Bee Movie

[ShyViolet]

What is it with ShyVi and plushies? Just curious.... (snigger)

Simple: They are huggable, and pretty!

And yeah Dan, you read me right, I would kill for a Bee plushie!

I still wish so badly that the Disney store would come back....

[Mitch]

Danny - BK, eh? Hmm...yeah, you're right. I forgot about that. They'll probably have them, as well.

ShyVi - Haha -- ahh...I see. Do you sleep with them at night? (snigger) Ok, I'm getting too personal.

We still have a Disney store in our area, though 90% is filled with girly stuff.

[Daniel]

And yeah Dan, you read me right, I would kill for a Bee plushie!

I still wish so badly that the Disney store would come back....

I knew it!

Well, they do have a website. Its not the same, but its something.

Danny - BK, eh? Hmm...yeah, you're right. I forgot about that. They'll probably have them, as well.

Actually, I take that back. I forgot Mcdonalds had Flushed Away toys.

[Meg]

Well, they do have a website. Its not the same, but its something

Ew! I hate their online store! It has about a total of, like, five different shirts...None of which were the ones I had seen at an actual Disney store. I'm STILL looking for one of those Incredibles T-Shirts, and I have been since it was released!

[ShyViolet]

I don't know if this matters or if anyone knows about it yet, but apparently Dustin Hoffman is doing a voice for an as-of-yet unnamed DW project....if you scroll to the bottom of this story it's mentioned, but not who he's playing....

http://www.projo.com/news/content/projo ... 69a54.html

Also, anyone who says Hoffman is just some "big name" who hasn't a clue how to voice a cartoon, remember that he did play Lisa Simpson's substitute on The Simpsons....






The story is from a while ago--but I still think it's valid.

[Daniel]

Also, anyone who says Hoffman is just some "big name" who hasn't a clue how to voice a cartoon, remember that he did play Lisa Simpson's substitute on The Simpsons....

Yup, I remember. That's one of my all time favorites!

Yeah, he is a heck of a lot better, than most "big name" people.

[ShyViolet]

Yup, I remember. That's one of my all time favorites! Razz

Me too! The end always makes me want to cry SO MUCH!

[Daniel]

Jawker!

Oh, me to! "You are Lisa Simpson"

[ShyViolet]

Here's a VERY interesting, very cool article on DW and the direction they're taking, and how they feel about the past year's animation "glut" and what the future holds. Very revealing and surprising in some ways.

(Doesn't say much on the Aardman situation, just that it's pretty unlikely they'll stick together. )

DreamWorks reboots for life beyond 'Shrek'
Tuesday, January 23, 2007

By Merissa Marr, The Wall Street Journal

In the summer of 2005, DreamWorks Animation SKG Inc.'s board held a retreat at the exclusive Jackson Hole, Wyo., mountain resort. The animation studio behind the "Shrek" franchise had stumbled badly in its first few months as a publicly traded company and executives were under pressure to come up with a new game plan.

One of the board's conclusions was basic: the company needed to make better movies. While arch-rival Pixar Animation Studios was making one highly-polished movie a year, DreamWorks was rushing to meet a more ambitious slate of two. Consequently, DreamWorks was suffering from a decidedly mixed track record outside of its flagship "Shrek" movies.

So DreamWorks has a new motto for its business going forward: Slow down. The company has decided to add a year to the production of its films.

"We've been racing to the finish line and that has meant compromising on story telling sometimes," says DreamWorks Chief Executive Jeffrey Katzenberg. There's a strong financial incentive, he adds: "If we improve our box office performance by 10 percent, it adds $100 million pre-tax profit to the company."

The studio has been making other changes, too. It has overhauled its top team after its problems in 2005, when it had to restate its earnings estimates twice because of miscalculating how many "Shrek 2" DVDs it would sell. That episode resulted in an informal SEC inquiry, which was later dropped. The Glendale, Calif. company also has has unified its production systems and streamlined its corporate structure.

The changes are important because, as it stands, DreamWorks Animation risks looking like a one-trick pony whose only trick is the popular "Shrek" franchise, the third installment of which comes out in May. Two of its last three movies have required write-downs, including "Flushed Away," which Cowen & Co. analyst Lowell Singer estimates could be as high as $115 million.

There also is the realization that "Shrek" may not last forever. That has forced the company to think about developing other franchises -- a particularly difficult task at a time when a flood of animated films is hitting movie theaters, many of them about cute talking animals. This summer alone has "Surf's Up," about surfing penguins, and "Ratatouille," about a rat's adventures in Paris.

"I didn't realize how similar they were all going to be," says Mr. Katzenberg, who describes a moment a year ago when he was in a movie theater and sat through back-to-back trailers for several near-identical animated movies. "Fortunately, our next six or seven movies are unlike anything we've done before or anything anyone else is doing."

The next 18 months or so will bear out whether DreamWorks Animation can make the transition it has in mind. Despite the slower production schedule, it still is aiming for one original movie and one sequel each year.

Mr. Katzenberg says the studio is able to stick to its goal of two movies a year while also extending the production time because it had a "deep bench" of movies in development. That is unlikely to include movies with its production partner Aardman Animations though, with the two expected to break up this year after "Flushed Away."

Having put some of its early problems behind it, Mr. Katzenberg says the studio already is in better shape, with a strong slate of movies. After "Shrek 3," it is releasing Jerry Seinfeld's animation debut, "Bee Movie," in November. Next year brings "Kung Fu Panda" and "Madagascar 2."

To strike the jackpot of one sequel a year in the long term, the studio needs at least three franchises running at any one time. It currently has two: "Shrek" and "Madagascar."

DreamWorks executives say "Shrek" likely has two movies left in it after No. 3 (a fourth is already in the works for 2010). "Madagascar" has been sketched out as a four-chapter series, with a third movie teed up for either 2011 or 2012.

The studio already has plans to keep those franchises alive in other ways. It is planning a spin-off of "Shrek" called "Puss in Boots," based on the swashbuckling cat voiced by Antonio Banderas. A "Shrek" Christmas TV special is in the works, as well as a Broadway musical for next year. It also is developing a TV series with Viacom Inc.'s Nickelodeon based on the penguins from "Madagascar."

But the real bucks are in feature films. DreamWorks President Lew Coleman says: "What we're really doing here is looking for sequels." While sequels are more expensive than the originals, they are less risky and usually more successful, he says. Because of the higher costs involved in luring back the talent, sequels can cost anywhere from $150 million to $170 million, versus $130 million for an original movie.

Among upcoming candidates for sequels, the storyline of "Bee Movie," about a disillusioned bee, doesn't particularly lend itself to a sequel, executives say (although Mr. Seinfeld himself might prove to be an animation franchise). "Kung Fu Panda" does, however. The tale of an ancient Chinese panda forced out of his armchair to learn kung fu to protect his village, it is being released the year of the Olympics in Beijing. In a show of confidence in the story, DreamWorks already plans to spin it off into a Nickelodeon TV series sometime after the movie comes out.

DreamWorks is working on two original movies for 2009: "Monsters vs. Aliens" and "How to Train Your Dragon," both potential franchises. "Monsters vs. Aliens" is B-movie style comedy about a squad of monsters who emerge from a secret military base to save the planet. "How to Train Your Dragon" is based on the book by Cressida Cowell about the son of a Viking who is on a mission to capture a dragon.

Those two movies will be the first to fully benefit from the extra year of work, which will stretch their production time to 41/2 years. Mr. Katzenberg says the extra year will be spent largely on developing the story of its movies, a relatively inexpensive exercise. He notes that if they had had the extra time on movies like "Madagascar," they could have worked on strengthening the final act, which wasn't as sharp as the first two acts of the movie.

"We've been getting the job done but we felt we could do better if we had more time," Mr. Katzenberg says. "It's a very small investment for a very high return."

[ShyViolet]

Oh, me to! "You are Lisa Simpson"

I loved that ep since I really ID'd with Lisa feeling "different" for doing well in school; plus I loved that her teacher was Jewish! "There were Jewish cowboys, great shots, and they spent money freely."

[ShyViolet]

Thanks for crediting me on the news page Josh!

I just want to say that I first read that article on Lexis-Nexis, then went to Cartoon Brew and followed their direct link. Just in the interests of honesty. But I DID see it first on Lexis Nexis.

[Josh]

Thanks for crediting me on the news page Josh!

You're welcome! I was glad to do it, since you pointed us in the direction of that very informative article.

[ShyViolet]

"Fortunately, our next six or seven movies are unlike anything we've done before or anything anyone else is doing."

I'm so excited by this!

It's really interesting how candid this article is....

[Daniel]

Yup it is, Vi.

I espicially liked the sequel info! And, I can hardly wait for the Penguin Tv show. I know that's gonna be cute!

[ShyViolet]

I hope so, but I'm not gonna bet the farm on it. If it's being done mostly by Nick and not DW, how good can it be?


Very interesting and revealing how K actually discussed Madagascar and admitted that the third act wasn't strong enough. Very candid and startlingly honest, wouldn't you say?

I liked the film overall but I do agree that third act was missing something. It's great how Marty and Alex's friendship was at the climax of the film, more needed to be done with it IMO.


BTW the best extra on the DVD (other than the Christmas Caper) is the Penguin's commentary!!!!!