Search form

AWN Headline News

Animation Headline News

AWN Discussion Forums - What's New? for Oct. 2, 2006

This week in AWN's Forums, a member has some newbie-ish questions regarding the best way to go about producing their first 5-minute short film in Flash. Another member is looking for a good entertainment lawyer in NYC. Theres a thread that is putting out a call to have Weird Al Yankovic inducted into the Rock N Roll Hall of Fame. Theres another thread that discusses the state of the animation industry in India. A junior member has a question what to do next with their cartoon series.

Festival Headline News

Slamdance 2007 Film Festival Final Call for Entries!

Slamdance 2007Park City, UtahJan. 18-27, 2007Deadline: Oct. 10, 2006

The 13th Slamdance Film Festival will be held January 18-27, 2007, in Park City Utah. Its focus is on first time filmmakers. The festival has separate juried awards for animation, documentary, experimental, narrative and short films. Slamdance can exhibit mini-Dv, DV-cam, Digi-Beta, and 35mm. The early entry fee for a short is $25; $45 for the final deadline.

Deadlines are:* Shorts Postmark Oct. 10* Features Postmark Oct. 16

Toon Headline News

Toon Boom Studio 3.5 Released

Emmy award-winning Toon Boom Animation Inc. has released Toon Boom Studio V3.5. Tailored to customer feature requests, TBS v3.5 provides significant improvements to animation creation and color palette management, as well as the addition of new special effects. V3.5 also offers a more user-friendly interface with an interactive welcome screen, help wizard and timeline improvements.

Highlights of this latest release include:* More than 30 improvements to boost productivity.

* New wizards for a faster start.

Series Headline News

Smigel & Sandler Team on Animated Animals Series for Fox

Robert Smigel, creator of Triumph the Insult Comic Dog and SNLs TV FUNHOUSE, and Adam Sandler are teaming up to produce a new primetime animated series, ANIMALS, for Fox. Sandler's Happy Madison and 20th Century Fox TV, have received a presentation order, according to THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER and confirmed by a Fox Broadcasting spokesperson.

ANIMALS centers on a group of human-like animals that are parodying human life in the suburbs, written by Smigel and Greg Cohen of KING OF THE HILL.

Headline News

Animated Open Season Leads Box Office

Sony Picture Animation's first feature, OPEN SEASON, lead the box office race, opening at $23M for the weekend ended Oct. 1, 2006. Another newcomer, THE GUARDIAN, from Buena Vista debuted in 2nd place with a take of $17.6M. Dropping slightly to third place was Paramount's JACKASS: NUMBER TWO bringing in another $14M for give it a cume of $51.4M. Debuting in fourth place with $9.1M was SCHOOL FOR SCOUNDRELS from MGM & The Winstein Co. JET LI'S FEARLESS from Rogue Pictures (with vfx from Menfond Electronic Art & Computer Design Co.) was fifth with $4.7 M and a total take of $17.8M.

Headline News

Disney Feature Animation Starts Online Demo Reel & Portfolio Submission Portal

Disney Animation (DA) breaks new ground connecting talent to animation opportunities with its first-ever online artistic submission portal. Artists may submit their demo reels and/or portfolios www.DisneyMouseLink.com, the company says is a secure web-based upload system that is convenient and progressive.

DisneyMouseLink.com was developed in-house and allows interested applicants to submit their résumés, demo reels, and/or portfolios. This portal is an industry first that will allow greater connectivity to the artistic community.

Film Headline News

GigaPix Studios to Produce Dr. Grave Feature Film

GigaPix Studios will produce a live-action/CGI feature film based on the popular underground comicbook, DR GRAVE, written by its creator, Ed Vis, according to David Pritchard, president of GigaPix.

Dr. Grave is a sexy, middle-aged adventurer who embodies a combination of Indiana Jones and Austin Powers, with a dash of Monty Python, said Pritchard. The estimated budget of $40-50 million covers a combination of live-action and CG effects.

Headline News

Jonathan Friedland New Disney Corp. Com. VP

Jonathan Friedland joins The Walt Disney Co. as vp, corporate communications, where he will participate in developing and executing the communications strategies for various issues and initiatives, including financial reporting, legislative and regulatory issues, corporate reputation management and executive communications. He also will work closely with Disney's businesses, including Parks and Resorts, Media Networks, Consumer Products and Studio Ent.

Production Headline News

The Guardian’s Fluid VFX Secrets Revealed

With the release of Buena Vistas THE GUARDIAN on Sept. 29, 2006, the potential of RealFlow 4 by Next Limit Technologies was revealed.

A strategic alliance among Next Limit Technologies, Hollywood vfx studio Flash Film Works and Fusion CI Studios (an R&D and fluid vfx studio) has leveled the playing field dominated by much larger studios.

Imax Headline News

Open Season for IMAX 3-D

OPEN SEASON: AN IMAX 3-D EXPERIENCE (opening Sept. 29) marks the second IMAX film with Sony Pictures Ent., following SPIDER-MAN 2: THE IMAX EXPERIENCE in 2004. OPEN SEASON, which also marks the first 3D-animated feature from Sony Pictures Animation, has been digitally converted into IMAX 3-D and IMAX DMR (Digital Re-mastering) technology, making it a more immersive experience akin to THE POLAR EXPRESS in IMAX 3-D.

Headline News

Robert Downey Jr. To Play Iron Man

Academy Award nominee Robert Downey Jr. will take on the title character role for Marvel Studios' IRON MAN. This project, the first feature film to be produced independently by Marvel Ent., will launch into theaters May 2, 2008. The film is being directed by Jon Favreau (ZATHURA, ELF) and will be distributed by Paramount Pictures.

Headline News

Autodesk To Hold First Maya Masterclass in Australia

Traditionally available only at SIGGRAPH, Autodesk is offering its first Maya masterclass in Australia. The intermediate to advanced classes will cover a wide variety of production-tested techniques and workflows in Maya. Attendees will gain insight into industry expert solutions guaranteed to save you time and energy.

Films Headline News

At Warner Bros., There Be Dragons

Warner Bros. Pictures has snatched the rights to the yet-to-be-published childrens novel, HERE, THERE BE DRAGONS by James A. Owen, according to THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER. David Heyman and David Goyer will produce via their Heyday Films and Phantom Four companies respectively.

Home Headline News

Superman Returns Battles DVD Piracy in China

If you cant beat them, under price them is the approach Warner Home Ent. will take to combat piracy in China. CAV Warner Home Ent. announced it would release SUPERMAN RETURNS on DVD two months prior to its U.S. release on Nov. 28, 2006, reports VARIETY.

Films Headline News

Dimension Films Signs Animated Film Deal With Seth Green

Right on the heels of Dimension Films announement it had acquired the rights to produce O.C.T. - OCCULT CRIMES TASKFORCE, the production company has signed a two-picture deal with Seth Green and Matthew Senreichs Stoopid Monkey Prods. The deal includes a stop-motion, animated holiday feature, NAUGHTY OR NICE, and a live-action untitled comedy.

The ROBOT CHICKEN, duo who created, exec produce, write and direct Cartoon Networks Adult Swim stop-motion animated show will produce both projects in their Stoopid Monkey Prods.' first foray into film.

Canada Headline News

McLaren Works On Tour in Support of New DVD Set

By Rick DeMott | Thursday, September 28, 2006 at 12:00am

As part of its year-long celebration of 65 years of producing award-winning animation films, the National Film Board of Canada is releasing the box set of the complete works of Norman McLaren, the founder of its famed NFB animation studio and a world-renowned animator in his own right. In conjunction with the DVD release, there will also be retrospectives of McLarens films in major U.S., Canadian and European cities.

Headline News

Craven to Direct Next Feature Via New Midnight Ent.

By Rick DeMott | Thursday, September 28, 2006 at 12:00am

Horror master Wes Craven (SCREAM, NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET) will make his next film as director for Rogue Pictures via his newly formed production company, Midnight Ent., which has made a two-year first-look production deal with Rogue.

Craven is writing the screenplay for the feature, a psychological thriller set in a small town and based on his own original concept. He will also produce the film.

Craven's longtime producer Marianne Maddalena is running Midnight, which will produce modestly budgeted genre films that other filmmakers will direct.

Film Headline News

Lola Marymount Gives Lifetime Achievement Award To Lasseter

By Rick DeMott | Thursday, September 28, 2006 at 12:00am

John Lasseter has been chosen to receive the 2006 Infinite Power of Story Lifetime Achievement Award at LMUs School of Film and Televisions Film Outside the Frame Festival, Oct. 9.

The honor being given to Lasseter, cco of Pixar and Disney Animation Studios and principal creative advisor, Walt Disney Imagineering, is part of the celebration for Film Outside the Frame Festival, which will showcase and award selected outstanding student work from the past year at SFTV.

Channel Headline News

Neptuno Films & SDAE Launch New IPTV Kids Channel In Spain

By Rick DeMott | Thursday, September 28, 2006 at 12:00am

Barcelona-based entertainment production and distribution company Neptuno Films and the Spanish-based Portal Latino, a subsidiary of Sociedad Digital de Autores y Editores SDAE, have joined forces to greenlight a new IPTV kids channel in Spain named El Gato Feliz (Happy Cat).

The channel will be launched Sept. 28, 2006, and will reach subscribers of Orange for their telephony, Iternet and IPTV new television services in Spain.

Entertainment Headline News

Peter Jackson Plays With Microsoft on New Halo Games

By Rick DeMott | Thursday, September 28, 2006 at 12:00am

In Barcelona, Spain, Microsoft Corp. thrilled fans with the announcement that Microsoft Game Studios is partnering with Academy Award-winning writer, director and producer Peter Jackson and Academy Award-winning screenwriter Fran Walsh to create two new interactive entertainment series exclusively for Xbox 360 and Xbox Live. The first series will be a collaborative effort with Bungie Studios to co-create the next great chapter in the HALO universe.

Series Headline News

R.L. Stine’s Rotten School Ripe for Fox

By Rick DeMott | Thursday, September 28, 2006 at 12:00am

Twentieth Century Fox has obtained film rights to R.L. Stines children's book series THE ROTTEN SCHOOL, which has been published by HarperCollins Publishers and Parachute Publishing, according to VARIETY.

The humorous ROTTEN series is set in a boarding school where Bernie Bridges plots against his teachers and rival students.

The first book in the series was THE BIG BLUEBERRY BARF-OFF! The ninth title, PARTY POOPERS, is set for release in November.

Games Headline News

Vivendi Games Acquires Secret Lair Studios and Studio Ch'in

Vivendi Games announced today (Sept. 28, 2006) it has purchased two development studios, Secret Lair Studios, located in Issaquah, Washington, and Studio Ch'in in Shanghai, China. The Studio Ch'in purchase is subject to the approval the People's Republic of China under Chinese Law, and Vivendi Games is in the process of obtaining such required approval. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Pages