Don’t let the picture fool you, according to FirstShowing.net, the powers that be over at Disney have renamed their upcoming animated feature from RAPUNZEL to TANGLED.  In this film Disney returns to their foray into 3D but with a very 2d, painterly design aesthetic spearheaded by animation maestro Glen Keane.  Unfortunately , Keane and  Dean Wellins, who were called on board to develop and direct  had to step down from that position in October of 08.  Byron Howard and Nathan Greno of BOLT stepped in to see the film to completion.


According to Blue Sky Disney, the name change was warranted by a new look at marketing.  Disney is not lightly going to give up the extremely lucrative “Princess”, but don’t want to lose viewers do to hyped “girlie-ness.”

They (meaning the execs and John Lasseter and so on) think that boys don’t want to go see “girlie” movies and Rapunzel is instantly perceived as female because it’s a story about a girl with the long hair. So by changing the name they give it some new life. Apparently it’s not that girlie of a story either, so boys will still enjoy it. Other title considerations include the original Unbraided and The Thief in the Tower, too.

No matter what the name, TANGLED seems to be shaping up as beautifully rich and lavish film.  We will see if the story stands up to the hype or if the story just lives up to its name.

Well, the nominations are our and speculation is buzzing as awards season is well on it’s way.  In the world of animation there were several shake ups to the nominations.  First is the Best Picture Nomination for Pixar’s UP, the first time an animated feature has been nominated for this category since Disney’s BEAUTY AND THE BEAST in 1991.  Like BEAUTY AND THE BEAST, UP is proving the worth of the animation form in a live-action dominated world.  Since then the Academy instituted a new category just for animated features in 2001.  The second is that the Irish underdog THE SECRET OF KELLS made the nomination over other films such as CLOUDY WITH A CHANCE OF MEATBALLS, 9, and PONYO ON A CLIFF BY THE SEA.  KELLS  may not have been mainstream in the US, but had enough delightful story and a beautifully crafted look that caught the judges eye and imagination.   According to Animation Magazine the final list of nominations for Best Animated Feature are:

• “Coraline” Henry Selick
• “Fantastic Mr. Fox” Wes Anderson
• “The Princess and the Frog” John Musker and Ron Clements
• “The Secret of Kells” Tomm Moore
• “Up” Pete Docter

Of the nominations for Best Animated Short, the big surprise is that Pixar’s PARTLY CLOUDY didn’t make the list.  Pixar has been a main contender in this category since 2001, bringing home the award for FOR THE BIRDS in 2001.  Instead most eyes have been on the short film by Fabrice Joubert, FRENCH ROAST.  This simple yet captivating story has been traveling around the festival circuit and winning quite a few awards already.  The nominations for Best Animated Short are:

• “French Roast” Fabrice O. Joubert
• “Granny O’Grimm’s Sleeping Beauty” Nicky Phelan and Darragh O’Connell
• “The Lady and the Reaper (La Dama y la Muerte)” Javier Recio Garcia
• “Logorama” Nicolas Schmerkin
• “A Matter of Loaf and Death” Nick Park

Earlier we reported that THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG barely squeaked by the prelim-nominations for Best Score.  However, they didn’t make it to the primaries; instead FROG has two nominations for Best Song including DOWN IN NEW ORLEANS and ALMOST THERE.

For a list of all nominations in all categories check out the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences.