Happy Feet

Happy Feet is a 2006 animated jukebox musical comedy film directed and produced by George Miller and written by Miller, John Collee, Judy Morris and Warren Coleman. It stars Elijah Wood, Robin Williams, Brittany Murphy, Hugh Jackman, Nicole Kidman, Hugo Weaving, Anthony LaPaglia, Magda Szubanski and Steve Irwin. In the film, Mumble, a tap-dancing emperor penguin who lacks the ability to sing a heartsong to attract a soulmate and is ridiculed by his peers and family, departs on a journey across Antarctica to learn what is causing the local fish population to decline. Happy Feet was the first animated film produced by Kennedy Miller and Animal Logic. An international co-production between the United States and Australia, the film was produced at Sydney-based visual effects and animation studio Animal Logic. The film was released in North America on 17 November 2006 and in Australia on 26 December. A planned IMAX 3D release was cancelled due to budgetary issues. Happy Feet received generally positive reviews from critics, with praise for its visuals, storyline and songs, and grossed $384 million against its $100 million budget, becoming the tenth-highest-grossing film of 2006. It earned the inaugural BAFTA Award for Best Animated Film, and the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature, and was nominated for the Annie Award and the Saturn Award for Best Animated Feature. A sequel, Happy Feet Two, was released in 2011.