Dosch Design Drums Up More Texture CDs
Germany-based Dosch Design has announced the release of several new texture collections, further expanding its highly successful line of 3D-animation stock CD-Roms. The most significant addition to the Dosch family of products is a three-bundle set of texture CD-Roms called Dosch Textures Complete. Each of the three bundles is targeted at a specific area of 3D. The first collection, "Character Design," contains animal and creature eyes, human eyes and skin textures. The "Architecture and Design" bundle contains construction materials, industrial-design and reflection-maps.
Toon Boom Announced USAnimation SP#2
At Digital Media World in London, Toon Boom Technologies will release USAnimation Version 5's second service pack. In addition to bug fixes and general improvements, this service pack brings with it a number of new features. They include a New Line Texturing, which allows for different styles of line animation (like crayon, chalk, etc.) and in Sceneplanning, one can display all the keyboard shortcuts in an easy-to-use help menu. In addition, the pack offers a horizontal flipping of images, which means that one can now flip images horizontally when scanning.
Renegade Animation Launches Animation Service For Web Ads
Burbank, California-based Renegade Animation, which specializes in producing cel-animated television commercials, has launched a new service to provide cel-style animation for advertising on the Internet. As the service's first job, FMT Advertising, New York, has contracted Renegade to create an animated Internet cartoon series for its client BulkRegister.com. The series, consisting of five 90-second episodes, parodies "dot com" culture, while promoting BulkRegister.com's ability to register large quantities of domain names.
Das Werk To Acquire London-based Glassworks
Das Werk, a leading German provider of digital processing services, announced that it has signed a Letter of Intent to acquire a majority stake in Glassworks, a London digital effects studio which combines 3D computer-generated imaging with high-end compositing and special effects. In purchasing a share of Glassworks, Das Werk will further expand its international portfolio of post-production facilities and gain a hold in the high-profile London advertising and music video market.
The London Effects & Animation Festival Opens Next Week!
November 14-16, 2000 the 7th annual London Effects & Animation Festival (LEAF) will once again showcase some of the best achievements of the past year in computer-generated animation and special effects...
Annecy Fest President Passes
Pierre Jacquier, who served as president of the Annecy Festival from 1977 to 1984, has passed away after a long illness. Jacquier was instrumental in the festival's growth and helped push the festival toward highlighting cutting-edge work in animation. Along with Nicole Salomon, Jacquier also helped establish the festival's market. In addition to his festival duties, he was a board member of the Annecy Town Council. AWN's Annick Teninge, former assistant director of Annecy, said, "I always admired his long-term vision, his dedication to the festival and his immense cultural appreciation.
Bill Plympton Around The World
Bill Plympton has updated his appearances page. In the upcoming months, his films will be appearing in various festivals and other events, including the Regensburg Short Film Week in Germany, November 17-25, 2000; Cinanima festival in Portugal, November 6-12, 2000; Puchon International Student Animation Festival, Korea, December 16-24, 2000; and the Animation Cinema Festival in Valencia, Spain, January 16-28, 2001.
New Jobs: 3D Animators, 3D Modelers, Flash Animators, And More...
Aaronson Ltd. is seeking an EDITORIAL CARTOONIST for mid distribution start-up newspaper. . . Aileron, Inc. is looking for a CONTENT WRITER for a new Internet site focusing on cutting-edge cartooning technology. . . Sioux Falls, South Dakota's Animation Factory, a leading destination for animated clipart and media for Internet and multimedia presentations, is looking for 3D MODELERS/ANIMATORS. . . Aristocrat, a gaming software industry leader, is looking for a GAME DESIGNER, GRAPHIC ARTIST, SOUND ARTIST and VIDEO GRAPHIC ARTIST at their newest location in Tucson, Arizona. . .
New Animation Lesson At The Toon Institute: Timing
In this new lesson, Larry talks about timing, the essence of everything we do in animation...
Holland Festival Unveils More Animated Delights
The Holland festival will be held in Utrecht, November 15-19, 2000. Besides the official competition for Independent Short, Applied Animation and Student Films in Belgium & The Netherlands, this year the festival will offer a variety of retrospectives and special programs.
Film Roman Promotes Clifton
Film Roman has promoted director of television development Sidney Clifton to vice president in charge of TV. In her new role, Clifton will oversee all television projects from development to sales as well as the acquisition of literary properties for live-action and animated productions. Clifton joined Film Roman as development coordinator and moved up to manager of television development before assuming the role of director of television development. Before Film Roman, she was a journalist for Exodus and Essence magazines and an executive assistant as Fox Sports Network.
Cartoon Network Italy Appoints Three New Staff
Turner Broadcasting System (TBS) has appointed three new staff members for its Rome Cartoon Network Italy office. Jaime Ondarza has been named marketing manager and will oversee the establishment of the Cartoon Network brand in Italy. Previous, Ondarza worked for international advertising agency Young & Rubicam. Andrea Castellari joins as sales director and will be in charge of the development of all commercial activities relating to Cartoon Network's channel and Website as well as work to strengthen the co-operation with Warner Bros. Consumer Products.
J.J. Sedelmaier Goes Godzilla With Three-Series Promo
J.J. Sedelmaier Productions has created a Godzilla-themed promo for ABC's TV series SPIN CITY, THE DREW CAREY SHOW and WHO WANTS TO BE A MILLIONARE? "It all started last May with a call from Michael Benson, senior vice president (advertising and promotion) and Alan Cohen, executive vice president (marketing, advertising and promotion) for ABC-TV (LA), on the referral of Fred Seibert (former president of Hanna-Barbara)," said animation director J.J. Sedelmaier. "They wanted a cool animation spot for one of these shows to break through the clutter and attract attention.
Natterjack Spots Cartoon Network's Scare-A-Thon Promos
Vancouver-based Natterjack recently completed 19-minutes of animation for Cartoon Network's "Scare-A-Thon Sweepstakes" Halloween promotion, featuring characters from SCOOBY-DOO and COURAGE THE COWARDLY DOG. The overall project involved the design and animation of 16 1-minute bumpers and 3 1-minute ads. The promos have the cast of both shows telling ghost stories, which frighten Scooby and Courage. Viewers, after witnessing the two dog's reactions to the various scary tales, are encouraged to call in and vote for the 'scardiest' dog.
Nothing Real Shakes Up Linux
Nothing Real announced recently that their popular compositing tool Shake is now available on the Linux operating system. Version 2.3 is the company's first release to support the Linux platform, making Shake available on Windows NT, IRIX and Linux operating systems. The new release, which was Beta-tested by Cinesite Europe on the Linux platform, includes several new features and improvements. New color correction tools allow artists to color match different elements of source material quickly and easily. In addition, the new tools allow for selective color replacement.
Lucas Learning Lands New Director Of Development
Lucas Learning Ltd., a developer of interactive entertainment and educational software, has named Craig Southard as their new director of development. Southard joins Lucas Learning from Mondo Media, an online content creator, where he served as executive producer. Previously, he spent 15 years as an applications developer for the New Media market.
DreamWorks' Prince Of Egypt Follow-Up Arrives On Video
DreamWorks' Home Video is set to release on VHS and DVD the follow-up to its film, THE PRINCE OF EGYPT, entitled -- JOSEPH: KING OF DREAMS. Hitting stores on November 7, 2000, the film chronicles the Biblical story of Joseph and his brothers. The epic adventure features the voice talents of Ben Affleck (SHAKESPEARE IN LOVE, ARMAGEDDON), Mark Hamill (STAR WARS), Steven Weber (AT FIRST SIGHT, TV's WINGS) and Judith Light (TV's WHO'S THE BOSS?). KING OF DREAMS also features five new songs from the singing talents of Jodi Benson, David Campbell and Grammy Award winner Maureen McGovern.
Chicago International Children's Film Fest Announces Winners
The 2000 Awards Ceremony and Closing Night Party of the 17th Annual Chicago International Children's Film Festival was held Sunday, October 22, 2000 at the Museum of Contemporary Art Mayer Education Center. The event was hosted by director/actor Harold Ramis (BEDAZZLED, GROUNDHOG DAY, GHOSTBUSTERS). The Chicago International Children's Film Festival is the largest competitive festival of films for children in North America. This year's Festival screened 210 films from over 40 countries, including 36 world premieres. Below is a list of the animation winners.
Animation Stock Ticker For Tuesday, November 7, 2000
AWN's stock ticker features the most prominent publicly traded companies in the world of animation. AWN, Inc. makes available certain financial information from third party information providers. AWN does not give advice in any such fields, and has not reviewed, and in no way endorses the validity of such data. This information is provided solely as a means to keep our readers informed of the market performance and trends of certain companies. AWN strongly suggests that one seek advice from a competent professional regarding any investment or financial issues.
Scary Thrills & Chills Claim International Box Office
SCARY MOVIE continues to do well internationally with other thrillers and chillers claiming victories around the globe. In France, SCARY debuted in first place with a gross of $5.36 million. Down to #6, THE CELL captured $568,287, increasing its French cume to $1.78 million. CROUCHING TIGER, HIDDEN DRAGON jumped in at #7, grossing $560,303 thus elevating its French cume to $6.3 million. THE ROAD TO EL DORADO made its French premiere in eighth with a gross of $473,842. In Mexico, SCRAY MOVIE also claimed the top spot with a gross of $1.4 million, advancing its cume to $3.72 million.
TV Loonland Increased Earnings Estimates By Four Times
On Monday, November 6, 2000, German children's TV producer and rights buyer TV Loonland announced that it expects annual sales to top DM127 million (US$55.9 million) for 2000. This report is almost four times its original estimate of DM32.7 million ($14.4 million) when the German company went public in March. It's pretax profit is estimated to be DM25.5 million ($11.2 million), increased from DM18.6 million ($8.2 million). TV Loonland attributes the growth to its recent international acquisitions, including the purchase of France's Salsa Distribution and U.K. production studio Telemagination.
AtomFilms & Lucas Online Create Star Wars Fan Film Site
AtomFilms and Lucas Online are joining forces to launch The STAR WARS Fan Film Network, an official Website for STAR WARS-inspired fan work. AtomFilms is now accepting submissions of STAR WARS parodies and documentaries for consideration to showcase on the site. The STAR WARS Fan Film Network will launch later this year as a premier spotlight within www.atomfilms.com. Participants will have access to a library of audio clips including Darth Vader breathing, the lightsaber wave and Rebel blaster fire, to incorporate into their own original works.
Bangkok Entertainment Show Highlights The Burgeoning Thai Industry
* Friday, December 8 Sunday, December 10, 2000. Bangkok, Thailand.
TAIS Is Holding A Stop-Motion Seminar
* Wednesday, December 13, 2000. Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
The Toronto Animated Image Society will be hosting a stop-motion seminar. Todd Peterson will be conducting the event. Peterson has worked for Cuppa Coffee and Will Vinton studios. The event will take place at 8 pm. For more information contact Patrick Jenkins at: 54 Austin Terrace, Toronto, Ontario M5R 1Y6, Canada; Tel.: (416) 533-2440; Fax: (416) 533-0508; E-mail: pjenkins@interlog.com; and Web: www.interlog.com/~pjenkins.
PISAF Brings Animation Art To South Korea
* Saturday, December 16 - Sunday, December 24, 2000. Puchon, South Korea.
The 2nd PISAF festival includes an Animation Film Competition, as well as exhibitions, special events and workshops (Digital Animation, Clay Animation, PinScreen Animation). For more information contact PISAF 2000 at: 2Fl. Boksago Cultural Center, 394-2 Sand 1 dong, Wonmi-gu, Puchon, Kyonggi-do 420-031, Korea; Tel.: ++ 8 32 320-3105; or Fax: ++ 82 32 325-2072.
