The Pixar short “Presto,” which first unspooled in front of “Wall-E,” is in this writer’s opinion, one of the finer shorts ever produced by the studio. The Oscar and Annie nominated short was a hilarious tale about a magician and his rabbit that had a distinctly old school, Looney Tunes sense of humor.
Well, the director Doug Sweetland has moved over — after a sixteen year stint at Pixar — to Sony Pictures Animation where he will make his feature animated debut, “The Familiars.” Based on the book by Adam Jay Epstein and Andrew Jacobson, the film will follow “three young wizard apprentices who, after being whisked away by an evil queen, must rely on their animal companions, or familiars — an alley cat, a blue jay and a tree frog — to escape.” Sounds like a very fun concept, and we’re eager to see how Sweetland tackles the material. Epstein and Jacobson are writing the screenplay.
Sam Raimi and Josh Donen are executive producing the project, but no start date has yet been announced (probably waiting for the screenplay to be finished). It’s one of a number of projects Raimi is shepherding, including three vehicles for the small screen and the alien invasion flick, “EDF.” [THR]