Dreamworks Animation

DreamWorks Animation has ruled out working with Paramount Pictures after next year. The independent studio behind the "Shrek" and "Kung Fu Panda" movies officially informed Paramount Pictures that it was rejecting an offer to continue their distribution agreement on the same financial terms for one additional year, confirmed a person familiar with the matter who was not authorized to speak publicly.  COMPANY TOWN

DreamWorks Animation on Friday announced plans to build a studio in Shanghai, in what the Glendale-based company billed as a landmark agreement with two state-owned Chinese media companies. The creator of the "Shrek" movies said it was forming Oriental DreamWorks, a joint venture with China Media Capital and Shanghai Media Group in concert with Shanghai Alliance Investment -- an investment arm of the Shanghai municipal government -- to establish a family entertainment company in China.

DreamWorks Animation is moving ahead with a sequel to its prehistoric family comedy "The Croods," according to a spokeswoman at the Glendale studio. Writers-directors Kirk DeMicco and Chris Sanders will return for the second installment, which does not yet have a release date. "The Croods," which featured the voices of Nicolas Cage and Emma Stone as a cave-dwelling father and daughter navigating familial and tectonic shifts, garnered modest praise from critics, but received a Cinemascore of A from audiences and went on to gross a strong $142 million domestically after its release March 22. Continue reading > > -- Rebecca Keegan, Los Angeles Times

DreamWorks Animation SKG Inc. , the Glendale studio behind the " Shrek " and “Madagascar” movies, announced that Chairman Roger Enrico resigned from the board. Current board member Mellody Hobson will succeed Enrico, according to a statement from the animation studio, which did not disclose reasons for Enrico's resignation. Enrico, 67, has served as DreamWorks Animation's chairman since 2004. He is a former chief executive of PepsiCo Inc. , where he spent 31 years.

News that DreamWorks Animation is cutting short its output deal with HBO in order to work with Netflix sent the "Shrek" producer's stock to its highest point in more than a month. DreamWorks Animation's current agreement with pay-TV channel HBO was to run until 2014. Under the terms of the deal, DreamWorks Animation movies go exclusively to HBO during the "pay cable window," which typically starts about six months after theatrical debut. However, DreamWorks Animation has gone to HBO and obtained an exit from the contract so it can instead make its movies available on Netflix's Internet streaming service during that window, a person familiar with the matter confirmed.

DreamWorks Animation, the Glendale studio behind the " Shrek " and " Madagascar " movies, reported lower-than-expected financial results for the second quarter. For the quarter ended June 30, the company reported net income of $12.8 milion, or 15 cents per share, down 62% from a year earlier. Revenue for the quarter also fell sharply, declining 25% to $162.8 million. Analysts had forecast net income of 25 cents per share. Continue reading > > -- Richard Verrier  

DreamWorks Animation posted a nearly 40% drop in profit in the first quarter while revenue remained virtually flat. For the three months ended March 31, the Glendale studio posted net income of $5.6 million, or 7 cents a share, on revenue of $135 million. That compared with net income of $9.1 million, or 11 cents a share, and revenue of $136.1 million during the same period a year earlier, the company said in a statement. Still, despite the decline in profits the company's results exceeded what industry analysts had projected.

DreamWorks Animation is turning to the Australian outback for inspiration for its first full-on animated musical. The Glendale-based studio said it had tapped award-winning composer, actor and writer Tim Minchin to help create a musical project called "Larrikins," which is Australian slang for mischievous youth. The all-animal comedy, based on an original idea written by Harry Cripps ("Supernova") and produced by Christina Steinberg ( "Rise of the Guardians," "National Treasure")

In a deal that underscores the growing importance of digital platforms for reaching young audiences, DreamWorks Animation said it is acquiring the YouTube teen network AwesomenessTV for $33 million in cash. Under terms of the agreement, DreamWorks will pay the up-front cash consideration and there are incentives that could ultimately make the acquisition ultimately worth as much as $117 million, if AwesomenessTV achieves certain performance goals over the next two years. "AwesomenessTV is one of the fastest growing content channels on the Internet today and our acquisition of this groundbreaking venture will bring incredible momentum to our digital strategy," DreamWorks Animation Chief Executive Jeffrey Katzenberg said in a statement.

Even as DreamWorks Animation Chief Executive Jeffrey Katzenberg was in China this week crowing about the box office success of "The Croods" ,  Chinese theater owners were ordered by regulators to end the movie's theatrical run two weeks earlier than anticipated. The move was widely interpreted as a way to make room for local animation films, underscoring how even the Hollywood studios that are most successful in China can be subject to the unpredictable decisions of government authorities eager to expand their own film industry.

DreamWorks Animation is turning to the Australian outback for inspiration for its first full-on animated musical. The Glendale-based studio said it had tapped award-winning composer, actor and writer Tim Minchin to help create a musical project called "Larrikins," which is Australian slang for mischievous youth. The all-animal comedy, based on an original idea written by Harry Cripps ("Supernova") and produced by Christina Steinberg ( "Rise of the Guardians," "National Treasure")

In a deal that underscores the growing importance of digital platforms for reaching young audiences, DreamWorks Animation said it is acquiring the YouTube teen network AwesomenessTV for $33 million in cash. Under terms of the agreement, DreamWorks will pay the up-front cash consideration and there are incentives that could ultimately make the acquisition ultimately worth as much as $117 million, if AwesomenessTV achieves certain performance goals over the next two years. "AwesomenessTV is one of the fastest growing content channels on the Internet today and our acquisition of this groundbreaking venture will bring incredible momentum to our digital strategy," DreamWorks Animation Chief Executive Jeffrey Katzenberg said in a statement.

DreamWorks Animation posted a nearly 40% drop in profit in the first quarter while revenue remained virtually flat. For the three months ended March 31, the Glendale studio posted net income of $5.6 million, or 7 cents a share, on revenue of $135 million. That compared with net income of $9.1 million, or 11 cents a share, and revenue of $136.1 million during the same period a year earlier, the company said in a statement. Still, despite the decline in profits the company's results exceeded what industry analysts had projected.

Filmmakers doing business in China are often advised to avoid the three Ts, as in Taiwan, Tibet and Tiananmen Square. But that warning doesn't apply if you happen to be Jeffrey Katzenberg, the animation mogul who has been at the forefront of Hollywood's push into China. The chief executive of DreamWorks Animation was in Beijing on Friday to attend a news conference announcing a China film project called "Tibet Code," an adventure movie based on a popular Chinese book series set in ninth-century Tibet.

DreamWorks Animation is moving ahead with a sequel to its prehistoric family comedy "The Croods," according to a spokeswoman at the Glendale studio. Writers-directors Kirk DeMicco and Chris Sanders will return for the second installment, which does not yet have a release date. "The Croods," which featured the voices of Nicolas Cage and Emma Stone as a cave-dwelling father and daughter navigating familial and tectonic shifts, garnered modest praise from critics, but received a Cinemascore of A from audiences and went on to gross a strong $142 million domestically after its release March 22. Continue reading > > -- Rebecca Keegan, Los Angeles Times

"The Croods" could club its way to box-office success this weekend, as the animated caveman movie looks certain to end up No. 1. The 3-D DreamWorks Animation film is likely to open with a solid $40 million, according to those who have seen pre-release audience surveys. The weekend's other big debut, the special-effects-heavy White House action-thriller "Olympus Has Fallen," will trail behind with a so-so $20 million. Meanwhile, two lower-budget pictures -- the Tina Fey comedy "Admission" and the R-rated party flick "Spring Breakers -- are set to launch with less than $10 million apiece.

DreamWorks Animation SKG said it would take an $87-million charge on last year's holiday movie "Rise of the Guardians," marking the largest write-down the studio has ever taken for one of its own movies. Analysts had estimated that the studio would take a write-down of from $70 million to nearly $100 million on the film, which represented a rare box-office misfire for DreamWorks, creator of the popular " Shrek ," "Kung Fu Panda" and "Madagascar" films. "Rise of the Guardians," which cost about $145 million to make, has generated $302 million in global box-office ticket sales since its debut in late November, well short of a typical DreamWorks Animation movie.

DreamWorks Animation SKG is licensing its movie characters for various theme parks being developed in Russia , an increasingly important market for the Glendale-based studio. The creator of the " Shrek ," " Madagascar " and "Kung Fu Panda" franchises said it had signed a licensing agreement with Regions Group of Companies, which is developing what is billed as Europe's largest indoor theme parks. Regions says it's the fourth-largest retail property owner in Russia.