The Illusion of Life is the New Normal.  Ed Hooks explains why new animators are expected to arrive on the scene able to make a character seem to live.  And he gives some pointers about how to accomplish that.

 

For her role as Visual Development Artist on Wreck-It Ralph, Lorelay Bove tapped into her Spanish roots and her love of Catalan modernist architecture to help influence the style, color and character design for Sugar Rush, a candy-coated cart racing game. Inspired by this distinct artistic style that includes such masters as Antoni Gaudi, the filmmakers were able to envision Sugar Rush as a sweet landscape environment that was both credible and melt-in-your-mouth edible.

With Wreck-It Ralph about to be released for the home entertainment market, we chat to the talented artist to discover more about the hilarious, arcade-hopping animation and the amazing artistry behind it…

Italy’s largest computer graphics conference is now ready to accept applications for entries in four contests: VIEW AWARD, VIEW SOCIAL CONTEST, VIEW AWARD GAME, and ITALIANMIX.

AniFest, a traditional animated film festival is to enjoy its 12^th year. One of the biggest film events takes place in Teplice from 26^th April to 1^st May 2013. Film lovers will be offered a large selection of the best Czech and foreign film productions. At the end of April, Teplice will for the 12^th time host AniFest, an International Festival of Animated Films. The event not only offers a variety of films, but also includes a competition, which received 1400 entries from almost 70 countries around the world. The best 149 movies have been included in the programme. This year's festival is under new management, since former director Jakub Hora was replaced by Petr Šplíchal, who brings both managerial expertise and a great deal of experience of film production.

February 27, 2013. Two months before FMX opens its doors, Europe's most influential Conference on Animation, Effects, Games and Transmedia is pleased to announce that two Pixar films are part of the FMX Conference program. Firstly, the Director and Scriptwriter Saschka Unseld presents his latest work, the Pixar animated short The Blue Umbrella, in Stuttgart. Furthermore, newly-awarded Oscar winner Brave has been confirmed for a presentation. In April 2013, the technical focus at FMX includes a series on "Cloud Gaming" and "Cloud Computing" opened by keynote speaker Jon Peddie (JPR). What's more, Austria, Toronto and Turkey count among this year's "Innovative Places." In addition, market leaders such as Adobe and Autodesk invite attendees to take part in exciting Workshops, while the premiere of the "Fast Forward Education" seeks to build bridges between academia and industry.

 

20th edition of the Stuttgart Festival of Animated Film

Stuttgart – Heaven on earth for all fans of animated films! The Stuttgart Festival of Animated Film (ITFS) is the biggest and one of the most important festivals for animated film worldwide. And from April 23 to April 28, 2013 it opens again the doors to the worlds of animation. Around 1,000 of the best international animated films will be shown in Stuttgart representing the whole spectrum of the genre. The Simpons, Shaun the sheep, Maya the bee or the Mainzelmaennchen – all animated heroes and cartoon characters are going to be around to celebrate the big animation jubilee together with professional visitors and fans.

 

By John Tyrrell

Emotions have been running high in the HTML5 application development space in recent months. With the current worldwide explosion of mobile and web app use currently underway, many feel HMTL5 is the bright future of cross-platform development.

The vision is simple: one single, straightforward web programming language that allows the creation of anything from a basic service app to a complex game that works across any platform without the need for native development. In theory, HTML5 is a developer’s dream, reducing costs, leveling the playing field and, for app and game studios in particular, opening the floodgates to a wealth of new potential development talent. But in practice, as is often the case when disruptive new technologies enter the marketplace, the road ahead for HTML5 has some twists and turns.

But after initial exploratory efforts across the breadth of the cross-platform game development community, many reluctantly admit that HTML5 remains a promise for the future, not a current reality.

 

By Ryann Ferguson

We pooled our resources here in the office, as well as your votes from online to put together our top 10 most memorable, most inspirational Voice Over Performances. Ever. Now this is for an iconic single performance. We’ll get to actors with an all around amazing track record next week. From newer performances iconic to younger generations, to unexpected performances from actors we thought we knew, there is no shortage of innovation in voice over performances. Without further delay, we present these memorable performances to you now.

 

I departed for Israel with great hopes and anticipation, and most of all in search of some enlightenment or even resolution to my inner dilemma. On one hand, watching the news from afar, as a Jew who has gone through own prosecution, I feel torn to see other Jews seemingly disrespectful of the rights of the others. I am not a believer in “do on to others what has been done to you”. As history has repeatedly illustrated, such an approach and way of thinking lead to a dead end, often literarily. And yes, as a Jew, I feel powerful commonality to other Jews, to our ancient culture, traditions, amazing heritage and history. And so, hearing of the wrong done by Israelis, even if under the claims for its own right of survival, I feel torn. I question my obligations to the Jewish people and to Israel as our tiny country.

I guess you could consider this blog, primarily, a commercial.  A commercial for ASIFA, the Association Internationale du Film d’Animation.   ASIFA’s distinction is that it’s the only international animation association.

I’m a big fan!

If you’re in the animation business, you really need to be a member.  Why, you ask?  For me, one of the most important reasons for the ASIFA association is the network of artists and filmmakers I’ve been able to establish. Since my company is international it’s important that I have lines of communication with artists and filmmakers around the world.