Top Animation News: Comic-Con 2018, TMNT, Esme & Roy and more!

Top Animation News is a weekly column that rounds up the biggest, best and breaking stories from the world of animation. This edition covers July 20 to 27, 2018.

1. Comic-Con 2018: Watch the top animation trailers.

A packed slate of new trailers kept fans on the edge of their seats at Comic-Con 2018 in San Diego last weekend (July 19 to 22). Among them were highly anticipated animation IPs including Matt Groening’s Disenchantment, DC’s Young Justice: Outsiders, Netflix’s The Dragon Prince and Cartoon Network’s Adventure Time: The Finale. Additionally, audiences got an official look at Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (more on that below).

Stream all the Comic-Con 2018 trailers on “CNet”.

2. Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles produced in Toon Boom Harmony.

“Animation Magazine” sat down with the executive producers of Nickelodeon’s upcoming Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles series, Andy Suriano and Ant Ward, who offered insight on the much ‘shell-loved’ reptiles’ return. The two were inspired by the style of European graphic novels and gave each leatherback a new look — all brought to life and animated in Toon Boom Harmony. “While the designs, pre-production, storyboards, recordings and final color fixes are all done at Nickelodeon in Burbank, the animation production is handled by Flying Bark Studios in Sydney, Australia, which use Toon Boom Harmony to deliver the 2D animation,” reads the article.

Watch the Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles trailer above and get the full text on “Animation Magazine”.

3. Esme & Roy is Sesame Workshop’s first animated series in over a decade.

Sesame Workshop, the company behind Sesame Street, is preparing to launch its first children’s cartoon in over 10 years: Esme & Roy. The 26-episode series, produced by Nelvana in Toon Boom Storyboard Pro and Harmony, is aimed at four- to six-year-olds and follows two monster babysitters who use play and mindfulness to educate their charges. Esme & Roy will premiere on HBO in the US and Treehouse in Canada on August 18.

Learn more about Esme & Roy on “Kidscreen”.

4. Teen Titans GO! to the Movies leaps into cinemas this weekend.

WB has brought its superhero kids’ cartoon, Teen Titans GO!, to the big screen. Aptly titled Teen Titans GO! to the Movies, the cinematic version will see Robin, Starfire, Raven, Beast Boy and Cyborg play in 3,188 theatres domestically this weekend, with anticipated box office returns around $18 million. This will make it the third toon feature in the current North American top 10 (alongside Hotel Transylvania: Summer Vacation and Incredibles 2), and the only one that is 2D animated. Given major studios’ tendency towards 3D, this is a huge sign of faith from WB.

Swing into the Teen Titans GO! to the Movies release details on “Box Office Mojo”.

5. Double Stallion Games is using 2D animation to disrupt gaming.

Montreal-based studio Double Stallion Games is preparing to launch its third title, Speed Brawl. The 2D video game was animated in Toon Boom Harmony and marries artistic style with action to create a never-before-seen player experience. Discover how the production team behind Speed Brawl benefited hugely from the industry-standard software’s flexible features, especially sprite sheet exporting.

Plug into Double Stallion Games’ Speed Brawl production process on the Toon Boom blog.

6. Be arrested by the Paradise PD trailer.

Based on its first trailer, Netflix’s latest adult animated series, Paradise PD, is highly violent and totally hilarious. Following the antics of a group of lacklustre police officers in a Southern town, it comes from the team behind Brickleberry and is being produced by Bento Box Animation in Toon Boom Harmony. The entire 10-episode first season of Paradise PD will premiere on Netflix on August 31.

Check out the very NSFW Paradise PD trailer above and read the full story on “Collider”.

7. Genndy Tartakovsky will be directing an R-rated animated feature.

Following the success of Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation, legendary animator and director Genndy Tartakovsky (Samurai Jack, Dexter’s Laboratory) has signed on to produce two more features for Sony. One will be an adventure flick, Black Knight, and the other the studio’s first major R-rated animated movie: Fixed. Sony had previously overseen the wide release of adult toon feature Sausage Party, though it did not participate in the film’s production.

Dig into the Genndy Tartakovsky Sony deal details on “/Film”.

8. Animals creators Phil Matarese and Mike Luciano talk season three.

HBO’s adult animated series’ Animals’ humour is anything but tame. From creators Phil Matarese and Mike Luciano, the comedic cartoon follows the crafty creatures of New York City —including pigeons, bed bugs and rats— as they take a bite out of the Big Apple. The pair discuss sinking their claws into Animals’ animation and the series’ transition from Final Cut to Toon Boom Harmony, with Luciano stating, “Overall, [an episode] takes about 10 months. The production period for season one and two overlapped. Since we’re the only writers, we are always writing on top of the production. We don’t use Final Cut anymore. Now it’s all done in Toon Boom Harmony and standard Photoshop, and we marry everything in After Effects.”

Sniff out the Animals season three production process on “Animation Magazine”.

9. BoJack Horseman to air on Comedy Central.

Netflix’s critically acclaimed adult animated dramedy, BoJack Horseman (produced in Toon Boom Storyboard Pro), will be stabled on television broadcaster Comedy Channel starting September 26. The cable network has purchased the rights to air the entire series, including its upcoming fifth season. The deal will help BoJack Horseman reach new fans and attract even more subscribers to Netflix; the cartoon follows the eponymous fading celebrity as he stumbles through a world where animals and humans live alongside each other.

Gallop into the BoJack Horseman x Comedy Central deal’s details on “The Verge”.

10. Gobelins, L’École de l’image launches free animation MOOC.

Leading French animation school Gobelins, L’École de l’image is launching a free Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) on October 17. Titled Anima Podi, the six-week training program is aimed at first-time or self-taught artists. Imparting the fundamentals of computer animation, each week will focus on a new exercise such as the classic bouncing ball. The catch: Anima Podi will only be offered in French for now.

Educate yourself on Gobelins’ free Anima Podi further on “Cartoon Brew”.

11. New event aims to empower female and LGBTQ+ animation pros.

“Breaking the Glass Frame: Women and Animation, Past, Present, Future” is a joint initiative between Women in Animation, USC, UCLA and CalArts. The three-day symposium’s express mission is to elevate female contributions to the industry, explore solutions to pervasive issues like sexual harassment and a lack of diversity, and empower women and LGBTQ+ people. Held from October 05 to 07 at USC’s School of Cinematic Arts, Brenda Chapman will be one of the keynote speakers; she was the first female director of an animated feature (The Prince of Egypt) and won an Oscar for her work on Pixar’s Brave.  

Head over to “Deadline” for more on the “Breaking the Glass Frame” symposium.

What Top Animation News were you most excited about this week? Was there something we forgot to mention? Let us know in the comments below!