RobertoOrtiz
06-30-2004, 02:16 PM
Quote:
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As you might expect, these sorts of public comments are actually a negotiating tactic. Something that Disney officials are deliberately doing, all with the hope that it will eventually lead to representatives from the Mouse House and Pixar Animation Studios sitting down and actually discussing whether a compromise can in fact be worked out.
Okay. That's the public piece of the puzzle. But what you should also be aware of here is that Disney is using a back channel approach too. I.E. Having old Disney Feature Animation employees who now work for Pixar carry messages to that studio's management team. Saying things like "Eisner really does want to talk with Jobs," "There may be some room to maneuver with that film ownership issue," etc. Again all with the hope that something that gets said here might somehow get Pixar back to the negotiating table.
Because Disney's current management team knows that it would be a huge coup for the company right now if it were to successfully renegotiate its deal with Pixar. By extending Mickey's production / distribution deal with Pixar Animation Studios, it would (in theory) prove to the world that Eisner's not the ill-mannered inept exec that the press sometimes says he is (and SaveDisney.com ALWAYS says he is).
And think about it, folks. Wouldn't be it be a huge coup for the Mouse if - as part of the prerelease promotion & hoopla for "The Incredibles" - if the Walt Disney Company were able to officially announced that Pixar Animation Studios had officially re-upped its deal with Disney? That one bit of good news - particularly if it arrived in late October / early November, just prior to Roy Disney & Stanley Gold's announcement of its alternate slate of directors for the board of directors for the Walt Disney Company - might even been enough to save Michael Eisner's job. Not to mention cutting SaveDisney.com right at the knees.
Pretty intriguing theory, don't you think? Ah - but things are never simple when it comes to the Mouse House these days. And the part of the story where this tale gets truly twisted.
You see, even as Walt Disney Company officials are trying to make nice with the folks at Pixar, the Mouse is STILL moving forward with its plans to build a brand new animation facility in Glendale. You know, that studio that some industry wags have dubbed "The Sequel Lab," where Disney will reportedly produce sequels to previous Pixar projects like "Toy Story," "A Bug's Life," "Monsters, Inc." and "Finding Nemo." Even as these delicate negotiations move forward, WDFA officials are interviewing potential staffers for that studio, having scripts written, etc.
As you might expect, the news that Disney is STILL going forward with their plans to build "The Sequel Lab" is make the people at Pixar more than a little crazy. So -- in an effort to make the idea of this yet-to-be-opened facility more palatable to the folks back in Emeryville, Disney has recently begun describing this place as the studio where direct-to-video sequels of films like "Chicken Little," "A Day with Wilbur Robinson," "Rapunzel Unraveled" and "American Dog" will be produced.
Now - admittedly - it does seem kind of odd (at least to me, anyway) that Disney's already talking about doing sequels to films that the Mouse hasn't actually finished developing yet. Let alone put into production.
I mean, even "Chicken Little" - which (at this point) is less than 9 months away from being released - is said to be having some fairly significant story problems. After seeing a recent screening of the film, Michael Eisner reportedly had some real misgivings about "Chicken Little" 's last few reels. With Disney's Big Cheese supposedly saying things like "I think that the third act has too much action in it. It doesn't seem to fit with the rest of the film. It feels like it belongs in an entirely different movie."
....."
>>link for more<< (http://www.jimhillmedia.com/legacy/index.htm?../articles/06292004.1.htm)
-R
"
As you might expect, these sorts of public comments are actually a negotiating tactic. Something that Disney officials are deliberately doing, all with the hope that it will eventually lead to representatives from the Mouse House and Pixar Animation Studios sitting down and actually discussing whether a compromise can in fact be worked out.
Okay. That's the public piece of the puzzle. But what you should also be aware of here is that Disney is using a back channel approach too. I.E. Having old Disney Feature Animation employees who now work for Pixar carry messages to that studio's management team. Saying things like "Eisner really does want to talk with Jobs," "There may be some room to maneuver with that film ownership issue," etc. Again all with the hope that something that gets said here might somehow get Pixar back to the negotiating table.
Because Disney's current management team knows that it would be a huge coup for the company right now if it were to successfully renegotiate its deal with Pixar. By extending Mickey's production / distribution deal with Pixar Animation Studios, it would (in theory) prove to the world that Eisner's not the ill-mannered inept exec that the press sometimes says he is (and SaveDisney.com ALWAYS says he is).
And think about it, folks. Wouldn't be it be a huge coup for the Mouse if - as part of the prerelease promotion & hoopla for "The Incredibles" - if the Walt Disney Company were able to officially announced that Pixar Animation Studios had officially re-upped its deal with Disney? That one bit of good news - particularly if it arrived in late October / early November, just prior to Roy Disney & Stanley Gold's announcement of its alternate slate of directors for the board of directors for the Walt Disney Company - might even been enough to save Michael Eisner's job. Not to mention cutting SaveDisney.com right at the knees.
Pretty intriguing theory, don't you think? Ah - but things are never simple when it comes to the Mouse House these days. And the part of the story where this tale gets truly twisted.
You see, even as Walt Disney Company officials are trying to make nice with the folks at Pixar, the Mouse is STILL moving forward with its plans to build a brand new animation facility in Glendale. You know, that studio that some industry wags have dubbed "The Sequel Lab," where Disney will reportedly produce sequels to previous Pixar projects like "Toy Story," "A Bug's Life," "Monsters, Inc." and "Finding Nemo." Even as these delicate negotiations move forward, WDFA officials are interviewing potential staffers for that studio, having scripts written, etc.
As you might expect, the news that Disney is STILL going forward with their plans to build "The Sequel Lab" is make the people at Pixar more than a little crazy. So -- in an effort to make the idea of this yet-to-be-opened facility more palatable to the folks back in Emeryville, Disney has recently begun describing this place as the studio where direct-to-video sequels of films like "Chicken Little," "A Day with Wilbur Robinson," "Rapunzel Unraveled" and "American Dog" will be produced.
Now - admittedly - it does seem kind of odd (at least to me, anyway) that Disney's already talking about doing sequels to films that the Mouse hasn't actually finished developing yet. Let alone put into production.
I mean, even "Chicken Little" - which (at this point) is less than 9 months away from being released - is said to be having some fairly significant story problems. After seeing a recent screening of the film, Michael Eisner reportedly had some real misgivings about "Chicken Little" 's last few reels. With Disney's Big Cheese supposedly saying things like "I think that the third act has too much action in it. It doesn't seem to fit with the rest of the film. It feels like it belongs in an entirely different movie."
....."
>>link for more<< (http://www.jimhillmedia.com/legacy/index.htm?../articles/06292004.1.htm)
-R