Seamus O'Kane has left VTR to join The Mills transatlantic telecine team of Fergus McCall, Adam Scott, Paul Harrison, Jamie Wilkinson, Tom Poole and James Bamford.
OKane, who begins in April, has worked with award-winning directors Ivan Zacharias, Steve Reeves, Stuart Douglas, Chris Palmer, Vince Squibb and Tom Carty. Among his many recent credits are: Stella ENGLISH AIRMAN (Zacharias), HSBC EASY RIDER (Palmer) and Lynx KUNG FU ROMANTIC (Tom Carty).
Bionatics announced the launch of natFX 3 for Maya at GDC 2005 (booth #924). Designed to accommodate the most challenging next generation animation and videogame production requirements, this major release of natFX has been developed with a performance-driven mind-set to facilitate fast creation and animation of massive plant datasets.
Leading visual effects developer, The Foundry, announced the completion of the first OpenFX project: the indie feature THE PIANO TUNER OF EARTHQUAKES, due for release in November. An open API for visual effects software, OpenFX has been used on the film in conjunction with FilmLights Baselight grading and finishing system by German vfx facility, Optical Art.
Maxon Computer announced the immediate availability of a new plug-in that connects its renowned 3D painting program, BodyPaint 3D, to SOFTIMAGE|XSI. Now the unique 3D painting features of Maxons industry proven tool are available to all users of the latest generation of SOFTIMAGE|XSI. Character animators, game developers and motion picture artists in particular appreciate the versatility of BodyPaint 3D when it comes to texturing the most complex models without distortions.
Microsoft Corp. announced the first details of its next-generation Xbox video game system platform at GDC, highlighting how hardware, software and services are being fused to power enhanced game and entertainment experiences.
Microsoft corporate vp and chief XNA architect J Allard further outlined the companys vision for the future of entertainment, citing the emergence of an HD Era in video games that is fueled by consumer demand for experiences that are always connected, always personalized and always in high-def.
Discreet announced that its 3ds max software is aligned as a leading 3D animation solution to support the next generation Xbox platform. The Discreet division of Autodesk has been a close partner with Microsoft since the introduction of the first Xbox video game system from Microsoft, with the most 3ds max-created game titles for Xbox on the market above any other digital content creation (DCC) tool.
Columbia Pictures has hired Keanu Reeves to topline its long gestating THE 8TH VOYAGE OF SINBAD project, reports VARIETY. XXX director Rob Cohen will direct with Neal Moritz producing. Charlie Mitchell has been hired to rework the script from Cormac and Marianne Wibberly and Tedi Sarafian. The eighth-century tale will place Sinbad and his crew in China searching for the Lamp of Aladdin, while encountering a supernatural Chinese general, gorgeous empress and fantastical creatures. Director John Singleton was previously attached to this project.
The SOUTH PARK boys teacher gets in touch with his feminine side in the ninth season premiere of the series entitled, "Mr. Garrison's Fancy New Vagina," premiering March 9, 2005, at 10:00 pm. on Comedy Central.
Mr. Garrison gets what hes always wanted a sex change. As he enjoys his new womanly attributes, the rest of the townspeople gets in touch with their inner feelings too. Meanwhile, Kyle doesnt want to accept that Jews just arent good at basketball.
Disney-based Mandeville Films has announced that it will start production on a SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON remake in September at the Queenslands Warner Roadshow Studios, reports PRODUCTION WEEKLY. Greg Poiriers screenplay has set the story during the time period of the book -- the beginning of the 19th century. Based on a novel by Johann David Wyss, the story chronicles the adventures of the Robinson family after they are washed ashore on an uncharted tropical island following a stormy shipwreck. The original 1960s film version starred John Mills and Dorothy McGuire.
Carmen Electra (SUMMERLAND) has joined the cast of SCI FI Channel's animated series TRIPPING THE RIFT. The second 13-episode season of the risqué half-hour series from IDT Film Roman (THE SIMPSONS, KING OF THE HILL, X-MEN: EVOLUTION) is slated to debut in July. The series follows the adventures of Jupiter 42, a smuggling vessel led by a stumpy purple alien named Chode who, along with his colorful group of misfit shipmates, battles archenemies and new obstacles in space each week.
Broadway Video Enterprises and GoodTimes Ent. have finalized an exclusive deal with Distant Horizon, acquiring worldwide television, merchandising, licensing (all categories) and home video rights to THUNDERFORCE, one of the hottest Taiwanese youth properties. This mystical martial arts franchise, to be renamed WULIN WARRIORS: LEGEND OF THE SEVEN STARS for the international and domestic market, will debut on the Cartoon Network in the U.S. this fall.
Bryan Cranston, star of the FOX series MALCOLM IN THE MIDDLE, will emcee the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Foundations 26th Annual College Television Awards at 7:00 pm on March 13, 2005, at the Renaissance Hollywood Hotel. The winning entries will be showcased at the annual College Television Awards Festival, hosted by Martin Bruestle, producer, THE SOPRANOS, on Monday, March 14 at 7:00 pm at the Television Academys Leonard H. Goldenson Theatre, which is open to the public.
In a new Simon & Schuster book titled DISNEY WAR, Pulitzer-Prize winning author and journalist James B. Stewart provides an explosive and vividly detailed account of turmoil within the Walt Disney Co. and of the controversial two-decade tenure of ceo Michael Eisner ($29.95).
The Visual Effects Society (VES) will present the VFX Spring Speaker Series, with some of todays leading visual effects artists sharing their craft. Topics will be free flowing and interactive, with a focus on problem solving.
Luxology Llc. announced that Spinoff Studios and Naked Sky Ent. used modo as the core modeling tool for ROBOHORDES, a 3D robot combat demo created to demonstrate the processing power of Intels dual-core processor during the 2005 Game Developers Conference (GDC, booth #726).
Vance Gerry, a veteran Disney animation storyman, layout artist and visual development artist since 1955, passed away on March 5, 2005, at Huntington Memorial Hospital in Pasadena, California, of complications from cancer. He was 75 years old.
While the U.S. isnt seeing much hockey action these days, those Canadians stay animated about the sport as hockey star Trevor Linden is featured in Studio Bs animated series, BEING IAN, airing at 6:30 pm on March 15, 2005, in the episode 'Hockey Night In Burnaby, on YTV.
V FOR VENDETTA, the next futuristic thriller from the Wachowski Brothers and Joel Silver (THE MATRIX trilogy), began shooting today in Berlin, Germany, marking the directorial debut of James McTeigue, who was first assistant director on THE MATRIX movies and STAR WARS: EPISODE II ATTACK OF THE CLONES. Dan Glass (BATMAN BEGINS) will serve as visual effects supervisor and London-based Cinesite will provide CGI and model work.
NVIDIA Corp. announced the immediate availability of the NVIDIA Developer Toolkit at GDC in San Francisco, a comprehensive suite of cutting-edge content creation, code integration, performance analysis and educational resources for game developers. Designed to make it easier for game developers to take advantage of the latest advancements in graphics hardware technologies, the NVIDIA Developer Toolkit can be downloaded for free at http://developer.nvidia.com.
Katja Reitemeyer, formerly of Avid and NXN Software, has joined Pipelinefx as vp of worldwide sales. Reitemeyer was one of the founders of NXN Software, makers of asset management software Alienbrain, which was acquired by Avid last year for $44 million. Reitemeyer will be based in Los Angeles, where a large part of the market for the companys flagship product qube! Remote Control exists. She will coordinate the companys sales thrust into the interactive entertainment and 3D animation markets worldwide.
One of the hottest online threads, Gene Kelly break dancing in his iconic SINGIN IN THE RAIN routine over the new Volkswagen Golf GTI, was given the digital treatment by Moving Picture Co. The BMP DDB :60 spot, directed by NE-O at Stink, originally aired in the U.K. in late January.
To open Mötley Crües Red White & Crüe Tour 2005 Better Live than Dead, fans will be treated to a clay-animated short featuring members of the band saving the world from imminent destruction. The short is taken from Dream Ent.s upcoming feature film DISASTER! THE MOVIE. Additionally, highlights of Dreams full-length theatrical feature, in which the band appears in a cameo role, will be shown during intermission at each concert. The film is scheduled for worldwide release later this year, with several distributors in the U.S.
Walk of Game, the first physical landmark honoring the icons and pioneers of the videogame industry, today announced its list of 2004 inductees: Shigeru Miyamoto (creator of MARIO BROTHERS and DONKEY KONG) and Nolan Bushnell (creator of PONG and founder of Atari) were selected in the Lifetime Achievement category, and HALO, Link (THE LEGEND OF ZELDA), Mario and Sonic The Hedgehog received top votes for favorite Game/Character.
The Game Developers Association of Australia (GDAA), the governing body for the Australian Videogame Industry, announced that Australian videogame companies are planning ahead and looking for talent at this years GDC to help fuel the booming games industry Downunder in years to come. During GDC 2005 in San Francisco, California (March 7-11, 2005), interested parties wishing to learn more are asked to stop by and visit the BigWorld Booth # 827 or Auran Booth # CP160 and talk with the GDAA executives.
BioWare Corp. announced its plans to continue the expansion of its development teams for its future videogame projects. The Edmonton-based company is actively recruiting for a variety of positions across numerous disciplines and will be taking those recruitment efforts across North America in the upcoming months.
