Rumors concerning a sequel to the beloved Finding Nemo are beginning to accumulate. In an article yesterday, The Hollywood Reporter claims that Ellen DeGeneres, comedienne behind the voice of Dory in the original film, is in talks with Pixar about reprising her role in the sequel.

In their report, they reiterate the rumored 2016 release target and also name Victoria Strouse as lead screenwriter, and Lindsey Collins as producer.

The evidence is mounting. The sequel seems more and more certain as time passes; so much so that there is now an official IMDB page dedicated to the rumored film. The timing of these rumors also seems a bit convenient. With the 3D re-release of Finding Nemo coming in a few short weeks on September 14th, the timing seems like it might be ripe for another official announcement. Here's hoping.

The home video release for Pixar's latest flick has now been officially set for November 13th. Brave will continue with Pixar's tradition of early November home video releases for their summer theatrical blockbusters.

It comes in two varieties, both of which are available for pre-order on Amazon — a five disc 3D combo pack which contains a 3D blu-ray, 2 regular blu-rays, a DVD and a digital copy, and a three disc combo pack which comes with 2 blu-rays and a DVD.

Brenda Chapman, original director of Brave, who has since left Pixar for Lucasfilm, published an opinion piece with the New York Times titled, “Stand Up for Yourself, and Mentor Others” in which she describes some of her true feelings behind the director switch-up during production of Brave when she was replaced by Mark Andrews.

In the original reports “creative differences” were cited as the reason for the replacement. Nothing further was ever said, and Brenda remained on staff at Pixar, giving the impression that she was still happy with her role at Pixar. But with her recent move to Lucasfilm, and now this article, one might assume otherwise:

It has been a heartbreakingly hard road for me over the last year and a half. When Pixar took me off of "Brave" – a story that came from my heart, inspired by my relationship with my daughter – it was devastating.

Brenda Chapman

She also writes extensively about the role of women in animation, and the lack of protection available to directors in the animation industry. It's a quick, but interesting read, and gives us a peek inside an issue that doesn't seem to have transpired as rosily as we were originally told.

A new book detailing the development process of the Toy Story films is now available for purchase on Amazon. The book contains a foreword by the famous Japanese animator Hayao Miyazaki of Studio Ghibli, whose character “Totoro” made a cameo in Toy Story 3. The afterword for the book was written by John Lasseter.

Pixar is preparing a new Toy Story Toon to go along with its two other shorts that build upon the Toy Story universe. Partysaurus Rex is set to debut with the 3D re-release of Finding Nemo in 3D on the 14th of September, less than a month away. Enjoy the clip in full HD below.

During a lunchtime discussion this afternoon, Brenda Chapman broke the news that as of the end of July, she no longer works at Pixar. She is now working as a consultant for Lucasfilm animation, but wasn't able to share any details about the project with me. She started work at Pixar when Cars was in production, and lent a hand to many of the Pixar films that have come since then, while developing Brave in the meantime.

Brenda was the source for the original story behind Brave and was its first director before passing the baton to Mark Andrews for the last leg of production. She has had a lot of influence on many other iconic animated films, as the director of The Prince of Egypt, and story work on Beauty and the Beast, The Lion King and The Little Mermaid.

For a more detailed peek into her background, read the interview she granted Pixar Portal back in December: Part I: Career and Part II: Brave.

I'm sad to see Brenda and her unique perspective leaving Pixar, but am looking forward to all of her projects to come, regardless of the studio they originate from.