PORTLAND, Ore. & NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov 6, 2025--
LAIKA, iconic, instant classic-producing stop-motion animation studio and Rizzoli announce a five-project collaboration falling under the Rizzoli Universe imprint, celebrating LAIKA’s 20 th anniversary. The multi-title deal will feature original art and photography, never-before-seen archival material and behind-the-scenes secrets across all of LAIKA’s films, including ParaNorman, The Boxtrolls, Kubo and the Two Strings, and Missing Link with dedicated titles for Coraline and Wildwood. All five publications will celebrate the remarkable story of the Oregon-based animation studio that has and continues to revolutionize the world of cinema.
This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20251106815080/en/
First up is LAIKA: The Magic Behind a Stop-Motion Dream Factory, set for release March 10, 2026. The first installment in LAIKA and Rizzoli’s new publishing venture, this expansive and gorgeously designed hardcover illustrates the story behind the studio and the hundreds of artists, craftspeople, and technicians who brought its films to life, detailing every aspect of their creative process. Script development, puppet-making, 3D printing technology, storyboards, and early sketches—from each of their iconic projects—converge into the definitive monograph on the “ LAIKADream Factory.”
The Art of Wildwood (fall 2026) will coincide with the highly anticipated release of Wildwood, celebrating the studio’s latest film through sketches, concept art, storyboards, and photography. The Art of Coraline (date TBC) is the perfect occasion to celebrate the film that has thrilled and inspired audiences around the world for over 16 years, through an exclusive, behind-the-scenes lens. Original art inspired by the iconic film will be transposed into the Coraline Oracle Deck and Guidebook (fall 2026), and LAIKA’s whole canon of characters will be featured in a LAIKA Tarot Deck and Guidebook (fall 2027).
“LAIKA’s films are beloved around the world, not only for their memorable heroes and singular stories, but also for the artistic excellence that goes into crafting each frame of film. That’s why there’s no better partner for LAIKA than Rizzoli, renowned for books that transcend the ordinary to become timeless objects of art. We’re thrilled to collaborate with such an esteemed publisher on this series of beautiful, collectible publications that showcase the artistry behind our films.”
- David Burke, LAIKA Chief Marketing & Operations Officer
“Rizzoli Universe is excited to celebrate the history of LAIKA and its unique place in the cinema firmament. The studio’s love of craftsmanship and attention to detail will be on full display in these new books and decks, giving fans a chance to interact in a whole new way with the worlds of Coraline, Wildwood, and beyond.”
- Charles Miers, Publisher, Rizzoli New York
About LAIKA:
Founded in 2005 just outside Portland, Oregon, LAIKA has produced five films: Missing Link (2019), Kubo and the Two Strings (2016), The Boxtrolls (2014), ParaNorman (2012) and Coraline (2009). All were nominated for the Academy Award® for Outstanding Animated Feature. Kubo and the Two Strings won the BAFTA® Award for Best Animated Film and received an additional Oscar® nomination for Visual Effects. Missing Link was awarded the Golden Globe® for Best Animated Film. LAIKA was awarded a Scientific and Technology Oscar® in 2016 for its innovation in 3D printing. LAIKA is currently in production on its next animated film Wildwood. Among the animated films in development are The Night Gardener, from an original idea by Bill Dubuque, creator of the hit series Ozark, and Piranesi, based on the NYT bestselling novel by Susanna Clarke with a screenplay to be written by Dave Kajganich.
LAIKA’s Live Action subsidiary has a range of projects in development including a feature film based on the action thriller novel Seventeen by screenwriter John Brownlow; the original script Crumble, written and directed by Brian Duffield (Spontaneous) with Phil Lord and Chris Miller ( Spider-verse films) producing, and an original project from Oscar®-nominated screenwriter Jon Spaihts ( Dune ). Captain Marvel filmmakers Anna Boden & Ryan Fleck will write and direct LAIKA’s live action adaptation of #1 New York Times bestselling author Taylor Jenkins Reid’s novel Atmosphere. Lucy Liu and Charles Melton will star in director Lulu Wang’s film version of Katie Kitamura’s bestselling novel Audition, which LAIKA is producing alongside Higher Ground Productions. www.laika.com
About Rizzoli New York:
Rizzoli New York has been publishing exquisite, illustrated books since 1974 and is a leader in the fashion, interior design, culinary, art, architecture, and photography fields. Rizzoli Universe —formerly Universe Publishing—was added in 1990 and publishes books, decks, and calendars in a range of subjects including popular culture, art, photography, humor, gaming, cooking, craft, interior design, sports, music, entertainment, street culture, LGBTQIA, counterculture, and travel. Rizzoli produces its museum and exhibitions publishing under our imprint Rizzoli Electa, in collaboration with leading Italian book publisher and sister company Mondadori Electa. Our corporate entity Rizzoli International Publications also distributes books from Flammarion, Batsford/Pitkin, Smith Street Books, Gagosian, and Aquavella Galleries. In addition to our publishing house, the company maintains the Rizzoli Bookstore —widely considered one of the foremost independent booksellers in America—which specializes in literature, photography, architecture, interior design, culinary, and the fine and applied arts.
LAIKA, iconic, instant classic-producing stop-motion animation studio and Rizzoli have announced a five-project collaboration falling under the Rizzoli Universe imprint, celebrating LAIKA’s 20th anniversary.
LONDON (AP) — British Prime Minister Keir Starmer pledged to revive his struggling government but faced growing calls to resign after a disastrous set of local and regional elections for his Labour Party.
As the final results came in Saturday, Labour suffered a net loss of more than 1,100 local council seats across England, lost control of several local authorities it had held for decades and was booted from power in Wales after 27 years. Anti-immigration party Reform UK gained over 1,300 seats across England and made significant gains in legislative elections in Wales and Scotland.
It was a blunt verdict from voters in elections widely seen as an unofficial referendum on Starmer, whose popularity has plummeted since he led the center-left party to power less than two years ago.
Here are five things we’ve learned from the elections.
Starmer insisted he would not walk away and "plunge the country into chaos,” and the dire election results did not produce an immediate challenge to his leadership.
"The right thing to do is rebuild and show the path forward,” Starmer said Saturday. “That’s what I’m going to do in the coming days.”
Starmer’s Cabinet colleagues expressed support, and none of the high-profile Labour politicians considered potential challengers has made a move. Health Secretary Wes Streeting, former Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner and Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham are keeping quiet for now.
But a growing number of Labour lawmakers urged the prime minister to set a timetable for his departure this year. British politics allows parties to change leader midterm without the need for a new election.
“There has to be a timetable,” legislator Clive Betts told the BBC. Another lawmaker, Tony Vaughan, said there should be an “orderly transition of leadership.”
Starmer tried to demonstrate change on Saturday by bringing back two figures from past Labour governments. He made former Prime Minister Gordon Brown a special envoy on global finance, and appointed the party's ex-deputy leader Harriet Harman an adviser on women and girls.
Starmer is due to make a speech on Monday in an attempt to regain momentum, before the government sets out its legislative plans on Wednesday in a speech delivered by King Charles III at the State Opening of Parliament.
The elections were a breakthrough for Reform UK, the latest hard-right party led by the veteran nationalist politician Nigel Farage.
Running on an anti-establishment and anti-immigration message, the party won hundreds of local council seats in working-class areas in England’s north, such as Sunderland, that were solid Labour turf for decades. It also made gains from the Conservatives in areas like the county of Essex, east of London, and increased its vote share in Wales and Scotland, new terrain for the party.
Farage said the results marked a “historic change in British politics.” He said he's confident that “voters who have come to us are not doing it as a short-term protest.”
Reform UK currently holds just eight of the 650 seats in the House of Commons and it’s unclear whether it could repeat its success in a national election.
The elections produced semiautonomous administrations in Scotland and Wales led by parties devoted to independence and the breakup of the United Kingdom — though neither has that policy on the front burner.
The Scottish National Party, which has governed in Edinburgh since 2007, won another term but fell short of a majority, meaning an independence referendum is unlikely. Labour and Reform tied in a distant second place.
Plaid Cymru (The Party of Wales) won the most seats in the Cardiff-based legislature, the Senedd. The party, which has an ambition for Wales to leave the U.K. but no plan to do so anytime soon, fell short of a majority but will likely form the new government. Reform came second and Labour a distant third in one of its most historic heartlands, with outgoing First Minister Eluned Morgan losing her seat.
The economy lies at the heart of Labour’s troubles, as it does for many incumbent governments.
Since ending 14 years of Conservative rule roiled by austerity and the COVID-19 pandemic, Labour has struggled to ease the cost of living and jump-start a sluggish economy against the tough economic backdrop of war in Ukraine and, more recently, Iran. Starmer also has angered supporters with attempts to cut welfare spending, some of which were reversed after Labour revolts.
Some in Labour say the government's achievements, including protections for renters and a higher minimum wage, are going unnoticed. Many blame Starmer, an uninspiring leader distracted by scandals including his disastrous decision to appoint Peter Mandelson, a scandal-tarnished friend of Jeffrey Epstein, as Britain’s ambassador to Washington.
But Stephen Houghton, the outgoing leader of Barnsley council in northern England, where Labour lost to Reform, said the problem “goes deeper than the prime minister.”
“This has been coming for 30 years around the country, in post-industrial communities, coastal communities, that have been left behind,” he said. “You can change prime ministers all day long. If you don’t change policy, it’s not going to change.”
The results reflect a fragmentation of U.K. politics after decades of domination by Labour and the Conservative Party, which also suffered major losses on Thursday.
The elections offered voters a rainbow of choices, including the centrist Liberal Democrats and the nationalist parties in Scotland and Wales.
But the big winners were populist insurgents, Reform UK and the Green Party, whose focus has expanded from the environment to social justice and the Palestinian cause under self-described “eco populist” leader Zack Polanski. The Greens won hundreds of council seats from Labour in urban centers and university towns and took control of several local authorities.
Tony Travers, professor of government at the London School of Economics, said the results suggest the next national election, due by 2029, won’t produce a majority for any party.
“So then you’re in the world of, after the election, two or three big minority parties trying to work out how they would govern,” he said — something traditionally considered “very un-British.”
British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer speaking to the media after meeting Labour Party members during a visit to AFC Wimbledon in south London, Saturday May 9, 2026. (Maja Smiejkowska/PA via AP)
First Minister and SNP leader John Swinney with some of the newly elected SNP MSPs in Edinburgh, Saturday May 9, 2026, following the 2026 Holyrood elections. (Jane Barlow/PA via AP)
British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and Foreign Secretary David Lammy meeting Labour Party members during a visit to AFC Wimbledon in south London, Saturday May 9, 2026. (Maja Smiejkowska/PA via AP)
British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer speaking to the media after meeting Labour Party members during a visit to AFC Wimbledon in south London, Saturday May 9, 2026. (Maja Smiejkowska/PA via AP)
Observers from the Scottish National Party (SNP) watch as votes are counted for the 2026 Holyrood elections, at Dewars Centre in Perth, Scotland, Friday May 8, 2026. (Jane Barlow/PA via AP)
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage speaks to supporters at Chelmsford City Racecourse, Friday May 8, 2026, in Essex, England, following the 2026 local election results. (Jordan Pettitt/PA via AP)
Britain's Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer speaks to Labour Party members at Kingsdown Methodist Church Hall, in Ealing, west London, Friday May 8, 2026, a day after the local elections. (Stefan Rousseau/PA via AP)
