Tom Kenny, the voice of the wildly successful film and television character SpongeBob SquarePants, will host this year’s 38th Annual Annie Awards on Feb. 5 at UCLA’s Royce Hall. The black-tie evening begins with a pre-reception at 5:00 p.m. followed by the Annie Awards ceremony at 7:00 p.m. and post-award party immediately following the ceremony.
“ASIFA-Hollywood is thrilled to have Tom Kenny serve as the host of this year’s Annie Awards,” says ASIFA-Hollywood president Antran Manoogian. “Tom’s comedic humor and antics should make for a fun and entertaining award ceremony.”
In honor of the year’s best in animation, Kenny will be joined on stage by a lively mix of animation luminaries, celebrity presenters and comedic talent including animation legend June Foray, James Hong, Danica McKellar, Kevin Michael Richardson, Mike Henry, Nika Futterman, Brian Regan, Corey Burton, Jim Cummings and John DeMaggio.
Often a predictor of the annual Academy Award for Best Animated Feature, the Annie Awards honor overall excellence as well as individual achievement in a total of 25 categories ranging from best feature, production design, character animation, and effects animation to storyboarding, writing, music and voice acting.
“This has been an unprecedented year for animation, as the high quality of work represented by our nominees will attest,” says Manoogian. “On behalf of ASIFA-Hollywood, we congratulate all of the nominees and their respective studios.”
In addition, special juried awards honoring career achievement and exceptional contributions to animation will also be awarded, including the Winsor McCay Award to Brad Bird, Eric Goldberg and Matt Groening for career contributions to the art of animation; The June Foray Award to Ross Iwamoto for significant and benevolent or charitable impact on the art and industry of animation; The Ub Iwerks Award to Autodesk for the development of digital entertainment creation tools that play an essential role in animated productions, films, video games and commercials worldwide; and the Special Achievement Annie Award to Waking Sleeping Beauty – a documentary about the turbulent and fruitful years of Disney Animation (1984-1994) when the studio went from outworn anachronism to Hollywood juggernaut, creating a string of influential films and ushering in a ‘second golden age’ of animation.
The 2010 Annie Award nominees are:
Production Categories
Best Animated Feature
Despicable Me – Illumination Entertainment
How to Train Your Dragon – DreamWorks Animation
Tangled – Disney
The Illusionist – Django Films
Toy Story 3 – Disney/Pixar
Best Animated Short Subject
Coyote Falls – Warner Bros. Animation
Day & Night – Pixar
Enrique Wrecks the World – House of Chai
The Cow Who Wanted To Be A Hamburger – Plymptoons Studio
The Renter – Jason Carpenter
Best Animated Television Commercial
Children’s Medical Center – DUCK Studios
Frito Lay Dips “And Then There Was Salsa” – LAIKA/house
How To Train Your Dragon Winter Olympic Interstitial “Speed Skating” – DreamWorks Animation
McDonald’s “Spaceman Stu” – DUCK Studios
Pop Secret “When Harry Met Sally” – Nathan Love
Best Animated Television Production
Futurama – The Curiosity Company in association with 20th Century Fox Television
Kung Fu Panda Holiday – DreamWorks Animation
Scared Shrekless – DreamWorks Animation
Star Wars: The Clone Wars “Arc Troopers” – Lucasfilm Animation
The Simpsons – Gracie Films
Best Animated Television Production for Children
Adventure Time – Cartoon Network Studios
Cloudbread – GIMC
Fanboy & Chum Chum – Nickelodeon, Frederator
Regular Show – Cartoon Network Studios
SpongeBob SquarePants – Nickelodeon
Best Animated Video Game
Heavy Rain – Quantic Dream
Kirby’s Epic Yarn – Good-Feel & HAL Laboratory
Limbo – Playdead
Shank – Klei Entertainment Inc.
Individual Achievement Categories
Animated Effects in an Animated Production
Andrew Young Kim, Shrek Forever After – DreamWorks Animation
Jason Mayer, How To Train Your Dragon – DreamWorks Animation
Brett Miller, How To Train Your Dragon – DreamWorks Animation
Sebastian Quessy, Legend Of The Guardians: The Owls of Ga’Hoole – Warner Bros. Pictures
Kryzstof Rost, Megamind – DreamWorks Animation
Character Animation in a Television Production
Nicolas A. Chauvelot, Scared Shrekless – DreamWorks Animation
Savelon Forrest, Robot Chicken: Star Wars Episode III – ShadowMachine
Elizabeth Havetine, Robot Chicken: Star Wars Episode III – ShadowMachine
David Pate, Kung Fu Panda Holiday – DreamWorks Animation
Nideep Varghese, Scared Shrekless – DreamWorks Animation
Character Animation in a Feature Production
Mark Donald, Megamind – DreamWorks Animation
Anthony Hodgson, Megamind – DreamWorks Animation
Gabe Hordos, How To Train Your Dragon – DreamWorks Animation
Jakob Hjort Jensen, How To Train Your Dragon – DreamWorks Animation
David Torres, How To Train Your Dragon – DreamWorks Animation
Character Animation in a Live Action Production
Quentin Miles – Clash of the Titans
Ryan Page – Alice in Wonderland
Character Design in a Television Production
Andy Bialk, The Ricky Gervais Show – W!LDBRAIN Entertainment
Stephan DeStefano, Sym-Bionic Titan – Cartoon Network
Ernie Gilbert, T.U.F.F. Puppy – Nickelodeon
Gordon Hammond, T.U.F.F. Puppy – Nickelodeon
Steve Lam, Fanboy & Chum Chum – Nickelodeon, Frederator
Character Design in a Feature Production
Sylvain Chomet, The Illusionist – Django Films
Carter Goodrich, Despicable Me – Illumination Entertainment
Timothy Lamb, Megamind – DreamWorks Animation
Nico Marlet, How To Train Your Dragon – DreamWorks Animation
Directing in a Television Production
Bob Anderson, The Simpsons – Gracie Films
Peter Chung, Firebreather – Cartoon Network Studios
Duke Johnson, Frankenhole: Humanitas – ShadowMachine
Tim Johnson, Kung Fu Panda Holiday – DreamWorks Animation
Gary Trousdale, Scared Shrekless – DreamWorks Animation
Directing in a Feature Production
Sylvain Chomet, The Illusionist – Django Films
Pierre Coffin, Despicable Me – Illumination Entertainment
Mamoru Hosoda, Summer Wars – Madhouse/Funimation
Chris Sanders, Dean DeBlois, How To Train Your Dragon – DreamWorks Animation
Lee Unkrich, Toy Story 3 – Disney/Pixar
Music in a Television Production
J. Walter Hawkes, The Wonder Pets! – Nickelodeon Production & Little Airplane Productions
Henry Jackman, Hans Zimmer and John Powell, Kung Fu Panda Holiday – DreamWorks Animation
Tim Long, Alf Clausen, Bret McKenzie, Jemaine Clement, The Simpsons: Elementary School Musical – Gracie Films
Shawn Patterson, Robot Chicken’s DP Christmas Special – ShadowMachine
Jeremy Wakefield, Sage Guyton, Nick Carr, Tuck Tucker, SpongeBob SquarePants – Nickelodeon
Music in a Feature Production
Sylvain Chomet, The Illusionist – Django Films
David Hirschfelder, Legend Of The Guardians: The Owls of Ga’Hoole – Warner Bros. Pictures
John Powell, How To Train Your Dragon – DreamWorks Animation
Harry Gregson Williams, Shrek Forever After – DreamWorks Animation
Pharrell Williams, Heitor Pereira, Despicable Me – Illumination Entertainment
Production Design in a Television Production
Alan Bodner, Neighbors From Hell – 20th Century Fox Television
Barry Jackson, Firebreather – Cartoon Network Studios
Pete Oswald, Doubtsourcing – Badmash Animation Studios
Richie Sacilioc, Kung Fu Panda Holiday – DreamWorks Animation
Scott Wills, Sym-Bionic Titan – Cartoon Network Studios
Production Design in a Feature Production
Yarrow Cheney, Despicable Me – Illumination Entertainment
Eric Guillon, Despicable Me – Illumination Entertainment
Dan Hee Ryu, Legend Of The Guardians: The Owls of Ga’Hoole – Warner Bros. Pictures
Pierre Olivier Vincent, How To Train Your Dragon – DreamWorks Animation
Peter Zaslav, Shrek Forever After – DreamWorks Animation
Storyboarding in a Television Production
Sean Bishop, Scared Shrekless – DreamWorks Animation
Fred Gonzales, T.U.F.F. Puppy – Nickelodeon
Tom Owens, Kung Fu Panda Holiday – DreamWorks Animation
Dave Thomas, Fairly OddParents – Nickelodeon
Storyboarding in a Feature Production
Alessandro Carloni, How To Train Your Dragon – DreamWorks Animation
Paul Fisher, Shrek Forever After – DreamWorks Animation
Tom Owens, How To Train Your Dragon – DreamWorks Animation
Catherine Yuh Rader, Megamind – DreamWorks Animation
Voice Acting in a Television Production
Jeff Bennett as The Necronomicon, Fanboy & Chum Chum – Nickelodeon & Frederator
Corey Burton as Baron Papanoida, Star Wars: The Clone Wars – Cartoon Network
Nika Futterman as Asajj Ventress, Star Wars: The Clone Wars – Cartoon Network
Mike Henry as Cleveland Brown, The Cleveland Show – Fox Television Animation
James Hong as Mr. Ping, Kung Fu Panda Holiday – DreamWorks Animation
Voice Acting in a Feature Production
Jay Baruchel as Hiccup, How To Train Your Dragon – DreamWorks Animation
Gerard Butler as Stoick, How To Train Your Dragon – DreamWorks Animation
Steve Carrell as Gru, Despicable Me – Illumination Entertainment
Cameron Diaz as Fiona, Shrek Forever After – DreamWorks Animation
Geoffrey Rush as Ezylryb, Legend Of The Guardians: The Owls of Ga’Hoole – Warner Bros. Pictures
Writing in a Television Production
Daniel Arkin, Star Wars: The Clone Wars: Heroes on Both Sides – Lucasfilm Animation Ltd.
Jon Colton Barry and Piero Piluso, Phineas & Ferb: Nerds of a Feather – Disney Channel
Geoff Johns, Matthew Beans, Zeb Wells, Hugh Sterbakov, Matthew Senreich, Breckin Meyer, Seth Green, Mike Fasolo, Douglas Goldstein, Tom Root, Dan Milano, Kevin Shinick and Hugh Davidson, Robot Chicken: Star Wars Episode III – ShadowMachine
Billy Kimball and Ian Maxtone-Graham, The Simpsons: Stealing First Base – Gracie Films
Michael Rowe, Futurama – The Curiosity Company in association with 20th Century Fox Television
Writing in a Feature Production
Michael Arndt, Toy Story 3 – Disney/Pixar
Sylvain Chomet, The Illusionist – Django Films
William Davies, Dean DeBlois, Chris Sanders, How to Train Your Dragon – DreamWorks Animation
Dan Fogelman, Tangled – Disney
Alan J. Schoolcraft, Brent Simons, Megamind – DreamWorks Animation
JURIED AWARDS
Winsor McCay Award – Brad Bird, Eric Goldberg, Matt Groening
June Foray – Ross Iwamoto.
Ub Iwerks Award – Autodesk
Special Achievement – Waking Sleeping Beauty