According to AWN, DreamWorks has brought on Simon Beaufoy, writer of SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE, to write the feature adaptation of the popular children’s novel TRUCKERS.   DreamWorks picked up the rights for TRUCKERS back in 2001, and have had several writers take a stab at the screenplay.  So far Andrew Adamson and Joe Stillman have given TRUCKERS a go, and at one time Frank Cottrell Boyce was on call. However, maybe Simon Beaufoy, still fresh from his Oscar victory, can take TRUCKERS off the shelf and into the theaters.

TRUCKERS was written by Sir Terry Pratchett in 1990 as the first in The Bromeliad Series.

Dreamwork’s film MONSTERS VS. ALIENS won the number one spot on the box office this weekend, making it the biggest opening so far this year.  Grossing $58.2 million, MONSTERS is a good sign for other 3D movies slated for this year.  According to Variety:

The 1,550 3-D screens playing the toon ponied up 58% of the entire gross, although those runs made up just 28% of the total theater count of 4,104. The only downer for pic was that Jeffrey Katzenberg and Par had wanted many more 3-D screens in place by this time.

In other 3D news, AWN reports that CORALINE, the stop motion film by Laika, is still making money, but dropped 86% after is ceased playing in 3D.  The latest in Hollywood trends is rolling in the numbers,  only time will tell if it will outlive the 3D trend of the 60’s.

It seems that April is the month for celebrating the fathers of the animation industry.  Along with Jules Engel, Milt Kahl’s life is being honored at a centennial celebration of his own.  The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is presenting, “Milt Kahl: The Animation Michelangelo” at the the Samuel Goldwyn Theater in Beverly Hills on April 27th.  AWN reports:

The evening will feature an insightful analysis of Kahl’s animation drawings, rare film interviews with Kahl himself, and clips of his work from such Disney favorites as MICKEY’S CIRCUS, PINOCCHIO, BAMBI, PETER PAN, SLEEPING BEAUTY, THE JUNGLE BOOK and THE RESCUERS. The clips will be interspersed with commentary from those who worked beside him and were inspired by him, revealing the rigorous process and fiery personality of a true animation legend.

Andreas Deja will host the event and notables such as  Brad Bird, Ron Clements, and John Musker will be on hand to salute the premiere draftsman of the nine old men.

According to Entertainment News International, Cartoon Network announced an ambitious new programing slate for the 09-10 season.  At their Upfront presentation, CN unveiled 19 new programs in the works making this the biggest new content commitment in CN history.

“Last year, we outlined a strategy focused on genres of programming,” said Rob Sorcher, chief content officer for Cartoon Network. “Today we revealed how that strategy continues to grow with additional nights of signature programming and expands to include both scripted live-action and alternative content, as well as animation. We’re committed to delivering a diverse range of engaging, aspirational content to our audience.”

Among the shows are seven new animated series suck as ADVENTURE TIME WITH FINN AND JAKE, BEN 10: EVOLUTIONS, and SYM-BIONIC TITAN.  Also on deck are six alternative live-action series, THE OTHERSIDERS, BOBB’E SAYS, and DESTROY BUILD DESTROY.  Original movies from CN include SCOOBY DOO! THE MYSTERY BEGINS, FIREBREATHER, TIGER’S APPRENTICE, and BEN 10: ALIEN SWARM. 

More pilots are also in the works, and several shows are returning with new episodes.

Late and great Disney animator, Jules Engel, will be honored at the Walt Disney Concert Hall on April 18th.  The fete is in honor of the animator’s 100th anniversary of his birth, and will be celebrating his life and his work.  According to The Hollywood Reporter:

The event will include a film screening and roundtable discussion with such animators as Mark Osborne, Jorge Gutierrez, Steve Hillenburg, Mark Kirkland, Joanna Priestley and Henry Selick.

 

They will Engel’s influence on contemporary animation with moderator Ramin Zahed, editor of Animation magazine. The discussion will be followed by a cocktail reception and sale of Engel’s fine art.

Engel is most known for his work on BAMBI, FANTASIA, and Mr. Magoo; but was also the father of the Character and Experimental Animation Departments at CalArts. Proceeds for the event will go to the Jules Engel Endowed Scholarship Fund.

AWN reports that Disney has announced that Miyazaki’s latest film PONYO ON THE CLIFF BY THE SEA will have its U.S. release on August 14th.  The new english dub will executive produced by John Lasseter and Hayao Miyazaki himself, so we can be sure that the dub stays true to the original.

The story of a young and overeager goldfish named Ponyo (voiced by Noah Cyrus) and her quest to become human. The voice cast includes Cate Blanchett, Matt Damon, Tina Fey, Cloris Leachman, Liam Neeson, Lily Tomlin, Betty White and Frankie Jonas as Sosuke, a young boy who befriends Ponyo.

As usual with Miyazaki English dubs done by Disney, the voice cast is a mixed bag of high profile actors.

Turner Classic Movies on Tuesday night will premiere a new short documentary on the life of Animator Chuck Jones.  The film begins at 8pm (ET) and is titled “Chuck Jones: Memories of Childhood.”  Following the documentary will be eleven Chuck Jones shorts as well as the feature-length film “The Phantom Tollbooth”.

Amid Amidi of Cartoon Brew reports,

The documentary also includes new animated sequences by John Canemaker that bring to life moments in Jones’s childhood, as well as clips from his films and archival materials. To anybody familiar with the Jones autobiographies, the documentary won’t shed a whole lot of new light onto his early years (the biggest revelation is that he was physically abused by his father). Nevertheless, it’s a lovely presentation that’s enjoyable to watch and serves as a solid introduction to the master animation director.

Variety reports that Sam Fell, the director of of FLUSHED AWAY and THE TALES OF DESPEREAUX, is signed on to direct DEMONKEEPER.  Based on the book by Royce Buckingham, the movie will tell the story of

…a Seattle teen who inherits responsibility for a house filled with demons. When the youth finally breaks free of his charges to go on a date, he returns to discover that kids have broken into the house, unleashing its most vicious demon, the Beast, Killer of Lost Children.

Fox 2000 is the studio producing, while Laeta Kalogridis is scriptwriting, and Chi-Li Wong and Ken Atchity are on as producers.  DEMONKEEPER is to be live-action, but with so many demons crawling out of the woodwork, I am sure there will be plenty of CG animation to go around.

Pixar’s UP will be the first animated film, and 3D to boot, in history to kick off the Cannes film Festival.  This is not the first time that animation made a splash at Cannes, but capturing the opening night is a special achievement.  Variety reports,

“Cannes has demonstrated for many years its interest in animation by selecting films from DreamWorks, as well as films that use animation differently like ‘Persepolis’ and ‘Waltz With Bashir,’ ” said Thierry Fremaux, Cannes Film Festival’s delegate general.

Steven Zeitechik sings high praise for UP and its opening on his blog RiskyBusinessBlog.com.  According to Zeitchik, between the artistic quality, and the unexpected melancholy and pathos, UP could very well be heading to the award levels of WALL-E.

Vibrant, whimsical, melancholy and a stunner to look at, footage from the film pretty much blew us away when we saw it at Comic-Con. It looked unlike pretty much anything that had been done even by the groundbreaking Pixar — it contained the whimsy that recent artistic achievements like “Wall-E” and “Ratatouille” had, but it also had some pretty genre-defying elements, not the least of which is a sad, slightly crusty old man as its main character.

AWN reports that co-creator of Mr. Magoo and screenwriter, Millard Kaufman died Saturday at the golden age of 92.  Aside from penning for cartoons, Kaufman was a celebrated live action screenwriter and script doctor for MGM for over a decade.  Kaufman was nominated for the Oscar in writing for BAD DAY AT BLACK ROCK, and TAKE THE HIGH GROUND.  

But probably his most beloved work was for Mr. Magoo.  Kaufman drew inspiration for the lovable, bumbling, near-sighted character from his uncle.

Kaufman told NPR in 2007 that his uncle could see fine, but, “He simply interpreted everything that came across his way in his own particular manner, and he could at times be a little bit difficult, but he would only see things the way they existed highly subjectively to him.”

His services will be private, but if you would like to show appreciation for the life and work of Millard Kaufman, donation can be made to the Motion Picture and Television Fund.  He will be missed.