When it comes to the best animated film of the year, which one comes to mind? Is it "Zootopia", which grossed $1 billion worldwide, "Your Name", which is a small and fresh style of literature, or the stop-motion animation film "Kubo and the Second String" that exploded in word-of-mouth? These three films are all word-of-mouth masterpieces shortlisted for the 44th American Animation Annie Awards.
The American Animated Annie Awards, hosted by the International Animated Film Association, are one of the highest honors in the field of animation and are known as the Oscars of the American animation world. On November 29, the 44th Anime Annie Awards announced the list of nominations, with Zootopia leading with 11 nominations, followed by Kubo and the Lyre with 10 nominations. So, can Zootopia be the "big winner" of this year's Annie Awards? And which anime is likely to win an award?
What is the Animation Annie Award?
For domestic audiences, the Academy Awards can be said to be a household name, but the Annie Awards are a bit strange.
The Annie Awards is an animation award, organized in 1972 by members of the Los Angeles Division of the International Animation Film Association, California, usa, and is one of the highest honors in the field of animation. Animated films such as "Mulan", "Spirited Away", "Kung Fu Panda", and "Flying House Tour" have all won this award.
The Annie Awards have long been seen as the vane of the Oscars. Since the Academy Awards opened best animated feature film in 2002, the Annie Awards have opened up the "prediction" mode. The winner of the Annie Award for Best Animated Feature is generally the winner of the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature that year. In 14 years, the Annie Awards have only made four "prediction" mistakes, in 2007, 2009, 2013, 2015, and the remaining 10 years have become the bellwether of the Oscar animation awards.
Why is the taste of the Annie Awards so consistent with the Oscars? It turns out that many of the judges of the Annie Awards organization are also members of the Academy. The same judges go to the jury, and it's not so surprising to name the same winner.
Disney is in the limelight "Zootopia" leads the way with 11 nominations
In this year's nomination list, Disney has a total of "Zootopia", "Ocean's Edge", "Finding Nemo 2: Where Did Dolly Go" three films shortlisted, which can be described as out of the limelight. Among them, "Crazy Animal City" received 11 nominations such as Best Animated Feature film and best animation effects, and is most likely to become the "big winner" of this Year's Annie Awards.
Released in March this year, Zootopia, Zootopia tells the story of all kinds of animals abandoning "animality" and prejudice and coexisting peacefully in animal utopia. Many of the events that occur in Animal City can be seen as an allusion to human society. The story seems simple, but it discusses important issues in human society such as racial integration, discrimination, and desire for power, and also pins on the director and screenwriter's desire for a "new world".
"Zootopia" has both distinctive "cute things" such as Judy the Rabbit, Nick the Fox, and Sloth Lightning, as well as thought-provoking story content, which is a surprise work of the year and is likely to win the heavyweight awards of the Annie Awards. In terms of word-of-mouth and box office, the film has also been unanimously recognized by global audiences, and the global box office has exceeded $1 billion, and the freshness of Rotten Tomatoes is as high as 99%.
Zootopia's biggest competitor is Kubo and the Two Strings. Produced by Lycra Studios in the United States, Kubo and the Two Strings is set in Japanese culture and tells the story of a boy, Kubo, who inadvertently summons an evil spirit and embarks on an adventure to save his family. The film is also a well-known work in North America, with a Rotten Tomatoes freshness rating of 97% and an average MTC score of 84 points. Among the Annie Award nominees, the film received as many as 10 nominations.
What is different is that Kubo and the Lyre is a stop-motion animation. Stop-motion animation is generally performed by clay puppets, puppets, or characters of mixed materials. In the film, Kubo's facial expression model alone uses more than 60,000 people, and there are more than 10,000 kinds of mouth movements, which is called "the most difficult animation in history". However, although the animated films previously released by Laika Studios have also swept the nominations of major awards, they have not been favored by the awards, and I wonder if "Kubo and the Second String" can break this situation?
Also on the list of best animated feature nominations are Disney's "Ocean's Edge" and "Finding Nemo 2", as well as DreamWorks' "Kung Fu Panda 3". However, the style of these three films is younger and less innovative, and it is likely to be reduced to "accompanying running". In addition, there are some "familiar faces" in the shortlist, such as Studio Ghibli's "Red Turtle", which received 5 nominations. The ongoing hit Makoto Shinkai film "Your Name" has also received two nominations for Best Independent Animated Feature Film and Best Director.
Disney has a festival with the Annie Awards Will Animal City win the award?
As a Hollywood animation production giant, Disney has been a regular at the Annie Awards. Disney classic movies such as "Beauty and the Beast", "The Lion King" and "Mulan" have won the Annie Award. However, there is one thing that many viewers may not know about - Disney once had a "holiday" with the Annie Awards.
In 2010, the nominees for the 38th Annie Awards were announced, which surprised everyone. In this list of nominees, DreamWorks' How to Train Your Dragon received 15 nominations, including Best Animated Feature, while Disney received only two nominations, all from the animated film Trolls. According to professional analysis, such a "dismal" nomination may be related to Disney's withdrawal from sponsorship of the Annie Awards.
Since DreamWorks is the biggest sponsor of the Annie Awards, every employee has the right to vote. Disney believes that such a selection rule makes DreamWorks more likely to win the award, resulting in "Robot Wall-E" losing to "Kung Fu Panda" in the competition for the 36th Annie Awards. The giant, in anger, withdrew from the sponsorship and competition for the Annie Awards. In the case of losing a strong opponent, "How to Train Your Dragon" won 10 awards from the Annie Awards, but was regarded as "invincible".
Faced with the pressure of Disney to "quit without a word", the Annie Awards revised the selection rules. Beginning in 2010, the Annie Awards required every judge to be certified professionally. Judging from the results of the awards in recent years, the Annie Awards are no longer the world of DreamWorks. At the 41st Annie Awards, Disney's "Frozen" won 5 awards. At the 43rd Annie Awards, "The Mind Agent" won 11 nominations, and finally won 9 awards, with a winning rate of 82%.
It can be seen that the Annie Award has long since left the dreamworks of a monopoly, and the award criteria are becoming fairer. Judging from this year's list of nominees, the Annie Awards not only reward innovation, but also strive for "balance". Niche works such as "Long North Roadfinding" and "My Zucchini Life" have also been able to share a piece of the pie because of the good quality of the film.
Looking at the entire list of nominations, Zootopia is one of the best in terms of story creativity, character design, and production excellence. Stepping out of the "partial" Annie Awards, can "Zootopia" recreate the award-winning achievements of "Mind Agents"? As a friendly reminder, the results of this year's Annie Awards will be announced on February 4, 2017, so let's wait and see.
List of nominees for the 44th Anime Annie Awards:
Best Animated Feature
Finding Nemo 2: Where Did Dolly Go"
"Kubo and the Second String"
Kung Fu Panda 3
Ocean's Edge
Zootopia
Best Indie Cartoon
"The Long North Wayfinding"
"100 Days red"
"My Zucchini Life"
The Red Sea Turtle
"Your Name"
Best Animated Special Production
"Audrey and Daisy"
The Secret of Kung Fu Panda Scrolls
《Little Big Awesome》
Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life
"Pear Wine and Cigarettes"
Best Animated Short Film
Blind Girl
《Deer Flower》
《Path Title Sequence》
Pearl
Harrier
Best Animated Effects (Cartoon)
Best Animated Effects (Live Action)
The Deep
Doctor Strange
The Incredibles
"Dream Giant"
Warcraft
Best Animated Character (Animated)
Finding Nemo 2: Where Did Dolly Go- All characters
Kubo and the Lyre - Multiple characters
Kung Fu Panda 3 - Multiple characters
Zootopia - Judy The Rabbit, Stu Hopps, Bonnie Hopps, Police Chief, Nick fox
Zootopia - Mr. Big, Koslov, Judy The Rabbit, Nick the Fox, Lightning
Best Animated Character (Live Action Film)
Captain America 3
Game of Thrones
The Enchanted Forest
Best character design
"Pet Secret"
Trolls
Best Director
Kubo and the Harp, Taravis Knight
My Zucchini Life by Claude Barras
The Red Turtle, Michael Dudwitt
Your Name. "Makoto Shinkai"
Zootopia by Byrne Howard/Gerald Bush/Richie Moore
Best Music
Batman: The Cloak Fighter Returns
The Voice of Joy
The Little Prince
Best Art Direction
Best storyboarding
Best dubbing
Kubo and the Two Strings by Art Parkinson -Kubo
Ocean's Edge by Olivi Caravagho - Moana
Tales of the Funny Birds: Treasures Flying in the Sky by Katie Krone - Tulip
Trolls Zoe Danscher-Brigitte
Zootopia Jason Bateman - Nick the Fox
Best Screenplay
Best Clip
Avril and the Fictional World
Sausage Party
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