Lights Camera Jackson Podcasts

Oklahoma City's KJ103 film critic and Critics Choice Association member Jason Black returns to The LCJ Q&A for another Summer Movie Preview. This time we dive into what May, June, July and August 2025 have in store in theaters and on streaming — the blockbusters, the indies, the wild cards and our most anticipated releases!

The one-hour animated music special premieres Thursday May 1st on PBS Kids.

Animated action comedy family series Super Duper Bunny League premieres this Saturday April 19th at 9:30am on Nickelodeon. Creators and EPs Johnny Belt and Robert Scull share insights on bringing to life the adventures of heroic, funny bunnies.

Three-time Emmy winning voice acting icon Keith David and four-time Modern Family SAG Awards winner Rico Rodriguez star in Sneaks. It opens in theaters this Friday April 18th. The animated comedy adventure is about new sneakers won by teen basketball player Edson. The pair is quickly stolen from him — and gets separated. The quest to be reunited in time for a big game is on! David voices "O.G.", and Rodriguez lends his talents to "Ice".

Four-time Best Comedy Album Grammy-winning executive producer Brian Volk-Weiss (of The Nacelle Company) is now the creator and director of RoboForce: The Animated Series, which is taking '80s character toys that didn't get their proper due and giving them a new shot at entertainment stardom. The show premieres this Saturday April 12th on Tubi.

"Iyanu", based on a graphic novel series, is a new animated series premiering this Saturday April 5th at 9am on Cartoon Network, and Sunday April 6th on Max. It's about a special girl who discovers divine powers. Joining me for a quick but deep dive into the show are series writers Kerri Grant and Brandon Easton, supervising director Vincent Edwards and voice director Paula Gammon Wilson.

Emmy-winner Paul Walter Hauser plays iconic "Press Your Luck" contestant Michael Larson in the new dramatic thriller "The Luckiest Man in America", which opens in theaters this Friday April 4th. Hauser and director Samir Oliveros join me for in-depth conversations about bringing this legendary game show story to the screen.

Disney Junior animated series "RoboGobo" — about the rescue pets who rescue pets — makes its Disney+ debut on Tuesday April 1st. Creator and EP Chris Gilligan shares what makes this show so special, along with stories about working on two timeless stop-motion features.

New DreamWorks animated series "BE@RBRICK", based on Medicom Toy's figures, premieres this Friday March 21st on AppleTV+. Showrunner, EP and writer Meghan McCarthy joins me to talk about the show's vision, themes, music and spirit.

I join host Jim Cerqua live on B95.5 (WYJB-FM) for 2025 Oscars predictions and analysis in some of the major categories, plus reflections on the careers of the late Gene Hackman and Michelle Trachtenberg.

New "SpongeBob" spinoff feature film "Plankton: The Movie" debuts March 7th on Netflix. Director Dave Needham ("The Loud House Movie") and stars Mr. Lawrence (Plankton) and Jill Talley (the voice of Karen) join me for a deep dive into the latest Bikini Bottom adventure.

"A Sloth Story" is a new animated comedy adventure about sloths who move to the big city and hope their treasured family recipes make their food truck a major success. It opens in theaters this Friday Feb. 28. Director Tania Vincent shares the many wonderful ingredients that went into creating this grounded and fun film.

New episodes of FOX Animation Domination icon "Family Guy" air Sundays at 8pm through March 23rd. It moves to 8:30pm on March 30th. Three-time Emmy winner Rich Appel and three-time Emmy nominee Alec Sulkin are the showrunners and executive producers, who work closely with creator and star Seth MacFarlane on continuing to deliver quality comedy over a quarter century after the series premiered. But what about a movie? We discuss that and much more.

Viva Kids' new animated feature "Night of the Zoopocalypse", from an idea by Clive Barker and starring the voice of David Harbour, opens in theaters nationwide on Mar. 7. Directors Rodrigo Perez-Castro and Ricardo Curtis, who previously collaborated on several Blue Sky Studios films, share what went into this comedy thriller for families.

Emily Brundige is the Emmy and Annie nominated creator of the new animated family series "Goldie", adapted from her 2019 short. It premieres Friday Feb. 14 on AppleTV+. Brundige shares the inspiration for her show, along with the impact of also working on "Hilda" and "Over the Garden Wall".

"Paddington in Peru", the third installment in the popular family film franchise, opens in North America on February 14th. Dougal Wilson makes his feature film directorial debut and describes what went into this major, complex production.

Jeff Trammell, Emmy and Annie nominated writer on Craig of the Creek, is the creator (as well as EP and writer) of the new Marvel animated series Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man. The first two episodes are now available on Disney+. The remaining eight episodes debut over the next three Wednesdays. Trammell shares insights on the show's story, look, characters and cast, including one of this year's Oscar nominees, Colman Domingo.

Peter Hastings is a six-time Emmy-winner who's worked on the DreamWorks Animation Television Epic Tales of Captain Underpants and various Kung Fu Panda spin-offs. Now he's the director of the studio's new theatrical Dog Man movie, in theaters this Friday January 31st. Adapted from author Dav Pilkey's popular books, this is an action and comedy packed adventure about a part-man, part-dog cop who faces-off against a crime-loving cat, with the TV news cameras constantly rolling.

Seth and Peter Scriver are half-brothers and the directors and subjects of the new animated documentary film "Endless Cookie", which premieres in-person Saturday January 25th at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival and is available through the online platform during the fest. Seth, who is white, and Peter, who is mixed race (Indigenous and white), share this one-of-a-kind presentation of conversations and stories about their lives and their family in Canada. Cookie Scriver (prominently featured in the doc) makes a special appearance during this LCJ Q&A episode. "Endless Cookie", which took nine years to make, is seeking distribution at Sundance.

A group of student government middle schoolers are on a one-of-a-kind island for the summer. New animated series StuGo premieres this Saturday Jan. 11 at 8pm on Disney Channel. Creator and EP Ryan Gillis and Co-EP Sunil Hall ring in the New Year with this adventurous show.

Jeffrey K. Howard, the two-time Emmy-winning "Vegas Film Critic", joins me to discuss 2024 at the movies — our favorite and least favorite films and performances, big surprises and disappointments, early awards season predictions and more!

Hot-off the success of Inside Out 2 (the biggest movie of 2024) comes a new show set in-between Pixar's two films about Riley and her emotions. Dream Productions explores the operations of the movie studio in Riley's mind that makes her cinematic dreams. The four-episode event series is available starting today on Disney+. Composer Nami Melumad shares what went into creating the plethora of music that celebrates so many genres.

Wallace & Gromit are back in an outstanding new adventure. Directors Nick Park (four-time Oscar winner) and Merlin Crossingham (Annie winner) present "Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl". It opens in select theaters Dec. 18 and debuts on Netflix Jan. 3. Park and Crossingham dive into what makes Aardman's latest W&G stop-motion action comedy fun and heartwarming, especially for longtime fans of these beloved characters.

New CG half-hour special "Mickey and the Very Many Christmases", from writers Tom Rogers and Rachel Ruderman ("The Chicken Squad"), puts a Mouse House holiday spin on a classic comedy movie. It premieres this Sunday Dec. 1 at 7pm on Disney Jr. and begins streaming Monday Dec. 2 on Disney+.

"How to Train Your Dragon" trilogy head of character animation Simon Otto makes his animated feature directorial debut with the comedy adventure "That Christmas". It debuts Wednesday Dec. 4 on Netflix. Otto returns to The LCJ Q&A to discuss adapting Richard Curtis' books, working with Brian Cox and crafting a unique holiday family film.

Five years after he made an animated feature by himself ("Away"), director Gints Zilbalodis is back with a new animated movie — "Flow". It's about a cat on the journey of a lifetime... or maybe nine. "Flow" opens in select theaters this Friday Nov. 22. Zilbalodis shares how he explored animals, nature, weather and the earth in cool and visually breathtaking ways.

On the new DC animated series "Creature Commandos", it's a unique task force — incarcerated monsters — on wild missions and adventures. Emmy nominated executive producer and showrunner Dean Lorey ("Arrested Development", "Big Shot") joins me to talk about the comedy and action-packed "CC" (premiering Thursday Dec. 5 on Max).

David Lowery is the director of the new animated holiday short film "An Almost Christmas Story", which premieres this Friday Nov. 15 on Disney+. It's about an owl named Moon who forms a unique friendship with a girl named Luna in The Big Apple. Lowery shares what the holidays and holiday movies mean to him, along with stories about collaborating with John C. Reilly and Alfonso Cuaron, making "Pete's Dragon" and "A Ghost Story" and more.

The new PBS Kids animated series "Carl the Collector" (premiering Thursday November 14th) is about a kid raccoon who has autism. He loves collecting things and sharing his enthusiasm for collections and activities with his friends and family. "CTC" is created by Zachariah OHora (of the Fuzzytown book universe). Lisa Whittick is the show's director.

Long-awaited, fully animated The Day the Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie will receive an awards-qualifying run before the end of 2024, ahead of its official theatrical release on February 28th, 2025. I've screened the film and spoke with director Peter Browngardt about this sci-fi action comedy starring beloved characters who are true to themselves and presented in ways you've never seen before.

Adam Elliot won the Best Animated Short Film Academy Award 20 years ago for "Harvie Krumpet". He followed that up with acclaimed stop-motion feature "Mary & Max". His latest claymation movie is "Memoir of a Snail", which opens in theaters on Oct. 25.

David Feiss and Cinzia Angelini are the directors of the new animated action comedy "HITPIG!", starring Jason Sudeikis and Lilly Singh, which opens in theaters nationwide on November 1st.

Nickelodeon's new animated comedy Max & the Midknights (premiering Wednesday October 30th at 7pm) is adapted from Big Nate author Lincoln Peirce's popular book about a girl in medieval times who yearns to become a knight. Co-Executive Producers Sharon Flynn and David Skelly discuss the show's unique tone, visual perspectives and inspirations.

A new hand-drawn animated feature film adaptation of the classic novel "Kensuke's Kingdom" opens in theaters on Oct. 18. Directors Neil Boyle and Kirk Hendry take me on an adventure, describing what went into the story, music, visual design and much more. Plus, find out what Oscar winner Cillian Murphy did to enhance his vocal performance.

DreamWorks "Mighty Monsterwheelies" morphs classic movie monsters and monster trucks, creating a fun group of characters and episodes for families as we approach Halloween. It premieres Monday October 14th on Netflix. Kyel White developed the series and serves as story editor. Stephanie Simpson is the four-time Emmy-winning executive producer and showrunner.

Lara Croft has been played by Oscar winners Angelina Jolie and Alicia Vikander in movies. She's also an iconic video game heroine. Now she's the focus of a new hand-drawn animated series, with the voice of Hayley Atwell, in "Tomb Raider: The Legend of Lara Croft". It premieres this Thursday October 10th on Netflix. Showrunner, writer and EP Tasha Huo joins me on this episode of The LCJ Q&A Podcast.

DreamWorks Animation celebrates its 30th Anniversary with the release of "The Wild Robot" (now in theaters). Director Chris Sanders (of "How to Train Your Dragon" and "The Croods") and producer Jeff Hermann ("The Boss Baby: Family Business") share details on how they brought specific scenes to life and what this movie has meant to them and audiences around the world.

Max's Gremlins animated series had a successful season one with Secrets of the Mogwai. Season two, Gremlins: The Wild Batch, premieres Thursday October 3rd. Executive Producer and showrunner Tze Chun and fellow EP Brendan Hay preview what fans, including those who love the iconic movies, can look forward to from this fun group of characters and some exciting new ones.

Annie and seven-time Emmy-winning "The Simpsons" co-showrunner, executive producer and writer Matt Selman joins me on this special 350th Episode of The LCJ Q&A Podcast. He shares as much as he can about Season 36 (which starts this Sunday Sept. 29 at 8pm on FOX) and the first-ever "Simpsons" panel presentation at New York Comic Con (Saturday Oct. 19 at 11:30am on the Main Stage).

Zack Snyder, director of "300", "Man of Steel" and 2010 animated feature "Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole", is the creator and executive producer of new adult animated action series "Twilight of the Gods", now streaming on Netflix. He joins fellow EPs Deborah Snyder and Wesley Coller on this LCJ Q&A Podcast episode to talk about the show and the power of animation.

Longtime friend Tomm Looney, co-host of "Benny vs. the Penny" (airing weekends on Peacock and NBC Sports channels nationwide), joins me to talk about Season 2 of the unique sports betting series. We also chat about Looney's childhood and career, Taylor & Travis, current movies, "The Simpsons" and more.

Adam and Craig Malamut's new animated comedy series "Universal Basic Guys" joins the iconic FOX Animation Domination lineup on Sunday Sept. 8 at 8pmET / 5pmPT (live to all timezones after an NFL doubleheader). They discuss the fun characters, storylines and South Jersey inspirations and what shows like "The Simpsons" and "Family Guy" have meant to them.

Two-time Emmy nominee Tom Warburton ("Muppet Babies") is the executive producer and supervising director of the new family animated series "Kindergarten: The Musical". It premieres Tue Sept. 3 on Disney Junior and Wed Sept. 4 on Disney+. Warburton discusses crafting a high-spirited and authentic musical presentation of the kindergarten experience.

There's a new sequel to 2020 hit 100% Wolf opening in theaters nationwide on August 23rd. 200% Wolf is double the energy and double the fun for families, with main character Freddy on another life-changing adventure. Director Alexs Stadermann discusses his return to this universe, creating memorable characters, and how A.I. is impacting the animation industry.

New animated series "Tales of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles", starring the voice actors from last summer's hit movie "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem", premieres Friday August 9th on Paramount+. Co-Showrunners Chris Yost and Alan Wan share insights on this fresh chapter in the 'heroes in a half shell' saga.

Sandy and SpongeBob head to Texas in the live-action/CG feature "Saving Bikini Bottom: The Sandy Cheeks Movie". It premieres Friday August 2nd on Netflix. Executive Producers Vincent Waller and Marc Ceccarelli celebrate 25 years of SpongeBob with a deep dive into the beloved characters and the wild new film.

At Blue Sky Studios, Carlos Saldanha directed "Ice Age" and "Rio" installments, as well as "Ferdinand", which earned him a Best Animated Feature Oscar nomination. Now Saldanha is the director of a new live-action family film featuring some hand-drawn and CG animation. "Harold and the Purple Crayon", adapted from the beloved book, opens in theaters on Aug. 2.

Natasha Kline is the creator of the new Disney animated series "Primos", which is inspired by her childhood growing up in Los Angeles. Tater, who's about to turn 10, has a memorable summer at home with her 12 cousins. "Primos" premieres this Thursday July 25th at 8pm on Disney Channel and this Friday July 26th on Disney+.

Phenomenon card game Exploding Kittens is now an adult animated comedy series, premiering this Friday July 12th on Netflix. Find out how a cat exorcism and Bruce Willis movies have inspired showrunners and creators Matthew Inman (who also co-created the game) and Shane Kosakowski.

Ariel Shaffir and Kyle Hunter co-wrote 2016's hit adult animated comedy Sausage Party. They're now the co-creators, showrunners and EPs of new follow-up series Sausage Party: Foodtopia, premiering Thursday July 11th on Prime Video.

It's been 35 years since Disney released the game-changing The Little Mermaid. Ariel, premiering June 27th on Disney Junior and June 28th on Disney+, is a new CG family music series that spotlights the title character's youth 'under the sea'. Executive Producer Lynne Southerland and Art Director Chrystin Garland share why they enjoy being part of this world.