The National Film Board of Canada (NFB) will be showing two groundbreaking animated short films at this year's SIGGRAPH Computer Animated Festival: RYAN, Chris Landreth's animated documentary about Ryan Larkin, and JUNE, Munro Ferguson's animated tribute to Joyce June Wieland. RYAN has received SIGGRAPH's prestigious Jury Award.
RYAN has already garnered prizes at Cannes International Critics Week, Annecy Animation Film Festival and WSFF Sun Life Financial. The film looks at the Canadian animator Ryan Larkin, an Oscar nominee who made some of the most influential animated films of his time. By combining hand-animated images with the latest in technology, Landreth challenges notions of documentary and animation. RYAN is a Copper Heart Ent. production, in co-production with the National Film Board of Canada, in association with Seneca College's Animation Arts Centre. The producers are Steven Hoban, Mark Smith and Marcy Page (NFB).
JUNE, written and directed by Genie award winner Munro Ferguson pays tribute to Canadian artist Joyce June Wieland. A student and friend of Wieland's, Ferguson creates a 3D abstract painting that captures the essence of Wieland. Part 1, "Alzheimer's," is about the end of her life. Part 2, "Memory," is about what she was like at the height of her creative powers. The film was created using a revolutionary "wand" called SANDDE (Stereo Animation Drawing Device), developed by IMAX. The film was produced by Marcy Page.
On Aug. 11, at 4:00 pm, Chris Landreth will be part of the "Meet the Artists" session where he'll talk about how he created and modelled the characters in RYAN. On hand with Landreth will be technical producer Dave Baas (Seneca College, Computer Animation Department).
Since its creation in 1939, the National Film Board of Canada has produced more than 10,000 films and won more than 4,500 awards, including 10 Oscars. For more information, visit ww.nfb.ca or call (800) 267-7710.
Rick DeMott
Animation World Network
Creator of Rick's Flicks Picks
