The next International Student Animation Festival of Ottawa (SAFO) will be held October 18-21, 2001. Now in its third edition, the Ottawa International Student Animation Festival provides a dynamic showcase of the most fresh and innovative animation from around the world. The official competition is divided into five categories: High School Student Films; Undergraduate Student Films (Post-Secondary); Graduate Student Films (Post-Secondary); First Film (e.g. Professional/Independent/Co-op Produced Films); and Children's Animation (Under 12 Years Of Age).

North Carolina-based SouthPeak Interactive, a former SAS subsidiary that produced computer games, has spawned Alternate Route Studios, a new F/X house. Originally created to produce proprietary technology that promoted "feature film quality" gaming, SouthPeak transformed into Alternate Route after its core technology was sold off last year. Executive director Susan Ellis said, "We are aiming our sights on national spots and features. As part of a proof of concept, we pitched to produce SAS' first national campaign.

Visual effects supervisor Dennis Berardi and Toronto-based TOPIX/Mad Dog's Chris Wallace and Sylvain Taillon have launched Mr. X, Inc., a studio providing computer generated visual effects for feature entertainment. The new partnership will combine TOPIX's artists with Berardi, former visual effects supervisor of Toybox, supplying the ideas and directing. Berardi's F/X supervising credits include THE CELL, FIGHT CLUB, EXISTENZ, KEEPING THE FAITH, SUPERSTAR, THOMAS AND THE MAGIC RAILROAD, JASON X and BRIDE OF CHUCKY.

* Saturday, March 24, 2001. Northridge, California, U.S.A.



The California SUN International Animation Festival contains animations ranging from student works to studio productions. The event is set up to bring attention to the world of international animation. A special private screening of the films will be held on March 23 at the Museum of Radio & Television in

* Fall 2001. San Francisco and Los Angeles, California; Chicago, Illinois; Seattle, Washington; New York, New York, U.S.A.; Montreal, Canada; Tokyo and Osaka, Japan; Seoul, South Korea; and London, England.

Early Deadline: May 4, 2001

Late Deadline: June 1, 2001

* Thursday, October 4 – Friday, October 26, 2001. Houston, Texas, U.S.A.

Entry Deadline: July 16, 2001

* Saturday, February 17, 2001. Hollywood, California, U.S.A.

* Thursday, February 8, 2001. Hollywood, California, U.S.A.

* Saturday, February 10, 2001. North Hollywood, California, U.S.A.

* Friday, February 16 – Saturday, February 17, 2001. La Jolla, California, U.S.A.

Realviz recently announced that it has completed a third round of financing worth 10 million euros (US$9.39 million). The money will help with the future development of the company and their products. This new fundraising will enable Realviz to finance their international expansion programme in the U.S.A., Europe and Asia, as well as to finance a new Internet solutions business unit.

California SUN International Animation Festival

* Saturday, March 24, 2001. Northridge, California, U.S.A.

Entry Deadline: February 25, 2001

* Saturday, March 10 – Sunday, March 18, 2001. Durango, Colorado, U.S.A.

* Tuesday, March 13, 2001. Seattle, Washington, U.S.A.

Around the globe, CAST AWAY remains at the top of the international box office. In Germany, CAST AWAY claimed the top spot with a gross of $4.99 million, lifting its three-week total to $17.74 million. In second, VERTICAL LIMIT made its German debut with a gross of $2.51 million. BEDAZZLED bewitched third place, grossing $1.88 million, raising its German cume to $3.09 million. In fifth, CROUCHING TIGER, HIDDEN DRAGON amazed audiences to the tune of $624,096, elevating its German cume to $1.88 million. At #6, UNBREAKABLE secured another $570,085, bringing its German cume to $12.52 million.

* Thursday, March 1 – Friday, March 2, 2001. Hollywood, California, U.S.A.

* Tuesday, March 6 – Thursday, March 8, 2001. Los Angeles, California, U.S.A.



eStreaming World's goal is to connect streaming media producers with enterprise executives to help both parties generate revenue growth. Attendees can find producers who can enhance their company Websites and help move their business into the next level of Internet activity. For more information contact eStreaming World at: E-Mail: info@estreamingworld.com; or Web: http://www.etvworld.com/estream/framestre.htm.

* Wednesday, March 7, 2001. Denver, Colorado, U.S.A.

Valencia, Spain's BLACK MARIA STUDIOS, an animation production studio specialized in 2D, 3D and Flash animation for TV, multimedia and Internet, is looking for 3D MODELERS and ANIMATORS with strong abilities for organic characters for TV productions. . . London, United Kingdom's Double Negative is looking for a CG R&D PROGRAMMER for its feature film visual effects team. . . New York's Epoch Films is looking for a RECEPTION/OFFICE MANAGER. . . New York's FDG, a live-action/broadcast design production company in the field of visual science, is looking for freelance 3D DESIGNERS/ANIMATORS. . .

MIP TV (April 2-6, 2001, Cannes, France) is one of the premiere television conferences and markets in the world. The six-day event brings together production companies and distributors from all over the globe. The conference includes a vast array of panels and round-table discussions with some of the world's top professionals. MIP TV 2000 scored a hit with over 11,000 participants, representing 2,776 companies from 100 countries. The countries most represented in terms of stands were: France, US, UK, Canada and Germany.