Michael Jackson’s Halloween - New animated special coming t

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Have you heard the news? There’s a new animated special in production and coming to television this fall – Michael Jackson’s Halloween. It will be broadcast on CBS in the US and there are deals with local broadcasters in other countries around the world. More details about the program will be announced in the coming weeks.
https://www.facebook.com/michaeljack...type=3&theater

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CBS is looking to the music of Michael Jackson for its next project.

The network has teamed with the estate of the late pop star for a new animated special for which his extensive discography will serve as the soundtrack, it was announced Tuesday.

Titled Michael Jackson's Halloween, the hour-long telecast will follow millennials Vincent (MacGyver star Lucas Till) and Victoria (Kiersey Clemons), who meet “accidentally” on Halloween night and find themselves, along with Ichabod the dog, at a mysterious hotel located at 777 Jackson Street called This Place Hotel. Once inside, Vincent and Victoria go an unexpected, magical adventure of personal discovery, culminating in a spectacular dance finale featuring an animated Jackson.

CBS has tapped a variety of network stars past and present for voice roles, including Christine Baranski, Alan Cumming, Jim Parsons, Lucy Liu, George Eads and Brad Garrett.

Optimum Productions created the special and will produce, with animation production by Hammerhead. John Branca and John McClain, co-executors of the Estate of Michael Jackson, will exec produce. Daniel Chuba will serve as producer, and Mark A.Z. Dippé is attached to direct.

The special will air sometime this fall.

http://www.broadwayworld.com/bwwtv/a...-Fall-20170711

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/liv...pecial-1019970

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IM Global Lands International Rights to ‘Michael Jackson’s Halloween’




Stewart Clarke

International Correspondent@varietystewart​ ​ ​ ​

Share This Article ​ ​ Talk ​

July 13, 2017 | 08:00AM PT IM Global​ will take “Michael Jackson​’s Halloween” out internationally after landing distribution rights to the animated special, which will air on CBS​ in the U.S.

Produced by Optimum, the Michael Jackson company now owned by his estate, the special will feature an animated version of the late singer and performer in its finale and have Jackson songs throughout.

Voice talent on the special includes Christine Baranski (“The Good Fight”), Kiersey Clemons (“Justice League”), and Alan Cumming (“The Good Wife”). The special, which bows on CBS this fall, follows two millennials, Vincent and Victoria, who find themselves on a mysterious Halloween journey inside a hotel on 777 Jackson Street.




John Branca and John McClain, co-executors of The Estate of Michael Jackson, serve as executive producers on the special. The “Halloween” deal is Optimum’s latest with IM Global, which also distributed “Michael Jackson’s Journey From Motown to Off the Wall,” the Spike Lee documentary about the singer.

“I am thrilled and truly thankful for the opportunity to partner with the Estate of Michael Jackson on the international distribution of ‘Michael Jackson’s Halloween,’” said IM Global Television’s distribution boss Eli Shibley. “This is a universally relatable story accompanied by a magically re-imagined Michael Jackson song list.”

http://variety.com/2017/tv/news/mich...494569/​

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Why I'm Thrilled that a Michael Jackson animated special is happening this year.

Michael Jackson was pretty special to a lot of people.

Special enough, in fact, that a little more than eight years after the sudden, saddening loss of the Grammy-winning music genius, a Halloween-themed animated special centered on the beats, pops, and vocal effects that the 50-year-old left to the planet in the wake of his death, will air later this year, just in time for the annual boo-fest.

And for the record, I couldn’t be prouder, happier, and just about moved to tears to learn of this news. And also, no, I am not ashamed to own or publicize my tears. In fact, the world probably could do better with owning their feelings, kind of like Michael tried to teach all of us through his music.

But, I digress.

The reason why the news of CBS’ plan to air the one-hour long cartoon special, Michael Jackson’s Halloween, themed around the only album that could go with it, Jackson’s seminal Thriller; an album that still charts at least once a year on the Billboard Top 200 (along with a mix of MJ compilations that always include some, if not all, of the seven singles released from the nine-song long 1982 recording), is wonderful to yours truly is for one reason and one reason only.

It means that despite everything that most of us have heard about him, the thing that made Michael Jackson special; his gift of music, has finally found a way to outwit, outrun, and outlast the gossip.


And you know of the gossip, I’m sure. The many whispers. The ones that, just this week, began to hit the headlines again for the umpteenth time since the special Michael Jackson departed this Earth. Whether you believe those rumors or not is up to you, but what I believe at this moment is that for the first time since they’ve been uttered, they’re not the only focus of Michael Jackson being in the headlines.

Right now, it’s also about his music. Right now, there’s also talk about whether the album is too dated for present times for a television show in 2017, or whether anyone wants to actually see a Michael Jackson Halloween animated special in 2017, some fans included — and no, there’s not actually wrong with having a third, for the record (following the short films for Thriller and Ghosts, of course).

But with that said, with the storm finally starting to lift on the life of someone who was far too special than anyone ever could’ve imagined, perhaps now, we can finally begin to get back to Michael Jackson’s ultimate dream of making the world a better place through his forever-amazing music.

Perhaps now, the young kids who this Michael Jackson animated special in geared toward, won’t grow up only knowing of him as the “joke” their parents made him out to be.

Perhaps they can be the ones to carry his music and magic over to the next generation without the shame and/or judgment that came along for us with standing by the belief that the King of Pop, Michael Joseph Jackson, the blessed son of Katherine and Joe Jackson, brother of Janet, Tito, Marlon, Randy, Rebbie, Jackie, Jermaine, LaToya, and the late Brandon, father of “Prince” Michael Jr., Paris-Katherine and Prince Michael Jackson II, whom he affectionately relayed to as Blanket for the “blanket” of love that he felt for his children, was actually a good guy.

Maybe now, in 2017, we can start reminding the world just how loving, wonderful, magical, powerful, inspirational, and special Michael Jackson truly was.

And it can all begin, ironically and finally, with a Michael Jackson animated special in 2017.

http://www.inquisitr.com/opinion/436...ecial-opinion/

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Ivy‏ @Ivy_4MJ

A special sneak preview of "Michael Jackson's Halloween" animation as well as a Q&A panel with the creators will happen at New York Comic-Con on Thursday, Oct. 5 - http://www.newyorkcomiccon.com/en/Se...sons-Halloween

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andjustice4MJ‏ @andjustice4some · 6 Std.Vor 6 Stunden


andjustice4MJ‏ @andjustice4some · 6 Std.Vor 6 Stunden
And worked on the ghost special effects


andjustice4MJ‏ @andjustice4some · 6 Std.Vor 6 Stunden
who worked on it did the morphing for black or white

andjustice4MJ‏ @andjustice4some · 6 Std.Vor 6 Stunden
What's so interesting about the animation is that the guys

 andjustice4MJ hat retweetet
MJFANGIRL.COM‏ @MJFanGirlBLOG · 7 Std.Vor 7 Stunden
Awesome panel discussion after the screening of Michael Jackson's Halloween! Got to hear a lot about the storyline as well as choreography

andjustice4MJ‏ @andjustice4some · 7 Std.Vor 7 Stunden
It will be released on another date.

andjustice4MJ‏ @andjustice4some · 7 Std.Vor 7 Stunden
They were going to release last week but due to Las Vegas shootings

andjustice4MJ‏ @andjustice4some · 7 Std.Vor 7 Stunden
Jamie king directed, uses MJ one dancers and parts of Michael.

andjustice4MJ‏ @andjustice4some · 7 Std.Vor 7 Stunden
Also there is a BOTSF remix vid coming out soon.

andjustice4MJ‏ @andjustice4some · 9 Std.Vor 9 Stunden
There many more songs in the show than are on the track list.

andjustice4MJ‏ @andjustice4some · 9 Std.Vor 9 Stunden
It was AMAZING. But we did not get to see animated MJ.

andjustice4MJ‏ @andjustice4some · 9 Std.Vor 9 Stunden
I'm on my way home from NYC special screening of the Halloween special.




The Best of Internet hat retweetet
Michael Jackson‏Verifizierter Account @michaeljackson · 11 Std.Vor 11 Stunden

Meet Ichabod (aka Icky), one of the characters featured in the magical world of Michael Jackson’s Halloween.

 The Best of Internet hat retweetet
andjustice4MJ‏ @andjustice4some · 7 Std.Vor 7 Stunden
Jamie king directed, uses MJ one dancers and parts of Michael.

 The Best of Internet hat retweetet
andjustice4MJ‏ @andjustice4some · 7 Std.Vor 7 Stunden
Also there is a BOTSF remix vid coming out soon.

The Best of Internet hat retweetet
MJFANGIRL.COM‏ @MJFanGirlBLOG · 6 Std.Vor 6 Stunden 
Antwort an @MJFanGirlBLOG @michaeljackson
Choreography was dope and the new song mixes reminded me of the Immortal soundtrack which y'all I know I loooooove #MJHalloween 2


 The Best of Internet hat retweetet
MJFANGIRL.COM‏ @MJFanGirlBLOG · 6 Std.Vor 6 Stunden
Antwort an @MJFanGirlBLOG
Was pleasantly surprised to see that the special incl so much @michaeljackson music (beyond the Halloween theme)

The Best of Internet hat retweetet
MJFANGIRL.COM‏ @MJFanGirlBLOG · 6 Std.Vor 6 Stunden
Awesome panel discussion after the screening of Michael Jackson's Halloween! Got to hear a lot about the storyline as well as choreography


 The Best of Internet hat retweetet
MJFANGIRL.COM‏ @MJFanGirlBLOG · 9 Std.Vor 9 Stunden
when you come to #newyorkcomiccon and bypass all the booths just to get to the screening room for Michael Jackson's Halloween

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Thank you my friend Sheng Yin Wang for sharing the photos, he was invited by the Estate of Michael Jackson to New York to see Thriller 3D, new Blood On The Dance Floor 2017 video (old video clips + MJ One dance special ) and MJ Halloween animation. The animation wasn't played in full but it is very interesting, full of MJ elements. And there are 22 songs appearing as he counted. Especially, The mix of They Don't Care About Us X Threatened is so cool and exciting! The female villain's theme is Dirty Diana, lol. They have not seen MJ animated character in full, only seen his feet. Then the character transforms himself into a bat to get to the main characters and lead them to This Place Hotel. Bubbles is there too. Can't wait to see it in full on Oct 27 on CBS. BTW, Ghosts in 3D and HIStory in HD are future projects considered.
-- via facebook / https://www.facebook.com/keen.zhang/...55159379289426

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Michael Jackson's Halloween Brings Music, Dance, and the Message of MJ to life- MJFANGIRL First Impression

https://mjfangirl.com/blog/2017/10/7...0w6owrnlyky91o

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Official trailer.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zos7OL2yTo4

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SvDMbuSma6U

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=If0hBP21oEM

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The only thing better than candy and costumes on Halloween this year is "Michael Jackson's Halloween" http://blbrd.cm/JKT8Gw

20:00 - 18. Okt. 2017
Billboard

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http://www.cbs.com/shows/michael-jackso ... halloween/

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Haus of Jackson‏ @HausofJackson
Calling all #Moonwalkers to spread the word and promote the Halloween Special! Let us show the younger generation what they are missing.

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There’s something spooky going on at CBS. Last Wednesday, the network released a trailer that quickly went viral. It was for an animated project titled Michael Jackson’s Halloween, a one-hour TV special about two kids who stumble upon a magical adventure at a mysterious hotel set to Jackson’s music; it features a voice cast that includes actors Kiersey Clemons,Christine Baranski, Lucy Liu, Alan Cumming, George Eads, Brad Garrett, Lucas Till, and Old Sheldon himself, Jim Parsons (who plays a Jack Skellington-esque spookmeister named Hay Man, dressed in M.J.’s signature military aesthetic). Here’s how CBS describes the plot:

“The special follows millennials Vincent (Lucas Till) and Victoria (Kiersey Clemons), who meet ‘accidentally’ on Halloween night and find themselves, along with Ichabod the dog, at a mysterious hotel located at 777 Jackson Street called This Place Hotel. Once inside, Vincent and Victoria are sent on an unexpected, magical adventure of personal discovery, culminating in a spectacular dance finale featuring an animated Michael Jackson.”
How did this animated Frankenspecial come together? Well, it was created by Optimum Productions—a company owned by Jackson’s estate—and is produced by John Branca and John McClain, two executors of that estate. According to Branca and director Mark A.Z. Dippé, the special was born a year and a half ago, when Dippé’s team began dreaming up an animated project for the estate.
“The notion of doing something for Halloween was an easy and natural one because of Michael’s love of it,” Branca tells Vanity Fair. “And every October, ‘Thriller’ goes back to the top of the charts, so we wanted to take the next step and create something fun for families.”



Jackson was fond of scary, fantastical live-action projects (“Thriller,” “Ghosts,” “Captain EO”) and had wanted to make an animated project in his later years, according to Branca, who worked with the singer for over two decades. Ultimately, Michael Jackson’s Halloween got the green light thanks to the characters Dippé’s team created—particularly a spider voiced by Cumming, which reminded him of a spider prop that Jackson once used in live shows. He also found the Hay Man to be “a stroke of genius.”

The show was inspired by the spirit of various Charlie Brown specials, like It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown and A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving. “You see those every year, for 20 years,” Branca said. Though there are currently no plans to roll out more seasonal Jackson specials, the estate has not “decided anything” just yet.
Dippé says the animation shares “a certain relationship” with films like The Nightmare Before Christmas, Tim Burton’s idiosyncratic holiday classic, though Jackson’s Halloween doesn’t have quite the same timeless aesthetic. When he began plotting the project, Dippé decided to use 3D animation, tapping some of Jackson’s former choreographers and dancers for the film’s motion capture, in order “to bring Michael’s dancing to life in a very rich and deserving way.” The special also features a dance sequence performed by an animated version of Jackson himself—though Dippé and Branca emphasize that this is not an exact replica of the singer. “It’s a stylized representation of Michael,” Dippé says. “It’s not meant to be a photographic, accurate depiction of him, but rather this magic, stylized version of him.”
The duo worked with CBS to fill out the film’s cast, which is why you’ll notice familiar network voices in the mix—including those of Parsons, Baranski (The Good Fight), and Liu (Elementary). Though the special doesn’t include any black male actors in the core cast—despite its inspiration—Dippé and Branca point toward the film’s inclusive behind-the-scenes team, particularly its choreographers and musical director Kevin Antunes. (Antunes also designed the Jackson-themed Cirque du Soleil productions, Michael Jackson: One and the Immortal World Tour.) In addition, they say casting ultimately came down to scheduling: “We actually went to people like L.L. Cool J,” who stars in the network’s NCIS: Los Angeles, Branca said. “It just was a matter of who was available.”
The special will weave together 25 songs from Jackson’s catalogue, including spookier fare like “Thriller” and “Blood on the Dance Floor,” slightly deeper cuts like “Childhood,” and peripheral hits like Rockwell’s “Somebody’s Watching Me” and the Jacksons’s “Torture.” For the millions bound to watch Michael Jackson’s Halloween when it airs October 27, Branca has one main piece of advice: “Turn it up loud.”


https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood...loween-special

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CBS@CBS

Michael Jackson's Halloween will enchant you with music, magic & more! Watch the full special now: http://bit.ly/MJHalloween #MJHalloween

Loading....‏ @_TonnieeLee_

#MJHalloween Just Made Me Miss Michael EVEN MOREEE Oh My God I Just Wish He Can Come Back

trebworld
https://www.instagram.com/p/BayEubYnBmO/
Watched #MJHalloween tonight, thought they did a good job. I loved the concept of a Michael Jackson Halloween themed cartoon. Was under the impression that MJ wasn't actually in it, so I was visibly thrilled when shows up and saves the day. I do believe Michael Jackson needs a better graphics team (they just can't get the face right) but other than that, I thought it was entertaining and I loved the message





'Michael Jackson's Halloween': Claiming Another Crown For The King Of Pop

https://www.forbes.com/sites/zackoma.../#2fa47b1c43dc

Every October, just as reliably as the autumn leaves start to change in colder climes, the songs of Michael Jackson creep back onto lists of the most-played—especially his Halloween-spooky “Thriller” and lesser-known “Somebody’s Watching Me,” a Rockwell track featuring his vocals.

Both songs figure prominently into Michael Jackson’s Halloween, an hourlong animated special set to air on CBS tonight. Directed by Mark Dippé and produced by Jackson estate co-executors John Branca and John McClain, the program will act as a family-oriented visual follow-up to recently-released album Scream, a compilation of Jackson’s eeriest work. It’s all part of an effort to cement his status as not just the King of Pop, but the King of Halloween.

“Michael loved Halloween, he loved animation; he was basically a big kid at heart,” says Branca. “We wanted to stay true to and be inspired by Michael and what his tastes and loves were.”

The special will follow two youngsters who meet by chance at This Place Hotel on 777 Jackson Street. Joined by a little white dog named Ichabod, they are confronted with a major choice, picking between what’s expected of them or following their dreams. They’re aided in their journey by Jackson himself—who takes the form of three characters: a dancing pumpkin, a spider security guard and a black cat scientist—in each case attempting to inspire the characters to find their true calling.

Aside from Jackson’s music, the special will have other familiar elements. The cast of voice actors includes CBS stars Lucy Liu and Jim Parsons; the animation takes stylistic cues from seasonal classics like The Nightmare Before Christmas.

“There's a lot of pieces … that inspire myself and my team in terms of animation style and look,” says Dippé. “It's a fantastic, magical world with these magical characters that are able to tell stories that, let's say, a normal human might not necessarily tell.”

That’s been a theme in the lucrative postmortem world of Jackson, who pulled in a stunning $825 million last year—the highest annual total ever amassed by any entertainer, dead or alive—thanks largely to the sale of his half of the Sony/ATV music publishing catalog. His cumulative postmortem pretax earnings tally now sits north of $1.5 billion.

With the catalog’s steady payouts now out of the picture and the Michael Jackson Immortal World Tour in the rearview mirror, the singer’s estate appears to be looking to establish other reliable income streams to couple with its remaining Cirque du Soleil show in Las Vegas and ongoing revenue from Jackson's own work. Locking in his Halloween supremacy seems like a wise move, beginning with the CBS special.

“We hope that it'll become evergreen,” says Branca. “We may actually do some updates from time to time after the first run. You know you see Charlie Brown Christmas and Charlie Brown Thanksgiving every year, so now we're looking to have Michael Jackson's Halloween every year.”

Don’t expect the program to push Jackson anywhere close to matching his once-in-an-afterlifetime 2016 payday. But will the King of Pop continue his reign as the top-earning star beyond the grave? Check back here on Monday to find out as we release our annual list of the highest-paid dead celebrities, just in time for Halloween.

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http://tvline.com/2017/10/28/blindsp...emiere-friday/
Leading out of the Michael Jackson’s Halloween special (5.7 mil/1.1), MacGyver (6.4 mil/0. was steady. With a softer lead-in, Blue Bloods (8.1 mil/0.9) held steady in the demo while slipping to an all-time audience low.





CBS: A MICHAEL JACKSON’S HALLOWEEN special was the highest-rated non-sports telecast of the night at 1.1, up 0.3 from last week’s MACGYVER. That show shifted to 9PM for the night, and remained at last week’s 0.8. BLUE BLOODS held at 0.9.

http://www.showbuzzdaily.com/article...0-27-2017.html

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5GgxlKfB8Uk



How did this animated Frankenspecial come together? Well, it was created by Optimum Productions—a company owned by Jackson’s estate—and is produced by John Branca and John McClain, two executors of that estate. According to Branca and director Mark A.Z. Dippé, the special was born a year and a half ago, when Dippé’s team began dreaming up an animated project for the estate.

“The notion of doing something for Halloween was an easy and natural one because of Michael’s love of it,” Branca tells Vanity Fair. “And every October, ‘Thriller’ goes back to the top of the charts, so we wanted to take the next step and create something fun for families.”

Jackson was fond of scary, fantastical live-action projects (“Thriller,” “Ghosts,” “Captain EO”) and had wanted to make an animated project in his later years, according to Branca, who worked with the singer for over two decades. Ultimately, Michael Jackson’s Halloween got the green light thanks to the characters Dippé’s team created—particularly a spider voiced by Cumming, which reminded him of a spider prop that Jackson once used in live shows. He also found the Hay Man to be “a stroke of genius.”

The show was inspired by the spirit of various Charlie Brown specials, like It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown and A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving. “You see those every year, for 20 years,” Branca said. Though there are currently no plans to roll out more seasonal Jackson specials, the estate has not “decided anything” just yet.

Dippé says the animation shares “a certain relationship” with films like The Nightmare Before Christmas, Tim Burton’s idiosyncratic holiday classic, though Jackson’s Halloween doesn’t have quite the same timeless aesthetic. When he began plotting the project, Dippé decided to use 3D animation, tapping some of Jackson’s former choreographers and dancers for the film’s motion capture, in order “to bring Michael’s dancing to life in a very rich and deserving way.” The special also features a dance sequence performed by an animated version of Jackson himself—though Dippé and Branca emphasize that this is not an exact replica of the singer. “It’s a stylized representation of Michael,” Dippé says. “It’s not meant to be a photographic, accurate depiction of him, but rather this magic, stylized version of him.”

The special will weave together 25 songs from Jackson’s catalogue, including spookier fare like “Thriller” and “Blood on the Dance Floor,” slightly deeper cuts like “Childhood,” and peripheral hits like Rockwell’s “Somebody’s Watching Me” and the Jacksons’s “Torture.” For the millions bound to watch Michael Jackson’s Halloween when it airs October 27, Branca has one main piece of advice: “Turn it up loud.”
https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood...loween-special