Industry Gears Up for 41st Annie Awards

Are you ready for the 41st annual Annie Awards?

The awards ceremony, set for Feb. 1 at UCLA’s Royce Hall, is one of the great nights for the entire animation industry, assembling the best talent — and more than a few fans — under one roof for a night of celebrating the medium.

Animation Magazine will be there for all the festivities. Be sure to follow along right here on AnimationMagazine.net as well as on social media via Facebook (www.facebook.com/animationmagazine), Twitter (@animag) and our brand-new Instagram account (@AnimationMagazine). We’ll be posting the winners as they happen and go backstage for the party scenes both before and after the big event.

If that’s not enough for you, the Annies themselves are going to stream live video of the event at www.annieawards.org/watch-it-live. Either way, there’s no reason to miss out on the fun!

As a reminder, here are the nominees for the 41st annual Annie Awards. Who do you think are the favorites? Who will go home disappointed? Stay tuned to find out …

PRODUCTION CATEGORIES

Best Animated Feature

• A Letter to Momo – GKIDS
• Despicable Me 2 – Illumination Entertainment/Universal Pictures
• Ernest & Celestine – GKIDS
• Frozen – Walt Disney Animation Studios
• Monsters University – Pixar Animation Studios
• The Croods – DreamWorks Animation
• The Wind Rises – Studio Ghibli/Touchstone Pictures

Best Animated Special Production

• Chipotle Scarecrow – Chipotle Creative Department, Moonbot Studios, CAA Marketing
• Listening Is an Act of Love – StoryCorps
• Room on the Broom – Magic Light Pictures
• Toy Story OF TERROR! – Pixar Animation Studios

Best Animated Short Subject

• Despicable Me 2 – Puppy – Illumination Entertainment/Universal Pictures
• Get A Horse! – Walt Disney Animation Studios
• Gloria Victoria – National Film Board of Canada
• My Mom is an Airplane – Acme Filmworks
• The Numberlys – Moonbot Studios

Best Animated TV/Broadcast Commercial

• Despicable Me 2 – Cinemark – Illumination Entertainment/Universal
• Sound of the Woods – Acme Filmworks
• The Polar Bears Movie – Scott Free Productions/RSA Films, Animal Logic, CAA Marketing

Best General Audience Animated TV/Broadcast Production For Preschool Children

• Bubble Guppies – Nickelodeon Productions/Nelvana
• Disney Sofia the First – Disney Television Animation
• Doc McStuffins – Brown Bag Films
• Justin Time – Guru Studio
• Peter Rabbit – Nickelodeon Productions/Silvergate Media

Best Animated TV/Broadcast Production For Children’s Audience

• Adventure Time – Cartoon Network Studios
• Beware the Batman – Warner Bros. Animation
• Disney Gravity Falls – Disney Television Animation
• Kung Fu Panda: Legends of Awesomeness – Nickelodeon Animation Studio
• Regular Show – Cartoon Network Studios
• Scaredy Squirrel – Nelvana Ltd.
• Teen Titans Go! – Warner Bros. Animation
• The Legend of Korra – Nickelodeon Animation Studio

Best General Audience Animated TV/Broadcast Production

• Archer – FX Networks
• Bob’s Burgers – Bento Box Entertainment
• Disney Tron Uprising – Disney Television Animation
• Futurama – 20th Century Fox Television
• Motorcity – Titmouse Inc.

Best Animated Video Game

• Diggs Nightcrawler – Moonbot Studios, Sony London Studio, Exient
• Tiny Thief – 5 ANTS
• The Last of Us – Naughty Dog

Best Student Film

• Chicken or the Egg – Ringling College of Art and Design
• Kellerkind – Filmakademie Baden-Wuerttemberg
• Miss Todd – Kristina Yee
• Move Mountain – Kirsten Lepore
• SEMÕFORO – University of Southern California
• The Final Straw – Ringling College of Art and Design
• Trusts & Estates – CalArts
• Wedding Cake – Filmakademie Baden-Wuerttemberg

INDIVIDUAL ACHIEVEMENT CATEGORIES

Outstanding Achievement, Animated Effects in an Animated Production

• Alen Lai, David Quirus, Diego Garzon Sanchez, Ilan Gabai – Epic – Blue Sky Studios
• David Jones – Dragons: Defenders of Berk – DreamWorks Animation
• Joshua Jenny, Jason Johnston, Matthew Wong, Eric Froemling, Enrique Vila – Monsters University – Pixar Animation Studios
• Jeff Budsberg, Andre Le Blanc, Louis Flores, Jason Mayer – The Croods – DreamWorks Animation
• Greg Gladstone, Nikita Pavlov, Allen Ruilova, Matt Titus, Can Yuksel – Turbo – DreamWorks Animation

Outstanding Achievement, Animated Effects in a Live Action Production

• Jonathan Paquin, Brian Goodwin, Gray Horsfield, Mathieu Chardonnet, Adrien Toupet – Man Of Steel – Weta Digital
• Ben O’Brien, Karin Cooper, Lee Uren, Chris Root – Star Trek: Into Darkness – Industrial Light & Magic
• Dan Pearson, Jay Cooper, Jeff Grebe, Amelia Chenoweth – Star Trek: Into Darkness – Industrial Light & Magic
• Michael Balog, Ryan Hopkins, Patrick Conran, Florian Witzel – Pacific Rim – Industrial Light & Magic

Outstanding Achievement, Character Animation in an Animated Television/Broadcast Production

• Brad Schaffer – Friendship All-Stars of Friendship: Wrong Number – Stoopid Buddy Stoodios
• Eric Urban – Ubermansion – Stoopid Buddy Stoodios
• JC Tran Quang Thieu – Toy Story OF TERROR! – Pixar Animation Studios
• David DeVan – Toy Story OF TERROR! – Pixar Animation Studios
• Kureha Yokoo – Toy Story OF TERROR! – Pixar Animation Studios
• Keith Kellogg – Star Wars: The Clone Wars – Lucasfilm Animation

Outstanding Achievement, Character Animation in a Feature Production

• Thom Roberts – Epic – Blue Sky Studios
• Jonathan Del Val – Despicable Me 2 – Illumination Entertainment/Universal Pictures
• Jakob Jensen – The Croods – DreamWorks Animation
• John Chun Chiu Lee – Monsters University – Pixar Animation Studios
• Kitaro Kosaka – The Wind Rises – Studio Ghibli/Touchstone Pictures
• Tony Smeed – Frozen – Walt Disney Animation Studios
• Patrick Imbert – Ernest & Celestine – GKIDS

Outstanding Achievement, Character Animation in a Live Action Production

• Jeff Capogreco, Jedrzej Wojtowicz, Kevin Estey, Alessandro Bonora, Gino Acevedo – The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey – Gollum – Weta Digital
• Dave Clayton, Simeon Duncombe, Jung Min Chang, Matthew Cioffi, Guillame Francois – The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey – Goblin King – Weta Digital
• Hal Hickel, Chris Lentz, Derrick Carlin, Steve Rawlins, Kyle Winkelman – Pacific Rim – Industrial Light & Magic

Outstanding Achievement, Character Design in an Animated TV/Broadcast Production

• Craig McCracken – Disney Wander Over Yonder – Disney Television Animation
• Paul Rudish – Disney Mickey Mouse – Disney Television Animation
• Andy Bialk – The Awesomes – Bento Box Entertainment
• Ben Adams – Regular Show – Cartoon Network Studios
• Danny Hynes, Colin Howard – Steven Universe – Cartoon Network Studios

Outstanding Achievement, Character Design in an Animated Feature Production

• Carter Goodrich, Takao Noguchi, Shane Prigmore – The Croods – DreamWorks Animation
• Sylvain Deboissy, Shannon Tindle – Turbo – DreamWorks Animation
• Craig Kellman – Cloudy With A Chance of Meatballs 2 – Sony Pictures Animation
• Chris Sasaki – Monsters University – Pixar Animation Studios
• Christophe Lourdelet – A Monster in Paris – Shout! Factory
• Eric Guillon – Despicable Me 2 – Illumination Entertainment/Universal Pictures
• Bill Schwab – Frozen – Walt Disney Animation Studios

Outstanding Achievement, Directing in an Animated TV/Broadcast Production

• Colin Heck – The Legend of Korra – Nickelodeon Animation
• Elaine Bogan – Dragons: Defenders of Berk – DreamWorks Animation
• Stephan Franck – The Smurfs: The Legend of Smurfy Hollow – Sony Pictures Animation
• John Aoshima – Disney Gravity Falls – Disney Television Animation
• Aaron Springer – Disney Mickey Mouse – Disney Television Animation
• Angus MacLane – Toy Story OF TERROR! – Pixar Animation Studios
• Harold Harris – Justin Time – Guru Studio

Outstanding Achievement, Directing in an Animated Feature Production

• Chris Sanders, Kirk DeMicco – The Croods – DreamWorks Animation
• David Soren – Turbo – DreamWorks Animation
• Chris Wedge – Epic – Blue Sky Studios
• Benjamin Renner, Vincent Patar, Stéphane Aubier – Ernest & Celestine – GKIDS
• Chris Buck, Jennifer Lee – Frozen – Walt Disney Animation Studios

Outstanding Achievement, Music in an Animated TV/Broadcast Production

• Alan Williams – Estefan – BYU Center for Animation
• Guy Moon – T.U.F.F. Puppy – Nickelodeon Animation Studio
• Peter Lurye, Stuart Kollmorgen, Peter Zizzo – Peter Rabbit – Nickelodeon Animation Studio
• Kevin Kliesch, Craig Gerber, John Kavanaugh – Disney Sofia the First – Disney Television Animation
• Christopher Willis – Disney Mickey Mouse – Disney Television Animation
• Andy Bean – Disney Wander Over Yonder – Disney Television Animation

Outstanding Achievement, Music in an Animated Feature Production

• Alan Silvestri – The Croods – DreamWorks Animation
• Henry Jackman – Turbo – DreamWorks Animation
• Mark Mothersbaugh – Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs 2 – Sony Pictures Animation
• Heitor Pereira, Pharrell Williams – Despicable Me 2 – Illumination Entertainment/Universal Pictures
• Danny Elfman – Epic – Blue Sky Studios
• Randy Newman – Monsters University – Pixar Animation Studios
• Kristen Anderson-Lopez, Robert Lopez, Christophe Beck – Frozen – Walt Disney Animation Studios
• Dominic Lewis – Free Birds – Reel FX

Outstanding Achievement, Production Design in an Animated TV/Broadcast Production

• Angela Sung, William Niu, Christine Bian, Emily Tetri, Frederic Stewart – The Legend of Korra – Nickelodeon Animation Studio
• Liz Artinian, Ray Feldman, Chris Fisher, George Fort – The Venture Bros. “What Color is Your Cleansuit?” – Titmouse Inc.
• Steven Sugar, Emily Walus, Sam Bosma, Elle Michalka, Amanda Winterstein – Steven Universe “Gem Glow” – Cartoon Network Studios
• Lynna Blankenship, Dima Malanitchev, Debbie Peterson, Charles Ragins, Jefferson R. Weekley – The Simpsons “Treehouse of Horror XXIV” Gracie Films in Association with 20th Century Fox TV
• Christophe Vacher – Transformers Prime ‘Beast Hunters’ – Hasbro Studios
• Nick Jennings, Sandra Calleros, Teri Shikasho, Ron Russell, Martin Ansolebehere – Adventure Time – Cartoon Network Studios

Outstanding Achievement, Production Design in an Animated Feature Production

• Christophe Lautrette, Paul Duncan, Dominique R. Louis – The Croods – DreamWorks Animation
• Yarrow Cheney, Eric Guillon – Despicable Me 2 – Illumination Entertainment/Universal Pictures
• Michael Knapp, Greg Couch, William Joyce – Epic – Blue Sky Studios
• Zaza, Zyk – Ernest & Celestine – GKIDS
• Ricky Nierva, Robert Kondo, Daisuke “Dice” Tsutsumi – Monsters University – Pixar Animation Studios
• Michael Giaimo, Lisa Keene, David Womersley – Frozen – Walt Disney Animation Studios

Outstanding Achievement, Storyboarding in an Animated TV/Broadcast Production

• Piero Piluso – Monsters vs. Aliens – Nickelodeon Animation Studio
• Douglas Lovelace – Dragons: Riders of Berk – DreamWorks Animation
• Adam Ford, Deke Wightman, Kevin Mellon, Justin Wagner, Benji Williams – Archer – FX Networks
• Alonso Ramos-Ramirez – Disney Mickey Mouse – Disney Television Animation
• Daniel Chong – Toy Story of TERROR! – Pixar Animation Studios
• Alonso Ramos-Ramirez – Gravity Falls – Disney Television Animation
• Guillermo Del Toro, Guy Davis, Ralph Sosa – The Simpsons – “Treehouse of Horror XXIV” – Gracie Films in Association with 20th Century Fox TV
• Paul Watling – Justin Time – Guru Studio

Outstanding Achievement, Storyboarding in an Animated Feature Production

• Steven MacLeod – The Croods – DreamWorks Animation
• Eric Favela – Despicable Me 2 – Illumination Entertainment/Universal Pictures
• Dean Kelly – Monsters University – Pixar Animation Studios
• Jason Hand – Planes – Disneytoon Studios
• John Ripa – Frozen – Walt Disney Animation Studios

Outstanding Achievement, Voice Acting in an Animated TV/Broadcast Production

• Eric Bauza as the voice of Foop – Fairly Odd Parents – Nickelodeon Animation Studio
• Bill Farmer as the voice of Goofy – Disney Mickey Mouse – Disney Television Animation
• Chris Diamantopoulos as the voice of Mickey Mouse – Disney Mickey Mouse – Disney Television Animation
• Mark Hamill as the voice of Skips and Walks – Regular Show – Cartoon Network Studios
• Tom Kenny as the voice of Ice King – Adventure Time – Cartoon Network Studios

Outstanding Achievement, Voice Acting in an Animated Feature Production

• Paul Giamatti as the voice of Chet – Turbo – DreamWorks Animation
• Terry Crews as the voice of Earl – Cloudy With A Chance of Meatballs 2 – Sony Pictures Animation
• Kristen Wiig as the voice of Lucy – Despicable Me 2 – Illumination Entertainment/Universal Pictures
• Steve Carell as the voice of Gru – Despicable Me 2 – Illumination Entertainment/Universal Pictures
• Pierre Coffin as the voice of Minions – Despicable Me 2 – Illumination Entertainment/Universal Pictures
• Billy Crystal as the voice of Mike – Monsters University – Pixar Animation Studios
• Josh Gad as the voice of Olaf – Frozen – Walt Disney Animation Studios

Outstanding Achievement, Writing in an Animated TV/Broadcast Production

• Katie Mattila – Kung Fu Panda: Legends of Awesomeness – Nickelodeon Animation Studio
• Ian Maxtone-Graham, Billy Kimball – The Simpsons – “Dark Knight Court” – Gracie Films in Association with 20th Century Fox
• Lewis Morton – Futurama – 20th Century Fox Television
• Matt Price, John Infantino, Mike Roth, Michele Cavin, Sean Szeles – Regular Show – Cartoon Network Studios
• Michael Price – The Simpsons – “Dangers on a Train” – Gracie Films in Association with 20th Century Fox

Outstanding Achievement, Writing in an Animated Feature Production

• Daniel Pennac – Ernest & Celestine – GKIDS
• Daniel Gerson, Robert L. Baird, Dan Scanlon – Monsters University – Pixar Animation Studios
• Hayao Miyazaki – The Wind Rises – Studio Ghibli/Touchstone Pictures
• Jennifer Lee – Frozen – Walt Disney Animation Studios

Outstanding Achievement, Editorial in an Animated TV/Broadcast Production

• Adam Arnold, Hugo Morales, Davrick Waltjen – Kung Fu Panda: Legends of Awesomeness – Nickelodeon Animation Studio
• Myra Lopez, Ana Adams, Justin Baker – Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles – Nickelodeon Animation Studio
• Lynn Hobson – Dragons: Defenders of Berk – DreamWorks Animation
• Illya Owens – Disney Mickey Mouse – Disney Television Animation
• Axel Geddes, Kathy Graves, Chloe Kloezeman – Toy Story OF TERROR! – Pixar Animation Studios
• Paul D. Calder – Futurama – 20th Century Fox Television
• Paul Douglas – Adventure Time – Cartoon Network Studios
• Jason W.A. Tucker – Star Wars: The Clone Wars – Lucasfilm Animation

Outstanding Achievement, Editorial in an Animated Feature Production

• Darren Holmes – The Croods – DreamWorks Animation
• James Ryan – Turbo – DreamWorks Animation
• Fabienne Alvarez-Giro – Ernest & Celestine – GKIDS
• Greg Snyder, Gregory Amundson, Steve Bloom – Monsters University – Pixar Animation Studios
• Jeff Draheim – Frozen – Walt Disney Animation Studios

JURIED AWARDS

Winsor McCay Award — Katsuhiro Otomo, Steven Spielberg & Phil Tippett

June Foray Award — Alice Davis

Ub Iwerks — DZED Systems for Dragonframe stop-motion animation software

Special Achievement Award — The CTN animation eXpo

Certificate of Merit — “I Know That Voice” (Documentary)

FESTS AND EVENTS

Toon Nominees Share in Oscar Week Spotlight

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences will spotlight this year’s Oscar-nominated short and feature animated films as part of Oscar Week.

The events, which lead up to the Academy Awards ceremony on March 2, include:

• Animated and Live Action Shorts — Tuesday, Feb. 25, 7:30 p.m. — Hosted by actor Kevin Pollak. The program includes screenings of all of the 2013 Oscar-nominated films in the Animated and Live Action Short Film categories, plus onstage discussions with the filmmakers.
• Documentaries — Wednesday, Feb. 26, 7:30 p.m. — Hosted by Oscar-winning directors Rob Epstein and Barbara Kopple. The program includes clips from all of the films nominated for Documentary Feature and Documentary Short Subject, and panel discussions with filmmakers from each group.
• Oscar Concert — Thursday, Feb. 27, 8 p.m. — Event details will be announced on oscars.org. For the first time, the Academy’s Oscar Week events will include a celebration of the nominated musical scores and songs. www.oscars.org/events-exhibitions/events/2014/01/songs.html
• Animated Features — Friday, Feb. 28, 7:30 p.m. — Hosted by actor John C. Reilly. The nominees in the Animated Feature Film category (schedules permitting) will discuss how their films were developed, reveal their creative processes and present clips illustrating their techniques. www.oscars.org/events-exhibitions/events/2014/01/animated.html
• Foreign Language Films — Saturday, March 1, 10 a.m. — Moderated by Producers Branch governor Mark Johnson with introduction by director Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck. The directors of the movies nominated in the Foreign Language Film category (schedules permitting) will discuss their experiences developing their projects, as well as address wide-ranging topics such as the challenges of their profession. This two-hour event includes brief clips from each of the nominated films.
 Free admission; limit two tickets. www.oscars.org/events-exhibitions/events/2014/01/foreign.html
• Makeup and Hairstyling — Saturday, March 1, 3 p.m. — Moderated by Makeup Artists and Hairstylists Branch governor Leonard Engelman. The nominees (schedules permitting) will discuss their creative processes and present film clips, photographs and displays of their work, including appliances, molds and wigs. Free admission; limit two tickets. www.oscars.org/events-exhibitions/events/2014/01/makeup.html

Tickets for L.A. events (with the exception of the Oscar Concert at Royce Hall) will be available at oscars.org starting Monday, Feb. 3 at 10 a.m. PT. Tickets to the shorts, docs and animated feature events are $5 for the general public and $3 for Academy members and students with a valid ID. Admission to the Saturday events is free, but tickets are required.

All events will be at The Academy’s Samuel Goldwyn Theater, located at 8949 Wilshire Boulevard in Beverly Hills, except for the Oscar Concert, which will be held at Royce Hall on the campus of UCLA.