Rumor: Disney goes Discworld

[Donald Duck]

This rumor is very old, but I feel I should mention it. According to Blue Sky Disney (a blog), John Musker and Ron Clements's next animated movie for Disney will be based on Terry Pratchett's fantasy book series, Discworld. Actually, to be more precise, the animated movie will be based on Mort (1987), the fourth book in the series. The novel is about a young man in the Discworld who becomes Death's apprentice.

Again, this is just a big, fat, honkin' RUMOR. As far as I'm concerned, there is no real official confirmation about this, and it sure as heckfire wasn't mentioned anywhere in the D23 Expo. The next animated movie is going to be Wreck-It Ralph. Who knows what'll come after that?

I used to read Discworld as a kid and teenager, Mort included. Though I have lost interest in the series since, I would love to see a Disney animated adaptation, especially if it's in 2D.

Source: blueskydisney.blogspot.com/2010/10/animated-progress.html

[Donald Duck]

More rumors.

Posted by username Michael.

Not much to report yet but word has come to me that Mort, the animated feature which Ron Clements and John Musker had planned to adapt from Terry Pratchett’s 1987 fantasy/comedy novel, has been abandoned. I’ve been given no explanation yet for why this happened, but it’s yet another promising project down the drain at the Walt Disney Animation Studios. The known animation slate at Disney remains remarkably bare; no wonder some animators might be looking to other studios, where they actually make movies.

UPDATE: I’ve just now come across this post and comment thread at the Animation Guild blog, which echoes these rumors, while also pointing out how bare Disney’s development slate is these days. According to the anonymous nabobs on the Guild site, the issue with Mort came down to rights. Apparently Disney couldn’t secure them, which is naturally a problem when you’re trying to make a film based on a book. I haven’t heard this personally from my sources, but I guess it’s as good a reason as any to abandon another interesting premise for an animated film. Hey, maybe they’ll greenlight and cancel Snow Queen again just to keep things interesting…

If it's true that Mort is abandoned, then... that sucks! I was actually very receptive of the idea, and would have loved to see it. But, hey. That's show business.

... Maybe this news (if it's real) is why John Musker was very cold and grumpy to me when I met him at D23? Hmm.

Source: progresscityusa.com/2011/03/18/mort-cest-mort/

[Ice Pirate]

I read elsewhere on the web that Andreas Deja has left Disney. Poor guy, all he wants to do is make (hand-drawn) animated movies. And Disney ain't makin' 'em right now.

[Dreamchild]

This is true. Andreas Deja is not with Disney anymore. From my understanding, there are two in-house animated films being made by Disney now: Wreck-It Ralph and The King of Elves. I have watched the first five minutes of Ralph in D23, and it was quite funny and entertaining. But I hope there are more ideas ahead, because I really don't know what else is in development besides Elves.

Edit:

This is straight from the horse's mouth.

I spent 30 years at Disney. Right now I am focusing on my own animated short films, sculpting with wire and this Blog. I might be back at Disney some time.....who knows.
andreasdeja.blogspot.com/

[Ice Pirate]

Watched an interview with Mr. Deja where he admitted he tried CGI. And, in his own words, it's "not fun."

[Sunshine]

[No need to dwell on the past!]

[Mechnician]

Sorry, I'll modify. I didn't want to offend.

[Sunshine]

It's all right. I know where you're coming from, though. Nothing can replace 2D, and I hope there will be more 2D animated films in the future. The Snow Queen can never get any love.

[The Masked Mallard]

Concerning the topic of 2D and CGI, there are 3D movies that I enjoy immensely, but 2D is something that a lot of us (myself included) have grown up with. It's something close to my heart, and I'd hate to see it get phased out entirely for another medium simply because it's not as popular.

Though I have to wonder... which is the more popular one, 2D or 3D? Seems like pple enjoy both.

[Sunshine]

Yeah, exactly, Nicole. I think that's what the three of us think. 2D just can't be beat.

Financially speaking, I think CGI movies are more popular right now. They must certainly be popular with studios, because that's the preferred form of animation. It's always nice to see a traditionally-animated film anywhere. But at least it's not as bad as it was a few years ago, when 2D animation was, literally, completely dormant. Now it's been upgraded to.... rare. lol

The Snow Queen: "Oh, sure, and I'll TOTALLY get to see the light of day." *sobs*

[Ice Pirate]

I enjoy both, too, just like I enjoy many live-action films. But, artistically, 2D has it all over CGI.

So, although you can make a good movie with any of these methods, hand-drawn moves me in a way the others can't.

Only MHO, of course. Some people hate animation.

[Sunshine]

Nov 11, 2011 14:09:52 GMT -8 Ice Pirate said:

Only MHO, of course. Some people hate animation.

That always astounds me, whenever I meet someone who hates animation. I'm just egocentric, but it's very baffling to me...

[Ice Pirate]

And some folks don't care how the movie is rendered--it makes zero difference to them.

I find that, if possible, even more baffling.

[Dreamchild]

Ah, well! *shrug* If being a Disney geek is abnormal, I don't EVER wanna be normal. Who's with me? >

[Captain Eo]

Me! =D

So you mean CGI is cheaper to produce, or that it brings in more money from film-goers? And when was the last 2D film any animation company put out? I can't even remember.

Hmm, I guess the kinds of pple who hate animation are the ones who either think it's for babies or think it's seducing our kids with subversive messages or whatever. Frankly it's a weird attitude, IMHO. At least I can understand the mindset of someone who doesn't care if an animated movie is CGI or not -- they just wanna see a movie. But hating animation?...

[ragdoll]

Nov 14, 2011 20:22:18 GMT -8 Captain Eo said:

Me! =D

So you mean CGI is cheaper to produce, or that it brings in more money from film-goers? And when was the last 2D film any animation company put out? I can't even remember.

Winnie the Pooh earlier this year?

[Cold Shadow]

With the obnoxious overuse of CGI in major motion pictures these days you're watching some degree of animation no matter what genre you're intending to see.

Practical effects. Who needs 'em.

[Dreamchild]

So you mean CGI is cheaper to produce, or that it brings in more money from film-goers?

I dunno, actually. I don't think I can make a generalization. :X I think CGI and 2D can cost just about the same to produce, financially speaking. Animation can be really, really expensive, no matter what. Some people would think that stop-motion animation, even refined, is cheap. But if you look at Coraline's budget, you'll see that it was $60,000,000. That's quite a bit. Tangled, which is a CGI movie, is the most expensive animated movie ever produced.... of course, I honestly think that's because the movie restarted from scratch at least once and had a very long and troubled history, so I don't think that's a very fair comparison. And it might be difficult to determine how much an animated movie cost just by its budget number, because I would imagine everyone--including celebrity actors voicing the characters--get paid a pretty good amount.

Wow, am I rambling. lol Sorry. The short answer is, "I don't know, but animation can cost you an arm and a leg."

And when was the last 2D film any animation company put out? I can't even remember.

As Susan said, Winnie the Pooh was released early in the United Kingdom, and a little later in America. Now, I'm pretty sure he's a very polarizing franchise. Pooh has kinda fallen in recent times, being subjected to that abominable CGI TV series with that... girl. But, honestly, I think the new Winnie the Pooh is not only a very welcome return to form, it's also funny, it's charming, and it's just an all-around feel good movie. It's very short (I think it's only 68 minutes including lengthy end credits), but I recommend it. That's the polite side of me speaking!

The less polite side of me says this: If you mourn for the "complete absence of 2D" and you don't watch Winnie the Pooh, you only have yourself to blame. RAWR! *hisses kinkily and scratches the air*

Before Pooh, we had The Princess and the Frog in 2009.

With the obnoxious overuse of CGI in major motion pictures these days you're watching some degree of animation no matter what genre you're intending to see.

Practical effects. Who needs 'em.

Pretty much, Collin!

[Sunshine]

Well, it really seems like Discworld is dead for the time being. Disney has announced Frozen as the animated feature following Wreck-It Ralph. I started a thread about Frozen, so we may continue our discussion there.

RIP, Discworld.