Is Pixar doing live action?

Rumors are running rampant that both Brad Bird and Andrew Stanton are combining animation and live-action for their movies. Is it an elaborate April Fools joke, or is the joke itself a joke (meaning that it was presented as an April Fools joke, but it really isn’t)?


From Wikismack:

Rumors began appearing in early 2007 that the Walt Disney Company was in negotiations to acquire the rights to the [John Carter] property for development through Pixar Animation,[2] or that it had already done so.

In what was an April fools joke, Pixar blog Upcoming Pixar broke the news that John Carter of Mars would be Brad Bird's live action feature length debut as director. However the same blog confirmed that the film was to be made by Pixar on May 22, 2007. A month later, however, it was revealed that Brad Bird's first live-action film would be 1906. But it was revealed that Carter will use a combination of animation and live-action and is said to be in theaters in 2012. On October 2, 2007, the director of John Carter was revealed to be Andrew Stanton and the screenwriter Mark Andrews. Both were visiting Tarzana, California to look into the Edgar Rice Burroughs Archives.


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Technically, Pixar came from George Lucas’ Industrial Light & Magic (ILM), and this is the same sort of thing they’re doing with their Star Wars movies. Pixar could do even better. Plus, the action-oriented films starring humans do very poorly in animation (Beowulf, Final Fantasy, Titan AE, Sinbad, etc.).

So these flagship Pixar directors may be uncovering new territory by making live-action films (one with an animation twist). The first two of these films may be 1906 (Brad Bird) and John Carter (Andrew Stanton). Brad Bird just won two academy awards for Incredibles and Ratatouille, while Andrew Stanton is currently running Pixar, and he won an academy award for and had the biggest Pixar success with Finding Nemo (plus his Wall-E this year will surely also exceed expectations).






This information has been confirmed:

- Brad Bird is directing 1906, based on the novel of the same name (see below).

- People are guessing that the movie will be done in 2010.

- Andrew Stanton is working on the first John Carter movie, probably called The Princess of Mars.

- It will be a combination of live action and 3D effects (like the Star Wars movies).

- The move is currently scheduled for 2012.

- They are thinking that they will continue the series with sequels, every 1-3 years.

- Pixar will be producing both these live-action films (Warner Bros will be co-producing 1906).





The novel:
http://www.amazon.com/1906-Novel-James-Dalessandro/dp/0811849414




They would be leaving behind capable directors to concentrate on the animations, like:

1. Pete Doctor (directed Monster’s Inc., Mike’s New Car, and will direct Up in 2009)

2. Lee Unkrich (co-directed Toy Story 2, Monster’s Inc, Finding Nemo, and will direct Toy Story 3 in 2010)

3. Gary Rydstrom (directed Lifted (short before Ratatouille), and will direct newt in 2011; also won 3 Oscars for sound and 14 nominations)

4. Brenda Chapman (directed Prince of Egypt, and will direct Bear and the Bow in 2011)

5. Brad Lewis (produced Ratatouille, and will direct Cars 2 in 2012)



- TAE