The Playlist

Details Revealed About Noah Baumbach's 'Frances Ha' Follow-Up With Greta Gerwig, Also Has Animated Movie In Development

By Charlie Schmidlin
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April 23, 2013 9:38 AM
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2 Comments

News

Even after the quick and quiet production of his Greta Gerwig-starring dramedy “Frances Ha,” it's unlikely that director Noah Baumbach is taking on a new, J.J. Abrams level of secrecy to his projects. However, his latest film still does seem to mark a new chapter in the filmmaker's career, with its breezy, optimistic tone and fast-paced approach, and from an early glance at his next film, there are definitely some lingering elements.

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Interview: ‘Croods’ Directors Kirk DeMicco & Chris Sanders Talk The Differences Between DreamWorks And Pixar, Working With Roger Deakins & More

By Drew Taylor
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March 25, 2013 11:59 AM
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Interviews

This weekend, DreamWorks Animation’s new feature “The Croods” was unleashed in theaters nationwide. A zippy, prehistoric-set riff on the family-road-trip comedy, it features a clan of cavemen (and, it should be noted, cavewomen) who are forced to evolve after cataclysmic events threaten their way of life. It’s easily one of the most visually inventive and genuinely heartfelt movies to come out of DreamWorks Animation, and we were lucky enough to speak to Kirk DeMicco and Chris Sanders, co-directors of “The Croods,” about the development of the movie, the differences between DreamWorks Animation and Pixar, who their favorite cinematic cavemen are, how Guillermo del Toro and Roger Deakins helped, and why they utilized Fleetwood Mac’s “Tusk” in the score.

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Weekend Box Office: 'The Croods' Notches Best Animated Opening Since November

By Gabe Toro
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March 24, 2013 11:33 AM
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Box Office

Normally, we’re besieged by animated fare during all months, but not so far in 2013. The only animated film of the year thus far was “Escape From Planet Earth,” a production from The Weinstein Company that was treated like a last minute dump, posting numbers that only counted as a hit compared to the film’s small budget and meager ad campaign. Before that, DreamWorks kept “Rise of the Guardians” active in over 3,000 sparsely-attended engagements, though over the holidays it seemed kids would rather toss snowballs around than watch a weirdly oppressive, vaguely non-denominational holiday movie. Which meant that all Fox had to do was not embarrass themselves with “The Croods,” supplying the kids market with a 3D diversion that stands as the second biggest opening of the year, far ahead of the middling 'Guardians' debut.

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DreamWorks Animation Bumps 'Mr. Peabody & Sherman' To 2014, Shelves 'Me And My Shadow' & Fires An Unspecified Number Of Employees

By Drew Taylor
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February 7, 2013 5:35 PM
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1 Comment

News

In the crush of new releases that slammed the multiplexes in the fourth quarter of 2012, it was easy to forget what a heavily hyped and disastrously received movie DreamWorks Animation's "Rise of the Guardians" was. The last film released under DreamWorks Animation's distribution pact with Paramount (who is planning to ramp up its own animation production after the financial and critical success of "Rango"), it should have been kids movie catnip – a team of super-heroic mythological creatures team up to fight evil, like "The Avengers" of bedtime stories. But, the failure of "Rise of the Guardians," while an adequate hit overseas, still cost DreamWorks Animation north of $100 million. And now the fallout: "Mr. Peabody & Sherman" moves from fall 2013 to spring 2014 (getting the fuck out of the way of Disney's "Frozen"), "Me and My Shadow" gets shelved, and an unspecified number of layoffs will soon sweep through the studio. Gulp.

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Watch: Trailer For Animated Prehistoric Comedy 'The Croods' Voiced By Nicolas Cage, Ryan Reynolds, Emma Stone & More

By Edward Davis
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October 3, 2012 12:51 PM
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2 Comments

News

"Never leave the cave!" Voiced by Nicolas Cage, Ryan Reynolds, Emma Stone, Catherine Keener, Clark Duke and Cloris Leachman, DreamWorks Animations' "The Croods" is the company's big animated family comedy of 2013. Directed by Chris Sanders (the filmmaker behind "How to Train Your Dragon" and the illustrator who created "Lilo & Stitch") and Kirk DeMicco (writer of "Space Chimps" and the upcoming "Hong Kong Phooey" adaptation), one can only assume that if the film takes off like they hope, franchise is in the cards (and when isn't it for the lucrative field of animation?).

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DreamWorks Animation Reveals Ambitious 12-Movie Slate Including 'How To Train Your Dragon 3' & 'B.O.O.' With Seth Rogen

By Drew Taylor
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September 10, 2012 2:35 PM
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1 Comment

News

With 20th Century Fox recently picking up the distribution duties for DreamWorks Animation's films (following a profitable relationship with Paramount Pictures that ended somewhat sourly), it was all but a matter of time before the studio announced (via Hollywood Reporter) a fuller slate of movies for the partnership, but this is unprecedented – an ambitious, 12-movie schedule that includes three and sometimes four movies a year, including not one but two "How to Train Your Dragon" sequels and a new paranormal-themed movie starring Seth Rogen.

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Fox Takes Over Distribution Of DreamWorks Animation Films

By Drew Taylor
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August 21, 2012 5:22 PM
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1 Comment

News

After this fall's "Rise of the Guardians" (which, it should be noted, has nothing to do with anthropomorphic owls), DreamWorks Animation product will no longer be distributed by Paramount, its home for the past seven years. DreamWorks Animation head Jeffrey Katzenberg promised Wall Street wonks that a deal would be forged by Labor Day, and for a while it looked like Sony would end up distributing their films, but Deadline is reporting that Fox stepped up and provided a more appealing deal, with an emphasis on distribution through digital channels.

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First Poster Debuts For DreamWorks Animation's 2D/3D Hybrid 'Me And My Shadow'

By Drew Taylor
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July 24, 2012 11:16 AM
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2 Comments

News

The first poster has just debuted for DreamWorks Animation’s spring 2012 release, “Me and My Shadow,” on the movie’s Facebook page, and new details of the project have also emerged that make it seem far more interesting than the studio's average animated trifle.

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DreamWorks Animation Confirms 'Kung Fu Panda 3' & Development Of A 'Madagascar' Penguins Spin-Off

By Edward Davis
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July 12, 2012 6:02 PM
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1 Comment

News

Considering the grosses after just two films ($1.3 billion), this shouldn't be a surprise. DreamWorks Animation is giving the go-ahead for a third "Kung Fu Panda" film which was likely a no-brainer as last year "Kung Fu Panda 2" more than confirmed audiences are in love with the franchise. Voiced by Jack Black, Angelina Jolie, Jackie Chan, Dustin Hoffman, Seth Rogen and Lucy Liu, there's no word on who will direct the third installment, but so far there's been a different group of filmmakers for every film, with only producer Melissa Cobb and screenwriter Jonathan Aibel remaining as two of the major above-the-line creative forces.

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DreamWorks Animation Set Paul Giamatti, Samuel L Jackson & Just About Everyone Else In Hollywood To Join Ryan Reynolds In 'Turbo'

By Oliver Lyttelton
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February 24, 2012 11:19 AM
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News

They may still not have the prestige of arch-rivals Pixar, but things have been looking up over at DreamWorks Animation of late. Once the home of poor CGI fare like "Shark Tale" and "Bee Movie," recent years have seen a new emphasis on quality rather (or at least in addition to) big names. 2010's "How To Train Your Dragon" was their best film to date, and last year even sequels "Puss In Boots" and "Kung Fu Panda 2" displayed more artistry than "Cars 2" did, picking up Oscar nominations for their trouble.

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