Zemeckis headed to Disney/Pixar?
In a move with broad implications for the future of the animation business, TMZ.com reports that Disney has poached Oscar-winning director Robert Zemeckis from DreamWorks Pictures, and is a cat's breath away from signing his ImageMovers production company to a multi-year deal at Disney/Pixar Animation Studios.Zemeckis' new-found motion capture passion isn't just appealing creatively: His latest film, "Monster House," is reported to have cost only $75 million, or less than half of what a typical Pixar film budget looks like. Most appetizing to Disney is the idea that a CG-style film could be made at such a reduced price, and still do well without needing to fill 4,000 theaters to capacity nationwide. In short, Pixar movies without the Pixar price or wait.
Insiders say that under the terms of the new ImageMovers pact, Lasseter will consult on all ImageMovers productions, leaving the studio to get "Pixar"-like product without meddling with Pixar's sacrosanct corporate culture. With the move, Disney is clearly aiming to own all areas of animation once again: With Pixar, 3D animation. With Disney Feature Animation, 2D. (As Animation Magazine recently reported, "During a panel at Comic-Con, director Eric Goldberg ("Pocahontas") mentioned that Disney is developing a 2D feature titled, "The Frog Princess.") And now, with its new friend Robert Zemeckis, the goal is clearly to own the more-economical motion capture space, too.
Zemeckis is known for his innovative use of special effects, especially in Who Framed Roger Rabbit, which combined live action seamlessly with traditional animation, and Forrest Gump, in which he placed Tom Hanks in scenes with well-known historical figures such as John F. Kennedy. One of his most recent projects, 2004's The Polar Express, based on the children's book by Chris Van Allsburg, utilized the computer animation technique known as performance capture, whereby the movements of the actors are captured digitally and used as the basis for the animated characters.
7 Comments:
It looks like Disney is on the right track to becoming (again) the animation juggernaut that it deserves. I just hope that Pixar doesn't end up trying out that mo-cap stuff for one of their films. I can't stand the look of it, not nearly as expressive has hand-made animation.
I think the look is interesting, but can only be used in the proper circumstances. I certainly wouldn't want it to replace the more animated look of the Pixar films, and I don't think it ever would. I think this is a good deal for everyone. Disney is a much better place for someone like Zemeckis to make these kinds of films. Dreamworks can get them seen in the theaters, but Disney can market them in all other areas better than anyone.
just wondering.
isn't zemeckis from sony pictures imageworks!
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[edited to supply new link. :)]
There is one motion capture system that might have a shot at rivalling Pixar's animation. At San Diego Comic-Con last year, the Henson panel showed a demo they'd put together for the HDPS (Henson Digital Performance Studio), and it nearly knocked the eyeballs from my head. The little Irish-steptoe-dancing frog they showed was nuanced, solid, weighty, alive--all the stuff animation is supposed to be. It felt, oddly, both like and unlike Pixar. And it was animation that was done in realtime (rendering extra, natch).
Brian Henson remarked on how having a realtime performance system made for much more flexibility on shooting. You weren't locked in to a specific setup or blocking.
The thing about the HDPS, of course, is that they've got some of the best motion performers ever working the gear, it's not something any joe-blow performer off the street can do.
Disney missed the boat: they should have gone with Henson.
Not sure about this whole thing. I get the feeling Zemeckis doesn't like animators much, or else he would let them create the animation on their own and ditch the whole motion capture thing. Who wants plain old "live motion" when you can push it and make it animate "better than live motion".
Remember though, it ain't the technology that makes the movie. As Pixar always says, it's story, story story. I personally hated the Polar Express and couldn't understand how people could accept the `sad eyed dead baby' look of the characters in the movie after seeing the amazing performances in Pixar movies.(it's still beyond me)
I think motion capture can work fine but it needs to be used as a basis for an animator to then come on and tweak and manipulate a perfomance out of it. A perfect example is Weta's Gollum.
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