Events: Features

To celebrate the forthcoming release of HARRY POTTER AND THE HALF BLOOD PRINCE, the sixth installment in the Harry Potter series, Warner Bros. Pictures have created a magical moving tour which will visit various UK destinations between the 13th and 22nd June 2009 (full list of destinations below).

The Los Angeles Chapter of ACM SIGGRAPH will host a one night only event, sponsored by Side Effects software on the making of NIGHT AT THE MUSEUM: BATTLE OF THE SMITHSONIAN. Francisco Rodriguez, FX Supervisor at Rhythm & Hues will provide an overview of the visual effects techniques employed across the production pipeline integrating both propriety tools and Houdini. There will be a special emphasis showcasing the creation of the climatic "Netherworld Sequence."

The Aero Theatre will screen animated feature THE MISSING LINX as part of their "Recent Spanish Cinema XV" event in Santa Monica.

Tickets are available to buy at the box office or online at www.fandango.com.

Saturday, June 6 at 4 p.m.The Aero Theatre1328 Montana AvenueSanta Monica California 90403

Now in its fourth year, FSC once again moves into a larger venue as the three day festival continues to grow. This year's event will take place June 5-7, 2009 at the Doubletree Miami Mart Airport Hotel and Convention Center in Miami, Florida. The three day festival will take place in the convention center's west hall and the convention centers entire second floor, making this the largest genre event to ever hit South Florida.

Creating today's entertainment media demands community, collaboration and teamwork. Community is vital to artists struggling in the current economic landscape. The Industry Giants 2009: Building a Community, Visual Effects, Animation and Game Forum features 2D artist/animator Michel Gagne, veteran of Warner Bros., Disney and Pixar, Jay Hawkins, Epic Games' Senior Concept Artist for Gears of War and many other creative professionals.

The first films that will screen in this year's festival have been revealed, presenting a diverse selection of titles that will screen in Australia for the first time.

Amongst those in the official competition are animated features CORALINE, BRENDAN AND THE SECRET OF KELLS and SUNSHINE BARRY AND THE DISCO WORMS.

Information: www.sydneyfilmfestival.org.

You've skated at the Great Park ice rink, danced the night away under the glow of the Great Park Balloon, now grab your blanket and beach chair and come to the Great Park Movie on the Lawn on Saturday, May 30 at 8 p.m. See the original 2007 box office hit TRANSFORMERS (PG-13), with exciting characters, staggering effects and exhilarating action, before the sequel hits theaters this summer. Admission and parking are free.

Our next meeting is a special one. Animators and WIA members, Nina Frenkel and Ru Kuwahata, will be giving a talk on Thursday, May 28th, looking at the works of contemporary women animators. They will be showing work by today's women animators who are creating work and putting it out there in both the commercial and festival realms, discussing their mediums, processes, content and influences.

Do you like movies with creepy creature special effects? Meet Hollywood puppetry and special effects master Greg Aronowitz (THE LOST WORLD: JURASSIC PARK; LABOU) and go behind the scenes of Hollywood puppetry and animatronics.

Using examples from his "Best of Fest" Award-winning film LABOU, director Greg Aronowitz and producer Sheri Bryant share the magic of creature creation by bringing a puppet character to life. This hands-on workshop will give 30 lucky kids the chance to see puppetry and animatronics in action, then ask questions and create their own Labou puppets!

As a child, would you have guessed that one of your favorite toys would influence the future of 3D imaging technology? Cascade ACM SIGGRAPH, Oregon and Southwest Washington's local SIGGRAPH chapter, today announced the "From Toys to Technology - Stereoscopic Display" event, scheduled to take place Monday, May 18, 2009 at 6:30 p.m. at the Portland Community College (PCC) Cascade Campus. Highlighting Oregon-engineered stereoscopic display systems, the evening will discuss stereoscopic terms and concepts, and will offer an inside look at Oregon's very own youth phenomenon, the View-Master.

Japanese comics and animation have had a strong influence on modern art and popular culture throughout Asia, Europe and the United States. Colorful and energetic, anime enjoys worldwide popularity through numerous television series and feature films such as AKIRA (1988), GHOST IN THE SHELL (1995), PERFECT BLUE (1998) and METROPOLIS (2001).

Focusing this year mostly on the best of British comics around, the Bristol International Comic Expo returns at the Ramada Plaza Hotel on May 9-10, 2009, with a special one day extra event -- Small Press Expo 2009 at the nearby Mercure Holland House Hotel.

Panels will run throughout both days, expo exclusives available at various times (signed ashcan of the new DC Vertigo comic from Mike Carey and Peter Gross available only at the Vertigo Panel, for example), and a host of signings, sketchings and comics to check out.