DECEMBER 2003

Local Events | National News | Gifts | Festivals | Late News |

 

 

NINA PALEY HAS ANIMATED AN EXCEPTIONAL NEW WORK! SHE ALSO HAS AN EXCELLENT DVD, “NINAVISION” AVAILABLE Nina was in town briefly in November to attend the Sprocket performance at the Red Vic. She previewed Sitayana, a 7-minute Flash animation that is a marked advance over her earlier work (including the amazing Fetch!). I suspect that when it gets its final soundtrack by Nik Phelps and the Sprocket Ensemble it will go on to win her a great deal of recognition. She has become one of this century’s most exciting new animators. Art from the work can be seen at www.ninapaley.com

 

Her DVD contains 7 works: Fetch!, Pandorama, Lexi, The Stork, The Wit and Wisdom of Cancer, Fertco and Goddess of Fertility. Pandorama is the oldest work on the disc. It was hand-drawn on 70mm film in 2000 for IMAX theatres. Lexi is a visually charming adventure with her cats. She used a rotoscope system to turn them into magical beasts. Fetch! is a tour-de-force play with perspective and optical illusions (and its soundtrack is my favorite work by Nik Phelps). Goddess is a handsome work with a political message made using clay on glass. Nina is asking a $20 donation for the DVD (includes postage). Mail checks to: Nina Paley, 46 S. Oxford St. #2, Brooklyn, NY  11217 (until June).

 

GIANT KILLER ROBOTS DID A GREAT DEAL OF WORK ON THE LATEST MATRIX SAGA They may not be a household name, but this local Oscar-winning effects studio provided pre-visualization, design, effects animation, rendering and final compositing services for the feature. They created much of the photo-realistic subterranean metropolis of Zion and generated shots for the "Lightning Gun Scene." Other companies working on Matrix 3 include ESC FX, Animal Logic, BuF Compagnie, Tippett Studio and Tweak Films.

 

Giant Killer Robots is presently working on Scooby-Doo Too for Warner Bros. and Blade III for New Line. Past credits include the Oscar-winning What Dreams May Come, League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines and Scooby Doo.

 

 

 

PDMEDIA GOT A NICE MENTION IN THE NOVEMBER ISSUE OF “ANIMATION MAGAZINE” In the article “Career Choices, Animators Consider the Alternatives” Pete Davis was interviewed about his unusual company. They specialize in forensic animation used in legal cases. He talks about the nature of his work and says there are growing opportunities for animators to do work with the legal profession.

 

Much of PDMedia’s work is reconstructing auto accidents. They work in 3D Studio Max and they often use Viewpoints’ library of auto models. Precision counts in their work, whether it is showing the correct turning radius of a car or having to use the actual civil engineering plans to build an environment to scale.

 

Davis says that there are several Bay Area firms in the forensic animation business today. The use of animation in courts has grown a great deal since the Mitchell brothers and O.J. Simpson trials. Today, there are even several “specialists in gun ballistics… there are a number of cases where both sides present opposing views using animation. It’s like dueling movies.” For info. contact pdmedia@comcast.net

 

KEVIN COFFEY’S CARTOONLAND IS CREATING TITLES AND ANIMATED SEGMENTS FOR A LIVE- ACTION FEATURE AND ART DIRECTION AND STORYBOARDS FOR A 25-MINUTE KIDS VIDEO The independent feature, Invasion of the Fredom Snatchers, includes cameos by Richard Belzer, Denis Leary, Andy Dick. Forest Whitaker and other stars. For details visit www.freedomsnatchers.com

 

The childrens’ video is for The Learning Tree Co. and it will teach Mandarin. It is the first of a series of tapes for Chinese and English speaking countries.

 

Coffey also has been busy doing a number of book illustrations, commercial illustrations, comic strips and comic panel commissions. He also teaches a class in storyboarding at the Academy of Art http://cartoonlandanimation.com

 

SF STATE IS PROUD TO ANNOUNCE THE GORDON B. (DON) THOMAS MEMORIAL SCHOLARSHIP On Nov. 20 his parents and friends gathered to remember him and to announce that the fund has raised enough for an annual $500 scholarship for an outstanding animation student. Since contributions are still being made, the amount of the scholarship should increase.

Don was a lecturer at the school and an alumnus. He died June 6 at age 35. "Don was highly creative, diligent and inspiring. He believed in the strength of human diversity and artistic statements of issues of importance," said Dick Thomas, his father. "We look forward to assisting aspiring filmmakers who share these same values and attributes." "He was a stellar colleague for me, always cheerful and willing to help with everything and an extremely talented artist and filmmaker," said Martha Gorzycki, assistant professor of cinema and animation coordinator.

 

Don's most recent film, a stop-motion and hand-drawn animated short titled Pedro + Tony? is a comedy of errors that turns serious when Pedro, a dog, and his boyfriend Tony, a chicken, celebrate their six-month anniversary amid tension and fights. The film was screened at more than 50 festivals worldwide and won the Best Animation Prize at the 2002 Chicago Lesbian and Gay International Film Festival. Thomas and Pedro + Tony? received worldwide publicity when he ran around the 2002 Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah, dressed in a chicken suit to promote his movie.

 

Thomas' other films include Goodbye, I Love You, which earned the 1998 Gold Apple Award from the National Educational Media Network, and FIXIT, winner of the 1994 Silver Apple Award at the National Educational Film and Television Festival.

 

A native of Naperville, Ill., Don was among the first openly gay high school students in his district. He served as a role model, mentor and counselor to other adolescents struggling with issues of sexual orientation. His advocacy for acceptance and tolerance remained a priority and is evident in his film work.

 

The SFSU Foundation is accepting tax-deductible donations in memory of Thomas for the scholarship. To make a contribution, make a check out to the SFSU Foundation, include "in memory of Don Thomas" on the memo line, and send to: Jennifer Severin, Office of Development, San Francisco State University, 1600 Holloway Ave., San Francisco, Calif., 94132.

 

Founded amid the political activism and artistic experimentation of the 1960s, the SFSU Cinema Department has educated generations of filmmakers including Academy Award winners Steven Zaillian (Best Screenplay, Schindler's List, 1994), Christopher Boyes (Best

Sound Effects, Titanic, 1998, Pearl Harbor, 2001) and Steve Okazaki (Best Short Documentary, Days of Waiting, 1991). In 2000, Entertainment Weekly named the department one of the nation's top film schools.

 

ALTERNATIVE PRESS EXPO 2004 FEBRUARY 21-22 at the Concourse Exhibition Center, 620 7^th St. in SF. For info. write PO Box 128458, San Diego, CA 92112-8458 or www.comic-con.org

 

LAURENCE ARCADIAS HELPED ANIMATE EIGHT CROATIAN FAIRYTALES The website won an award in the story category at Flashforward 2002 (held in San Francisco). Arcadias, who is best known for the film The Donner Party, was one of 8 animators working on this project.

http://www.bulaja.com/FAIRYTALES/index3.html

 

ARTICLES WORTH READING ON AWN.COM BY TWO ASIFA-SF MEMBERS Chris Lanier has written an unusual review of the Ottawa Animation Festival that might be more interesting than the actual festival http://mag.awn.com/?ltype=pageone&article_no=1910

 

Karl Cohen has written about animating peace messages. Part 1 ran in November and part 2 appears on Dec. 5 mag.awn.com/index.php3?1type=pageone&article_no=1909

 

WONDERCON 2004 IS SET FOR THE MOSCONE CENTER, APRIL 30-MAY 2 This is a big comic book event that has a giant dealers room, shows films, has presentations from Pixar and other companies and has lots of guests famous in the comics world. For info. write PO Box 128458, San Diego, CA 92112-8458 or www.comic-con.org

 

LOCAL EVENTS

 

Sat. Dec. 6, 7:30 & 9:30 PM, SPROCKET ENSEMBLE AND IDEAS IN ANIMATION REPEAT THE SHOW THAT SOLD OUT AT THE RED VIC IN NOVEMBER at 21 GRAND GALLERY, 449 23^rd St. in Oakland. The show features 10 premiers PLUS A PREVIEW OF NINA PALEY’S THE SITAYANA. (415) 681-3189 (Sprocket’s number)

 

S&M’S NEW SICK AND TWISTED SHOW OPENED HERE IN MID-OCT., BUT NOBODY I KNOW HAS BOTHERED TO SEE IT OR HAS EVEN MENTIONED IT I finally saw a bunch of their flyers stuck on top of other peoples’ flyers. Very tacky, but at least I now know it is in town. It looks like the show has several good films in it plus a lot of crap. The show’s illustrated flyer suggests Eric Faveta might be an excellent CALArts graduate who can draw with a sophisticated sense of style. Ignacio Ferreras from France did How to Cope with Death. It might be an excellent film that outclasses the rest of the show. Spike calls it his pick for next year’s Oscar. Bill Plympton is represented with two new shorts, but Old Folks Love and Petting in the Park are only 1 min. long (each). Spike is also showing the amazing John Dilworth’s prize-winning Mouseochist. It was in the ASIFA-East show 2 or 3 years ago. Audiences loved it in NY and SF. The program also includes Stubble Trouble which was considered for an Oscar 2 or 3 years ago, a Happy Tree Friends episode from Mondo Media in SF and 1 or 2 other films that are probably worth seeing. It plays at the Victoria Theatre on 16^th near Mission in SF on Fri. & Sat. Dec. 5, 6, 12, 13, 19 & 20 at 8:30 and 10:30 PM. It is also at the Towne Theater in San Jose Dec. 5, 6, 12, 13 at 7:15, 9:30 and midnight.

 

Sat. December 6, 7 PM, THE KFJC PSYCHOTRONIX FILM FEST An unusual event that pays homage to people “who made films for the moment, not for the ages… Those who struggled against the odds to make their filmic statements, only to be covered under by the shifting sands of time and taste.”  A night of obscure 16mm films plus door prizes and surprises. Old television commericals, trailers, bizarre short subjects, and other bits of film from our past. In Room 5015 on the Foothill College Campus. $5 donation plus a $2 parking fee. For more information or directions http://www.kfjc.org

 

Saturday, December 6, 2 to 5 PM, Cartoon Art Museum. A book signing to promote the release of Spark Generators II and the re-release of the first Spark Generators collection.  Spark Generators editor Jon "Bean" Hastings will be on hand to discuss the book and sign copies.  Joining Hastings will be special guests Paige Braddock, creator of the comic Jane's World; Michael Jantze, creator of nationally-syndicated comic strip The Norm; and Keith Knight, creator of The K Chronicles and th(ink).  Other artists appearing include Lee Binswanger, Jamaica Dyer, Andrew Farago, Chris Lanier, Larry Luna, Paul Madonna, Lark Pien, Jesse Reklaw, and Andy Ristaino

 

Saturday, Dec. 13, 8:30 PM, $5 DIRECT ANIMATION BY PHIL SOLOMON, JENN REEVES, LUIS RECORDER, SANDRA GIBSON, DEVON AND KEN PAUL ROSENTHAL ATA-Other Cinema 992 Valencia, SF

 

Friday, Dec. 12, 7 PM, “MY NEIGHBOR TOTORO,” on 35MM film, with Sally Cruickshank’s Face Like A Frog at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, 701 Mission (at 3^rd), SF

 

Saturday, Dec. 13. DIRECT FILM MANIPULATION WORKSHOP an 8-hour workshop at ATA, 992 Valencia. For information contact kenpaulrosenthal@hotmail.com

 

NATIONAL NEWS

 

HAPPY 75^TH BIRTHDAY MICKEY Steamboat Willie premiered Nov. 18, 1928. Disney has a big pubic relation plan to keep Mickey’s name in the news. They made 75 six-foot high statues of the mouse that will tour the US. After the tour they will be auctioned off for charity. Each statue weighs 700 lbs.

 

A NEW, RESTORED 35MM PRINT OF ‘KING KONG” WAS SHOWN LAST MONTH IN SEATTLE “70 years have passed since the mighty ape first broke his chains and scaled the Empire State Building.” ASIFA-NW’s newsletter goes on to says, “RKO's timeless fantasy masterpiece has been given new life in a gloriously re-mastered 35mm print, complete with all the dinosaur wrestling, plane-smashing, crowd-stomping, and bad simian dating etiquette one could ever dream of. King Kong reigns supreme on his throne, still unsurpassed for his hairy-fisted cinema dynamite. An ideal day at the movies for anybody who still enjoys fun.” I believe Wendy Jackson-Hall may be responsible for those fine words.

 

HOW “FAST FILM” WAS MADE Chris Robinson’s interview with the director is the subject of “Tearing Up the Tracks: Virgil Widrich’s Fast Film.” It was published by awn.com on October 16, 2003 (article #1890)

 

“THE TRIPLETS OF BELLEVILLE” IS GETTING EXCELLENT REVIEWS The film opened in NY and LA in November (opens in SF December 26). In Oui, It’s a Cartoon. Non, It’s Not for Your Kids by Marcel Clements (The New York Times, Nov. 2), he called it, “An exceedingly odd feature-length animation that manages to send up France, America, gastronomy, the Tour de France, consumerism, gangsterism, heroism, professional ambition and heaven knows what else. This is not a film for very young children. On the contrary, says Mr. Chomet, describing the M.O. of the team of animators he directed, ‘we really tried to make the film we had always felt deprived of.’”

 

He calls the triplets, “Three elongated, flabby but irrepressibly rowdy old ladies… The three radically zany dames live together in a dank waterside abode - slovenly, unhygienic but conveniently situated for mounting dynamiting expeditions for the thousands of frogs that constitute their diet: frog soup, frog shish-kebab, frog-on-a-stick lollies and tadpole popcorn, for starters…”

 

“For all its irony and technical virtuosity, The Triplets of Belleville most effectively seduces us with the ambience that emanates from its rich allusions to a known or reimagined past. Effects are often subliminally registered, because individual frames are bursting with cultural references, sight gags, wordplay and graphical sleight-of-hand - too many to keep track of, but taken together they help give the film its dreamlike aura. Subtly and pervasively, bits of sight and sound evoke our own memories or, even more cleverly, trigger near-recollections of famous images. Robert Doisneau and Jean Mounicq are among the many photographers whose work inspired the Parisian sequences. The backgrounds for the cycling scenes in the French countryside were inspired by archival photographs and are especially ambitious from an animation point of view, featuring a number of hand-drawn, 2-D and 3-D layers, all moving at different speeds. ‘We used the new to make the old,’ says Mr. Chomet.”

Jerry Beck at Cartoon Research.com wrote, “This film is so close to being pure genius, that it saddens me to report that it misses the mark by a few inches. The Triplets of Belleville is a wonderful film, an incredible piece of work and great entertainment. Two thirds of the way through the picture, I was convinced this was the best-animated film of the year - and an astounding personal achievement for animator Sylvain Chomet. But the last third, a climactic rescue sequence. while technically great, was a big letdown for me both cinematically and storywise.” He recommends it to his readers.

 

JOHN CANEMAKER HAS UPDATED HIS WEBSITE http://homepages.nyu.edu/~jc7/

 

DENNIS NYBACK IS A FILM JUNKIE WITH AN INTERESTING WEBSITE  www.dennisnybackfilms.com  

 

WITH ALL THE HOOPLA OVER THE NEW DISNEY SYMPHONY HALL COMPLEX IN LA, THE PRESS DIDN’T BOTHER TO SAY IT ALSO INCLUDES A FINE ART MOVIE THEATRE THAT IS SHOWING RARE ANIMATION In November the programming included “A Festival of Independent Los Angeles Film, Video and Multimedia” that was curated by Steve Anker and Bernice Reynaud with guest curators Irene Kotlarz and Cathy Rivera. The festival included a wide range of programs from the silent era Disney cartoons to the latest experimental live action shorts, documentaries and animated work.

 

The silent Disney show included: Newman’s Laugh-O-Grams, 1920; The Four Musicians of Bremen, 1922; Puss in Boots, 1922; Alice’s Wonderland, 1923; Alice and the Three Bears, 1924; Alice the Peacemaker, 1924; Alice Gets in Dutch, 1924; Alice’s Wild West Show, 1924; Alice the Toreador, 1925; Trolley Troubles, 1927; and The Mechanical Cow, 1927. The films had a live piano accompaniment. Virginia Davis, who was one of the young girls who played Alice, was on hand to discuss her early experiences with Walt.

 

Where Worlds Collide: New Animation was a program celebrating new experimental and independent animation from Los Angeles. They showed Destino, a short begun by Walt Disney and Salvador Dali in 1946 and completed this year, along with Flying Nansen by Igor Kovalyov, 2000; Clops by Corky Quakenbush, 2000-03; Crimenals by Greg Araya, 2003; Mixter Delixx-6 by Dave Foss, 2003; Basin Street Blues by Monkmus, 2003; Away by Monkmus, 2001; Singing Sticks by Christine Panushka, 2003; 9 in a Chimney, 10 in a Bed or Hate is a Strong Word by Jean-Jacques Villard, 2002; Coreopsis by Pat O’Neill, 1998; Ultima Thule by Janie Geiser, 2002; and Daylight Moon by Lewis Klahr, 2002. The films were selected by Irene Kotlarz. She organized and directed several important animation festivals in Great Britain in the 1990’s.

 

A Tribute to Jules Engel, Animator and Artist featured newly restored prints. Although Engel worked on Disney classics including Fantasia and Bambi and groundbreaking UPA cartoons like Gerald McBoing Boing and Mister Magoo, it was his work as an independent abstract filmmaker that left the most significant mark on the history of animated film. His visionary work begun in the 1960’s blended painterly concerns and rhythmic sophistication into a new form of kinetic art. The show featured Coaraze (a live action film), 1965; Accident, 1973; Train Landscape, 1974; Rumble, 1975; Wet Paint, 1977; Play Pen, 1986, Times Square, 1988; and others. An exhibition of Engel’s fine art, curated by Tobey C. Moss, was shown in the theatre’s gallery.

 

The theatre is named Redcat, 631 W. 2nd Street, Los Angeles, California 90012. redcatweb.org

 

ASIFA-HOLLYWOOD JUST PRESENTED RON DIAMOND’S EXCEPTIONAL SHOW OF NEW OUTSTANDING FILMS They held their 35mm screening at the DreamWorks Animation Campus, 1000 Flower St. in Glendale. The show was the same one we presented in San Francisco (Destino, Harvie Krumpet, Fast Film, Ski Jumping Pairs and 6 others). (Destino was also shown at ArcLight Hollywood in Nov. in an AFI Festival program.)

 

The chapter is now accepting tax-deductible donations of animation artwork for both their archive and to be sold to raise money for the group. For information (818) 842-8330

 

THREE FILMS WILL BE SELECTED FOR OSCAR NOMINATIONS FOR THE BEST ANIMATED FEATURE FROM A LIST OF 11 FILMS The eleven films that are eligible to compete for the Best Animated Feature Film Oscar are: Brother Bear, Finding Nemo, Jester Till (Till Eulenspiegel), The Jungle Book 2, Looney Tunes: Back in Action, Millenium Actress, Piglet's Big Movie, Pokиmon Heroes, Rugrats Go Wild!, Tokyo Godfathers and The Triplets of Belleville.

 

A maximum of three films can be nominated in a year in which the field of eligible entries numbers less than sixteen. The 76th Academy Award nominations will be announced on Tuesday, January 27, 2004. The Academy Awards will be presented on Sunday, February 29.

 ASIFA-AUSTRIA IS AN EXCELLENT CHAPTER TRYING TO RETAIN THEIR FINANCIAL SUPPORT. I wrote the following to our International leadership, “I was sorry to read ASIFA Austria is having funding problems as they are one of the most active ASIFA chapters in Europe and they deserve more funding, not less. Thomas has been an excellent web master and their chapter has done a great deal to support animation with workshops and other programs. We ran a brief news story about their activities a few months ago in our newsletter to honor them on their accomplishments. Sincerely, Karl Cohen ASIFA-San Francisco, chapter president”

 

“TELEVISION WEEK” SAYS HOLIDAY AD MARKET FOR KIDS IS UP The bulk of the commercials are aimed at kids 2 to 12. Last minute air buys are up 20 to 25% (most of the air time was sold months ago). It turns out that 40% to 50% of all advertising aimed at kids is run in the last quarter of the year and almost 80% of those ads are run during the “hard eight” weeks – Oct. 7 to Dec. 7).

 

“STUPID MALE HUMOR NIGHT” FOR ADULTS MAY NOT BE WORKING Television Week says Spike TV pulled the well promoted block of adult animated shows that included Gary the Rat, Stripperella and Ren and Stimpy Adult Party Cartoons. Critics speculate it may be too radical for viewers, but the network says they didn’t want to overexpose people to them with too many repeats. Howard Stern is working on an animated show for Spike TV, There is also one in the works called Big Headed People where huge heads discuss “everything from Osama bin Laden to what it’s like to be a black Republican” (sounds like a Mondo Media show from the past).

 

“DCD BUSINESS” REPORTS HOW VANGUARD ANIMATION’S FIRST CGI FEATURE FOR DISNEY WILL KEEP PRODUCTION COSTS UNDER $40 MILLION when the average cgi feature now costs between $70 to $120 million. Vanguard plans to cut their production schedule from 3 years down to 2. They think they can fix all the script and design problems before the animation begins. They also have a deal with IDT Media’s animation network that can assign work to cg artists throughout the world. (Having artists in 130 countries can cut costs, but will quality control be a problem?). Will this tight control on the product result in anything I want to see?

 

 

AFRICA’S FIRST ANIMATED FEATURE IS A PIECE OF JUNK – IT IS A STOP-MOTION WORK MADE FROM SCRAP METAL AND OTHER FORMS OF JUNK! The film from Zimbabwe is titled The Legend of the Sky Kingdom. A

BBC news item says the sets and characters were made from discarded car parts, tools, kitchen utensils, pipes and pieces of wood. It took 4 years to make, was directed by Roger Hawkins and the budget was described as “minimal” (under $1 million). The film was funded in part by the owner of an egg business (he was the film’s producer). The film was shown at Annecy and at a festival in S. Korea. It opens theatrically in S. Africa soon.

 

RICHARD WILLIAMS’ “THE ANIMATOR’S SURVIVAL KIT” IS NOW IN ITS 5^TH PRINTING Mo Sutton told me in a recent phone call from England that a French edition is in print and it will soon be available in Korean, Chinese and Japanese. There is no news about Roy Disney’s plans for an authorized edition of Williams’ lost feature. Mo was excited about sending her new live action 29-minute documentary to festivals. We will keep you informed if Pictures of Ruth is going to be shown by the SF Film Festival.

 

OSCAR WINNERS DAVID FINE AND ALLISON SNOWDEN HAVE MADE A PILOT FOR THE CARTOON NETWORK Ricky Sprocket follows the adventures of a male teen actor in Hollywood as he grows up in the world of show business.

 

LOTS OF WRITERS LIKE TO TRASH DISNEY – HOW ABOUT THE PRESS RECOGNIZING THAT 2003 HAS BEEN A VERY GOOD YEAR FOR DISNEY FILMS by KC While Finding Nemo is likely to walk away with an Oscar, Disney has also produced several other films that are just as good. I think several of them should be nominated for Oscars.

 

While critics may miss 2D animation and may still write about its passing, Brother Bear proves there is life and beauty in 3D cgi art. It is a flawless combination of 2D characters with 3D backrounds. Disney’s CAPS system has produced gorgeous visuals for this film (more ambitious and beautiful than Finding Nemo) and the company can tell a great yarn. It is an Indian tale, possibly set in Alaska or the Yukon a long time ago. Prehistoric animals are seen along with cave paintings that are somewhat like prehistoric images from France, Spain or N. Africa. The spectacular landscapes include dramatic looking snow covered mountains and fabulous waterfalls. It doesn’t matter where this ideal/magical world might be, as it never existed except in 19^th Century visionary paintings. The main thing is they tell a great adventure story that should become a classic Disney film in the coming years. (I doubt Native Americans will find this film offensive.)

 

Pirates of the Caribbean was a major hit for Disney (with fabulous effects work by ILM) and it really is an exceptional film. It is a great action packed yarn full of rich details and surprises. If you missed it, consider seeing it on a big screen. I doubt that you will be disappointed.

 

Their Touchstone Pictures released Under the Tuscan Sun and it is worthy of all the praise heaped upon it. It is a handsome “feel good” feature that has charmed thousands of viewers including me.

 

Coming to the screen just as this newsletter goes to press is The Haunted Mansion. It should be another winner for Disney if Eddie Murphy doesn’t overact and blows it. People still love ghost stories and their haunted mansion attraction is probably the world’s most famous home for gentle ghosts.

 

Other fine films from the corporation this year include two critically acclaimed family films, Freaky Friday and Holes. Open Range, directed by Kevin Costner and Veronica Guerin, are first-rate dramas. Guerin was a journalist in Ireland who was murdered after she began to write about some of their drug lords. I also hear Calendar Girl coming out this month, may be one of the year’s top films.

 

THE MUSEUM OF MODERN ART IN NY WILL PRESENT TWO FINE EVENINGS OF ANIMATION IN DECEMBER AT THE GRAMERCY THEATER On Fri. Dec. 5 and Sat. Dec. 6 John Canemaker will give an illustrated lecture on “The Art and Flair of Mary Blair” with clips from Disney films and slides of her drawings. They will also show Disney’s Alice in Wonderland, 1951 with color and styling by Mary Blair.

On December 4 they will present THE FILMS OF GRANT MONRO (his 80^th birthday). He worked for the National Film Board of Canada from 1945 through the early 1970s on his own films and on films by Norman McLaren and other artists. The retrospective will include two unreleased, recently re-edited films--On the Farm (1951/2003) and Six and Seven-Eighths (1959/2003)--as well as George Dunning's Three Blind Mice (1945), Norman McLaren's Neighbors (1952), Stanley Jackson's The Ballott-o-Matic (1953), Munro and McLaren's Canon (1964), Munro's Toys (1966), Munro's Boo Hoo (1975), and McLaren on McLaren (1983).

 

“MONSTER ROAD,” A DOCUMENTARY ON CLAY ANIMATOR BRUCE BICKFORD, IS IN PRODUCTION Bruce Bickford is mainly known for the clay animation he did for Frank Zappa’s 200 Motels (1971). Since then almost all of his work (and there is a lot of it) remains unreleased. Bickford, who was a friend of several people at the Vinton studio, is entirely self-taught. He is 56 and

works alone in a makeshift basement studio in his house near Seattle. He often animates for 10 hours a day, seven days a week, producing cinematic visions and nightmares that he may never edit or screen for an audience. (I have a 30-minute work of his on tape that is an obsessive study of the fall of the damned or a similar subject. Everything is in long shots so it is difficult to watch.)

 

The feature length documentary explores the background that helped create his unique sensibilities including his growing up in a competitive household during the paranoia of the Cold War, and his relationship with his father, George, a retired Boeing engineer who is facing the onset of Alzheimer's Disease.

 

Monster Road is being produced by Bright Eye Pictures (www.brighteyepictures.com) in Winston-Salem, NC. Brett Ingram is the director-filmmaker. It should be finished later this month or early next year.

NEW TWIST IN THE POOH CASE - MILNE HEIRS WANT THE RIGHTS BACK A judge is reopening a request from Clare Milne, the granddaughter of Pooh’s creator A.A. Milne, for the rights to be returned to her from the current copyright holder, the Slesinger family. A judge had previously ruled her request invalid.

 

GIFTS

 

MORE DVDS, AND BOOKS

TO PUT UNDER SOMEBODY’S TREE

 

 

 

“AVOID EYE CONTACT – BEST OF NEW YORK INDEPENDENT ANIMATION, VOLUME 1” COULD BE THE COOLEST DVD OF 2003! Some of the most innovative animators of our time are represented on this DVD with some of their most exciting work. It is proof that animation is one of the most exciting art forms of our time. The animators and films represented on this DVD are: George Griffin, Little Routine and New Fangled plus a short on the making of the films; Bill Plympton, One of Those Days and How to Make Love to a Woman plus a slide show of Bill's sketches and his commentary track on One of Those Days; John Dilworth, Dirdy Birdy plus his commentary; John Schnall, Good night Norma. Good night Milton and I was a Thanksgiving Turkey (John also provided the excellent opening animation for the DVD); Mike Overbeck, Tongues and Taxis plus a short documentary on his lifestyle as an animator; Jesse Schmall, Sub! (Jesse also designed the cover for the DVD); Fran Krause, Mr. Smile and Box Factory, Pes, Roof Sex plus a short documentary on the making of the film; Alex Budovsky, Terminally Ambivalent Over You and Bathtime in Clerkenwell; Patrick Smith, Delivery and Drink; Signe Baumane, Love Story and Five Fucking Fables.        This is a great collection and more releases are planned. For information and to purchase the DVD go to: www.squarefootagefilms.com

 

HALF-PRICE BOOKS ON SOLANO AVE. IN THE E. BAY HAS NEW COPIES OF “WALT IN WONDERLAND” FOR $5.95. I was told there were 3 new copies on the shelf in mid-Nov. Russell Merritt and J.B. Kaufman wrote this highly regarded work on the silent cartoons of Walt Disney.

 

DISNEY HAS DELAYED THE RELEASE OF THEIR NEXT DVD TREASURES COLLECTIONS The release date has been changed from December 2, 2003 to May 18, 2004, due to manufacturing problems at Technicolor.

 

REPRESENTATIVE NEEDED ON THE ASIFA BOARD WHO ATTENDS THE ANNECY FESTIVAL Can you represent our chapter? Contact Karl Cohen (415) 386-1004

“ACTING FOR ANIMATORS” BY ED HOOKS, REVIEWED BY MARTHA GORZYCKI, an animator and animation teacher at San Francisco State In Ed Hooks' revised edition of Acting for Animators, we are introduced to movement theories and their relationships to character animation. The author does a good job comparing the differences between the goals of stage actors versus animators. For example, he states that animators are oriented to results such as body language and facial expressions whereas stage actors are concerned first with inner motivation and emotions which then create the motivation for the outward results. Hooks also outlines the seven basic concepts of acting for the stage and then suggests their relevance to character development for animation.

 

The discussion on psychological gestures as a result of outside forces such as drugs and weather ignores the animator's use of outside forces to convey the sense of weight as well as believability of a character's mental and physical situation. Referencing outside forces is a primary concept for animators, I thought the author could have elaborated more on this. However, a good part of the text explains the Rudolf Laban Movement Theory. Laban (1879-1958) was a key figure in the Expressionist Art modern dance movement in Central Europe. He analyzed human motion through space and defined eight kinds of basic movement called Efforts. The CD-ROM which accompanies this book showcases an actor performing these Efforts as well as three improvisations illustrating the seven acting concepts. The video demonstrations are helpful visual guides for planning, staging and laying in keys for animation.

 

Throughout the book, there are quotes from famous animators, actors and acting teachers such as: Bill Tytla, Marc Davis, Chuck Jones, Michael Checov, Charlie Chaplin, and even Leonardo da Vinci. The author successfully weaves different points of view into the highlighted concepts in a manner which leaves room for cross-disciplinary interpretation and discussion.

 

Other topics covered are symbols and foreshadowing, the use of mirrors, comedy and farce and caricature. Hooks acknowledges how dependent animators are on the use of mirrors, but actors avoid them at all costs (they are supposed to be acting not watching!) It is pointed out that using mirrors has limitations for animators. I disagree on this point as character animation employs exaggeration and mirrors supply a visual guide from which stylization occurs. Mirrors also allow for a pose-to-pose breakdown which is necessary for strong character development.

 

Overall, author Ed Hooks makes acting concepts easy to understand and gives animators new material for the development of performance animation. This is the only book that links acting techniques to the art of character animation; it is a valuable guide for students who want to develop strong character animation skills for both 2D and 3D techniques. Acting for Animators revised edition is published by Heinemann, Portsmouth, NH, 2003. The retail price is $21.95.

 

“THE LOONEY TUNES GOLDEN COLLECTION” A 4 DISC DVD SET IS THE IDEAL GIFT FOR ANY OF YOUR LOONEY FRIENDS (OR YOURSELF) The quality of the images and soundtracks is excellent and the extras are delightful. After finding several local stores sold out, I got my set at a 30% discount from Amazon. They paid the shipping and it arrived in less than a week. continued on the back page

 

The extras were a real surprise and there are far more than I could ever imagine. There are two half-hour Camera 3 TV shows from the 1970’s that have a very young John Canemaker as the host. There are animated segments to live action films, promos for cartoon festivals at your local movie house, rare interviews, a few cartoons run without the voice track so you can appreciate Carl Stalling’s work (they also come with the full soundtrack), etc. This set must be what a Looney Tunes heaven is like!

 

I loved seeing several of the standard classics, but it was more of a treat to see several titles I hadn’t seen before. While not all of the selection rates a 21-carrot salute or 5 stars, none rate less than 3 stars.

 

Some cartoon junkies are upset that the collection has lots of works by Chuck Jones, but only 3 by Bob Clampett and none by Tex Avery or Frank Tashlin. Also, no WWII or black and white cartoons were included. Jerry Beck says more discs in this series are planned, so don’t complain if one of your favorites was left out. It is selling well so Warner Bros. will probably make more of our DVD dreams come true in 2004.

 

 

FESTIVALS

 

HUMBOLDT FILM FESTIVAL deadlines are Jan. 30 early & Feb. 13 late. A nice, college run event with low entry fees and some cash prizes. (707) 826-4113 humboldt.edu/~filmfest filmfest@humboldt.edu

 

ASPEN SHORTS FEST deadline is Dec. 19 for a March 31 – April 4 event. (970) 925-6882 www.aspenfilm.org

 

 

 

 

ASIFA-SF

P.O. Box 14516

San Francisco, CA 94114

 

 

 

 

 

 

ZAGREB 2004 Shows 16mm, 35mm, Betacam SP Pal, CD Rom and DVD (region 2 or region free). This is an official ASIFA sanctioned festival so there is no entry fee and they provide room and meals to artists in the competition. Forms needed by Feb. 25, work by March 5 (on VHS Pal or NTSC & other electronic formats) ANIMAFEST, Kreza Mislava 1B, 10,000 Zagreb, Croatia www.animafest.hr

animafest@kdz.hr

 

HIROSHIMA 2004 Shows 16mm, 35mm, Betacam SP NTSC and ¾” PAL, NTSC or SECAM. This is an official ASIFA sanctioned festival so there is no entry fee. Forms and works should arrive between Feb. 1 – April 14-17 Kako-machi, Naka-ku, Hiroshima 730-0812 Japan www.uban.ne.jp/home/hiroanim/

 

 

LATE NEWS

 

WARNING: DISNEY’S “HAUNTED MANSION” HAS AN AWFUL SCRIPT AND CORNY ACTING. WONDERFUL EFFECTS CANT SAVE IT Need I say more? KC

 

DISNEY HAS STOPPED PRODUCTION ON “A FEW GOOD GHOSTS” a feature being made in Orlando, Florida. If it doesn’t start up again Disney will probably close the Florida studio. They recently closed studios in Paris and Tokyo.

 

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