AWN Headline News

Urban Entertainment solidified deals to produce five new Webtoons with directors John Singleton (BOYZ 'N THE HOOD), George Tillman Jr. (SOUL FOOD), Malcolm Lee (THE BEST MAN) and writers Chris Mack (ER) and Cheo Hodari Coker (the upcoming HBO Marion Barry biopic). Singleton and comedian Freddy Ricks will co-create HUSTLIN' HANK, a satire of New York street life. Lee will create the comedy MY BABIES' MAMAS, which focuses on one man's mishaps with the multiple mothers of his children. Tillman will team with producer Robert Teitel (MEN OF HONOR) on a yet to be announced project.

Disney has ordered 21 episodes of a new toon series entitled, LLOYD IN SPACE, to air as part of the "Disney's One Saturday Morning" line-up on ABC. From the creators of DISNEY'S RECESS and RUGRATS, the series is the coming of age tale of Lloyd, a space station-bound alien teenager. Set to debut in 2001, the show features the voices of Courtland Mead (NYPD BLUE), Diedrich Bader (THE DREW CAREY SHOW), Ben Stein (WIN BEN STEIN'S MONEY) and John O'Hurley (Mr. Peterman on SEINFELD).

On Tuesday, November 1, 2000, The Harvey Entertainment Company announced that the proposed preferred stock investment by Classic Media LLC has been terminated due to the companies' inability to reach a definitive agreement. On August 24, 2000, Harvey announced that it had signed a Letter of Intent with Classic Media for an investment of roughly US$30 million in exchange for a new issue of Harvey Preferred Stock.

Brilliant Digital Entertainment (BDE) is branching out into the music business with its new Brilliant Animated Music division. So far DreamWorks Records and Island Def Jam Music Group have signed on to have music from their catalogs transformed into 3D Multipath videos. Heading up the new arm will be Grammy-award winning record producer Lee Jaffe, attorney David Codikow and Andrew Lee, who was recently promoted to BDE's senior VP of strategy and development.

* Monday, November 6 Wednesday, November 8, 2000. New York, New York, U.S.A.

* Thursday, February 15 Saturday, February 17, 2001. Los Angeles and Santa Monica, California, U.S.A. Entry Deadline: January 1, 2001

The RAYEARTH series comes to a stunning conclusion on video October 31, 2000. In the third volume, with Princess Emeraude's brother, Eagle, launching a massive assault against the Magic Knights, the final battle for the survival of Earth has begun. Toshihiro Hirano, creator of ZEORAIMA and VAMPIRE PRINCESS MIYU, directed the RAYEARTH series. An English dubbed version will retail for US$19.95 and an English subtitled version for $29.95.

Cartoon Network Online has named Pola Changnon as its new vice president and executive producer. Based in Atlanta, she will oversee the producers and writers for CartoonNetwork.com. Previously, Changnon directed the redesign of the Cartoon Network Online Website.

R!OT has created the CGI tornado for a new spot for Chevrolet's Monte Carlo. The spot starts out with a realistic tornado traveling down an urban street. The twister final stops backs up and parks in a parking spot. After the storm cloud settles and reveals the Monte Carlo SS, Warner Bros.' animated character the Tasmanian Devil hops out of the car and drops change into the meter. "The idea was to create a realistic tornado in order to take the audience by surprise at the end," said ad agency Campbell-Ewald's executive producer Craig Mungons.

Francisco "Paco" Rodriguez is closing down his animation production-distribution house PPM Multimedia to head up the animation arm of Madrid's burgeoning content creator Filmax. He will oversee the development of animated projects, international sales, coordinating co-productions and directing services at Filmax's animation studio Bren Entertainment. Rodriguez formed PPM Multimedia in 1990 and quickly transformed the small company into a major force in the Spanish market.

After making its initial nod last weekend in second place, the bewitching comedy BEDAZZLED fell to fourth place at the U.S. box office. Coming in behind MEET THE PARENTS, the debut of BLAIR WITCH 2 and REMEMBER THE TITANS, the Elizabeth Hurley devil dance, with primary visual effects by Rhythm & Hues, grossed US$7.83 million, down 41% from its debut, thereby lifting its 10-day cume to $24.15 million. The only other F/X flick in the top ten was the premiere of THE LITTLE VAMPIRE, which flew in at #6.

A new site has been designed to connect voiceover talent with casting directors, agents, animation studios and advertising firms via the Internet. Voicebank.net will allow voiceover talent the chance to post their work or listen to demo reels by searching through a Web database. The site is set up to interconnect all aspects of the voice casting process from receiving audition requests, printing copy and spec sheets to recording, encoding, sending and receiving voice auditions, approvals and finished spots.