AWN Headline News

Paramount has announced that Maggie Gyllenhaal and Maria Bello have been cast as the wives of Port Authority officers rescued from the World Trade Center in the studio's untitled Oliver Stone project, reports VARIETY. Nicolas Cage and Michael Pena have already been cast in the respective roles of Sgt. John McLoughlin and Officer William J. Jimeno. The film is scheduled to start filming in New York this fall.

Lucasfilm Animation Ltd. announced that it has hired Christian (Chris) Kubsch, a production and animation exec with more than 20 years of experience, to helm its animation studio in Singapore. As gm of Lucasfilm Animation Co. Singapore B.V., Kubsch will pull together and oversee all elements of the digital animation studio, including recruiting key talent and running its day to day operations. Kubsch will report to Gail Currey, head of animation.

InterSense Inc., the market leader in body worn, inertial tracking technology, continues to support Animazoo, a world leader in motion capture technology, with InertiaCube3 sensors for use in the GypsyGyro-18 MoCap suit. Animazoos most recent delivery of the GypsyGyro-18 went to Piranha Bytes, for speeding the production of character animation in the upcoming game title GOTHIC III. Piranha Bytes is a German game developer who created one of Europes most popular role playing games with its GOTHIC series.

The be-your-own-superhero site Urbaniacs has launched the beta versions of two new games HENCHLING THROTTLE and TRIVIA ROYALE. In HENCHLING THROTTLE, players don the identity of either Freaky Sneaky Tiki, Tricky Kicky Chick, Afro-liscious Funk Daddy or Super Speedy Dude in a mission to rescue townfolk from the GoatFists shadowy henchlings that are prowling the city. TRIVIA ROYALE is an Urbaniacs trivia game that tests members knowledge of all things Urbanville.

NBC Universal is in talks to buy DreamWorks SKG, in what could be a deal worth $1 billion, according to the trades. Universal Studios already distributes DreamWorks' videos and DVDs via Universal Studios Home Video, and its films internationally through United Pictures International, the foreign distributor jointly owned by Universal and Paramount. Additionally, the two studios have co-financed films such as the 2000 Oscar-winner GLADIATOR and Steven Spielberg's upcoming MUNICH, which Universal will release in December.

3Dtotal is set to release DIGITAL ART MASTERS VOLUME I. The book is a collection of 3D and 2D artwork, which has been featured in the gallery of 3Dtotal.com. Sections of the book include scenes, characters, fantasy, sci-fi and cartoon section spread over 192 pages. Each piece has a breakdown and overview of how it was made written by the artist. These are not simple step by step tutorials but more the thought process behind the artwork. The book will sell for $59.

The Animated Performance Art Meets TechnologyBeverly Hill, California, USAJuly 29, 2005

If youre attending SIGGRAPH, drop by and visit AWN and VFXWorld at Booth #1069. As a special treat, AEON FLUX creator Peter Chung will be signing exclusive t-shirts, sporting a character from his new feature project. Hell be at the booth on Aug. 2 from 11:00 - 12:30 pm.

If you want to set up a sales meetings, contact Dan Sarto at dan@awn.com and for editorial meetings contact AWN editor-in-chief Sarah Baisley (sarah@awn.com) or VFXWorld editor Bill Desowitz (bill@awn.com).

DreamWorks Animation SKG and McDonald's Corp. announced a two-year worldwide marketing and promotional relationship. The first film associated with the tie-in will be SHREK 3, slated for release in 2007, and will include such signature promotions as McDonald's Happy Meals.

G4 Videogame TV is on the hunt for edgy, offbeat and hilarious animation shorts to include in an all-new series set to debut this August. The series gives talented and up-and-coming animators a place to present their work and will showcase the worlds funniest, strangest and most irreverent short animation, targeted to the 18-34 male. Top picks will be licensed for broadcast on G4.

New episodes of TRIPPING THE RIFT will begin July 27, 2005, as part of SCI FI Channels SCI FI Wednesday lineup. Airing at 10:00 pm, the season 2 premiere has the Jupiter 42 crew commandeering some valuable booty on a disabled space truck and sets a course for the all-gay planet Fabulous Heaven to unload their spoils. On Fabulous Heaven, much to the crew's surprise, heterosexual relations are punishable by death. When Chode and Six are caught in a compromising position, the planet's closeted heterosexual statesman, Governor McJersey, has the duo sentenced to a public execution.