Glendale, Calif. - Pixar's Cars was named best animated feature at the 34th annual
Annie Awards, handed out Sunday at the Alex Theater in Glendale.
Yet, ASIFA-Hollywood presented Flushed Away from DreamWorks Animation
and Aardman Animations with more trophies than any other film.
A tale of London sewer dwellers, Flushed Away earned honors in five
categories: Scott Cegielski took the prize for animated effects; Gabe
Hordos, feature character animation; Pierre-Olivier Vincent, feature
production design; Ian McKellen, feature voice acting for the character
of Toad; and Dick Clement, Ian La Frenais, Christopher Lloyd, Joe
Keenan and Will Davies, feature writing. In addition, "Flushed Away the
Game," from D3 Publisher of America, was named best animated video game.
DreamWorks Animation's Over the Hedge, in which woodland creatures
clash with suburbia, picked up three awards, including feature
directing laurels for Tim Johnson and Karey Kirkpatrick. It also
earned trophies for Nicolas Marlet for feature character design and
Gary Graham for feature storyboarding.
In addition to being named best animated feature, Cars won the prize for best feature music for Randy Newman's score.
DreamWorks Animation, with eight wins, dominated the feature awards, while Cartoon Network, with four nods, led the TV pack.
The award for best animated TV production went to the Cartoon Network's "Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends."
Bambi II, from DisneyToon
Studios, was named best home entertainment production.
A United
Airlines commercial titled "Dragon," from Duck Studios, was honored as
best animated TV commercial.
Blue Sky Studios' "No Time for Nuts,"
which also is nominated for an Academy Award, was the winner in the
best animated short subject contest.
Other winners in the TV categories were character animation, Yu Jae
Myung, "Avatar," Nickelodeon; character design, Mike Kunkel, "The Life
& Times of Juniper Lee," Cartoon Network; directing, Giancarlo Volpe,
"Avatar," Nickelodeon; music, James L. Venable and Jennifer Kes
Remington, "Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends"; production design,
Martin Ansolabehere, "Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends";
storyboarding, Li Hong, "The X," Nickelodeon; voice acting, Eartha
Kitt, "The Emperor's New School," Walt Disney Television Animation; and
writing, Ian Maxtone-Graham, "The Simpsons," Gracie Films/Fox.
Winsor McCay Awards, recognizing career achievements, were presented to
Bill Plympton, Genndy Tartakovsky, and Andreas Deja.
Stephen Worth
received the June Foray Award for benevolent contributions to the art
and industry of animation.