Kung Fu Panda 3

[GeneChing]

Obviously there will be a KFP3. Anyone who saw KFP2 knows that.

DreamWorks Animation Confirms 'Kung Fu Panda 3' & Development Of A 'Madagascar' Penguins Spin-Off
News by Edward Davis | July 12, 2012 6:02 PM

Considering the grosses after just two films ($1.3 billion), this shouldn't be a surprise. DreamWorks Animation is giving the go-ahead for a third "Kung Fu Panda" film which was likely a no-brainer as last year "Kung Fu Panda 2" more than confirmed audiences are in love with the franchise. Voiced by Jack Black, Angelina Jolie, Jackie Chan, Dustin Hoffman, Seth Rogen and Lucy Liu, there's no word on who will direct the third installment, but so far there's been a different group of filmmakers for every film, with only producer Melissa Cobb and screenwriter Jonathan Aibel remaining as two of the major above-the-line creative forces.

"Right now we have 10 movies in production and eight or nine in pre-production or advanced form of script development," DWA chief Bill Damaschke told audiences at Comic-Con today. And one of the new ones? A "Madagascar" spin-off called "Penguins of Madagascar" set for a 2015 release that will be directed by Tom McGrath, the voice actor and animator who co-directed all three animated animal films with Eric Darnell. Those three films have a combined worldwide total of $1.5 billion so DWA clearly are no dummies and will keep that gravy train running as long as it can. Expect 'Penguins' to spawn its own trilogy unless it somehow falls flat with unpicky kids.

Other DreamWorks Animation pictures in the hamper are "Rise of the Guardians" (November 20, 2012), "The Croods" (March 22, 2013), "Turbo" (July 19, 2013), "Mr. Peabody & Sherman" (November 8, 2013), "How to Train Your Dragon 2" (June 20, 2014), "Happy Smekday!" (due late 2014) and a fantasy comedy called "Me and My Shadow," voiced by Bill Hader and "Book of Mormon" actor Josh Gad that has been set for a March 14, 2014 release.

[GeneChing]

Maybe this thread should be retitled Oriental DreamWorks.

DreamWorks, Shanghai partners unveil collaborative blueprint
English.news.cn 2012-08-07 17:15:29

SHANGHAI, Aug. 7 (Xinhua) -- U.S. film giant DreamWorks Animation (DWA) and its Chinese partners said on Tuesday that they plan to co-produce upcoming film "Kung Fu Panda 3," as well as build an "entertainment destination" in Shanghai.

The news was announced at a signing ceremony held in the city to launch a landmark Sino-U.S. cultural project titled "Oriental DreamWorks."

The two parties confirmed that the long-anticipated third installment of the blockbuster "Kung Fu Panda" franchise is slated to be released in 2016 by DWA and Oriental DreamWorks (ODW), a studio established by DWA in partnership with a trio of Shanghai-based companies.

DWA and three Shanghai-based state-owned groups -- China Media Capital (CMC), the Shanghai Media Group and Shanghai Alliance Investment Limited -- signed a deal in February to form a joint venture focusing on animation production, with the Chinese companies acting as controlling partners.

The first two "Kung Fu Panda" films enjoyed great success in the Chinese market, with the second film taking in 470 million yuan (74.6 million U.S. dollars) at the box office.

ODW is expected to produce its first original animated film in 2017. Jeffrey Katzenberg, CEO of DWA, said previously that there are seven different proposals being considered for the film.

Until then, ODW will work to release one to three films a year to keep up with the pace of other international animation companies.

In addition, the two parties signed an agreement Tuesday to establish the "Dream Center" entertainment zone in the West Bank Media Port, which is located in Shanghai's Xuhui district.

The zone, to be built with a total investment of more than 20 billion yuan, will be made up of theaters, restaurants and bars, said Li Ruigang, CMC's chairman.

The West Bank Media Port, with the "Dream Center" as its flagship attraction, is expected to see 20 million visitors a year, according to data provided by the district government of Xuhui.

Li said the two sides will strive to develop Shanghai into an international culture center.

"In the long term, we may bring more entertainment zones to other domestic cities or even build them abroad," he added.

Katzenberg was said to have "intense interest" in the entertainment zone project, a first for the California-based company.

WIN-WIN PARTNERSHIP

The collaboration between DWA and its Shanghai partners, inked during Vice President Xi Jinping's visit to the U.S. in February, is expected to create new opportunities for both sides.

For Chinese domestic animators, who have suffered from an extended recession, DWA's entry into China will bring a chance to learn from the company's experience.

"The cultural industry should always target a global market. We're trying to adapt to global competition at our doorstep," said Xiang Yong, deputy director of the cultural industry research institute at Peking University.

The Chinese animation industry saw its heyday in the 1960s, when the film "Uproar in Heaven" was screened at renowned international film festivals. But now, the industry is struggling with a lack of both original ideas and professionals.

Some local animation firms said they are longing to learn from DWA's assets, such as its storytelling expertise and its world-leading 3D technology.

During his visit to Shanghai in March, Katzenberg said the Shanghai studio will focus on stories that "have a connection to the culture, history and literature of China." He also promised to bring the 3D technology that DWA has developed during the past five years to Shanghai.

The studio is also expected to give the U.S. animation tycoon a foothold in the promising Chinese market.

China has become one of the biggest film consumers in the world, with film industry revenues surging at an annual rate of 30 percent, said Zhang Pimin, deputy director of the National Bureau of Radio and Television Industry.

China is also expected to become the second country in the world to have over 10,000 movie screens by the end of 2012, following the U.S.

Some have said that the announcement of the "Oriental DreamWorks" deal has put DWA in a fierce race with its domestic rival Walt Disney, which began to build a theme park in Shanghai last April.

Nevertheless, Katzenberg and Li both claimed on Tuesday that the "Dream Center" project will not be a threat to the Shanghai Disneyland.

"The 'Dream Center' is not a theme park. It's different from any other large cultural project in China, including Disneyland," Li said.

In April, Walt Disney joined hands with Chinese IT giant Tencent and state-owned animation company China ACG Group Co., Ltd. to launch a research and development project aimed at nurturing the homegrown animation industry and training professional animators.

In addition, the U.S. film tycoon has made the upcoming "Iron Man 3" a joint production with DMG Entertainment in Beijing.

"The co-production of the film shows the importance of Chinese audiences to Disney," said Zhang Zhizhong, the company's executive vice president.

‘Kung Fu Panda’ Studio Eyes $3.1 Billion Shanghai Complex
By Bloomberg News on August 07, 2012

Oriental DreamWorks, a Chinese venture by DreamWorks Animation SKG Inc. (DWA), will invest more than 20 billion yuan ($3.1 billion) building an entertainment center in Shanghai to rival New York’s Broadway and London’s West End.

The Dream Center, which will include theaters, shops, restaurants and hotels, is scheduled to open in 2016, Oriental DreamWorks said in a statement today. The company also said it will co-produce “Kung Fu Panda 3” in China and plans to release the animated film in 2016.

The investment will give Glendale, California-based DreamWorks Animation a footprint in one of the world’s fastest- growing movie markets. Ticket sales in China rose 35 percent last year to $2 billion, according to the Motion Picture Association of America, making China the third largest movie market behind the U.S. and Japan.

“We have formed what we think is a very valuable strategic partnership to make world class feature animation,” Jeffrey Katzenberg, chief executive officer of DreamWorks Animation, said at a press conference in Shanghai today. “We’re very confident that the creative talent exists here in China. We’re very enthusiastic about building a studio.”

The animation studio will hire 800 people over the next four years, Katzenberg said, and add more employees eventually. He also said it has seven scripts in development, one of which will be the company’s first original production out of China.

‘Panda’ Sequel

“Kung Fu Panda 3” will be a sequel to the 2011 and 2008 films, which generated more than $600 million each in worldwide ticket sales, according to Box Office Mojo, an industry tracker. Oriental DreamWorks plans to release one to three films a year following its first solely created feature production in 2017, it said in today’s statement.

DreamWorks Animation owns about 45 percent of Oriental DreamWorks, with the rest held by China Media Capital, Shanghai Media Group and Shanghai Alliance Investment Ltd. The companies are seeking partners to fund the investment in the Dream Center in Shanghai, said Li Ruigang, Chairman of China Media Capital.

Li, 43, will head Oriental DreamWorks as the chief executive officer, Katzenberg said during the media conference. Li is also a board member of Dublin-based WPP Plc. (WPP), the world’s largest advertising company by market value.

The entertainment complex will feature a “Dream Walk,” the world’s largest Imax screen, which can be used for film premieres and other events, according to the statement. It will be located in the district of Xuhui along the Huangpu River that winds through Shanghai.

`Incredible Metropolis'

“It’s an incredible metropolis here with many beautiful aspects to it but it doesn’t have that sort of cultural, entertainment center to it, and that’s what sort of got us started on this idea,” Katzenberg said. The Dream Center will be a “celebration of great theater, great art, great culture, great music, all in one place” and will target 18 to 34 year olds, he said.

Ben Wood, who designed Shanghai’s Xintiandi, an urban dining, shopping and entertainment district in the downtown area, will be among the designers for The Dream Center, Katzenberg said.

The project will be “complementary” to the Shanghai theme park being developed by Walt Disney Co. (DIS), Katzenberg said.
Disney Theme Park

Disney and its state-owned China partner Shanghai Shendi Group Co. announced in 2011 it will invest about $4.4 billion building the resort, which will open in about five years. The company also said in April it will co-produce “Iron Man 3” in China with Beijing Film Studio DMG Entertainment.

DreamWorks Animation shares slipped 0.7 percent to $17.83 in New York yesterday, paring its gain this year to 7.4 percent. Disney retreated 0.2 percent to $49.65, having rallied 32 percent in 2012.

Entertainment companies are seeking tie-ups with Chinese filmmakers in a bid to circumvent the country’s annual quota on the number of foreign-made films that can be shown in theaters. China allows 34 foreign films to be screened in China each year, with 14 to be shown in 3D or large format. Movies that are co- produced with Chinese partners can skirt the quotas.

To contact the reporter on this story: Alexandra Ho in Shanghai at aho113@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Shiyin Chen at schen37@bloomberg.net

[GeneChing]

About $200 USD a month. USA minimum wage = $7.25 x 40 hrs/week X 4 weeks = $1160

China's animation capital
Updated: 2013-02-14 07:25
By Shi Jing in Shanghai ( China Daily)

China's animation industry is slightly more than 80 years old and most of its history has happened in Shanghai, now home of a number of first-rate domestic and international animation companies.

California-based Dreamworks Animation SKG Inc, creator of the well-loved Kung Fu Panda and Shrek series, signed agreements on Feb 17 in 2012 with China Media Capital, Shanghai Media Group (SMG) and Shanghai Alliance Investment Ltd to form a joint venture called Oriental Dreamworks.

With an initial investment of $330 million in the joint venture, the Chinese companies will hold a 55 percent stake in the new company while Dreamworks Animation controls the rest.

Notwithstanding this latest shot in the arm, the value of output of Shanghai's animation industry had reached 6.3 billion yuan ($1.01 billion) in 2011, up 23.7 percent year-on-year, taking up about 10 percent of the country's entire animation industry output.

By the end of 2011, there were more than 300 Shanghai-based companies specializing in animation production or animation related businesses such as distribution, 111 of which have new works coming out, up 52 percent year-on-year.

According to statistics released at the Shanghai Cultural and Creative Industries Promotion Conference held in mid-April in 2012, the cultural and creative industries are aiming to reach a value-added of 200 billion yuan by the end of 2012, taking up about 10.6 percent of the city's GDP all in line with the city government's aim to promote the industries as the mainstay industries outlined in its 12th Five-Year Plan (2011-15).

The central government in Beijing has also given much support in recent years.

In 2011, Chinese audiences saw 15 Chinese animation movies put onto the big screen, four of which were co-produced with overseas houses and the rest original works by domestic companies.

By the end of the same year, original animation works in China amounted to 260,000 minutes, a world record the country holds up to now.

Source: DreamWorks could have saved U.S. jobs if they made 'Kung Fu Panda 3' in U.S., not in China
By Hollie McKay
Published February 14, 2013

LOS ANGELES – Could the 'Kung Fu Panda" studio's big play in China mean some American workers get the karate chop?

The Hollywood Reporter reported last week that DreamWorks Animation – founded by Hollywood heavyweights Steven Spielberg, Jeffrey Katzenberg and David Geffen – is set to lay off a portion of their 2,000-plus employee base.

Last August, DreamWorks Animation announced plans to develop a $3.1 billion cultural and entertainment district in Shanghai, in conjunction with a group of Chinese partners – complete with theaters, performance halls, restaurants, shops and an entertainment center decked out with a “Kung Fu Panda” theme. The projects has been billed rivaling New York’s Broadway and London’s West End.

“Kung Fu Panda 3” – a continuance to the wildly successful 3D slate of films based on a floundering panda who goes on to become a martial arts hero – will be produced in China by a new joint venture, Shanghai Oriental DreamWorks Film & Television Technology Co., and released in 2016.

DreamWorks will own 45 percent of the company, and the Chinese partners will hold 55 percent.

A rep for DWA did not respond to a comment request to confirm if work on the third installment is already underway, but a person familiar with production said that it most likely is, as such a film would take three to six years to make.

That source also said the potential forthcoming U.S. job losses could be linked to DreamWorks Animation’s growing developments in China.

“Typically, the successes should balance out the failures. A studio will often go through a wave of regular layoffs and hiring during these phases, but this looks set to be the largest layoff to date,which certainly raises some questions as to why,” the high-ranking artist in the industry told FOX411’s Pop Tarts column.

Speculation is indeed swirling as to whether the potential job losses could be saved if “Kung Fu Panda 3”— like its predecessors — was made in the Unted States. According to our source, the answer is a likely “yes” as “a typical animated production company employs anywhere between 300 to 600 artists.”

But Dr. Dariush Adli, Founder and President of Adli Law Group – which specializes in entertainment, new media, business and trademarks – notes that there are many reasons that DreamWorks can site for the reported forthcoming layoffs, such as the loss surrounding the “Guardians” film, but ads that “changing the location to a production of a movie such as ‘Kung Fu Panda,’ could hinder some jobs as well.”

“As for opening a studio in China, it seems DreamWorks Animation has a long-term plan and will soon start producing all its movies over there, which could hinder more jobs later,” Adli continued.

However, J. David Williams, the President and CEO of prominent Film Finance and Marketing company FilmCrest argued that the employee action that DreamWorks has been poised to take should not be looked at as a reaction to their recent film’s performance in the marketplace.

“Films must be made at a higher quality basis to compete, but at a less expensive price,” he said. “Unfortunately, that is what China delivers. Animation and Visual Effects movies are especially perfect for the Chinese production pipeline because they require a lot of money, time and personnel which are plentiful in that part of the world. DWA recognizes this, and are doing the right thing.”

A rep for DreamWorks Animation declined to comment on the reported layoffs, and instead referenced last week’s press release indicating changes to the programming schedule, and pointed out that the developments in China were not mentioned.

In the release, DreamWorks Animation CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg announced that only two – instead of the initially planned three – films would be released by the studio in 2013 and they were “adjusting their infrastructure costs accordingly.” The release also confirmed that the domestic scheduling reduction was at “the recommendation of its, distributor, Twentieth Century Fox.” Last year, DWA entered into a five-year distribution deal with Fox.

“We believe the best strategy for DreamWorks Animation in the long run is to ensure that every one of our films has an optimal release date with the biggest opportunity to succeed at the box office,” Katzenberg stated.

Twentieth Century Fox did not respond to a request for comment.

Yet The Hollywood Reporter noted that the staff cuts, which have been rumored for weeks, would hit the Glendale, California-based studio’s production, technology and overhead functions and that “no single film project in development will be targeted.” According to the site, “plans for an unspecified reduction of the company’s employees are already afoot and should begin before the publicly-traded studio reports earnings Feb. 26.”

But DreamWorks is not alone. Hollywood’s ties with China overall are continuing to grow, with studios like Walt Disney Co. and Relativity Media also inking deals.

“It’s proven that proceeding to China can save you tons of money on labor, machinery and space,” Adli said.

And according to our animation industry insider, it’s going to hit Americans who work in the niche area where it hurts.

“The entertainment business has long been dominated by the American industry,” said the source. “It’s a shame to see it being outsourced the same way manufacturing and other industries have also gone. There no longer seems to be any loyalty to the American brand.”

[eltravose]

A 3rd movie would be great. I didn't realize this but they made a TV show out of KF Panda. Visually it looks great, but they used different people for the voices.

[GeneChing]

See our Kung Fu Panda: Legends of Awesomeness thread

In fact, while I'm at it, I'll post the other 'official' KFP threads here, for archival sake.

2008: Kung Fu Panda
Kung Fu Panda 2: The Kaboom Of Doom
Kung Fu Panda Holiday Special
Kung Fu Panda International Tour

[GeneChing]

Bryan Cranston, Mads Mikkelsen and Rebel Wilson Join Voice Cast of 'Kung Fu Panda 3'
4:40 PM PDT 4/9/2013 by Borys Kit

The trio joins original castmembers Jack Black, Angelina Jolie and Seth Rogen who are reprising their characters.

Bryan Cranston, Mads Mikkelsen and Rebel Wilson

Bryan Cranston, Mads Mikkelsen and Rebel Wilson are joining Jack Black, Angelina Jolie, Seth Rogen and other original voice stars in DreamWorks Animation’s Kung Fu Panda 3.

Jennifer Yuh Nelson, who directed Kung Fu Panda 2, is back as helmer. Also returning are producer Melissa Cobb, executive producer Guillermo del Toro, co-producer Jeffrey Hermann and writers/co-producers Jonathan Aibel and Glenn Berger.

Plot details or character details were not revealed other than DWA saying it “follows Po, the chosen one, as he continues on his journey mastering the art of Kung Fu ... and noodle slurping.”

The movie is set for a Dec. 23, 2015 release and will be the first co-production with China-based Oriental DreamWorks. 20th Century Fox will distribute.

The first two Panda movies garnered best animation Oscar nominations and grossed $1.3 billion at the global box office.

Cranston previously voiced a character in DWA’s Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted while Wilson lent her voice for Ice Age: Continental Drift. Panda 3 will Mikkelsen’s first stab at voicing a major animated film.

Wait, no Jackie? No Dustin?

[doug maverick]

they did say other original cast members.