Animation – The Nerds of Color

The NOCs of the Roundtable review and discuss the wonderfully wacky roller coaster that is Warner Bros. Animation’s new film The Cat in the Hat, out this weekend.

Giancarlo Esposito and Quinta Brunson sit in red armchairs during a press day interview, in front of a striped teal-and-white backdrop featuring animated character cutouts from The Cat in the Hat.

Animation Interview Movies

November 4, 2026 Mike Manalo

Fantastic Fun with Quinta Brunson, Giancarlo Esposito, and the Directors of ‘The Cat in the Hat’

We sat down with The Cat in the Hat co-stars Quinta Brunson and Giancarlo Esposito, along with directors Erica Rivinoja and Alessandro Carloni, to talk about bringing the Seussian classic to life.

Animation Reviews

November 3, 2026 Swara Ahmed

NOCs of the Roundtable Review ‘Avatar: Seven Havens’ Episodes 10-13 Season Finale

The NOCs of the Roundtable are joined by special guest Meg to spoiler dive into and review the last four episodes of Avatar: Seven: Havens, Book 1 Survival.

Alisa Reyes and Nikita François at L.A. Comic Con

Animation Conventions Interview Television

November 3, 2026 Nikita Francois

Catching Up with ‘The Proud Family’ and ‘All That’ Actress Alisa Reyes at L.A. Comic Con

At L.A. Comic Con, we sat down with Alisa Reyes to talk about her enduring career across The Proud Family and All That, and her lasting impact as a champion of representation on screen.

America Ferrera, Bill Hader, and Xochitl Gomez burst into laughter while seated in red armchairs during an interview in front of a Cat in the Hat backdrop.

Animation Interview Movies

October 30, 2026 Mike Manalo

Chaos with ‘Cat in the Hat’ Stars America Ferrera, Xochitl Gomez, and Bill Hader

America Ferrera, Xochitl Gomez, and Bill Hader sit down with The Nerds of Color for one of the most chaotic, hilarious interviews the site has ever done ahead of The Cat in the Hat’s November 6th release.

Animation Gone Too Soon

October 26, 2026 Victoria Wade

Eric Bauza’s Legacy: The Voice that Carried Generations of Animation Forward

Remembering Eric Bauza, the Filipino Canadian voice actor who brought beloved characters to life and helped shape the future of animation.

Animation Reviews

October 26, 2026 Swara Ahmed

NOCs of the Roundtable Review ‘Avatar: Seven Havens’ Episodes 7-9

Lauren, Victoria, and Swara discuss the immensely consequential seventh through ninth chapters of Book 1: Survival of Avatar: Seven Havens, diving into the new revelations about Korra and Asami, the spiritual mysteries that continue to deepen and elude us, the state of Ellora, the Faceless as a force to potentially root for, and much more. We also discuss what we think might happen in the final four chapters of Book 1: Survival this upcoming Friday!

Movies Interview Music Stop Motion

October 25, 2026 Mike Manalo

How LAIKA’s Artists Brought Colin Meloy and Carson Ellis’ ‘Wildwood’ Vision to Life

We sat down with costume designer Deb Cook, FX lead Ollie Jones, animation head Brad Schiff, cinematographer Caleb Deschanel, and Wildwood author Colin Meloy and illustrator Carson Ellis to talk about bringing LAIKA’s most ambitious film to life.

Jacob Tremblay and Peyton Elizabeth Lee laugh during a press junket interview in front of the Wildwood poster.

Interview Movies Stop Motion

October 23, 2026 Mike Manalo

Travis Knight, Peyton Elizabeth Lee, and Jacob Tremblay on Bringing ‘Wildwood’ to Life

Travis Knight, Peyton Elizabeth Lee, and Jacob Tremblay on bringing LAIKA’s 16-years-in-the-making Wildwood to the big screen.

Animation Reviews

October 19, 2026 Swara Ahmed

NOCs of the Roundtable Review ‘Avatar: Seven Havens’ Episodes 4-6

Lauren, Swara, and special guest Maryam review and discuss the episodes 4-6 of Avatar: Seven Havens, breaking them down in full spoilers.

A close-up of a frightened Billie staring at sparks of magic flickering from her fingertips in her bedroom.

Animation Interview Movies

October 13, 2026 Michael Lee

‘Hexed’ Filmmakers on Visual Storytelling, Cutting Great Jokes, and Blink-182 Puns

We talk to the directors, writers, and producers behind Disney’s Hexed about shaping Billie and Alice’s mother-daughter story, the visual language of Hexe, and the Blink-182-inspired scene names they almost didn’t admit to.

Animation Movies Trailers

October 12, 2026 Michael Lee

‘Hexed’ Early Preview: Inside Disney Animation’s New World of Witches and Family Secrets

The Nerds of Color joined a group of journalists at Walt Disney Animation Studios in Burbank, California, for an early look at Hexed, where directors Fawn Veerasunthorn and Jason Hand, co-director Josie Trinidad, producers Roy Conli and Yvett Merino, and writers Jared Bush and Dana Ledoux Miller pulled back the curtain to reveal a few of the tricks behind the magic of the film’s story, characters, and creative process.

Animation Reviews

October 11, 2026 Swara Ahmed

NOCs of the Roundtable Review the First Three Episodes of ‘Avatar: Seven Havens’

Lauren, Swara, and special guest Neebz of the Salaam Nerds Podcast give a full on SPOILER review for the first three episodes of Avatar: Seven Havens, diving into everything great about the series so far, the mysteries it’s setting up, its broadening of Asian cultural incorporation, and much more.

Animation Movies Reviews

October 10, 2026 Mike Manalo

NOC Review: ‘Ray Gunn’ is a Brad Bird Blast

Ray Gunn is Brad Bird’s first film since 2018’s Incredibles 2. So does it soar to the same heights as his classics? Let’s just say in a movie that features flying cars and jet packs, you better believe it!

Composer Nathan Matthew David poses with a group of local Filipino musicians and community elders in traditional dress inside a bamboo hut during his research trip to the Philippines

Animation Interview Movies Music

September 29, 2026 Mike Manalo

Feeling the Music of ‘Forgotten Island’ with Composer Nathan Matthew David

We sat down with composer Nathan Matthew David to talk about scoring Forgotten Island — and how he drew on his own Filipino heritage, and a research trip back to the Philippines, to blend traditional folk music with modern synth pop for the film’s soundtrack.

Key art for Forgotten Island: three animated characters -- one wearing a boombox headpiece, one making a peace sign, and a dog-like creature reaching toward the camera -- stand under a glowing sun against palm trees and ocean

Roundtable Animation Movies Reviews

September 28, 2026 Swara Ahmed

NOCs of the Roundtable Spoiler Review ‘Forgotten Island’

Lauren, Mike, Michael, and Swara review the latest film out now from DreamWorks, Forgotten Island, directed and written by Januel Mercado and Joel Crawford and starring H.E.R. and Liza Soberano

Animation Interview Movies

September 25, 2026 Mike Manalo

A Historic Night at the ‘Forgotten Island’ World Premiere

We were there as Forgotten Island made history as the first film to world premiere at the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art — and as the first Hollywood animated film centered on Filipino culture. We bring you our red carpet conversations with the cast and crew, including Jo Koy, H.E.R., Harvey Guillén, and directors Januel Mercado and Joel Crawford.

Animation Interview

September 24, 2026 Michael Lee

Brad Bird and Michael Giacchino on the Long Road to ‘Ray Gunn’

Brad Bird and longtime collaborator Michael Giacchino open up about their decades-long creative partnership, the hand-drawn animation Bird still champions, and what it finally took to get Ray Gunn made.

Raymond Gunn (Sam Rockwell) and Eyera share a drink in Ray's private investigator office in Ray Gunn.

Animation Movies

September 23, 2026 Michael Lee

Inside the Making of ‘Ray Gunn’ and Brad Bird’s Vision of a Noir Future

Nearly 30 years in the making, Brad Bird’s Ray Gunn blends Buck Rogers pulp with Maltese Falcon-style noir, and we got an inside look at the character design, world-building, and cinematography behind it.

Animation Movies Stop Motion

September 21, 2026 Mike Manalo

The Filmmakers of LAIKA on Handcrafting ‘Wildwood’

We sat down with Wildwood’s costume designer, character FX lead, rapid prototyping director, production designer, and head of animation to talk puppets, invention, and the challenges of bringing LAIKA’s next film to life.

Animation Interview Movies Stop Motion

September 18, 2026 Mike Manalo

Chris Butler, Peyton Elizabeth Lee, and Jacob Tremblay on How ‘Wildwood’ Found Its Voice

We caught up with Wildwood writer Chris Butler, along with stars Peyton Elizabeth Lee and Jacob Tremblay, to find out how LAIKA’s next film found its voice.

Mike Manalo poses in a navy coat and orange scarf on a misty forest path, part of a keepsake photo taken on LAIKA’s Wildwood-inspired set.

Animation Movies Stop Motion

September 17, 2026 Mike Manalo

Witnessing the Wonders of ‘Wildwood’ at LAIKA Studios

We went behind the scenes at LAIKA’s Hillsboro, Oregon studio for an up-close look at how the artists, animators, and craftspeople behind Wildwood are bringing Portland’s own enchanted forest to stop-motion life.

Forgotten Island directors Joel Crawford and Januel Mercado laugh together in director's chairs in front of concept art from the film.

Animation Interview Movies

September 9, 2026 Mike Manalo

The Directors of ‘Forgotten Island’ Take Us Back to Nakali

We sat down once more with Forgotten Island directors Joel Crawford and Januel Mercado to dig into the friendship, inspirations, and Filipino roots behind their new DreamWorks film ahead of its September 25 release.