His accent and voice have made him a distinct asset in voice-work. He has narrated stories and provided the voice for a number of animated films. The next animated feature will be Brave next year, for Pixar. Two other films, Quartet and Glide, will feature Billy Connolly.

There are times when the mere mention of someone’s name is enough to provoke a smile. It might be a smile of warmth, familiarity or humour, it might be associations with events or stories about or from the person. Billy Connolly is someone who can conjure that smile with all those associations.

Certain people, arguably more conservative, will not smile: they might wince. Mr. Connolly’s style is often crude and coarse. Most must agree that he is talented, whether or not they can suffer his colourful language. The point that bears consideration here is this: for all the use of a few standard vulgarities, his humour is not entirely vulgar.

He is a story-teller, and his stories are very funny indeed. His use of swear-words might be unnecessary, even extravagant, but they make many laugh. But it is not for the sake of shock, nor is it to distinguish: the majority of stand-up comedians use vulgarity: it seems a natural and possibly common-folk way of relating absurdities.

And when delivered in a strong Scottish accent, these words can sound a wee bit funnier. Especially outside Glasgow. Billy Connolly is famous for his long career as a comedian. His stand-up comedy has earned him the respect of his peers and legions of fans. He tops lists of the best comedians of all-time. He is also an esteemed actor and musician.

Mr. Connolly was initially a welder, but became a folk-singer, writing his own songs, and then, a comedian and a writer. He has appeared in scores of TV series, many films, and has done much voice-work. In most cases, his characters are sympathetic, even cuddly, much like the man himself.

Whether a kind relative, in Lemony Skicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events (2004) or a sympathetic zombie, in Fido (2006) — in which he did not say a word — and notably, as Queen Victoria’s friend, in his film breakthrough, Mrs. Brown (1997), there is something gentle and amiable in his characters.

In his own character, these traits come across in interviews and appearances where he is presenting more than acting. His travels around Canada’s north, in Billy Connolly: Journey to the Edge of the World (2009) presented him as a humble, friendly, adventurous and compassionate man.

Perhaps, therefore, the most surprising element of his comedy is the paradox that this gentle and friendly man should be so angry. Much of Mr. Connolly’s humour is based on frustration at kinds of people or situations, many of which are familiar to the audience. But, here again, although the swearing might be in frustration, it is not uttered violently, more in bewilderment.

The audience truly feels the same frustrations and confusion, and understands the exasperation in the language. And that accent, along with the twinkle in his eye, makes it all feel like a fire-side chat.

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Pixar Studios announced that the animation industry is working on two different movies that will be released in 2013 and 2014.

At the last Disney film convention, D23, held on August 20, Pixar and Walt Disney Animation chief John Lasseter disclosed the two films in active development whose titles remain unknown. Dinosaurs will be the main idea of one of the movies they are working on. Directed by Bob Peterson this movie confirms the rumors that sprang up two years ago.

In 2009, Greg Dykstra, a character sculptor at Pixar was showing his model for a young version of Carl during an Up featurette. In the interview with him, the public could see some dinosaurs’ pictures in the wall behind him. After that image the question loomed up:  Would be dinosaurs the main starring of the next Pixar film?

At the D23, Disney didn’t reveal much information about the plot. “What if that life-changing asteroid missed Earth? The hilarious tale depicts a world where dinosaurs never went extinct,” said Pixar. The movie, currently being referred to as the Untitled Pixar Movie About Dinosaurs, will arrive on November 27, 2013.

The other untitled production directed by Pete Docter, director of Monsters Inc and Up, will be about how the brain works. Described by Docter, it is a comic look at how ideas come together and the inner workings of our brains. The audience will have to wait until May 2014 for more details.

In the meantime and just few months before those two releases, Brave and Monster University movies will keep entertaining the spectators. Brave, from which a new scene was shown at the D23 featuring the suitors trying to win heroine Merida’s hand in marriage, will be on theaters August 17, 2012. Directed by Mark Andrews and Brenda Chapman, this movie was titled at its origin as The Bear and the Bow.

This film is the first Pixar movie directed by a woman and starring a woman. It is also based on a tale. In addition, according to the media outlet Variety, princess Merida will most likely join the Disney Princesses after this movie.

Two days after that premiere, Mike and Sulley will return for Monster University, the sequel to Monsters Inc, on August 19, 2013. The plot is about how they met at the University where they couldn’t stand each other and how that relationship changed until they became best friends.

Monsters University, brings back Billy Crystal who voices Mike, 10 years after the original was released. At a Q&A for a Hero Complex screening of City Slickers where Crystal recently participated he spoke briefly about the movie and he stated that the script was “really funny.”

Discussing Sulley, Crystal said, “John Goodman is a genius and he’s great and we’re really funny together. It’s college pranks with monsters. And I wear a retainer. Mike has a retainer.”

Planes, a spinoff of the “Cars” franchise, is another upcoming produced by DisneyToon Studios that will also hit on Spring 2013. For those who cannot wait until that date Wreck-It Ralph is the movie to go see. Voiced by John C. Reilly, this film is about an arcade game character named Wreck-It Ralph. The film will be opening in November 2012.

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