New York, NY (Top40 Charts) Build-A-Bear Entertainment, a subsidiary of Build-A-Bear Workshop, along with Foundation Media Partners, today announces that five-time Grammy-nominated and multi-platinum selling singer/songwriter Julia Michaels, six-time Grammy-winning legend Dionne Warwick and actress
Trinity Jo-Li Bliss have been cast in the animated Christmas feature GLISTEN AND THE MERRY MISSION. This anticipated film is the first animated feature for Build-A-Bear based on the company's multi-year best-selling holiday plush collection.
GLISTEN AND THE MERRY MISSION follows a young elfling Marzipan (voiced by Bliss) and her mother Cinnameg (voiced by Michaels) as Marzipan must believe in the magic of the season as she goes on the adventure of a lifetime to rediscover the enchanted snow deer named Glisten and save Christmas. The pursuit of their Merry Mission is aided by a colorful cadre of reindeer and elves, including the wise Sage Evergreen (voiced by Warwick).
Build-A-Bear President and Chief Executive Officer Sharon Price John will executive produce the film based on a story written by Ms. John, and Foundation Media Chief Executive Officer Patrick Hughes will produce the film. The screenplay was written by Temple Mathews ("Mariah's Once Upon a Christmas") and Ms. John and will be art-directed, designed and animated by Ontario, Canada based Big Jump Entertainment with Big Jump's Chief Creative Officer Cory Morrison directing. Michael Mariano and his frequent collaborator Tracy Mariano will voice direct.
Ms. John noted, "We are truly excited about this incredible opportunity to bring our beloved Glisten snow deer character to life in this beautifully animated interpretation of the Merry Mission story, especially with this dream cast. The journey of
Santa and the reindeer along with our adorable emboldened elfling Marzipan, who finds a way to ensure all of the kids receive a toy made with heart on Christmas Eve, is sure to delight holiday fans."
Over the past few years, no songwriter has reshaped pop music more than 5x Grammy® Award-nominated and multiplatinum-selling artist Julia Michaels. In 2017, she embarked on a solo career with her 5x-platinum selling debut single "Issues." A year later, her peers recognized her stunning work with Grammy® Award nominations for "Best New Artist" and "Song of the Year." She released a series of critically acclaimed EPs, including 2017's fan-favorite Nervous
System and 2019's critically acclaimed Inner Monologue Part 1 and Inner Monologue Part 2. She also embarked on The Inner Monologue Tour, which marked her first-ever U.S. headline tour following an enviable run touring with Maroon 5, Keith Urban, Shawn Mendes, Niall Horan, and P!NK. 2021 saw Julia release her highly anticipated full-length debut album, Not In Chronological Order, to critical acclaim. Her music continued to connect with songs like "What A Time" and "
Heaven" going on to achieve Platinum status. To date, she has also notched 25 Billboard Hot 100 entries as a songwriter, including two number 1's for Justin Bieber's "
Sorry" and
Selena Gomez's "Lose You to Love Me," in addition to four top 10 hits. She received her third Grammy® Award nomination in the category of "
Song Of The Year" for the hit song "If The World Was Ending," her fourth Grammy® Award nomination for her work on H.E.R.'s album Back of My Mind, and just received her fifth nomination as a songwriter for "Best Country Song" on Maren Morris' "Circle Around This Town." Her latest release, "Sorry To Me Too," kicks off the next chapter of her solo artistry with a larger project arriving early 2023. What's more, she has also been tapped to compose the original songs for Disney's upcoming film "Wish" starring Oscar winner
Ariana DeBose, which will arrive Nov 2023, with additional collaborations to extend her incredible songwriting legacy. MERRY MISSION marks Michaels' feature film debut.
Warwick is a Grammy-winning singer and songwriter who has been a cornerstone of American pop music and culture for over 50 years. She has earned more than sixty charted hit songs and sold over 100 million records, having her first hit in 1962 with "Don't Make Me Over." Less than a decade later, she had released more than 18 consecutive Top 100 singles, including her classic Bacharach/David recordings, "Walk on By," "Anyone Who Had a Heart," "Message to Michael," "Promises Promises," "A House is Not a Home," "Alfie," "Say a
Little Prayer," "This Girl's in Love With You," "I'll Never Fall in Love Again," "Reach Out For Me," and the theme from "Valley of the Dolls." In 1985, she reunited with composer Burt Bacharach and longtime friends Gladys Knight,
Elton John and
Stevie Wonder to record the landmark song "That's What
Friends Are For," which became a number one hit record around the world. Most recently, Warwick was inducted into the Grammy Museum in Los Angeles where a special 50th Anniversary exhibit was unveiled and an historic program and performance was held in the Clive Davis Theater, hosted by Clive Davis, Burt Bacharach and Grammy Museum Executive Director, Bob Santelli. Warwick also completed recording a new studio album commemorating her 50th Anniversary produced by Phil Ramone, featuring special new material written by her longtime friend and legendary composer Burt Bacharach.
Bliss is best known for her series regular roles in "Best Foot Forward" and "The Garcias". She will soon be seen as Tuktirey in
James Cameron's Avatar: The Way of the Water in December 2022, and will be in Avatar 3 and Avatar 4.
