YOU BETTER NOT SHOUT, YOU BETTER NOT CRY, SICK AND TWISTED ANIMATION IS COMING TO TOWN with a Christmas Special so disgusting that you may need to use your "Official Free Souvenir Barf Bag" before leaving the theatre.
Beware! This Yuletide spectacular is so bad that the producers wont let the press review the show in advance. Are they afraid the press will confirm that Sloaches Fun House, billed as "the sickest
film ever made" really deserves that title? Spike used to call Lloyd's Lunchbox "the sickest film ever made." Lloyd is back so you can decide for yourself which film is worse.
The program features a special selection of really nasty Xmas films. One good/bad reason to see the show is to see Matt Stone and Trey Parker's The Spirit of Christmas. It was done as a joke by two bozos who have a perverse sense of humor and no animation skills. Using cardboard and paper cut-outs they created an underground hit that resulted in their doing South Park, Comedy Channel's hit show.
Stone and Parker's Spirit of Christmas is a hit because you get to hear two children use every word you can't say on TV. Of course South Park can't use those words either, so to really enjoy their humor see Sick and Twisted at a theatre near you. Of course critics complain that you hear the words too many times, that the joke isn't funny, that the film is poorly paced, poorly animated, etc. but what do they know?
If you are a fan of Stone and Parker the show also contains their work, Frosty. It features "the evil ways of Frosty the Snowman." How evil can a snowman be? Go and find out.
Other gross and disgusting Christmas films in the show are Yes Timmy, There is a Santa Claus, Frannie's Christmas and I Never Ho'd for my Father. These exercises in questionable taste will please Spike and Mike fans, but not fans of the Tournee of Animation. You may havenoticed that the wonderful Tournee, featuring the finest animated films from around the world, has been missing from the screen for several years. What does this say about our society and its values?
There are a couple of films in the program that don't belong. These are nice, well made productions. Mike Johnson's Devil Went Down to Georgia with music by Les Claypool of Primus is an excellent work made while Johnson was working on James and the Giant Peach. (Acme now represents Johnson for commercial work.) There might be another nice work in the show, but I'm not sure what it is. Go and decide for yourself what doesn't belong in this assault (or insult) upon your senses.
For some strange reason really funny films about sex have been absent from recent Spike and Mike Sick and Twisted shows. I assume the producers think they belong in a program for more mature audiences. Instead there are films about flatulence, big breasts, and stuff like that.
The flyer for the show says "see all the killer shit you can't see on T.V.!!!" You can go see it at: THE CASTRO in SF, Friday Dec. 5 through Sat. Dec. 13. The PALACE OF FINE ARTS in SF Fri., Dec. 19 & Sat., Dec. 20. There is no truth to the rumor that Spike will toss his underwear into the crowd at either of these shows, but he might come up with some other gimmick to honor the late Scotty who used to pop balloons on this fine stage. The ROXIE CINEMA in SF on Fridays and Saturdays at midnight, starting Dec. 20 and extending through Sat. January 17. The UC THEATRE in Berkeley from Friday, Dec. 5 through Thursday, Dec. 11 (daily and at midnight, Fridays Dec. 5, 12 and 19). The LARK THEATRE in Larkspur from Dec. 19 - 28. The TOWNE THEATRE in San Jose from Dec. 19 through January 8. LAKESIDE CINEMAS in Santa Rosa January 9 - 15. See your local movie guide for further details. KC
SPROCKET ENSEMBLE WILL BE "HOUSE BAND" AT THE NEW MUSIC MARATHON, SUNDAY, DEC. 7 - ANIMATION WILL BE SHOWN DURING THREE SETS This is a true musical marathon that lasts from 12:30 PM to 11 PM. It features solo piano by Terry Riley, work by Pamela Z, music by Charles Amirkhaniam, Paul Dresher, and many other artists. Sets featuring animation begin at 1, 3:30 and 6 PM. An all day pass is $15 and $10 for students and seniors. The event will be at the ODC Performance Gallery at 3153 Seventeenth Street near South Van Ness in SF. When Nick Park won the Golden Cartoon Award at Annecy in 1991 for Creature Comforts and not A Grand Day Out, Gromit was a spoiled sport... drawing by Park
WALLACE AND GROMIT ARE BACK FOR THE HOLIDAYS AT THE ROXIE, DEC. 19 - 25! This is a great show for everyone who hasn't worn out their VCR watching Wallace and Gromit on tape. The program is officially "The Best of Aardman Animation" and it contains three great films by Nick Park: A Close Shave (1995), Creature Comforts (1989), and The Wrong Trousers (1996). If that isn't enough to get you out of your homes, you also get to see heat and electric commercials by Nick Park from 1992, plus a few films Nick didn't direct, Wat's Pig (1996 by Peter Lord assisted by Nick), My Baby Just Cares for Me (1987), Early Bird (1982), Rex The Runt (1992) and Dreams (1992).
The Roxie is located at 3117 16th Street (at Valencia) in SF. (415) 863-1087. Shows at 2, 4, 6, 8 and 10 (no late show on Wed. Dec. 24). Bargain matinee on. Wed. Sat. and Sun.
A crazy idea - the Roxie program spells Nick's last name "Parks," which is an error. The error inspired the thought that someone should have a real park named after Nick. Why not Nick Park's Park. Or the Queen should give him a OBE. She gave the honor to the Beatles and Nick has done almost as much for the UK in recent years. Somebody should write her and make the suggestion. KC
KEN PONTAC AND DAVID BLEIMAN DIRECTED A CHRISTMAS PRIME-TIME SPECIAL FOR WILL VINTON - TENTATIVELY SET TO AIR ON ABC-TV DEC. 12 Stop-motion is alive and well in the hands of Pontac and Bleiman. Last May they were given a contract to produce and direct THE ONLINE ADVENTURES OF OZZIE THE ELF for Vinton. They quickly put a small studio and staff together and got to work. When I visited the studio in November the last shot had just been completed and they were about to move out.
The film was based on a web site established in 1996, about one of Santa's helpers. The site was popular and inspired someone to develop a show about an online elf. When Will Vinton Studios in Portland hired Pontac and Bleiman to do the project there was an almost finished script, but the details of it were yet to be worked out.
These guys had to work fast. When I called their office in late May or early June asking if they wanted a job listing notice in our newsletter, they had already lined up most of their staff. Production began in a former spice warehouse in August and was completed on Nov. 14. Ken said it was 110 degrees inside the metal shed studio for several days in August. Despite harsh working conditions and no air conditioning, they pushed forward and completed their work on time.
The animators on the project were Christopher Calvi, John Campanaro, Todd Kurtzman, Tennessee Reid Norton and Brian Ormison. The puppets for the show were fabricated in England by Mackinnon and Saunders of Altrincham in Cheshire and in San Francisco by Know Your Monkey Productions (T. Reed Norton and Elise Robertson). The characters were designed by Robin Ator and Gary Bialke. The sets were designed by Curt Enderle and Tracy Prescott and built by a staff of 16.
The late Brandon Tartikoff (head of ABC) and Will Vinton were the show's executive producers. Tom Turpin and Charlie Fink were co-executive producers and the producers included Bleiman, Pontac, Karen E. Hout, Kim Fleary and Joy Every. The script was by Jenny Tripp. Music is by Jim Latham, Bleiman was the editor, Geno Foster and Sarah Schubart were the assistant editors (A lot of people met Schubart when she was the production assistant for Richard Williams at his seminars in San Francisco in June.)
The voice credits include Dan Castellaneta as Rudolph, Cam Clarke as Ozzie, Jim Cummings as Santa plus Tom Kenny, Rob Paulson and Kath Soucie. The director of photography was Jo Carson and the camera operators were Michael Eder and John Nolan. Paul Harrod was the art director and Greg Garcia was the storyboard artist with additional boards by Catherine Carlson and Norm DeCarlo.
DANGER TEAM ANNOUNCES THAT LOTS OF STUFF THAT THEY WORKED ON IS NOW IN RELEASE Before undertaking production on a half-hour TV special for Will Vinton, Danger Team, headed by David Blieman and Ken
Pontac, was busy on lots of other projects. As writers they worked with agent Candy Monteiro, on segments of Extreme Dinosaurs, Calamity Jane, Reboot and Tex Avery. They also wrote a pilot and show bible for a European company. It was recently sold at MIPCOM and is going into production soon. They will be story editing and "writing our butts off" on this show in 1998, according to Pontac.
As producers they developed several CD-ROM projects that are now on the market. They worked on three "Clayfighter" games. The latest release is "Clayfighter 63 1/3rd," that Pontac calls "a humorous fighting game" for Nintendo 64.
A couple months ago Microsoft released "My Personal Tutor" featuring Professor Presto, an intelligent software agent designed and animated by Danger Productions. The character was created using digitized stop-motion. It was produced with director Maz Kessler and Robby Kilgore from Funarts. This was their second project with Funarts for Microsoft.
Bump in the Night, a TV series they produced for ABC is now available on video tape. The show ended when Disney bought the network. Disney decided to run their product in place of Bump on Saturday mornings.
Last year The Danger Team was also hired to do a two minute stop-motion teaser for a a prime-time cartoon. They completed the project in a month-and-a-half! No word yet if the project will go into development.
They are presently developing another "cool" show. Pontac hopes to tell us some good news about the project soon.
KARL COHEN WILL SIGN BOOKS, SHOW FILM CLIPS AND TALK ABOUT RESEARCHING FORBIDDEN ANIMATION AT FILM ARTS FOUNDATION, THURS. DEC. 11 from 7 to 9. FAF charges $6 for members to attend this program and $8 for non-members. Cohen will also bring a few books to sign at our ASIFA meeting on ANALYSTS ON ANIMATION, Tues. Dec. 9 at the Exploratorium at 7:30.
ATA PRESENTS WORK BY CARTOONISTS AND/OR ANIMATORS MARTHA COLBURN, HEATHER McADAMS AND EMILY BREER Their program notes states "A banshee out of Baltimore barreling cross-country into the Bay Area, Martha Colburn, quite possibly the world's wildest and wackiest wunderkind maker, triggers an over-the-top 50 min. blitz of short-burst spazz-junk Super-8 animation guaranteed to aerate your brain for the free flow of visual play and perverse humor. PLUS: Five short chortles from Chicago cartoonist Heather McAdams, who utilizes a similarly inspired scrambled-eggs recipe. ALSO: Emily Breer's heartening Superhero. Satuday, Dec. 6 at 8:30 PM, $5. at ATA, 992 Valencia.
MARK YOUR 1998 CALENDARS FOR SATURDAY JAN. 24 AND SAT. JAN 31 - OUR ANNUAL OPEN SCREENINGS All students and independent animators are welcomed to show their work on the 24th. Commercial companies and free-lance professional animators are welcomed to show their reels on the 31st. To have your work shown, just show up with it the night of the program and give it to the projectionist or Karl Cohen. We can show work in 16mm, 1/2" and 3/4" video.
ILM will show examples of work from their commerical division and probably images from Flubber. We expect to show Hugs by Vayshali Koth, a film she made while attending Sheradan College. She will also show an earlier work, an animated film on AIDS that she made in India before studying animation. Shirley Smith will probably bring her new film Dunderdeck's Machine. There will probably be short films from PDI and Pixar. Another work to be shown is Nun of That, a short made by students in a media internship pilot program in San Francisco. The students were advised by staff members from Wild Brain and Colossal.
If you plan to show a work at our open screening and would like us to mention it in the flyer for the January event, contact Karl Cohen and give him your name, title and any other information that might be of interest to people who see the flyer. Call (415) 386-1004 or write PO Box 14516, SF CA 94114
COLOSSAL PICTURES DOES "FRANKENGUY AND THE PROFESSOR" SERIES FOR DISNEY CHANNEL George Evelyn wrote and directed 8 one-minute interstitial cartoons which began airing in November.
The series is set in a "mad scientist's" laboratory and stars "The Professor" and his enormous assistant "Frankenguy the Mild Monster." The visuals are a combination of 2D and 3D animation created using Macintosh desk-top cinema techniques. Post was done at Western to bring the images up to broadcast specifications.
Credits include Evelyn as director, Jana Canellos as executive producer, producer Pola Ayllon, animators Bill Hunt and Ricardo Barahona, backgrounds by Jeffery Roth, post supervisor Russ Glasgow, and production coordinator Alice Siebert.
VIDEO ARTS PRODUCES CALIFORNIA PRUNE BOARD CAMPAIGN FEATURING CEL ANIMATION ADS They hired Renegade Animation of Burbank to do the images. Perhaps Kim Salyer and Richard Sloss don't know there are a few good animators in the Bay Area not working for ILM, Pixar, PDI, etc. Send them your reel.
CONGRATULATIONS TO WILD BRAIN FOR WINNING TWO ANNIE AWARDS Their Super Mom ad for Coke won the top prize in the promotional production category (in plain English it is a TV commercial). Their Green Eggs and Ham project for Broderbund won in the Interactive Production category (aka as a CD-Rom project). The best feature award went to Cats Don't Dance. It beat out Hercules and Space Jam for the award.
FILM/TAPE WORLD AND S.F. WEEKLY DO COVER STORIES ON PHIL TIPPETT The F/T World story by Karl Cohen appears in the Dec. issue. A longer article by Michael Sragow appeared in S.F. Weekly, Nov. 19 issue.
Among the topics Cohen discussed with Tippett were the production history, his transition from stop-motion to cgi, what it was like to direct cgi and to do over 200 shots for Starship Troopers, and his use of his Oscar winning digital input device to track motion with reflective markers on a stop-motion model of creatures from the film. He also talks about the future of computers and gives advice to students interested in becoming animators. The Film/Tape article will also have a detailed filmography.
Tippett Studio in Berkeley is presently working on two features. They are doing images for Virus, a horror film for Universal that will star Jamie Lee Curtis and William Baldwin. It is being directed by John Bruno who directed visual effects for True Lies, The Abyss and Cliffhanger. They are also doing images for Disney's My Favorite Martian. Both will be released in 1998.
JONATHAN LUSKIN DIRECTING NEBRASKA at The Next Stage, 2668 Bush, 8 PM, Dec. 5, 6, 12, 13, Matinee Dec. 7 at 2. For tickets (510) 704-8226.
THE LOONIES ARE BACK WITH A PARTY HONORING JOE MARTIN, THE CREATOR OF MR. BOFFO, a comic strip run in the SF Chronicle. Martin will be signing copies of The Last Decade, his latest collection of strips. This free event is open to adults with a sense of humor. You are encouraged to network, so bring portfolio and
business cards if you wish. The part will be Saturday Dec., 6 from 5 to 7 PM at Eagles Hall in Alameda. (at Alameda Ave. at Park St. - take 23rd Ave. exit off Highway 880).
After the event the Hall will present the "Gator Ball" so if you enjoy Zydeco music stay, pay and have some fun. For more info. call Barry Gantt, the head Looney, (510) 451-6248. Fox Hughes did the good looking poster for the event.
PARROTY INTERACTIVE DOES X-FOOLS CD-ROM Well at least Mike Brand has made a humorous animated ad that spoofs a company making a CD-ROM spoof based on the X-Files. Or is there really an X-Fools game?
GARY SCHWARTZ WILL PRESENT A CUT-OUT WORKSHOP FOR KIDS JAN. 17 - 18 IN HAYWARD at the Sun Gallery, Maria Ochoa Director. It will be part of their Children's film and video festival. He will also screen his new work The Powers of the Environment on Jan. 24. If you need to reach Schwartz in LA his number is (213) 655-2664.
WOMEN IN ANIMATION IS INTERESTED IN FORMING A LOCAL CHAPTER They sent us a notice much too late to be in last months newsletter for an organizational meeting in mid-Nov. For details: Debbie Arce, Electralux Media Design (415) 538-0191 E-mail
debbie@electralux.com
TOTAL VIDEO ADDS A QUANTEL EDITBOX to their system that also includes a Quantel Paintbox with 3D Wrap and Turn and other equipment. They can do post in D1, Digital Beta, BSP, etc. (650) 583-8236, 432 N. Canal St. #12, South San Francisco, CA 94080
HOW TO CELEBRATE THE SEASONS With the coming of Thanksgiving and Christmas some groups do their best to have fun, while others like ASIFA-SF come up with interesting program ideas. San Francisco Siggraph had members of the Tippett Studio talk about their work on Starship Troopers in late Nov. while the North Bay Multi-Media Assa. held a program in late Nov. on putting music on your web site. ITS will party at Crescendo! Studio. Film Arts Foundation will have a bash at the Paradise Lounge and is asking people to bring toys for tots. Wild Brain says "get funky." They have rented out a large club called The Sound Factory near 1st and Harrison in Dec. and if the party is anything like the one they held last year, it will be the best party of the season for the animation community. Of course some companies will have the traditional rent a giant hall and hire a big band party, or have a stuffy dinner, but they make people dress up in formals or at least wear ties and take the event too seriously. Why doesn't somebody have a cool surf party in December and fly their staff down to....
IGOR KOVALYOV QUESTIONED THE ACCURACY OF THE PRESS AT OUR ASIFA-SF EVENT WITH HIM The presentation by Kovalyov, a surrealist from the former Soviet Union, was an outstanding event both for the work shown and his surprising statements. When asked about past statements he allegedly made about his work, he denied them all. He said the article in Animation Magazine about him was wrong as were statements about his work in festival catalogs! When asked how the festivals came by the statements they published he simply said "I don't know." Normally the animator provides the statements used by the festivals.
For those of us who had seen his work before and had ideas about what it might mean, he said we were all wrong. He says Hen His Wife is simply what you see and nothing more. It has no hidden meanings. It was "exactly from my dreams... I was very young when I did it." He said he wanted his audience to be puzzled and ask questions. He did not want the meaning of the work to be clear. "You can do everything you want if you don't have a client." At one point he suggested the husband in the film is also the guest, but he refused to elaborate. He also said theories about his work having political references to life in Russia under the Communists were wrong. He claims he has never expressed his political opinions in his work.
When I wrote the program notes about Kovalyov I said his Hen His Wife was a wonderful enigma. It remains so to me. KC
EMPLOYMENT
MIDLAND PRODUCTIONS IN SCENIC BERKELEY, CALIFORNIA is seeking animators for its feature film, Robots of Mars. Animators with experience in cel, stop-motion and
computer animation are encouraged to send in their reels and resumes. Computer experience is not required. There are also openings in the Modeling and Shading Departments. Contact Animation Department, Midland Productions, 1680 Shattuck Ave., Berkeley, CA 94709-1631
PROLIFIC PUBLISHING IN SAN CARLOS AND BURBANK needs computer artists and animators (about 7). They are also adding to their programming staff. They are getting ready for several long term projects. Their product RETURN FIRE 2 will be released early in 1988. Send reels and resumes to 990 Varian Street, San Carlos, CA 94070. You can call Chris Ebangi (650) 596-2400 extension 103, fax (650) 596-2410 or E-mail Kim Tempest at tempest@prolific.com
SEARCH ASSOCIATES INC. CAN HELP YOU FIND A JOB They called in Nov. looking for somebody to fill an opening for an art director for a games/multi-media company in Iowa. They often have several jobs available for animation people so give them a call.
Search was founded in 1982. They now have an Electronic Media/Entertainment Group that specializes in the recruitment of administrative, creative and technical talent for the production of entertainment and educational software. Bernie Sharf is the head of the division. The placement person who contacted us is Joe Clinton, Search Associates, 5900 Sepulveda Blvd., #104, Sherman Oaks, CA 91411 (818) 988-5600 ext. 251 or fax (818) 787 0110
CYNTHIA PEPPER NEEDS SOMEBODY TO DO A FEW SECONDS OF COMPUTER ANIMATION for the conclusion of a dance sequence shot on Digital Beta. At the end of an underwater dance sequence she needs to turn one of the dancer's feet into a sea creature "of some sort" as she swims away. The sequence will be about 5 seconds long or shorter. She can offer a $250 budget. Contact her if you are interested and available immediately at The Marin Ballet, 9 AM - 5 PM (415) 6705 ext. 24. Please leave a message with the times you can be reached.
NATIONAL NEWS
DON MESSICK, THE VOICE OF DROOPY, SCOOBY-DOO & HUNDREDS OF OTHER BELOVED CHARACTERS, DIED OCT. 24, 1997 after a year of ill health. He was one of the animation
industry's nicest voice actors. When he suddenly retired in Sept., 1996, by walking out of a recording session saying something like "I can't do this any more," the professional world was stunned. Soon there were rumors that something was wrong with his health.
Hollywood honored him with a star studded retirement party on Oct. 12, 1996 at Messick's favorite Chinese restaurant. Joe Barbera helped organize the event and the committee sent a limo to fetch Messick and his wife.
Don Messick was Bamm-Bamm on The Flintstones so Henry Corden, the 2nd voice actor to do Fred Flintstone was there along with Jean Vander Pyl who was Wilma. Casey Kasem, who did Shaggy on Scooby-Doo, was there. So was the wonderful Lucille Bliss who worked with Messick on The Smurfs and on many other shows. When Bliss was Smurfette, Messick was Papa Smurf. Gary Owens, who did Space Ghost was in attendance. Messick had been Blip on the show and did many of the villains.
The list of people who respected Messick and attended the party went on and on. There was June Foray, Howard Morris, Teresa Ganzel, Maurice LaMarche, Neil Ross, Gregg Berger, Walker Edmiston, Sharon Mack, Marvin Kaplin, Greg Burson, Harry Love, Don Jurwich, Paul Dini, Earl Kress, and a lot of other people.
Don Messick was born in an ambulance on his way to a hospital in Buffalo, NY in 1926. He became a ventriloquist before WWII and headed for Los Angeles in 1947 after he was discharged from the Army. He became friends with Daws Butler (ex-Navy) and together they broke into the cartoon industry. Messick's first job may have been with Tex Avery at MGM. At first he filled in for Bill Thompson, the voice actor who regularly did the voice of Droopy. When Thompson left MGM, Messick was given the part. Don and Daws continued their friendship over the years and did thousands of shows together along with a countless number of commercials, etc.
Reading a list of parts Messick played will jog your memory and make you realize how close this unseen man was to you. He was Dr. Benton Quest on Jonny Quest, he was one of the Hillbilly Bears, he was Precious Pup, he was one of the Impossibles, he was Gloop and Gleep on The Herculoids, he was Hong Kong Phooey's cat, the Chan Clan's dog, the Harlem Globetrotters' pooch, Godzooky on the Godzilla show, Hampton the Pig on Tiny Toon Adventures, a camel on Shazzan! and the list just goes on and on.
It is sad reading about the loss of a man who contributed a great deal to the memories of so many people. I never knew him, but having talked with people who worked with him over the years I know they really were quite fond of him and that he really will be missed.
WHO'S AFRAID OF THE BIG BAD WOLF? An article in the Pacific S.W. regional newsletter of the Anti-Defamation League titled "A Wolf in Jews Clothing" reports that a brief offensive image of the wolf disguised as a Jewish peddler in the Three Little Pigs will be cut from the home video tape of the film. The image was animated in 1933, dropped from the film in the 1940's (the scene was reanimated), and reinserted in a copy of the film recently by the Disney Archive. The home video tape was made from the restored Archive print. The Archive's print with the anti-Semitic image in it was shown in 35mm at a recent program at the Pacific Film Archive.
After the ADL complained Disney agreed to delete the anti-Semitic image from future copies of the tape. Special thanks to a members in LA for this news item.
AN ASSOCIATED PRESS STORY SAID "LITTLE LIFE LEFT IN FULL-LENGTH ANIMATED FEATURE PRODUCTION" and it went on to quote Ralph Bakshi saying "It's dead" referring to the animated feature industry. Charles Solomon is quoted as saying, "The biggest problem is that the animation makers no longer know how to tell a story. Compare the new features to Snow White and you'll see how much they lack in good, clear, moving stories. There are plenty of good animators nowadays. What's missing are directors who can sustain a story through an entire film."
I just found a copy of this undated article in an old file and was delighted to reflect upon how far the industry has come since the above was written in the mid-1980's. Congratulation to all who proved Bakshi was wrong. This has been a great season for animation and special effects including the release of the beautiful Anastasia, the creation of amazing cgi bugs by Phil Tippett and associates for Starship Trooper and ILM's remarkable work for Flubber (Tom Bertino, animation supervisor). Disney's recent re-release of the Little Mermaid also reminds us that animation is very much alive and well at the end of the century.
BILL PLYMPTON'S I MARRIED A STRANGE WOMAN TO BE SHOWN IN COMPETITION AT SUNDANCE Bill is excited as this is one of the few festivals where an independent production can attract an offer for a big advance and a solid distribution deal. He says people have been making him offers for his new feature, but none of the offers are what he wants.
If you watch ER or Seinfeld you may have noticed a NBC peacock that looks like it came from the hand of Bill Plympton. He is pleased that his contribution to the network has been run before these shows.
His compilation feature Mondo Plympton got fine reviews when it was shown in New York and San Francisco. Bill says the reviews have helped him get lots of booking for this fun package of his shorts.
BRAIN CAMP 2 IS COMING TO NEW YORK on March 26 & 27, 1998. This is a $2,000 set of seminars for media professionals in the children's and family entertainment industries. Last year Ben Cohen of Ben and Jerry's spoke along with John Kricfalusi, and a lot of other important people. So far they have announced that Herb Scannell, president of Nickelodeon; Brown Johnson, head of Nick Jr. and Charles Rivkin, president and CEO of Jim Henson Productions will talk at the March event. For details (212) 707-2821 or write 1290 Avenue of the Americas, Suite 2805A, NYC 10019
CURIOUS PICTURES IN NEW YORK DID A STOP-MOTION AD USING FURNITURE BUILT ON ARMATURES THAT COULD BEND AND MOVE ABOUT The neat sounding ad was created using one-half scale furniture that could bend and have expressive movements. The images were for a pair of Love My Carpet ads. Steve Oakes directed the spots.
ASIFA WASHINGTON CELEBRATED THEIR 15TH ANNIVERSARY in late November with a Saturday afternoon party and screening of classic cartoons that ranged from Disney and Warner Bros. favorites to Bill Plympton's Your Face and Fredric Back's Crac.
DISNEY PLANS TO PUT A NEW MICKEY MOUSE SHOW ON TV The TV series will be called MouseWorks and is being animated at the Disney studio in Toronto according to an Internet story. A report in the S.F. Chronicle said the show will be 22 min. long and will begin to air early in 1999. The show will feature "a mixture of shorter 'gag' cartoons and longer 'story' cartoons up to 12 min. in length. These will be new original stories, "but some themes and elements from older cartoons may be used" (whatever that means). The studio will try to match the original voices of their famous characters. It hasn't been decided if it will be shown on ABC-TV or on the Disney Channel.
NW FILM & VIDEO FESTIVAL IN PORTLAND SHOWS NEW ANIMATION FROM THE REGION The 24th annual event showed several animated works including two cameraless animated works, Joanna Priestley's Utopia Parkway (it won a judge's award), and a film that combined 1950s science fiction footage with flip book art. The latter was titled ...and the universe expands from bang by Franklin Joyce of Seattle. The cameraless works were Exploitation by Scott Clark from Pender Island, BC and Linear Dreams by Richard Reeves of North Pender Island. The festival is held at the NW Film Center.
The Film Center uses an auditorium in the Portland Museum of Art. They have a film school with a lot of Super-8 and 16mm equipment for student to use in a building next to the museum. Rose Bond, who has done several impressive cameraless films, teaches animation to adults at the school and Sharon Niemczyk teaches animation to kids. The program also includes classes in Avid, optical printing, screenwriting, etc.
NEW YORK LESBIAN & GAY EXPERIMENTAL FILM & VIDEO FESTIVAL PRESENTED "ANIMATION IN THE FAST LANE" The 50 minute program included Andrea Stoops' Adam, a clay animation about a little girl who is mistaken for a boy; Catherine Crouch's Vanilla Lament about a lesbian breakup using a mix of live footage, scratch and stop-motion; Phibrite by Jeff Koone, Lewis Klahr's Pony Glass, Allyson Mitchell's Don't Bug Me, Annie Wright's My Life Underwater that stars a Barbie doll, Larry Shea's Quest, Patricia Sunshine's Lesion that uses plastic dolls, and Michael Caines Love Gun that stars a Ken doll.
I hope that the quality of the animation was better than the program run recently at the Castro. Several people who saw the animation program at the San Francisco Gay and Lesbian Film Festival complained the show was mostly 3rd rate works. I was told the program was not well received by the audience. The show at the Castro sold out which simply means the publicity was good and people were curious. Showing poor quality work (if it was) does not build an audience for future programs unless you are Spike and Mike organizing a Sick and Twisted show. KC
PBS' FRONTLINE HAS A NEW ANIMATED LOOK FOR TITLES, CREDITS, ETC. that was designed by LoConte Goldman Design, Inc. of Boston.
ASIFA NEW YORK PRESENTED AN EVENING WITH BOB GODFREY IN NOVEMBER Godfrey has created some of England's most delightful and irreverent animated shorts over the last
30 years. He was born in Australia and got his first animation job in England in 1950. Among his works are The Do It Yourself Cartoon Kit, Henry 9 to 5,
Instant Sex, Kama Sutra Rides Again, Dream Doll, the Oscar winning Great, Dear Margery Boops and Bio Woman. Godfrey is a great storyteller so it must have been a wonderful evening.
Other recent events presented by the chapter include a screening in October of winners of Siggraph 97's Electronic Theater and a screening of work from ASIFA-Northwest in Sept. We will screen the reel from Portland in 1998.
ASIFA-INTERNATIONAL'S DAVID EHRLICH REPORTS THAT HE HOPES TO REPORT THE RESULTS OF HIS DISCUSSIONS WITH THE PRODUCERS OF ANNECY SOON He recently sent us several pages of comments by ASIFA members concerned with Annecy's threat to the survival of smaller festivals like Zagreb, Cardiff, etc. Several people saw Annecy as a threat to animation as an art form by commercial intrests. Among those who made astute remarks are computer animator Dan Sukiennik from Berkeley, Virginia Wilkos who has animated several fine shorts for Weston Woods, independent animator George Griffin from NYC, Linda Simensky who heads ASIFA-East, Chris Robinson who is director of the Ottawa International Animation Festival and Prescott Wright who was a founder and former director of the Ottawa Festival (and former president and co-founder of ASIFA-SF, former International Board Vice-President, etc.)
WHAT DOES IT COST TO LICENSE LUCAS STAR WAR TOYS? A recent article in Film/Tape World reported that Galoob, one of two companies with exclusive rights to toys based on the planned prequels of Star Wars, paid Lucas a $140 million advance against royalties. They also gave Lucas 20% of the Bay Area toy company's equity. The other company with a contract with Lucasfilm is Hasbro. The article said the two companies made an estimated $2 billion in sales with previously licensed Star Wars related toys.
VIDEO STORE MAGAZINE REPORTS that Americans will spend $9 billion renting videos this year and will spend $8 billion buying tapes. Their poll showed 56% of the households surveyed bought at least one video for children in the last 12 months and 41% bought at least one hit release.
UNUSUAL GIFT IDEAS
BILL PLYMPTON TO SELL HIS ORIGINAL CELS, DRAWINGS, TAPES, BOOKS ON THE INTERNET at AWN - coming soon. He is waiting for the AWN staff to add his items to their site.
At present, the Animation World Store sells original cels from Richard Condie's The Big Snit ($350-500) and some signed limited edition art that reproduces images from Speed Racer and Astro Boy ($300-600). There are also new cels based on images created by Ub Iwerks. It doesn't seem to matter that Iwerks has been dead for a long, long time. What is the point of buying a high priced "Iwerks"? They are signed by somebody who once worked for him. Is that signature worth the $360 that the images sell for? These and other limited editions have no historic value. They are simply nice decorations.
THE WHOLE TOON CATALOG #14 has lots of new items for sale including several new "Jerry Beck's Video Picks and Bookshelf Tips." The books that he suggests you consider buying are Karl Cohen's Forbidden Animation and The Official 30th Anniversary Speed Racer Guide. For tapes he suggests you consider buying Cats Don't Dance and Disney's Fun and Fancy Free.
There are dozens of other new items for sale. The new books include The Enchanted World of Rankin/Bass, John Grant's The Encyclopedia of Walt Disney's Animated Characters, Serious Business (called capable, if uninspired) and Warner Bros. Animation Art (limited edition cels with a text by Beck). The new tapes included Anastasia Sing-Along, Pinky and the Brain (2 new editions), a new Beavis and Butt-Head program, a new tape from Aardman (with Adam, Wat's Pig, Creature Comforts and Not Without My Handbag), Wild Brain's Ferngully II (is it actually out? I don't think so), Jay Ward's George of the Jungle Triple Pack, The Incredible Hulk, several new Rugrat tapes, Scooby-Doo Goes Hollywood, Best of the Simpsons (4 different tapes), Disney's Sleeping Beauty, Spawn (both a censored and an uncut version are available, you pay an extra $3 for the naughty version) and several other titles.
To order, or to get a free copy of this great catalog with thousands of items in it, call (800) 331-6197.
NEW AND UNUSUAL VIDEO TAPES FROM EXPANDED ENTERTAINMENT They now carry 3 different Bill Plympton tapes including Twisted Toons and his first live action film J. Lyle at $39.95 each. They also have John Schnall's compilation tape Death Laughs Among Us for $19.95. Their Anime line includes Devil Hunter Yokho, Neo Genesis 2 & 3, Blue Seed, Elicia, and Burn-Up Skin Dive at $24.95 ea. (800) 996-TOON
CLOSEOUT SPECIALS FROM LOONIC VIDEO INCLUDE BLANK NEW PROFESSIONAL BETA SP TAPES of different lengths at 30 to 40% off and copies of one of the Twisted Tales of Felix the Cat on VHS for $6.95 ($12.95 list) plus shipping. Loonic has a small line
of animation on tape including the Van Beuren Tom and Jerry characters (humans), WWII animation and more. For details call (510) 326-5681.
VIDEO LUNCH BOX 1024, is a great gift for yourself if you want a motion capture or pencil test system. The new model 1024 of the Video LunchBox can grab and store 1024 frames of information. That is 42 seconds of animation at 24 frames per second. Gary Schwartz says he now teaches using a Video Lunch Box to store images shot by his students. He thinks the system is better than single framing on his old video camera. The system can output to VHS tape via your own VCR. The systems are $2495 for the 256 frame unit, $3395 for the 512 unit and $4195 for the new 1025 unit. (503) 625-6438. Animation Toolworks, 1848 SW Parrett Mountain Rd, Sherwood, Oregon 97140
www.animationtoolworks.com
COMEDY CENTRAL HAS SOUTH PARK MERCHANDISE FOR SALE ON THEIR WEB SITE The site sells hats, T shirts, post cards, greeting cards, etc. There are also Dr. Katz items for sale and stuff from other shows on the network. I found it through a link on a S. Park fan's site so I don't know the address.
PUBLICATIONS
ANIMATO! #38 features Underdog on the cover and several great articles inside starting with a long interview with Jan Svankmajer by Wendy Hall. She also wrote a shorter article about the work of British stop-motion animator Anthony Hodgson who is presently working at PDI, and the Bay Area's Richard Zimmerman. She saw their work at the SF International Film Festival earlier this year. Jere Guldin contributed a fine article on the tremendous amount of footage cut from Willis O'Brien's
1924 classic The Lost World. The article contains news that some of the missing footage was found in a Czech film archive. Mike Lyons provides an interview with Peter Schneider, president of Disney Feature Animation. Karl Cohen contributed a tribute to Clare Kitson of Channel 4 in England. Glenn Anton interviewed Linda Jones (daughter of Chuck Jones) about her having to close her father's studio thanks to Warner Bros. executives blowing a few million on stupid features. WB decided to save money by ending Jone's cartoon contract! In the news section there are photos of Phil Tippett and some of the executives he worked with on Starship Troopers. The photos were taken at a wrap party.
TV animation is well covered starting with a fine historical article about animation produced in Mexico by the famous comedian Cantinflas. There is a large tribute to Underdog that includes several articles. There is an interview with Chip Duffey who writes for Space Ghost Coast to Coast, and an interview with Michael Ouweleen who is the On Air Creative Director at the Cartoon Network. Ouweleen does creative promotions for the network including having Scooby Doo in a Pulp Fiction sequence and the spots Wild Brain did for them that show real people playing tennis with animated characters from the Herculoids. There are also articles with episode guides on 101 Dalmatians (the TV series) and South Park.
Well thought out reviews are another fine feature of this outstanding publication. Several of the reviews are negative including two people reviewing Kanfer's Serious Business, and a ho hum review of Inside the Mouse: Work and Play at Disney World... from Duke University Press. The editor of the magazine called Dave Smith's Disney A to Z "an impressive compilation of everything Disney... I personally expect to refer to it on occasion, secure in the knowledge Dave Smith has done his very best to present a factual reference for Disney lovers." Fans of Japanese animation will find the reviews of 5 or 6 tapes quite helpful in deciding what to buy for Christmas.
The issue contains a great deal more material including an article by a teen contributor and an article about recent animation shown in New York
City (he loved Cats Can't Dance and was quite impressed with Bill Plympton's erotic I Married A Strange Person ("it really has to be seen to be believed.") The issue is 88 pages for $4.75 at better news stands. If you can't find it, subscribe. Four issues are $18 or buy 8 for $30 (or 13 for $45 or 20 for $60). Animato! Magazine, 92 Thayer Road, Monson, MA 01057 - 9445.
ANIMATION MAGAZINE, NOV. 97 has South Park on the cover. There is a slick article by the magazine's editor on why Comedy Central loves animation followed by an excellent article on the creators of South Park. They came to Hollywood with a live action feature called Cannibal the Musical that is now distributed by Troma. Stone made The Spirit of Christmas and 2 other animated shorts while attending Colorado Univ., Boulder. He majored in math and Parker was a Japanese major. Stone says he couldn't draw so he worked in stop-motion (clay and cut-outs). In the article they discuss what influences them, their style of writing, the use of computers to animate the show, etc.
The magazine picked their top 10 animated TV commercials of 1997. Two were made in the Bay Area. #8 on the list is ILM's General Motors EV1 Appliances and #9 is Wild Brain's Super Mom.
from page 8
The issue has a section on animation houses in Latin America. Much of the focus is on Promexa from Mexico as they were present at the First World Animation Celebration last year. Marty McNamara is still plans to present a program on Promexa for our chapter.
Subscriptions are $36 for 12 issues from Animation Magazine, 30101 Agoura Court, Suite 110, Agoura, CA 91301-9987
FESTIVALS
36th ANN ARBOR FILM FESTIVAL DEADLINE IS FEB 15, This is the oldest festival for 16mm independent and experimental films. There is a total of $12,000 in prizes (cash!). The entry fee is $32 ($37 for foreign entries). Winning films are selected for a tour that pays $2 per minute per show. About 4 hours of films are picked for the tour. The judges this year include Dominic Angerame from Canyon Cinema in SF and Jan Krawitz, who teaches documentary film at Stanford. Ann Arbor is a major festival if you are doing non-traditional, non-commerical work. The festival will be held at the Michigan Theater March 17-22.
For a festival entry form write PO Box 8232 Ann Arbor, Michigan 48107 (313) 995-5356 or if you are a member of ASIFA-SF contact Karl Cohen, PO Box 14516, SF CA 94114 and I'll send you one. (415) 386-1004.
ASIFA-SAN FRANCISCO
P.O. Box 14516
San Francisco, CA 94114
This issue was written by Karl Cohen and proof read by Barbara Olitzky-Bannerman. Copies are free to members of ASIFA-SF. Membership is $18 a year from the above address.
DEADLINE REMINDER The following festivals have been mentioned in this column before. Their upcoming deadlines are: International Monitor Awards - Jan. 20, Golden Gate Awards - Jan. 10, 9th Stuttgart - early next year, Hiroshima - March 21, Zagreb - Feb. 1, Toronto - March 1, and Mad Cat in SF - Dec. 22. Also, the final call for papers deadline for Society for Animation Studies Conference is Jan. 15 for the Aug. 6 - 16 event at Chapman Univ. in Orange Ca.
HUMBOLDT INT'L FILM FESTIVAL has a Jan 30 deadline for video prescreening and Feb. 27 for film prints. They present cash awards, low entry fees and show S-8 & 16mm. An excelent festival for students experimenting with film. Contact Humboldt at HSU Theatre Arts Dept., Arcata, CA 95521 (707) 826-4113
ATHENS INT'L FILM & VIDEO FESTIVAL Feb. 9 deadline for May event. Cash and non-cash prizes, $25 entry fee. Ideal for experimental animators. Contact Ruth Bradley, Athens Center for Film and Video, POB 388, Athens, Ohio 45701 (614) 593-1330
NEW YORK UNDERGROUND FILM FESTIVAL has Jan. 5 deadline, $30 fee (late date is Feb. 2 & fee is $45) For experimental work in S-8mm, 16mm, & 35mm, 1/2" & 3/4" video. 225 Lafayette St. # 409, NY NY 10012 (212) 925-3440
NEW DIRECTORS/NEW FILMS has Jan. 17 deadline. NO ENRTY FEE, 16mm, 35mm, VHS & 3/4" video. For emerging filmmakers. Must be NYC premiere. Film Society of Lincoln Center, 70 Lincoln Center Plaza, NY NY 10023 (212) 875-5636
ASIFA-SF AND THE EXPLORATORIUM'S FILM PROGRAM PRESENT
ANALYSTS ON ANIMATION WITH DOCTORS MARK LEVY AND WOODROW DONOVAN AND A SCREENING OF SEVERAL ANIMATED WORKS
TUESDAY, DECEMBER 9
7:30 PM, EXPLORATORIUM'S McBEAN THEATRE
FREE, PUBLIC INVITED
Doctors Levy and Donovan have private practices in the Bay Area and come to us courtesy of the San Francisco Psychoanalytic Institute. The Institute contacted ASIFA-SF several months ago, asking if we wanted to do a program with them. The idea was intriguing, but I wanted to find out more about the group as some of the more unusual critics of animation have been psychiatrists. For example in 1930 a German doctor suggested Mickey Mouse was a "paranoidical dementia on the part of its creator" - whatever that means. In recent years there have been pop psychologists advancing their theories in the press about the lack of mother figures in Disney features. You should be happy to know that The San Francisco Psychoanalytic Institute is a highly regarded professional group of MDs and PhDs with a background in Freudian analysis and not a group on the fringe advancing unorthodox thoughts.
I expect this program will be quite fascinating as we learn how our guests view animation. I met with them in October and showed them classics like Porky in Wackyland and Daffy Doc. I was delighted that they were fascinated by Clampett's exploration of reality. They discussed how his work illustrated some of Sigmund Freud's basic theories about humor and dreaming.
Our program will be loosely structured. Several films will be shown followed by discussions about a variety of topics including the relationship between humor and the unconscious, the morphing of reality to express playfulness and to make the impossible possible, and the similarities and difference between animation and dreaming and their relationship to creativity. The roll of sex and aggression in animation will also be examined.
Dr. Donovan suggests that you bring questions to ask as he wants this program to be an open discussion and not a formal lecture. He said, "bring wild ideas if you wish. No question is too impertinent to ask."
This program was organized by Karl Cohen. You can see copies of my book Forbidden Animation before and after the program.
the knowledge Dave Smith has done his very best to present a factual reference for Disney lovers." Fans of Japanese animation will find the reviews of 5 or 6 tapes quite helpful in deciding what to buy for Christmas.
The issue contains a great deal more material including an article by a teen contributor and an article about recent animation shown