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The Draw of Animation

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By Rick Aristotle Munarriz (TMF Edible)
April 8, 2003

Ever since Disney (NYSE: DIS) hushed critics who claimed cartoon features were best left as shorts, the art of movie-length animation has waved in and out of mainstream popularity. But even at its peak, the craft never really threatened live-action releases.

Just one animated film makes the list of the country's 10 highest-grossing movies of all time -- The Lion King, at No. 9 -- and only Beauty and the Beast has earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Picture. 

Yet, 2001 was a banner year for animation, as DreamWorks' Shrek and Pixar's (Nasdaq: PIXR) Monsters, Inc. topped the $250 million mark at the domestic box office, and the Academy created a new Oscar to honor the genre. But can the trend color outside the lines?

Last year, no single release came close to 2001's one-two blockbuster blow. The 2002 Oscar for Best Animated Feature Film went to Spirited Away, a huge hit overseas, but the recipient of a lukewarm reception stateside. Trying to strike while the inked iron was hot, Disney rushed the award winner back into theaters two weeks ago. Surely, the country would fall in love with the classy Japanese epic in its second theatrical run....

Nope. It didn't crack the top 10 in its first week back, and lost 41% of its audience this past weekend. The third time may be the charm, as the film hopes for more than its $10 million box-office take in the home video and DVD market.

This year's crop of animated films has been off to a slow start, too, with neither of Disney's sequels (The Jungle Book 2 and The Piglet Movie) topping the $50 million mark.

The genre's popularity will be put to an important test when Pixar and Disney team up to release Finding Nemo next month. Pixar has been the box-office powerhouse since 1995, with its first four full-length computer animated features averaging $214 million, domestically. Anything less than $150 million for the marine-life release, and the whole sector might be all wet in the near term.

With many of the studios scaling back on animated talent lately, the ink-and-paint club may have a new mantra this summer: Go fish! 

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