California VFX Studio Whiskytree Expands to Georgia
New location doubles the company’s size and expands its scope and capabilities; updated pipeline taps AWS cloud computing for secure remote collaboration between both artists and clients.
Universal Drops ‘Twisters’ Official Trailer
Say… do you feel a draft? This summer, the epic studio disaster movie returns with an adrenaline-pumping, seat-gripping, big-screen thrill ride that puts you in direct contact with one of nature’s most wondrous - and destructive - forces; coming to theaters July 19, 2024.
Universal Shares a ‘Wicked’ Teaser Trailer
Based on the bestselling novel by Gregory Maguire and the hugely successful stage musical, Jon M. Chu’s upcoming musical fantasy adventure tells the untold story of the witches of Oz, Elphaba and Glinda; the film hits theaters November 2024.
Watch: 'Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3' VFX Breakdown Reel - The Orgoscope
Sony Pictures Imageworks has just shared with AWN and VFXWorld a look at how their team, led by Oscar- and BAFTA-nominated VFX supervisor Theo Bialek, were tasked with building the planet-sized organic structure known as the Orgoscope.
NVIDIA Releases NVIDIA RTX 2000 Ada Generation GPU
The new GPU delivers the company’s latest AI, graphics, and compute technology to compact workstations, taking better advantage of Generative AI’s sweeping changes, such as seamless editing of high-resolution videos and images and its use for realistic visual effects and content creation.
‘Society of the Snow’ and ‘Robot Dreams’ Top 38th Goya Awards
J. A. Bayona’s harrowing 1972 Andean plane crash tale scored 13 statuettes across multiple categories, including ‘Best Film’ and ‘Best Special Effects;’ ‘Best Animation Film’ went to Pablo Berger’s ‘Robot Dreams.’
28th Annual Art Directors Guild Awards Announced
Award-winning and Oscar nominated films ‘Poor Things’ and ‘Oppenheimer’ win top ADG honors for production design in “Fantasy Feature Film” and “Period Feature Film” respectively; ‘Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse’ honored in ‘Animated Feature’ category.
The Animation Guild Shares ‘Generative AI’ Economic Impact Study Results
Conducted by LA-based CVL Economics, the study surveyed 300 C-Suite leaders to better understand the entertainment industry’s growing embrace of GenAI technology and its effect on jobs.
Jon Hamm Says All Will Be OK in New 'Despicable Me 4' Big Game Spot
Who are we to argue with the famous Mad Man? The biggest global animated franchise in history – and its considerably manic mayhem - returns with the first ‘Despicable Me’ film in 7 years, as stars Steve Carrell and Kristen Wiig return alongside franchise newcomers Will Ferrell, Sofia Vergara, Joey King, and Stephen Colbert; action-comedy hits theaters July 3.
New Trailer Drops for ‘Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes’
‘Maze Runner’ trilogy director Wes Ball breathes new life into the venerable franchise with a story set several generations after Caesar’s reign, when a tyrannical ape leader builds his empire… but one young ape has other ideas; hitting theaters May 24, 2024.
‘Goosebumps’ Series Renewed for Season 2 at Disney+
The new eight-episode installment will unveil a fresh ‘Goosebumps’ chapter with an anthology twist: a brand-new story, setting and cast based upon R.L Stine’s worldwide bestselling Scholastic book series.
A Very 'R-Rated' First Trailer Drops for ‘Deadpool & Wolverine’
Ryan Reynolds returns as the fourth wall breaking ‘Merc with a Mouth’ in the third installment of the scandalous Marvel Studios franchise, alongside Hugh Jackman as Wolverine; the film hits theaters July 26.
'Oppenheimer,' 'Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse' Nab 2024 Lumiere Awards Wins
The two films take home top honors for Best Feature Film, live-action and animated, respectively; annual event recognizes distinguished creative and technical achievement in motion pictures, television, and emerging media.
Hopes for a ‘Coyote vs. Acme’ Resurrection May Soon Be Dashed
According to ‘The Wrap,’ barring a big offer in the next few days, it may be the end of the line for the #SaveCoyoteVsAcme campaign, as Warner Bros.’ claim the filmmakers could shop the film were ‘dubious at best.’
2024 Animation First Festival Winners Announced
Celebrating the legacy and innovation of Francophone animation within the U.S., the 2024 festival wrapped up January 28 with 6 films receiving awards in the ‘Francophone Shorts’ and ‘Student Short Film Competition’ categories; winning films are available for online viewing through February 12.
Morar Launches Beta for GenAI Video Creation Tool
The software enables users to generate audio and video content in 5-second clips, with a diverse range of 18 video styles.
Elk Studios Reveals New Branding and Team
The Ireland-based 2D company announces a €500k pipeline and infrastructure investment and key new hires, including new Head of Studio, 30+ year industry vet Brian Gilmore.
9 Story Announces ‘Judy Moody’ Animated Series
The media group partners with Trustbridge to co-develop and adapt popular book series ‘Judy Moody’ by Megan McDonald and best-selling holiday picture book ‘Dasher’ by Matt Tavares, with animation by Brown Bag Films.
Netflix Drops ‘Avatar: The Last Airbender’ Series Featurette
In ‘Bringing the World to Life,’ the cast and creators of the live-action adaptation take us behind the scenes to explain how they created the show, which hits the streamer February 22.
First Teaser Image Drops for ‘Among Us’ Animated Series
CBS Eye Animation Productions’ upcoming adaptation of the beloved multiplayer mystery game from Innersloth, with ‘Infinity Train’ creator Owen Dennis executive producing, is ‘progressing nicely,’ posts the game company devs on X alongside the first look.
Disney+ Renews ‘Percy Jackson and the Olympians’ for Season 2
Walker Scobell, Leah Sava Jeffries, and Aryan Simhadri will return to embark on a new adventure based on ‘The Sea of Monsters,’ the second installment of Rick Riordan’s best-selling ‘Percy Jackson and the Olympians’ book series.
Paramount+ Drops ‘Tales of The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles’ Series Teaser
Micah Abbey, Shamon Brown Jr., Nicolas Cantu, and Brady Noon reprise their ‘Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem’ roles in the new original 2D animated series that explores the adventures of everyone's favorite pizza-loving heroes; streaming summer 2024.
Watch: Studio Ghibli Co-founder Toshio Suzuki Talks ‘The Boy and The Heron’
The famed producer reflects on Hayao Miyazaki, the legendary director’s Oscar-nominated feature, and the future of animation.
New ‘VeggieTales’ Feature Coming in 2026
Big Idea Content Group and Kingstone Studios have partnered to develop the untitled film, which follows LarryBoy, the suction cup-eared, crime-fighting superhero; the project is set for a 2026 theatrical release.
Nickelodeon Announces 6 New ‘Artist Program’ Participants
New group selected for the 6-month program, now in its 13th year, which offers emerging talent from underrepresented backgrounds a chance to work on productions, participate in workshops, and learn from lead artists working across Storyboard, Visual Development, and CG Generalist tracks.
