Thunderbean Animation

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Ashirg
Joined: Wed Nov 03, 2004 9:10 am
Location: Atlanta

Thunderbean Animation

#1 Post by Ashirg » Fri Apr 04, 2014 2:38 am

They've been releasing DVD collections of animated shorts and just released a decent blu-ray of Gulliver's Travels.

DVD Beaver review comparing to Koch Vision disaster.

Here is how this release came about.

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Gregory
Joined: Tue Nov 02, 2004 4:07 pm

Re: Thunderbean Animation

#2 Post by Gregory » Fri Apr 04, 2014 5:27 pm

Gulliver's Travels is a historically important animated film that definitely deserves a good-quality release like this, and kudos to Thunderbean for making it happen. I won't be buying it because I've given the film a try a couple of times and never like it very much. It was made at a time when the animation coming out of Fleischer Studios was in steep decline (though the 1930-1942 Popeyes were still better than most other animation coming out at the time). It was blatantly a matter of trying to hold their ground in the industry by matching what Disney had done with Snow White. For me, Gulliver's Travels falls into some of the same pitfalls as its Disney contemporaries in its style of animation, such as a mismatch between the cartoony elements and the stodgy rotoscoped parts with "natural" movement and generic children's-book-illustration style. Even worse, the story was adapted in a less compelling than that of any of the early Disney features.

Back to recommending Thunderbean releases, their Private Snafu Golden Classics DVD is exemplary, clearly a labor of love. The transfers were sourced from original negatives, and the picture quality is better than your average Looney Tunes Golden Collection DVD. I also picked up their Mid-Century Modern Animation Vol. 1 anthology, which was a DVD-R but is packed with enjoyable stuff, especially recommended for anyone who likes UPA stuff, animated commercial films, and late 1940s-early '60s style in general.

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domino harvey
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Re: Thunderbean Animation

#3 Post by domino harvey » Fri May 23, 2014 8:27 pm

Anyone know why Google is blocking this label's site as potentially hazardous?

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Cash Flagg
Joined: Thu Jan 24, 2008 11:15 pm

Re: Thunderbean Animation

#4 Post by Cash Flagg » Fri Dec 26, 2014 7:28 pm

I wasn't sure where else to put this (I couldn't find a dedicated Kickstarter thread), but my Blu-ray of Thunderbean's new Cartoon Roots came with a plug for the Kickstarter for British filmmaker Andrew T. Smith's Cartoon Carnival: The Documentary, which will focus on silent-era cartoons and their creators and current-day preservationists. They need to raise £1,500 more to reach their goal of £15,000, and have only 24 hours to do so. Here is the link, and they do ship internationally.

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Gregory
Joined: Tue Nov 02, 2004 4:07 pm

Re: Thunderbean Animation

#5 Post by Gregory » Fri Dec 26, 2014 7:31 pm

Cash Flagg wrote:I couldn't find a dedicated Kickstarter thread.
Here.
Fortunately, it ends 48 hours from now, not 24.

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EddieLarkin
Joined: Sat Sep 08, 2012 10:25 am

Re: Thunderbean Animation

#6 Post by EddieLarkin » Thu Feb 19, 2015 4:39 pm

Next release:

Image

Details

Just to summarise, their previous Blu-ray releases:

ImageImageImage

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captveg
Joined: Wed Sep 02, 2009 7:28 pm

Re: Thunderbean Animation

#7 Post by captveg » Thu Feb 19, 2015 7:47 pm

And possibly five more releases in 2015. Wow!

mhinrichs
Joined: Mon Mar 10, 2014 8:04 pm

Re: Thunderbean Animation

#8 Post by mhinrichs » Thu Feb 19, 2015 8:32 pm

Here's my review of Cartoon Roots at DVD Talk -
http://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/66835/cartoon-roots/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I've also enjoyed the Technicolor Dreams & Black and White Nightmares set - nicely restored, quirky cartoons.

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captveg
Joined: Wed Sep 02, 2009 7:28 pm

Re: Thunderbean Animation

#9 Post by captveg » Fri Mar 27, 2015 2:19 pm

"The ones in major production right now are a Blue-Ray/ DVD of the complete Willie Whopper series, and an Blu-ray of the Private Snafu Cartoons."

More info from Steve's update here: http://forum.blu-ray.com/showpost.php?p ... tcount=511" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

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EddieLarkin
Joined: Sat Sep 08, 2012 10:25 am

Re: Thunderbean Animation

#10 Post by EddieLarkin » Thu Apr 23, 2015 10:37 am

Next release, due late May:

Image

Details.

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Max von Mayerling
Joined: Wed Dec 22, 2004 6:02 pm
Location: Ann Arbor, MI

Re: Thunderbean Animation

#11 Post by Max von Mayerling » Thu Apr 23, 2015 4:04 pm

Just wanted to note that one of the details on that page is that if you pre-order the Snafu collection through Thunderbean, they will include "a bonus disc of rare WW2 cartoons in HD, a packet of rare never-before seen storyboards and other goodies." My sketchy understanding (from discussions on the blu-ray.com forum) is that the bonus disc will be a BD-R, but I imagine that is probably the only way we will ever get these additional cartoons in HD on physical media. (I'm also assuming that some (or all?) of these bonus cartoons will be ones that appeared on the Cartoons For Victory dvds - but that is just a guess on my part - I have no inside information.)

I'm kind of amazed that such a small operation can do all this and charge only $18.95.

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EddieLarkin
Joined: Sat Sep 08, 2012 10:25 am

Re: Thunderbean Animation

#12 Post by EddieLarkin » Thu Apr 23, 2015 4:35 pm

That is the case yes, all the bonus discs have been BD-Rs. I suppose it's a better idea than a pressed DVD. As for the price, my impression is that these guys are just animation fans who hope to break even if they're lucky.

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tenia
Ask Me About My Bassoon
Joined: Wed Apr 29, 2009 11:13 am

Re: Thunderbean Animation

#13 Post by tenia » Thu Apr 23, 2015 5:18 pm

EddieLarkin wrote:That is the case yes, all the bonus discs have been BD-Rs. I suppose it's a better idea than a pressed DVD. As for the price, my impression is that these guys are just animation fans who hope to break even if they're lucky.
And they seem to be doing a marvelous work technically speaking. I hope it pays well sales-wise.

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Max von Mayerling
Joined: Wed Dec 22, 2004 6:02 pm
Location: Ann Arbor, MI

Re: Thunderbean Animation

#14 Post by Max von Mayerling » Thu Apr 23, 2015 5:30 pm

Yeah, I'm definitely not complaining about the BD-R - it seems like a very nice bonus to me - when I saw that, I instantly pre-ordered. Again, I'm kind of assuming that if I want the bonus cartoons on dvd, I can likely find them on the Cartoons For Victory dvds (although it is certainly possible that the bonus cartoons will include some that did not appear on those sets - again, I have no idea).

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captveg
Joined: Wed Sep 02, 2009 7:28 pm

Re: Thunderbean Animation

#15 Post by captveg » Thu Apr 23, 2015 5:59 pm

Steve has said that some of the cartoons from the various BD-R bonus discs may show up on future regular releases, but obviously they would be the exception.

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captveg
Joined: Wed Sep 02, 2009 7:28 pm

Re: Thunderbean Animation

#16 Post by captveg » Fri May 29, 2015 2:24 pm

Update from Steve on the slight delay on Private Snafu, as well as some of the future releases in early stages.

"We'll have [Private Snafu] sent to replication at some point this month, along with Willie Whopper (that set is also almost done)."

"I finally have much more time to work on the sets since I don't teach right now, so major progress is made without me bottlenecking things in details. These days, we have a small part-time crew working on cleanup and restoration on the various titles, and there are six in some progress right now (Willie, Flip the Frog, Abbott and Costello rarities, Snafu, the Lou Bunin puppet set and one I can't talk about yet)."

Thad Komorowski
Joined: Mon Oct 12, 2015 10:56 am

Re: Thunderbean Animation

#17 Post by Thad Komorowski » Mon Oct 12, 2015 11:01 am

Hi all, I'm an associate of Steve Stanchfield's. Our latest release, Ub Iwerks' Willie Whopper, is now available and shipping!

http://www.amazon.com/Iwerks-Willie-Who ... B015YUSA7K" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I got my copy Friday. I had a hand in the restoration of 8 of the 14 cartoons on this set, and it's surreal seeing them completely polished on my digital projector setup.

Going through them one frame at a time gave me a new appreciation for films I'd mostly written off. The drawing and movement is generally superb, with Grim Natwick leading a team of unsung animation heroes like Shamus Culhane, Al Eugster, Robert Stokes, Norm Blackburn, and Bernie Wolf. Keep in mind I went through these with the sound off, so I missed out the first time around on some catchy music. (There's also startlingly detailed liner notes on the soundtracks by Chris Buchman in the booklet.)

It's a nice, satisfying little package that's well-worth the ridiculously low price Steve is charging. Proud to have been part of this one!

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bugsy_pal
Joined: Mon May 12, 2008 1:28 am

Re: Thunderbean Animation

#18 Post by bugsy_pal » Mon Oct 12, 2015 9:06 pm

Thanks for that. Any news on the Private Snafu bluray? I ordered a copy earlier in the year and didn't get a reply to a couple of emails asking about it...

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Ashirg
Joined: Wed Nov 03, 2004 9:10 am
Location: Atlanta

Re: Thunderbean Animation

#19 Post by Ashirg » Mon Oct 12, 2015 9:10 pm

Cartoon Research has updates from Steven -
Sept 24 -
Snafu is now in the que as well, and will be most likely replicated and back here by mid-October.
Oct 1 -
For this waiting with baited breath, the Private Snafu set is in replication right now and will be back in the coming weeks.
Oct 8 -
Sending out Willie Whoppers is a full time job this week, along with finishing touches on the Pvt. Snafu blu-ray booklet...

Thad Komorowski
Joined: Mon Oct 12, 2015 10:56 am

Re: Thunderbean Animation

#20 Post by Thad Komorowski » Tue Oct 13, 2015 7:30 am

Private Snafu is still being finished. We had a big holdup a few months ago with a few transfer sessions marred by DNR, but we're back on the right track. I believe the last cartoon was finished last week and Steve is readying the disc for replication. Haven't seen the booklet yet myself, as he's supposed to hand that off to me soon.

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bugsy_pal
Joined: Mon May 12, 2008 1:28 am

Re: Thunderbean Animation

#21 Post by bugsy_pal » Wed Oct 14, 2015 11:31 pm

Thanks for the updates guys! I can't wait to see these toons in HD. Sorry if this has been answered elsewhere, but will the bluray duplicate the commentaries from the likes of John Kricfalusi?

Thad Komorowski
Joined: Mon Oct 12, 2015 10:56 am

Re: Thunderbean Animation

#22 Post by Thad Komorowski » Wed Nov 04, 2015 2:33 pm

Commentaries will definitely be carried over from Mssrs. Jerry Beck, Mike Kazaleh, Eric Goldberg, Mark Mayerson, and John Kricfalusi. I wanted to do at least new one, but time prohibited it.

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bugsy_pal
Joined: Mon May 12, 2008 1:28 am

Re: Thunderbean Animation

#23 Post by bugsy_pal » Thu Nov 12, 2015 1:57 am

Thanks for the info - glad that the commentaries are locked in. Any further news on when it will ship?

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Ashirg
Joined: Wed Nov 03, 2004 9:10 am
Location: Atlanta

Re: Thunderbean Animation

#24 Post by Ashirg » Thu Nov 19, 2015 3:22 pm

Private Snafu is out and ready to ship tomorrow...

http://cartoonresearch.com/index.php/it ... n-blu-ray/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

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domino harvey
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Re: Thunderbean Animation

#25 Post by domino harvey » Thu Nov 19, 2015 3:30 pm

Is the Blu-ray a traditionally pressed disc (ie not a BD-R)?

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