The record number of delegates at this year's International Animation Festival in Cardiff enjoyed what was undoubtedly the strongest show ever staged there. The event has matured under Festival Director Fran Barlow to become much more than just a screening of the best in animation. Now including an exhibition, an excellent stream of seminars, networking opportunities and, above all, some great parties, the screenings were no longer the only reason to be in town. Despite justified criticism of some sections of the programming, the overall standard remained high. The Festival is now an essential meeting point for all those involved in the international animation industry. And following on from its success this year, it has been confirmed that it will take place once again in Cardiff in 1998.

The Animation Expo was introduced for the first time at the Cardiff International Arena, combining exhibits of models and cels from recent productions with a trade exhibition. Although dominated by the recruitment efforts of Warner Bros and Disney, the trade show also attracted a lively mix of suppliers, producers and distributors.

Pictured left to right: Chuck Swenson (Hanna Barbera), Laverne McKinnon and Igor Kovalyov (Klasky Csupo) at Cardiff. Courtesy of Ron Diamond.

Cartoon Technology
In terms of cartoon technology, there were stands from Cambridge Animation Systems, Alias/Wavefront, Softimage, INA Toonbox, EOS Electronics and Avid. A lively area throughout the show, it was an innovation which is now guarantied to play a larger role in future years. Apple Computer also provided delegates with an Internet cafe.

Two popular sessions were the keynote speech by Scott Ross of Digital Domain and the inaugural academic lecture by Dr. Paul Wells of the De Montfort University in Leicester ("Tex Avery to Nick Park from an Educational Perspective"). Seminar highlights included a special session on scriptwriting for animation and a look at the difficult road to making it in the American market. A strong program of technology seminars included a first class guide to evolving opportunities for animators in the multimedia market, chaired by CUTS editor George Jarrett, and a comprehensive session on animating the net. But the one session which provided the central focus for the animation community was the first ever Animo Users Group.

Pictured left to right: Karen Schmidt (Warner Bros), Heather Kenyon (Hanna-Barbera), Phil Roman (Film Roman), Dave Master, Tom Knott, and Max Howard (all three fromWarner Bros Feature Animation) at the Warner Bros. Feature Animation party at Cardiff.

With the days of real paint strictly limited in the industry, everyone knows they now need to address the new opportunities of digital production techniques. And with Animo proving to be far and away the most popular computer system for 2-D animation, it was a great opportunity to hear just how a range of existing users had been using it already.

More than 500 Animo systems have already been sold around the world--including 100 to DreamWorks, 120 to Warner Bros and further major sales to Nelvana and DIC. Contracts are currently under negotiation with Disney for what is likely to be the biggest deal so far.