• by Wayne Friedman , April 26, 2011

Few big box-office revenue-producing movie assets in the first quarter of this year sank DreamWorks Animation SKG financial results versus a year ago.

Revenue was down to $108 million from $162 million in the first quarter of 2010. Net income dropped to $8.8 million from $21.7 million.

"DreamWorks Animation's first quarter of 2011 was driven primarily by our 2010 films, including 'Megamind,' which had a solid performance following its February 25th release into the home entertainment market," said Jeffrey Katzenberg, CEO of DreamWorks Animation.

Katzenberg said better results will occur as the company moves into the bigger box-office summer movie season: "We now look forward to kick-starting the summer moviegoing season with 'Kung Fu Panda 2' on May 26th, as family entertainment -- and CG [computer-generated] animation in particular -- has performed at the top of the box office charts so far this year."

First-quarter results for DreamWorks are typically dominated by home entertainment revenues -- big box-office results usually obtained in the summer and holiday seasons. The studio did not have any major spring theatrical releases in 2011.

"Megamind," which was released on November 5, 2010, contributed $18.1 million of revenue in the quarter -- driven primarily by its domestic home video release. "Shrek Forever After," which was released on May 21, 2010, contributed $19.9 million of revenue in the quarter -- also driven primarily by home entertainment. "How to Train Your Dragon," which was released on March 26, 2010, brought in $8.7 million of revenue in the quarter.

The original "Kung Fu Panda" garnered $12.1 million of revenue in the quarter, primarily from international free television, with "Madagascar 2" drawing revenue of $19.1 million, from domestic and international free television.

The young animated film company -- spun off from Dreamworks SKG -- has now theatrically released a total of 21 animated feature films, including the franchise properties of "Shrek," "Madagascar," "Kung Fu Panda" and "How to Train Your Dragon."