The robot romance "WALL-E," directed by Rockport native and Oscar-winner Andrew Stanton, has won three major awards in the last week.
First was the 35th annual People's Choice Awards ceremony on Wednesday when the "WALL-E" was named best family movie.
Then, "WALL-E" was named best animated feature for the year Thursday during the 14th annual Critics' Choice Awards. The awards, presented by the Broadcast Film Critics Association at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium, honor cinematic excellence in 17 categories. The group represents more than 200 TV, radio and online critics from the United States and Canada.
And on Sunday, the film won the Golden Globe for best animated film.
Stanton, 42, thanked producer Pixar Animation and distributor Walt Disney, saying the unusual love story between two robots who communicate in beeps and squeaks "couldn't have been made anywhere else."
He also thanked his wife, also a Cape Ann native, and children whom he said inspired him to make the movie. "Wall-E" was not the first Globe nomination for a Stanton movie; "Finding Nemo" was nominated in 2004 for best musical or comedy movie but did not win.
"After 'Nemo,' I never really thought it would happen again," Stanton said of 'Wall-E' after the Globe ceremony. "I made something really eccentric to my taste that would probably speak to a minority. It's ironic that's the smartest thing I could have done. ... It's really fulfilling for me to see people really like it for the same reasons I wanted to make it."
"It was made out of such pure love of cinema," said the director. "I've never narrowed it to a demographic. We've just made what we want to see. We're just lucky enough that we're immature enough that the kids seem to like it, too."
The Globes serve as a barometer for potential Oscar contenders, often singling out deserving newcomers who might have been overlooked among bigger-name stars. This year's Oscar ceremony comes on Feb. 22. Nominations for this year's Oscars will be announced Thursday, Jan. 22.
The Globes are presented by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, a group of about 90 reporters covering show business for overseas outlets.
"WALL-E." is also squaring off for top honors from the American Cinema Editors in comedy or musical film editing against "In Bruges," "Mamma Mia!," "Tropic Thunder," and Woody Allen's "Vicky Cristina Barcelona." Winners will be announced at a Hollywood ceremony Feb. 15.
Stanton won his Oscar when Disney/Pixar's smash hit "Finding Nemo" was named best animated picture of 2003. He wrote and directed the film.
"Finding Nemo" is about a young clown fish who gets lost and ends up in a dentist's office aquarium before being reunited with his father. The dentist's office in the film is based on the office of Stanton's childhood dentist, Sam Ina of Manchester. There is a painting of Motif No. 1 on one of the walls and a lamp includes Thacher Island's twin lights.
Stanton has been a co-writer, co-director, executive producer and story artist on Disney/Pixar's previous features "Toy Story" (1995), for which he was nominated for an Oscar for Best Original Screenplay; "A Bug's Life" (1998), "Toy Story 2" (1999) and "Monsters Inc." (2001).
Material from the Associated Press was used in this story by staff writer Andrea Holbrook. She may reached at aholbrook@gloucestertimes.com.
