We're heading back to the early 90s to review yet another film about saving the earth. This time it's the 1992 animated film FernGully: The Last Rainforest. Full Show Notes: http://rotoscopers.com/95 Highlights Nerdy Couch Discussion: Environmentalism in animated films. Why so many animated films about environmentalist/conservation messages? Main Discussion: FernGully: The Last Rainforest (1992) This movie isn't quite bad! It's actually all right! A little history, box office results and more fu...
May 22, 2015•2 hr 38 min•Ep 95•Transcript available on Metacast The Rotoscopers take a look back at an interesting 1980s animated film, Disney's 1987 film The Brave Little Toaster. Full Show Notes: http://rotoscopers.com/94 Highlights Morgan give the update of the Disney's third multi-plane camera and Chelsea has big news! Main Discussion: The Brave Little Toaster (1987) A little production history and John Lasseter's actual involvement in production. Let the Toy Story comparisons begin! We had a hard time relating to...appliances. Talking about the voice ac...
May 08, 2015•2 hr 46 min•Ep 94•Transcript available on Metacast When you wish upon a podcast, you get the Rotoscopers reviewing Walt Disney's 2nd masterpiece, the 1940 animated classic Pinocchio. Full Show Notes: http://rotoscopers.com/93 Highlights Main Discussion: Pinocchio (1940) Talking about the production history. Diving into the original 1883 book The Adventures of Pinocchio. What did they change from the original story? Jiminy Cricket is the perfect lovable Disney sidekick. Geppetto is a cute, relatable character. But what out! tobacco warning! Talk ...
Apr 24, 2015•2 hr 59 min•Ep 93•Transcript available on Metacast The Rotoscopers go across the pond to review a cult classic and highly requested 1978 British film Watership Down. Full Show Notes: http://rotoscopers.com/92 Highlights Main Discussion: Watership Down (1978) First thoughts of hearing about the film and ultimately seeing it. Mason breaks down the bonus features on the Watership Down Criterion Collection Blu-ray. Based on a popular and famous book of the same name. One of the highlights of this film is the sense of realism. Overview of bunny relig...
Apr 10, 2015•2 hr 47 min•Ep 92•Transcript available on Metacast We just love kung fu! Last episode we reviewed Kung Fu Panda and we just couldn't get enough. This episode, we review the 2011 sequel Kung Fu Panda 2! Highlights Main Discussion: Kung Fu Panda 2 General info, box office results, and first thoughts and recollections. Morgan thought the intro was going to be a lot more epic. The score by Hans Zimmer and John Powell really does a great job of drawing you in. It's very lyrical and dictates what is happening on screen. Big plot problem: Po's "Who am ...
Mar 27, 2015•1 hr 26 min•Ep 91•Transcript available on Metacast It's back-to-back DreamWorks films for the Rotoscopers! This episode we tackle the 2008 CGI film Kung Fu Panda. Highlights Main Discussion: Kung Fu Panda Drama at the Annie Awards. Panda sweeps! First thoughts and recollections about the movie. Is it easier to do martial arts in animation? The 2D opening sequence is by the amazing James Baxter. The Furious 5 meet Po. Tai Lung and his epic escape out of the prison. Morgan has issues with how long it took Po to be a master. What we think about the...
Mar 13, 2015•1 hr 15 min•Ep 90•Transcript available on Metacast Mason is flying solo as he interviews Christopher Knights, the voice of Private from Penguins of Madagascar. Highlights Chris talks about his job at DreamWorks Animation as an editor and how he got into voice acting. Mason asks about other DreamWorks films like Shrek, Trolls, Me and My Shadow, and Mumbai Musical. Chris also answers a question we had on a previous episode, We're Back! A Dinosaurs Story. Tell us what you thought of the interview! Don't forget to use the hashtags #AnimAddicts and #...
Mar 10, 2015•1 hr 20 min•Ep 89•Transcript available on Metacast The Rotoscopers review DreamWorks' second CGI animated film, the amazing, hilarious, irreverent Shrek. Highlights Main Discussion: Shrek (2001) Morgan and Chelsea saw this movie in theatres together and bonded over the fairy tale and Disney parodies. Mason goes in depth about the lighting, rigging, animation and character designs. Animation technology really shows its age. So quotable! John Powell did the score. He's like a Rotoscoper for music--Disney, DreamWorks, and everything in between. New...
Feb 27, 2015•2 hr 37 min•Ep 88•Transcript available on Metacast All good things must come to a close--it's the final film in the Rotoscopers' Mice & Rats podcast series, Don Bluth's debut film The Secret of NIMH. Highlights Nerdy Couch Discussion: Main Discussion: The Secret of NIMH (1982) Shout out to to the fan-made trailer by ELO1138. The staples of a Don Bluth film: dazzle, Dom Deluise, and knobbly hands. The opening: one of the best writing in any of Bluth's film. Why do we love Mrs. Brisby? Classic movie trope: fear of flying. The drama with Mrs. Frisb...
Feb 13, 2015•1 hr 23 min•Ep 87•Transcript available on Metacast The fans voted and the Rotoscopers delivered! Chelsea, Morgan, and Mason continue the Rats and Mice series with Once Upon a Forest! Highlights Main Discussion: Once Upon a Forest It's ok. Not bad. But just ok. Classic James Horner. There's alway a wind instrument solo. Mason soapbox moment: Why are there animals that are selectively clothed and selectively naked? It's the 90s! Look at all the orphans and single parent households. Everyone rants about the environmentalist message. Message of the ...
Jan 30, 2015•1 hr 12 min•Ep 86•Transcript available on Metacast We're continuing with our Mice & Rats podcast series with rag-to-riches story, Disney's 1950 classic Cinderella! Highlights Nerdy Couch Discussion: Why are Cinderella, Snow White and Aurora seen as "weak" characters? Main Discussion: Cinderella (1950) Great example of human character animation. Epic Morgan rant on the horrible HD restoration. Cinderella was never poor. Poor is a state of mind. Introducing the mice, who really sidetrack the movie. Lucifer and Clean Flicks. The King and the Grand ...
Jan 16, 2015•2 hr 46 min•Ep 85•Transcript available on Metacast Welcome to the Animation Addicts Best of 2014 show! This episode is our celebration of the best that 2014 had to offer in animation and the Animation Addicts podcast. Highlights Looking back at 2014. What were some of our favorite moments and movies? Time to announce the winners of the 2014 Rotoscopers Awards! Best Animated Film: Big Hero 6 (24%) Best Animated Short: Feast (55%) Best Animated TV Show/TV Special: Toy Story That Time Forgot (26%) Best Voice Acting (Male): Chris Pratt (30%) Best Vo...
Jan 02, 2015•3 hr 31 min•Ep 84•Transcript available on Metacast For the annual Christmas episode of the Animation Addicts Podcast, the Rotoscopers review the 1983 short Mickey's Christmas Carol. Highlights Main Discussion: Mickey's Christmas Carol (1983) One of many adaptations of Dicken's Christmas Carol. Lots and lots of cameos. All these characters are actors. Pre-Bill Farmer Goofy is so out of character. Ghost of Christmas Past: Jiminy Cricket. Morgan has a lot of love for Daisy Duck. Mail bag: Mark, Dustin, Rachel, S, Eric, Alice, Rob, Mike. Don't forge...
Dec 19, 2014•1 hr 19 min•Ep 83•Transcript available on Metacast Disney Legend, Glen Keane, takes a moment out of his very busy schedule to talk to Mason and Chelsea about his new short, Duet! Check it out! You won't be disappointed! Highlights Intro of Glen Keane and his short interactive film "Duet" What?! Glen listens to The Rotoscopers? CATCH N’ FIRE! Glen talks about Duet and its inspirations. Why graphite? Listener questions: Thomas Van Acker: What do you think is the most important aspect of animation that should be taught by teachers? Or what did you ...
Dec 13, 2014•59 min•Ep 82•Transcript available on Metacast The Rotoscopers continue with their Mice & Rats podcast series by reviewing one of Pixar's most critically acclaimed films: Ratatouille. Highlights Main Discussion: Ratatouille (2007) First thoughts and recollections of the film. Chelsea can't get over the fact that the main character's a rat. Morgan and Mason love it. Morgan's experience searching for ratatouille, then being terribly disappointed with its taste. Our love for Anton Ego: the antagonist who has a change of heart at the end. The pr...
Dec 05, 2014•2 hr 35 min•Ep 81•Transcript available on Metacast We review Disney's newest animated feature, the superhero film that everyone loves: Big Hero 6. Highlights Main Discussion: Big Hero 6 (2014) Impressions from our screenings and Morgan's experience from the Big Hero 6 premiere. Thoughts about the backgrounds and city of San Fransokyo. Technical mumbo with Mason! Disney's Hyperion image engine. First weekend box office numbers! Thoughts about Tadashi and act 1. Problems with telling and not showing. Who we thought the villain was at the beginning...
Nov 21, 2014•2 hr 59 min•Ep 80•Transcript available on Metacast For the next film in our 'Mice & Rats' series, we cover Don Bluth's 1986 mouse film An American Tail. Highlights More stories from Chelsea! Main Discussion: An American Tail (1986) A little history of the film and how Fievel got his name. Who's who in a Don Bluth production. Talk of the figurative and literal meaning of "cats". How we feel of Fievel as a main character. Classic Don Bluth scariness in the ocean. Welcome to NYC! Fievel wandering and meeting a lot of different people. Lots of accen...
Nov 07, 2014•2 hr 31 min•Ep 79•Transcript available on Metacast The Roto-SPOOKERS make an appearance for their annual Halloween episode. This time, they tackle the last of Disney's package films, The Adventures of Ichabod & Mr. Toad. Highlights A little insight about Disney's package film era. Main Discussion: The Adventures of Ichabod & Mr. Toad (1949) Initial thoughts. Differences between the two films. Mr. Toad is a frustrating character. Why do his friends try to help him? Both of these films have pretty good gags. Cyril Proudbottom is not a good friend....
Oct 24, 2014•2 hr 31 min•Ep 78•Transcript available on Metacast The Rotoscopers discuss the first film in their 'Mice & Rats' podcast series, Disney's 1986 The Great Mouse Detective. Highlights Nerdy Couch Discussion: Mice in animation Main Discussion: The Great Mouse Detective (1986) First thoughts and memories. 1992 VHS release. The whole film takes place in one night. Perhaps a time vortex is at work? Why doesn't that flower ballerina toy exist in real life? There's way too much pink in Rattigan's hideout. Is the sexy singing bar mouse really ok? The firs...
Oct 10, 2014•2 hr 39 min•Ep 77•Transcript available on Metacast It's Chelsea's birthday episode! The Rotoscopers finally review one of the Disney films that they've had on their bucket list since they started the show: Walt Disney's Sleeping Beauty. Highlights Catch and fire with Chelsea! Nerdy Couch Discussion: Origins of the Sleeping Beauty fairy tale from the Sleeping Beauty art book. Main Discussion: Sleeping Beauty (1959) The making-of documentary from the end of the VHS tape. Discussion about the unique art style, backgrounds, and Eyvind Earle. The fai...
Sep 26, 2014•2 hr 10 min•Ep 76•Transcript available on Metacast The Rotoscopers head back to medieval times to discover King Arthur, the Knights of the Round Table and a really bizarre movie, Quest for Camelot. Highlights Main Discussion: Quest for Camelot (1998) Morgan has faint memories of seeing this with Chelsea, but...remembers nothing of the film. The movie poster turned Morgan off. This is an example of what happens when oblivious executives meddle in a film. The music suffers. What is it trying to be? Serious? Comical? A musical? Gandondorf aka Ruber...
Sep 12, 2014•2 hr 33 min•Ep 75•Transcript available on Metacast Highlights Nerdy Couch Discussion: Two new Disney theories! Wreck-It Ralph theory that the Disneyverse is one giant computer. Disneyverse has its own Disney within the Disneyverse. Main Discussion: We're Back! A Dinosaur's Story (1993) The early '90s were the era of the dinosaur. Vorb tops the list for annoying side character. Is this movie just a giant commercial for the cereal companies? Check out that '90s penthouse! Screweyes does know his audience. What a creepy villain death. That definite...
Aug 29, 2014•2 hr 30 min•Ep 74•Transcript available on Metacast It's an animated film of mammoth-size proportions: Blue Sky's first film, Ice Age. Highlights Main Discussion: Ice Age History of Blue Sky Studios. It started out as a VFX and commercial studio. Interesting to see that a lot of studios start out as a commercial-making studio and then slowly grow to making features. Mother Gothel: "Enough with the migrations." Surprising voice talent. What the Jack Black? The dodo sequence! The big moment that pays off: the cave painting sequence. It helps you re...
Aug 15, 2014•1 hr 19 min•Ep 73•Transcript available on Metacast In this episode, the Rotoscopers have a riveting discussing about one of Disney's most forgotten about animated films Dinosaur. Highlights Main Discussion: Dinosaur Only the hardest of hard core fans remember this film. It is not recognized as a Disney classic in the UK? Wait what? Lots of hype, but a lot of disappointment after seeing it. Lack of character development. Unappealing characters make you not care about them. Theme of abundance vs. scarcity. Why does it seem that almost every dinosa...
Aug 01, 2014•1 hr 16 min•Ep 72•Transcript available on Metacast The Rotoscopers kick off our Dinos & Dragons series by reviewing Don Bluth's 1988 classic The Land Before Time! Highlights Main Discussion: The Land Before Time (1988) We just right into the the commercials and merchandise of this film. Pizza Hut birthday commercial and Pizza Hut puppets, anyone? The Land Before Time beat out Oliver & Company! This movie is the epitome of childhood epitome. Originally started as "Bambi with dinosaurs." Why do the animated mother's always have to die? Props to Do...
Jul 18, 2014•2 hr 33 min•Ep 71•Transcript available on Metacast It's Mason's birthday episode! The Rotoscopers review the last film of the Disney Renaissance Disney's 1999 film Tarzan. Highlights Nerdy Couch Discussion: Frozen crossover theory. Main Discussion: Tarzan. The soundtrack is one of the most iconic Disney albums. One of the greatest openings in an animated film. How do we feel about the side characters Terk and Tantor? In what societal class is Jane? Thank you creators for making a plausible way for them to overcome the language barrier (unlike th...
Jul 04, 2014•2 hr•Ep 70•Transcript available on Metacast The Rotoscopers review Studio Ghibli's epic film Princess Mononoke with special guest host, Rotowriter Mayra Amaya. Highlights Main Discussion: Princess Mononoke First thoughts and recollections about this movie; reactions to the violence! Interesting insights from Miyazaki about the the film from his biographies. Disney drama with the release and censoring the film. The most impactful moment in the film: San with the blood. Miyazaki is a master of composition; the forest-spirit scene. This is t...
Jun 20, 2014•2 hr 44 min•Ep 69•Transcript available on Metacast The Rotoscopers review Disney's first modern animated movie, the 1961 canine classic One Hundred and One Dalmatians. Highlights ■ Nerdy Couch Discussion: Animated henchman - who are our favorites, what qualities do you like in a henchman? ■ Main Discussion: One Hundred and One Dalmatians (1961) ■ What if Disney made a live-action movie telling the tragic backstory of Cruella De Vil? ■ Differences from the book and movie. ■ This was the first film to use the iconic Xerox method, which Disney used...
Jun 05, 2014•2 hr 4 min•Ep 68•Transcript available on Metacast The Rotoscopers talk about Don Bluth's classic 1989 animated film All Dog's Go to Heaven! Highlights ■ Update on everyone's life! ■ Nerdy Couch Discussion: Animated dogs ■ Main Discussion: All Dogs Go to Heaven ■ Brief history of Don Bluth's studio and name changes over the year. ■ This movie is dark and gritty: smoking, drinking, gambling. ■ Burt Reynolds as Charlie (and his contractual stipulations) as well as Don DeLuise, who was Don Bluth's lucky charm. ■ The tragedy of the murder of Anne-Ma...
May 23, 2014•2 hr 34 min•Ep 67•Transcript available on Metacast Morgan and Chelsea are joined by RotoWriter Pablo Ruiz to review Pixar's only film to be nominated for Best Picture, Up! Highlights ■ Main Discussion: Up ■ Why the "Married Life" sequence is so good. ■ The punching-filled "Married Life" sequence that could have been. ■ Michael Giacchino's whimsical, 40s-esque score has its own life and takes the film to another level. ■ The movie goes all over the place visually: house floating with balloons, South America, and more! ■ Enter the dogs: Doug, Alph...
May 09, 2014•2 hr 31 min•Ep 66•Transcript available on Metacast 
