Tintinology (formally Tintin Movie .org) is an independent news and analysis service on the Tintin movie and the works of Herge. (c) Chris Tregenza, Tintinology.poosk.com
Tintin, Tintin & Snowy, Captain Haddock, Thomson & Thompson, Professor Calculus and Herge are all trademarks of Moulinsart S.A. The text and images of the 24 Tintin albums (c) Herge / Moulinsart S.A.
Tintin Movie Twitter
- Tintin versus Asterix -- http://t.co/hK6fF5BJ >>
- Rin-Tin-TinTin - http://t.co/9moh3Gh0 >>
- @domjoly I liked the first 1/2 to 2/3rds but last part, i.e. the new material, was weak. >>
- RT @domjoly: Off to see the Tintin movie- incredibly nervous that I'm going to loathe it. >>
- New Tintin TV Spot -- http://t.co/sEwnSN6T >>
- Almost 300 members of @tintinid watched the Tintin Movie together at Blitz Grand Indonesia yesterday #tintinID >>
- Tintin in the Congo defended by the Vatican! -- http://t.co/wKW6ln7E >>
- Tintin continues to triumph in cinemas. -- http://t.co/4KN1JRBH >>
- Nice collection of images from Toronto Draws Tintin -- http://t.co/8TJUL3rE >>
- RT @akajonah The movie is exquisite! Beautiful ! Need to watch it again,2 much to take in! Breathtaking! 3D awesome. Felt like a kid again! >>
- @terryduffelen My pleasure. Enjoy the film. >>
- Toronto Draws Tintin -- http://t.co/qdCie78C >>
- Review – Tintin: Secret of the Unicorn -- After four & half years of waiting, I finally get to see the film -- http://t.co/pZOzsngE >>
- @martylog UK wide from today. >>
- RT @JoeStephenson: Oi! Why is the @TintinMovie soundtrack still not on iTunes?? How am I supposed to run around boats pretending to be T ... >>
Oscar debate over Tintin
Which one would you give it?
In a very interesting article here we find how the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) is forced to once again reconsider how they should treat films created using ”motion capture”. In 2010, AMPAS refused to recognize films created using this technique as eligible for the ”Best Animated Film” award, stating in their rules that “Motion capture by itself is not an animation technique.” But now Spielberg is calling his new movie an animated film. Whose going to say he’s wrong? And if it isn’t an animated film, what is it?
We’ve seen movies created using only motion-capture such as the Polar Express or A Christmas Carol. But people are quickly realizing that Tintin is about to outdo them, and any other motion-capture movie ever made. I’m not looking to offend any fans of those films. I myself enjoy several of them. But none of them have crashing airplanes or sailing pirate ships. None of them have Spielberg or Jackson working on them. None of them have been based off of an original artistic source that thousands of people around the globe read and love. As the trailer put it, this is something we’ve ”never seen before”. And somebody’s going to want to give it an award.
It’s not fair to call it a live-action film. Sure, we must remember it was shot very similar to how you would shoot a live-action film. But it just isn’t one. The locations, the sets, the props, and even Snowy himself are all computer-generated. That’s animation. But according to some you can’t call it ”true” animation either. Companies like Pixar don’t think it’s fair for them to go through all the time and effort to animate their character’s movement from scratch just so that somebody else can scan a person to do the job for them. They made that clear in the credits for Ratatouille: ”Our Quality Assurance Guarantee: 100% Genuine Animation! No motion capture or any other performance shortcuts were used in the production of this film.” AMPAS officially has decided to share their view on the subject.
I see where Pixar is coming from. But Spielberg isn’t just scanning people in to make an animated film that’s easier to animate. He’s using motion-capture technology to stay true to Hergé’s artwork while still allowing himself to direct and shoot the movie like he would any other movie. For all you guys on YouTube complaining about how the film should have simply been done like a Pixar film, or even for you guys who think it should have been a live-action film, THAT is the reason Spielberg made this movie the way he did. It wasn’t because he was taking a ”shortcut”. Nor was it because he wanted to be able to control all the elements, put his real film cameras into storage and shoot the rest of his movies through a computer. It was because this was the only way that it would still REALLY look like the Tintin Hergé drew that allowed Spielberg to still use real actors, and really take the shots himself, and direct the film like he has always directed.
Will AMPAS take this into consideration when the Oscars are given out? I hope so. Personally, I don’t care what they call the award. What matters for me is that they give it to them.
Sources: http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/awards/2011/05/for-oscar-purposes-is-spielbergs-tintin-animated.html
The rule change went into effect a while ago. Still, I am hoping that sheer amount of things that DID have to be animated for Tintin will make it eligible. Otherwise, I want to see Tintin compete for Best Picture and Best Director.
In any case, Pixar’s comments are completely and utterly idiotic. They started using shortcuts the moment they use computers. And guess what? Tintin took longer to make then most of their other movies. In the end of the day, the work should speak for itself.
May 21st, 2011 at 10:34 pmI think it’s important that people realize, that there is far more to Tintin than motion capture. There are enviroments, cars, Snowy – basicually an entire world ones has to build.
In addition, once one takes into the account how much work is needed to train actors to act a certain way and bring their character to life and then to change their appearance, it stops looking like a short-cut completely.
May 21st, 2011 at 10:37 pmOff topic but worth a look.
Tintin deviantArt Round-Up -
May 22nd, 2011 at 11:42 amhttp://tintinblog.com/2011/05/21/tintin-deviantart-round-up/
Hey stephen check this.
http://screencrave.com/2011-05-19/tintin-trailer-online-spielberg-knows-how-to-make-a-trailer/
Interview with andy serkis abpout the trailer
May 23rd, 2011 at 3:59 am@Chris
There are much more pictures of Tintin on deviantART. I’m just saying.
I don’t understand how motion capture is considered ‘cheating’. Does that mean Disney was cheating when they used moving references for Snow White’s dancing? If anything, I think motion capture improves digital animation for making more realistic-looking films. Obviously Toy Story and what have you don’t need this technique for characters that are stiff action figures and floppy dolls, but when you’re seeking the realism that Jackson and Spielberg were obviously after, motion capture is definitely the path to take.
Besides, shooting the real life actors was only a small part of the process. All the art direction, model-making, concept art, rendering etc. that has gone into this film outweighs the ‘live action’ aspect. It’s not like Avatar where half of it is live action acting and the other half is motion capture. Everything in this world is going to be rendered digitally.
I really hope they consider this movie to be an animation. It sounds to me that motion capture is receiving the same criticisms and exclusions that Pixar received from traditional animators when they first started digital animation.
May 23rd, 2011 at 4:36 am@ Wolfgang: an article with Andy sounds great but i can’t find it from that link. all i find is a post about yet another person who is pleased with the trailer
Is there any way you could help me out? Maybe there’s another link or I’m missing something big?
May 23rd, 2011 at 4:52 pmSomeone has made a big mistake – It seems that official Tintin mechandise has used Tintin images from Deviantart in its promotional material
http://www.bleedingcool.com/forums/showthread.php?42851-New-Tintin-Image-Features-Blood-And-Gunfire-UPDATED
Cannot find the original advert though,
However, whist looking, I did find this remix cover of Tintin in Tibet
http://ilovetheyeti.blogspot.com/2008/03/labominable-homme-des-neiges.html
Chris
May 25th, 2011 at 10:50 amIf that’s real, its big news. I’ve not yet convinced though. I think the tintin logo on the box looks photoshopped on (but its close enough that I could be wrong), and the picture is pretty bad quality to begin with. What surprises me most is that the ”playing cards” have no writing or design on them at all. It looks like a fake.
May 25th, 2011 at 1:48 pmbut if you find anything else, that would be a REAL big deal…
May 25th, 2011 at 1:48 pmStephen, don’t worry about that – it’s 100% fake. This is all just someone’s idea of a joke and a rathe poor one at that. This “merchandise” is fake and is NOT official and the only mistake happening is people mistaking it for being real. On a related note, Bleeding Cool has a history of posting complete nonsense.
May 25th, 2011 at 4:56 pmBy the way, I don’t know if you seen it but he official Japanese site has been updated with new content.
May 25th, 2011 at 4:57 pmCool find on the Japanese site. Looks pretty close to the other sites now.
It’s kind of disgusting…but a funny alternative ending to the story. Its just hilarious to think of the idea that after all that they went through to get to Chang it turns out the Yeti is big and powerful and eats them all…glad it didn’t go that way though 
May 25th, 2011 at 5:17 pmI expect we’ll see a lot more ”fake” tintin stuff in days to come. Just imagine the dollar store knock-offs that will try to get their share of the merchandise by making cheap copies. But with Moulinsart around, do they dare try?
Good job finding it anyway Chris. I laughed with the Yeti pic
Though not Tintin-related, unfortunately, I am happy to announce that today, I completed the script for my own comic. 4 years in the works, and it’s finally on the verge of completion.
May 25th, 2011 at 8:53 pmCongratulations, Mike! I know I’ll be interested in reading it
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And Stephen, I’m sure we’ll see a ton of knock-offs of official merchandize. That’s not necesarilly welcome but it’s almost to be expected. What I don’t like seeing is headlines that say New-Tintin-Image-Features-Blood-And-Gunfire (which I believe I saw on IMDB) because someone is too anxious to make a post without checking facts first. These kinds of moronic posts can do serious damage for no reason at all.
I mean you can *tell* it’s not an official image just by looking at it.
May 25th, 2011 at 10:19 pmIn a more pleasant news, I think we are exactly 150 days away from Tintin’s premiere in Brussels and Paris
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May 26th, 2011 at 4:33 pmCool news! Wow, 150 feels like such a long time…all these new news makes you think you are closer than that…
May 26th, 2011 at 9:38 pmLadies and Gentelmen, I can now confirm that the Tintin teaser is playing with Kung Fu Panda 2. And it looks smashing!
It’s out there now!
May 27th, 2011 at 2:52 amYou saw it? How was it? Was it in 3D?
May 27th, 2011 at 7:14 amStephen, tintin game will be shown on E3 at Ubisofts conference
May 27th, 2011 at 8:29 amhttp://www.gameplanet.co.nz/news/137108.20110526.Ubisoft-confirms-E3-line-up-Assassins-Creed-Revelations-and-more/
@Tom
Good to know. Especially good knowing that E3 conferences can be seen on internet. I guess I’ll be watching that one ! I’ll have to get up early (5:30 am where I am – France) but I’ll be there.
May 27th, 2011 at 9:22 amI just heard that another recurring character from the Tintin universe was originally scheduled to be in the Tintin movie.
Oliveira da Figueira, who appeared in Cigars of the Pharaoh, Land of Black Gold and The Red Sea Sharks, was to appear in the film, I assume the Morocco scenes, and he was to be played by Danny DeVito, but his character was cut from the script during the early writing stages, and DeVito was never officially cast as a result.
It’s funny though, because I always thought DeVito would play Rastapopoulos, if ever they make a film which starts the character, and the hot-tempered character that DeVito is known for playing in films may not have blended too well with the eccentric Portuguese salesman. But who knows, I might have been mistaken…
It’s a shame though, because even though da Figueira was not in Golden Claws or Unicorn, it could have been interesting. It would make as much sense as having Castafiore in them, which the film does. The thing is, with the confirmation of what the sequel will be based on, as well as the rumours for the third and fourth films, it seems da Figueira will not be in any of the films now. Mind you, you never know.
May 27th, 2011 at 11:57 amAh ! I got it the wrong way. The Ubisoft press conference won’t be at 5:30 am for me but at 11:30 pm. Even better !
May 27th, 2011 at 12:54 pmYou know what would be cool? A cameo of Edgar P. Jacobs’ Blake and Mortimer!
May 27th, 2011 at 7:17 pmCan you tell that Spielberg/Jackson? If they love Hergé they’ll also love Jacobs!
I didn’t know Blake and Mortimer existed until 2 years ago when i saw it in a french store.
Yea, liked Blake & Mortimer too, watched quite a lot of those tv-versions too
May 27th, 2011 at 8:46 pm@Stephen,
Yes and yes, it’s playing in 3D. Looks very good on the big screen and in 3D. It’s just something you’ve got to experience for yourself
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May 27th, 2011 at 11:15 pmYou know, the more I think about it the more I realize that one piece of information the article above could really use is the fact that ‘Happy Feet’ already won an Oscar for the best animated film (and beat Pixar) and it, too, was a motion capture project.
May 29th, 2011 at 7:39 amHi all,
May 30th, 2011 at 7:50 amThe German Amazon webshop now lists a lot of books based on the Spielberg movie: the story from the movie itself, a picture book, a sticker book, a special edition of the original comics (unicorn+treasure), the history of the Unicorn, ‘learning to read’ editions, …
http://www.amazon.de/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?__mk_de_DE=%C5M%C5Z%D5%D1&url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=Tim+einhorn&x=0&y=0
Now this I’m really looking forward to: Build your own Unicorn!
June 5th, 2011 at 7:46 pmApparently it is a series with all kind of extras with each part.
http://cgi.ebay.nl/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?VISuperSize&item=200615287088