'Frozen,' 'Monsters University' lead Annie Award film nominations

"Frozen" and "Monsters University" earned 10 nods apiece when nominations for the 41st Annie Awards were announced Monday in Burbank, Calif. The Annie Awards recognize the year's best in the field of animation. The two films will compete in the Best Animated Feature category alongside "A Letter to Momo," "Despicable Me 2," "Ernest & Celestine," "The Croods" and "The Wind Rises." "Despicable Me 2" and "The Croods" are each nominated for nine awards. "I am very excited about this year's slate of nominees!" International Animated Film Society- Hollywood President Frank Gladstone said in a statement Monday. "We had more submissions to choose from this year running the gamut from big studio features to indie films, television series to Internet shows, games, shorts and student films, as well as a wonderful group of juried award recipients, all showcasing the huge variety of venues, creativity, technical innovation and story-telling that our art form has to offer." Winners are to be announced at a ceremony Feb. 1 at UCLA's Royce Hall, in Los Angeles.