Fox 2000 has bought the film rights to U.K. author Michelle Paver's six-part children's fantasy book series CHRONICLES OF DARKNESS for Fox-based Scott Free Prods., reports VARIETY. Ridley Scott and Erin Upson are set to produce. Paver reportedly received $250,000 against $1 million for the first book, WOLF BROTHER, and is negotiating option fees for the five additional books. U.S. book rights holder HarperCollins Children's Books will release the first book in the States Feb. 15, 2005. The first book was a best seller for publishing house Orion in the U.K.

SyncCast has been selected by the Visual Effects Society (VES) to host and stream the nominated content for voting by its members of the material from many of the box office hits of 2004.

For the first time in the VES Awards' history, final viewing and voting will take place online via the VES Website from Jan. 31 to Feb. 12. This groundbreaking method will allow VES members worldwide to view encrypted clips of the nominees' work and vote in a safe and secure online environment. Only VES members may vote and a special password is required to view and vote online.

An updated integration plug-in for 3ds max 7 is now available for Alienbrain Studio 7. It puts the key functionality of Alienbrain, Avid’s award-winning digital asset management software for entertainment and computer graphics professionals, at the fingertips of 3D content creators using 3ds max and Alienbrain Studio.

Touchstone Pictures announced that Stephen Fry (TV’s JEEVES AND WOOSTER) has been selected to lend his voice to the Guide for THE HITCHHIKER’S GUIDE TO THE GALAXY, reports BBC News. In the film directed by Garth Jennings, The Guide is the indispensable, electronic handbook that every galactic traveler needs. The film is based on Douglas Adams’ famed satirical sci-fi book.

Curious Pictures has tapped DreamWorks/PDI alum Lewis Kofsky to head its newly expanded visual effects department in New York. Kofsky recently completed the visual effects for SHREK 2 and the soon-to-be released MADAGASCAR.

House of Moves, a division of Vicon Motion Systems, is unveiling its top-of-the-line new facility, with stages and capabilities equipped to provide end-to-end motion capture services for clients in feature film, television, commercial, game development and interactive markets.

Warner Bros. Pictures has officially announced that British television helmer David Yates (STATE OF PLAY, THE WAY WE LIVE NOW) has been signed to direct HARRY POTTER AND THE ORDER OF THE PHOENIX. The film will be produced by David Heyman from a screenplay by Michael Goldenberg (WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE, PETER PAN). Production on the film is expected to begin in England in January 2006.

The vfx bake-off is tonight at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, as the Visual Effects Award Nominating Committee narrows the list of seven contenders down to three nominees, among them THE AVIATOR, THE DAY AFTER TOMORROW, HARRY POTTER AND THE PRISONER OF AZKABAN, I ROBOT<

NaturalMotion Ltd. announced the worldwide release of endorphin 1.6, its award-winning 3D animation software. Customers such as The Mill, Sony Computer Ent., Namco and Konami as well as leading animation schools are already reaping the benefits of endorphin’s new approach to 3D character animation.

USL-WOA, the post-production and visual effects division of UTV in Mumbai, India, has added fire and smoke editing/finishing systems to its existing Discreet-based workflow. The company anticipates a workload of 200 commercials and up to 30 film projects in 2005.

Kerner Ent. has announced that Academy Award-winner Julia Roberts, Oprah Winfrey, John Cleese, Steve Buscemi, Cedric The Entertainer, Reba McEntire, Kathy Bates, Thomas Haden Church and Andre Benjamin (Andre 3000) have joined the voice cast of the upcoming live-action/photo real CG animated feature adaptation of E.B. White's CHARLOTTE'S WEB. Jordan Kerner is producing with Gary Winick directing. The film is co-production with Paramount Pictures, Walden Media and Nickelodeon Movies. The feature is scheduled to begin production on Jan. 31, 2005 in Melbourne, Australia.

Twentieth Century Fox's action/adventure feature ELEKTRA, which opened in the U.S. Jan. 14, 2005, had already captured audiences with its online strategy game. The ELEKTRA NINJA ASSASSIN GAME (www.elektramovie.com/game/) has logged a phenomenal 30,000 hours of gameplay with users from 163 countries since its debut last November.

NewTek Inc. has launched version 8.2 for LightWave 3D. The update includes major changes to the renderer core to implement new technologies for anti-aliasing, as well as new options for image reconstruction filters that can be applied to the final image to offer further control and enhancement of render output. The new LightWave team has also implemented a completely redesigned UV engine in the geometry core, which affects both Modeler and Layout, to make creating and editing UV maps easier and more powerful.

Maxon kicks off 2005 with the release of a new, free plug-in that connects Cinema 4D CINEMA to Alienbrain Studio, the professional asset management system from NXN/Avid.

The plug-in allows the Cinema 4D user to work directly with an installed Alienbrain server. Automated read/write access management for scenes and textures, project history and difference checking are all available directly from within Cinema 4D, as are the Alienbrain tools for workflow and internal communication.

Peter Jackson and partner Fran Walsh have purchased the film rights to the Alice Sebold novel, THE LOVELY BONES, reports VARIETY. FilmFour sold the rights to Jackson and Walsh and will remain a developing partner. Jackson, Walsh and Philippa Boyens plan to begin writing the screenplay next January. Distribution and financing will not be obtained until the script is finished. The move is to ensure that Jackson and Walsh do not have to work under a studio deadline. The film will be produced by Jackson along with Jan Blenkin, Caro Cunningham and Aimee Peyronnet.

A disappointment theatrically, CATWOMAN nonetheless is tailor made for home theaters with its vision of a skin-tight, leather clad Halle Berry as the feline superhero and director Pitof’s pronounced visual style. The DVD (Warner Home Video, $27.95) hits shelves Jan. 18, 2004. VFX provided by ESC Ent., Frantic Films, Tippett Studio, Pacific Title & Art Studio, Christov Effects and Design and Matte World Digital.

Bonus features include:
* Alternate ending

NIGHTMARE LIGHT and LUMAFORM, Artbeats' Fascinating laser effects, laser flares and lens caustics make up the NIGHTMARE LIGHT collection. These unique clips of mysterious light are perfect for any project where an eerie, enigmatic mood is desired. LUMAFORM features shimmering lights, flares and lens artifacts that are an impressive backdrop. The layered movement and spectacular colors are added pluses.

e-on software has announced the immediate availability of Vue 5 Pro Studio. Vue 5 Pro Studio is the latest addition to e-on software's suite of award-winning solutions for the creation and rendering of natural 3D environments. Vue 5 Pro Studio is designed for advanced digital artists seeking extended control over the creation of natural 3D.

Luxology Llc. unveiled modo 102, a powerful new version of its subdivision surface and polygonal modeling platform. modo 102's superior realtime performance and artist-friendly interface, combined with hundreds of new feature enhancements, make it one of the fastest and most advanced 3D modeling systems currently available.

wondertouch has launched particleIllusion 2.0 SE for Mac OS X, marking the company’s first product to support the advanced operating system from Apple.