tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-91785375293552470672008-07-26T02:05:47.923-04:00Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07420745899169639499noreply@blogger.comBlogger337125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9178537529355247067.post-87853911806021914442008-07-25T22:29:00.001-04:002008-07-25T22:31:54.106-04:00

Animated Views has posted a very good Q&A with Art of WALL-E author Tim Hauser, where he talks about the book and his long history with Disney and Pixar. Notably, Hauser reveals in the interview that he is currently working on The Art of 'Up' and another book, The Pixar Treasures. No details were provided as to Treasures, except that it will be published by Disney Editions in 2009. (via

Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07420745899169639499noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9178537529355247067.post-32729408049884057682008-07-25T22:25:00.000-04:002008-07-25T22:27:04.474-04:00

This has just now come to my attention: The Buy N Large website, set up in 2007 to promote the fictitious company behind the events of WALL-E, has been shut down. Buynlarge.com now redirects to the official WALL-E movie site at Disney.com. Too bad. It was pretty funny...

Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07420745899169639499noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9178537529355247067.post-81666983339716846922008-07-25T16:14:00.001-04:002008-07-25T16:15:33.488-04:00

Apologies for the overly sensational headline :) The San Mateo Daily Journal has published an article on the reason behind the listing of the San Mateo County Bomb Squad in the Special Thanks section of the WALL-E end credits. As it turns out, back in 2005 the squad lent Pixar their "vintage" Mini-Andros robot (pictured), usually used to neutralize explosives, so that Pixarians could spend a

Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07420745899169639499noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9178537529355247067.post-33609008560931320602008-07-24T21:59:00.008-04:002008-07-24T22:13:08.370-04:00

No matter how busy you might be, you now officially have no excuse not to see WALL-E. Just ask Barack Obama. The U.S. Democratic presidential candidate and junior Senator from Illinois told the media today that he saw WALL-E with his daughters last weekend in his hometown of Chicago. His thoughts: "WALL-E was great. Thumbs up. It's terrific. I really enjoyed it." (via Upcoming Pixar) (Photo

Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07420745899169639499noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9178537529355247067.post-32514280765931692192008-07-24T13:58:00.005-04:002008-07-24T16:34:51.838-04:00

To coincide with this weekend's Comic-Con in San Diego, at least one elevator at a local hotel has been wrapped in a cool Up flying-house-and-clouds theme, reports /Film, which has three pictures of the advertisement. The inside of the elevator doors bear the tagline GO UP! 05-29-09 –May 29, 2009 being the film's release date. *On Saturday, Comic-Con attendees will be getting their chance to

Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07420745899169639499noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9178537529355247067.post-1205791029716595772008-07-23T17:04:00.003-04:002008-07-24T17:06:12.206-04:00

In an unprecedented announcement tied to San Diego Comic-Con (which runs through Sunday), Disney Publishing Worldwide and BOOM! Studios revealed this morning that a line of comic books based on characters from Pixar's Toy Story, Monsters, Inc., Finding Nemo, Cars, WALL-E, and most exciting of all, The Incredibles, will be launched by the end of the year. A preview book (cover pictured) will be

Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07420745899169639499noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9178537529355247067.post-41243061552805673882008-07-22T15:15:00.005-04:002008-07-22T15:28:59.233-04:00

Pixar will be putting on a special "Production Studio Night" at this year's SIGGRAPH conference, which takes place in Los Angeles next month (August 11-15). (Sony Pictures Imageworks and Pixar biological parent Lucasfilm will also be hosting their own production nights.) The event, scheduled for August 12 as part of the SIGGRAPH Computer Animation Festival, will feature conversations with John

Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07420745899169639499noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9178537529355247067.post-78630507724456475652008-07-21T14:46:00.005-04:002008-07-25T14:36:40.686-04:00

Jim Hill Media has a new article up today about a Monsters, Inc.-themed ride (a rollercoaster) that's being planned for Disney's Hollywood Studios theme park inside Walt Disney World in Florida. (Disney is said to be aiming for a Fall 2011 opening.) The article has some great descriptions of the ride's different features which will include an "elaborate recreation" of the Monsters, Inc. lobby

Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07420745899169639499noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9178537529355247067.post-16643007174257869762008-07-19T19:58:00.022-04:002008-07-23T14:51:53.280-04:00

Quint of Ain't It Cool News has published the first of a series of posts based on his experiences following Pixar Chief Creative Officer John Lasseter, who since Pixar's merger with The Walt Disney Company also serves as Chief Creative Officer of Walt Disney Animation Studios, Pixar's sister studio. Quint got the never-before-given okay to "shadow" Lasseter for one day each month as he works at

Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07420745899169639499noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9178537529355247067.post-74260708662086257452008-07-16T13:56:00.006-04:002008-07-17T16:17:32.554-04:00

Rotten Tomatoes and sister site IGN have posted two excellent articles built around dialogue from Andrew Stanton and key members of the WALL-E production team ―producer Jim Morris, co-producer Lindsey Collins, sound designer Ben Burtt, story artist Derek Thompson, and animators Angus MacLane, David DeVan, and Rodrigo Blaas. The first article deals exclusively with the making of WALL-E; the

Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07420745899169639499noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9178537529355247067.post-45271562797101516992008-07-15T23:38:00.002-04:002008-07-15T23:40:35.278-04:00

Some exciting news about one of the characters that will be appearing in Pixar's next release Up found its way online today. If you recall the scene in Ratatouille pictured at top, around 16 minutes into the film, where Remy is barked at by a dog who remains off-screen, except for his shadow –well that same dog will be seen in Up. This reference –the latest in a long line of Pixar in-jokes– was

Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07420745899169639499noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9178537529355247067.post-28694382049244323372008-07-15T22:35:00.005-04:002008-07-16T13:52:30.309-04:00

Rotten Tomatoes has added a new photo tour of Pixar's studios, famously located in "fashionable" Emeryville, California. The tour consists of 18 photographs (including the one shown above) of the studios and the surrounding property. I know, I know, I've linked to this kind of thing before but, personally, I can't get enough of this type of thing... (Photo: Rotten Tomatoes)

Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07420745899169639499noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9178537529355247067.post-64167786868440169762008-07-14T15:35:00.011-04:002008-07-16T13:52:45.416-04:00

The big news in the world of gaming today is the revelation that well-known video game designer Warren Spector, who's game development studio was acquired by Disney in 2007, is working on games in conjunction with Pixar and Walt Disney Animation Studios (formerly Walt Disney Feature Animation). It all started with an entry posted yesterday on Spector's blog where he says: "My team and I have

Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07420745899169639499noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9178537529355247067.post-90996407274386039182008-07-12T14:59:00.000-04:002008-07-12T15:00:22.705-04:00

Film critic Joe Morgenstern of The Wall Street Journal adds his voice today to the suggestions that WALL-E should be nominated for the Best Picture Oscar at the next Academy Awards –the "nomination it so richly deserves", as he puts it. In the editorial, Morgenstern expresses concern at the known possiblity that Disney corporate may not campaign for WALL-E to get the Best Picture nod due to

Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07420745899169639499noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9178537529355247067.post-70382508020871836882008-07-11T17:20:00.005-04:002008-07-11T23:45:11.752-04:00

Entertainment Weekly (EW) has published a very special short Q&A with WALL-E director Andrew Stanton where he discusses his legendarily unusual choice to incorporate into WALL-E songs and footage from the movie-musical Hello, Dolly!. Also, tacked on is a separate chat with Jerry Herman, who conceived the music of Hello, Dolly! (both the film and the stage musical it's based on) nearly half a

Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07420745899169639499noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9178537529355247067.post-28593783774754601282008-07-10T14:32:00.005-04:002008-07-24T14:09:04.363-04:00

Collider.com has obtained some details directly from Disney regarding the upcoming San Diego Comic-Con panel for Pixar's Up. The panel will be taking place at Comic-Con on Saturday, July 26th between 3:00 and 3:30 PM. Not surprisingly, director Pete Docter will be attending the event to present "the first-ever look" at Up, Pixar's tenth feature film, set to be released to theatres next year on

Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07420745899169639499noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9178537529355247067.post-56580151098682785932008-07-09T14:33:00.004-04:002008-07-12T14:47:24.590-04:00

No, this is not some sick fantasy! It's a feature of the fashion section of today's Wall Street Journal, which profiles the style sense of WALL-E co-producer Lindsey Collins. In the piece, Collins takes the WSJ on a tour of her wardrobe and talks about her choice of clothes for various occasions. For example, she talks about her decision to wear a white EVE-inspired gown to the WALL-E wrap party

Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07420745899169639499noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9178537529355247067.post-80058234345912284462008-07-08T15:41:00.005-04:002008-07-12T14:51:50.853-04:00

TIME has published online an article dealing with the hot topic that is the possibility of a Best Picture nomination or even win for WALL-E at the upcoming 81st Academy Awards. The piece looks at WALL-E's chances when faced with the Academy's historic bias against animated films, balanced by the extraordinarily postive critical response the film has gotten. Unbelievably, though, the article

Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07420745899169639499noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9178537529355247067.post-56912197335543404012008-07-05T20:56:00.006-04:002008-07-05T21:05:41.911-04:00

WALL-E has passed the 100 million dollar mark at the North American box office, achieving an estimated gross of $104 million in the eight days since its release. According to Variety, WALL-E is the fifty-eighth film in the history of The Walt Disney Company to hit the $100 mil mark. Excellent!

Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07420745899169639499noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9178537529355247067.post-69304025536320795732008-07-03T23:15:00.003-04:002008-07-03T23:20:32.996-04:00

From this morning's Early Show. (Advertisement precedes video)

Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07420745899169639499noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9178537529355247067.post-1820323582676619662008-07-02T16:38:00.007-04:002008-07-12T00:07:44.342-04:00

Don't know why this story took this long to come out, but anyways...Remember the young woman, "Courtney", who a while back posted onto YouTube a video of herself crying at the WALL-E teaser trailer, particularly every time WALL-E appeared? (If not, see video embeded above.) Well, as it happens she was invited by Pixar to the WALL-E wrap party which took place in San Francisco on June 1st; just

Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07420745899169639499noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9178537529355247067.post-91519653142007752492008-07-01T12:32:00.001-04:002008-07-20T21:33:57.167-04:00

Pixar's most recent short film, Presto, which is being shown in theatres before WALL-E, has been made available for purchase (must have iTunes installed) for $1.99 from the iTunes Store (currently U.S. and Canada only). The comedic short, which follows a magician and his disgruntled rabbit, runs 5 minutes 17 seconds. (via Upcoming Pixar)

Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07420745899169639499noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9178537529355247067.post-70654320654967539362008-07-01T00:52:00.001-04:002008-07-12T00:10:14.779-04:00

Jerry Herman, who decades ago composed the tunes of Hello, Dolly!, is thrilled to see the prominent use of two of them –"Put On Your Sunday Clothes" and "It Only Takes A Moment"– in WALL-E, reports the Hartford Courant. He tells the newspaper: "It really blew me away. You're talking to someone still in a haze. I couldn't believe how beautifully the songs expressed the entire intent of the film."

Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07420745899169639499noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9178537529355247067.post-67239204980184833442008-06-30T20:08:00.000-04:002008-06-30T20:10:24.255-04:00

Final numbers for WALL-E's first weekend at the box office are now in, and they exceed the approximate figures released yesterday. WALL-E actually brought in $63.1 million (or, more precisely, $63,087,526) -that's over $580,000 more than yesterday's estimate of $62.5 million. I repeat: Woohoo! (Source: The Associated Press)

Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07420745899169639499noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9178537529355247067.post-67807936939013373192008-06-29T21:01:00.000-04:002008-06-29T21:03:58.683-04:00

Briefly: Continuing the theme (see here and here) of Apple helping to promote WALL-E, an exclusive clip from the first few minutes of the movie is now up at Apple Trailers.

Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07420745899169639499noreply@blogger.com