The more I hear about this panel the more I have to think it seemed like more show than substance. That's not a bad thing either, all they want out of these is tease & hype. I wasn't there at all, I'm just going off the small amount of info that was really revealed vs. the scale of the show that accompanied. It is Disney however, & it is all about the show when it comes down to it. Hosted by John Lasseter, chief creative officer of Pixar & Walt Disney Animation Studios. It was a total star studded event. Filled with all kinds of behind the scenes goodies. Here's a quick breakdown of everything:
Untitled Disneytoon Studio Film: First we'll talk about this original new animated picture from Disneytoon Studios. On April 12, 2009 we'll explore the future of aviation all the way to the stars. Directed by Klay Hall & Bobs Gannaway, & produced by Ferrell Barron, I didn't really get enough out of anything I heard to form an opinion on this one. All I've heard was the Space Shuttle had eyes.
Untitled Dan Scanlon Film: Currently in production from Pixar Animation Studios, the director of Monster's University brings us this new original film set in a "suburban fantasy world". Scanlon, talked about losing his father at an early age & went on saying the film is inspired by the question, who was my father? In a world populated by elves, trolls, & sprites we follow 2 elf brothers that lost their fathers when they were too young to remember. With a little magic they take on a quest to that will allow them one last day with their father.
Coco: Right around the corner, I figured the push on this would be a total spectacle. I was right, this ended the show with a bang. Nov. 22, 2017 Pixar's Coco will give us a look at music loving Miguel. Though his family banned music long ago, he follows his love all the way to the Land of the Dead. There he meets his extended family, & in his journey home try to reveal the truth behind his family's ban of tunes. Lee Unkrich (Director), Adrian Molina (co-director), & Darla Anderson shared details of the film with the audience. Followed by the first public performance of Remember Me from the upcoming movie by Anthony Gonzalez (Miguel) & Benjamin Bratt (Ernesto de la Cruz). By the time all was said & done more that 160 performers were on stage, including the Mariachi Divas de Cindy Shea, Ballet Folklorico de Los Angeles, & the Gordon Goodwin Big Phat Band. Even though this movie sounds like we may have seen it before (The Book of Life), & it does sound pretty close, I can't help but be really excited to see Pixar's take.
Olaf's Frozen Adventure: It's only natural to bring this one up next, as it will be the opener for Pixar's Coco. Kristen Bell (Frozen's Anna) came out to introduce this holiday adventure featuring the characters of Frozen. The trailer looked great to this 22-minute short will be directed by Kevin Deters & Stevie Wermers-Skelton (Prep & Landing), & produced by Roy Conli (Big Hero 6). Best of all it features my favorite snowman, Olaf. Speaking of Olaf, that's what happened next. Josh Gad (Olaf) surprised the audience with a live performance of the featurette's song That Time of the Year. You just never know what going to happen at D23.
Frozen 2 (Title TBA): Not much was really revealed about the upcoming sequel to 2013's much acclaimed Frozen. A behind-the-scenes video of the research trip to Norway, Finland, & Iceland was shown. Considering Nov. 27, 2019 is a little more than a hop, skip, & jump away, I wasn't expecting much more.
Toy Story 4: Josh Cooley (Riley's First Date?) was invited to the stage to reveal him as the sole director of Toy Story 4, accompanied by a behind-the-scenes day in the life at the studio film. This will be produced by Jonas Rivera (Inside Out) & is going for a June 21, 2019. Once again not too close, so I wasn't really expecting much. They teased some new characters, including a paper doll, but nothing to exciting.
Ralph Breaks the Internet: Wreck-It Ralph 2: Directors Rich Moore & Phil Johnston introduced Sarah Silverman (Vanellope von Schweetz), in what I knew was going to be something big, as this one is coming next year on Nov. 21, 2018. Silverman introduced a clip from the sequel, letting us know she has a glitch so she, along with returning Ralph (John C. Reilly), Fix-It Felix (Jack McBrayer), Sergeant Calhoun (Jane Lynch), & newcomer, website owning algorithm Yesss (Tariji P. Henson), ventures into the internet. In the clip they find themselves at Oh My Disney where they run into the Disney Princesses, 3-D animated no less. I've heard it's a really funny scene that was then blown away. How? As they go on to tell everyone that the actual princesses came back to reprise their roles, they figured seeing was believing. Auli'i Cravalho (Moana), Kristen Bell (Anna), Kelly MacDonald (Merida), Mandy Moore (Rapunzel), Anika Noni Rose (Tiana), Irene Bedard (Pocahontas), Linda Larkin (Jasmine), Paige O'Hara (Belle), & Jodi Benson (Ariel) took the stage, blowing everyone away. Can't wait to see this movie, I loved the first. I would say people seemed most buzzed about this, if it wasn't for the next entry.
Incredibles 2: I can't believe it's taken this long to finally get a sequel to this movie. However, June 15, 2018 we will finally get to visit this super-powered family again for the first time since 2004. This started with a look into what the fashion world thinks of Incredibles stylist Edna Mode. Featuring Heidi Klum, Kendall Jenner, Zac Posen, & Rachel Zoe, this thing was hilarious. I love Edna Mode. She was one of my favorite parts of the original film. Next up, director Brad Bird (Voice of Edna too) was brought on with Craig T. Nelson (Mr. Incredible), Holly Hunter (Mrs. Incredible), Violet (Sarah Vowell), Dash (newbie Huck Milner, & Frozone (Samuel L. Jackson). They revealed details of a bigger universe, containing new allies & an all new villain. The first one is still the best rendition of Fantastic 4 we've ever had. I've been waiting for this for awhile, & I think as superhero crazed as everyone is this will go over even better this time around. There was also a unfinished clip featuring Jak Jak coming into his powers. Mr. Incredible falls asleep watching the baby. Next thing you know Jak Jak comes into all his new powers while fighting a raccoon. I've heard this was hilarious. I hope we get to see it when it's finished.
