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Penney Design, a freelance graphic designer, has created the coolest mockup Atari 2600 cover mockups.

They have taken modern movies and TV shows, and made up the cover as if they were in the 1970’s. WALL-E gets included (click to view larger) in the cover selection ranging from The Dark Knight to Lost.

Be sure to have a look at the others.

(via Collider)

Up has reclaimed what many regard as last year’s monumental and unwarranted let down with two top wins at the 37th Annual Annie Awards!

Pete Docter was named Best Director by ASIFA-Hollywood for his latest film which also took home Best Feature for Pixar! "It has been a great year for animation." said Docter as he accepted animation’s highest honor. And he’s right — more on that below.

Pixar’s collection of Golden Zoetropes now includes:

• Best Animated Feature: Up — Pixar Animation Studios

• Directing in a Feature Production: Pete Docter —  Up — Pixar Animation Studios

• William "Bill" Reeves was also awarded the Ub Iwerks Juried Award by none other than Pixar President Ed Catmull for innovation in animation!

Although Up was nominated nine times and won what most would consider the top prizes, Pixar Animation Studios‘ latest still wasn’t awarded the most statuettes of the night. In fact, two other excellent animated films, Laika’s Coraline and WDAS’s The Princess and the Frog, went home with three awards each. Like Docter said, 2009 was a year filled with wide success in animation, so it’s not surprising that individual achievement prizes went all around recognizing diverse mediums from stop-motion to hand-drawn.

As far as studios go, Walt Disney Animation took the cake with six wins; three for ‘Princess’ and another three for Prep & Landing. DreamWorks followed closely behind with five wins from a wide variety of media including their sole feature film of 2009, a couple of holiday spin-offs and a TV show. But the most excitement is sure to come straight from The Walt Disney Studios which, combined with Pixar and WDAS, now has eight more Annies to celebrate!

Congratulations to Pete Docter, Bill Reeves, and the Up crew on this fine recognition by the animation community! Check out the rest of the deserving Annie Award winners and nominees here. Next stop — the Oscars, and it should be a great show if this is any kind of indicator…

What do you think about the 37th Annual Annie Awards winners? Do you agree with the diverse picks? In your opinion, who should/shouldn’t have won?

These past weeks have been filled with well deserved celebration for Up’s latest awards and nominations, but to change things up a bit I thought I’d give you all a few updates on Toy Story.

Excitement for Toy Story 3 is about to get even more wild as Lee Unkrich prepares to announce brand new characters next week. But one has to wonder, has the highly anticipated sequel overshadowed other happenings in the toy world? What has been going on in Andy’s room between TS3 announcements?  This special report will bring some lower profile ‘Toy’ stories to light.

Many of you are probably aware of Buzz Lightyear’s latest real life Space Ranger mission; the action-figure was recently blasted off to the International Space Station where he performed gravity experiments. Of course, every mission needs a patch so Disney and NASA partnered up for a contest to design one. An 11-year old from Tampa, FL was honored with the top prize — he’ll get to spend a few days at Kennedy Space Center/Walt Disney World and, best of all, the patch he designed (seen above) will be worn by actual astronauts! [via collectSPACE]

Also having to do with drawings of Buzz; for those of you who follow Toy Story comics, make sure to check out the latest installment. It’s #1… but not. See, writer Jesse Blaze Snider and BOOM! started the comic at #0, so 1 is actually 2 and so forth. Anyway, The story continues as Andy’s Buzz is replaced by a flashier version of the action figure, now Woody needs to get Buzz back before he’s returned to store shelves for good! I’m really digging this arc, if you have the chance definitely grab a copy. As always, the story doesn’t talk down to anyone and Pixar fans will enjoy an extra look at a universe that’s rarely explored beyond its three feature films.

Other than that, we have a lot more to look forward to in the next few months. Toy Story and Toy Story 2 premiere on Blu-ray on March 23rd and Lee Unkrich‘s announcements will continue getting juicier and juicier as the weeks progress.

What are you most looking forward to in the world of Toy Story?

Ever wonder what it would be like waking up one morning as the director of a newly nominated Best Picture contender?

Just ask Pete Docter who got up early this Tuesday to check on the groundhogs and was instead greeted with the possiblility of winning the highest honor in film! The Up director spoke with CNN about the momentous Oscar nominations, watch the video below:



Have you seen what Pixar’s been nominated for at the 82nd Annual Academy Awards yet? No?! Then get over to this post now and check it out!!

Good luck Pete Docter (and the Up crew) on all five well deserved nominations!

Today marks the 24th anniversary of the company we now know as Pixar Animation Studios.

What a great time to be celebrating Steve Jobs’ February 3rd, 1986 acquisition! Back then, who would’ve thought that the small Lucasfilm spin-off computer company would be nominated for Best Picture at the Oscars?

Of course, one must remember that Pixar’s AMPAS nomination streak started not too long after its founding. Luxo Jr. was up for Best Animated Short back in ’86. It wasn’t until 1988’s Tin Toy that the start-up won this coveted prize. Since then they’ve won over 20 Academy Awards.

The global acclaim came with a change of business plans when Disney (current owner since 2006) tapped Lasseter and co. to make the first full length CGI film: Toy Story. With 10 consecutive critical and financial hits under its belt and a sure-to-be blockbuster sequel coming up in the new year, nothing seems to be stopping this studio!

In its 24 year history, Pixar has grown into the world-class Emeryville, CA animation studio that we know and love. The company has also expanded it’s horizons from the Bay Area to Seattle and more recently Vancouver. After years of struggling and into continuing years of immense success, Pixar’s story is still one to be told no matter how it twists and turns.

Congratulations Ed Catmull, John Lasseter and everyone who’s come (and gone) in between February of 1986 - 2010 for realizing their dreams and building the magnificent studio that we hold dear today!

Today marks the second time that an animated film has been nominated for the highest honor in film… ever! This is huge!

Yup, the 82nd Annual Academy Award nominations have finally been announced and Disney/Pixar’s campaign to get up there with the big dogs has finally been fulfilled! Pete Docter, Jonas Rivera, and the entire Up crew must be very proud, but a Best Picture nom isn’t the only thing Pixar will be celebrating this afternoon.

The Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences has also nominated Up for Best Animated Feature, Best Screenplay, Best Score, and Best Sound Mixing. That’s five (5) nominations in all! Unfortunately, Partly Cloudy was absent from the Animated Short list.

Check out Pixar’s competition below:

• Best Picture: Up — Jonas Rivera
Competition: Avatar, The Blind Side, District 9, An Education, The Hurt Locker, Inglorious Basterds, Precious, Up in the Air

• Best Animated Feature: Up — Pete Docter
Competition: Coraline, Fantastic Mr. Fox, The Princess and the Frog, The Secret of Kells

• Best Writing (Original Screenplay): Up — Bob Peterson, Pete Docter/Story by Bob Peterson, Pete Docter, Tom McCarthy 
Competition: Hurt Locker, Inglorious Basterds, The Messenger, A Serious Man

• Best Sound Mixing: Up — Michael Silvers, Tom Myers
Competition: Avatar, The Hurt Locker, Inglorious Basterds, Star Trek

• Best Music (Original Score): Up — Michael Giacchino
Competition: Avatar, Fantastic Mr. Fox, The Hurt Locker, Sherlock Holmes

Congratulations to Pete Docter and the whole Up crew on these momentous nominations! Check out the rest of the nominees at the link to the left.

As always, Pixar faces tough competition. Best Picture holds the most scrutiny for obvious reasons and especially after its expansion to 10 slots, but again, 2009 is the year of the animated film. In my opinion, this is the category in which Pixar’s 10th has the most realistic adversaries. Other than that, Up faces some solid screenplays and scores, making for even more meaningful wins for whoever takes home those Oscars.

But I feel Pixar has won something already; its rightful place in movie history. It’s great to finally see the acclaimed studio at the very top after years of best reviewed films like Ratatouille and WALL•E being snubbed from the top category solely because they’re animated films! Now the tough part is actually getting that Oscar statuette…

Watch ABC on March 7th, 2010 as history could possibly be made at the 82nd Annual Academy Awards ceremony!

What are your thoughts on the Oscar nominations? How exciting is it to finally see Pixar in the Best Picture category?

The National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences is once again recognizing what Pixar directors have constantly made clear, that excellent scores drive feature films just like a great story does.

Here’s a little refresher, Michael Giacchino and Up were nominated in three prestigious Grammy Awards categories including Best Score, Best Instrumental Composition, and Arrangement! Wins are listed below.

Since there are hundreds of awards handed out at the Grammys, many winners are announced before the televised portion at an earlier event. That includes awards for scores; although there’s less public recognition that way, we can sit back and relax during the show knowing that Pixar’s 10th took home its share of wins!

And the Up awards are…

• Best Score Soundtrack Album For Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media: Up, Michael Giacchino, composer
• Best Instrumental Composition: "Married Life" from Up, Michael Giacchino, composer, Up Soundtrack

The rest of the winners announced so far can be found here. To watch the televised awards ceremony featuring Record of the Year and more, tune in to CBS tonight at 8 PM ET!

Congratulations to Michael Giacchino, the Up team and the rest of the winners!

Note: After a $700 million dollar theatrical run and consistent awards show wins for its soundtrack, I wonder if Disney is considering releasing Up’s score on a physical CD. One thing’s for sure, someone at Disney marketing must be beating himself up for this flawed decision.

For months now, rumors have abounded about a tablet from Apple. As is common practice, a Pixar film has been used to present the maximum capabilities of a revolutionary product.

Today, the media is buzzing about Steve Jobs’ announcement of the iPad, and for good reason. If you’re familiar with the iPhone or iPod Touch, the iPad should just seem like a larger, super-cool version of the technology for expanded use. But what’s truly great about the "third category" tablet is its seemingly endless possibilities in the future. Check out the features over here.

For Pixar fans, Apple’s unveilment should generally be something to get excited about, not just because Steve Jobs helped the studio launch and flourish through the 80’s into the 90’s and beyond, but because Jobs is on the Disney Board. That means Apple and Disney leaders will likely team up to bring new and groundbreaking content straight to you through the iPad. It is of note that Disney CEO Bob Iger, Pixar President Ed Catmull and Toy Story 3 director Lee Unkrich, alongside the Up duo of Bob Peterson and Pete Docter were present at the event, likely brewing their own ideas for innovation!

At today’s special invitation only event (launch video) Steve Jobs even expressed that one of his favorite movies is Pete Docter’s latest: Up! In fact, he demoed his favorite sequence from the film, Married Life, during the video portion.

The iPad is scheduled for release this March starting at $499. More details can be found at Apple’s product page.

I know I’ll keep watch on this product! What did you think of Apple’s latest unveilment and its connection to Pixar’s Up?

It’s yet another big night for the folks at Pixar, more specifically, Jonas Rivera and John Lasseter!

Both men were honored last night (1/24) at the Producers Guild Awards for their oustanding work on Up, and in Lasseter’s case, for lifetime achievement in film production. 

The recent prizes handed to the accomplished Pixar producers are unique in that they were rare dead giveaways (theory below), something Pixar hasn’t had much of this year with such strong competition. Regardless, both awards mean a lot for the studio and to the talented individuals receiving them.

Here’s the breakdown:

Winner: Jonas Rivera — Up
PGA Producer of the Year in an Animated Motion Picture

Winner: John Lasseter
David O. Selznick Achievement Award in Motion Pictures

Although it’s a shame that Pixar’s 10th didn’t win the top prize in film, it wasn’t too hard to predict that Rivera wasn’t going home empty handed. I mean, how can the only ‘toon nominated for Best Producer in Theatrical Motion Pictures not win in the Animated category? Alright, let’s not over think it… On the other hand Lasseter’s award was previously announced like most honorary prizes.

As for the Darryl F. Zanuck Producer of the Year award, that honor went to Kathryn Bigelow, director and producer of The Hurt Locker. Check out the entire batch of Producers Guild Awards winners, including TV & Documentary categories, over here.

Congratulations to both Jonas Rivera and John Lasseter as well as the rest of the winners on their recognition by the Producers Guild of America!

Ever wanted to get your dirty mits on original gear from a Pixar director’s own private collection?

How about an original 1995 Buzz Action Figure signed by Tim Allen or perhaps even a Toy Story 3 poster signed by a cast member? Well today is your lucky day!

Toy Story 3 director, Lee Unkrich, is hosting a series of auctions on eBay for you to score this insanely cool Pixar gear. All of the proceeds from each of these auctions benefits the Clinton Bush Haiti Fund. 

Update: New items added, finished auctions removed!
Here is what you can currently bid on:

• Cars Joe Ranft Storyboard Print Crew Gift
• Ratatouille Vintage-Inspired Poster Crew Gift
• The Incredibles Teddy Newton Artwork Print Crew Gift
• Lee’s Personal The Incredibles Hawaiian Shirt
• Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage Disneyland Poster
• The Art of The Incredibles Signed By Brad Bird
• The Incredibles Screenplay Signed By Brad Bird
• Monsters, Inc. Original 2001 Crew T-Shirt
• Monsters, Inc. 2001 Mug Signed By Pete Docter
• Monsters, Inc. 2001 Lunchbox Signed By Pete Docter
• Original Tin Toy Pixar T-Shirt From 1988
• Toy Story 1995 SIGGRAPH T-Shirt
• Toy Story Original 1995 Crew Shirt
• WALL•E Original 2008 Crew Jacket (BnL Edition)
• WALL•E Crew Baseball Cap
• Monsters, Inc. Hawaiian Shirt
• Monsters, Inc. Boxers Worn By Chimp In DVD Featurettes
• Monsters, Inc. Picture Book Signed By Ricky Nierva (2, 3)
• Up Crew Leather Satchel
• Toy Story 2 Jessie Doll Signed By John Lasseter