All AWN Content

Cartoon Network has announced two original series premieres in 2002: WHATEVER HAPPENED TO ROBOT JONES? and CODENAME: KIDS NEXT DOOR. Scheduled to debut in July 2002, WHATEVER HAPPENED TO ROBOT JONES? is set in the retro-1980s future where robots have become commonplace. Robot Jones is a special robot, who is programmed with basic emotions that he doesnt quite have a handle on. His socially awkward interactions with his family, friends and enemies, form the basis of the series.

Electric Rain, Inc. has released a special edition of their Swift 3D plug-in line, which includes Swift 3D MAX and Swift 3D LW. This special edition offers an additional rendering format allowing users of Discreet 3ds max and NewTek LightWave 3D to export their scenes to a format that imports natively into USAnimation.

In addition to the more than 100 new episodes of original programs that are currently in production for 2002-2003, including 26 episodes each of COURAGE THE COWARDLY DOG and ED, EDD N EDDY, JUSTICE LEAGUE (26 half-hours), POWERPUFF GIRLS (20 half-hours), SAMURAI JACK (26 half-hours) and GRIM & EVIL (13 new episodes), Cartoon Network will debut two new series in 2002 and eight new series pilots. The network will also premiere HAMTARO, a popular Japanese series the network recently acquired from ShoPro USA.

The 29th Annual Daytime Emmy Award nominees were announced on March 13, 2002 and Scholastic Productions CLIFFORD THE BIG RED DOG walked away with five nominations, topping all other animated shows. Close behind was another PBS series, ARTHUR, which tied with The WBs JACKIE CHAN ADVENTURES at three nominations each. Nicks DORA THE EXPLORER nabbed two noms including one for Outstanding Children's Animated Program.

London-based stop-motion animation production company Loose Moose was responsible for one of the coolest ads that debuted during the Super Bowl - the BRISK iced tea spot featuring a puppet uprising. The companys latest commercial in the six year Pepsi-Lipton BRISK campaign for J. Walter Thompson, New York is a 60-second spot called "DeVito," starring a puppet Danny DeVito and featuring the actor as his own voice talent. Co-stars were the regular cast of BRISK characters including Burgess Meredith, Phil Morris (the "Jackie Chiles" character from SEINFELD) and James Brown.

Microsoft Corp. will provide a one-day tutorial on March 19, 2002 called "Xbox Unplugged," at the 16th annual Game Developers Conference (GDC), March 19 - 23, in San Jose, California. This sponsored tutorial is designed for professionals in the business of creating games, but new to the Xbox. The tutorial teaches developers, artists, sound designers and producers the nuts and bolts of Xbox, and explains how to best harness the capabilities of the video game system.

First Alias|Wavefront offers their Maya graphics software for free and now, not to be outdone, Softimage has announced the availability of the SOFTIMAGE|XSI Experience. This free two-CD pack includes the full feature set of the SOFTIMAGE|XSI v.2.0 Advanced system, the complete searchable SOFTIMAGE|XSI v.2.0 Online Documentation Library and a comprehensive video-based training module. The SOFTIMAGE|XSI Experience CD gives unlimited, free access to the company's nonlinear animation system and tools and is available to order from www.softimage.com/experience.

San Diego Asian Film Festival 2002, San Diego, California USA.

Thursday, October 03 - Sunday, October 06, 2002.

Entry Deadline: Friday, June 07, 2002.