Red Stick 2012

June 4th -11th Baton Rouge, Louisiana

The Red Stick International Animation Festival, now in its 7th year, is an exciting community event that converges the worlds of technology, art, entertainment and exploration. Though artists have always used the tools of their time, at no time since the Renaissance has there been a similar convergence of science and art.

The movement toward convergence highlights not only the new set of technical skills that artists employ, but likewise the artistic vision that scientists are embracing. The worlds of the artist and scientist are folding in on one another, and Baton Rouge is at a unique moment in time to embrace this sea of change, further it, and make it our own.

Each year, the Red Stick International Animation Festival accepts entries for its “Best of the Fest” animated film competition. The festival accepts work from students, amateurs and professionals in the categories Animated Short Film (student / professional), Music Video, Experimental Animation & Visual Music, and Scientific Visualization.

The top entry in each category will receive a Red Baton award and the best overall festival entry will receive our Baton D’or, the Gold Baton. Beginning this year, we will offer cash prizes for the best films in selected categories, as well as for the Baton D’or.

The annual Ursa Major Awards, for the best anthropomorphic (“funny animal”) literature and art of the year, is now open for voting for works produced during the calendar year 2011.

IM Global posted concept art for “The Happytime Murders,” a movie about a world where puppets and humans co-exist and a puppet detective must solve a murder.

In the final excerpt from the second chapter, Rhoda Draws talks about drawing what you see.

Jean Giraud, one of France's leading comics artists, has died in Paris at the age of 73.

New York and Melbourne-based studio XYZ announced that it has added Mat Landour to its artist roster.

Part of the Shop Talk Masterclass Series sponsored by Studio Technique, a masterclass with legendary Disney animator Andreas Deja will be held in Montréal on June 2 & 3, 2012.

Sheldon Moldoff, who drew some of the most recognizable superheroes of comic books’ golden age without receiving recognition in his own right until decades later, died on February 29 near his home in Lauderhill, FL.

For some time now I have been promising myself a return to organic art. In my case this means line drawing. I love how line fluctuates, swings, cuts, curls, twists, envelopes, stubs, caresses, how it becomes a natural extension of an artist, how its creator can funnel into it the inner thoughts, passions, desires, frustrations or dreams.

Joe Strike interviews R.O. Blechman at the NY Society of Illustrators on March 7, 2012, as part of the “Interview with an Animator” series.