The World's Most Beloved Little Blue Creatures Will Embark on a New Spooky Adventure this Fall...

CULVER CITY, Calif., Aug. 6, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- The beloved Smurfs are back for some Halloween fun in THE SMURFS: THE LEGEND OF SMURFY HOLLOW™, an all-new animated mini-movie from Sony Pictures Animation and Sony Pictures Home Entertainment makes its debut nationwide on DVD on September 10th. This 'Smurf-tacular' adventure features the original voice talent from THE SMURFS 2™, which grossed a smurftastic $80.3 million in theaters worldwide last week, including Alan Cumming (TV's "The Good Wife"), Fred Armisen (TV's "Saturday Night Live"), Anton Yelchin (TV's "Star Trek") as well as Hank Azaria as the voice of Gargamel (TV's "The Simpsons").

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20130806/LA59253)

THE SMURFS: THE LEGEND OF SMURFY HOLLOW™, which combines cutting-edge computer generated imagery and traditionally hand drawn animation, was directed by animation veteran Stephan Franck (whose credits include The Iron Giant and Despicable Me) and produced by Mary Ellen Bauder (who also worked on Sony Pictures Animation's hit features Cloudy with a Chance Of Meabtalls and Hotel Transylvania).  The mini-movie has already received critical and audience acclaim since being selected in official competition at the prestigious Annecy International Animated Film Festival last month, the world's largest animation festival.

"The Smurfs are very dear to us at Sony Pictures Animation and we are excited by this unique, smurfy take on 'The Legend of Sleepy Hollow'," says Bob Osher, President of Sony Pictures Digital Productions. "Director Stephan Franck and his crew delivered a great, new fun adventure that is sure to entertain families around the world for many Halloweens and Autumn celebrations to come."

Inspired by the classic tale "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow," in this all-new, animated special, THE SMURFS: THE LEGEND OF SMURFY HOLLOW™, the Smurfs learn the value of friendship and family. When Brainy Smurf is favored to win the annual Smurfberry Hunt for the ninth year in a row, Gutsy Smurf sets out to discover how Brainy wins every year. Gutsy's investigation takes him into spooky Smurfy Hollow – and right into Gargamel's trap! Can Brainy and Gutsy, with the help of Smurfette, put aside their rivalry before Gargamel captures them, or worse, will they come face-to-face with the legendary ghost, the Headless Horseman?

SMURFY HOLLOW features the voice talents of Hank Azaria (Gargamel), Alan Cumming (Gutsy), Fred Armisen (Brainy) and Anton Yelchin (Clumsy), all of whom reprise their roles from the film, THE SMURFS.  SMURFY HOLLOW has a running time of 22 minutes and is rated G.

THE SMURFS™: A CHRISTMAS CAROL, a fun and heartwarming holiday-themed mini-movie also featuring the original voice talent from SMURFS™, will also be available as a stand-alone DVD September 10th. Set against a special Christmas-themed holiday backdrop of snow-covered mushroom houses full of holiday cheer, this mini-movie  brings Christmas time to Smurf Village and joy to all the Smurfs...except one: Grouchy Smurf. When Grouchy Smurf says "Bah‑Humbug" to the Christmas spirit, it's up to Papa Smurf's magic potion and three enchanted Smurfs to set things right. Can the Smurfs of Christmas Past, Present and Future teach Grouchy the real meaning of Christmas before Smurf Village falls into the hands of the evil Gargamel? Fun and heart‑warming, this is A Christmas Carol like you've never seen!  It has a running time of 22 minutes and is G rated.

Artwork and digital clips are available for download at www.sphepublicity.com.
Visit Sony Pictures Home Entertainment on the Web at www.SonyPictures.com.

SONY PICTURES ANIMATION
Sony Pictures Animation produces a variety of animated entertainment for audiences around the world. The studio is following its worldwide comedy hits – the 2012 monster hit comedy Hotel Transylvania, the 2011 hybrid live action/animated blockbuster The Smurfs, and the 2009 mouth-watering Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs – with The Smurfs 2 in July 2013, and Cloudy With A Chance of Meatballs 2 in September 2013. Sony Pictures Animation, in conjunction with Aardman Animations, has produced two critically acclaimed feature films: the CG-animated family comedy Arthur Christmas; and the Academy Award® nominated stop-frame animated high-seas adventure, The Pirates! Band of Misfits. In 2007, Surf's Up also received an Academy Award® nomination for Best Animated Feature Film. The division, whose first feature film Open Season led to a very successful movie franchise, turned 10 in 2012. Sony Pictures Animation is an operating unit of Sony Pictures Digital Productions.

SONY PICTURES HOME ENTERTAINMENT
Sony Pictures Home Entertainment is a Sony Pictures Entertainment (SPE) company. Sony Pictures Entertainment (SPE) is a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, a subsidiary of Tokyo-based Sony Corporation. SPE's global operations encompass motion picture production and distribution; television production and distribution; home entertainment acquisition and distribution; a global channel network; digital content creation and distribution; operation of studio facilities; development of new entertainment products, services and technologies; and distribution of entertainment in more than 159 countries. For additional information, go to http://www.sonypictures.com/

SOURCE Sony Pictures Home Entertainment