Unpacking Unproduced Disney Animation: Metro, Planes 3, and More

Animation News and Events

• 🎙️ The "Fine Tuning" podcast, hosted by Drew Taylor and Jim Hill, covers animation news and commentary, recording on February 12th, 2023.
• 🌟 Drew Taylor attended the Louie Awards and the premiere of "Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania," where he spoke with Josh Gad.
• 🤝 The Louie Awards, once a large event, has condensed into an intimate luncheon, attended by industry figures like John Landau and Baz Luhrmann.

"Mushka" - A Hand-Drawn Animation Project

• 🎨 Drew and Jim discuss "Mushka," a hand-drawn, 28-minute film by Andreas Deja, which has been in development for over a decade.
• 🌐 A cast and crew screening was held, and an official website has launched, seeking support for festival circuits or potential distribution on platforms like Disney+.
• 🌍 The film's logline has seen some adjustments, initially described as a story set in Russia, then later as featuring a Ukrainian girl raised with a Siberian tiger during the 1970s.
• 🎶 Richard Sherman has contributed a musical theme and a song to "Mushka."

Unproduced Disney Animation Projects

• 🚢 The discussion shifts to unproduced Disney animation, including a proposed Cars spin-off called "Metro," which would have explored an urban take on the Cars world, featuring subway trains and cars driving underground.
• ✈️ Artwork for "Metro" inspired the development of "Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur," and it was envisioned as a franchise expansion, similar to the "Planes" movies.
• 🚂 Disneytoon Studios, which produced the "Planes" films, also had plans for a "Planes 3" (a "Top Gun"-like aerial adventure) and a spin-off about boats and trucks.
• 🚗 Steve Purcell was developing a canonical fourth "Cars" movie, but it was shelved after "Cars 3" did not meet expectations.
• 🗺️ The "Cars on the Road" series is mentioned as potentially incorporating elements developed for the unmade "Cars 4."

Disney and Pixar Sequels

• 🎬 Bob Iger announced sequels to "Frozen," "Zootopia," and "Toy Story" are in development.
• ❓ Concerns are raised about the narrative direction for "Frozen 3," given the perceived story issues in "Frozen 2."
• 🧸 The ending of "Toy Story 4," which provided a satisfying conclusion for Woody, is highlighted, with apprehension about whether "Toy Story 5" might undo it.
• 🤝 A suggestion is made to potentially bring Jack Frost from "Rise of the Guardians" into the "Frozen" universe.

Other Animation and Industry News

• 📺 The "Dick Tracy zooms in" special, a modern take on a similar concept from Warren Beatty, is discussed.
• 💥 "Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur" is praised for its art style, with insights shared from its supervising animator Ben Juano's storyboard guide.
• 🎶 Thomas Newman is scoring Pixar's "Elemental," his first Pixar score since "Finding Dory."
• 🏆 "Encanto" received three Grammy awards, and the Hollywood Bowl show featured elaborate performances.
• 📚 Author JB Kaufman is releasing a new book on the making of Disney's "Fantasia."
• 🐒 "Agent Elvis," a series produced by Priscilla Presley, is mentioned, featuring Elvis Presley as a secret agent with a monkey.
• 🇨🇳 The censorship of a "Simpsons" episode on Disney Plus in Hong Kong, which included jokes about forced labor camps, is noted.
• 🎬 Bill Damaschke is reportedly being considered to lead Warner Animation Group, responsible for animated features like "The Lego Movie."
• 🦸‍♂️ The quality of DC's home entertainment premieres is praised, with hopes that the new DC Studios leadership will recognize their value.