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Licensing Headline News

JAKKS Pacific Warms Up To Ice Age

JAKKS Pacific Inc. has signed a master toy licensing agreement with Twentieth Century Fox Licensing and Merchandising for the studio's 2002 animated epic ICE AGE. Capitalizing on the film's three main characters -- an acerbic woolly mammoth named Manfred (voiced by Ray Romano), an un-socialized giant sloth named Sid (voiced by John Leguizamo), and a scheming saber-toothed tiger named Diego (voiced by Denis Leary) -- JAKKS Pacific's Flying Colors division will create a full line of toys and merchandise for the digitally animated feature.

Headline News

Spazzco Produces Eden’s Crush Animated Video

San Francisco-based Spazzco Animation has produced an animated music video for Love This Way, the latest single from the pop group Edens Crush. The video, rendered in a futuristic anime style, depicts the group as interplanetary travelers who touch down on an angry planet. Upon discovering unhappy alien residents, the five women of Eden's Crush get to work spreading their melodic, positive message and transforming the barren landscape into a lush paradise. The video can now be viewed exclusively at cartoonnetwork.com as part of the site's Web Premiere Toons program.

Film Headline News

$3.99 Will Buy You Paper Clips

Creative Forces, an Internet-based motion picture production company, has just released PAPER CLIPS, its first computer-animated short. The film profiles the adventures of a brave little paper clip that soon discovers the importance of teamwork and sticking together in the real world. PAPER CLIPS is now available to download for $3.99 from www.creativeforces.com. The price includes 24 hours of access for repeated viewings. A 3-minute trailer of the making of the film is available on the site for free.

Design Headline News

Click 3x Creates Graphical World For AT&T

Click 3x, New York has designed and produced two new graphics only television spots for AT&T and Young & Rubicam. One spot, cut to the Roy Orbison classic You Got It, features lines of type traveling in graceful arcs across the frame. As the camera pulls back it becomes apparent that the viewer's perspective is from the inside of a transparent sphere and that the type is moving along its surface. Periodically, lines come into focus and announce AT&T long distance options. Ultimately the camera pulls out of the sphere to reveal it as part of the AT&T logo.

Headline News

Sunbow And Rumpus To Produce Kappa Mikey Series

Creative companies Sunbow Entertainment and Rumpus have signed a co-production deal for KAPPA MIKEY, a fish-out-of-water story with an unusual twist. Targeted at 8 13 year old kids, the series mixes comedy and action in a satire of anime-style animation and American cluelessness about foreign culture. The show revolves around Mikey, an American superhero, who comes to Japan to fight evil with a team of Japanese anime stars. Mikey is not the most sensitive American ever to work overseas.

Headline News

Iwerks Entertainment And SimEx Announce Merger Agreement

Iwerks Entertainment Inc. and SimEx Inc. announced that both companies have signed an agreement and plan of merger. The agreement provides that SimEx will acquire Iwerks in exchange for cash consideration of approximately US $0.63 per share of Iwerks common stock. The transaction is subject to shareholder approval and other customary closing conditions. If the two companies combine, it is expected that Iwerks will retain its brand name and identity and will continue operations in Burbank, California under the existing Iwerks management team.

Digital Headline News

Digital Ink Illustration Opens In Pasadena

Industry professionals Maurice Kimball and Briar Lee Mitchell have co-founded Pasadena, California-based Digital Ink Illustration (Dii), a digital background paintings company. Services will include conceptual design and layout for animation or live-action, digital color comps/color keys and fully rendered digital files for animation and live-action backgrounds, overlays, underlays, flattened or layered files. Cedric Tomacruz has been named art director for the new firm.

Visual Headline News

Jeepers Creeps To Number One

The new horror film JEEPERS CREEPERS, with primary visual effects by E=MC2 and Max Ink Café LLC, debuted at number one earning $15.8M over the four-day Labor Day weekend. RUSH HOUR 2, with primary visual effects by Cinesite, held the number two spot for the fourth consecutive week with a four-day take of $11.8M bringing its total gross to $198.9M. Holding steady in fifth place is the road comedy RAT RACE, with animated opening titles by Wild Brain, which has grossed $37.8M after 17 days.

Headline News

First EM.TV Shareholder Suit Dismissed

A Munich court has dismissed one of the first lawsuits seeking damages from German mega-firm EM.TV. The case, filed by private shareholders, demanded compensation for losses after EM.TV dramatically revised its projected figures in December, revealing debts of DM2.6 billion (US$1.21 billion). Upon the news EM.TV's shares dropped over 90%. The suit claimed that EM.TV withheld relevant financial information from shareholders and did not provide a fair warning about the state of the firm.

Japan Headline News

Microsoft Delays Xbox's Japanese Debut

Microsoft has announced that it will delay the launch of its next-generation console Xbox in Japan until 2002. Xbox will still release 800,000 units in North America on November 8. The Japan launch will now coincide with the launch in Europe. Japan represents one third of the US$20 billion videogame market. Insiders say the delay is due to difficulties in developing games for the Japanese market, which favors simulation and role-playing games, as well as problems ensuring that all tech components work together correctly. Xbox will sell for US$299 in North America.

Kids Headline News

Vivendi Universal Interactive Adds New VP Of Kids Sales

Vivendi Universal Interactive Publishing North America has named Anita Frazier as the new vice president of kids sales. Frazier will oversee the development of sales strategies for the company's kids software titles for the PC platform. In her new post, Frazier will head retail sales and channel marketing for the kids software category, working closely with Knowledge Adventure, Syracuse Learning and affiliate label partners such as Scholastic Inc.

Work Headline News

EyeballNYC Hires Designer Roy Oppenheim

Roy Oppenheim has been hired as a designer at broadcast and commercial design firm EyeballNYC. The designer came to New York in 2000 after having worked at several Israeli companies as a designer and design director. His U.S. freelance assignments included projects for Manhattan Transfer and FDG. Oppenheim brings to the company expertise in Photoshop, Freehand, Painter Lightwave, AfterEffects and Premier. "EyeballNYC caught my interest because I like the feeling of exploration and sharing. It seems like a relaxed working environment while still being innovative," said Oppenheim.

Anime Headline News

Matrix Anime Set For Video Release

In an attempt to keep the MATRIX franchise hot, Warner Bros. has green-lit anime adventures based on the original flick. The film's directors Andy and Larry Wachowski, who were originally inspired by anime to make the MATRIX, are currently looking for anime directors to create episodes for the video. MATRIX ANIME is being planned for a late 2002 or early 2003 release. The live-action sequel, MATRIX RELOADED, is scheduled to hit theaters in May 2003.

Disney Headline News

Disney Launches Chinese Website

Walt Disney Internet Group and SeaRainbow Holding Corporation have launched Disney.com.cn, The Walt Disney Company's official site in China. The Website includes content from Walt Disney's theme parks, movies and television units. Other content channels include Zeether, an area geared toward young teenagers, and Fun for Families, which offers activities designed for the entire family. In addition, Disney.com.cn offers online games and activities through an online subscription service called Disney's Blast.

Animations Headline News

Morphink Releases New Web Authoring Tool

MorphInk has announced their commercial release of MorphInk 2.0, a Web-animation authoring tool. MorphInk 2.0 enables the creation and publishing of high-resolution animations playing at high frame rates (up to 30 frames per second) without increase in file size. In addition to its own ANC animation format, MorphInk 2.0 also supports other Web formats. MorphInk animations can be converted to Flash or Animated GIF. The MorphInk 2.0 package includes a stand-alone player, a Java player and ActiveX/Plug-In Web players.

Headline News

Electric Image Announces Universe 4.0

Electric Image has announced a new version of Universe 3D animation system. The software is expected to begin shipping this fall for Windows NT/2000, Macintosh/OS X and Sun Solaris platforms. The update price for the new version has not yet been announced. New features include a new constraint system, paint-on weight mapping, an advanced skinning system, previews for motion blurs and depth-of-field rendering, global illuminator lighting options and optimized OpenGL support in its Modeler.

Digital Events

RESFEST Digital Film Festival

By Guest (not verified) | Saturday, September 1, 2001 at 11:00am
Begins: September 1, 2001

The RESFEST Digital Film Festival promotes innovative films from independent filmmakers, empowered by the use of digital production tools. The event contains feature films, shorts, music videos, panel discussions and hands-on demos of digital filmmaking tools. The submission fee for early entries is US$15 and $20 for late entries. Locations are San Francisco and Los Angeles, California; Chicago, Illinois; Seattle, Washington; New York, New York, U.S.A.; Montreal, Canada; Tokyo and Osaka, Japan; Seoul, South Korea; and London, England throughout Fall of 2001.

Films Events

The Don And Bill Show: Slightly Bent

By Guest (not verified) | Friday, August 31, 2001 at 11:00am
Begins: August 31, 2001

The Don And Bill Show: Slightly Bent is a unique showcase that will give moviegoers the rare opportunity to see the animated films of Don Hertzfeldt and Bill Plympton on the big screen. Included in the screening are "Rejected," Don Hertzfeldt's Academy Award nominated film and Bill Plympton's "Eat," winner of the Prix Canal Plus at Cannes Film Festival.

Ten films in all: Five from Don; Five from Bill.

Visit Bill Plympton's Website on AWN.

Animation Headline News

Camp Chaos Webtoons Coming To DVD

In response to the success of the DVD short-film collection "Best of the Web," Multimedia 2000 (M-2K) has announced the release of a follow-up DVD, "Best of the Web, Volume 2." The new installment will highlight the work of CampChaos.com. The 75-minute DVD will feature episodes of NAPSTER BAD and SAFARI KINGDOM as well as the U.S. election parody FLORI-DUH. "Most of these cartoon shorts were originally developed specifically for the Web, using Macromedia's animation software, Flash," said CampChaos' Bob Cesca.

Film Headline News

The Ub Iwerks Story To Air On TV

THE HAND BEHIND THE MOUSE: THE UB IWERKS STORY, a documentary on the life of the animation legend, is scheduled for cable TV broadcast and for sale on home video. Bravo will air a 46-minute version of the film on September 14. Independent Film Channel (IFC) will air the full 90-minute version four times: November 15 at 12:15 pm and 6:15 pm and November 27 at 11:45 am and 6:15 pm. Buena Vista Home Video will release will film on VHS on September 11. The video will contain 2 bonus Mickey Mouse cartoons, PLANE CRAZY and STEAMBOAT WILLIE.

Series Headline News

Australian Cartoon Legend Russell Passes

Jim Russell, artist for Australia's THE POTTS comic strip, passed away on August 15, 2001. He was 92 years old. Russell held the world record for the longest running comic strip done by one artist unaided. For 62 years, he drew THE POTTS, which was created in 1920 by Stan Cross and was handed over to Russell in 1939. In the 1950s, Russell decided to liven up the series with the creation of Uncle Dick, who became the star of the series and is widely regarded as Russell's alter ego. He was a member of the National Cartoonists' Society in the U.S.

Disney Headline News

Disney Will Not Release Miyazaki's New Film Spirited Away

Excited about seeing Hayao Miyazaki's new film SPIRITED AWAY? Don't hold your breath. Disney has no plans of releasing the film in the U.S. In an Inside.com article, David Jessen, vice president of acquisitions at Disney's Buena Vista, said he has seen the film and that he likes it, but that other Disney executives have not. Disney currently has no official plans to release any more of Miyazaki's films in America, he said, adding "we are strategizing now worldwide." The reason for the move is the disappointing results of PRINCESS MONONOKE.

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