Ambriz Bros' stop-motion follow-up heads to Venice; Aardman marks 50 years with a puppet auction

I Am Frankelda directors Roy and Arturo Ambriz (Cinema Fantasma) presented their next stop-motion feature, The Ballad of the Phoenix, at the Venice Gap-Financing Market (Sept 4-6, 2026); Guillermo del Toro, a longtime mentor, urged them to 'go bigger' after their first feature. Both works were already fully catalogued with detailed production notes from earlier runs. Separately, Aardman marked its 50th anniversary with a public auction of 220+ puppets and props (including Wallace & Gromit pieces), and yesterday's open watch-item - the untitled 2027 Aardman/Pokemon project - has since been confirmed as Pokemon Tales: The Misadventures of Sirfetch'd and Pichu, already added to the catalogue with a Disney+ distribution deal noted.