new essay from noted historian, author, and educator Karl Cohen discusses a wide selection of animated films, from harrowing survivor biographies to inspiring stories of people, and historic events - more than 50 in all, 40 made since 2010 - that bring needed awareness to one of the most disturbing subjects in world history.
In 2D, 3D, CG, Education and Training, Films, People, Short Films | ANIMATIONWorld | Geographic Region: All
31st Etiuda&Anima International Animation Festival: 22 – 27 October 2024 inKrakow Poland
Etiuda&Anima was founded in 1994, making it the oldest and largest Polish Animation Festival
Binocular Briefs - January 2025
AWN’s latest survey highlights under-the-radar animated shorts currently making their way through the festival circuit or newly available for online viewing.
Blinkink, Coldplay Team for ‘ALiEN HiTS/ALiEN RADiO’ Music Video
Isabel Garrett directs 28 global collaborators, including Sam Gainsborough, Will Wightman, and Studio Gruff, to create a mixed-media mosaic of life and love that premiered as part of the band’s ‘A Film for The Future’ project.
PigBird Stop-Motion Studio Spreads its Wings One Frame at a Time
Trevor Hardy says six years spent struggling to build his animation business is akin to fiddling with a bad tooth, though his recent hugely popular music video, ‘The Happy Song,’ for Imogene Heap and newest short, ‘A Right Royal Sprout’ may signal a welcome bit of pain relief.
In CG, Commercials, Digital Media, Films, Music Videos, People, Short Films | ANIMATIONWorld | Geographic Region: All
Miam! Distribution Acquires ‘Tweedy & Fluff’ International Rights
The stop-motion animated prequel series, created by children’s author Corrinne Averiss, follows the cloth toy Tweedy and his pet Fluff, a four-legged ball of woolly fuzz.
Nominations Announced for 2025 BAFTA Awards
‘Flow,’ ‘Inside Out 2,’ ‘Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl,’ and ‘The Wild Robot’ get the nod for Animated Film with ‘Better Man,’ ‘Dune: Part Two,’ ‘Gladiator II,’ ‘Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes,’ and ‘Wicked’ selected for Special Visual Effects.
In Acting, Awards, CG, Digital Media, Event, Films, People, Short Films, Visual Effects | ANIMATIONWorld, Headline News, VFXWorld | Special Events: BAFTAs | Geographic Region: All
One of Us Helps Capture a Stop-Motion Aesthetic in ‘Beetlejuice Beetlejuice’
Led by VFX supervisor James Brennan-Craddock, the studio delivered postvis and 317 visual effects shots on Tim Burton’s hit ‘Beetlejuice’ sequel, including digital versions of a miniature plane, simulated oceans, stretched faces, and sequences featuring the famed sandworm.
The Animation Workshop Announces 2025 Graduates
Five short films and two video game trailers were produced by the 48 character animators and computer graphic artists who will graduate on January 17.
In 2D, 3D, Cartoons, Education and Training, Games, People, Short Films | ANIMATIONWorld, Headline News | Geographic Region: Europe
Peacock Cancels ‘In the Know’ Stop-Motion Series
The adult animated parody, co-created by Zach Woods with Mike Judge and Brandon Gardner, follows NPR’s third most popular host, a well-meaning puppet - and nimrod - interviewing real celebrity guests with no knowledge of what they’ll be asked.
In Business, Digital Media, People, Stop-Motion, Television, Voice Acting | ANIMATIONWorld, Headline News | Geographic Region: All
Kickstarter Campaign for ‘Kent Melton’ Documentary Ending Soon
The project, directed by Maria Andreotti, celebrates the life and work of the legendary animation sculptor, using both stop-motion and live-action footage, and features interviews with notable industry leaders including Henry Selick and Glen Keane.
52nd Annual Annie Award Nominations Announced
Best Animated Feature nominees ‘Inside Out 2,’ ‘Kung Fu Panda 4,’ ‘That Christmas,’ ‘The Wild Robot,’ ‘Ultraman: Rising,’ and ‘Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl’ top the expansive list of category nominations; animation’s biggest awards ceremony is scheduled to return live on Saturday, February 8 at UCLA’s Royce Hall.
In 2D, 3D, Awards, Digital Media, Event, Films, Games, Guilds/Unions/Organizations, Music and Sound, People, Short Films, Stop-Motion, Television, Visual Effects, Voice Acting, Writing | ANIMATIONWorld, Headline News, VFXWorld | Special Events: Annie Awards | Geographic Region: All
The Pokémon Company, Aardman Team on Mystery Project
Set for a 2027 release, the collaboration promises ‘brand-new adventures’ set in the Pokémon universe, presented in Aardman’s classic Claymation style.
‘Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl:’ The Power of Stillness in Stop-Motion
Directors Nick Park and Merlin Crossingham bring back the enigmatic villain Feathers McGraw in Aardman and Netflix’s new comedy, combining animation mastery with nuanced, non-speaking characters that never work as hard as when they’re not moving.
See Creature Animation, Cossette, Rodeo FX Team for ‘Hanging by a Thread’
The handcrafted crochet stop-motion commercial is part of a broader awareness campaign about psychological health in the workplace that aims to prevent psycho social risks such as bullying and harassment.
