What the HELL is Animalympics? (Furry Olympics) -- a video essay by Saberspark
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u6bDffuQHU4
ANIMALYMPICS (1980) | Official Trailer
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XZuWT0hglZ8
https://archive.org/details/animalympics1980
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Animalympics
Notes from the Wiki article:
Animalympics was commissioned by NBC in 1978, as the network intended Lisberger Studios to create it as two hour-long specials to be paired alongside coverage of both the 1980 Winter Olympics and the Summer Olympics then held in Moscow. But after the Soviet Union had invaded and gained control of Afghanistan, then United States President Jimmy Carter decided to boycott the Moscow Summer Olympics. Because of this, NBC canceled its Olympic coverage and the Animalympics Summer special.
However, from its conception, producer Donald Kushner and director Steven Lisberger intended the project as a feature-length theatrical release (complete with Dolby surround sound via 35mm film), even though The Winter Olympics special was already considered being nominated for an Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film.
Among those who worked on Animalympics were art director/animator Roger Allers, animation director Bill Kroyer, and animator Brad Bird. Allers, who animated Kit Mambo, the lion star of Animalympics, went on to direct The Lion King. Kroyer later wrote and directed the Oscar-nominated short Technological Threat and the animated feature FernGully: The Last Rainforest. Brad Bird went on to work as story editor of The Simpsons, and later achieved even greater success writing and directing The Iron Giant, The Incredibles and Ratatouille. Director Lisberger went on to conceive, co-write and direct the science fiction cult classic Tron, which some of the Animalympics crew were involved in. Its soundtrack supervisor was Michael Fremer, who was involved in Animalympics as a co-writer, voice artist, dialogue/music track editor and sound mix supervisor. Fremer also went on to supervise the soundtrack to Tron as well.
