‘Zootopia’ and ‘Kubo’ lead Annie Awards nominations

Disney animated feature “Zootopia� came in ahead of the pack when the Annie Awards nominations were announced Monday.

The film scored 11 nominations from the International Animated Film Society, ASIFA-Hollywood, whose members were taken by the charming parable about tolerance and prejudice as played out in the animal kingdom.

“Kubo and the Two Strings,� the latest stop-motion animated film from Laika, raked in 10 nominations, the most a Laika film has ever garnered.

The Annie Awards features 36 categories, including Animated Feature, Animated Feature-Independent, as well as awards for individual performance across both film and television.

“It has turned out to be an especially successful year for animation on movie screens, on broadcast and cable TV, for new streaming networks, in games and VR,� Jerry Beck, ASIFA-Hollywood president, said in a statement Monday. “I really believe we are in a new ‘golden age,’ as outstanding examples of the art form — whether hand drawn, CG, stop motion or mo-cap — are represented by this year’s Annie nominees.�

Both “Zootopia� and “Kubo� are competing for the Animated Feature prize, alongside Pixar’s “Finding Dory,� DreamWorks’ “Kung Fu Panda 3� and Disney’s “Moana.�

The 44th annual Annie Awards will take place Feb. 4 at UCLA’s Royce Hall. The full list of nominees can be found here.

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