QUOTE Transitions OF THE MONTH
It’s been an amazing summer for animation — and it’s not over yet! In fact, things are just heating up, as we come off last month’s incredible Annecy International Animation Festival and dive right back into the thick of it with Comic-Con and SIGGRAPH.
But first, what a year it’s been for visual effects. And one of the most exciting movies of the summer is our cover subject: Luc Besson’s Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets. Check out our story on the VFX process on this movie, which is fantastic. But even more exciting is that Besson has managed to put together a film that cost nearly $200 million to make and get it financed and distributed completely independently! It’s based on a comic, but not one widely known outside France, and it’s refreshing to see something new and original out there.
Which doesn’t mean we don’t love our legacy franchises. I didn’t think the digital apes could get any better than they did in Dawn of the Planet of the Apes. But then I saw War for the Planet of the Apes, and was completely convinced by the visuals and immersed in a story that really delivers on all levels. And we’d be remiss if we didn’t cover the one-two superhero blockbuster punch of Wonder Woman and Spider-Man: Homecoming, both of which wowed critics and had fans lining up around the block to buy tickets.
And what three of those four movies have in common is their origins as comic books, which means it must be time for Comic-Con. The show continues to grow and test the limits of convention-going — and we know because we’ve been exhibiting and attending for years. This year, in addition to our booth (#1533 — our usual location), we’ve got a panel to celebrate our 30th anniversary, set for Saturday at 4:30 p.m. in Room 24ABC! Don’t miss it!
And then there’s the animation. This month we cover the blockbuster features Despicable Me 3, coinciding with the 10th anniversary of Illumination Entertainment; and Sony’s The Emoji Movie, which strikes a chord that I think will reverberate with today’s audiences. We’ve also got a look at In This Corner of the World, which won the top prize at Annecy; Adult Swim’s latest comedy, Apollo Gauntlet; and a look at the Glen KeaneKobe Bryant collaboration, Dear Basketball.
Lastly, on a personal note, I want to let everyone know that I’m transitioning to a new role at Animation Magazine: Editor at Large! In this capacity, I will focus on finding and writing great stories that dig into the latest and greatest animation projects the world has to offer. It’s an exciting opportunity with limitless potential, and I can’t wait to get started.
So that means next issue you’ll be seeing a familiar name in this space, as our old pal Ramin Zahed returns to oversee the process of putting out this magazine. Ramin has been a friend for a long time, and we’re thrilled he’s decided to come back to the Animation Magazine fold.
Until next issue,