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Tagged With: Jake Johnson

The Woods are Dark and Deep ANIMATIONWorld

Why Travis Knight Waited 16 Years to Make ‘Wildwood’

By Dan Sarto | Friday, July 10, 2026 at 9:27am

After receiving a plaque in the new Annecy Hall of Fame, LAIKA’s CEO and director discussed the craft, technology, and production demands of the studio’s sixth and most ambitious stop-motion feature… and why it took so long.

The Woods are Dark and Deep Headline News

LAIKA Drops ‘Wildwood’ Teaser Trailer

By Dan Sarto | Wednesday, May 13, 2026 at 7:03am

It’s finally here - the studio behind ‘Coraline’ shares its first extended look at the upcoming stop-motion fantasy feature directed by Travis Knight and based on the novel by Colin Meloy and Carson Ellis; in theaters October 23.

The Woods are Dark and Deep Headline News

Travis Knight and LAIKA to Debut 'Wildwood' Footage and Exhibition at Annecy

By Dan Sarto | Thursday, April 23, 2026 at 12:27pm

In his first visit to the festival, the film’s director and studio CEO will present exclusive material from the upcoming stop-motion feature, along with joining the reveal of a major exhibition marking the opening of the Cité Internationale du Cinéma d’Animation.

Our Spidey Senses are Tingling Headline News

Sony Releases New ‘Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse’ Images

By Dan Sarto | Tuesday, April 14, 2026 at 11:33am

Bob Persichetti and Justin K. Thompson helm the eagerly-awaited third web-slinging film in the animated Spidey trilogy, now set to hit theaters June 18, 2027.

The Woods are Dark and Deep Headline News

LAIKA Sets ‘Wildwood’ Release Through Fathom, FilmNation

By Dan Sarto | Tuesday, January 20, 2026 at 9:25am

The studio’s upcoming animated fantasy, about a girl’s quest to save her baby brother within a forbidden forest, featuring an all-star cast led by Carey Mulligan and Jacob Tremblay, will hit U.S. theaters on October 23; global sales to launch next month at European Film Market.

Anyone Can Wear the Mask VFXWorld

Mike Lasker Breaks Down the Breakdown of ‘Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse’ VFX

The visual effects supervisor on Sony Pictures Animation’s Oscar-nominated, VES and Annie Award-winning animated masterpiece discusses how artistic and technical innovations were pushed to the limit to take audiences into visual storytelling realms they’ve never experienced before.

Anyone Can Wear the Mask Headline News

Watch Just Completed ‘Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse’ VFX Breakdown Reel

By Dan Sarto | Tuesday, February 20, 2024 at 2:31pm

See how the artistic and technical innovations on the Oscar-nominated and Annie Award-winning animated masterpiece were pushed to the limit in this thrilling new video, narrated by Sony Imageworks VFX supervisor Michael Lasker.

Anyone Can Wear the Mask ANIMATIONWorld

Re-VIEW: 'Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse' – A Truly Diverse Cosmos

In Sony Pictures Animation’s hit sequel to their ground-breaking 2018 ‘Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse,’ while experiencing such boundless visual variety, presented in such an entertaining and engaging way, how can we not accept the simple and obvious fact that diversity is hard-wired into the fabric of reality?

Anyone Can Wear the Mask Headline News

Exclusive Clip: ‘Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse - Creating the Ultimate Spider-Man Movie’

See how animators brought to life the second chapter of the ‘Spider-Verse,’ as Miles Morales meets a team of Spider-People charged with protecting the Multiverse, coming to 4K UHD & Blu-ray September 5.

Anyone Can Wear the Mask Headline News

‘Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse’ Heads Home

Catch the second chapter of the Spider-Verse, as Miles Morales meets a team of Spider-People charged with protecting the Multiverse, coming on Digital August 8, and 4K UHD & Blu-ray September 5.

Anyone Can Wear the Mask ANIMATIONWorld

Unpacking The Spot and Hobie’s Disruptive Styles in ‘Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse’

Production designer Patrick O’Keefe dives deep into two of the hit film’s most underrated characters, including one who is more ‘unnatural disaster’ than ‘villain’ and one based on ‘continuous noise’ and 1970s London punk rock.

Theatrical Multiverse Headline News

Multiple Theatrical Versions of ‘Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse’ Confirmed

At least two different versions of the hit animated follow-up to 2018’s ‘Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse’ have been discovered in cinemas, with more potentially to follow.

Anyone Can Wear the Mask ANIMATIONWorld

Fine-Tuning the Spider-Verse: A Chat with Justin K. Thompson

The co-director talks about his 'eye-bleeding' work on the visuals, and careful avoidance of excess wackiness, in Sony Pictures Animation’s acclaimed mega-hit 'Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse,' now playing in theaters worldwide.

Anyone Can Wear the Mask ANIMATIONWorld

‘Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse’ Ups the Visual and Narrative Ante

Co-director Joaquim Dos Santos talks action, abstraction, and all things Spidey in a wide-ranging discussion of Sony Pictures Animation’s hit sequel, now playing in theaters worldwide.

In the Flesh Headline News

Live-Action ‘Miles Morales’ Feature is On!

Producer Amy Pascal confirmed that a live-action movie following Brooklyn’s friendly neighborhood Spidey is in development, as well as a ‘Spider-Woman’ film featuring the voice of Hailee Steinfeld.

Anyone Can Wear the Mask Headline News

Character Posters Released for ‘Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse’

Catch a closer look at Miles Morales, Ben Reilly, Gwen Stacy, Jessica Drew, Miguel O’Hara, Pavitr Prabhakar, Peter B. Parker, Hobie Brown, Spider-Cat, and The Spot in their own distinct styles, then see them in all their glory in theaters June 2.

Anyone Can Wear the Mask Headline News

The New ‘Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse’ Trailer is as Funny and Visually Stunning as We Hoped!

By Dan Sarto | Tuesday, April 4, 2023 at 9:58am

He’s neither cow, nor dalmatian… he’s ‘The Spot,’ and he’s the new villain Miles Morales must face… along with his mom’s wrath for getting just a B in Spanish… and a sea of competing Spideys, in the snazzy, jazzy, and tantalizingly stylized trailer for the highly anticipated sequel, hitting theaters June 2.

A Toy Must Find his Boy ANIMATIONWorld

Scot Stafford Settles the ‘Score’ with ‘Lost Ollie’ Music

The prolific composer and sound designer dug deep into his Appalachian heritage, layering a rich tapestry of fiddle playing with the emotional power of orchestral music, on Shannon Tindle and Peter Ramsey’s beautiful, heartfelt four-part live-action / animated miniseries, now playing on Netflix.

A Toy Must Find his Boy ANIMATIONWorld

Behind ‘Lost Ollie’s Endearing and Engaging Floppy-Eared Character Design

For series creator and executive producer Shannon Tindle, the show’s toys, living alongside live-action human characters, must be believable, experiencing hardship and pain as well as joy and fun.

The Woods are Dark and Deep Headline News

LAIKA Reveals ‘One Helluva Cast’ for ‘Wildwood’

Carey Mulligan, Mahershala Ali, Awkwafina, Angela Bassett, and Richard E. Grant lead an all-star voice lineup for the multi-award-winning animation studio’s next feature, which ventures into an ‘unknown’ land filled with strange talking animals, roguish bandits, and powerful figures with the darkest intentions.

A Toy Must Find his Boy VFXWorld

Re-VIEW: ‘Lost Ollie’ – The Power of Memory

Shannon Tindle and Peter Ramsey’s new four-part live-action/animated series, based on William Joyce’s ‘Ollie’s Odyssey,’ reminds us that memories can be fun, but also filled with emotions - unreliable and often fragile - that can be heartwarming or haunting, and easily gone forever.

A Toy Must Find his Boy VFXWorld

Shannon Tindle and Peter Ramsey Talk ‘Lost Ollie’

The touching, visually stunning hybrid live-action/CG animated adaptation of Oscar winner William Joyce’s children’s book, about a lost toy braving danger as he searches the countryside for the boy who lost him, premieres today on Netflix.

A Toy Must Find his Boy Headline News

Netflix Shares ‘Lost Ollie’ Official Trailer and Key Art

The epic adventure of a lost toy who braves many dangers in search of the boy who lost him; the 4-part animated/live-action hybrid limited series finds its way to the streamer in August.

Schools Out! Headline News

First Look Images: William Joyce Book-Inspired ‘Lost Ollie’ Series

Part of the Netflix Family Summer 2022 slate, the 4-part animated/live-action hybrid show, about a lost toy searching for the boy who lost him, hits the streamer August 24.

Business Headline News

Mary J. Blige, Jake Johnson, and Jonathan Groff Join ‘Lost Ollie’ Cast

By Dan Sarto | Tuesday, March 9, 2021 at 10:50am

Shannon Tindle and Peter Ramsey’s live-action / animation hybrid limited series also adds Tim Blake Nelson, Gina Rodriguez, and Kesler Talbot; production underway, with CG characters created by ILM, on the story of a lost toy on an epic adventure.

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