News

Universal Pictures has announced the release date and details for the 4K Ultra HD/Blu-Ray release of How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World. Come inside to learn more!

If you're looking to bring the thrilling conclusion of the How to Train Your Dragon series into the comfort of your own home, you'll get the chance this May. Universal has announced The Hidden World will arrive digitally on May 7th, with the physical release landing on May 21, 2019 which will come loaded with plenty of special features:

Nearly ten years after the first movie wowed audiences around the world, Hiccup and Toothless return to captivate fans with an adventure of a lifetime in DreamWorks Animation’s How To Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World. The final quest from Dean DeBlois’ arrives on Digital and via the digital movie app Movies Anywhere on May 7, 2019 and on 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray™, DVD,...

Nearly ten years after the first movie wowed audiences around the world, Hiccup and Toothless return to captivate fans with an adventure of a lifetime in DreamWorks Animation’s “How To Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World”. The final quest from Dean DeBlois’ arrives on Digital and via the digital movie app Movies Anywhere on May 7, 2019, and on 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray, DVD, and On Demand May 21, 2019, from Universal Pictures Home Entertainment. Hailed as “the perfect conclusion to one of the best-animated trilogies of all time” and certified fresh on Rotten Tomatoes®, the film opened at #1 in over 40 markets. The 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray, DVD and Digital versions feature over an hour of exclusive behind-the-scenes bonus content including an alternate opening, two DreamWorks animated shorts, deleted scenes and more.

To mark the film’s global 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray, and DVD release, Universal has partnered with Facebook and Messenger to...

I’ve got an enjoyable animated short film from you to watch today from DreamWorks Animation called Bilby.

The story is set in the harsh environment of Australia’s Outback, which is overrun by deadly creatures looking to kill and eat. It follows the lonesome Bilby, “who finds himself an unwitting protector, and unexpected friend, to a helpless (and quite adorable) baby bird.”

Bilby was directed by Liron Topaz, Pierre Perifel and Jp Sans and, as you’ll see, it’s pretty funny to watch these little creatures on a never ending adventure of trying to survive in a place where the odds are stacked against them.

Pixar’s “Bao” (available for online viewing below through December 23rd) and DreamWorks’ “Bilby” and “Bird Karma” lead the Academy’s shortlist of 10 for Best Animated Short.

They were joined by “Age of Sail,” from Oscar winner John Kahrs (“Paperman”) via his Vr Google Spotlight short about being adrift at sea; National Board of Canada’s “Animal Behaviour” (directed by Alison Snowden and David Fine) about hilarious animal issues; Cartoon Saloon’s “Late Afternoon” (directed by Louise Bagnall), which explores dementia; “Lost & Found” (directed by Andrew Goldsmith & Bradley Slabe) about recovering a special friendship; “One Small Step” (directed by Disney alums Andrew Chesworth and Bobby Pontillas) about qualifying for the space program; “Pépé le Morse” (directed by Lucrèce Andreae) about a family’s sojourn of mourning; and “Weekends” (directed by Pixar story artist Trevor Jimenez) based on his difficult childhood being shuttled between parents in Toronto.

However, the frontrunner remains “Bao,...

This year’s Oscar race for Best Animated Short is led by Pixar’s China-flavored “Bao” and a pair of DreamWorks projects that launched its new shorts program: the CG “Bilby” and the 2D “Bird Karma.”

Semi-autobiographical “Bao” explores empty nest syndrome. Chinese-Canadian story artist Domee Shi, the first female to direct a short at Pixar, tells the story of a woman who gets a second chance at motherhood when one of her hand-made dumplings come to life. Shi grew up in Toronto and the short reflects her upbringing as the only child of Chinese immigrants. (Her dumpling master mom served as consultant.) Animating the delectable Chinese meals proved the biggest challenge, but story wise, Shi delivered Pixar’s first Wtf moment when the mom eats her dumpling child to prevent it from leaving the nest.

Also from Pixar, story artist Trevor Jimenez made the semi-autobiographical, hand-drawn “Weekends” in his...

The Oscar race for Best Animated Short offers several mainstream studio contenders, led by Pixar’s China-flavored “Bao” and a pair of DreamWorks projects that launched its new shorts program: the CG “Bilby” and the 2D “Bird Karma.”

In addition, Pixar story artist Trevor Jimenez made the semi-autobiographical, hand-drawn “Weekends” in his spare time; former Disney Oscar winner John Kahrs (“Paperman”) ventured into Vr with the Google Spotlight short, “Age of Sail”; and former Pixar animator Carlos Baena conjured the gorgeous, horror-filled “La Noria” with a contingent of online collaborators.

“Bao,” which explores empty nest syndrome, is also semi-autobiographical. It’s from story artist Domee Shi, the first female to direct a short at Pixar, who is currently developing a feature, guided by her mentor, Pete Docter, the studio’s new chief creative officer.

“Bao” is about a Chinese-Canadian woman who gets a second chance at motherhood when one of...

Without an animated feature release this year (“How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World” and “Abominable” bow in 2019 through Universal Pictures), DreamWorks will rely on its new shorts program for Oscar contention. Launched by studio president Chris deFaria, the program represents its own brand of inclusion and diversity.

The first two releases are the exquisite and refreshingly dark “Bird Karma,” and the charming and funny “Bilby.” Both offer very different survival stories and distinctive 2D and CG looks.

With “Bird Karma,” director William Salazar (“Kung Fu Panda”) got to finish a short he started more than 20 years ago about a long-legged bird that takes a liking to a multi-colored fish. But instead of becoming friends, the bird eats the fish, which results in some really bad karma. Enhancing the Indian theme is a score by Nora Kroll-Rosenbaum as part of an inclusion program, “Universal Film Music Composer Initiative: DreamWorks Animation.

Even without a feature release this year, DreamWorks Animation (led by President Chris deFaria) will be very active at the 42nd Annecy International Animation Film Festival (June 11-16). Director Dean DeBlois will present work-in-progress footage on June 14 from the final chapter in the “How to Train Your Dragon” trilogy, now titled “The Hidden World.” The first DreamWorks feature to be distributed by Universal Pictures, “The Hidden World” (produced by Brad Lewis and Bonnie Arnold) opens March 1, 2019.

DreamWorks will additionally open and close the festival with the first two shorts from its new animated shorts program: “Bird Karma” (a Family Film winner at the San Francisco Film Festival) and “Bilby.” Directed by William Salazar and produced by Jeff Hermann, the 2D “Bird Karma” chronicles a long-legged bird’s journey. “Bilby,” directed by Liron Topaz, Pierre Perifel, and Jp Sans, and produced by Hermann and Kelly Cooney Cilella, offers an unlikely friendship...