OCTOBER, 2003

 

 

 

Local Screenings | National News | Festivals

 

 

Webster Colcord's Extreme Man and Insane Boy

BAY AREA ANIMATORS WERE REPRESENTED AT THE PORTLAND INDY ANIMATION FESTIVAL, 2003

Webster “Wild Man of Borneo” Colcord (funny, he doesn't look the part) showed Extreme Man and Insane Boy, a cel animation that has the pair taking on the Screaming Skull. The Screaming Skull has created a device to reanimate dead bodies. Extreme Man and Insane Boy intercept a test subject as it attacks a police squad. Colcord claims, “it proves digital animation is for pussies!” It is a remarkable, tough as nails, 10-minute work and it was shot in 35mm. It won the best animated short award at Zombiedance 2002. www.webstercolcord.com

 

Smithy Blackwell, a second year animation student at SFSU had her film Mind Lips shown at the August event. The work was painted on 16mm film, then digitized and re-edited. It depicts the progression of one woman's struggle for inner

resolution as seen from her interior monologue. “A sensual ride through vibrant abstract imagery.” pdanimation,com

           

Another local work presented in Portland was Jerold Howard's award winning See the Truth. The on-line festival catalog says, “A well-meaning parent experiences an epiphany and is forced to re-evaluate what he had been taught as a child, as well as what he has been teaching his own child.” The work uses 3-D clay figures. www.planetjerold.com

 

The event is an international competition and it included works from Asia, Europe as well as the US and Canada. Among the other works shown were Wild Places by Chel White (he used to work locally, www.chelwhite.com) and Women by Signe Baumane (she assists Bill Plympon and her erotic work has been shown by Sprocket Ensemble, www.signebaumane.com)

 

 

 

VISIT OUR WEBSITE - ASIFA-SF.ORG

 

 

 

DRISCAL DESIGN HAS A SUPER NEW ANIMATED SHORT AVAILABLE ON THE WEB David Magliocco, owner of Driscal Designs, has just finished his 2nd animated short featuring Peavie Fosko as Extraordinary Boy! in Finders Creepers. He writes, “As everyone knows since

childhood, when you find something on the street, it's yours. But it seems not everyone is aware of this rule, so Extraordinary Boy! is needed to help uphold this long established law of the streets.” See his new short and his first short staring Extraordinary Boy! in Attack of the Hungrums!. dave@driscal.com www.driscal.com/shorts/eboy.html.

 

OUR AUDIENCE PICKED THEIR FAVORITE FILMS IN THE ASIFA-EAST ANIMATION SHOW - THEIR VOTING WAS DIFFERENT FROM THE WAY THEY VOTED IN NYC Our $100 first prize went to Alex Budovsky for Bathtime in Clerkenwell. It won best in show in NYC (tie). Second prize ($60) went to Sjaak Meiling for Stiltwalkers (National Film Board of Canada). It won the excellence in animation price in NYC. Third ($40) went to Sean McBride's Dreamscapes. It won first prize in the student category in NYC.

 

Honorable mentions went to Roof Sex by PES (2^nd place independent film in NYC)), The Stone of Folly by Jesse Rosensweet (National Film Board of Canada - won excellence in sound in NYC) and Religetables by Wachtenheim/Marianetti Animation (tie for excellence in humor/writing in NYC).

 

Other films that got a lot of votes were Ark City by Christi Bertelson (3^rd in student films in NYC), Midterm Elections by J.J. Sedelmajer (tie for excellence in humor/writing in NYC), X Presidents: “Search” by Wachtenheim/Marianetti Animation (1^st place, sponsored films in NYC) and Tongues and Taxis by Michael Overbeck (best in show in NYC - tie).

 

WILL DISNEY CONTINUE TO DISTRIBUTE FILMS FROM PIXAR? The Los Angeles Times reports that Disney and Pixar are far apart in their contract negotiations. Michael Eisner would like to resolve the matter before the studio's Sept. 23 board meeting. They say Steve Jobs wants to reduce Disney's role in the new contract to that of a distributor and to pay them 10% or less. Jobs also wants to break the present contract that will give Disney a 50% stake in Pixar's next 2 films (The Incredibles and Cars) plus a 12.5% distribution fee. If Pixar breaks with Disney, they may sign with Warner Bros., Columbia Pictures or Twentieth Century Fox.

 

JAN PINKAVA TO DIRECT A PIXAR FEATURE TO BE RELEASED IN 2006 The unnamed project stars a rat named Ratatouille who inhabits an upscale Paris restaurant. Pinkava won an Oscar for his film Geri's Game. He has been a member of our chapter for many years.

 

DON'T MISS OUR BIG 35MM SHOW OF NEW SHORTS FOR MEMBERS & THEIR GUESTS, FRI. OCTOBER 24

 

CARTOON ART MUSEUM PRESENTS “TOO HOT TO HANDLE: CREATING CONTROVERSY THROUGH POLITICAL CARTOONS” October 18 through February 1, 2004.The exhibition, sponsored by The Sacramento Bee, was organized by the Andy Warhol Museum in Pittsburgh, PA..

 

See what some critics consider tasteless, offensive and even unpatriotic. The exhibit includes over 60 American cartoons that were either censored by newspaper editors or created a public controversy. Cartoonists in the exhibition include: Rex Babin (The Sacramento Bee), Tom Meyer (San Francisco Chronicle), Aaron MacGruder (Boondocks), alternative cartoonist and columnist Ted Rall, Garry Trudeau (Doonesbury), Rob Rogers (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette), Dan Perkins (a.k.a. Tom Tomorrow, creator of This Modern World), Pulitzer Prize-winning editorial cartoonists Clay Bennett (The Christian Science Monitor), Pat Oliphant (Universal Press Syndicate), Joel Pett (Lexington-Herald Leader) and Signe Wilkinson (Philadelphia Daily News).

 

WILD BRAIN HAS CREATED THE NATIONAL BULLYING PREVENTION CAMPAIGN FOR THE U.S. GOVERNMENT'S DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES - AN INTERVIEW WITH AMY CAPEN, THE PRODUCER OF THE SERIES by Karl Cohen Kids being bullied by classmates is an age old problem that continues to grow and spread in our schools. To combat this serious situation our government has developed an anti-bullying educational program according to Amy Capen, Wild Brain's producer of the campaign. She says, “We hope this campaign can affect a positive change. I've told a lot of people that we are doing the project and everybody said it's great that you are doing that. It seems that a lot of adults identify with the problem too.”

 

The National Bullying Prevention Campaign is aimed at kids 9 to 12 and it will launch this month. It was produced with Widmeyer Communications for HRSA (Health Resources and Services Administration), a division of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. They commissioned Wild Brain to create 12 two-minute webisodes for the Internet, two animated PSAs for national TV (a :30 and a :15 second message) and three live-action spots (two :30's and a :15) that will also be on national TV. Denis Morella directed the animation, Amy produced and Denis and Achiu So were the character designers. A technical note - although the characters will look the same on the Internet and on television, the TV images had to be of a higher quality as they are intended for broadcast. The live-action spots were shot and posted for high-definition television.

 

Due to the sensitive nature of the project it went through a lot of discussions with the client, both in person and over the phone, and a lot of testing with kids when it was being planned. Wild Brain shared their ideas at several phases of the production with panels of young "experts." The kids listened to possible soundtracks, saw different character designs, discussed a variety of story ideas, etc. As a result the campaign is designed for the taste of kids, not adults. Amy says, “Sometimes the adults wanted one thing, but we deferred to what the kids liked.” For example the young experts decided Wild Brain's characters with animal faces had more appeal than those with human faces. The characters that they chose and Wild Brain used are "the kids next door, except they have animal faces."

 

None of the bullies are real monsters. The closest is a big jerk with a bull-head (he has little horns) and “one of his companions who is a big thug, sort of a gorilla who has a tiny little ‘dweeb' monkey on his back.” The rest of the cast is quite attractive. For example "the bad girl bully is actually a cute pink kitty, but she is very devious." The main characters are K.B., a diminutive female dog and a guy who is a cool green monkey. Amy understands from the client that they are making plush toys and actual life-sized costumes of the two main characters. She says, “We are very excited about all of this.”

 

The campaign was also developed with the help of Sue Limber, a professor at Clemson University in North Carolina. Amy calls her “a foremost bullying expert” and says that she was consulted at every phase of the project. “Our client was very concerned about portraying things accurately and our presenting the right message. We were also careful to depict adults as models of good behavior. Limber was very much part of the process.” Limber also wrote the teachers' guide to the webisodes.

 

Limber pointed out that girls and boys bully in different ways. The girls tend to be more psychological and the boys more physical in their bullying. As a result the 12 webisodes are set-up as two parallel stories. Amy says, “In a two-minute spot it is difficult to show resolution all the time. In some cases we wanted to show what the problem was and since this is for a website there is the opportunity to let the kids interact and chooe from a list of what this character should have done. There is a lot of interactivity that can get the kids involved.”

 

When the project began it was thought the PSAs would simply air on programs that kids watched and teachers would introduce kids to the offerings on the Internet. Amy says that since then “The National Association for Broadcasting got really excited about the project and about the possibility of broadcasting the webisodes as interstitials on Saturday morning TV. That may happen. They also loved the live action PSAs as they were shot on high-definition video. They want to show them on state-of-the-art equipment at conventions. They sure look great seen that way.”

 

Although it is too soon to report viewers' comments about Wild Brain's work, Amy did mention, “I have a nine-year old daughter and she and her friends have watched it several times. They just loved it. It provoked a lot of conversation between them.”

 

LOCAL SCREENINGS

 

MADCAT WOMEN'S FILM FESTIVAL at 4 different locations from Sept. 9 - Oct. 5, is presenting 11 different shows, many include animated shorts in them.

 

An all animation and optical show in the series is CONTEMPORARY ANIMATED FILMS BY WOMEN Oct. 3 at ATA, 8 PM and Oct. 5 at the Pacific Film Archive. Includes Chronicles of an Asthmatic Stripper by Sarah Jane Lappi, Monkeys and Lumps by Nancy Andrews, Historia del Desierto by Celia Julve (Spain/UK), Cut Snip Ooze, an optical printing work by Marianna Ellenberg, Cows by Gabriela Goldner (Argentina), Monstruo by Carolina Esparragoza (Mexico) and Anorexle by Jean Tietze (Germany). Themes of the program include unsolved crimes and medical mysteries. ATA, 992 Valencia at 21^st St., SF.

 

 

Saturday, October 4 at 5:00 pm, FREE OUTDOOR SCREENING OF ‘THE BLOB' AT THE PRESIDIO Main Post Theatre, 99 Moraga Avenue in the Presidio. The Blob, a campy 1958 science fiction classic starring Steve McQueen. will be screened at 7:00 PM with a 1959 newsreel and DUCK DODGERS IN THE 24½ CENTURY (Chuck Jones, 1953).

 

Bring lawn chairs and blankets, and arrive early to reserve a spot to enjoy live music. Food and beverages will be available for purchase. The historic Main Post Theatre will be open for public tours at 5:00 pm. For more information www.sffs.org www.atthepresidio.org or call 415.561.5500.

 

THE FIRST SF INTERNATIONAL SOUTH ASIAN FILM FESTIVAL MAY INCLUDE ANIMATED SHORTS Nov. 1 at the Castro and Nov. 2 at the Roxie. Their advance publicity says “A selection of short films will also screen with various features, to be announced closer to the festival.” http://www.thirdi.org/festival/ or call (510) 919-0804.

 

 

Thurs. Nov. 20, evening, DON THOMAS TRIBUTE, a screening of his films, speakers and an announcement regarding plans for the Don Thomas Animation Scholarship. At SF State, Coppola Theater, details next newsletter.

Thursday, November 13, SPROCKET ENSEMBLE at the Red Vic on Haight Street. Welcome them back from a journey through the Ukraine by ship. In late Sept. they flew there to attend the KROK International Festival of Animation. They return to the US October 15^th with lots of good tales of life on board the ship with 200 animators from all over the world. Hopefully our Nov. issue will include some of their stories about new fabulous animation from around the world. Some of it will be screened at their Red Vic show.

Their giant garage sale to help pay for the trip was “a fabulous success and lots of fun.  It was so nice to see so many friends.”

 

 ‘MILLENNIUM ACTRESS' HAS OPENED IN 6 CITIES INCLUDING SAN FRANCISCO It is the first feature to be distributed by Go Fish Pictures, DreamWorks' new distribution arm. It was produced by Mad House, the Japanese company responsible for Metropolis and Vampire Hunter D. It is an epic adventure about a documentary filmmaker who seeks to find out why the legendary actress Chiyoko vanished at the height of her brilliant career.  It gives a fanciful look at segments of Japanese film history. The film has been a hit at numerous well respected film festivals.

 

Chris Lanier says, “it's a good movie, with some interesting things to say about our need to cast our lives in dramatic,'movie-worthy' terms, and about the comically masochistic nature of celebrity worship. The animation is nothing spectacular (though it would be impossible to blur the line between fiction and reality as seamlessly as the movie does, if it were a live-action film) -- it's the writing that recommends it more than anything else. But it's been released with no fanfare, and I assume it won't last long on the big screen, so I thought I'd try and get the word out.”

 

Jon Hall, a graduate animation student at SF State, attended a preview of Millenium Actress in my absence. He wrote me, “I am so glad that I was able to attend.  It is a beautifully designed film directed by Satoshi Kon (Perfect Blue).  This wonderfully choreographed story follows the fascinating life of a famous Japanese actress through years of history.

 

In the film, an interviewer and his camera-man have trouble through-out the movie following this energetic actress as she experiences all that life has to offer her while she journeys to find her one true love.  The story transitioned between different times in the life of this actress so wonderfully that one couldn't notice.  Satoshi used sound transitions off screen, color blending, shape matches, and motion similarities to weave each chapter of her life into one magnificent history of her life.  The story line is absolutely brilliantly designed. 

 

The style of this animated film was much like that of Spirited Away with a story line more like Momento.  It was wonderful, not being able to really know if you were in the past or the present. It was a great movie and the artwork was extraordinary. I really hope this film is successful in the United States as it is one of a kind and a "gotta see" flick.

 

He also warned that for $8.53 he got “a lousy hotdog, soggy nachos, and a watered downed soda” at the Metreon.

 

NATIONAL NEWS

 

A SIGN WE NEED TO GET OUT THERE AND VOTE "The vast majority of our imports come from outside the country." - George W. Bush

 

“NEW YORK TIMES” (SUNDAY, SEPT. 7) RAN AN EXCELLENT FULL PAGE ARTICLE ON DALI AND WALT DISNEY WORKING TOGETHER ON “DESTINO” John Canemaker's article provides both a look at the working and social relationships between the two men and a valuable discussion of the project's history. The short film was started in 1946 and was completed this year by Disney's studio in France. It premiered at Annecy and has gone on to win awards at several festivals. Canemaker calls the computer-generated work elegant and he says it has the feel of an experimental film with big studio production values. The article includes statements by John Hench, who was Dali's assistant on the project. You should be able to find the article on-line.

 

TELLURIDE FILM FESTIVAL SCREENED THREE ANIMATED FILMS INCLUDING WHAT SOUNDS LIKE AN EXCITING FEATURE FROM FRANCE Telluride, held August 29 - September 1, is a major non-competitive live-action festival and it includes what they consider to be the very best in animation. This year they showed Sylvain Chomet's new feature Les Triplettes de Belleville, Dominique Monfery's Disney/Dali-inspired Destinot and Todd Fjelsted's Firefly Man. Firefly Man is about “a man who finds redemption in light after a tragedy.”

 

The Guardian (UK) review of Belleville began, “Sylvain Chomet's thoroughly delightful animated feature is touching, hilarious and so French you can taste it. It playfully alludes to Jacques Tati, and lightly sports influences from Betty Boop to Walt Disney's 101 Dalmatians, but it really is one of the most bracingly original things I have seen for a long time.” It ended with, “It's impossible to tell if it is a children's story for adults or an adult's story for children. Or if it matters. I was beguiled from the first second.” Chomet received an Oscar nomination in 1998 for The Old Lady and the Pigeons.

 

A JOANNA PRIESTLY RETROSPECTIVE IN PORTLAND ON OCT. 4 WILL INCLUDE A NEW FILM CO-DIRECTED BY KAREN AQUA The NW Film Center is presenting the world premere of Andaluz. Their program note says Priestly (from Portland) and Aqua (from Boston) “share a similar spiritual connection.” They met by chance in a small village in Andalusia, Spain, fell in love with the culture and then spent 3 years collaborating on a cinematic valentine that combines bright, playful visuals with evocative music.

 

A SIGN THAT OUR ECONOMY IS RECOVERING Television Week reports that although it is 5 months before the next Oscar telecast, advertising time on the TV special is sold out. Also the ad rate has gone up from $1.4 million for 30 seconds to $1.5 million for next year's show.

 

JULES ENGEL, A FINE ANIMATOR AND GREAT MENTOR TO HUNDREDS OF CAL ARTS STUDENTS, HAS PASSED ON Christine Panuskka wrote us, “My heart is heavy with the news that Jules passed Sept.6 at 5:15 PM, at a Simi Valley Hospice. The end was peaceful and Jane Ann Dill was at his side as he slipped away. For all of us it is a great personal loss. Each of us

meant so much to Jules and of course, he to us.”

 

“We may be comforted that he's not suffering. Even up to the end, Jules was leaving an impression and spreading his special talent, love. One of the hospice care-givers was an animation student who felt so privileged to have Jules there! That's our Jules!” Services were held at Forest Lawn Hollywood Hills, Old North Church.

 

Tom Sito attended the funeral service at Forest Lawn and said, “It was one of the largest I had ever seen. I would estimate around 150 packed the small church - filmmakers, award winners, professors, directors, college presidents - all came to pay tribute to their teacher, the little Hungarian man in the straw hat and ascot with the piercing black eyes. One artist remembered how Jules placed emphasis on always doing personal artwork. When he asked her about her stuff and she made excuses about her professional life and her children Jules dismissed it: ‘You will always find time for your creative work.'"

 

On hearing of his passing Gary Schwartz wrote us, “Jules embodied for an entire community of people the full & deep sense of the term mentor. We were all profoundly changed being in the presence of a great artist. In his own words, Jules inspired the ‘MAGIC' in all his students. He shall be missed.”

 

John Hays, Wild Brain's president, recalls, “I remember having lunch with Jules in the Cal-Arts cafeteria around 1981. He was talking about what it was like working in the "Golden Age" of Animation.  He spoke passionately about the spirit of collaboration and the sense that they were discovering a new Art form.  Afterwards he got up, collected his things, and  said, ‘But you know, that wasn't really the Golden Age, it was more like the Bronze Age.  The Golden Age will come later.' Jules would always seem to leave you with an inspired thought.”

 

Tara Beyhm who lives and animates in San Francisco writes, “Jules was my mentor while I was at Cal Arts.  He was a

beautiful and generous man, a gem. I went to Cal Arts to study stop-motion animation. One day, I went into Jules' office with a cast of puppets I had fabricated and some sets.  Along with all this bulky stuff, I had one sheet of paper that had a bunch of scribbles on it.  They were little more than stick figures and some arrows to depict movement.  I called this mess my storyboards.”

 

“Jules looked at all the stuff I brought into his office and his response was like yeah, yeah, those puppets are nice but "these DRAWINGS are BEAUTIFUL!"  I remember cringing. My initial thought was "this old man has flipped!" Then I remembered to whom I was talking with and my deep respect for Jules allowed me to take his advice.  I put my puppets away and decided to draw my film.”

 

“The thing Jules said that stuck with me the most is that it does not matter how one tells their story, be it with shaky lines, sand, sticks, puppets or clay. it's showing a GOOD STORY that matters.  I really feel blessed that Jules helped me to discover something I get so much joy from.  I've grown to love my drawing style and seeing my drawings come to life is something that makes me feel especially proud.  Thanks! Jules!”

 

Animation Blast said Engel, who was 94, “Started working in animation at Disney in the late-Thirties on films like Pinocchio and Fantasia, the latter to which he made significant contributions by designing the choreography for the Chinese mushroom dance segment and "Dance of the Hours" sequence. During World War II, he joined the First Motion Picture Unit, and afterwards was one of the early artists who joined UPA. For the next decade-and-a-half, he was UPA's lead color stylist contributing his expertise to countless theatrical shorts, industrial films, the TV series The Boing Boing Show, and the feature 1001 Arabian Nights. At UPA, he was instrumental in creating separate credit distinctions for color and design, whereas other studios simply lumped together everything into one credit for background. In 1959, Jules and Herb Klynn left UPA to form Format Studios, where he served as the producer on The Alvin Show and the Oscar-nominated short Icarus Montgolfier Wright. “

 

The publication continued, “Beginning in the early-'60s, he shifted away from studio animation and began producing his own experimental and abstract films. As an independent filmmaker, he made well over thirty-five shorts. In perhaps his most lasting contribution to the animated art form, he was the founding director of the Experimental Animation Program at CalArts. As head of the program, he served as a mentor and inspiration to countless students. Just a few of the program's successful graduates include Henry Selick (director of The Nightmare Before Christmas), Eric Darnell (co-director of Antz), and Stephen Hillenburg (creator of Spongebob Squarepants).”

 

 

“SOUTH PARK” TO BE OFFERED TO BROADCAST STATIONS FOR SYNDICATION Starting a year from now reruns of the show might be available on broadcast TV. The show will continue on Comedy Central, but syndication might generate another $50 to $100 million in fees over a four-year period. The show where a four-letter “expletive” was said over 100 times will not be available, and some show will be freshly censored depending on the rules of the network that buys the package and the time slot that it is shown in.

 

A UNIVERSITY TEACHER IN AUSTRALIA SAYS “PARENTS ARE MISGUIDED IN FEARS OVER ‘SOUTH PARK'” Dr. Marian Quigley from the communication department of Monash University says that while South Park, The Simpsons and Beavis and Butthead may not be “nice” and politically correct, they are valuable social commentaries on contemporary society and that parents should watch these shows with their kids. Parents should use them to begin discussions with their kids, “to take an active approach to the program rather than a defensive one… While the show (South Park) includes overtly racist, sexist and homophobic comments, it is these confronting and revolting aspects of it that make us question our own stance on a variety of social and moral issues, such as the status of women in society and the politics of race.”

 

DISNEY TREASURES DVD SERIES TO MAKE AVAILABLE 4 GREAT SETS OF RARE FILMS The collectible sets in cute metal boxes go on sale Dec. 2 and retail at $32.99. “Walt Disney on the Front Lines” includes Victory Through Airpower and other rare WWII educational and

propaganda material and possibly some of their training films. Victory is a hard-hitting propaganda feature (about 60 minutes long) selling America on our need to have the world's finest aviation weapon systems. Since the war ended Disney has refused to let anyone screen the film in public or reproduce images from it in books. I haven't seen information on the shorts in the package, but this will be a rare chance to see another kind of Disney film.

 

Just as interesting to me is the forthcoming set “Walt Disney's Tomorrowland” that features historic Disney TV shows on outer space and space travel. These TV shows helped win our interest in space exploration and helped convince congress to fund NASA and other programs.

 

The other sets coming out are “Mickey Mouse in Living Color” (Volume 2) and “The Chronological Donald.” The last will include 36 Donald Duck cartoons from 1936-'41.

 

Special thanks to the Walt Disney Corporation for making these important treasures available.

 

ACADEMY OF MOTION PICTURE ARTS AND SCIENCES IN L.A. WILL HOLD A REALLY RARE 35MM SCREENING OF “VICTORY THROUGH AIR POWER” AND WWII PROPAGANDA SHORTS, OCTOBER 22. Jerry Beck will host this important screening of the Disney feature from 1943. He says this may be the last time the film will be shown in 35mm on a big screen. Disney has probably not shown the film to the public in the USA since the end of WWII. (It was shown once on the BBC years ago and I once got to see a poor videotape of that broadcast - it is a fine and amazing work.) They will also show 35mm vault prints of Hollywood cartoons including Russian Rhapsody (Warner Bros., 1943), Blitz Wolf (MGM, Oscar nomination, 1942), Song of Victory (Columbia, 1943), Out of the Frying Pan into the Fire (Disney, with Pluto and Minnie Mouse, 1942) and Reason and Emotion (Disney, Oscar nomination, 1943). The Academy is located at 8949 Wilshire Boulevard in Beverly Hills. 8 PM, doors open at 7 PM. Tickets are $5 ($3 for student and Academy members). For more information, call the Academy (310) 247-3600.

 

DEPRESSING NEWS FROM KODAK ABOUT THEIR FINE LINE OF SLIDE PROJECTORS Eastman Kodak has confirmed plans to discontinue the manufacture and sales of slide projection products and accessories in June, 2004. This early disclosure was made to give users enough time to adopt replacement technology or for them to purchase backup equipment. The Kodak products to be phased out are Carousel, Ektagraphic, Ektalite and Ektapro slide projectors and all Kodak slide projector accessories. The current plan is to cease manufacturing in June 2004. Kodak  anticipates that small quantities of new Carousel, Ektagraphic, Ektalite  and Ektapro slide projectors will be available through the end of 2004. In addition, the Kodak distributor, Comm-Tec, in Germany plans to sell Ektapro projectors and accessories beyond 2004. Kodak will offer service and support for slide projectors until 2011.

VEGGIETALE'S CREATORS HAVE BEEN FORCED INTO BANKRUPTCY As part of a buyout by Classic Media, Big Idea Productions will have to declare itself bankrupt (Chapter 11). Big Idea has lost $11 million, but not due to lack of success of their VeggiTales feature. They lost a breach of contract lawsuit with their original video distribution company Lyrick Studios Inc. after they switched distributors. Warner Home Video has distributed their product since 2001.

 

Phil Vischer, founder of Big Idea Prods said, “In the midst of VeggieTales' success, we made several key strategic errors that led us to this point… I believe Classic Media is a wonderful partner to help guide Big Idea back to financial health." Eric Ellenbogen, chairman and CEO of Classic Media said, "Although Big Idea has experienced considerable financial difficulties, it has never let down its audience. We will commit everything it takes to advance Big Idea's unique franchise." 

 

Classic Media owns home video and/or TV rights to lots of well known shows including Lassie, The Lone Ranger, Rocky and Bullwinkle, the Harvey library and Golden Books. www.classicmedia.tv.

 

DOES THE WORLD NEED A BETTY BOOP BROADWAY MUSICAL? Broadway.com reports that Jason Robert Brown, a Tony award-winning composer-lyricist, has teamed up with playwright David Lindsay-Abaire and they are creating a show starring Ms. Boop for the 2005 Broadway season. Variety says, “The musical's book will feature Boop in a dog costume in its first number, to pay homage to the character's roots. That bit will be set in a vaudeville theater.”

 

AN HOUR DOCUMENTARY ON “DAVEY AND GOLIATH” BY ART AND RUTH CLOKEY (1960-'75) HAS AIRED ON TV The original Sunday morning TV show incorporated religious themes and was produced by the Evangelical Lutheran Church. It was created by the crew that had made Gumby. Many people who grew up watching it have fond memories of it. The documentary aired locally on Sunday, Sept. 21 at 5:30 AM on KGO-TV (ABC).

 

 MAINFRAME TO ANIMATE A 3D COMPUTER-ANIMATED POPEYE SPECIAL FOR FOX & ARTISAN It will air late in 2004 to commemorate the 75th birthday of the famous sailor. The new Popeye 3D special has been written by actor/comedian Paul Reiser (Mad About You) and Jim Hardison *(Gary and Mike). Billly West (Futurama and Ren and Stimpy) will voice Popeye. The plot will center on a search for Poopdeck Pappy, Popeye's long lost father (shades of Goonland?). There will also be a DVD/VHS release about the same time of new and “bonus material” in the DVD.

 

CORPORATE MUSICAL CHAIRS: DIGITAL PRODUCTION SOLUTIONS (DPS) HAS BOUGHT MAINFRAME (VANCOUVER, CANADA) AND FILM ROMAN Mainframe became famous years ago for Reboot and since then they have had a good track record as the producer of computer animation for TV and direct-to-video products. They were once working on several features for IMAX theatres, but that project apparently has died. Film Roman's credits include King of the Hill and The Simpsons. DPS is a company from Newark, New Jersey. It is owned by IDT Media, a subsidiary of IDT Corp. IDT is a multinational carrier, telephone and technology company. DPS bought a 51% controlling interest in Film Roman earlier this year and has just purchased Mainframe.

COMMENTS ABOUT MIKE JUDGE AND DON HERTZFELDT'S “THE ANIMATION SHOW “ by Karl Cohen It was a real pleasure to see a fresh program that contains lots of enjoyable surprises. On opening night Hertzfeldt said it represented their personal favorite films rather than their trying to present a survey of the best of the last year or two. As a result we were treated to some fascinating old and delightful Ward Kimball images of what life on Mars might be like (from the Disney film Mars and Beyond, 1957), saw Ident by Richard Goleszowski, Aardman, 1989 and basked in a painterly tour de force by Georges Schwizgebel set to classical music in 1992.

 

The show includes six recent works by artists not associated with the production of the package. All were fine, if not outstanding works. I'd seen Koji Yamamura's Mt Head and Cordell Barker's Strange Invaders several times and they not only hold up extremely well for me, they looked fantastic on the Castro's giant screen. Bill Plympton's Parking also looked great and it was a pleasure to hear it get a lot of laughs.

 

My only criticism of the program is the lack of editing and aesthetic taste when it came to the work of the producers of the show. The rest of the show is exceptional fine art, while Judge and Hertzfeldt's drawing skills might politely be describes as minimalist. Their films succeed on the strength of their humorous content, but they didn't present tight, fast paced, material. Mike Judge included some unremarkable bits and pieces including an alternate drawing for his excellent film Honkey Problem. It stars “Inbred Jed” and while I love the short and show it to my students, just seeing the grinning face of Jed out of context probably means nothing to most people. I assume most were not familiar with the short.

 

Hertzfeldt, who has done the world a great favor by organizing this program, could have deleted several segments of his show opening and his intermission segments to create a tighter, more professional and pleasing appreciation of his work. It left me feeling his abilities are not equal to the other artists that he included in his program. I suggest he consider “less is more” and edit out the material that doesn't work.

 

Hopefully this show will be the first of a series of fine programs organized by the pair. To submit your work for consideration in future shows send a VHS or DVD to 11684 Ventura Blvd. Suite 778, Studio City, CA 91604 (818) 623-0012. Material will not be returned. www.animationshow.com

 

THE ANIMATION SHOW FLYER CONTAINS DUBIOUS FACTS by Karl Cohen. I wrote the producers of the new program the following: “As an animation historian I feel I must comment on the revisionist misinformation published in your program. You state that theatrical animation festivals date to 1976 with the launch of the Fantastic Animation Festival, etc. I assume that was written by somebody who was too young to remember that the Tournee of Animation dates back to about 1965 when Bill Scott and Bill Littlejohn (and possibly Les Goldman) put together a screening for the ASIFA chapter in Los Angeles. For several years the program was only shown in Los Angeles. Then, in 1970 Prescott Wright was brought in to book the show in other locations. While many of the early shows were in non-theatrical locations (university and museum auditoriums) others were booked in commercial theatres including the Castro. (See my article For the Love of Animation published in Mindrot #13, 1978 in which I interviewed Prescott Wright and The American Cartoon by Danny Perry that includes an interview about the Tournee with Wright that was made in 1977 by Joan Cohen.)

 

EFFECT3D STUDIO BY REALLUSION Reviewed by Michael Nolan Effect3D Studio is a bundled package of Reallusion's Effect3D object building, animation and rendering engine, combined with over 700 3D objects and effects. There is a staggering amount off possibilities with Effect3D Studio, but there are two major limitations. The main limitation is that you can only have one 3D object performing an animation on any given background image. You can add additional 3D images to the background and layer them, but only the object added last will be capable of having an animation effect applied to it. You can assemble multiple GIF animations together and form a string of animated scenes, but again each scene will only be capable of having one object animating within it.

 

The other apparent limitation is that there does not seem to be a way to have an object move from out of the frame, into the frame and then back out. I made several attempts at trying to move the camera and or object out of the frame and then control the animation of the object into and out of the frame with no success. There may be a way to accomplish this, but it was not obvious or well documented.

 

Much to the credit of Reallusion, I have found their user interfaces and application help very well thought out and functional. As a result, the ease of use and ample support information makes me feel that if I am spending more than 10 minutes trying to get something to work as desired, or if I can not find the associated documentation, I begin to feel that what I am trying to do is either not possible or requires another level of involvement to get the desired results.

 

I can see several possible applications using Effect3D Studio, especially in the areas of prototyping various object and character movements, developing quick 3D text animation's to liven up web sites and or PowerPoint presentations and creating three dimensional effects in conjunction with two dimensional photos and or art work.

 

Effect3D studio allows for the exporting of its project files to GIF (animated of course), BMP and JPEG and therefore is well suited to web projects and other multimedia applications. It is possible to import various image formats into Effect3D for the use in generating background images for the 3D objects to perform their magic on.

 

There are numerous lighting, texture and rendering effects that can lead to hours of experimentation. Reallusion has also provided numerous controls over the properties of the animation to be rendered. There are adjustments for the tempo, number of frames and frame rate, allowing for the creation of very smooth or pixelated animation effects.

 

I think one of the greatest strengths of Effect3D Studio is in the fact that you can quickly and easily generate some very pleasing 3D effects and scenes with a minimum learning curve. For anyone that has tried to get any sort of a result or output from any of the major 3D creation tools on the market, you will greatly appreciate the almost instant gratification aspect of Effect3D Studio. Although it would be difficult to imagine a professional animator using Effect3D Studio to create his or her next masterpiece, I think it could be very interesting to see some of the potential results of this very flexible tool in the hands of a seasoned animator.

 

On the other side of the animation stand, Effect3D Studio could be just the ticket for those of you out there who would like to have an easy to use 3D animation tool in their bag of tricks. As with almost all of Reallusion products, a free demo version of Effect3D Studio is available for downloading from http://www.reallusion.com .

 

There is also an abundance of tutorials and help files on the Reallusion web site to help you get up in running in a matter of minutes. One final pleasant surprise concerning Effect3D Studio is the price. The standard retail cost is $99 (US), but as this review was being written it was on sale on the Reallusion web site for $79. Unfortunately for the Mac faithful, Effect3D Studio and other Reallusion products are Wndows only applications.

 

On a personal note, I selected an older 800 MHz PC with 256 MB's of RAM as a test machine for examining Effect3D Studio and I found the rendering times were very acceptable considering the level of quality produced by the previews and final output.

 

FESTIVALS

 

SF INDEPENDENT FILM FESTIVAL, NOV. 1 DEADLINE Has a $20 entry fee for shorts, seeks animated work, some prizes. Shows work in 16mm, 35mm, Beta and DVD. Previews in VHS. (415) 820-3907 www.sfindie.com

 

DON'T MISS OUR BIG 35MM

SHOW OF NEW FILMS, FRIDAY,

OCT. 24 - SEE FLYER FOR DETAILS

 

 

ASIFA-SAN FRANCISCO

PO. Box 14516

San Francisco, CA 94114

 

 

“THE JERUSALEM POST” (INTERNET EDITION, SEPT. 11) REPORTS “SAUDI RELIGIOUS POLICE CAMPAIGN AGAINST ‘JEWISH' BARBIE” Although I thought dolls were just plastic toys and have no thoughts of their own (how can a doll have a religion?), the article informs us Mattel's famous toy line is Jewish and the paper says it is “a threat to morality, complaining that the revealing clothes of the ‘Jewish' toy - already banned in the kingdom - are offensive to Islam.” Although the ban has been in effect for 10 years, The Committee for the Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice recently put a notice up on their web site, at the beginning of the new school year, to remind parents of “the doll's negative qualities.”

 

A spokesperson for the religious censors explained to a reporter for the Associated Press that Barbie was “modeled after a real-life Jewish woman,” that Ruth Handler, who created the doll line and is a co-founder of Mattel, is the daughter of Polish immigrants and she named the doll after their daughter. The article also quotes statements translated from Arabic that talk about Barbie's “naked garb (sic), their disgraceful appearance, and their various accessories are a symbol of the dissolution of values in the West. We must comprehend the danger in them.” Contraband Barbie dolls are available on the black market in Saudi Arabia.

 

BARBIE: in her Salt Lake City

“Fire and Ice” outfit for the

Winter Olympics, 2002

 

 

 

 

 

LAST MINUTE ITEM: SPOOKY CARTOON SHOW, Wed. Oct. 22, 7:30 PM, free, SF STATE Animation Club will show Ghost of Stephen Foster, Bimbo's Initiation, Hunger Artist, Don't Go In the Basement & more. Coppola Theater (FA 101).