Elton, Kate and a tribe of gnomes

Miramax Films "gave the green light" to Elton John on his proposal for an animation called Gnomeo and Juliet.

Kate Winslet will star and Academy Award winning lyricist Tim Rice will collaborate with Elton on the songs for the film. The play is a twist on the Shakespeare classic, but set in a world full of garden gnomes.

"I am very excited about working with Miramax," Elton said in a statement yesterday. "Gnomeo is an edgy concept and Miramax is the perfect home to push the envelope in animation."