You’ve probably seen the bizarre Chinese “Presto” remake that is literally a frame-by-frame copy. If you haven’t check it out here:
Before you start making references to “The Little Cars” or “Ratatoing”, I’d like to inform that this “rip-off” is in fact a student project from the Marsera Institute of Digital Arts. I guess there’s an assignment for students learning 3D computer animation to take their favorite piece of animation and remake it. On this page, there are other student projects including a “WALL-E” remake and some “Kung Fu Panda” film (and I must say that the actual movie was the best DreamWorks has ever done.)
I’m not quite sure what I’d think of this remake if I had worked on the original short, but I might be honored and pleased to know that some animation student is learning through my work.
Here’s a bit more information on the Masera Institute of Digital Arts, for anyone interested:
The first animation institution in China. It has gained a reputation for leadership in the field of CG education with the largest teaching scale and strong professional training skills throughout China. The programs cover all aspects of Computer Animation; in films and TV, Game Design, Architecture Design, Advertisement Design, Motion Graphics for Television, and Multimedia Design. The mission of Marsera Institute is to deliver highly qualified and innovative intellectuals into the CG industry. So far, thousands of CG elites have graduated from Marsera Institute of Digital Arts and have played major roles in both the domestic and international CG industry. From Game Developers Conference China website.
[/Film article. Thanks to Michael Rianda, commenter on /Film for the link to the Masera student projects page.]
concept art for "up" by lou romano
After every movie from the acclaimed animation studio, there are worries from fans and critics alike that their next film will fail to meet expectations. Critics continually fall back on the claim that perfection cannot last. I find it odd, especially after “Up”, their 10th hit, and arguably their best film so far, that people are still worried about the future of Pixar. It would be justified to be worried about their success back in their earliest days. During the planning stages of “Toy Story”, they were just a small studio attempting to change the history of filmmaking. They wanted to make a full-length computer animated feature. It had never been done before. If “Toy Story” failed, then Pixar would’ve been doomed. But guess what? By some magic, Pixar succeeded and “Toy Story” became a huge success, a fond memory in the minds of millions and was the first film in a long streak of top-notch, quality family entertainment.
14 years after “Toy Story” launched into theaters, “Up” took flight. Since then, Pixar has managed to churn out quality films once every year for nearly a decade and a half. It’s no wonder that people have started to worry about Pixar’s success. How can they manage to make amazing movies one after another for such a long amount of time? However, it’s not that Pixar is insanely lucky. There’s nothing lucky about Pixar’s long-running streak of successful movies. The reason Pixar is so successful with every film they make is because they have a talented group of artists working in their Emeryville, California studio. These people know how to make a good movie. One of the best examples of this is when they regained control over the “Toy Story” sequels. Originally, in the vein of “The Lion King 2″ and “Aladdin and The King of Thieves”, Disney was planning to release “Toy Story 2″ as a direct-to-video sequel and years later, had even started up a separate studio just for making Pixar sequels. “Toy Story 3″ was to be Circle 7 Animation’s first feature. Pixar’s dedication to quality shows with “Toy Story 2″ as it is one of the few sequels just as good as the first film. Not only that, but John Lasseter, chief creative officer at Pixar, has been quoted with saying “If we have a great story, we’ll do a sequel.” With that I have full confidence that “Cars 2″ and “Toy Story 3″, like “Toy Story 2″, will be just as good as their predecessors.
While it might be true that nothing good lasts, there isn’t any solid proof Pixar will fail with its next movie. We’ll just have to wait, as we do every time this issue arises. After years of worrying about the success of Pixar, it’s starting to get silly. Nobody thought that a film with a 78-year-old man as its main character would be successful. But Pixar proved everybody wrong when so far “Up” has earned nearly $300 million worldwide, and is currently ranked as the third highest-earning Pixar film according to Box Office Mojo. “Up” is a truly magnificent film with its touching story, believable characters and breathtaking environments. (Paradise Falls is something to behold.)
So it seems that Pixar can do no wrong. There’s something special about this group of talented people. They can turn the silliest of stories, like a rat becoming a famous French chef, into the most successful of movies. (You have nothing to worry about.)
