Watch: The Simpsons' Couch Gag Gets the Disney Treatment

The great Disney animator Eric Goldberg (responsible for the Genie, co-director of Pocahontas) has been tasked to direct the couch gag for an upcoming episode of The Simpsons. The gag is a nice journey back in time to the early days of the Walt Disney animated films. Watch the clip after the break.

Matt Groening is Working on a New Animated Series for Netflix

The Hollywood Reporter informs us that Matt Groening, the creator of the massively popular TV show The Simpsons and not-as-popular-but-still-beloved Futurama is working on a new animated series for Netflix.

This is pretty much everything we know so far, as Netflix declined to comment on the news/rumour. Still according to THR, it would appear the deal between Groening and the streaming service currently consists of two seasons (for a total of 20 episodes).

Obviously we can't wait to learn more about the project, because if this new show is half as good as the two previous Matt Groening series, we're in for a treat.

Harry Shearer Will Return to 'The Simpsons' After All

Earlier this year, Harry Shearer (the voice of Mr. Burns, Ned Flanders, Principal Skinner and dozens of other characters in The Simpsons) tweeted he was leaving the show. But he won't: according to EW, he will be back for the 27th season.

Is Harry Shearer Leaving 'The Simpsons'?

Harry Shearer, the voice talent behind some of the most popular characters in The Simpsons (including Ned Flanders, Mr. Burns, Smithers, Lenny, Principal Skinner, Reverend Lovejoy and Kent Brockman), apparently quit the show.

RIP Sam Simon (1955 - 2015)

Sam Simon

The Sam Simon Foundation announced earlier today via its facebook page that Sam Simon, best known for having developed The Simpsons and recipient of nine Emmy Awards passed away. He was 59.

Futurama, A Swan Song - A Crossover

We knew it wasn't over. Meanwhile was not the end. The Planet Express crew-members had another adventure under their futuristic belts. This adventure would take place in the past, within the world of Matt Groening's other show: a little thing called The Simpsons.
Futurama is back for one last (?) hurrah and the result is a riotous episode. Mini-review to follow.

Simpsorama
A show out of ideas teams up with a show out of episodes

Plot

Bender is sent back to the 21st Century in the town of Springfield. At first, he doesn't know why. After befriending Homer Simpson, he meets Professor Frink who resets his memory. Bender can then remember his mission: he was sent there to kill Homer Simpson…

"I Am the D'ohnger": Breaking Bad Meets The Simpsons in New Couch Gag

Much like the fan-made picture we shared a while back, The Simpsons is being mashed up with Breaking Bad, but in a more official manner this time: The Huffington Post shared the above video, which is the couch gag from the next episode of the hit Fox animated series.

The episode, What Animated Women Want, will star the voices of Wanda Sykes and Internet-God George Takei and airs in the US this Sunday on Fox. In the meantime, enjoy the show's opening, in which Marge cooks up some of that sweet blue stuff - cupcakes, that is - on repeat.

Breaking Bad star Bryan Cranston has previously lent his voice to the season 23 Simpsons episode, The Spy Who Learned Me. Both he and co-star Aaron Paul appeared in hilarious fashion at the end of the gag. News broke on Wednesday that Cranston had joined the cast of DreamWorks' Kung Fu Panda 3.

Breaking Bad begins the final stretch of its final season this summer - although a spin-off may already be in the works. Interestingly, Matt Groening once toyed with the idea of a live-action Krusty the Clown.

Sorry for the terrible pun in the title. Couldn't resist.

UPDATED: The Simpsons Movie 2 Not Happening for "Maybe Another 10, 15 Years"

Fans of The Simpsons are bound to be a little disheartened by this news, but show creator Matt Groening and several-time director David Silverman have said that a sequel to 2007's hit movie adaptation, The Simpsons Movie, is not on the cards any time soon.

Damien Presents Futurama: The Show That Just Won't Stay Dead!

By Damien.

Few people in the world have written more than one series finale. Ken Keeler did. He wrote three episodes that were designed to be the final ones. All of them for Futurama. And there's probably going to be a fourth.
Three times already, Futurama could've ended for good. It came pretty close the first time, when Fox decided to stop buying episodes after the 4th season.

Watch and Discuss: Oscar Nominated Animated Short Films

The Oscars are almost here, the 85th annual Academy Awards ceremony will take place two weeks from tomorrow, on Sunday 24th February, and it's almost time to start fielding predictions. But, before that, it certainly helps to be well informed: as we are A113Animation, obviously, one of the main awards at the Oscars for us is the Best Animated Feature one; however, often overlooked is the Best Animated Short Film prize. So, given that the Oscar nominated shorts are now all available in their entirety online, I thought it time to offer up my thoughts on the offerings, and get yours.

85th Annual Academy Award Nominations Revealed - And They're Exciting!

People are sure to complain about things (no Sam Mendes for Best Director? No Javier Bardem for Supporting Actor? No Dark Knight Rises at all?!), but there are certainly things to be happy about with today's Academy Award nominations: particularly so in animation!

The big news? The really bloody exciting news? After yesterday's very unexpected BAFTA snub, Aardman's fantastic film, The Pirates! in an Adventure with Scientists scooped a Best Animated Feature nomination! Massive congratulations to Pete Lord, Gideon Defoe, Jeff Newitt and everyone at Aardman for the nomination! BAFTAs-Shmaftas.

Pictures of the Day: Aladdin Meets DC Heroes and The Simpsons Meets Breaking Bad

I, like many a Disney fan, enjoy randomly bursting out singing A Whole New World. Do you know who apparently shares this passion? Superman. Check out this hilarious mash-up of Aladdin and Batman/Superman (from here) above; I think I may have just found a new iPod wallpaper! I like to think this is the kind of jesting that goes on in the Justice League.

Speaking of cool mash-ups, we've got another cool Breaking Bad one for you! Last time we showed you Threadless's cool Dexter's Lab/Breaking Bad crossover and today TV's best drama meets its most iconic cartoon family, with Breaking Bart (via Breaking Bad Memes).

Related news: What If: Fan-Made "Indiana Jones: The Animated Adventures" Artwork

10 Animated Shorts Make the Oscar Shortlist

Just last week we got the names of the animated shorts (and indeed features) submitted for Academy Award consideration, and today AMPAS have revealed the ten animated short films that have made it onto the Oscar short list. From these shorts - including last year's Annie Award for Best Animated Short Subject winner, Adam and Dog, as well as Disney's Paperman and The Simpsons short The Longest Daycare - between three and five will progress to the final list of nominees.

The shortlist is as follows:

• "Adam and Dog," Minkyu Lee, director (Lodge Films)
• "Combustible," Katsuhiro Otomo, director (Sunrise Inc.)
• "Dripped," Léo Verrier, director (ChezEddy)
• "The Eagleman Stag," Mikey Please, director, and Benedict Please, music scores and sound design (Royal College of Art)
• "The Fall of the House of Usher," Raul Garcia, director, and Stephan Roelants, producer (Melusine Productions, R&R Communications Inc., Les Armateurs, The Big Farm)
• "Fresh Guacamole," PES, director (PES)
• "Head over Heels," Timothy Reckart, director, and Fodhla Cronin O’Reilly, producer (National Film and Television School)
• "Maggie Simpson in “The Longest Daycare”," David Silverman, director (Gracie Films)
• "Paperman," John Kahrs, director (Disney Animation Studios)
• "Tram," Michaela Pavlátová, director, and Ron Dyens, producer (Sacrebleu Productions)

I'm not even going to pretend I've seen all of these, but it'll be exciting to see which progress. Given all of its buzz and the mainstream audience it's getting with Wreck-It Ralph, Paperman seems set for a nomination; Adam and Dog seems likely too. And from a fanboy standpoint, it sure would be nice to see a Simpsons short get an Oscar nomination!

The 85th Academy Award nominations will be revealed on 10th January, 2013 and then the awards will be presented from the Dolby Theatre, at the Hollywood & Highland Centre, on 24th February. Until then, we'll keep you posted.

Via Cartoon Brew.

Rich Moore Already Working on Ideas for Wreck-It Ralph 2!

Director Rich Moore (centre), pictured with producer Clark Spencer (left), executive producer John Lasseter (right) and the film's main voice talent.

Wreck-It Ralph's only just out in the US, and is still a way off being out in the UK, but director Rich Moore has already not only expressed a keen interest in pursuing a sequel, but announced that he's actively working on ideas for one!

UPDATED: New 3D Simpsons Short to Precede Ice Age 4!

It was just announced last night that Maggie Simpson will star in her very own short film, "The Longest Daycare"! The short will show before Blue Sky Studios' (who're also owned by Fox) Ice Age 4 later this year. You can view a short promo for the short film above.

"The Longest Daycare" is touted as being in 3D, and hopefully this just means it will have stereoscopic 3D effects, and not that it's animated using CGI - it would just not look right for The Simpsons.

This is very exciting news for several reasons: it's Maggie's first starring role, it's the first Simpsons theatrical short film, and indeed the first Simpsons short film since 1989! If you weren't planning on seeing Ice Age 4 before, it's just became a must see.

Ice Age 4: Continental Drift hits cinemas on 13th July.

Via Cartoon Brew.

Update:

Entertainment Weekly's site sports a mini-interview with Simpsons Exec. Producer, Al Jean, about "The Longest Daycare", which gives us a sizeable about of information about the short.

Jean says:

"Jim Brooks thought we should do an animated short — a la the ones Pixar does before their features, a la the cartoons you used to see in the theater years ago — as a fun thing to give our fans. We just wanted to do this as a way of saying, ‘We appreciate how much people have stayed with the show and watched it for 25 years."

The EW article also tells us that the short sees Maggie returning to the Ayn Rand School for Tots (need reminded?) and that it'll be 4 minutes long and directed by David Silverman. It also seems that in the short (rather than as hoped above) the "3D" doesn't mean the film will be in 3D, rather that it will be animated using CGI. Meh, I'd rather see it animated in the normal Simpsons mould, but I suppose it will give it a different feel and it worked rather well for Looney Tunes.

Also, of note, Al Jean spoke briefly about the long speculated The Simpsons Movie 2:

“There are no immediate plans for a feature, although as you see with this, you never know. It certainly made us excited to think that if we did another feature, maybe 3-D would be the way to go.”

Be sure to read the full article here!

Update 2:

Pardon my misreading, the director of The Simpsons Movie and "The Longest Daycare", David Silverman, told us on Twitter "Nope! - its 3D not CG. Drawn like the show, but several levels of cleanup, using After Effects to create 3D."

Phew. Like I said, I'm sure it would've been good as CG, but it'll be so much better without!

The Simpsons at 500

The Simpsons, Matt Groening's brainchild, the most iconic show in recent memory, the mould from which shows like Family Guy and South Park seek to establish themselves, has reached the gigantic milestone of 500 episodes. The show, which started on The Tracey Ullman Show way back in 1987 as a series of shorts, has been a mainstay on TV as a series for 23 years.

The practically unparralleled achievement is a true feather in the cap of arguably one of the greatest TV shows of all time and The Simpsons has been getting a lot of well deserved coverage because of the approaching accomplishment. The Guardian has compiled a list of the top ten episodes of The Simpsons here, crowning the 007 spoof, You Only Move Twice the greatest episode of The Simpsons ever. Personally, I'd agree with The Guardian's choice of that and of Cape Feare as the top two, although I'd probably rank their first full episode, Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire, in the top three though. Although, fans and critics alike seem fairly unaminous that the show's finest hours were in its first decade or so, there is no arguing with the fantastic brilliance of the show, and recent episode's like Angry Dad: The Movie showed the show's timelessness and how it is still capable of utter brilliance and witty self-parody. The Guardian also has an article about its choice of the top ten things that make The Simpsons great.

BBC News has a couple of clips from the upcoming 500th episode here, as well as some words from Wallace and Gromit creator and Aardman head honcho, Nick Park, about the honour of guest starring in The Simpsons.

Matt Groening has also received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on Valentine's Day (read more here).

The Simpsons' 500th episode will feature guest appearences by controversial WikiLeaks founder, Julian Assange and will air in the US tomorrow.

For more on the show's creator, Matt Groening, read our Bitesized Biography about him.

Classic Cartoons #2 - Good Night

As our second 'Bitesized Biography' was dedicated to The Simpsons creator, Matt Groening, and that the function of 'Classic Cartoons' is to share some of the best, most influential and most timeless cartoons and shorts of all time with the masses, it seemed fitting that today's 'Classic Cartoon' be the short that started it all: 'Good Night', the very first Simpsons short. Before 'Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire' became the first ever full length Simpsons episode in December 1989, 'Good Night' grabbed the attention and adulation of audiences everywhere on The Tracey Ullman Show on April 19, 1987.

Bitesized Biographies #2 - Matt Groening

A113Animation's new focus on animated shorts and cartoons is dedicated to honouring and appreciating the paramount importance and influence of this magical and nostalgic medium that all of us grew up with - and there is no bigger or more influential cartoon show than The Simpsons. The Simpsons is possibly the greatest show ever made - certainly one of the most beloved - and is definitely the best animated show ever, and none of this could've existed if it weren't for the genius of Matt Groening.

Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol Review - High Octane, Action Packed Thrills Galore

In case you haven't been following news on the latest instalment in Tom Cruise's Mission: Impossible series and its production, and before you die of shock at seeing a review of a live-action, spy film on a site about animation; allow me to elaborate:

Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol marks the live-action directorial debut of Brad Bird, a CalArts alumni who worked to build up The Simpsons - directing the famed episodes 'Krusty Gets Busted' and 'Like Father, Like Clown' - later moving on to features animation, with the critically acclaimed, traditionally animated, The Iron Giant. However, where Bird is most widely recognised from, is in his capacity at Pixar. A member of the revered 'Brain Trust', Bird directed 2004's The Incredibles (for which he also provided the voice of superhero-fashion designer, Edna Mode) and 2007's Ratatouille. Now though, Brad Bird has pointed himself in the live-action direction, as he helms the fourth entry into the popular Mission: Impossible franchise. As there always are when an animation director crosses over to live-action, or vice versa - as visible in early comments Steven Spielberg directing The Adventures of Tintin, and fellow Pixarian, Andrew Stanton, directing Disney's live-action John Carter - there always some consternation and quiet concern that there skills in their first field may not translate to the latter format; however, there are no such problems here for Brad Bird, as M:I-GP is an awesomely action packed, fast paced rollicking ride.

New Year Changes

I've been running A113Animation for just over a year now, and it's been better than I could have imagined. In my time running the blog, my interest in animation has developed and blossomed into an obsession and thereafter into a way of life. It's allowed me to talk to a co-founder of Pixar, famed animation directors and figures, to interview esteemed authors and to live as much of my dream as I ever conceived I could. Time was where I only really took much of an interest, animation wise, in Pixar and Dinsey, then it grew into a love and appreciation of all animated films, but more recently, my interests have grown again, and manifested into something that shall have a direct effect on this blog - as it's only now that I believe I can firmly say I have a full appreciation of the artform that is animation in its entirety.

Over time, I've added more and more features to the blog - reviews, editorials, second perspectives and more - yet, in the last few months, I've conceived more and more. Now, let me tell you somewhat of a story: growing up, long before I ran this blog, long before I even deeply cared about animated films - as a child - I still obsessed over animation, in the form of cartoons. Many of my early childhood memories are of sitting in front of a television, watching cartoons like Tom and Jerry, The Flintstones and The Simpsons, day and night. These cartoons are so deeply profound in ways they don't always get the credit for; they may be caricatured, they may be whacky, but the characters are as real and as beloved as any in all of film and indeed of literature. So, it's these cartoons that inspire me to write this today , as they have moved me and they have driven my life in as great a way and in as clear a direction as my love of Disney and Pixar have, and indeed in the same vein as pretty much everything else important. Yet, it's only very recently that I've realised that, the work of Hanna-Barbera, Matt Groening, Chuck Jones and animation pioneers like them, is akin to that, in the effect on my life and on animation, of Walt Disney or John Lasseter.

My epiphany came around Christmastime (as all the best epiphanies come then) when I received a Looney Tunes boxset from a friend - obviously bearing in mind my adulation of animation. It was this point, and the subsequent watching of them, that I remembered how much I loved watching the series as a child - and indeed now - this greatly reminded me of the brilliant effect of cartoons, how wonderful they are and how great those shows once were in my mind - and now are again.

So, this blog, which was hitherto solely feature animation based, will now have some overlay into the realm of TV animation - although don't go looking for news on every cartoon show about. This will be apparent through two new features on the blog, that will start up very soon: Bitesized Biographies and Classic Cartoons.

• Bitesized Biographies - these will be reasonably concise and short, yet detailed and retrospective, looks at the lives and influence of key animators and prolific and prominent figures in the field of animation and cartoons. This won't be solely limited to cartoons, there will be Biographies of Walt Disney, John Lasseter and more, although most of them will be of key figures in cartoon history, such as Chuck Jones, Tex Avery, Mel Blanc, Walter Lantz and more.
• Classic Cartoons - these will be vintage video clips, from YouTube or other sites, of old, brilliant animated shorts and TV cartoons. These will include, amongst others, Looney Tunes, Tom and Jerry, Woody Woodpecker, Chilly Willy, Pixar and Disney short films as well as old Simpsons shorts and original Family Guy shorts.

So, look forward to these features - a sidebar will be going up soon, also carrying links to reviews and our long running 'Aardman News' feature. I hope this will help to diversify the blog and, more than that, get over my dire love of animation to you, and get you to share your own.