Burnaby, British Columbia-based CDIS is offering a one-day industry
introduction to Macromedia's Flash 4.0 on October 23 from 9 am-4:30 pm.
Cost is $225, which includes lunch. By the end of the seminar, you'll know
how to prepare graphics for Flash, use the interface, sketch and draft
ideas for animation and interactivity, create symbols and manipulate
instances for actions, combine the final pieces into your own 30-second
animated banner with sound, and post the final product to the web with FTP.

Toronto, Canada-based IMAX CORPORATION, which operates a chain of large
format film theaters, has appointed MARY PAT RYAN to the new post of
Executive Vice President of IMAX Ltd. and Network Group President. Ryan
will oversee the ongoing development of the Network Group, which is charged
with ensuring the success of all theatres in the worldwide network of IMAX
theatres and the development of the IMAX brand. Based in New York, Ryan
will have responsibility for all areas of the Network Group including brand

Los Angeles-based CHEQUEMATE INTERNATIONAL INC., doing business as C-3D
Digital Inc., a 3D media company that provides broadcasting and
entertainment companies with the technology to deliver 3D entertainment to
any standard television 24 hours a day, has appointed media marketing
expert DANIEL R. THOMPSON to the C-3D Digital Board. Thompson is the
founder and head of Hollywood entertainment agency A Creative Group (ACG)
which specializes in product placement, promotional advertising, program
sponsorships, and distribution.

Vancouver-based BARDEL ANIMATION has added executive producer CAROLE
DUCHARME and business affairs executive DEBORAH REES-LEE to its business
affairs department. DUCHARME began her career in the film industry as a
lawyer specializing in film financing and as a legal advisor for
organizations such as the Quebec Film Classification Board. She moved into
the role of producer with the Paris, France-based company Les Production
Lazennec, negotiating and drafting agreements for international

SANFORD M. (SANDY) LITVACK has been named vice chairman of the board of THE
WALT DISNEY COMPANY. Litvack joined Disney in April, 1991, as senior vice
president and general counsel, and was promoted to executive vice president
the following December. In May, 1992, he assumed the additional duties of
executive in charge of human resources. Before joining The Walt Disney
Company, Litvack was a member of the executive committee and chairman of
the litigation department of the international law firm Dewey Ballantine.

On November 2, 1999 Rhino Records will release GO SIMPSONIC WITH THE
SIMPSONS, musical selections from the often very musical THE SIMPSONS.
Consisting of more than 50 tracks of songs, themes, and underscore music,
GO SIMPSONIC not only picks up where its predecessor, SONGS IN THE KEY OF
SPRINGFIELD, left off, but also digs deep into the first nine seasons,
capturing selections that didn't make it onto the first collection. GO
SIMPSONIC also makes available for the first time four never-before-heard

Waterloo, Ontario-based Jedor Inc. has released Viscosity 1.0, a new
software package that puts the process of 2D image editing and animation
into one application, and enables both novice and advanced graphic
designers to create, edit, and view animated graphics for web sites, video
clips, and multimedia presentations. Viscosity differs from traditional
image editing software by totally integrating highly visual animation
tools, animated effects, and real-time playback directly into Viscosity's

Cary, North Carolina-based LIPSinc. is offering a free beta version of
Ventriloquist for MAX, a new lip-synching plug-in for 3D Studio MAX R3.0.
Ventriloquist for MAX automates the process of synchronizing correct mouth
movements to dialogue for animated characters. For more information visit
www.lipsinc.com.

Orlando, Florida-based AARGH! ANIMATION, INC. (not related to the above
company) is co-producing a series of :10 and :30 spots for Cold-Eeze cold
medicine that combines live-action with cel animation. Mark Simon and Dave
Kallaher directed the animation. The three :10 spots consist of a cel
animated plane that swoops into frame over a six layer multi-plane of
moving clouds. The computer generated product packages fly out of the plane
and are presented close to camera. In the :30 spots, live-action passengers

Sony Wonder Technology Lab, a center for high-tech entertainment and
education, will host ALL EYES ON CGI. The presentation will feature a
representative from Sony Pictures Imageworks, whose talent and technology
contributed to the upcoming feature film STUART LITTLE in which for the
first time ever, audiences are introduced to a three-dimensional,
photo-realistic, performance based, computer generated movie star.
Admission is $10. The events takes place Thursday, September 30, 6:30 pm in

This month: Licensing And Merchandising.


As the holidays approach our minds turn to licensing and merchandising and
what is going to be on the shelves this winter. In this issue Tarleton
Gillespie takes us on a trip through Toys R Us to determine the meaning of
toys to kids. The French licensing and merchandising market is detailed by
Valerie Rivoallon. Sharon Schatz profiles toon loving Rhino Records and
Karen Raugust looks at how "Sesame Street's" content changes as the popular

This week's comic is about the natural progression of romantic relationships...

This week's AWN Animation Trivia Quiz features questions about forgotten films...

Now available in the AWN Store are four must have books for anybody interested in breaking into animation....

The Rhode Island School Of Design is looking for an Assistant Professor for its Film/Animation/Video Department...

The 5th installment of Career Coach, our monthly column by Pamela Thompson,
a noted authority on jobs and recruiting within the animation and visual
effects industries, is now on-line...

The Cinanima International Animated Film Festival (held November 8-14,
1999, in Espinho, Portugal), announced their '99 nominees. The selection
jury consisted of Menno De Nooijer (Netherlands), Manuel Matos Barbosa
(Portugal), Antonio Melo (Portugal), Rodolfo Pastor (Spain) and Pedro
Serrazina (Portugal). Discover this year's official competition program, as
well as the retrospectives, exhibitions, and more. All is included on the
Festival's official web site!

The "Cartoon d'Or" 1999 was announced at the Cartoon Forum this past
Sunday. The winning film is "Migrations" by Constantin Chamski (France), a
4-minute CGI film. The director received 25,000 ECU (approximately U.S.
$25,000) to spend on a new animation project. This year the forum welcomed
a record attendance of 620 participants, which included producers,
distributors and broadcasters. Sixty-nine projects seeking partners were
offered to potential investors and producers. Since its start ten years

The new trailer for TOY STORY 2 will play online for one week beginning
Friday, October 1 at www.toystory2.com before it screens in theaters. The
sequel, which features Buzz, Woody and the gang, plus new characters such
as Mrs. Potato Head and Emperor Zorg, debuts in US theaters on November 24,
1999. The eagerly awaited sequel to the 1995 Pixar/Disney groundbreaking
CGI feature, TOY STORY, continues the story of pull-string cowboy doll,
Woody, and his action figure Space Ranger friend, Buzz Lightyear. The new

Studio B Productions has moved to a custom designed studio at 190 Alexander
Street in Vancouver, British Columbia. The three-floor, 27,000 sq. ft.
facility is home to Studio B's animation studio and production house as
well as Mercury Filmworks, a fully equipped digital animation facility, and
Dick and Roger's, a fully equipped sound studio which means that the
facility now has the ability to produce an animated show or series in its
entirety from script to post-production. The move to larger, custom