2014-12-25

Elizebeth Friedman and the Holmwood case

According to wrecksite.eu, the SS Holmwood was a steam ship made in 1911. It was a New Zealand passenger/cargo ship with dimensions 50.4 x 8 x 3.9 m and equipped with a triple expansion engine and a 1 singleboiler engine, capable of 78 n.h.p..


The Holmwood case is a prohibition-era legal investigation concerning events up to and including the seizure of the SS Holmwood in October 5, 1933, in the Hudson River, and the subsequent trial of the smugglers. The New York Intelligence Office (of the Coast Guard, as part of the Treasury Department) used Elizebeth Friedman's cryptanalysis of telegraph messages between the Holmwood and shore-based agents.

The best source of information from the ESF collection at the Marshall library, Box 6, File 24, "Notes on the solution of cipher and code used by the Holmwood" (14 pages), dated October 11, 1934. This document describes the investigation of the liquor smuggling operations of the Holmwood from 1930 to 1934. The first interception was November, 1930, by the New York Intelligence Office of the Treasury Department. The Coast Guard operated radio stations which monitored rum-runner telegraph stations. Usually these were in a telegraph cipher-code but sometimes they were in plain English. For example, it was reported that at 1505 on October 3, 1933, Radioman First Class B. E. Howell, of the New York Intelligence Unit, intercepted the following message

Anchor the boat in good place immediately. Take all men off in one of life boats. Hide the life boat if possible. Come ashore on New York side. Call [undecoded phone number] when you come ashore. PA code.

This message was preceded by a telegraph cipher-code

JDSLE 2221 1612 WJJE .... DEMPY.

which was decoded (by the office of ESF) as

Heave your anchor immediately and get underway. Stand up the river towards Albany.

This led to the seizure of the Holmwood. ESF wrote a strong commendation letter for Radioman Howell for his hard work and dedication to service.

2014-10-02

Media portrayals of girls and women in STEM


(image from icreatetoeducate.com/girls-stem-careers/)
A recent article [1] by M. Bhatt, J. Blakley, N. Mohanty and R. Payne explores how media shapes the perceptions of girls and women in Science, Technology, Engineeering and Mathematics (STEM) in the United States: “How Media Shapes Perceptions of Science and Technology for Girls and Women“. Their examples mostly come from TV but the points are equally valid for film writing.

This short post is simply to draw attention to their interesting article.

Statistics

In recent years, women have been earning the majority of the undergraduate degrees (50-something percent for women, 40-something percent for men). The article doesn’t mention this, but a quick search shows that they earn the minority of STEM degrees (40-something percent for women, 50-something percent for men, although there is a wide variation depending on the exact field). However, when it comes to STEM employment, the numbers drop (20-something percent for women, 70-something percent for men). The statistics for women are worst at the graduate degree level, which of course makes it hard to staff teachers at all levels of the educational system in STEM fields.


Media influences beliefs in ourselves


  • Media’s “pervasive negative stereotypes about women and science and math constitute some of the most important and insidious roadblocks to attracting and retaining women in STEM fields.”
  • “Media affects the way we view ourselves and the rest of the world.”
  • “If most of the images of women that a young girl sees fall into a limited number of categories, she will have limited beliefs about who she can become.”
  • “… individuals adopt behavior changes based on the observation and imitation of other individuals, including fictional characters appearing in mass media …”
  • “… the gender gap in science and math achievement in a country is significantly correlated with implicit gender-science stereotypes in that country…”
  • “… providing girls and women with positive role models, both real and fictional, has the potential to reduce stereotypic beliefs and alleviate the effects of stereotype threat.”
  • “Increasing representation of women in these fields, even with something as simple as a textbook image or a video with a gender-balanced crowd, can help mitigate these effects.”

They end with these recommendations:

  • “Representation: depict more well-rounded portrayals of scientists and technologists.”
  • “Participation: include more female characters in all the STEM fields in scripted dramas and comedies.”

As a very old example, in one of the DVD’s for the complete Get Smart TV series (created by Mel Brooks and Buck Henry in the 1960s), there is a relatively recent interview with Barbara Feldon (who played Agent 99) where she pointed out that the her character was the smartest and most competent, as the writers intentionally indicated by giving her the highest agent number. Feldon mentions that she has met women employed in a STEM field who told her how Agent 99 inspired them.

[1] Meghana Bhatt, Johanna Blakley, Natasha Mohanty, Rachel Payne, “How Media Shapes Perceptions of Science and Technology for Girls and Women“, 2013.

Annapolis Film Festival: Screenwriting advice from David S. Ward

I recently attended the Annapolis Film Festival, which had a very interesting panel on Screenwriting. The panelists were

  • Lane Shadgett, screenwriter, Jamesy Boy & Perkins 14
  • Jeanne Veillette Bowerman, Editor & Online Community Manager, Script Magazine
  • David S. Ward, Oscar winning screenwriter, The Sting & Sleepless in Seattle
The moderator was Michael I. Miller, writer, producer; Writers Guild of America & Advisory Board, Annapolis Film Festival.

After Introductions, they discussed Advice for new writers, Today’s script market, How to handle notes from producers, How to deal with actors and directors, and they ended up with an audience Q&A. Of course, David S. Ward had lots of great stories about the making of The Sting.


Here are a few of my own (very brief) notes:

Advice for writers?

Lane:
Be prolific. Don’t be shy about promoting your work.

David:
The best thing is to write. You must write to get better, to get efficient, to find your voice. Getting an agent is much tougher. It is really really hard. Today they look for writers who have already sold. When I started, they were looking for writers whose script they liked. It is especially hard outside NYC and Hollywood.

Jeanne:
I live in upstate NY and write there. You do have to go to LA on occasion for meetings but you must write and have a product. My advice: Don’t suck. Don’t such as a human being or as a writer. Work really hard. Don’t give up.

David
In the beginning of my career, TV was inferior to film. Studios want branded IP – YA books and comics with a following. The indie world is different, but even they are starting to demand a name actor to help them sell foreign rights. These days in many cases, more money – up to 60% – comes from foreign sales than domestic. When I first started, the domestic sales typically were 85-90%, with foreign sales making up the difference. Good writers are moving to cable TV, where writers get more control. The studio gravy train is hard to get on.

Lane:
I agree with what David said. But the key that cracks open the lock is that actors want to play good roles. Think about your script from their perspective. For example, “Jamesy Boy” was this situation. To attract name actors for a supporting role they have to really want to play a part that won’t take much of their time. That part must be an interesting character that is present in the key scenes of the movie. A good casting director is very valuable. Also, actors have their favorite writers. Try to be one of them.

Jeanne:
Don’t pitch on twitter but use social media to build a network of supporters.

Mike:
How do you deal with notes from producers?

David
You must be diplomatic. Their intended concern may be different from their specific written complaint. Don’t get a reputation as a difficult writer. Even if the note is “stupid”, it may have a good point which is not well-expressed. What is the heart of your script? Don’t give that up. The note giver may not understand story structure. Given them an alternative or option, which they can take credit for and feel ownership for the film.

Lane:
Here is a statement that can be very useful: “I was thinking about that note of yours. I think what you mean is … . Another way to solve that problem is … ”

Jeanne:
Even if a note is “bad” something good can still come out of it.

Q: How to you write description? The Sting has lengthy descriptions but these days a script is supposed to be very sparse.

David:
Whether sparse or not, write your description in an interesting way. A comedy film might be written in a different style than a crime drama. Really work the descriptions very carefully.

Lane:
Skills needed for studio work:
  1. writing
  2. developing (revisions using notes)
  3. pitching in a room.
These are different skills.

Q: Please comment on story vs structure.

David:
I tell my students this all the time: If you write structure, you won’t sell anything.


Notes from a separate event at the Annapolis Film Festival:


Conversation with David S Ward

My UCLA thesis film was Steelyard Blues. It had a scene with a pickpocket. To research this scene, I read a book on con-artists. Learned about the worlds of grifters, which lead to the idea for The Sting.

The Sting was pre-approved by Robert Redford before the script was written. It was optioned for $1200. Newman liked it and sent it to George Roy Hill (GRH). It was green-lit in two weeks.

GRH was incredibly well-prepared and taught me a lot about directing. GRH said to DSW: “Never be so unprepared that an actor can ask you a question about a scene that you can’t answer.” GRH has a PhD in music from Yale.

Cannery Row is near and dear to my heart. It was poorly marketed due to changes in the MGM organization.

Writing process: I try to never “cheat”. I have a goal but need to rewrite until it makes more sense.

The biggest problems in your script are often those that lead to the best part of your story, if you can solve them. Unfortunately, most people give up at that point. You must have a work ethic. As with many artistic endeavors, writing is problem solving. You must solve problems and you need the drive that says “I’m going to get there.”

Start with a short, then a low-budget script, then ask for money to make it. There are people that will fund to the $75 K level.

DSW: I write every day – usually in the night or early morning. Longhand, using a uniball micro pen. Occasionally, I skip a few days. But never more than that. I’m a writer, so I write even if i’m not in a paid job.

The seven basic conflicts

Syd Field defined conflict as creating the force of opposition between the characters and the actions that helps shape or motivate the plot. Those forces which work outside the character form the external conflict(s) and those inside form the internal conflict(s).

Among other sites, tvtropes.com says that Arthur Quiller-Couch was the first to develop the basic conflicts. However, one blogger, whose site is now down, tried tracking that source down and decided that the claim is probably wrong. In any case, here they are:

  1. (wo)man vs (wo)man

    This is an external conflict: protagonist versus antagonist, hero versus villain.

    Another example, a romance such as: man falls madly in love with a woman who has other motivations.

    Examples:

    • The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (1939) – Dorothy struggles with the Wicked Witch of the West
    • All That Heaven Allows (1958)
    • Die Hard (1988)

  2. (wo)man caught in the middle

    An external conflict where a person is caught between two opposing forces.

    Examples:

    • Yojimbo (1961) - remade as A Fistful of Dollars (1964)
    • Lucky Number Slevin (2006)
    • Collateral (2004)

  3. [wo]man vs. self

    An internal conflict of a [wo]man against her/his own values and dreams.

    Examples:


  4. (wo)man against society

    A form of conflict where man stands against a man-made institution (such as slavery or bullying or corruption).

    Examples:

    • Fahrenheit 451 (1966)
    • The Matrix (1999)
    • Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939)
    • To Kill a Mockingbird (1962)

  5. (wo)man vs. nature

    This is an external struggle positioning the hero against an animal or a force of nature, such as a storm. Here, “nature” is often viewed as anything that has to be survived or changed rather than defeated. According to this, a zombie apocalypse, such as Resident Evil, would thus be Man Vs. Nature.

    Examples:

    • Jaws (1975)
    • The Old Man and the Sea (1958)
    • Moby Dick (1956)
    • Resident Evil (2002)
    • The Day After Tomorrow (2004)

  6. (wo)man vs. God/fate/supernatural

    These include internal conflicts such as a character attempting to break free from a future path chosen without his or her consent.

    Examples:

    • Seventh Seal (1957)
    • Constantine (2005)
    • The Apostle (1997)
    • Slaughterhouse Five (1972)
    • A Serious Man (2009)

  7. (wo)man vs. machines/technology

    An external conflict between a character and an artificial entity such as a computer or robot.

    Examples:

Script characteristics and ROI


(from boxofficequant.com - click the image to enlarge. Note that this graph suggests that if you want to maximize your ROI then you should get 3, but definitely not 5, Academy Award noms/wins. Yes I am making a joke:-)

This post is on the 2007 paper “From Story Line to Box Office: A New Approach for Green-Lighting Movie Scripts” by Jehoshua Eliashberg, Sam K. Hui, Z. John Zhang. They try to predict the ROI based solely on the script. The ROI, or return on investment, for a typical studio is given by
ROI = (0.55 × box-office revenue − production budget)/ production budget.
This is because a typical studio takes 55% of the gross box-office revenue.

The question investigated by the EHZ paper is: How does the ROI depend on the script?

The basic idea is to have a computer perform a “textual analysis” on the script (which determines how much action/sex/etc is involved, what locations are involved, etc), have human reviewers answer 22 questions about the story/plot (gleened from [B],[F1],[F2],[H]), blend them together into a sequence of “fitted values” which is essentially the script’s “score”. They are able to predict the ROI “classification” about 60% of the time.

Here are the questions:

  1. Clear premise – The story has a clear premise that is important to audiences.
  2. Familiar setting – The setting of the story is familiar to the audience.
  3. Early exposition – Information about the characters comes very early in the story.
  4. Coincidence avoidance – Story follows a logical, causal relationship. Coincidences are avoided.
  5. Interconnected – Each scene description advances the plot and is closely connected to the central conflict.
  6. Surprise – The story contains elements of surprise, but is logical within context and within its own rules.
  7. Anticipation – Keep readers trying to anticipate what would happen next.
  8. Flashback avoidance – The story does not contain flashback sequences.
  9. Linear timeline – The story unfolds in chronological order.
  10. Clear motivation – The hero of the story has a clear outer motivation (what he/she wants to achieve by the end of the movie).
  11. Multidimensional hero – Many dimensions of the hero are explored.
  12. Strong nemesis – There is a strong nemesis in the story.
  13. Sympathetic hero – Hero attracts your sympathy because he/she exhibits courage and belongs to one of the followings: good/nice, funny, good at what he/she does, or has power.
  14. Logical characters – Actions of main characters are logical considering their characteristics. They sometimes hold surprises but are believable.
  15. Character growth – Conflict is important enough to change the hero.
  16. Important conflict – The story has a very clear conflict, which involves high emotional stakes.
  17. Multidimensional conflict – The central conflict is explained in many different points of view.
  18. Conflict build-up – The hero faces a series of hurdles. Each successive hurdle is greater and more provocative than the previous ones.
  19. Conflict lock-in – The hero is locked into the conflict very early in the movie.
  20. Unambiguous resolution – Conflicts is unambiguously resolved through confrontation between the hero and nemesis at the end.
  21. Logical ending – The ending is logical and believable.
  22. Surprise ending – The ending carries surprise and is unexpected.

Some of these (eg, #8 and #9) are problematical but, none-the-less, this list is a good checklist for any screenwriter.

References:

  • [B] I. R. Blacker, The Elements of Screenwriting, Macmillan Publishing, New York, 1998.
  • [F1] S. Field, Screenplay: The Foundations of Screenwriting, 3rd ed., Dell Publishing, New York, 1994.
  • [F2] S. Field, The Screenwriter’s Problem Solver, Dell Publishing, New York, 1998.
  • [H] M. Hauge, Writing Screenplays That Sell, Harper-Collins Publishers, New York, 1991.

2014-09-01

making "Love, Spy, Kill"/"Quantum Insurance"



An old friend Els Withers and I decided to write a story and script together last spring. The title is Love, Spy, Kill. Els and I came up with the story together. I took a script writing workshop taught by Randy Baker over the summer of 2014. During that class I wrote a draft of one of the scenes (the one with Tam and Chance in the storage room). Except for that scene, and the opening scene, which Els and I co-wrote, I wrote the script on my own.

Roughly, the theme is about a college aged daughter, Tam, and her strained relationship with her father, Ray. The plot is about the theft of a valuable state-of-the-art computer-chip which hackers and spies are after. The chip is hidden in an art museum, so it can be smuggled out of the country disguised as a work of art in a cultural exchange. Of course, the police are looking for the stolen computer chip, but a gang of hackers, led by Grekov, have discovered it's hiding location first. Grekov and her gang kidnap everyone in the museum in an effort to find the chip. Tam and Ray must work together to capture the hacker gang and free the hostages.

I hope to shoot at the Maryland Hall in Annapolis. Other possible locations are the AACTV studios in Glen Burnie and Jeffrey Gangwisch's studios at the Creative Alliance in Baltimore.

Cast of actors:

Props:
  • A black box (which contains the quad-copter)
  • a quad-copter (possibly broken)
  • Name-tags for Freydoon (museum guard) and Sigrid (museum guide)
  • matching uniforms/blazers for Freydoon and Sigrid,
  • Fake pistols with silencers (at least 1 and no more than 3)
  • A mini make-up case that looks like a quantum computer chip.
  • A mini make-up case.
  • Police car light, radio mic, badge, and cap.
  • small bandages
  • ace bandages with fake blood
  • men's tie
  • a box-like machine that looks like a cell-phone jammer (use the BeachTek audio mixer, with glued-on antenna)
  • device that look like hand-held scanner (use a temperature meter "gun"),
  • Electrical van with repairman sign on it (from Nick Beschen),
  • Sign near front door "Closed for repairs"
  • Large backpack for Eyo
  • Black jackets for Grekov and Eyo
  • Grekov's gun
  • Wolff's gun
  • security camera monitors
  • computer
  • ropes or duct tape
  • wire cutter or large knife
  • chair for Chance to be tied to
  • fake blood for Freydoon, Ray, Chance, and for Grekov (in the last scene)
  • Make-up for bruises to Chance and Ray
  • bandages for Freydoon
  • police uniform
  • police badge
  • police gun
  • police car flashing light
  • Sigrid's lipstick
  • green-screen
  • zip-ties
The policeman's uniform was borrowed from The Colonial Players - many thanks for their generosity.

Crew:

  • Mark Hildebrand: sound, AD, production planning,
  • Julien Jacques: shooter, AD, sound, production planning,
  • Marcus Wolf: shooter, production planning, editing assisting
  • Laurie Kinner: make-up, sound assistant, production assistant,
  • Jarrett Ervin: sound assistant,
  • David Joyner: writer/director/shooter
  • Els Withers: story co-writer

During the 2nd week of September, I drove up to the Anne Arundel County County Public Access studios in Glen Burnie and spoke with Mike, the head of the facilities. Because of the rules in how they work, the only way to shoot there would be to break the shots into 10-15 minute episodes, produced in the order written in the script. Each episode would have to be completed before the next studio reservations could be made. All this is free, so I'm really grateful. Here are some cell-phone pics of the studio:

I really appreciate their support, even at this early stage of production. Speaking of support, I'm also very grateful to Kevin Kangas a local filmmakers for helpful advice.

I spoke with the gallery manager Sigrid Trumpy at the Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts at the opening of a new art exhibit. I also met the artist, who kindly gave me permission to use incidental shots of his art in the shoot. Sigrid has also very generously let us use the Martino Gallery during the shoot for free.

My wife Elva and I went shopping for props during the 2nd week of September. I bought what I hope will be the quantum chip. I also met the very kind Laurie Kinner, who agreed to be the make-up person.

Photo of quantum chip prop:

Ray's business card:

Around mid-September, the gallery artist withdrew his offer, so now his gallery cannot be used as a backdrop. Sudden change of heart, I guess. Possibly the Maryland Hall location will be impossible to shoot at, or possibly I will simply have to wait. I will try to have another face-to-face meeting soon to see what the problem is, in case I misunderstood something.

Late September, the actress playing the part of Tam has withdrawn, due to job commitments and scheduling conflicts with other performances. That was very sad news, of course, but ultimately turned out to be best all around. Looking for a new protagonist, in the hope that the main characters can be used in later scripts.

Heard back from the operations manager of the Maryland Hall in early October. They did not give permission to shoot in the gallery even in between shows.

The rehearsal on Oct 1st and the studio shoot on the afternoon of Oct 9th went very well. In fact, Alicia introduced me to Mark Hildebrand and Julien Jacques which was a stroke of good fortune. Julien and I met for several hours the night of Oct 7th and discussed shooting different ways to shoot various scenes. Mark did all the sound and also had great suggestions on how to shoot and block various scenes. Laurie not only made the actresses look great, she also helped with camera operation. Thanks to Julien and Mark and Laurie for making the shoot on Oct 9th go so well.

A still of Eyo and Wolff in the security office (with some effects using GIMP added) from the Oct 9th shoot:

A screenshot of Ray trying to sell life insurance to museum guard Freydoon:

A still of Grekov, Eyo and Wolff in the security office:

A screenshot of Ray talking to Chance about his daughter Tam:

Andrew dropped out mid-October, stating other acting commitments. As great as Andrew is, this is a blessing in disguise as I need to cut down the script to finish the shoot faster. I rewrote the script, "killing off" Wolff, writing out Tam's part, and retitling it Quantum Insurance. It is 24 pages (down from 60). Here is the new synopsis (spoiler alert):

A divorced single father, Ray, who uses the hard-sell to try to sell life insurance, meets Sigrid, a life insurance agent at a competing agency. The are forced together during the kidnaping and theft of a valuable state-of-the-art computer-chip sought by hackers and spies. A rough hacker, Chance, has hidden the chip in an art museum, but a gang of hackers, led by Grekov, have discovered its location. Grekov's gang kidnap everyone in the museum in an effort to steal the chip, shooting the guard Freydoon in the process. However, Chance briefly escapes. Police become suspicious of a stolen repair van Grekov used to enter the museum. While the hackers search for Chance and the chip, Sigrid befriends Ray. A gang-member Wolff is killed, Chance is discovered and tortured, and Freydoon finds the chip. Sigrid notices it looks just like her make-up case and gives it to Grekov, who runs out of the museum with it, into the arms of the police. Sigrid and Ray find happiness together by creating their own insurance company together, Quantum Insurance.

Here is Sigrid's business card:

Except for a frustrating delay in the early morning hours of the shoot, the exterior shoot on the early morning of the 18th at the Maryland Hall went well. Here is one still from the shoot of Nick Beschen playing Officer Brion:
I wrote a call-sheet and very crude storyboards for the next shoot, on October 30th at the AACTV studio.

The shoot at the AACTV studio on Octover 29th went great. There were a lot of props in this shoot! Took me 4 trips to unload the car.

Since a picture says a thousand words, here are some behind-the scenes shots:

Jarrett (Chance) getting bruises applied by make-up artist Laurie:

Julien shooting a scene with Pajvak (Freydoon, who has just been shot by Grekov):

Alicia (Sigrid):

Liza's baby Lulu was the real star of the show:

In one scene, Chance is beaten by Grekov and Eyo to get his to reveal the location of the stolen chip. Here's a still shot of Chance, with blood applied by Laurie, and background filled in using Gimp:

Looking forward to the next shoot, on Nov 6th, since there will be fewer props to lug into the studio!

I arrived at 8:15am the morning of the 6th (the studio officially opens at 9am, but they have allowed me to lug the equipment and props into the studio early, so I can get set up before the actors arrive). The head of the studio said he would not allow me to shoot any more of the project in his studio. I told him it was the last day of the shoot anyway. He seemed upset but it wasn't clear to me exactly what he was objecting to. However, the AACTV rules are that a show is to be submitted after each reservation. I've had 3 studio reservations and have not yet submitted a video for them to broadcast. I told him I hoped to be done with editing in December. Except for that exchange, the shoot went great and the actors were on the top of their game.

Here is a shot of Ray, Sigrid, and Freydoon in between takes:

By far the most unpleasant part for me was the editing phase. I'm very happy that part is over!
Overall, I'd characterize this as a great learning experience for me, both as a writer and as a producer-director. I feel very fortunate to have been able to work with such talented cast and crew members. Hopefully, the future holds many more film projects like this one.

All episodes are now online at vimeo:

Quantum Insurance, Episode 1

Quantum Insurance, Episode 2

Quantum Insurance, Episode 3

Quantum Insurance, Episode 4

2014-08-12

STEM content in children's animated movies

(from "Meet the Robinsons")

The table below represents some data I compiled form imdb and Wikipedia. The entry for STEM is subjective and just based on my guess in most cases. In other words, the STEM column is not scientific. The ROI column represents the quotient (gross-budget)/budget. I'm using the worldwide box office as the gross, excluding DVD sales.

There are about 200 moves in this list but only about 170 with available budget data. About 70 of the 200 are STEM, about 60 of them have available budget data. The average ROI of the movies with available budget data is 5.8. The average ROI of the STEM movies with available budget data is 7.6. The average ROI of the non-STEM movies with available budget data is 4.0. The two most profitable movies (based on ROI) are Bambi and The Jungle Book. Both are non-STEM. The biggest box office flop in Disney history is Mars Needs Moms, which is STEM.

Movie

Release Date

Genre

MPAA Rating

Production Budget

Worldwise B.O.    (not DVD sales)

Length

STEM (1=yes, 0=no)

ROI

 

A Bug's Life

11/20/98

Adventure

G

$45,000,000.00

$363,398,565.00

95

0

7.075

 

A Cat in Paris

02/24/12

Adventure

PG

n/a

$309,973.00

70

0

n/a

 

A Goofy Movie

04/07/95

Comedy

G

n/a

n/a

78

0

n/a

 

Aladdin

11/11/92

Comedy

G

$28,000,000.00

$504,000,000.00

90

0

17

 

Alice in Wonderland

07/26/51

Comedy

G

n/a

n/a

75

0

n/a

 

All Dogs Go To Heaven 2

03/29/96

Adventure

G

n/a

n/a

82

0

n/a

 

Alpha and Omega

09/17/10

Adventure

PG

$20,000,000.00

$48,958,353.00

88

0

1.447

 

An American Tail

11/21/86

Adventure

G

n/a

$84,542,002.00

80

0

n/a

 

An American Tail: Fievel Goes West

11/22/91

Adventure

G

n/a

$40,766,041.00

75

0

n/a

 

Anastasia

11/14/97

Musical

G

$53,000,000.00

$139,801,410.00

94

0

1.637

 

Antz

10/02/98

Adventure

PG

$60,000,000.00

$171,757,863.00

84

1

1.862

 

Arthur Christmas

11/23/11

Adventure

PG

$85,000,000.00

$149,655,855.00

97

1

0.76

 

Astro Boy

10/23/09

Adventure

PG

$65,000,000.00

$44,093,014.00

94

1

-0.321

 

Atlantis: The Lost Empire

06/08/01

Adventure

PG

$90,000,000.00

$186,049,020.00

85

0

1.067

 

Balto

12/22/95

Adventure

G

n/a

$11,348,324.00

78

1

n/a

 

Bambi

08/09/42

Adventure

G

$858,000.00

$267,447,150.00

70

1

310.709965035

 

Barnyard: The Original Party Animals

08/04/06

Comedy

PG

$51,000,000.00

$116,476,887.00

90

0

1.283

 

Batman: Mask of the Phantasm

12/25/93

Action

PG

$6,000,000.00

$5,617,391.00

76

1

-0.0637681667

 

Battle for Terra

05/01/09

Adventure

PG

n/a

$6,387,498.00

85

1

n/a

 

Beauty and the Beast

11/13/91

Musical

G

$25,000,000.00

$424,967,620.00

84

0

15.998

 

Bee Movie

11/02/07

Comedy

PG

$150,000,000.00

$287,594,577.00

91

1

0.917

 

Bolt

11/21/08

Comedy

PG

$150,000,000.00

$313,953,759.00

96

1

1.093

 

Brave

06/22/12

Adventure

PG

$185,000,000.00

$554,606,532.00

93

0

1.997

 

Brother Bear

10/24/03

Adventure

G

n/a

$250,397,798.00

85

0

n/a

 

Cars

06/09/06

Comedy

G

$70,000,000.00

$461,983,149.00

117

1

5.599

 

Cars 2

06/24/11

Adventure

G

$200,000,000.00

$560,155,383.00

106

1

1.80

 

Cats Don't Dance

03/26/97

Musical

G

$32,000,000.00

$3,588,602.00

75

0

-0.887

 

Chicken Little

11/04/05

Adventure

G

$60,000,000.00

$314,432,837.00

81

1

4.240

 

Chicken Run

06/21/00

Adventure

G

$42,000,000.00

$227,793,915.00

84

1

4.423

 

Clifford's Really Big Movie

04/23/04

Adventure

G

$70,000.00

$3,255,426.00

73

0

45.506

 

Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs

09/18/09

Comedy

PG

$100,000,000.00

$236,827,677.00

90

1

1.368

 

Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2

09/27/13

Adventure

PG

$78,000,000.00

$274,392,649.00

95

1

2.517

 

Coraline

02/06/09

Adventure

PG

$60,000,000.00

$126,037,057.00

100

0

1.10

 

Curious George

02/10/06

Comedy

G

$50,000,000.00

$70,114,174.00

86

1

0.402

 

Delgo

12/12/08

Adventure

PG

$40,000,000.00

n/a

94

0

n/a

 

Despicable Me

07/09/10

Comedy

PG

$69,000,000.00

$543,495,033.00

95

1

6.876

 

Despicable Me 2

07/02/13

Comedy

PG

$76,000,000.00

$970,377,487.00

98

1

11.768

 

Digimon: The Movie

10/06/00

Adventure

PG

$5,000,000.00

$16,643,191.00

82

1

2.3286382

 

Dino Time

12/07/12

Adventure

PG

n/a

n/a

88

1

n/a

 

Dinosaur

05/19/00

Adventure

PG

$127,500,000.00

$349,822,765.00

82

1

1.7437079608

 

Disney Planes

08/09/13

Comedy

PG

$50,000,000.00

$219,782,580.00

91

1

3.3956516

 

Disney's A Christmas Carol

11/06/09

Drama

PG

$190,000,000.00

$323,743,744.00

96

0

0.7039144421

 

Doctor Seuss' The Lorax

03/02/12

Adventure

PG

$67,500,000.00

$350,783,479.00

86

0

4.1967922815

 

Doogal

02/24/06

Adventure

G

$20,000,000.00

$26,691,243.00

78

0

0.33456215

 

Doug's 1st Movie

03/26/99

Adventure

G

$5,000,000.00

$19,440,089.00

77

0

2.8880178

 

Dumbo

10/31/41

Adventure

G

$950,000.00

$1,600,000.00

64

0

0.6842105263

 

Epic

05/24/13

Adventure

PG

$100,000,000.00

$268,418,682.00

102

0

1.68418682

 

Escape From Planet Earth

02/15/13

Adventure

PG

$40,000,000.00

$74,477,179.00

89

1

0.861929475

 

Everyone's Hero

09/15/06

Adventure

G

n/a

$16,627,188.00

88

0

n/a

 

Fantasia 2000

06/16/00

Musical

G

$80,000,000.00

$90,874,570.00

75

0

0.135932125

 

Finding Nemo

05/30/03

Adventure

G

$94,000,000.00

$936,743,261.00

100

1

8.9653538404

 

Flushed Away

11/03/06

Comedy

PG

$149,000,000.00

$178,120,010.00

85

0

0.1954363087

 

Fly Me To the Moon

08/15/08

Adventure

G

$25,000,000.00

$57,546,746.00

84

1

1.30186984

 

Frankenweenie

10/05/12

Comedy

PG

$39,000,000.00

$81,150,788.00

87

1

1.0807894359

 

Free Birds

11/01/13

Comedy

PG

$55,000,000.00

$74,179,980.00

91

1

0.3487269091

 

From Up on Poppy Hill

03/15/13

Drama

PG

$22,000,000.00

$61,459,425.00

91

1

1.7936102273

 

Frozen

11/22/13

Adventure

PG

$150,000,000.00

$1,267,837,000.00

102

0

7.4522466667

 

Gnomeo and Juliet

02/11/11

Comedy

G

$36,000,000.00

$193,737,977.00

84

0

4.3816104722

 

Happily N'Ever After

01/05/07

Comedy

PG

$47,000,000.00

$38,085,778.00

87

0

-0.1896642979

 

Happy Feet

11/17/06

Adventure

PG

$85,000,000.00

$384,335,608.00

108

0

3.5215953882

 

Happy Feet Two

11/18/11

Adventure

PG

$135,000,000.00

$157,956,466.00

100

0

0.1700478963

 

Hercules

06/13/97

Adventure

G

$70,000,000.00

$250,700,000.00

93

0

2.5814285714

 

Hey Arnold! The Movie

06/28/02

Adventure

PG

$10,000,000.00

$13,684,949.00

76

0

0.3684949

 

Home on the Range

04/02/04

Comedy

PG

$110,000,000.00

$76,482,461.00

76

0

-0.3047049

 

Hoodwinked

12/16/05

Comedy

PG

$8,000,000.00

$110,013,167.00

80

0

12.751645875

 

Hoodwinked Too: Hood vs. Evil

04/29/11

Adventure

PG

$30,000,000.00

$23,353,111.00

86

0

-0.2215629667

 

Horton Hears a Who

03/14/08

Adventure

G

$85,000,000.00

$297,138,014.00

86

0

2.4957413412

 

Hotel Transylvania

09/28/12

Comedy

PG

$85,000,000.00

$359,222,014.00

91

0

3.2261413412

 

How to Train Your Dragon

03/26/10

Adventure

PG

$165,000,000.00

$494,870,991.00

98

0

1.9992181273

 

How to Train Your Dragon 2

06/13/14

Adventure

PG

$145,000,000.00

$428,969,057.00

102

0

1.9584072897

 

Howl's Moving Castle

06/10/05

Adventure

PG

$24,000,000.00

$235,184,110.00

119

0

n/a

 

Ice Age

03/15/02

Adventure

PG

$65,000,000.00

$386,116,343.00

81

0

4.9402514308

 

Ice Age: Continental Drift

07/13/12

Adventure

PG

$95,000,000.00

$879,765,137.00

88

0

8.2606856526

 

Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs

07/01/09

Adventure

PG

$90,000,000.00

$886,968,695.00

94

0

8.8552077222

 

Ice Age: The Meltdown

03/31/06

Adventure

PG

$75,000,000.00

$651,899,282.00

91

0

7.6919904267

 

Igor

09/19/08

Comedy

PG

$30,000,000.00

$31,013,349.00

87

1

0.0337783

 

Jack and the Cuckoo-Clock Heart

09/24/14

Adventure

PG

$33,746,302.00

n/a

94

0

n/a

 

James and the Giant Peach

04/12/96

Adventure

PG

n/a

$28,921,264.00

97

0

n/a

 

Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius

12/21/01

Adventure

G

$25,000,000.00

$102,992,536.00

82

1

3.11970144

 

Jonah: A VeggieTales Movie

10/04/02

Adventure

G

$14,000,000.00

$25,615,231.00

82

0

0.8296593571

 

Kung Fu Panda

06/06/08

Adventure

PG

$130,000,000.00

$631,910,531.00

92

0

3.8608502385

 

Kung Fu Panda 2

05/26/11

Adventure

PG

$150,000,000.00

$664,837,547.00

91

0

3.4322503133

 

Last Flight of the Champion

08/30/13

Comedy

PG

n/a

n/a

88

1

n/a

 

Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole 3D

09/24/10

Adventure

PG

$100,000,000.00

$139,906,561.00

97

0

0.39906561

 

Legends of Oz: Dorothy's Return

05/09/14

Adventure

PG

$70,000,000.00

$8,460,990.00

88

0

-0.8791287143

 

Lilo & Stitch

06/21/02

Adventure

PG

$80,000,000.00

$245,800,000.00

85

1

2.0725

 

Madagascar

05/27/05

Adventure

PG

$75,000,000.00

$532,680,671.00

86

0

6.1024089467

 

Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted

06/08/12

Adventure

PG

$145,000,000.00

$746,921,271.00

93

0

4.1511811793

 

Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa

11/07/08

Comedy

PG

$150,000,000.00

$602,308,178.00

89

0

3.0153878533

 

Mars Needs Moms

03/11/11

Adventure

PG

$150,000,000.00

$39,549,758.00

88

1

-0.7363349467

 

Meet the Robinsons

03/30/07

Adventure

G

n/a

$170,552,719.00

95

1

n/a

 

Megamind

11/05/10

Adventure

PG

$130,000,000.00

$321,887,208.00

95

1

1.4760554462

 

Mia and the Migoo

03/25/11

Adventure

PG

$11,218,368.00

$16,975.00

92

0

-0.9984868566

 

Monster House

07/21/06

Adventure

PG

$75,000,000.00

$141,267,370.00

91

0

0.8835649333

 

Monsters University

06/21/13

Adventure

G

$200,000,000.00

$743,588,329.00

104

1

2.717941645

 

Monsters vs. Aliens

03/27/09

Adventure

PG

$175,000,000.00

$381,687,380.00

94

1

1.1810707429

 

Monsters, Inc.

11/02/01

Adventure

G

$115,000,000.00

$559,757,719.00

92

0

3.8674584261

 

Mr. Peabody & Sherman

03/07/14

Adventure

PG

$145,000,000.00

$269,667,176.00

92

1

0.8597736276

 

Mulan

06/19/98

Adventure

G

$90,000,000.00

$303,500,000.00

88

0

2.3722222222

 

Oliver & Company

11/18/88

Adventure

G

n/a

$74,151,346.00

74

0

n/a

 

Once Upon a Forest

06/18/93

Adventure

G

$13,000,000.00

$6,582,052.00

71

0

-0.4936883077

 

Open Season

09/29/06

Adventure

PG

$85,000,000.00

$197,309,027.00

83

0

1.3212826706

 

Over the Hedge

05/19/06

Comedy

PG

$80,000,000.00

$336,002,996.00

83

0

3.20003745

 

ParaNorman

08/17/12

Comedy

PG

$60,000,000.00

$108,161,867.00

92

0

0.8026977833

 

Peter Pan

02/05/53

Adventure

PG

$4,000,000.00

$87,404,651.00

77

0

#VALUE!

 

Peter Pan: Return to Neverland

02/15/02

Adventure

G

$20,000,000.00

$109,862,682.00

72

0

4.4931341

 

Piglet's Big Movie

03/21/03

Comedy

G

n/a

$62,870,546.00

75

0

n/a

 

Pinocchio

02/07/40

Adventure

G

$2,200,000.00

$84,254,167.00

88

0

37.2973486364

 

Pippi Longstocking

08/22/97

Musical

G

$11,500,000.00

$505,335.00

75

0

-0.9560578261

 

Planes: Fire and Rescue

07/18/14

Adventure

PG

$50,000,000.00

$63,922,206.00

83

1

0.27844412

 

Planet 51

11/20/09

Adventure

PG

$60,000,000.00

$108,996,113.00

91

1

0.8166018833

 

Pocahontas

06/10/95

Adventure

G

$55,000,000.00

$347,100,000.00

81

0

5.3109090909

 

Pokemon 2000

07/21/00

Adventure

G

$30,000,000.00

$133,946,923.00

99

0

3.4648974333

 

Pokemon 3: The Movie

04/06/01

Adventure

G

$16,000,000.00

$68,411,275.00

93

0

3.2757046875

 

Pokemon 4Ever

10/11/02

Adventure

G

n/a

$28,032,301.00

75

0

n/a

 

Pokemon Heroes

05/16/03

Adventure

G

n/a

$744,928.00

71

1

n/a

 

Pokemon: The First Movie

11/10/99

Adventure

G

$30,000,000.00

$163,644,662.00

96

1

4.4548220667

 

Pooh's Heffalump Movie

02/11/05

Adventure

G

$20,000,000.00

$52,858,433.00

68

0

1.64292165

 

Puss in Boots

10/28/11

Adventure

PG

$130,000,000.00

$554,987,477.00

90

0

3.2691344385

 

Quest for Camelot

05/15/98

Adventure

G

$40,000,000.00

$38,172,500.00

86

0

-0.0456875

 

Rango

03/04/11

Adventure

PG

$135,000,000.00

$245,504,574.00

107

1

0.8185524

 

Ratatouille

06/29/07

Comedy

G

$150,000,000.00

$623,722,818.00

111

0

3.15815212

 

Rio

04/15/11

Adventure

G

$90,000,000.00

$487,519,809.00

96

0

4.4168867667

 

Rio 2

04/11/14

Adventure

G

$130,000,000.00

$493,049,316.00

101

0

2.7926870462

 

Rise of the Guardians

11/21/12

Adventure

PG

$145,000,000.00

$306,900,902.00

97

0

1.1165579448

 

Robots

03/11/05

Adventure

PG

$80,000,000.00

$260,700,012.00

91

1

2.25875015

 

Romeo & Juliet: Sealed with a Kiss

10/27/06

Adventure

G

n/a

$463,002.00

76

0

n/a

 

Rugrats Go Wild

06/13/03

Adventure

PG

$25,000,000.00

$55,443,032.00

80

1

1.21772128

 

Rugrats in Paris

11/17/00

Adventure

G

$30,000,000.00

$103,284,813.00

78

0

2.4428271

 

Shark Tale

10/01/04

Adventure

PG

$75,000,000.00

$367,275,019.00

90

1

3.8970002533

 

Shrek

05/18/01

Adventure

PG

$50,000,000.00

$484,409,218.00

90

0

8.68818436

 

Shrek 2

05/19/04

Adventure

PG

$70,000,000.00

$937,008,132.00

93

0

12.3858304571

 

Shrek Forever After

05/21/10

Adventure

PG

$165,000,000.00

$756,244,673.00

93

0

3.5833010485

 

Shrek the Third

05/17/07

Adventure

PG

$160,000,000.00

$798,958,162.00

93

0

3.9934885125

 

Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas

07/02/03

Adventure

PG

$60,000,000.00

$80,767,884.00

83

0

0.3461314

 

Space Chimps

07/18/08

Adventure

G

$37,000,000.00

$67,029,956.00

81

1

0.8116204324

 

Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron

05/24/02

Adventure

G

$80,000,000.00

$106,515,310.00

83

0

0.331441375

 

Spirited Away

09/20/02

Adventure

PG

$19,000,000.00

$274,949,886.00

125

0

13.4710466316

 

SpongeBob SquarePants

11/19/04

Adventure

PG

$30,000,000.00

$140,416,609.00

87

0

3.6805536333

 

Star Wars: The Clone Wars

08/15/08

Adventure

PG

$8,500,000.00

$68,161,554.00

98

1

7.0190063529

 

Surf's Up

06/08/07

Adventure

PG

$100,000,000.00

$149,044,513.00

85

0

0.49044513

 

Tangled

11/24/10

Adventure

PG

$260,000,000.00

$586,581,936.00

100

0

1.2560843692

 

Tarzan

06/16/99

Adventure

G

$145,000,000.00

$448,191,819.00

88

0

2.0909780621

 

Teacher's Pet: The Movie

01/16/04

Comedy

PG

$10,000,000.00

$6,491,969.00

74

1

-0.3508031

 

The Adventures of Tintin

12/21/11

Adventure

PG

$130,000,000.00

$373,993,951.00

107

1

1.8768765462

 

The Ant Bully

07/28/06

Adventure

PG

$45,000,000.00

$49,610,898.00

88

0

0.1024644

 

The Corpse Bride

09/16/05

Adventure

PG

$30,000,000.00

$114,770,654.00

77

0

2.8256884667

 

The Croods

03/22/13

Adventure

PG

$135,000,000.00

$573,068,425.00

98

0

3.2449512963

 

The Emperor's New Groove

12/15/00

Adventure

G

$100,000,000.00

$169,296,573.00

78

0

0.69296573

 

The Fantastic Mr. Fox

11/13/09

Adventure

PG

$40,000,000.00

$46,498,922.00

87

0

0.16247305

 

The Hunchback of Notre Dame

06/21/96

Adventure

G

$100,000,000.00

$325,500,000.00

91

0

2.255

 

The Illusionist

12/25/10

Adventure

PG

$17,000,000.00

$5,631,474.00

80

0

-0.6687368235

 

The Incredibles

11/05/04

Adventure

PG

$92,000,000.00

$631,442,092.00

115

1

5.863501

 

The Iron Giant

08/04/99

Adventure

PG

$50,000,000.00

$31,000,000.00

86

1

#VALUE!

 

The Jungle Book

10/18/67

Adventure

G

$4,000,000.00

$205,800,000.00

78

0

50.45

 

The Jungle Book 2

02/14/03

Adventure

G

$20,000,000.00

$135,703,599.00

72

0

5.78517995

 

The Land Before Time

11/18/88

Adventure

G

$12,500,000.00

$84,460,846.00

69

1

5.75686768

 

The Lego Movie

02/07/14

Adventure

PG

$60,000,000.00

$457,709,556.00

100

1

6.6284926

 

The Lion King

06/15/94

Adventure

G

$45,000,000.00

$987,483,777.00

89

0

20.9440839333

 

The Lion of Judah

06/03/11

Adventure

PG

$15,000,000.00

n/a

87

0

n/a

 

The Little Mermaid

11/15/89

Adventure

G

$40,000,000.00

$211,343,479.00

82

0

4.283586975

 

The Nightmare Before Christmas

10/13/93

Musical

PG

$18,000,000.00

$76,128,123.00

76

0

3.2293401667

 

The Nut Job

01/17/14

Adventure

PG

$30,000,000.00

$66,251,538.00

85

0

1.2083846

 

The Pebble and the Penguin

04/12/95

Adventure

G

$28,000,000.00

$3,983,912.00

74

0

-0.8577174286

 

The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything: A VeggieTales Movie

01/11/08

Comedy

G

$15,000,000.00

$13,146,773.00

85

0

-0.1235484667

 

The Pirates! Band of Misfits

04/27/12

Adventure

PG

$55,000,000.00

$124,080,105.00

88

0

1.2560019091

 

The Polar Express

11/10/04

Adventure

G

$170,000,000.00

$307,514,317.00

100

1

0.8089077471

 

The Powerpuff Girls

07/03/02

Adventure

PG

$25,000,000.00

$16,425,701.00

73

1

-0.34297196

 

The Prince of Egypt

12/18/98

Adventure

PG

$60,000,000.00

$218,600,000.00

99

0

2.6433333333

 

The Princess and the Cobbler

08/25/95

Adventure

G

$28,000,000.00

$669,276.00

72

0

-0.9760972857

 

The Princess and the Frog

11/25/09

Adventure

G

$105,000,000.00

$270,997,378.00

97

0

1.5809274095

 

The Princess and the Goblin

06/03/94

Adventure

G

$10,000,000.00

$2,105,078.00

82

0

-0.7894922

 

The Road to El Dorado

03/31/00

Adventure

PG

$95,000,000.00

$65,700,000.00

89

0

-0.3084210526

 

The Rugrats Movie

11/20/98

Adventure

G

$28,000,000.00

$140,894,685.00

79

0

4.0319530357

 

The Secret World of Arietty

02/17/12

Adventure

G

$23,000,000.00

$145,570,827.00

94

1

5.3291663913

 

The Swan Princess

11/18/94

Romantic Comedy

G

$35,000,000.00

$9,771,658.00

90

0

-0.7208097714

 

The Tale of Despereaux

12/19/08

Adventure

G

$60,000,000.00

$90,482,317.00

93

0

0.5080386167

 

The Ten Commandments

10/19/07

Adventure

PG

$10,000,000.00

$1,051,907.00

88

0

-0.8948093

 

The Tigger Movie

02/11/00

Adventure

G

$20,000,000.00

$96,147,688.00

77

0

3.8073844

 

The Wild

04/14/06

Adventure

G

$80,000,000.00

$139,722,445.00

94

1

0.7465305625

 

The Wild Thornberrys

12/20/02

Adventure

PG

$25,000,000.00

$60,694,737.00

85

0

1.42778948

 

Thumbelina

03/30/94

Musical

G

$28,000,000.00

$11,373,501.00

86

0

-0.5938035357

 

Titan A.E.

06/16/00

Adventure

PG

$75,000,000.00

$36,754,634.00

94

1

-0.5099382133

 

TMNT

03/23/07

Action

PG

$35,000,000.00

$95,608,995.00

87

0

1.7316855714

 

Top Cat

08/02/13

Comedy

PG

n/a

$14,714,672.00

90

0

n/a

 

Toy Story

11/22/95

Adventure

G

$30,000,000.00

$364,530,148.00

81

1

11.1510049333

 

Toy Story 2

11/19/99

Adventure

G

$90,000,000.00

$485,015,179.00

92

1

4.3890575444

 

Toy Story 3

06/18/10

Adventure

G

$200,000,000.00

$1,063,759,456.00

103

0

4.31879728

 

Treasure Planet

11/27/02

Adventure

PG

$100,000,000.00

$91,800,000.00

95

1

-0.082

 

Turbo

07/17/13

Adventure

PG

$135,000,000.00

$283,828,130.00

96

1

1.1024305926

 

Up

05/29/09

Adventure

PG

$175,000,000.00

$731,542,621.00

96

1

3.1802435486

 

Valiant

08/19/05

Adventure

G

$35,000,000.00

$61,746,888.00

76

1

0.7641968

 

WALL-E

06/27/08

Adventure

G

$180,000,000.00

$532,590,994.00

98

1

1.9588388556

 

Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit

10/05/05

Adventure

G

$30,000,000.00

$197,593,152.00

85

1

5.5864384

 

We're Back! A Dinosaur's Story

11/24/93

Adventure

G

n/a

n/a

72

1

n/a

 

Winnie the Pooh

07/15/11

Adventure

G

$30,000,000.00

$44,692,846.00

63

0

0.4897615333

 

Wreck-It Ralph

11/02/12

Adventure

PG

$165,000,000.00

$473,412,677.00

101

1

1.8691677394

 

Yu-Gi-Oh

08/13/04

Adventure

PG

n/a

$29,170,410.00

89

0

n/a