Political correctness, fear of being painted as insensitive, a chauvinist, a racist, or being too this or too that, or “I’ll sue you”, is killing our free spirit, our sincere openness, ability to dialogue or differ with others on a deeper emotional level.

Director Gore Verbinski and ILM give us a hefty volume crammed with full-color behind-the-scenes photos, production art and final renders.

IMAGE COMICS

20TH ANNIVERSARY EXHIBIT

Image Expo is the premier Northern California comics convention in 2012. The three-day event takes place at the Oakland Convention Center February 24, 25 and 26. Celebrating the creative spirit of independence, Image Expo commemorates the twentieth anniversary of the formation of Image Comics. But more than just looking to the past, the event showcases the evolving the comic market by spotlighting the future of independent publishing.

The Cartoon Art Museum’s exhibition Image Comics: A 20th Anniversary Celebration features over 40 pieces of original artwork spanning 20 years, including works from all seven Image founders, Erik Larsen (Savage Dragon), Jim Lee (WildC.A.T.s), Rob Liefeld (Youngblood), Todd McFarlane (Spawn), Whilce Portacio (Wetworks), Marc Silvestri (Cyberforce), and Jim Valentino (Shadowhawk).  Works from Image partner Robert Kirkman (Invincible, The Walking Dead) will also be included in this historic exhibition.

The opening reception for Image Comics: A 20th Anniversary Celebration will be held on Thursday, February 23, 2012 from 7:00-9:00pm.  Special guests include Robert Kirkman (Walking Dead, Invincible), Fiona Staples (Saga), Ryan Ottley (Invincible) and many more to be announced, as well as a few last-minute surprises.  Please visit the Cartoon Art Museum’s website, cartoonart.org <http://cartoonart.org> for updates.  Admission to this party will be $5-$50, with tickets sold on a sliding scale.  This party kicks off the three-day Image Expo which will be held at the Oakland Convention Center from Friday, February 24 through Sunday, February 26.  Please visit imagecomicexpo.com <http://www.imagecomicexpo.com/> for details.

The Cartoon Art Museum celebrates the 20th anniversary of Image Comics with an exhibition running February 4 through April 9, 2012.

The Cartoon Art Museum Bookstore will host a special event in celebration of the anniversary of Edward Gorey’s birth on February 22.

Puss in Boots, the Academy Award® Best Animated Feature nominee from DreamWorks Animation SKG, Inc. is the subject of a new art exhibition at San Francisco’s Cartoon Art Museum.

The Los Angeles Comic Book and Science Fiction Convention will be held on March 4, 2012, with special guests Tom Felton, Eric Walker, Gabriel Hardman, Corinna Sara Bechko, Mike Kazelah and Vernon Wells.

The Cartoon Art Museum hosts artist Jeff Plotkin on Saturday, February 11, 2012 from 1pm to 3pm as part of its ongoing Cartoonist-in-Residence program.

CRASH+SUES was tapped by mono to provide editing, color correction and graphics for SoundAffects, Parsons The New School for Design’s multi-platform exploration of the relationship between music, design and technology.

The submission deadline for the fifth edition of Fest Anca, the international animation festival in Slovakia, is March 30, 2012.