#reelfx

[ispeedilysillybouquet]

Joaquin Mondragon meets a jewish baker named Gabi Mendes and starts to fall in love with her

Joaquin and Gabi get married in a mexican-german-jewish wedding

Joaquin and Gabi have a daughter named Lorena and a son named Matias

Now Joaquin's descendants are Carmela, Nikita, Anita and Frida

[sgrb-archive]

EDF Employee Uniforms by Awuradwoa Afful

“It takes a big team to save the Earth from invading Kaijus! Here is some character dev work for the EDF employees from Designer [Awuradwoa Afful].” — ReelFX Instagram post description (archive)

[ariella-may]

Goodbye Scooby!

We just had our last day of animation on Scoob. One of the toughest projects I’ve worked on, but also one of the most rewarding! I’m gonna miss animating this guy, but I think I’m ready for a new project. I’ll see you again May 15th Scooby! 

[solemnveloci]

COCO & BOOK OF LIFE Joint Review

Alright, lemme just get this out of the way.

I know that I’m gonna get some people saying “Hey, don’t compare them! They did a good job conveying two different stories, don’t be spiteful to one over the other!” and that’s a good point. I didn’t even intend on watching them back to back at first.

However, I needed a cleanser after the three straight Open Season movies I’d watched, and it made more sense to me to rewatch TBoL and to… first-watch Coco since they were both about the same holiday. So, worry not. I’ll get it over with quick in the beginning.

Let’s start! (obvious spoilers for both movies)

The Book of Life was practically strangled to death before its time by the multiple years in production until it was finally accepted by ReelFX. The creative minds behind the project were native Mexicans Jorge Gutierrez and Sandra Gutierrez, famous for such projects as El Tigre, Carmen Got Expelled, and with resident fish-kisser Guillermo Del Toro working as producer, they could finally bring their idea to fruition.

Then Lee Unkrich went to Mexico on holiday, mentioned sugar skulls to his higher-ups, and Pixar immediately grabbed him by the throat and said, “DUDE MAKE A MOVIE.” DisNepotism at its finest.

Of course, Disney proceeded to screw themselves over so hard they practically ripped their metaphorical cocks off when they tried to trademark DIA LOS MUERTOS so that no icky DreamWorks producer could get their paws on it. The blatancy of this dick movie rightfully pissed off about a million Latino people (Mexican or otherwise) and Disney realized that maybe they had the wrong priorities. In order to assuage the backlash, they threw about six Mexican creators at the script and creative departments and begged them to sew up the Austria-sized fuckup.

Coco now sits as the highest animated film of all time in Mexico. I’d say they helped a lot.

PROS

The Book of Life:

God, the voice acting is amazing. How the hell they got Channing Tatum in this, I’ll never know, but he nails his lines like he’s not even trying. Kate Del Castillo and Diego Luna are my two favorites, though, considering they dual-dubbed La Muerte and Manolo in both English and Latin American Spanish. This line in particular always gets me.

I adore the puppets as a framing device. There’s just something so cool about it, especially with how characters like Xibalba and the Candlemaker interact with them.

Joaquin shouting his own name like a Pokémon every time he does something.

The Mariachi brothers physically roll around sometimes instead of walking.

Both versions of Manolo’s love song are gorgeous and sweet. They’re a welcome addition to the jukebox musical style of the rest.

Placido Domingo as Manolo’s disabled, opera-singing, bullfighter great-grandpa.

*chuckles* “They crushed our dreams!”

Manolo’s mom is so darling, you guys.

“Being bullfighters, we often flirt with death.” “And that’s why there’s so many of you down here.”

Xibalba, the god of evil, pigging out on a giant table of food and causally telling Manolo that’s he’s been completely screwed over.

Something’s oddly funny about the fact that Chakal’s got a giant, untouched drawing of the medal in his Cave O’ Death.

“Hey! My arthritis is gone!”

“Hello… puddle.”

Manolo’s mom bitchslapping Chakal.

The scene where Manolo apologizes to all the bulls his family killed, and the way the bull just clams down and dissolves into marigolds, like its soul was just put to rest.

Luchadore Priest. Hell, just the whole fight scene.

The kiss between Manolo and Maria, not helped by the fact I though he was flipping Chakal off during it instead of raising a finger.

“Men! Typical.” I love that delivery. “WELP, SAW THIS SHIT COMIN’.”

The little goth kid passing out when La Muerte undisguises herself.

Coco:

Again, the voice acting, fucking astounding. Props goes to Gael Garcia Benal, he pulls off his character so well! Disney/Pixar movies have sort of been lackluster with their voice acting (with a few exceptions) but this one was perfect.

*flashback to Ernesto getting flattened under a bell* “I wanna be just like him!”

“Miguel, vitamins are real.” “Well, now I’m thinking they might be!”

Hector’s facial expressions are so good, you guys.

Actually, I want to talk more about this. Not just him, but all the physical comedy with the skeletons. Like, they way they detach their limbs or heads, it’s so animated and weird. Reminds me of old cartoons.

If someone told me they watched this movie for Hector, I’d support them.

“Those aren’t the words!” “There are children present.”

I don’t care if all the acts were meant to be bad on purpose, I thought they were cute.

“Bring back the singing dogs!”

Seriously, the body language is incredible. Gael must have been having the time of his life recording this.

“HAVE YOU MET MY GRANDSON?”

“I hope you die very soon!”

Ernesto’s twist villainy is better than Big Hero Six and Frozen combined, fight me.

In fact, it’s the only way the villainy would have worked. Dammit, Disney! You made it look lazy!

Holy fuck, he just fell over. That’s… jarring.

Art theft is bad, you guys.

*sobbing*

*LOUDER SOBBING*

Awww! She’s dead! Wait, that sounds bad.

CONS

You scrolled down here for the negativity, didn’t you?

Book of Life: This movie gets shorter every time I watch it. Not kidding. Maybe it’s because I’m used to all the plot beats and twists. But… why is it soooo short?! Even like, two more scenes could have helped it along. I NEED MORE.

Coco: The inclusion of Frida Kahlo. This one kinda doesn’t count, but it does annoy me that she was used as just a quirky side-character, which is a huge slap in the face for all that she’d done as an artist and an activist.  The gag at the beginning with Hector wasn’t that bad, but if I could’ve changed it, I’d put the guy who invented Alebrijes in her place, Pedro Linares. You’d only have to do a little bit of tweaking, the Rivera family would dress as a giant Alebrije puppet to get backstage instead, Hector could disguise himself as one to sneak past Ernesto’s guards, and we could have this scene.

Ernesto: Ah, excuse me, sir! The stage is that way.

Hector: *takes off mask*

Ernesto: Hector. You’ve gotten back into performing, I see.

And now, for some rapid-fire nitpicks if that wasn’t enough negativity for you.

Why does the museum have a trick wall? Is it always there, or just there when La Muerte needs it? Is this their day job, or did they shapeshift into actual museum workers? Where’s Joaquin’s Mom? If she’s alive, why is she neglecting a child to live out in the streets? If she’s dead, who the hell raised him before Maria’s dad? Where’s Maria’s mom? Is nobody going to point out that Manolo is the only living member of his family left?!

Why didn’t Imelda just ban people seeking out musical careers and not all music? Are they not allowed to go to church? What do they do for parties? Quincenaras? Did nobody that Hector knew talk about the movie where his own death was ripped off? Did he never even overhear it? If you do something evil, do you only go to the Land of the Remembered if you never get caught?  What if you’re a serial killer who never got caught? Does that mean there’s a hell? DID CHICH GO TO HELL BECAUSE HE WAS FORGOTTEN? WHAT KIND OF FUCKED UP GHOST CAPITALISM DOES THE PIXAR-VERSE AFTERLIFE RUN ON

[whatsupfandompodcast]

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Podcast Time! To kick off Spooktober 2: The Re-Spookening, we review “The Book of Life”. In the news, we discuss the upcoming #teentitansgo movie, J.J. Abrams and Paramount doing a live action #yourname, #gundamironbloodedorphans season 2, and the #mylittlepony movie hitting theaters. • All #podcast episodes available on iTunes, Stitcher, and our website (link in bio) #anime #animation #20thcenturyfox #fox #reelfx #thebookoflife #dc #dccomics #gundam #kiminonawa

[theartofmany]

Artist: Amir Zand Title: A City For Future? “More Early Conceptions from an unannounced project by ReelFX Animation Following my earlier post: click here” Great work...

[flightschoolstudio]

Introducing Flight School Studio

Flight School is a collective of artists and technicians, fearlessly exploring the unknown in films, games, VR and whatever lies in the wide and boundless sky. Our research investigates the intersection of narrative and emerging technology. Each of our expeditions explore the outer limits of storytelling, innovation and design.

Our team facilities are located in Dallas, Texas, and efforts led by esteemed leadership from Reel FX and Moonbot Studios including Academy Award-winning Chief Creative Officer, Brandon Oldenburg, Emmy Award-winning Executive Creative Director, Limbert Fabian, CEO Kyle Clark and Executive Vice President, Lampton Enochs. Our growing team of 30 includes the boldest creative directors, producers, animators, engineers, developers and game designers.

For our first expedition together, we are exploring the outer limits of interactive virtual reality by creating a new experience, Manifest 99, which takes the user on a mysterious and emotional journey of discovery and redemption. It will arrive at a headset near you in Summer 2017.

Questions? Research opportunities? Make contact at http://flightschoolstudio.com

----

Présentation de Flight School Studio

Flight School est un collectif d'artistes et de techniciens explorant sans crainte l'inconnu dans les films, les jeux, la réalité virtuelle et tout ce qui se trouve dans le ciel vaste et sans limites. Notre recherche examine l'intersection de la technologie narrative et émergente. Chacune de nos expéditions explore les limites extérieures de la narration, de l'innovation et du design.

Les installations de notre équipe sont situées à Dallas, au Texas, et les efforts sont dirigés par des leaders réputés de Reel FX et Moonbot Studios, notamment Brandon Oldenburg, directeur de la création lauréat d'un Oscar, Branden Oldenburg, directeur exécutif de la création lauréat d'un Emmy Award, Limbert Fabian, Kyle Clark et PDG Vice-président, Lampton Enochs. Notre équipe grandissante de 30 personnes comprend les directeurs créatifs, producteurs, animateurs, ingénieurs, développeurs et concepteurs de jeux les plus audacieux.

Pour notre première expédition ensemble, nous explorons les limites extérieures de la réalité virtuelle interactive en créant une nouvelle expérience, Manifest 99, qui emmène l'utilisateur dans un voyage mystérieux et émotionnel de découverte et de rédemption. Il arrivera à un micro-casque près de chez vous en été 2017.

Des questions? Opportunités de recherche? Prendre contact à http://flightschoolstudio.com

[yasharcc]

Transporter. (Free Birds 🦃). Design by Frederick Gardner. #animation #conceptart #scifi #future #timetravel #scifiart #tech #illustration #drawing #photoshop #freebirdsmovie #reelfx #yashar #yasharland

[beepathan]

selfy

[animationforce]

21 Animated Projects We’re Anticipating in 2021

1) Arlo the Alligator Boy (Netflix/Titmouse)

This 2D musical feature film for the streaming service will set up a series (”I Heart Arlo”) about an alligator looking for family in a “Regular Show”-type world. The music blew us away during the preview at 2020′s CTN Expo.

2) Bob’s Burgers: The Movie (Disney/20th Century/Bento Box)

While the Fox show is loved for its humor and heart and not really for its animation, this feature film from the show creator Loren Bouchard will have a glossier look, as Bento Box animates on a feature budget and timeline. Expected in theaters on April 9, 2021.

3) The Boss Baby 2: Family Business (DreamWorks/Universal)

This March, DreamWorks Animation brings the brothers back together — to deal with the new cutthroat boss (baby) in the family.

4) Connected (Sony Animation) 

Producers Phil Lord and Christopher Miller (Spider-Verse, The Lego Movie) support Gravity Falls alum Mike Rianda in his feature directorial debut. Rianda’s brand of wacky humor sets this humans vs. robots film up for a great time, if the company can set a release date.

5) Encanto (Disney) 

Zootopia’s Byron Howard leads director team Jared Bush and Charise Castro Smith in this musical super power story set in Colombia, coming this fall.

6) Earwig and the Witch (Studio Ghibli/GKIDS)

Goro Miyazaki, son of legendary Hayao Miyazaki and director in his own right, brings Ghibli magic to theaters for the first time in six years. This film differs from its predecessors with stylized cg animation, but the story — an orphaned girl learns she’s the daughter of a witch — promises much of the wonder that one expects of any Ghibli film. 

7) Luca (Pixar) 

Director Enrico Casarosa debuts with Pixar’s Italian Riviera-set story of friendship between a boy and a boy-shaped sea monster, which arrives this June.

8) Minions 2: Rise of Gru (Illumination/Universal)

We’ve seen Gru’s future and his yellow minions’ past, but finally Illumination highlights the in-between in a villain origin story we hope will be as fun as the first three Despicable Me films.

9) My Father’s Dragon (Cartoon Saloon/Netflix)

It’s a great year for dragon-lovers, with Cartoon Saloon supplying the first of three feature films about these awesome creatures. Director Nora Twomey brings to life a Newberry-winning book, with help from “Inside Out” scribe Meg LeFauve and writer John Morgan. A boy who runs away to Wild Island finds much more than the captive dragon he sought.

10) Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio (Netflix/Jim Henson)

Another ambition animated feature from Netflix, Pinocchio sets itself apart from other versions of the folk tale in its look — stop-motion by Jim Henson’s studio — and feel, with Guillermo del Toro’s signature dark brilliance under veteran director Robert Zemeckis’ helm. This will not be very family friendly.

11) Raya and the Last Dragon (Disney) 

A warrior seeks the legendary last dragon hundreds of years after those mythical creatures saved her world from the same evil threat they now face. Coming to theaters and Disney+ (for a fee) in March.

12) Robin Robin (Netflix/Aardman)

This animated musical holiday special comes from the minds behind Wallace & Gromit and Shaun the Sheep. It may be a long way from December now, but we’re ready for some stop-motion Christmas fun, especially when the story follows a bird raised by mice. 

13) Ron’s Gone Wrong (Disney/20th Century/Locksmith)

Female-led production company Locksmith brings its first animated feature to life under Disney-owned 20th Century (Fox), “Ron’s Gone Wrong.” Set in a world where every child has its own robot assistant, a boy tries to fix his faulty robot this April.

14) Rumble (Paramount/ReelFX)

Based on a graphic novel by Rob Harrell, this film explores the challenges of a world where humans coach monsters in pro wrestling. Yes, really. We’ll see where it goes in May.

15) Sing 2 (Illumination/Universal)

Buster and his band of musical animals return with visions of stardom, or at least attempts to persuade a certain rockstar to join them in this sequel to the Animals’ve Got Talent film, expected in December.

16) Space Jam: A New Legacy (Warner Bros/WAG)

LeBron James joins the Looney Tunes in this not-quite-sequel to the 1990s classic live-action hybrid film. We’re especially looking forward to prolific voice actor Eric Bauza’s performance as Bugs Bunny, among other Looney favorites! 

17) The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge on the Run (Nickelodeon/Paramount)

After teasing us with seemingly infinite ads for this film, we’ve been waiting some time for the newest SpongeBob feature film in the United States, which arrives on CBS All-Access and video-on-demand services in February. The story of SpongeBob and Patrick’s journey to save the snail-napped Gary has already premiered in Canadian theaters and in other countries on Netflix.

18) Tom and Jerry (Warner Bros/WAG)

The live-action/CG hybrid film bring Tom and Jerry to the big screen and HBO Max this February. When Jerry accidentally crashes “the wedding of the century,” Tom is hired to get rid of the mouse, reigniting the famous rivalry and uncovering a secret plot in the process.

19) Vivo (Sony Animation)

Lin-Manuel Miranda delivers Sony’s first animated musical, about a capuchin monkey with big dreams, this June.

20) Wendell and Wild (Netflix)

“Nightmare Before Christmas’” own Henry Selick returns to stop-motion to direct Netflix’s adventure story of two demon brothers (Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele) who escape the Underworld.

21) Wish Dragon (Sony Animation)

An old teapot transforms college student Din’s meager life into something fantastic when he discovers Long, a Wish Dragon, inside. 

- Courtney

[cleowho]

Starting the New Year with a bang!

Dalek Exploding In Slow Motion by ReelFX - Doctor Who Festival - 2015 

[ispeedilysillybouquet]

Before the events of The Book of Life, Dora Luz came from a wealthy family but she was stressed out and nearly driven insane by her father's strict expectations.

Dora Luz went to the docks to calm herself down until she hears a beautiful singing voice

Dora Luz befriends an afro mexican fisherman's son and started to fall in love with him

However Dora Luz's father find out about this and forced his daughter to marry Ramiro Posada

Not to mention he pressures Dora Luz to stop marry a fisherman's son because he thinks fishermen are not rich

Dora Luz is about to marry a fisherman's son but realizes that her boyfriend died from being stung by bees.

Dora Luz tearfully marries Ramiro Posada

[sgrb-archive]

Welcome!

This is an archive for any behind-the-scenes Super Giant Robot Brothers content, which includes anything from concept art, crew art, or even creator interviews.

This blog is run by @wolfieolfie, but you can call me Wolfie (or any alteration of the sort)! I go by they/them!

A lot of stuff has already been uploaded by @sgrbkatywu, so anything on that blog will NOT be reposted here, but instead reblogged.

Any and all content uploaded here will be linked back to the content source, but if anything uploaded on the blog violates copyright or if a crew member wants it taken down, please let me know and I will take it down.

FAQ under cut!

Q: What is Super Giant Robot Brothers?

A: Super Giant Robot Brothers is a Netflix show created by ReelFX in collaboration with Netflix Animation and was released August 4th, 2022.

Netflix itself summarizes the show as, “Robot siblings Shiny and Thunder and their whiz inventor must defend Earth when space monsters attack.”

Q: When are posts posted?

A: Currently, bi-weekly at 8pm EST!

Q: I am someone who worked on the show and would like my posts taken down, but do not have a tumblr. How do I message you?

A: You can message me through my email wolfieartsncrafts@gmail.com, but if I do not respond quickly enough you can contact my instagram @ wolfieolfiee.

Q: Where is the link that links back to the original post?

A: Usually in the content source. If not, a link will be right under the image/video shown, or after a quote, usually (in parentheses).

Q: What is the “content source”?

A: It’s a little link located below the post where the tags usually are.

[sgrbkatywu]

This was one of the first images I created as part of a visual overview packet for Netflix and the production team at ReelFX.  This sheet shows a visual breakdown of the largest components/characters of the show, and how the differ from each other in terms of color, shape, and pattern.  (this document has since changed)

As we created more artwork and rules for the stylized look, it would be compiled into a packet to be passed on to production and anyone new joining the project.  That’s the fast paced world of TV!

[sketchdamn]

Another shot I had the chance to animate on Ugly Dolls at ReelFX.

[charleskenny]

Here's the Reasons Disney Shuttered Blue Sky

Deadline are relaying the news many were fearing ever since Disney acquired FOX in 2019. Blue Sky was owned by FOX and its long-term future was in doubt with many wondering whether Disney would retain a third feature animation studio. That question is now answered, and the answer is no. Blue Sky will be wound up in April (two months from writing) and all features currently in progress are cancelled.

Impacts

Blue Sky had about 450 talented employees and was the only major feature animation studio on the US east coast. Far removed from the industry hub in California, but very close to some of the top schools in the country.

With Blue Sky gone, the wider region as a whole will feel the impact. Retaining talent in the greater NYC area will be more difficult, and the pool of resources will shrink as a result.

This is all the more depressing when we keep hearing stories about how the animation industry is booming and business has never been better. There may not have been room for Blue Sky within Disney, but there certainly was room for it within the wider industry.

Disney decided not to simply spin-off or sell Blue Sky, and while this says a lot about Disney (they don’t want to create competition if they can avoid it), it also suggests that they felt they couldn’t find a buyer if they tried.

Is the industry saturated with studios?

It’s certainly possible. Major feature studios are a dime a dozen, especially once you look overseas, and even in the US they are more than a few:

Disney Feature Animation

Pixar

DreamWorks (NBCUniversal)

ReelFX

Laika

Sony

Warner Bros.

Paramount

and these are just the major ones. There’s dozens of independent and boutique studios putting out their own films or producing on behalf of the likes of Netflix. Throw in the oversees studios such as Illumination and suddenly the marketplace does seem a bit crowded.

Despite the fact that animation is weathering the COVID storm much better than live-action, it has also lost the ability to release films in cinemas; perhaps the last level playing field remaining for film releases. Some studios’ decisions to switch to a ‘digital-first’ or simultaneous digital/cinema release can’t have helped matters either. Streaming is booming, but the economics for streaming services other than Netflix remain a bit murky.

The release decisions behind films such as ‘Onward’ and ‘Soul’ are less about pioneering digital so much as hard economics; studios do after all, have to pay for the films before they earn a cent from them. COVID certainly brought the inevitable changes forward by a good half-decade, but many studios were not prepared for the change and were still producing films based on the expected revenues from a theatrical release. This, I believe, was probably the last nail in the coffin for Blue Sky.

What Likely Killed Blue Sky

As alluded to in Disney’s statement:

“Given the current economic realities, after much consideration and evaluation, we have made the difficult decision to close filmmaking operations at Blue Sky Studios.”

This is true for a few reasons

The first is that FOX never had their own streaming service. They relied on Hulu but that service is very much known more for TV than for films even though it does carry the latter. Without its own service, Blue Sky’s films were relegated to other streaming services and were never able to build their own niche with audiences.

Secondly, because of this, there is no audience eagerly awaiting the next Blue Sky release. FOX never crafted a unique brand image for the studio that spoke to the kind of films it made. Instead, Blue Sky became synonymous with ‘Ice Age’; a single franchise.

Thirdly, because of the first two reasons and perhaps most critically, Disney simply felt they already extracted all the value from the studio already. By that I mean that moving forward, all signs point to Disney+ as being the primary avenue for delivering new content from Disney as a whole. There is also the matter of library content of which Disney has a vast and rich collection of animated features of its own let alone Pixar’s. Crucially, it now also owns Blue Sky’s as well. The main value of Blue Sky as far as Disney+ is concerned is in its library, and by owning that, they can extract revenue without the cost of producing new films.

Yet they are producing new Disney Feature and Pixar films, why not for Blue Sky as well?

Simply put, it’s a combination of all three factors. Blue Sky wasn’t afforded the chance to build their own streaming audience or to build a brand image that aroused excitement from such an audience. Now that they are owned by Disney, that company is not going to spend the time, effort and money to do so because they don’t perceive a payoff down the line (doubly so with COVID) AND because they’ve already paid for Blue Sky’s library which is valuable in itself.

Contrast it with Disney’s purchase of Pixar back in 2006 when the latter was very much firing on all cylinders with audiences salivating at the though of each new film, and heralded a new way of making films that people wanted to see. Disney had neither and saw great value in acquiring Pixar for not only their library of films but also for their upcoming slate AND their way of doing business. Does Blue Sky add any of that to the greater Disney empire? Nope.

The demise of Blue Sky was perhaps inevitable as innovators outmaneuvered not just it, but its parent company FOX as well. There’s a reason Rupert Murdoch decided to sell it after all. What the future holds for the wider industry is unclear, but it does hint that further consolidation is likely.

Although this is not surprising in the least, it’s downright disappointing that Disney did not find a better solution for the sake of Blue Sky’s employees and the east coast as a whole.

Originally published at https://animationanomaly.com/2021/02/10/heres-the-reasons-disney-shuttered-blue-sky/