Bedrock Studios

Big news today!! Here is the press release from the Hollywood Reporter!

Granat, Reel FX form Bedrock Studios

Animated feature 'Turkeys' is its first project

By Borys Kit

March 17, 2010, 02:07 PM ET

Cary Granat's Granat Entertainment is teaming with Reel FX, the company run by former ILM exec Ed Jones, to form Bedrock Studios, with the aim of developing and producing franchise films in the range of $35 million and under.

The company also hopes to produce content for TV, publishing and digital media.

Granat and Jones have been quietly working for months on the venture, slyly acquiring and developing material and is now hitting the ground running,

It is in preproduction on its first project, the animated feature "Turkeys," has tapped Owen Wilson and Woody Harrelson to voice star as two turkeys who discover a time machine and travel back to the first Thanksgiving to take themselves off the menu. Ash Brannon ("Toy Story 2") is directing while John J. Strauss and David I. Stern wrote the script and are producing. Luke Wilson is also lending his voice, and Peter Farrelly will executive produce the project.

Bedrock has also acquired the screen rights to Madeleine L'Engle's classic young adult fantasy "A Wrinkle in Time" and William Joyce kids book "Dinosaur Bob." "Rats of NIHM," which Granat had set up at Paramount last year, has been folded over into a Bedrock project.

On one level, Bedrock continues the themes that Granat ran with when he ran Walden, which encompassed literary and family-friendly material and marries it with the resources of Reel FX, which made a name for itself producing CG animation for films such as Sony's "Open Season 2," Disney's "The Wild" and providing special effect for movies such as "Enchanted" and "Sin City." It also produced the animated companion piece to "Watchmen," "Tales of the Black Freighter."

Bedrock will continue to operate in the animated and visual effects world, where it counts almost every studio as a clients, and be based out of Santa Monica and Dallas.

Peace Love Frankenstein

There is a new shirt design in the My Shop area.....hard to believe? Tell me about it. It's the first new anything to go into My Shop in months. One wonders how long My Shop will stay in business.

Polls Are Now Open

If you look off to the right you will see I've added a poll. Yes it's true! I saw this on another site I frequent and thought "my god....I must have one". So every week to two weeks (I will mostly likely post new ones on Mondays) look for a new poll with topics ranging from almost serious to mostly absurd.

Ooopsie

A few days ago I missed an important anniversary. My blog and I have been together for two whole years as of March 26!! Yes it's true. And I completely forgot to congratulate it or buy it a gift. It's funny, because on Monday the blog was acting kind of moody. I had made a post about Ninja Turtles and it was sort of looking at me...like "is that all?" So I added an image to the turtles post and looked back at the blog with a confused....."what?"

Tuesday it gave me the silent treatment all day. Any attempt to strike up a conversation with the blog was met with harsh glares. The word "jerk" kept appearing in the comments section of older posts.

All day Wednesday and Thursday it locked itself away and wouldn't let me post anything. I could hear it talking to Google and YouTube. Was it crying? It was sort of hard to tell. We have had fights in the past like when we upgraded to beta, but this was different.

Finally tonight I remembered. And after begging the blogs forgiveness and making it promises that I don't intend to keep, we toasted two fun years of providing written nonsense to the lucky people of the digital age.

Spam

If you have ever emailed me off my web site you most likely sent mail to me@raymation.net. This alias actual sent your email to my aol account which is all fine and dandy. However, I have noticed that the spam filter on aol has been a tad too aggressive, tossing none spam emails, emails sent through the "me" alias, into the spam folder.

I tried adjusting the filter settings but it is like a big, crazy, drooling St. Bernard, operating in one of two moods. Mode 1: aggressive and frightening, marking friendly emails as hostile. Mode 2: sleeps in the corner and lets everything in.

Since I don't have time to scan the hordes of spam looking for legitimate emails, I am changing the site email to raymation@hotmail.com. If you have ever emailed me and never gotten a response, it may not be because I don't like you, it may be in fact, that your email was flagged as spam and was purged.

New Designs

So I added a couple designs to My Shop based off a couple DrawerGeeks submissions. Yes its true. Spring is almost here and what better way to say "Happy Spring" to a friend or loved one, than with a gift of a giant robot shirt.




Perhaps giant robots frighten and scare you; that's understandable since giant robots are evil by nature. Maybe a non-threatening, mostly less evil caveman shirt would be more your speed.

Price Check on FUN!!!

My Shop is now open for business..yes it's true. My goal is to update it regularly....of course I also had the goal of running in the Disney World Marathon and that has yet to happen, so we will see how it goes. The intent is there...

Grab your shopping cart or "buggy" has some people here in Texas say, and check out what glorious items await you in My Shop.

The Year That Was.....

Happy New Year peoples! Gone is the that wacky year that was 2006.....and I thought 2005 was wacky. Year '05 was riddled with lots of minor bumps in the road as we had a string of minor bad luck. Add in the encounters with the ginormous possum and the mouse in the house , I was more than ready to get to 2006...because 2006 just had to be a better year.

Two major things happened in 2006 both residing on opposite ends of the spectrum. The good: the birth of my son. Yep Lil Pumpkin was the big, bright happy spot of 2006. The bad: losing my job and watching all my friends move all over the place. That was the big "suck" that started in February (when we were first told of the upcoming suckiness) and continued until I started my new job in August. For those of you playing at home that is 6 months of suck.

To cheer me up during the suck months I took in a couple movies, not many, just a few. I don't think I saw a single film this year that I really enjoyed on all levels. Even Pirates and Superman managed to let me down in various ways. The best thing I saw was Walk the Line on DVD and that came out the previous year. To add insult to injury Ant Bully opened and was a financial flop...sigh. So movies were a bummer for me in 2006.

But amid all the gloom of 2006 there was some bright spots. As mentioned Lil Pumpkin is the super nova of 2006. I'm at a new job and really enjoying it, I've made new friends this year as well as keeping in touch with the ol work gang which makes me happy.

In 2006 I also became involved with Animation Mentor which has been a great experience. And I started drawing again thanks to getting involved with Drawer Geeks.

So while it is true some sucktacular things happened in 2006, a lot of good things happened as well...and I didn't die which is always a plus.

Hopefully good things await in 2007.

Counting is Fun....

...until your counter is reset without your knowledge. Yes the good folks at GoStats have updated their site and all that implies. This wouldn't have been a big deal except my counter disappeared off my page due to the code being out of date.

The new code doesn't seem to although me to set the counter and seeing as how I didn't want to start from "1"....new counter it is!!!

I had already been using StatCounter to track page hits within my site. Now it will be my main counter as well. I just wish the numbers could be a little bigger.

Flags

You may have noticed the spiffy country counter that I added over there on the right. My buddy Shephard added one to his blog and by god it looked so cool, I needed to have me one as well.

Right now I'm using the trail version. There is a pay version and a free version. I will see how it goes, but most likely I will plunk down the $17 for a year license.

Oh yeah if you click on a flag it brings up a little map. So if you happen to see, say, Gibraltar, on the list and wonder "where is that?" click on the flag and there ya go.

New Addition

Next Thursday we had a C-section scheduled, but apparently my son did not want to miss Halloween and decided to come.....today!!

Lil Pumpkin didn't make a lot of fuss when brought from his warm, liquidy home, into the big bright, cold world. He was kinda like "WAAAAaaaa..... ooo this blanket is nice.. oh I get a hat too?....sweet...I'm digging this".

Both Mom and baby are doing great and Wonder-pea is super excited that her brother is finally here.

Keeping it Reel

This week I started my new job at ReelFX Creative Studios in Dallas. They have quite an impressive talent pool and I am super excited to be part of their feature team. Several folks from DNA have come over to ReelFX and it's great to see their smiling faces after going through some turbulent months. Once I bring over Pirate Cove , all will again be right in the world.

Being laid off was kind of a bummer. However I can honestly say I enjoyed my "extended" time off between gigs. Hanging out with my wife and Wonder-pea for three months was actually pretty great. There were times that I would even say "wow this is great...this must be what it's like to be independently wealthy..and to be able to do whatever you want every day!". Then the bills would arrive and I would remember that I wasn't independently wealthy. And then I'd throw up.

It was an experience to be sure. One I hope not to experience again until after I win the lottery.

Conveying Emotion

Conveying emotion is not only a necessary and challenging aspect of animation, but it can also be a lot of fun...yes fun. In fact there is a web site devoted to just this thing called: Eric Conveys an Emotion This site makes me laugh and laugh, and well it may do the same for you. In a nutshell, at Eric Conveys an Emotion you will see Eric convey different emotions via his web cam; he even takes requests. I think my favorite is: Morning After-Horror Disbelief.

There is also an Adventures area where Eric goes on adventures like Christmas shopping at the mall and finding a new apartment; very funny stuff. You should check it out....right now!!

Hi I'm Paul

If you have ever seen an episode of Jimmy Neutron or visited DNA's home page you may have noticed the 3 eyed monkey that is our mascot and wondered "What's with the 3 eyed monkey". Over at JimHillMedia.com , columnist Roger Colton tells the tale of how Paul the Monkey came into being. Included is a picture of "Steamboat Paul", a picture I did for our "Paul in famous movies" gallery; so be sure to check that out.

A New Look

Changes are a coming to the ol blog. Yes it's true. Starting perhaps tomorrow the blog will be incooperated into my web page; www.raymation.net. All the links and such to the side there will find new homes in the revamped link section of my main site.

But, you may say, I like the blog the way it is, don't change it. To you I say: stop whining, it's not the end of the world...or...is it? It is becoming increasingly difficult to update both the blog and the web site with new info. And there is a lot of new info coming up, most of which concerns our new film The Ant Bully. Therefore having everything in one spot will make it easier on me to do updates. And quite frankly I only care about me and making things easier for me.

If you are stubborn and refuse to access the blog via www.raymation.net that is your choice. You should know that doing this will make people laugh and point at you.

Oh right I have a blog...

• animation powers: strong like super monkey

Hello loyal readers (all 3 of you). You probably thought this blog was dead seeing as how I haven't updated it in forever. Well you would have been wrong to think that because the blog was in fact, only a little dead.

Time. It is our greatest enemy. There never seems to be enough of it. And so time is the excuse I am giving for not updating the blog.

Do you kids like the Harry Potter? Sure ya do. And you may have heard that Harry has a new movie coming out in just about a month called Harry Potter and Something Magical. What you may not know is that the teaser trailer for the animated film I am working on, The Ant Bully, will be attached to the ol Potter film. I have seen bits of the teaser all finished and pretty and it looks great. My giant contribution was animating a cape and doing some clean up on one shot; won't say any more as to not ruin the surprise. Everyone did a great job on it and it will be very exciting to have it seen by the masses.

The Ant Bully Cometh

• animation powers: feeling huge

Tom Hanks and Warner Bros. Pictures to Reunite for Exclusive IMAX(R) 3D Release of The Ant Bully
CGI Family Event Film from Playtone Productions, Warner Bros. Picturesand DNA Productions to be Simultaneously Released to IMAX(R) TheatresWorldwide in Response to Strong Audience Appetite for The IMAX 3DExperience(R)

Project to be Led by Writer and Director of Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius and Santa Vs. The Snowman 3D


LOS ANGELES, CA, July 21 /CNW/ - IMAX Corporation, in association with Warner Bros. Pictures, Playtone Productions, its principals Tom Hanks and Gary Goetzman, and John A. Davis of DNA Productions, today announced that The Ant Bully, an animated CGI film from the director of the 2001 box office hit Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius, will be released simultaneously in IMAX(R) 3D and conventional 2D format on August 4, 2006. The film will be digitally converted into IMAX 3D and feature proprietary IMAX DMR(R) (Digital Re-mastering) technology. The picture marks Playtone's third IMAX film project and Warner Bros. Pictures tenth film commitment to IMAX. Warner Bros. Pictures will be the exclusive distributor of The Ant Bully to IMAX(R) theatres worldwide.

"The Ant Bully will be our third adventure in IMAX 3D," noted Gary Goetzman, producer of The Ant Bully. "It adds unique dimension to the story and presentation."

"IMAX 3D is the most advanced three-dimensional moviegoing experience in the world. We've previously released, with great success, The Polar Express: An IMAX 3D Experience and NASCAR 3D: The IMAX Experience," said Dan Fellman, President of Domestic Distribution at Warner Bros. Pictures. "The Ant Bully, a film for the entire family, with outstanding CG animation, is perfectly suited for IMAX 3D. We look forward to offering audiences the experience of The Ant Bully on August 4, 2006."

"IMAX has been the world leader in cinematic 3D for more than a decade, and as we continue to closely partner with world-class organizations like Warner Bros. Pictures and Playtone Productions on groundbreaking 3D projects, we're reinforcing IMAX 3D as the gold standard," said IMAX Co-Chairmen and Co-CEOs Richard L. Gelfond and Bradley J. Wechsler. "The last IMAX 3D film we did with Warner Bros. Pictures and Tom Hanks grossed an average of $550,000 per screen, so we're obviously very optimistic about the potential The Ant Bully holds for the IMAX theatre network. We are also pleased to begin unveiling IMAX's 2006 film slate, and believe this visibility into our future programming will help bring more exhibitors into the IMAX business, as well as provide added incentive for our existing partners to open additional locations."

"Warner Bros. and Playtone have been fantastic partners, and we're very excited to expand our relationship with them, joining together again for The Ant Bully," added Greg Foster, Chairman and President of IMAX Filmed Entertainment. "The Ant Bully is based on a beloved book which teaches kids important life lessons in an entertaining way. We believe this film is well suited for both commercial and institutional theatres and looks incredible in IMAX 3D."

The Ant Bully is directed and adapted by John A. Davis, writer and director of Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius, as well as Santa Vs. The Snowman 3D, which was released in IMAX 3D in November 2002. Tom Hanks, Gary Goetzman and John A. Davis produce, and Keith Alcorn executive produces. The Ant Bully is based on a book by John Nickle, which tells the tale of a young boy who floods an ant colony with his water-gun, and is magically shrunken down to insect size and sentenced to hard labor in the ruins. Before returning to half-pint stature, he comes to appreciate the selfless nature of the ants and learns a valuable lesson about tolerance and empathy. The film will be voiced by an all-star and Academy Award-winning cast, including Nicolas Cage, Julia Roberts Meryl Streep, Paul Giamatti, Lily Tomlin, Cheri Oteri, Alan Cumming, Regina King, Ricardo Montalban and newcomer Zach Tyler Eisen.

Virtual Magic....now with lemon

• animation powers: feeling strong

Today was a good animating day. I have been working on a difficult action shot with our main man Lucas. Action shots tend to be tough. Many times characters are running, jumping, sliding, ballroom dancing, while carrying objects, other characters or juggling...axes. And most of the time you can be sure there is some nutty camera thing going on as well. These are the shots that depend not so much on fine acting but rather, fine choreography. Today I got my action shot finaled..finally...and it made me feel pretty good.

Ever been to the Magic Kingdom? There is one in Walt Disney World and there's Disneyland's Magic Kingdom. As well as ones, in Tokyo, Paris and soon...Hong Kong. If you've never been or can't pull yourself away from reading my blog long enough to visit one, then check out Disney's Virtual Magic Kingdom .

The game is still in Beta test mode and not all sections are open but what is there is pretty fun. There's a fireworks game (which is unbelievably hard.....for me anyway), a Jungle Cruise game (which I'm ok at) and a Pirates of the Caribbean game (which I freakin love). Admittedly I spend the majority of my VMK time playing POTC. Two teams of pirate ships blasting the crap out of each other. What the hell could be more fun? And you can type things like "arr" and "avast".

The game allows chatting but only allows words to be used that are found in it's own dictionary. This is to protect young kids (for whom VMK was designed), from reading bad words and being harassed by Michael Jackson.

Best of all this Disney game is FREE! Imagine..."Disney" and "free". Two words you never thought you'd see together in a sentence. So wake the kids and ask em "Hey kids! Wanta go to Disney's Magic Kingdom??!!" Then plop them in front of the computer to play VMK. And if you happen to end up on the wrong end of a cannon.....and there is an AnimatorBoy on the other end.....guess what..that's me....savvy?

I Got A Rock

• animation powers: afraid of the dark

Lately it seems the wife and I have been having a minor string of bad luck. Minor, because no one has been trapped under something heavy...at least not yet. Thank god.

It started a little over a month and half ago when someone we will call Dumbass ran into the back of the Animato-mobile.....while it was moving forward....with my wife and Wonder-pea inside. She was just driving along when WHAMMO, Dumbass runs into her. Both her and Wonder-pea were fine, but the Animato-mobile, which was brand new and no payments had yet been made, needed some repair. Lucky for us Dumbass had no insurance, no job and no chance of being on my Christmas card list.

So after that incident was taken care of, I'm parked in one of those do it yourself car wash deals. It is the evening before Wonder-pea's 2nd birthday. I finish with the car, which is looking clean for the first time in a long time, get in and nothing...won't start. How lucky...the battery is dead!

A few weeks later we go on our family vacation and by some miracle nothing lucky happens to us; expect me wetting my pants in public. We return from vacation and the very next day the Animato-mobile is blowing hot air when it's suppose to be blowing cold air. Back to the dealer we go and wouldn't ya know it, a rock had somehow navigated through the grill of the van and punctured the condenser which now needs to be replaced. Apparently it's not something that happens a lot. How lucky!

The doorknob locks on our house are crap. If you turn the switch to lock the knob you can still freely turn the doorknob from the inside. So regardless of whether you have the switch in the locked or unlocked position, the doorknob will turn when inside. Because of this "feature" there is always the chance that you will unwittingly turn the switch into the lock position, exit the house and close the door, thereby locking yourself out of the house. Like what happened to us last weekend...Memorial Day weekend......on Sunday.....at 5:30pm. Lucky for us the locksmith only charged $120.00.

That evening I told my Dad "I don't know what it is but we are having a string of minor bad luck". I then thought, "What the hell is gonna happen next." I didn't have to wait long to get an answer.

The next night we are eating at a restaurant that has a little river that runs through it. We are sitting very close to the water. My chair in particular is very close to the edge prompting comments like "Oooh don't fall in." At one point I reach into my pocket to pull out my cell phone which promptly falls out of my hand, bounces on the concrete and lands safely in the river. In my best Vader voice I yelled, "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO", plunged my hand into the river, retrieved the phone and yanked the battery off. Now I need a new cell phone...lucky me.

But luck decided to stop kicking me in the crotch; at least for the time being. The next day, by some miracle, the phone worked just fine. I nearly cried. I love you Samsung.

Tired, tired....oh so tired...

• animation powers: sleepy

After a few days of screwing around with my secret identity site, I have finally got the thing all up and looking spiffy. I did some reorganizing of things and added a few things. Hopefully it is better than it was before.....better...stronger...faster....I had the power to rebuild it.

I also included some pictures of my pirate desk in the Jimmy Neutron Animation Section. Once we are done with Ant Bully I will probably create a general DNA area. However, since Jimmy is the only DNA thing I can show at the moment, little big head has an area located within a general animation area. Asleep yet? Man I'm about to fall face first on the ol keyboard.

Here's one of the many shots of me pirate theme