Hot-off the success of Inside Out 2 (the biggest movie of 2024) comes a new show set in-between Pixar's two films about Riley and her emotions. Dream Productions explores the operations of the movie studio in Riley's mind that makes her cinematic dreams. The four-episode event series is available starting today on Disney+. Composer Nami Melumad shares what went into creating the plethora of music that celebrates so many genres.
Dec 11, 2024•14 min•Ep. 357
Wallace & Gromit are back in an outstanding new adventure. Directors Nick Park (four-time Oscar winner) and Merlin Crossingham (Annie winner) present "Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl". It opens in select theaters Dec. 18 and debuts on Netflix Jan. 3. Park and Crossingham dive into what makes Aardman's latest W&G stop-motion action comedy fun and heartwarming, especially for longtime fans of these beloved characters.
Nov 27, 2024•16 min•Ep. 356
New CG half-hour special "Mickey and the Very Many Christmases", from writers Tom Rogers and Rachel Ruderman ("The Chicken Squad"), puts a Mouse House holiday spin on a classic comedy movie. It premieres this Sunday Dec. 1 at 7pm on Disney Jr. and begins streaming Monday Dec. 2 on Disney+.
Nov 26, 2024•13 min•Ep. 355
"How to Train Your Dragon" trilogy head of character animation Simon Otto makes his animated feature directorial debut with the comedy adventure "That Christmas". It debuts Wednesday Dec. 4 on Netflix. Otto returns to The LCJ Q&A to discuss adapting Richard Curtis' books, working with Brian Cox and crafting a unique holiday family film.
Nov 25, 2024•14 min•Ep. 354
Five years after he made an animated feature by himself ("Away"), director Gints Zilbalodis is back with a new animated movie — "Flow". It's about a cat on the journey of a lifetime... or maybe nine. "Flow" opens in select theaters this Friday Nov. 22. Zilbalodis shares how he explored animals, nature, weather and the earth in cool and visually breathtaking ways.
Nov 20, 2024•19 min•Ep. 353
On the new DC animated series "Creature Commandos", it's a unique task force — incarcerated monsters — on wild missions and adventures. Emmy nominated executive producer and showrunner Dean Lorey ("Arrested Development", "Big Shot") joins me to talk about the comedy and action-packed "CC" (premiering Thursday Dec. 5 on Max).
Nov 18, 2024•9 min•Ep. 351
David Lowery is the director of the new animated holiday short film "An Almost Christmas Story", which premieres this Friday Nov. 15 on Disney+. It's about an owl named Moon who forms a unique friendship with a girl named Luna in The Big Apple. Lowery shares what the holidays and holiday movies mean to him, along with stories about collaborating with John C. Reilly and Alfonso Cuaron, making "Pete's Dragon" and "A Ghost Story" and more.
Nov 13, 2024•16 min•Ep. 352
The new PBS Kids animated series "Carl the Collector" (premiering Thursday November 14th) is about a kid raccoon who has autism. He loves collecting things and sharing his enthusiasm for collections and activities with his friends and family. "CTC" is created by Zachariah OHora (of the Fuzzytown book universe). Lisa Whittick is the show's director.
Nov 04, 2024•20 min•Ep. 347
Long-awaited, fully animated The Day the Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie will receive an awards-qualifying run before the end of 2024, ahead of its official theatrical release on February 28th, 2025. I’ve screened the film and spoke with director Peter Browngardt about this sci-fi action comedy starring beloved characters who are true to themselves and presented in ways you’ve never seen before.
Oct 28, 2024•14 min•Ep. 350
Adam Elliot won the Best Animated Short Film Academy Award 20 years ago for "Harvie Krumpet". He followed that up with acclaimed stop-motion feature "Mary & Max". His latest claymation movie is "Memoir of a Snail", which opens in theaters on Oct. 25.
Oct 22, 2024•15 min•Ep. 349
David Feiss and Cinzia Angelini are the directors of the new animated action comedy "HITPIG!", starring Jason Sudeikis and Lilly Singh, which opens in theaters nationwide on November 1st.
Oct 21, 2024•15 min•Ep. 344
Nickelodeon's new animated comedy Max & the Midknights (premiering Wednesday October 30th at 7pm) is adapted from Big Nate author Lincoln Peirce's popular book about a girl in medieval times who yearns to become a knight. Co-Executive Producers Sharon Flynn and David Skelly discuss the show's unique tone, visual perspectives and inspirations.
Oct 15, 2024•9 min•Ep. 348
A new hand-drawn animated feature film adaptation of the classic novel "Kensuke's Kingdom" opens in theaters on Oct. 18. Directors Neil Boyle and Kirk Hendry take me on an adventure, describing what went into the story, music, visual design and much more. Plus, find out what Oscar winner Cillian Murphy did to enhance his vocal performance.
Oct 14, 2024•18 min•Ep. 345
DreamWorks "Mighty Monsterwheelies" morphs classic movie monsters and monster trucks, creating a fun group of characters and episodes for families as we approach Halloween. It premieres Monday October 14th on Netflix. Kyel White developed the series and serves as story editor. Stephanie Simpson is the four-time Emmy-winning executive producer and showrunner.
Oct 09, 2024•14 min•Ep. 346
Lara Croft has been played by Oscar winners Angelina Jolie and Alicia Vikander in movies. She's also an iconic video game heroine. Now she's the focus of a new hand-drawn animated series, with the voice of Hayley Atwell, in "Tomb Raider: The Legend of Lara Croft". It premieres this Thursday October 10th on Netflix. Showrunner, writer and EP Tasha Huo joins me on this episode of The LCJ Q&A Podcast.
Oct 07, 2024•11 min•Ep. 343
DreamWorks Animation celebrates its 30th Anniversary with the release of "The Wild Robot" (now in theaters). Director Chris Sanders (of "How to Train Your Dragon" and "The Croods") and producer Jeff Hermann ("The Boss Baby: Family Business") share details on how they brought specific scenes to life and what this movie has meant to them and audiences around the world.
Oct 02, 2024•14 min•Ep. 342
Max's Gremlins animated series had a successful season one with Secrets of the Mogwai. Season two, Gremlins: The Wild Batch, premieres Thursday October 3rd. Executive Producer and showrunner Tze Chun and fellow EP Brendan Hay preview what fans, including those who love the iconic movies, can look forward to from this fun group of characters and some exciting new ones.
Sep 26, 2024•13 min•Ep. 341
Annie and seven-time Emmy-winning "The Simpsons" co-showrunner, executive producer and writer Matt Selman joins me on this special 350th Episode of The LCJ Q&A Podcast. He shares as much as he can about Season 36 (which starts this Sunday Sept. 29 at 8pm on FOX) and the first-ever "Simpsons" panel presentation at New York Comic Con (Saturday Oct. 19 at 11:30am on the Main Stage).
Sep 23, 2024•22 min•Ep. 340
Zack Snyder, director of "300", "Man of Steel" and 2010 animated feature "Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole", is the creator and executive producer of new adult animated action series "Twilight of the Gods", now streaming on Netflix. He joins fellow EPs Deborah Snyder and Wesley Coller on this LCJ Q&A Podcast episode to talk about the show and the power of animation.
Sep 19, 2024•8 min•Ep. 339
Longtime friend Tomm Looney, co-host of "Benny vs. the Penny" (airing weekends on Peacock and NBC Sports channels nationwide), joins me to talk about Season 2 of the unique sports betting series. We also chat about Looney's childhood and career, Taylor & Travis, current movies, "The Simpsons" and more.
Sep 06, 2024•34 min•Ep. 338
Adam and Craig Malamut's new animated comedy series "Universal Basic Guys" joins the iconic FOX Animation Domination lineup on Sunday Sept. 8 at 8pmET / 5pmPT (live to all timezones after an NFL doubleheader). They discuss the fun characters, storylines and South Jersey inspirations and what shows like "The Simpsons" and "Family Guy" have meant to them.
Aug 28, 2024•18 min•Ep. 337
Two-time Emmy nominee Tom Warburton ("Muppet Babies") is the executive producer and supervising director of the new family animated series "Kindergarten: The Musical". It premieres Tue Sept. 3 on Disney Junior and Wed Sept. 4 on Disney+. Warburton discusses crafting a high-spirited and authentic musical presentation of the kindergarten experience.
Aug 26, 2024•13 min•Ep. 336
There's a new sequel to 2020 hit 100% Wolf opening in theaters nationwide on August 23rd. 200% Wolf is double the energy and double the fun for families, with main character Freddy on another life-changing adventure. Director Alexs Stadermann discusses his return to this universe, creating memorable characters, and how A.I. is impacting the animation industry.
Aug 14, 2024•15 min•Ep. 335
New animated series "Tales of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles", starring the voice actors from last summer's hit movie "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem", premieres Friday August 9th on Paramount+. Co-Showrunners Chris Yost and Alan Wan share insights on this fresh chapter in the 'heroes in a half shell' saga.
Aug 02, 2024•9 min•Ep. 334
Sandy and SpongeBob head to Texas in the live-action/CG feature "Saving Bikini Bottom: The Sandy Cheeks Movie". It premieres Friday August 2nd on Netflix. Executive Producers Vincent Waller and Marc Ceccarelli celebrate 25 years of SpongeBob with a deep dive into the beloved characters and the wild new film.
Jul 29, 2024•13 min•Ep. 332
At Blue Sky Studios, Carlos Saldanha directed "Ice Age" and "Rio" installments, as well as "Ferdinand", which earned him a Best Animated Feature Oscar nomination. Now Saldanha is the director of a new live-action family film featuring some hand-drawn and CG animation. "Harold and the Purple Crayon", adapted from the beloved book, opens in theaters on Aug. 2.
Jul 24, 2024•13 min•Ep. 333
Natasha Kline is the creator of the new Disney animated series "Primos", which is inspired by her childhood growing up in Los Angeles. Tater, who's about to turn 10, has a memorable summer at home with her 12 cousins. "Primos" premieres this Thursday July 25th at 8pm on Disney Channel and this Friday July 26th on Disney+.
Jul 22, 2024•14 min•Ep. 331
Phenomenon card game Exploding Kittens is now an adult animated comedy series, premiering this Friday July 12th on Netflix. Find out how a cat exorcism and Bruce Willis movies have inspired showrunners and creators Matthew Inman (who also co-created the game) and Shane Kosakowski.
Jul 10, 2024•11 min•Ep. 330
Ariel Shaffir and Kyle Hunter co-wrote 2016's hit adult animated comedy Sausage Party. They're now the co-creators, showrunners and EPs of new follow-up series Sausage Party: Foodtopia, premiering Thursday July 11th on Prime Video.
Jul 01, 2024•12 min•Ep. 329
It's been 35 years since Disney released the game-changing The Little Mermaid. Disney Jr.'s Ariel, premiering June 27th on Disney Jr. and June 28th on Disney+, is a new CG family music series that spotlights the title character's youth 'under the sea'. Executive Producer Lynne Southerland and Art Director Chrystin Garland share why they enjoy being part of this world.
Jun 20, 2024•17 min•Ep. 320
