On Wednesday, November 22, 2000, TAIS is hosting two different shows of films from the Short Attention Span Film Festival. At 7:00 PM: a screening comprised of independent films under 2 min. in length, includes films by TAIS animators Mike Constable and Jonathan Amitay. At 9:00 PM: a screening featuring the greatest hits of the festival's eight-year run, also includes three of Mike Constable's animated shorts. Please note: mature content; admission restricted to ages 18+; each program contains about 40% animation.

This week's updates to the Calendar of Events include the Victoria Independent Film & Video Festival in British Columbia, Canada; the Interactive TV & Mobile Games Conference in London, U.K.; the 2nd Outer Limits Film And Video Series in New York; and many more! With multiple search capabilities, AWN's new calendar of events gives you a customized way to look through the upcoming events - by Name, Location, Entry Deadline, Category, Event Type and more. Use it to stay abreast of animation related activities across the globe.

Earlier this week, Film Roman, Inc. and Chennai, India-based Pentamedia Graphics, Ltd., formerly known as Pentafour Software and Exports, Ltd., have announced a letter of intent pursuant to which Pentamedia will purchase a 51% stake in Film Roman. The deal was a US$15 million cash deal, which is aimed to close by January after regulatory and board approvals. The deal was concluded by Film Roman's president and CEO John Hyde, who joined the company in December 1999, after a tumultuous three year period. Since the company went public in 1996, Film Roman has teetered in the red.

* Thursday, November 23 – Sunday, November 26, 2000. Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

* Monday, November 27 – Friday, December 15, 2000. Hollywood, California, U.S.A.

Cinar Corp. has named George Rossi senior VP and chief financial officer. Previously, he served as president of Astral Media subsidiary Omni Media USA. Before joining Omni Media, Rossi played a key role in the rebirth of Quebec radio and TV group Radiomutuel Inc., which was acquired by Astral in 1999. Rossi replaces former Cinar CFO Hasanan Panju, who was fired in March over unapproved investments made in offshore accounts.

This past week, the international box office got a bit frightful with SCARY MOVIE, WHAT LIES BENEATH and HOLLOW MAN taking top spots around the globe. In Mexico, SCARY MOVIE debuted in first place with a gross of $2.33 million. In second, WHAT LIES scared audiences to the tune of $917,416, lifting its Mexican cume to $6.23 million. U-571 thrilled audiences in third, with a gross of $648,055, raising its Mexican cume to $1.6 million. In sixth, HOLLOW MAN made $406,055 disappear from Mexican moviegoers' pockets, advancing its cume to $5.14 million.

* Monday, November 6 – Saturday, December 9, 2000. New York, New York, U.S.A.

* Monday, November 6 – Wednesday, November 8, 2000. New York, New York, U.S.A.

* Wednesday, November 22, 2000. Toronto, Ontario, Canada.





The Toronto Animated Image Society will be hosting a short attention span festival. TAIS members Mike Constable and Jonathan Amitay have animated pieces in this festival of films that are two minutes or less in length. There will be two shows: one at 7 pm and one at 9 pm. For more information contact Patrick Jenkins at: 54 Austin Terrace, Toronto, Ontario M5R 1Y6, Canada; Tel.: (416) 533-2440; Fax: (416) 533-0508; E-mail: pjenkins@interlog.com; and Web: www.interlog.com/~pjenkins.

* Thursday, February 15 – Saturday, February 17, 2001. Los Angeles and Santa Monica, California, U.S.A.


Entry Deadline: January 1, 2001

Stan Lee Media (SLM) and SciFi.com have signed a deal to Netcast 12 Webisodes of SLM's newest series THE DRIFTER. Debuting next year, the series follows Zane (a.k.a. the Drifter), who travels into the past to prevent a global computer meltdown in 2074 that kills 423 million people. SciFi.com has signed distribution deals with other Net content creators such as Wildbrain.com's SPACE IS DUM and Othervision.com's INDIE PLANET. SciFi.com is the official Website of cable channel the SciFi Channel, which is owned by USA Entertainment.

* Thursday, November 2, 2000. Los Angeles, California, U.S.A.

* Thursday, November 2, 2000. Schaumburg, Illinois, U.S.A.

* Saturday, November 4, 2000. Ontario, Canada.

* Spring 2001. New York, New York, U.S.A.


Entry Deadline: December 22, 2000

With HOLLOW MAN claiming strong debuts in Germany and Italy, WHAT LIES BENEATH and X-MEN hold on tight to other tops spots around the world. In first place, HOLLOW MAN scored big in its German premiere with a gross of US$3.78 million. SCARY MOVIE came in right behind with a gross of $3.47 million, raising its German cume to $8.84 million. WHAT LIES BENEATH sunk to third with a gross of $1.37 million, lifting its German cume to $7.11 million. In seventh, FINAL DESTINATION piled up $487,846, bringing its German cume to $6.66 million.

Sideshow, a New York post-production and visual design studio, has finished a series of promo spots for the new syndicated TV crime series ARREST & TRIAL. Sideshow delivered two 15-second and 10-second teasers, three 30-second promotional spots and 4 15-second versions of the same. In addition, the company is working on a 30-second Jumbo-tron spot for use in Times Square and other outdoor viewing venues. The show is a reality-based crime series from LAW AND ORDER creator Dick Wolfe and produced by Studios USA.

Chennai, India-based Pentamedia Graphics, Ltd., formerly known as Pentafour Software and Exports, Ltd., and Film Roman, Inc. have announced a letter of intent pursuant to which Pentamedia will purchase a 51% stake in Film Roman. The deal was a US$15 million cash deal, which is aimed to close by January after regulatory and board approvals. In regards to the deal, Film Roman CEO and president John Hyde told AWN, "I think it allows us to execute our very specific five-year plan.

* Sunday, August 12, 2001 – Friday, August 17, 2001. Los Angeles, California, U.S.A.


Entry Deadline: March 21, 2001.