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PODCAST

Fine Tooning with Drew Taylor

Jim Hill Media Podcast Network

Jim and Drew break down the animation world frame by frame, until you get the singular picture. If you love Disney animation, Pixar, and the classics that were hand sketched, or built out of 1"s and 0"s in a computer, this is the podcast that draws you in.

tv & film visual arts

All Episodes

30:53

The Simpsons at 800: No Finale, Just More Springfield...

Fine Tooning with Drew Taylor ·

2026/02/17

As The Simpsons hits its 800th episode, Jim Hill takes a moment to appreciate how this once-scrappy Fox upstart became an animation institution that may never actually end. From the long-lost series finale concept where Homer and Krusty were secretly the same person to the show’s upcoming theatrical sequel and Disney’s long-term park plans, this week’s Fine Tooning looks at how Springfield keeps evolving. Plus, box office updates, Avatar sequel math, Matt Braly’s next move after Sony, and a wild

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44:42

Josh D’Amaro Gets the Big Chair, Dana Walden Gets the...

Fine Tooning with Drew Taylor ·

2026/02/10

Welcome back to Fine Tooning, where Drew Taylor and Jim Hill record on Super Bowl Sunday, dodge football talk, and instead zero in on animation news, box office bruises, and one of the biggest corporate shake-ups in Disney history. Along the way, there is chatter about Super Bowl trailers, art books you are not allowed to open yet, and why studios still love spending big bucks for 30 seconds of attention. Then the conversation turns serious as Disney’s future leadership comes sharply into focus

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48:33

From “Goat” to “Hoppers,” Why 2026 Is Shaping Up to...

Fine Tooning with Drew Taylor ·

2026/02/03

This week on Fine Tooning, Jim Hill and Drew Taylor kick things off on Groundhog Day weekend by leaning into an appropriately animal-heavy episode. From Sony Pictures Animation’s upcoming sports comedy Goat to Pixar’s sci-fi action comedy Hoppers, the guys break down why animated animals are having a moment and how recent box office and streaming successes are shaping what comes next. Along the way, there’s box office chatter, awards-season surprises, toy fair buzz, and a heartfelt remembrance of

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49:29

The Last-Minute Fixes That Turned The Lion King into...

Fine Tooning with Drew Taylor ·

2026/01/27

Jim Hill and Drew Taylor break down a very strange January weekend for animation and the box office. Between a massive snowstorm shutting down hundreds of theaters, surprise Oscar nominations, and some heartfelt remembrances of animation legends, this episode covers a lot of ground. There is industry news, Disney history, and a few thoughtful detours along the way.NEWS • How a nationwide snowstorm shut down more than 400 theaters and dragged the North American box office down to just $58 million

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55:05

From Mr. Magoo to Speedy Gonzales - How Animation...

Fine Tooning with Drew Taylor ·

2026/01/20

Right in the thick of awards season, Drew Taylor and Jim Hill cover a wide swath of animation history and current events - from box office heavyweights and streaming announcements to the complicated legacies of mid-century cartoon characters. Along the way, they connect the dots between past controversies, present-day reappraisals, and how modern creators are recontextualizing classic animated icons. NEWS • Why Avatar: Fire & Ash remains unstoppable at the box office, holding the top spot for a

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47:10

Fire in the Ink & Paint Department – How “Banjo the...

Fine Tooning with Drew Taylor ·

2026/01/13

Right in the thick of awards season, Jim Hill and Drew Taylor sit down to read the tea leaves on this year’s animation race while also digging into a pivotal - and often misunderstood - moment in Disney animation history. From Annie Award trends and box office signals to Don Bluth’s garage-era rebellion, this episode covers how a shortage of effects animation talent helped spark one of the biggest talent walkouts the studio ever faced.NEWS • Why KPop Demon Hunters and Pixar’s Elio leading the

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53:19

The End of Oscar Night on Network TV and the Rise of...

Fine Tooning with Drew Taylor ·

2026/01/06

Welcome back to Fine Tooning with Jim Hill and Drew Taylor, who is officially back behind the mic after a very eventful hiatus. Before diving into a mountain of animation news, the guys catch up on where Drew has been, why Burbank’s Providence Saint Joseph Medical Center has more Disney history than you might expect, and why this might be one of the biggest transition moments the entertainment industry has seen in decades.NEWS • The Academy Awards announce a major media shift, with the Oscars

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37:33

Fine Tooning Looks Back at 2025, From Disney’s AI...

Fine Tooning with Drew Taylor ·

2025/12/30

As 2025 comes to a close, Jim Hill flies solo on this Drew-free edition of Fine Tooning to take stock of one of the biggest, strangest, and most consequential years the animation industry has seen in decades. From record-shattering box office runs and surprise streaming hits to uncomfortable conversations about AI and the future of creative labor, this episode connects the dots between where animation has been and where it appears to be heading next.NEWS • Why Disney’s $1 billion investment in

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36:14

How “The Small One” Became a Very Big Problem for...

Fine Tooning with Drew Taylor ·

2025/12/23

With Drew Taylor sidelined by a nasty case of the Christmas crud, Jim Hill flies solo for this end-of-year edition of Fine Tooning. After a bit of seasonal vamping, Jim dives into animation news before kicking off the first half of a deep-dive holiday history lesson. This week’s episode sets the stage for a story that begins with a modest Disney featurette and ends up triggering one of the biggest upheavals in the history of Walt Disney Feature Animation. NEWS • Avatar: Fire & Ash dominates the

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52:19

Disney’s 200-Character OpenAI Bet and a Detour Down...

Fine Tooning with Drew Taylor ·

2025/12/16

Drew Taylor and Jim Hill kick off this week’s show with a genuinely wild media landscape where holiday releases, awards season, and corporate maneuvering are all colliding at once. From a brewing battle over Warner Bros. Discovery to Disney’s latest tech-flavored swing, the first half is a rapid tour through what’s breaking (and what might be breaking next). Then Jim takes the wheel solo for a longer, history-packed trip over the rainbow, tracing how animation veterans, studio deals, and a certain

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48:24

Netflix Buys Warner Bros. Discovery and an Animated...

Fine Tooning with Drew Taylor ·

2025/12/09

Jim and Drew unpack one of the biggest industry shakeups in years as Netflix snaps up Warner Bros. Discovery, a deal that reshapes everything from Adult Swim to the broader animation marketplace. Then the guys follow the yellow brick road into this week’s feature, exploring the strange, stop-and-start history of Hollywood’s many attempts to revisit Oz, from Disney’s abandoned visions to Filmation’s long-delayed Journey Back to Oz. NEWS • Netflix acquires Warner Bros. Discovery for $82.7 billion

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44:06

Zootopia 2 Runs Wild in China and Oz Takes Over the...

Fine Tooning with Drew Taylor ·

2025/12/02

Jim goes solo this week while Drew speeds back toward LA for an early press screening of “Avatar: Fire & Ash.” In the meantime, Jim catches us up on a very eventful week in animation news, from the monster launch of “Zootopia 2” in China to Disney Parks animatronics already slipping into B mode. He also spotlights new shorts, holiday specials, and takes a deep dive into the surprising Hollywood history behind “The Wizard of Oz.” NEWS • Zootopia 2 shatters expectations with a $156M domestic debut

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49:56

Inside the Animation Money Machine: Zootopia 2,...

Fine Tooning with Drew Taylor ·

2025/11/25

As Jim Hill and Drew Taylor sit down just hours before Zootopia 2 preview screenings begin, they dig into the film’s early reactions, the surprising box-office shape of the holiday season, and the escalating economics behind today’s animated franchises.HIGHLIGHTS Early reactions to Zootopia 2 and what Drew learned from scoring sessions and long-lead press days. How Wicked: For Good outpaced the original film’s opening—and why reviews may complicate the long-term outlook. Stephen

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43:55

Trailers, Box Office Surprises & SpongeBob’s Return:...

Fine Tooning with Drew Taylor ·

2025/11/18

As the long Thanksgiving weekend approaches, Jim Hill and Drew Taylor dig into a flurry of newly dropped animation trailers, surprising box office projections, and the industry shifts shaping Spring and Summer 2026. Recorded just as holiday season ramps up, this week’s Fine Tooning mixes news, nostalgia, and some unexpected industry history.HIGHLIGHTS Why studios dropped so many major trailers this week — and what their early online rollouts say about today’s marketing playbook. A look at

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44:21

When the Sky Fell: The Turbulent Legacy of Chicken...

Fine Tooning with Drew Taylor ·

2025/11/11

Jim Hill and Drew Taylor salute Veterans Day and talk about Xavier “X” Atencio, the new Disney Editions book celebrating the Imagineer behind the Haunted Mansion’s “Grim Grinning Ghosts.” Then, Drew and Jim dive into the weekend box office — from Predator: Badlands breaking franchise records to the upcoming Zootopia 2 — before Jim goes solo to finish his deep-dive on the 20th anniversary of Chicken Little: Disney’s first CG feature and the film that changed everything at the studio.HIGHLIGHTS

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51:51

When “Chicken Little” Took Flight: Disney’s First CGI...

Fine Tooning with Drew Taylor ·

2025/11/04

This week on Fine Tooning with Drew Taylor, Jim Hill and Drew Taylor mark the 20th anniversary of Chicken Little — Disney’s first fully computer-animated feature — and trace how the film’s rocky launch reshaped the studio’s animation strategy in the mid-2000s. Recorded the morning after Daylight Savings Time kicked in, this episode mixes history, humor, and behind-the-scenes insight as the guys unpack what really happened inside Disney Animation during one of its most volatile eras. HIGHLIGHTS

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60:31

How Disney’s “Pinocchio” Became the Studio’s Most...

Fine Tooning with Drew Taylor ·

2025/10/28

Jim Hill and Drew Taylor celebrate Halloween week by taking a deep dive into Disney’s darkest fairy tale — and the long, strange legacy of “Pinocchio.” From canceled attractions and creepy Hong Kong mazes to Julie Taymor’s unrealized Broadway musical, this little wooden boy has haunted Disney history for over 80 years.Why Walt Disney once scrapped six months of work on “Pinocchio” The forgotten Disneyland expansion that almost gave us “Pinocchio Square” How Hong Kong Disneyland

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53:53

From Disneyland to “Charlotte’s Web”: The Sherman...

Fine Tooning with Drew Taylor ·

2025/10/21

This week on Fine Tooning, Drew Taylor and Jim Hill explore how Disney’s most beloved songwriting duo—the Sherman Brothers—found new creative life after leaving the Mouse House in 1968. From the heartfelt melodies of Snoopy Come Home to the timeless charm of Charlotte’s Web, Jim revisits how their music carried Disney’s spirit into other studios’ animated worlds.Drew shares highlights from the Animation Is Life event, including Q&As for ChaO and Arco Why TRON: Ares’s box office dip has

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49:19

Inside the Animation Is Film Festival with Matt...

Fine Tooning with Drew Taylor ·

2025/10/14

Jim Hill and Drew Taylor welcome special guest Matt Kazantzik, Program Director for the Animation Is Film Festival, to talk about what fans can expect at this year’s event at the TCL Chinese Theatre. From exclusive screenings and panels to the state of the animation industry, this episode dives deep into the heart of Hollywood’s celebration of animated storytelling. Jim and Drew also cover the latest box-office chatter, streaming updates, and big animation headlines.• Why Tron: Ares may still have

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52:00

Inside “Zootopia 2” – Drew’s First Look at Disney’s...

Fine Tooning with Drew Taylor ·

2025/10/07

This week on Fine Tooning with Drew Taylor, Jim Hill and Drew dive into Disney’s animation future, beginning with Drew’s firsthand report from the “Zootopia 2” press day. From the creative direction behind the sequel to updates on everything from “The Simpsons Movie 2” to Quentin Tarantino’s surprise animated project, this episode covers the wild world of animation news and commentary with Jim and Drew’s trademark insight.What Drew learned at Disney’s “Zootopia 2” press day Why “The

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