DreamWorks Animation and Aardman Animations Ltd. on Tuesday ended the partnership that led to an Academy Award for best-animated feature in 2005. Glendale-based DreamWorks and Aardman decided to end their five-picture deal at a time when no new co-productions were in development and DreamWorks slate was full for the next several years. The two animation firms collaborated on “Chicken Run,” “Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit” and “Flushed Away.” “Wallace and Gromit” won the Oscar for best-animated feature in 2005, but by the time “Flushed Away” was released the following year, box office revenues were, well, flushing away. In November, DreamWorks announced it would take a substantial earnings write-down on “Flushed Away” because the film had only taken in $40 million in its early weeks of release. The film’s budget was $142.9 million. DreamWorks will focus on producing two animated films a year with a full slate laid out into 2010, said CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg. “While I will always be a fan and an admirer of Aardman’s work, our different business goals no longer support each other,” Katzenberg said.
