13. Dreamworks
Original: Pixar This entry doesnt concern singular films but whole studios. These two animation Behemoths output has at times been too similar to purely be coincidence. Its rare for an animated film to not look great these days, whatever studio its from, but as Pixar have always suggested, its the story that really counts and the ideas that separate a decent animated film from a great one. Not so much now as both studios are huge successes in their own right and make buckets of money for fun, but for a while there the output from a few of their films did at least look a little similar and if this is down to anything other than coincidence (and were not saying it isnt) its likely due to Jeffrey Katzenburg. Along with Steven Spielberg and David Geffen, Katzenberg founded DreamWorks Animation in 1994. After serving as an executive at Disney before jumping ship, Katzenberg was hugely influential in Disneys last great run at making 2D traditionally animated films, being involved in the releases of The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast and The Lion King. So if Katzenberg left Disney in 1994, would it be churlish to suppose that the release of A Bugs Life by Pixar and Antz by Dreamworks in 1998 seemed a touch more than coincidence. Pixar became the critics darling because their films operate at an innate, personal level, taking on wider themes, audiences can really relate to their anthropomorphic characters. Thats not to say DreamWorks is all surface but at least when comparing films at a reductive, superficial level, theyre both animated films about talking bugs are they not?
Katzenburg was highly involved at Disney and not only that but close friends and colleagues with future Pixar chief John Lasseter. If there is any legitimate reason to compare the studios releases the case of A Bugs Life vs Antz is perhaps the most substantial. Being as animated features take a number of years to produce and exist before production at an ideas level, Katzenberg would have been able to bring a few things with him from Disney and the timing of Katzenberg leaving and the release of each film is too precise. But why stop there? Pixar and DreamWorks both released their talking monster movies, respectively Monsters Inc. and Shrek in 2001 and perhaps more egregiously, their talking fish movies followed. Pixar released Finding Nemo in 2003 followed by DreamWorks Shark Tale in 2004. Coincidence? Who knows? Though perhaps in the case of Finding Nemo, Pixar should be more worried about French author Franck Le Calvez and his book Pierrot Le Poisson-Clown, but thats a book and therefore not eligible here best save that list for another day.