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NATIONAL NEWS
CLAY ANIMATION IN THE 1996 ASIFA-EAST SHOW WINS THE STUDENT OSCAR FOR ANIMATION The work is Zachary Lehman's Patronized, about a sculptor entering a competition.
DOING BUSINESS WITH SPIKE AND MIKE ISN'T GOING TO MAKE YOU RICH Students and unknown independent animators who think they are going to see a decent return on their labor by making a sick and twisted short for Spike and Mike (S&M) should examine the facts. One person called me recently and told me he was offered $750 for his 2 1/2 min. film by S&M. When he complained that it represented two years of his work they offered him an extra $450. He had been told a couple of years ago that they paid about $1K to $2K a minute for shorts. He plans to enter the work in festivals and will pass on their final offer.
Another animator showed the company his student film in pencil test form. They loved it and offered him about $2,000 for the 3 minute work, but the contract included his having to ink and paint the film. Coloring the cels turned out to be a lot of labor so he didn't make much on an hourly basis for all his work. The film will be a hit when shown, so at least he can feel he has done his part towards the downfall of western civilization.
I was told by two animators the current amounts the company is willing to pay for shorts is an insult. One such comment came from a noted animator who was offered about $200 by S&M to rerun his short in a "best of" package. He said that when they purchased his charming work a few years ago the price was quite low and he had to use that money to have the film inked and painted.
There was one work I know of that contradicts what I have just written. Two SF State students, who wish to remain anonymous, made a sick and disgusting short called The Fist. It is a rough pencil test and one of the animators said it took a couple of hours to make. The film was made after they found out Craig "Spike" Decker was going to visit the animation department at S.F. State a few weeks ago. They came up with several ideas for shorts and decided to do this film. Spike bought it, and if all goes well the students will actually make something for their efforts.
The pay for shorts by well known animators is much higher than what the company pays people starting out in animation. Several well known animators have spoken highly of their past dealings with S&M and I'm sure they will continue to offer the company their work in the future.
THE DINOSAUR THAT COMES TO LIFE IN A McDONALD'S SPOT is by Synchromic Studios, established in 1994 on the island of Maui. The work was done with Silicon Graphics hardware.
GRAPHIC DESIGNER SAUL BASS DIED in April at age 75. He is best known for his innovative film titles for Psycho, Vertigo, West Side Story and The Man With the Golden Arm. He also created the Oscar winning film Why Man Creates for Kaiser and a stunning film called The Quest that went unnoticed by the public.
ASIFA HOLLYWOOD PRESENTED AN EVENING WITH TOM SITO INTERVIEWING BILL MELENDEZ Tom is president of the animators' union in LA and a former director at Disney. Melendez is a colorful studio owner who has produced the Charlie Brown specials,
was a striker at Disney in 1941, and one of outstanding talents at UPA in the 1950's until he discovered the boss had his hand in the cookie jar... (see the first edition of Charles Solomon's History of Animation, the scandal was hushed up in the 2nd ed.).
Their annual AniFest '96 will be held at the Universal City Hilton on Sat. July 20 from 9 to 4.They will show artwork, videos, publications and collectibles for purchase. Veteran animation artists will be there, voice artists will do a live stage show and there will be other entertainment. For details call (818) 842-8330.
WHATEVER HAPPENED TO THE FEATURE "FRANK AND OLLIE?" Disney's Buena Vista distribution company is guilty of doing almost nothing to promote this wonderful feature length documentary on Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston (retired Disney animators). It played in the Bay Area for one week. When I saw it the box office person said the film had done as well as expected considering the lack of promotion - there were 7 other people in the theater and two were my friends.
It is highly unlikely the film will show up again at a theater, so if you missed seeing it and are curious, write Buena Vista c/o Walt Disney Studios, 500 South Buena Vista St., Burbank, CA 91521-1312 and ask them to bring the documentary out on home video.
ASIFA-EAST HELD A PROGRAM ON HUNGARIAN ANIMATION that was organized by Phil Kimmelman. Other news from the chapter includes their establishing a fledgling website at http://www.yrd.com/ASIFA
FELIX THE CAT GOES INTO SECOND SEASON WITHOUT THE CREATIVE TALENT THAT MADE THE FIRST SEASON FUN The first season of the show captured the spirit of the 1920's Felix, but now Don Oriolo who produces the series has decided to make the next season more like the awful show his father produced... As a result the fine talent that had imagination and loved the spirit of the original Felix is gone.
MORE ON THE DISNEY BOYCOTT BY THE HOMOPHOBIC CHRISTIAN RIGHT These guys are serious and well organized. The Rev. Wildmon's American Family Association has sent out information packets including a card to send to Chairman Michael Eisner asking him to return to "values I hold dear" and to stop "promoting the radical homosexual agenda." The envelope also contained a fact sheet that claims Disney is the largest gay and lesbian employee organization in the entertainment industry (40%?), and that a recent "Dana Carvey Show" on Disney owned ABC contained jokes and skits about alcohol abuse, cocaine addition, sex organs, the F word and homosexuality. Another fact that disturbs the AFA is Hyperion Press, a Disney-owned subsidiary, has published Lettin' It All Hang Out, the autobiography of a drag queen.
Disney isn't the only target of the AFA. Another envelopwe arrived asking people to picket Circle K stores for selling pornography. They feel sex offenders hang around places where pornography is sold, so they are asking Circle K to stop selling Playboy, Penthouse, etc. They fear kids will shop at Circle K and get picked-up by dangerous strangers. Of course both envelops came with a request for donations ($25 to $1000 suggested).