In honor of its 20th anniversary - and perhaps owing just a little to the success of the acclaimed ABC series, ALIAS - Alias|Wavefront will now be known simply as Alias. According to the Toronto-based 3D graphics technology leader and creator of the Oscar-winning Maya software, the name change "provides a simple yet powerful name that is well known throughout the 3D industry and beyond."

Humunculus, launched only nine months ago in Venice, California, has already expanded into a new, 2,000-square-foot facility. The new studio, located at 529 Victoria Avenue, was designed by Predock Frane architects of Santa Monica, and modified by studio founder Saam Gabbay for Humunculus. "Using the architects' original materials of Lexan, MDF and sanded homosote, we created four subdivisions in the space to fulfill our distinct needs," Gabbay explained.

When the Nickheads.net fansite (which is not connected with Nickelodeon) posted news that Klasky Csupo was only getting an order from Nick for eight episodes of the RUGRATS spinoff, ALL GROWN UP, and thereby was laying off lots of employees, AWN asked reps at Nickelodeon and Klasky Csupo to respond.

With the demand for CGI growing, animatronics special effects wizard Stan Winston has launched a CGI division as part of his Stan Winston Prods, reports VARIETY. Entitled SW Digital, the new Van Nuys, California-based firm will start by offering digital effects services to mid-to-low budget projects. SW Digital will start hiring new staff as projects warrant it. This move adds to the in-house power Winston has to produce his own films. Stan Winston Prods recently produced this summer’s horror flick WRONG TURN, along with New Regency Prods., Summit Entertainment and Constantin Films.

The legal battles are over with Viacom gaining the right to call its TNN Network Spike TV. Movie director Spike Lee settled his legal debate July 7, 2003 with Viacom Inc. State Supreme Court judge Walt Tolub lifting his injunction barring Viacom from using the moniker Spike TV. Details of the settlement were not disclosed. Viacom claims the delay has cost media conglom $30 million in marketing expenses.

On Friday, June 27, 2003, Marvel Enterprises filed yet another lawsuit worth $10M against SPIDER-MAN partner Sony, this time specifically Sony Electronics, reported VARIETY. Marvel claims in the suit, filed in L.A. Superior Court, that Sony Electronics refused to license the Spider-Man character for its electronic products like radios and portable CD players and has advised sister company Sony Pictures to do the same with competitors.

After a four-year hiatus for Disney comic books in the U.S. market, Disney Publishing Worldwide has signed a deal with Gemstone Publishing to bring Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Goofy and other Disney favorites back onto the printed page. Gemstone will release the first two monthly comics, WALT DISNEY COMICS AND STORIES and UNCLE SCROOGE, in June at $6.95, while the first bi-monthly, DONALD DUCK ADVENTURES ($7.95), debuts in July, and monthlies DONALD DUCK AND FRIENDS and MICKEY MOUSE AND FRIENDS ($2.95), arrive in September.

Just as it gears up for more VFX feature work, Blur Studio (www.blur.com) has moved into a new, 20,000 square-foot computer animation studio that is nearly triple the size of its former Venice, California headquarters. Through an international talent search, it has also increased its artistic staff to 65, with additional talent to come.

Playhut Co., a toy designer and manufacturer, launched its own production and distribution company, Playhut Entertainment, to produce anime and children’s programming for home video and broadcast.

Hong-Kong-based animation production house Stvdio Media has established an office in Los Angeles to handle sales and marketing for the North American Market. Founder/ceo Larry Feign, an American animator and cartoonist, has appointed Susan Goldstein to head the U.S. office. Goldstein worked for the Screen Actors Guild, the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences and was evp of VIDEO INSIDER.

Based in the U.K., Jennifer Taylor and Clair Daintree have combined a wealth of expertise and recognition in the field of voice overs, as well as a unique link with Hollywood to provide a genuinely ‘full service’ voice over agency, Shining Management, Ltd., in London to service the broadcast and production industry.

Due to the success of Digital Fusion and DFX+, eyeon Software Inc. has opened two new offices – eyeon USA and eyeon Europe. Los Angeles-based eyeon USA is lead by Digital Fusion guru and director of business development, Rony Soussan, who has been influential in Digital Fusion's proliferation on the west coast, and has a long history as a digital compositor. Soussan offers expertise with both the product and the pipeline, as well as advanced training.

KirchMedia, the once mighty German media giant, shut down on June 16, 2003 after a flurry of attempts to buy it. It looked like the cash-strapped company was going to be owned by American entrepreneur Haim Saban, until the parties couldn't agree on final terms and nullified the deal after the contract expired on May 31. Management and creditors had hoped to restructure the company to maintain it until the market climate improved to sell it, but shareholders voted to sell off its main assets into separate companies.

Just days after Hiam Saban withdrew his bid to acquire KirchMedia's television and its library, the American entrepreneur is said to be teaming up with a consortium to buy British broadcaster ITV. Some say he's looking to buy ITV shareholder companies Granada and Carlton, which are planning to merge to form a $4.4 billion ITV company. The two broadcast/production/distribution powerhouses are working on a solution to make their merger pass the Competition Commission regulator in the U.K.

Dear Friends and Colleagues:

My good friend and associate, Jim Hardison, said it best, "It's surreal!"

After many great years building Will Vinton Prods. and creating groundbreaking Claymation and 3D-animated films, television and commercials, and growing Will Vinton Studios, I have been forced out of active involvement with the company by Phil Knight and his associates. The situation could also be described as "Machiavellian"! And I expect you'll hear much more about this David and Goliath story in the near future.

"I'm definitely on my way back from hell," Will Vinton told AWN, a few months after the studio he founded, Vinton Studios, gave him the boot. The king of Claymation claims he is much happier now, having signed with Creative Artists Agency and is shopping around a number of animated projects, including a feature film script, THE QUEST, written by Peter Crabbe.

Entrepreneur Haim Saban has dropped out of his $2.3 billion contract to buy Germany's biggest broadcaster ProSiebenSat 1 from bankrupt KirchMedia. Saban signed the 40,000-page contract on March 27, 2003 for the acquisition of the broadcaster and its programming rights to approximately 18,000 films and series, the largest film library outside of Hollywood. Over the next two months, Saban did not agree with KirchMedia and creditor banks on "details of the transaction" by the deadline of May 31 for the purchase of ProSiebenSat 1.