New Trailer For The Re-release Of BEAUTY AND THE BEAST 3D

I love seeing how much they have improved the older versions of classic movies with the HD remasters (as long as they remain laissez-faire with the CG) and the same holds true for Disney's BEAUTY AND THE BEAST 3D.

The mouse house certainly didn't wait too long after the successful re-release of THE LION KING 3D did they? It helps to have BEAUTY AND THE BEAST 3D already in the hopper, fully converted though. Next on the re-release slate? FINDING NEMO in September of 2012.

Remember when the original won an Oscar nomination for Best Picture? We've come a long way since then, but classics like these are timeless. Bring on the S3D! Certain elements would have been easier to convert than others, like the ballroom dancing scene as that was created digitally in the first place.

Here's the movie's storyline:
Belle is a bright and beautiful young woman who’s taken prisoner by a hideous beast in his castle. Despite her precarious situation, Belle befriends the castle’s enchanted staff, a teapot, a candelabra and a mantel clock, among others, and ultimately learns to see beneath the Beast’s exterior to discover the heart and soul of a prince.

BEAUTY AND THE BEAST 3D hits theaters January 13. And don't forget the 3D animated short TANGLED EVER AFTER will also play with the feature movie!

New Poster For BEAUTY AND THE BEAST 3D

Well no surprise since the re-release of THE LION KING in 3D was an amazing home run that Disney is now re-releasing BEAUTY AND THE BEAST in 3D.

Actually this movie has been converted for quite some time now, but perhaps they wanted to polish a bit more on it before launching it. I'm sure Disney has treated it right.

Anyway, we will all be treated to yet another trip down memory lane with the release of BEAUTY AND THE BEAST 3D on January 13, 2012. This is one of my favorite Disney classics so I am smiling.

Disney And Pixar Classics To Return To The Big Screen In 3D!! Here's The List...

Perfect! I think we all knew this was going to happen after the stunning success of Disney's THE LION KING 3D, didn't we? Hopefully this now official announcement as well as TLK box office pride will push other studios with their classics (animation or not) to convert to 3D and re-release. THE MATRIX in 3D? DEFINITELY.

Keep in mind that Disney did their conversions very well and that the re-releases of TITANIC and STAR WARS will be done exceptionally well (Cameron is taking a full year to get TITANIC right) - so any cheap and/or haphazard conversion will not be tolerated by me or anyone else. Audiences know now what to expect - you can't pull the wool over their eyes with more CLASH OF THE TITANS. Fair warning then to studios: Do it RIGHT.
Here's the full Disney release (emphasis is mine):

On the heels of the phenomenal success of The Lion King 3D – which will cross the $80 million mark at the domestic box office today – The Walt Disney Studios has announced limited theatrical engagements for four of its classic films for the first time in 3D. The following titles from Walt Disney and Pixar Animation Studios will be released in 2012 and 2013:

· Beauty and the Beast – January 13, 2012
· Disney-Pixar’s Finding Nemo – September 14, 2012
· Disney-Pixar’s Monsters, Inc. – January 18, 2013 (Monsters University, a prequel to the original film, arrives in theaters in Disney Digital 3D on June 21, 2013)
· The Little Mermaid – September 13, 2013

“Great stories and great characters are timeless, and at Disney we’re fortunate to have a treasure trove of both,” said Alan Bergman, President, The Walt Disney Studios. “We’re thrilled to give audiences of all ages the chance to experience these beloved tales in an exciting new way with 3D – and in the case of younger generations, for the first time on the big screen.”

Originally released in 1991, Beauty and the Beast is a classic “tale as old as time” that follows the adventures of Belle, a bright young woman imprisoned in the castle of a mysterious beast and his enchanted staff, who must learn the most important lesson of all – that true beauty comes from within. Beauty and the Beast was the first animated film ever nominated for an Academy Award® for Best Picture, earning an additional five Oscar® nominations and winning two. It has grossed $380.4 million worldwide.

First released in 2003, Disney-Pixar’s Finding Nemo takes audiences into a whole new world in this undersea adventure about family, courage and challenges. When Marlin, an overly cautious clownfish living in the Great Barrier Reef, helplessly watches his son get scooped up by a diver, he must put aside his fears of the ocean and leave the safety of his coral enclave to find Nemo. Buoyed by the companionship of Dory, a forgetful but relentlessly optimistic fish, Marlin finds himself the unlikely hero in a seemingly impossible land-and-sea rescue. Finding Nemo won an Academy Award® for Best Animated Feature and was nominated for three others. With a total of $867.6 million worldwide, it was the second highest-grossing film of 2003.

In 2001, Disney-Pixar released Monsters, Inc. Lovable Sulley and his wisecracking sidekick Mike Wazowski are the top scare team at Monsters, Inc., the scream-processing factory in Monstropolis. But when a little girl named Boo wanders into their world, it’s up to Sulley and Mike to keep her out of sight and get her back home. Monsters, Inc. shattered every DVD-era home entertainment sales record when 11 million DVD/VHS copies were sold during its first week of release. It won an Academy Award® for Best Song and has grossed $526.9 million worldwide.

Released in 1989, The Little Mermaid, stars Ariel, a fun-loving and mischievous mermaid, off on the adventure of a lifetime with her best friend, the adorable Flounder, and the reggae-singing Caribbean crab Sebastian. But it will take all of her courage and determination to make her dreams come true and save her father’s beloved kingdom from the sneaky sea witch Ursula. One of the most celebrated animated films of all time, The Little Mermaid was nominated for three Academy Awards®, winning two. It has grossed $228.9 million worldwide.

ABOUT THE WALT DISNEY STUDIOS

For more than 85 years, The Walt Disney Studios has been the foundation on which The Walt Disney Company (NYSE: DIS) was built. Today, the Studio brings quality movies, music and stage plays to consumers throughout the world. Feature films are released under four banners: Walt Disney Pictures, which includes Walt Disney Animation Studios and Pixar Animation Studios; Disneynature; Marvel; and Touchstone Pictures, which includes the distribution of live-action films from DreamWorks Studios. Original music and motion picture soundtracks are produced under Walt Disney Records and Hollywood Records, while Disney Theatrical Group produces and licenses live events, including Broadway theatrical productions, Disney on Ice and Disney LIVE!.

UPDATED: The Dawn Of 3D Conversion: THE LION KING Roars To Possible $24 $30 Million Weekend Tally! AMAZING 92% Of Business Came From 3D!!

**UPDATE - Sep 18: Revised studio estimate has THE LION KING raking in $29.3 million!! (Box Office Mojo). Moreover, an astounding 92% of all business came from 3D screenings!! So much for the doomsayers. I'm sure they will come up with something next week though.

I am stunned at the outrageous success THE LION KING is achieving this weekend and it certainly bodes well for all of the Disney stable of animations being converted to 3D. According to THR, the early estimates were WAY off and the movie is now thought to be on a $22 - 24 million opening tear.

Clearly many were drawn back to see the beloved story yet again in the theaters. More were attracted to seeing it in 3D and of course children of all ages who have never seen it to begin with are coming in droves.

There could not be a better scenario for Disney. The vast catalog of features they have are begging to be converted and clearly there is a market for it in theatrical 3D. I am SURE the ball is rolling right now to green light conversions of their top tier offerings, like ALADDIN, TARZAN and POCAHONTAS.

We do know that BEAUTY AND THE BEAST is almost set for release too so the mouse house is primed for another round of re-release success. Congratulations Disney!

RATATOUILLE Tastes Better in 3D! Yes, Stereoscopic 3D Version May Be Coming!!

RATATOUILLE is my favorite Pixar movie to date, so when I heard from FirstShowing, who heard from Slashfilm, who heard from Bleeding Cool who heard from the original source Hey U Guys I had to pass on the great potential news! And yes, news this good spreads like wildfire on the Internet.

Hey U Guys interviewed Pixar's Stereoscopic Supervisor, Bob Whitehill, and this is what he had to say on the matter:

"Ratatouille is one that we’re exploring doing [3D conversion on] and Brad Bird is very open to some changes, you know, some very subtle changes but slight reframings. If a character’s reaching forward and a pinky goes off screen, we’ll adjust the camera and the character a little bit to have the hand on. So that said, if the director’s open to minor modifications on a library title then that’s wonderful and we’re really excited about doing that."

Obviously with TOY STORY 1 and 2 already converted and the cheese being out of the bag for RATATOUILLE as well, it is safe to assume their remaining library will be swapped over. Disney is already converting BEAUTY AND THE BEAST if you will remember. FINDING NEMO would look awesome in 3D.

Don't forget that since these animations were created in a digital 3D world to begin with, all Pixar/Disney has to do is just re-render them in 3D. There is nothing lost or artificially created. You can rest assured that Pixar will convert them the right way too!

Disney Converting THE LION KING To 3D And The ROGER RABBIT Sequel Is Happening!!

Disney is full of good news lately! Not only are they converting BEAUTY AND THE BEAST to 3D (2011) but they have now teed up THE LION KING to add to their 3D library.

We got word through Empire who recently spoke with Disney producer Don Hahn. Hahn stated: “I’m actually trying to work out a 3D conversion of The Lion King. I’ll be doing that when I go back to the States in a couple of weeks. It’s going to be spectacular – we will do a good job for ya! The technology is tremendous. We did A Nightmare Before Christmas a few years ago and Tim thought it was better than the original because it allows you to walk onto the set.”

It's a no-brainer that Disney is going to convert their classic library to 3D for new generations of kids (and adults!) to enjoy but the bigger question was in what order will they do it? So far we have only 2 blanks filled in: What movie do you think they will convert next?

**AND** some really exciting news is that Disney is still proceeding with the WHO FRAMED ROGER RABBIT sequel (which we have been following since May of 2009).

Hahn commented: “Yeah, I couldn’t possibly comment. I deny completely, but yeah… if you’re a fan, pretty soon you’re going to be very, very, very happy.”

Didn't like A CHRISTMAS CAROL all that much? Zemeckis still has some more magic up his sleeves - don't worry :-) Should be a blast!

3DX Festival: Beauty and the Beast 3-D Announced

Michael here.  Disney Pictures president Mark Zoradi announced yesterday at the 3DX Festival in Singapore that Beauty and the Beast will be remastered into 3-D over a 10 month period by Walt Disney Pictures Animation for a 2010 release.

Original Beauty and the Beast producer Don Hahn said the re-rendering of the film would take 9 months.  He described the process as follows:

"By going back to the original animation files, which have been carefully archived for 17 years, and using the separate background, effects and character animation elements, we're able to come up with a fun and unique 3-D experience for existing and new fans of the film"

Beauty and the Beast is the 11th 3-D feature film that Disney is set to release in 2009-2010.