A Brief (very brief) History of ParaNorman Figures

I finally got a chance to see Laika's latest stop motion masterpiece "ParaNorman" yesterday, in 3D, and I have to say I was not disappointed! I do have one observation though...did I just watch a stop motion Silent Hill?! We've got the cursed, overly religious towns folk...the burned alive, innocent child who goes all "Grudge" in the afterlife...the white screens...the burn-aways (in place of the rotting landscape as the sirens sound)...the similarities are glaring! Of course, Laika have cut back on their pissed off specter's bloody vengeance, as this needs to be at least a little safe for the kiddies, even though that is not the main concern of the film makers. Never the less, you won't find any razor wire sodomy in ParaNorman, but the 3D stop motion is unmatched! So...you know...it's a trade off.

ParaNorman Crew Talk Undead Details

While running the gambit we call San Diego Comic Con, I took full advantage of moments where I could sit, enjoy functioning air conditioning, and chat with film makers and the actors that bring their creations to life. This weekend, we get to take in one such project. Paranorman, the instant stop motion masterpiece from the mad geniuses at Laika, promises to elevate the art of stop motion animation to new heights and, on a simpler level, make you smile like crazy. Here's the skinny...

San Diego Comic-Con 2012 : Day 3 Diary

Titled: AKA Paul Get's to Sit in Air Conditioning That Works Day

This was the first year attending San Diego Comic-Con, working fully for my own site on my own dime, so I thought I'd take the opportunity to do what most normal folks do at this show...STAND IN LINES!! Actually, the plan was to score some exclusives for friends and myself, but what I didn't realize is there is an art to scoring your favorite toys. The previous morning, I had attempted to snag some goods first thing in the morning and only succeeded in being giggled at by booth girls or shoo'd away by security insisting my press badge was more a hindrance when it came to a fair shot at those items that sell out quickly. At Hallmark, someone who lines up right when the show opens is capable of making two passes at the exclusives (of which you can buy one of each and get one exclusive pin a day). Hallmark has no bags so planning for this is key, unless you want to juggle them all day. I was lucky and scored a duffel bag around the back of the booth, of which there are plenty at the show if you know where to look...or use the force or some similar brain power. Stuffing a couple with flat bottoms in your bag for the day is a great idea. At Mattel, the diesel biker security dude tells me the line is capped and to come back "after I take a couple of laps". I assumed that was just a saying so I went to seek out Jessica Smiley at the Mimoco booth, but she's ninja-like and super fast so I missed more often than made a connection. I did manage to get a My Little Pony crown to her through her friends at the booth, creating this awesome face...

San Diego Comic-Con 2012 : Huckleberry + Toddland's Exclusives & Signings

Huckleberry (booth# 3449) has partnered up with their friends at Toddland to put together an amazing array of exclusive goods, meet & greets and FUN for the San Diego Comic Con 2012!

ParaNorman

First up from Huckleberry is the unveiling of their line of figures from upcoming Focus Features / LAIKA film ParaNorman, which hits theaters August 17, 2012. The eight figure line encompasses all of the core characters and a number of spooky zombies. As an advance preview, Huckleberry will be releasing four limited edition ParaNorman San Diego Comic Con exclusives:

San Diego Comic Con 2012 : ParaNorman Haunts Hall H

Fans of creepy little kids, stop motion animation and zombies...time to put some ink down on your SDCC 2012 calendar!

Friday July 13th - Hall H - Focus Features and Laika’s PARANORMAN Comic-Con Panel with cast & crew interviews and a sneak peak at footage! The expected talent is Kodi Smit-McPhee, Anna Kendrick, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, directors Chris Butler & Sam Fell and LAIKA CEO Travis Knight. It will be moderated by Entertainment Weekly’s Dave Karger.

The film is produced by Laika Entertainment, the same company behind CORALINE, and uses the same stop-motion animation. For those not attending the show, a PARANORMAN ice cream truck will be cruising the streets of the Gaslamp district offering free ice cream and giveaways to the public (Three Zombies and ParaNorman himself will be roaming the area as well)!