When I think of the 25 Days of Christmas, Pixar Short Films really does not jump to mind. ABC Family thinks otherwise and tonight we will be getting Pixar Short Films in both time slots. It is nice that this is the first time they will be shown on television so I guess that is a bit of a holiday gift to us.

For the first time on television, Walt Disney Pictures presents “Pixar Short Films.” The two-hour event features 20 animated Pixar shorts, some starring familiar characters like Wall-E, Jack-Jack Incredible, Mater, and Lightning McQueen. Others introduce soon-to-be great friends like a quick-thinking unicycle and a snowman who dreams of sunnier climes.

Knick Knack is probably the only one that remotely reminds me of the holidays and winter as it is about a snowman in a snow globe that is trying to escape. When I first saw this on DVD I was not really impressed and I think it has to do with the top quality of the full feature films. Another day on ABC Family.

The nominees for the 2010 Annie Awards are in and Coraline, the feature adapted from Neil Gaiman’s award-winning novella, and Pixar’s Up lead the way with 10 and 9 nods a piece. Disney’s The Little Princess follows them with 8 (we’ve talked about this film recently- watch a clip or two and featurette . Last year, there was a bit of drama as Kung Fu Panda beat out Wall-E, so make sure you are tuned in!
 

Best Animated Feature

• Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs — Sony Pictures Animation
• Coraline — Laika
• Fantastic Mr. Fox — 20th Century Fox
• The Princess and the Frog — Walt Disney Animation Studios
• The Secret of Kells — Cartoon Saloon
• Up — Pixar Animation Studios

Best Home Entertainment Production

• Curious George: A Very Monkey Christmas — Universal Animation Studios
• Futurama: Into the Wild Green Yonder — The Curiosity Company in association with 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment
• Green Latern: First Flight — Warner Bros. Animation
• Open Season 2 — Sony Pictures Animation
• SpongeBob vs. The Big One — Nickelodeon

Best Animated Short Subject

• Pups of Liberty — Picnic Pictures
• Robot Chicken: Star Wars 2.5 — ShadowMachine
• Santa, The Fascist Years — Plymptoons
• The Rooster, The Crocodile and The Night Sky — Barley Films
• The Story of Walls — Badmash Animation Studios

Best Animated Television Commercial

• Goldfish: In The Dark — Blur Studios, Inc.
• Idaho Lottery “Twiceland” — Acme Filmworks, Inc.
• Nutty Trade — Blue Sky Studios
• Spanish Lottery “Deportees” — Acme Filmworks, Inc.
• The Spooning — Screen Novelties /Acne Media

Best Animated Television Production

• Glenn Martin, DDS — Tornante, Cuppa Coffee Studios & Rogers Communications
• Merry Madagascar — DreamWorks Animation
• Prep and Landing — ABC Family/Walt Disney Animation Studios
• The Simpsons — Gracie Films

Best Animated Television Production for Children

• Mickey Mouse Clubhouse — Disney Television Animation
• SpongeBob SquarePants — Nickelodeon
• The Marvelous Misadventures of Flapjack — Cartoon Network Studios
• The Mighty B! — Nickelodeon/Polka Dot Pictures/Paper Kite Productions
• The Penguins of Madagascar — Nickelodeon and DreamWorks Animation

INDIVIDUAL ACHIEVEMENT CATEGORIES

Animated Effects

• Scott Cegielski “Monsters vs. Aliens” — DreamWorks Animation
• Alexander Feigin “9” — 9 L.L.C.
• Eric Froemling “Up” — Pixar Animation Studios
• Tom Kluyskens “Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs” — Sony Pictures Animation
• James Mansfield “The Princess and the Frog” — Walt Disney Animation Studios

Character Animation in a Television Production

• Mark Donald “B.O.B.’s Big Break” — DreamWorks Animation
• Mark Mitchell “Prep and Landing” — Walt Disney Animation Studios
• Kevan Shorey “Merry Madagascar” — DreamWorks Animation
• Tony Smeed “Prep and Landing” — Walt Disney Animation Studios
• Phillip To “Monsters vs. Aliens: Mutant Pumpkins from Outer Space” — DreamWorks Animation

Character Animation in a Feature Production

• Andreas Deja “The Princess and the Frog” — Walt Disney Animation Studios
• Eric Goldberg “The Princess and the Frog” — Walt Disney Animation Studios
• Travis Knight “Coraline” — Laika
• Daniel Nguyen “Up” — Pixar Animation Studios
• Bruce Smith “The Princess and the Frog” — Walt Disney Animation Studios

Character Design in a Television Production

• Bryan Arnett “The Mighty B! – Catatonic” — Nickelodeon/Polka Dot Pictures/Paper Kite Productions
• Ben Balistreri “Foster’s Home for Imaginary Friends” — Cartoon Network Studios
• Craig Kellman “Merry Madagascar” — DreamWorks Animation
• Bill Schwab “Prep and Landing” — Walt Disney Animation Studios

Character Design in a Feature Production

• Daniel Lopez Munoz “Up” — Pixar Animation Studios
• Shane Prigmore “Coraline” — Laika
• Shannon Tindle “Coraline” — Laika

Directing in a Television Production

• Pam Cooke & Jansen Yee “American Dad: Brains, Brains & Automobiles” — 20th Century Fox/Fuzzy Door/Underdog
• Rob Fendler “Popzilla” — Animax
• John Infantino, J.G. Quintel “The Marvelous Misadventures of Flapjack: Candy Casanova” — Cartoon Network Studios
• Bret Haaland “The Penguins of Madagascar – Launchtime” — Nickelodeon and DreamWorks Animation
• Jennifer Oxley “The Wonder Pets: Help The Monster” — Nickelodeon/Little Airplane Productions

Directing in a Feature Production

• Wes Anderson “Fantastic Mr. Fox” — 20th Century Fox
• Pete Docter “Up” — Pixar Animation Studios
• Christopher Miller, Phil Lord “Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs” — Sony Pictures Animation
• Hayao Miyazaki “Ponyo” — Studio Ghibli
• Henry Selick “Coraline” — Laika

Music in a Television Production

• Michael Giacchino “Prep and Landing” — Walt Disney Animation Studios
• Kevin Kiner “Star Wars: The Clone Wars “Weapons Factory” — Lucasfilm Animation Ltd.
• Guy Moon “The Fairly OddParents: “Wishology-The Big Beginning” — Nickelodeon

Music in a Feature Production

• Bruno Coulais “Coraline” — Laika
• Michael Giacchino “Up” — Pixar Animation Studios
• Joe Hisaishi “Ponyo” — Studio Ghibli
• John Powell “Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs” — Blue Sky Studios

Production Design in a Television Production

• Mac George “Prep and Landing” — Walt Disney Animation Studios
• Andy Harkness “Prep and Landing” — Walt Disney Animation Studios
• Janice Kubo “Foster’s Home for Imaginary Friends” — Cartoon Network Studios

Production Design in a Feature Production

• Christopher Appelhans “Coraline” — Laika
• Ian Gooding “The Princess and the Frog” — Walt Disney Animation Studios
• Tadahiro Uesugi “Coraline” — Laika
• Christophe Vacher “9” — 9 L.L.C.

Storyboarding in a Television Production

• Sunil Hall “The Mighty B!: Catatonic” — Nickelodeon/Polka Dot Pictures/Paper
• Brandon Kruse “The Fairly OddParents: Fly Boy” — Nickelodeon
• Robert Koo “Merry Madagascar” — DreamWorks Animation
• Joe Mateo “Prep and Landing” — ABC Family/Walt Disney Animation Studios Kite Productions
• Adam Van Wyk “The Spectacular Spider-Man: Final Curtain” — Culver Entertainment

Storyboarding in a Feature Production

• Sharon Bridgeman “Astro Boy” — Imagi Studios
• Chris Butler “Coraline” — Laika
• Ronnie Del Carmen “Up” — Pixar Animation Studios
• Tom Owens “Monsters vs. Aliens” — DreamWorks Animation
• Peter Sohn “Up” — Pixar Animation Studios

Voice Acting in a Television Production

• Danny Jacobs – Voice of King Julien – “Merry Madagascar” — DreamWorks Animation
• Nicky Jones – Voice of Chowder – “Chowder: The Dinner Theatre” — Cartoon Network Studios
• Tom Kenny – Voice of SpongeBob – “SpongeBob SquarePants — Truth or Square” — Nickelodeon
• Dwight Schultz – Voice of Mung Daal – “Chowder:The Party Cruise” — Cartoon Network Studios
• Willow Smith – Voice of Abby – “Merry Madagascar” — DreamWorks Animation

Voice Acting in a Feature Production

• Jen Cody – Voice of Charlotte – “The Princess and the Frog” — Walt Disney Animation Studios
• Dawn French – Voice of Miss Forcible – “Coraline” — Laika
• Hugh Laurie – Voice of Dr. Cockroach Ph.D. – “Monsters vs. Aliens” — DreamWorks Animation
• John Leguizamo – Voice of Sid – “Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaur” — Blue Sky Studios
• Jenifer Lewis – Voice of Mama Odie – “The Princess and the Frog” — Walt Disney Animation Studios

Writing in a Television Production

• Daniel Chun – “The Simpsons: Treehouse of Horror XX” — Gracie Films
• Kevin Deters, Stevie Wermers-Skelton – “Prep and Landing” — Walt Disney Animation Studios
• Valentina L. Garza – “The Simpsons: Four Great Women and a Manicure” — Gracie Films
• Billy Kimball and Ian Maxtone-Graham – “The Simpsons: Gone Maggie Gone” — Gracie Films
• Billy Lopez – “The Wonder Pets – Save the Honey Bears” — Nickelodeon Productions/Little Airplane Productions

Writing in a Feature Production

• Wes Anderson and Noah Baumbach – “Fantastic Mr. Fox” — 20th Century Fox
• Pete Docter, Bob Peterson, Tom McCarthy – “Up” — Pixar Animation Studios
• Timothy Hyde Harris and David Bowers – “Astro Boy” — Imagi Studios
• Christopher Miller and Phil Lord – “Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs” — Sony Pictures Animation

JURIED AWARDS

Winsor McCay Award — Tim Burton, Bruce Timm, Jeffrey Katzenberg

June Foray — Tom Sito

Ub Iwerks Award — William T. Reeves

Special Achievement — Martin Meunier and Brian McLean

Certificate of Merit — Myles Mikulic, Danny Young and Michael Woodside

The Annies will be handed out on Saturday, February 6, 2010 at UCLA’s Royce Hall in Los Angeles, California.

Just a quick note, Prep & Landing has been moved to December 8th since the president will be on tonight instead.  I do not know, but I feel like taking away a childrens holiday show to put the president on is kinda rough this time of year.  Please check out our other post for more info on the show.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows is the seventh and last book in the J.K. Rowling’s series, and is being broken into two movies.  The first part will come out next November and the second part sometime in 2011.  It will be the end of an era.  USA Today has released some information and a picture from the first part.

A nice shot of the kids hanging out in the Muggle world. I have found it quite enjoyable to watch these kids grow up in front of the camera in the Harry Potter movies. Watch the first one again and just look how much they have grown.

This first part of the last two movies has kids in the Muggle world with the fate of not just their lives, but all of the magical realm in their hands.  This means that is will be less magical realm and more reality since they really have no where to go at this point.  I have to say that I usually catch these films on DVD Or Blu Ray so I am usually one film behind.  One day it will be nice to sit down and see all of the movies in a row like they were intended.

The upcoming Yogi Bear feature film, a live-action/CGI effort from Warner Bros. has filled what would seem to me the last key cast position by announcing that Tom Cavanagh will play Ranger Smith. The role, along that of Anna Farris, is the lead in the movie.

Live lead that is, as voicing Yogi and his companion Boo-Boo will be Dan Aykroyd and Justin Timberlake. Cavanagh’s previous work includes roles in shows like Ed, Eli Stone and Scrubs.

As long as they keep it real and keep the animated duo plotting on picnic baskets, I’ll forgive them for this!

For the next 25 days I will talk a bit about what is being shown on ABC family, hopefully I will have seen the show in question and be able to talk about it a bit, but if not it will be a reminder for you to tune in each night to get a little taste of the holidays.  To make things a bit easier on myself I am going to only take a look at the shows starting at 7 p.m and 8 p.m. EST.  So tonight we have one classic and one movie that is a fun time.

The Year Without a Santa Claus and The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause

The Year Without a Santa Claus – This is probably my favorite Rankin/Bass stop motion animated television special.  Santa gets a cold and is going to cancel Christmas so the elves, Jingle and Jangle, search the world finding people who believe in Santa.  They go to Southtwon where Vixen is thought to be a dog and taken to the pound.  The Mayor of Southtown says he will free Vixen if Jingle and Jangle can make it snow in Southtown on Christmas (Southtown never has snow).  The best part of this special though, Heat Miser and Snow Miser who kick out some really cool musical numbers.  I think out of all the shows, this one is so much fun because it is a bit of a different story, at least that is what I have always thought.  Plus the characters are fun, and we get to see a Christmas story about kids still caring for Santa.  I mean really the song “Blue Christmas” has to move even the adults a bit.

The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause – Tim Allen and Martin Short star in the sequel to The Santa Clause and The Santa Clause 2 as competing holiday characters.  I do not know if I have ever sat down and watched this whole movie at once, but I have caught the whole thing in multiple viewings.  I actually enjoyed it, and I think it has a lot to do with the fact that Martin Short is one of my favorite comedic characters, because the story itself is just so-so.  It revolves around Scott aka Santa Claus (Tim Allen) getting tricked into leaving the job of Santa behind by Jack Frost (Martin Short).  While the first two may have been better, I still love watching holiday movies around the holidays.

Stay tuned for another post tomorrow for Day 2 of the ABC Family 25 Days of Christmas in 2009.

Cory Doctorow, blogger, parent the author of some great – award winning – novels like Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom, Little Brother , and most recently Makers, sat down with TVOntario (for more than 10 minutes) and talked kids and technology.

As you may have seen and heard during this year’s Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade, here’s some holiday music/music video from Tiffany Thornton (she of Disney’s Sonny With a Chance) with the help of the HMIC (Head Muppet in Charge) Kermit! This is Thornton’s single “I Believe”, which will be available on December 8th as a digital download.

Never too old for Muppets!