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Los Angeles-based film production and management company Catch 23 Entertainment has acquired the worldwide film rights to JUST A PILGRIM, the comic book created by Garth Ennis, creator of PREACHER and writer of PUNISHER. Marc Danon, Catch 23 vice president of production and acquisitions, brought JUST A PILGRIM to Catch 23. Danon, who previously handled the development of the Marvel comic book franchise at Artisan Entertainment, will oversee the project. Catch 23 will immediately begin to package and develop the property.

To raise young peoples awareness to the dangers of smoking, students at Antonio Arroio High School in Lisbon, Portugal participated in an animation workshop conducted by AnimAction Inc., where they produced their own media campaign warning their community about secondhand smoke. AnimActions Tobacco Use Prevention Education Program has run successfully in the greater Los Angeles area for 12 years and for the first time the program was presented to high school students in Portugal.

Canadian independent entertainment company CinéGroupe is beginning production on two new animated TV series, THE THREE PIGS and EDWARD, bringing its current production slate to nine new and five returning animated and live-action entertainment productions set for airing on U.S., Canadian and international television networks during the 2001-2002 television season.

Ubi Soft Entertainment's online division has launched ubi.com, a new gaming portal that allows gamers to play games and participate in online communities. ubi.com is now available in North America and France and will eventually spread to other countries. The company also has plans to extend ubi.com to console gamers later in the year. Since online communities are an important part of the gaming culture, ubi.com has licensed state-of-the-art forum technology to make it easy for players to post their comments and ideas online and hopes to give fans the ultimate community experience.

The 2nd Annual India and Southeast Asian (InSea) Animation Competition concluded with the announcement of this years winners - with top honors going to DreamWorks CGI supervisor Umesh Shukla. The competition, which took place as part of the 3rd Annual Week with the Masters, honors films created by Indian and Southeast Asian filmmakers. STILL I RISE, by Umesh Shukla, is the first film to ever be awarded both the Grand Prize and 1st Prize in the Category of Best Independent Production.

The October Acrobat issue of Animation World Magazine is now on-line! In this issue, we investigate Innovative Animation Techniques. Karl Cohen goes behind the scenes at Pixar to look at the making of their latest blockbuster Monsters, Inc. Pierre Hérbert proves that independent animation isn't being left in technology's wake. Sweden's Studio FilmTecknarna offers innovative design coupled with a love of music and a smart subversive wit. Joan Kim interviews Nina Paley, Michèle Cournoyer, Stephen X. Arthur and others about their innovative filmmaking techniques.

Cartoombria 2001 will take place on December 12 and 13, 2001 at the Teatro del Pavone in Perugia, Italy. Cartoombria showcases animation from around the world, with a focus on digital and multimedia animation. The festival also holds special events highlighting international schools and training programs on computer animation, new media and Web animation. For more information, emailinfo@cartoombria.com or info@umbriaspettacolo.it.

This week's updates to the Calendar of Events include:* Animation Workout, Guest Director Herb Tannen: Tuesday, November 13, 2001, Burbank, California USA.* Webproducteurs World Tour 2001: Wednesday, November 28, 2001, Los Angeles, California USA.* Animazing Holiday Event: Thursday, December 13, 2001 - Tuesday, January 15, 2002, New York, New York USA.* KidScreen Summit: Monday, February 25 - Wednesday, February 27, 2002, Los Angeles, California USA.