The results of the 6th Annual Animation Magazine Pitch Party are in and it’s time to meet this year’s winners! Our panel of Industry execs made their picks and thousands of online votes were submitted to determine the latest crop of standouts, including our grand prize finalist who will be given the chance to pitch to the judge of their choice and perhaps become the next big thing in animation. We’d like to thank everyone who voted for their part in making Pitch Party ’07 a success.
Grand Prize: Brian Smith’s King of the Universe
For their top pick, our distinguished judges chose King of the Universe from Eggplant Lf. Inc. and creator Brian Smith. In the pitch, a clerical error has the dumbest human appointed to the most powerful position in the universe. Most of the judges were amused by the design, and Catherine Wai, director of creative affairs for Jetix Europe commented, ‘Incongruous existence of character and situation is a good source of comedy. Good start. Both art and blurb exude a sense of comedy that’s compatible with the theme.’
Eggplant is a full-service, state-of-the-art production house operating out of a renovated brothel in downtown Toronto, Canada. The company created the award-winning adult puppet/animation series Balloonheads for the Comedy Network and provided music for the animated series Peep and the Big, Wide World and Time Warp Trio.
Eggplant president Terry Thompkins tells us the company is getting into creating its own content and says the Pitch Party has been instrumental in that pursuit. Last year, Eggplant entered Smith’s Monster in a Box, which placed second with our Judges and was eventually optioned by DECODE Ent. ‘This contest has been good to us,’ says Thompkins. ‘When I was shopping Monster in a Box around after the Pitch Party, ears definitely perked up when they heard that we were the judges’ second choice. It definitely helped get a foot in the door.’
Second Place: Natasha Parrish’s Deidra Daydreamer
A graphic designer by trade, Natasha Parrish of New York is working on her own series of comic books, Calico Girls, while working to break into the animation industry. Thanks to the Pitch Party, she now has some leverage in that pursuit. A fable inspired Natasha came up with the idea of a girl who wakes up every morning to find her dreams have come true, then has to sort through her life during the day to make sure she’s living her real dream. Natasha entered the Pitch Party last year and her sci-fi comedy concept The Infinity Devastator Goes to Work was a favorite with our judge from Sony Pictures Animation.
Third Place: Chris Wilson’s Night Mia
Drawing a comparison to Hayao Miyazaki can’t be a bad thing in a pitch session, and that’s what The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy creator Maxwell Atoms saw in Wilson’s property, which also revolves around a young girl’s adventures in a dream world. Some of the judges were concerned that it may be too dark for kids, but Warner Bros Animation producer Eric Radomski said it is ‘Visually intriguing’ and ‘conceptually takes advantage of the medium.’ Wilson hails from Essex in the U.K.
Animation Magazine Staff Picks
First Place: Daniel Contois’ Ghengis Conroy
Second Place: Kenny Roy’s Picked
Third Place: Jean Kalile’s The Monsters Kids
Online Readers’ Picks
First Place: Jean Kalile’s The Monsters Kids
Second Place: Anton Brooks’ BWO: Beneath the World Order
Third Place: Kenny Roy’s Picked
The Pitch Party is an extremely targeted advertising campaign designed to help indie producers and up-and-coming talents present their ideas to influential people who currently hold key positions in the development and production of animated television. Contestants who purchased a 1/6th’page ad at a discount rate in this issue were able to get their ideas off of their computers and draft tables, and in front of these execs and the animation industry at large.
We wish Eggplant Lf. the very best of luck with King of the Universe and hope good things come from the exposure all of this year’s contestants received by participating. Everyone will get to see the judges’ comments and use them as valuable feedback for fine-tuning pitches for future meetings and opportunities. Next year’s Pitch Party will be here before you know it, so start getting those pitches together now!
Be sure to check out all of this year’s Pitch Party ads in the August issue of Animation Magazine!
