The Tampere 30th International Short Film Festival takes place in Tampere,
Finland from March 8 - 12, 2000. Entry deadline is December 7, 1999. As the
biggest short film event in Northern Europe, the Tampere Festival features
80 screenings, a film market, and seminars. For more information contact:
Tampere International Short Film Festival, Box 305, FIN-33101, Tampere,
Finland; Tel. + 358-3-213 003; Fax: + 358-3-223 0121; or E-mail:
film.festival@tt.tampere.fi. Also visit www.tampere.fi/festival/film.

DreamWorks SKG, the company behind "The Prince Of Egypt," and distributor
of PDI's "Antz," has expressed their pleasure with England-based Aardman
Animations' forthcoming feature "Chicken Run," by signing the Peter
Lord/David Sproxton/Nick Park company to a four feature deal. Set to be
released June 23, 2000 in the US, "Chicken Run" is a stop-motion animated
comedy feature about two chickens, Rocky and Ginger, and their attempt at a
"prisoner of war"-type escape from a farm in the 1950s. The film is

Four hundred guests crowded the second floor theatre at the Chicago
Cultural Center, Sunday, October 24, for the 1999 Gala Awards Ceremony and
Closing Night Party of the 16th annual Chicago International Children's
Film Festival. The following awards for animated films were given out:


Children's Jury Prizes - Feature Films and Videos - Animation


1st Prize, KIRIKOU AND THE SORCERESS by Michel Ocelot (France)


2nd Prize, ANNE FRANK'S DIARY by Julian Wolff (France, Ireland, UK,
Netherlands)

OLAF OLAFSSON has been named vice chairman of TIME WARNER DIGITAL MEDIA.
Olafsson's appointment becomes effective November 15. Olafsson will work
with Michael Pepe, president and chief operating officer of Time Warner
Digital Media, and the rest of the management team at Time Warner Digital
Media to continue developing strategic business plans for Time Warner's
diverse digital media businesses and identifying emerging growth
opportunities for the company in the digital realm. Olafsson joins Time

THE WALT DISNEY COMPANY has completed the next stage in the development of
its international organization for Europe by naming six Disney veterans to
country management roles. The six executives will all become managing
director of six country groupings. CLAUS GYDESEN, 39, has been appointed
managing director for Germany, Austria and Switzerland and will continue to
be based in Munich. As head of Disney's video operations in these markets,
Gydesen established a direct-to-retailer operation that helped make Buena

The 22nd Cinanima International Animated Film Festival. Since 1977,
Cinanima has been promoting the international art of animation in Espinho,
a city located on the Northern coast of Portugal. The events takes place
Monday, November 8 - Sunday, November 14 in Esphino, Portugal. For more
information contact: Cinanima, Apartado 743, Rua 62-251, 4501 Espinho
Codex, Portugal; Tel. + (351) 2 734-4611, 734-1621; Fax: + (351) 2
734-6015; or E-mail: cinanima@mail.telepac.pt. Also visit
www.awn.com/cinanima.

Toronto-based Canuck Creations Inc. is in the final stages of production
on THE PRODIGAL SON, a futuristic look at an ancient Bible story. Canuck
produced the short from conceptual design to final color, combining 2D and
3D elements. The 24-minute film will be the main attraction for the youth
pavilion at World Expo 2000, which will take place in Germany. Other
features Canuck has worked on include THE STORY OF JOSEPH, the DreamWorks
direct-to-video sequel to the animated feature, THE PRINCE OF EGYPT,

Shepperton, England-based The Magic Camera Company has produced 92 digital
effect shots for the 19th James Bond film, THE WORLD IS NOT ENOUGH. One of
the effects sequences done by Magic involves Bond (Pierce Brosnan) and
Christmas (Denise Richards) hurtling through miles of unused oil pipeline
on board a service Rpig' (a trolley-like vehicle used to safety check the
inside of the pipeline) while chasing another one. Shooting the tunnel as a
miniature was not a viable option, so Magic Camera was given the task of

Bill Plympton has updated his appearances page. In the next months, his
films will be appearing in various festivals and other events around the
world. Bill will be attending the events scheduled at the Columbus College
of Art and the Savannah Art Institute, as well as the Mystery and Noir Film
Festival and Campione Noir, both in Italy. Also, the storyboard of Bill's
next feature "Mutant Aliens!" -- expected in late 2000 -- is being released
as a comic book! The French version is already available at the

The sixth London Effects & Animation Festival (November 16 - 18, 1999) is a
three-day event celebrating outstanding achievement, previewing
ground-breaking technologies in computer generated animation and special
effects, and introducing participants to the very latest ideas, techniques
and tricks in this incredibly fast-moving business. An international cast
of speakers offer up-to-the minute briefings on their latest work and
technical developments. Over 1000 of Europe's leading creatives will be