CSU Animation and Visual Effects present the fifth Australian International Animation Festival 2008. This year they have secured amazing exclusives from more than 2,200 submissions from 30 countries.

The international programs will give audiences a complete, up-to-date snapshot of the international creative animation scene. In addition are programs that focus on digital animating, puppet films and Australian-made films. There will be kids, high school aged-programs, and even a "Late Night Bizarre: program for those whose tastes are on the extreme. There will also be a series of free talks and workshops given by filmmakers from all over Australia to provide a chance to learn more about how and why these films get made. Door-prizes include Adobe, Autodesk, Wacom and HP products.

Venue: Forum 6 Cinema
Cost: $10 Single Session or $30 Full Festival Pass

Friday May 16 schedule: High School/Teen Program, International Program #1, International Puppet Animation Panorama, Launch Party

Saturday May 17 schedule: Kids Program, Seminar: Animation Now! International Animation Overview, Seminar: The State Of Australian Animation, Australian Panorama, International Program #2, Late Night Bizarre

Sunday May 18 schedule: Seminar: "Voice Wrangling," Seminar: D.I.Y. Art + D.I.Y. Funding 2.0, International Program #3, Digital Panorama, After Party.

Spontaneous Fantasia at the Glendale Community College Planetarium is a showcase for the combined efforts of a visual artist, performance artist, animator, musical composer, and Technical Academy Award winner. All happen to be the same person: J.Walt Adamczyk, he of the multiple talents and Scrabble-worthy last name, puts together an hour of improvised 3-D animation and music through interactive CG techniques, accompanied by his own original score.

Adamczyk creates live animated scenes which include alien landscapes, strange oceanic ballets, surreal gardens, psychedelic swirls.

The show is suitable for all ages, though young children might find it too intense.

Fridays at 8 p.m.; Saturdays at 6:30 p.m.
Adults: $15, Kids: $6

Summer 2008 Dates:
July 11-12, July 25-26, August 8-9, September 12-13 and September 26-27.

GCC Planetarium: 1500 N. Verdugo Road, Glendale, California 91208, USA

Info and reservations: (626) 688-0778.

backup stands for films and videos reflecting, defining and readjusting the boundaries and prospects of film and its diverse segments by creatively experimenting with different ways of production and expression. That is why backup is looking for film works that refuse to be categorized by genres, topics and other traditional criteria -- experiments in the format of moving picture. A new addition to this year's 11th backup festival is a competition for international debut features. With this award and the systematic development of media partnerships backup wants to promote the potential of young filmmakers and support their talent. As in the past 10 years, backup wants to encourage a discourse about films, formats and festivals reflecting the current developments and wants to find and support artistic works and exceptional approaches to the medium film. Since its 10th anniversary in 2008 the date of the backup_festival has been changed and will now be held from May 21-24, 2009 because the early summer weather in Weimar, Germany offers the possibility of celebrating the festival as a larger and more vibrant open-air event.

Live Improvised Animation Performance in Immersive Planetarium Dome Theater

Spontaneous Fantasia at the Glendale Community College Planetarium is a showcase for the combined efforts of a visual artist, performance artist, animator, musical composer, and Technical Academy Award winner. All happen to be the same person: J.Walt Adamczyk, he of the multiple talents and Scrabble-worthy last name, puts together an hour of improvised 3D animation and music through interactive CG techniques, accompanied by his own original score.

Adamczyk creates live animated scenes which include alien landscapes, strange oceanic ballets, surreal gardens, psychedelic swirls.

The show is suitable for all ages, though tots might find it too intense.

March 28-29
April 11-12
April 25-26
May 9-10
May 23-24

Fridays at 8 p.m.; Saturdays at 6:30 p.m.
Adults:$10, Kids: $6

GCC Planetarium
1500 N. Verdugo Road, Glendale, California 91208

Info and reservations: (626) 688-0778

www.spontaneousfantasia.com

A retrospective of Ian Emes animations is taking place next week in London, 25 June. Q & A will follow the screening and there's also an exhibition of his cels and backgrounds.

Asia

Design Festa is a biannual international art event, started in 1994. It is open to all artists from all over the world to exhibit their creative talent freely. 7,000 artists working in a variety of mediums will be present, turning the two day event into artistic chaos. There will be booth areas(2,600 booths), an outdoor live-show stage, an indoor stage, a mini-theater space and a restaurant and cafe/bar area, all for your enjoyment during these two days filled with art, energy, excitement and discovery.

Expo Licensing Latinoamarica 2007 features top level executives with decision power from Mexico and all over Latin America, the Caribbean and other Spanish speaking countries. This first international licensing event in Latin America is expected to gather participation of more than 6,000 Mexican and international attendees. Expo Licensing Latinoamarica 2007 will be your platform where attendees will sign exclusive deals, strategize with retailers, solidify promotional partnerships and much more. The exhibit show floor will occupy more than 3,000 square meters of space, in ?the state of the art" Banamex Convention Center. Expo Licensing Latinoam?rica 2007 is endorsed by ADVANSTAR, official organizer of the prestigious Licensing International Convention and Trade Show. For more information, visit licensingmexico.com.

As a featured component of Los Angeles' International AFI Film Festival, AFI DigiFest is presenting two interactive media showcases highlighting the latest innovations in digital media and their real-world applications. Presented at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences' beautiful Linwood-Dunn Theater, the two days of presentations and seminars will be filled with some pretty dazzling stuff. Here's the program: Day One (November 8): AFI hosts a series of curated presentations that highlight noteworthy digital productions from around the world. Among the presentations, Marshall Herskovitz, creator of THIRTY SOMETHING, MY SO-CALLED LIFE and BLOOD DIAMOND, will preview QUARTERLIFE, a new dramatic broadband series that premieres on MySpace on Nov. 11. Presentations rounding out the day feature the best in new digital thinking from the worlds of film, television, games and mobile. Bobby Beck, CEO/President, Animation Mentor, will be part of a panel titled "The Reinvention of Storytelling through Interactive Media." Day Two (November 9): AFI presents five new prototypes incubated in the AFI Digital Content Lab: an online video platform and citizen journalist toolkit for NOW, PBS' weekly investigative news program; a strategy for retaining viewer interest during ads in a DVR environment for Bravo; a social network tailored for players, a documentary about videogame fans being produced by MTV, EA, and Mekanism; a pilot for an original dramatic machinima series created within a 3D game engine; and, finally, a unique user-generated film contest, Filmocracy, for ITVS. For more information, visit www.afi.com/onscreen/AFIFEST/2007/.

The American Animation Institute's summer semester will run from June 2 to August 30. Registration for Animation Guild members begins May 8; registration for non-members begins May 12. The American Animation Institute was founded in 1980 by the Animation Guild and Affiliated Optical Electronic and Graphic Arts, Local 839 IATSE, to further the art of the animated cartoon in the United States through educational and other activities. Classes are held at the Animation Guild in North Hollywood, CA on weekdays and weekday evenings plus one weekend class, one session per week for twelve weeks. The full catalog is available here. Instructors for the summer semester include Steve Brown, Nicole Duet, Karl Gnass and Will Weston. Classes offered include Storyboarding, Composition for Animation and Film, Life Drawing, Advanced Life Drawing, Animal Drawing at the Los Angeles Zoo and Page Museum, Head and Figure Painting, Painting the Still Life and Figure Drawing From Top To Bottom. Contact Lyn Mantta by e-mail or at 818-766-0521 if you have any questions.