Albino Fawn Productions, known for its experimental independent film and animation projects, has released a new teaser trailer for its new live-action/animation feature project, Apocalypsis: Theosis. The 90-minute film is written, directed and animated by Eric Leiser, with original score and sound design by Jeffrey Leiser, and is slated for select theatrical and VOD release in late 2016 or 2017.
Theosis is set in a parallel universe slipping into a black hole, where a woman reading the book of Revelation has visions of regeneration during Anthropocene. The teaser reveals a haunting mix of live footage, stop-motion animation, End Times imagery and shifts in visual texture, set against a moody score.
Albino Fawn was established in 2001 by Eric Leiser and Jeffrey Leiser, teaming up with Vanguard Cinema a few years later to release Eclectic Shorts (2006), Faustbook (2006), Imagination (2008) and Glitch in the Grid (2012). The studio has earned top awards for its films at international competitions, and is currently entering Theosis in film festivals.
School of Visual Arts BFA Film and BFA Animation chair Reeves Lehmann and Annie Flocco, producer-director of SVA’s 27th Dusty Awards, have announced this year’s recipients of the Dusty Outstanding Alumni Award: animator, historian and winner of the June Foray Award Tom Sito (BFA Animation, 1977), and Academy Award-winning production sound mixer Mark Ulano (1975 Film and Video), whose credits include The Hateful Eight, Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery, Iron Man 1 & 2, Titanic and Inglourious Basterds. The Dusty Awards will be presented Tuesday, May 10 at the SVA Theatre in New York and streamed live at http://dusty.sva.edu.
Tom Sito began his professional animation career as an assistant on Richard Williams’ Raggedy Ann & Andy before joining Disney, where he was a key player in the Disney Renaissance, working on The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, The Lion King, Who Framed Roger Rabbit, Pocahontas, Dinosaurs and Fantasia 2000. He left Disney in the mid-90s to help set up DreamWorks Animation, where he worked on The Prince of Egypt, Antz, Spirit – Stallion of the Cimarron and was storyboard supervisor on Shrek. He also served as animation co-director on WB’s Osmosis Jones. Sito contributed to many other animated projects, including feature films, television series and commercials.
Sito is currently a Professor and Chair of Animation and Digital Arts at USC’s School of Cinematic Arts, and has lectured at schools all over the world. He has written numerous articles for both Animation Magazine and Animation World Network, as well as books including Drawing the Line: The Untold Story of Animation Unions from Bosko to Bart Simpson (Univ. Press of Kentucky) and Moving Innovation: A History of Computer Animation (MIT Press).
In addition to the Alumni Award honorees, the Dusty Awards ceremony will celebrate graduating SVA film and animation students, whose work will be included in the Dusty Film & Animation Festival (May 7-9). Presenters slated for the 27th Dusty Awards include Oscar-winning screenwriter Josh Singer, animator-director-producer Mark Osborne (The Little Prince, Kung Fu Panda), animator Howard Beckman (Boop-Beep) and others.
Animation Magazine is proud to be a Headlining Sponsor of the Dusty Awards, alongside AbelCine, Adorama Rental Co, B&H Photo, Bryan Singer – Bad Hat Harry, Carlos Saldanha – BottleCap Productions, Dig It Audio, Randall Emmett – Emmett/Furla/Oasis Films, Foto Care, Gotham Sound, IFP, New York Women in Film & Television, Nice Shoes Creative Studio, Nickelodeon, Rota6, SCS Agency, the SVA Campus Store, Technicolor PostWorks New York and Toon Boom Animation.
Two-time Academy Award-winning visual effects supervisor and director Phil Tippett — whose credits include the original Star Wars films and The Force Awakens, Jurassic Park, RoboCop and more — and indie videogame developer-publisher HappyGiant have launched a Kickstarter campaign for HoloGrid: Monster Battle, a new hybrid board game, collectible card game and digital augmented reality game (named Best Technology of PAXEast 2016 by MMOGames.com).
“For years I’ve been making monsters for directors to play with, and now, for the first time, I’m monster for you to play with,” said Tippett. “We’re excited about the new fields of augmented and virtual reality, and to be working with our friends at HappyGiant to create HoloGrid: Monster Battle.”
HoloGrid: Monster Battle has similar gameplay to collectible card games like Magic: The Gathering, but uses physical playing cards to trigger AR creatures and a gameboard. Players can go head-to-head locally or remotely, and offline play is possible as well with a physical board. HoloGrid is being built for next gen AR and VR platforms, but will have a preliminary mobile device release. Tippett’s hand-crafted monsters are scanned into the game using Photogrammetry to create highly detailed 3D characters who come to life before players’ eyes.
And if this all seems vaguely familiar, you’re not imagining it: Tippett created the iconic “Holo Chess” scene in the original Star Wars, which he recreated for The Force Awakens. Learn more at hologridmonsterbattle.com.
Academy Award winning studio Digital Domain has hired on 30-year industry veteran Ken Roupenian as its Vice President, Digital Studio. He will be responsible for the company’s creative teams globally, and will report to Digital Domain Executive Vice President and General Manager, Erika Burton.
As Digital Domain continues to evolve and expand its business worldwide, Roupenian brings to the group expertise in strategic planning and artistic management for digital production. “I look forward to doing my part to build upon their great legacy, helping them to continue challenging themselves, innovating, and breaking new ground,” he said.
Roupenian began his entertainment career at Sony Pictures before joining Rhythm & Hues in 1993. Over 21 years at R&H, he advanced through a number of producing and managerial positions before spending his final 10 years with the studio as head of digital production. In this role, Roupenian spearheaded R&H’s drive to grow its team from about 400 to over 1,500 worldwide, and was instrumental in overall talent management, recruiting and training.
Paramount Pictures and Locksmith Animation have announced that they have entered into an arrangement to co-develop and co-produce a series of animated projects. Under the deal, Paramount and Locksmith are moving forward on three current properties which Locksmith has been developing since it opened in 2014. Production will begin within the next 12 months, with the first theatrical release slated for 2020.
The deal also allows for the companies to consider developing additional projects over time to create an ongoing pipeline of releases.
Locksmith Animation is the U.K.’s first dedicated, high-end CG feature animation studio. The outfit was founded by writer-director Sarah Smith (Arthur Christmas) and producer Julie Lockhart (Shaun the Sheep Movie, The Pirates! In an Adventure with Scientist! a.k.a. Band of Misfits!), and launched in 2014 with the backing of media business leader Elisabeth Murdoch.
“We are delighted to be partnering with Elisabeth Murdoch and Locksmith Animation to develop an exciting series of new films,” said Brad Grey, Chairman & CEO, Paramount Pictures. “The unparalleled experience and talents of Elisabeth, Sarah and Julie will enrich our animation studio and further our commitment to creating world-class entertainment for audiences of all ages around the world.”
“We are delighted Paramount has responded with enthusiasm to our ambitious and original slate of films, and will go forward to take them to a global audience,” said Smith. Lockhart added: “This is a fantastic opportunity to build London as a world-class animation hub. Paramount has a wealth of experience and expertise in distributing animated features and we are thrilled to partner in this venture.”
Bento Box Entertainment (Bob’s Burgers, Bordertown) will be developing and producing a new primetime animated comedy series The Blues Brothers, with original Saturday Night Live Blues Brother Dan Aykroyd attached as co-creator and executive producer. He is joined in these roles by Judy Belushi — widow of Aykroyd’s musical cohort and co-star, John Belushi — and Emmy-winning SNL writer Anne Beatts.
The Blues Brothers animated series will chronicle the chaotic, comedic musical adventures of Jake and Elwood Blues and their bandmates as they take the stage at home in Chicago and on the road. Each episode will have a score and soundtrack full of soul, blues and R&B hits recorded by the Blue Brothers, as well as new performances just for the show. The series will also welcome special cartoon guest appearances from up-and-coming artists, blues legends and current day music stars.
“It’s so great to accelerate Jake and Elwood at digital speed into the 21st Century via the outstanding creative group at Bento Box,” Aykroyd said. “The show will be the Blues Brothers living in America and utilizing all new technology to make and promote their own records, seek out and record new artists and avoid law enforcement – and all while fighting for truth, justice and a better breakfast sandwich.”
Bento Box’s Scott Greenberg and Joel Kuwahara will also executive produce, along with John W. Hyde of Rehab Entertainment and Blues Brothers manager Eric Gardner. The studio will begin shopping the project to broadcasters this month.
A previous Blues Brothers cartoon project was greenlit in 1997 at Film Roman for UPN, but the order was canceled later that year.
Women in Animation announces that Walt Disney Animation Studios has been named the organization’s first official corporate sponsor.
“While Disney Animation has long supported WIA, reaching back to when the organization was founded in the early 1990s, the studio’s generous contributions since the re-launch of WIA in 2013 – including staff support, programming and other resources – has been especially beneficial,” says WIA Co-President Marge Dean.
The sponsorship will help the organization to host monthly events, expand the breadth of WIA’s mentorship program, and spur the development of its legacy and archive program. Disney’s support will also increase opportunities to highlight WIA’s “50-50 by 2025” initiative for gender parity in the animation industry, with a goal of seeing women hold 50% of high-level creative positions by the year 2025.
Ann Le Cam, SVP of Production at Walt Disney Animation Studios, says, “We are proud to support Women in Animation and their ‘50-50 by 2025’ initiative, through our corporate sponsorship and our ongoing partnership. At Disney Animation, we deeply value the diversity and inclusiveness within our Studio and appreciate WIA’s efforts in meeting these goals across the animation community.”
WIA is currently in talks with other major studios about corporate sponsorship opportunities.
Disney’s game-changing “live-action” Jungle Book adaptation has surpassed another global box office milestone, totting up $255.8 million domestically and $452.8 million internationally for a worldwide total of $708.6 million as of Monday, May 2. Jon Favreau’s ambitious film is currently ranked No. 4 for the year domestically, internationally and globally, joining equally furry animated pic Zootopia to become Disney’s second 2016 release to hit the $700 million milestone.
Jungle Book stampeded past $600M on April 29 and continued to see impressive box office returns at home and abroad through the weekend. The film has retained the No. 1 spot in the U.S. every day of its run, and this third consecutive No. 1 weekend brought in $43.7M. Overseas, Jungle Book has brought in $138.8M in China to become Disney’s third biggest release in the country, and is already the all-time highest-grossing Hollywood release in India with $34.4M. The film is performing well in other key markets like the U.K. ($48M), Mexico ($19.9M) and France ($19.4M), and will open in Korea on June 9 and in Japan on August 11.
North America’s largest dedicated animation event, the Ottawa International Animation Festival, is celebrating its 40 anniversary this year. OAIF 2016 will run September 21-25 and mark this milestone with an exciting program that mixes that past, present and future of the medium. Organizers have also revealed the 40th anniversary poster, designed by local artist Michael Zavacky.
“It was a great honor to be asked to design the OIAF 40th anniversary poster and I really wanted to create something that paid tribute to the long and illustrious history of this amazing event,” said Zavacky, who has produced a number of campaign ads for OIAF in the last few years. “I also wanted to design something that people who attend OIAF would hopefully appreciate and enjoy exploring. So I started packing it full visual references to characters and objects that have played a starring role in the history of OIAF. It’s a veritable ‘Where’s Waldo’ of things to find and try to identify.”
Programming highlights for 2016 will include a first-ever retrospective screening of every Grand Prize-winning film since 1976. Many of the Grand Prize filmmakers are set to attend the event, including three-time winner Igor Kovalyov. OIAF has also commissioned international animation historians, programmers and critics to write essays about each of the films.
The Festival’s Artistic Director Chris Robinson notes: “True to the OIAF’s edgy, eclectic nature, the winners include a mix of animation classics (e.g. The Street, The Man Who Planted Trees, The Wrong Trousers, Ryan), controversial choices (e.g. Jerzy Kucia’s Chips at Ottawa ’82, Igor Kovalyov’s Hen, His Wife from Ottawa ’90 and last year’s winner, Small People with Hats), along with an assortment of innovative picks that have helped solidify the OIAF as a festival that dances to its own beat.”
Newly formed Los Angeles studio Gunpowder & Sky has partnered with Oscar- and Grammy-winning producer T Bone Burnett (Crazy Heart), acclaimed animator Drew Christie (New York Times “Op-Docs” series) and music television producer Bill Flanagan (Storytellers, Crossroads) to develop and produce a new animated series that tells folkloric stories from the history of music. Titled Drawn & Recorded, the series is directed by Christie and produced by Flanagan and Gunpowder & Sky’s Van Toffler. Burnett provides narration for the animations.
“Music has pretty much defined the emotional highs and lows of most of our lives,” said Toffler, CEO and co-founder of Gunpowder & Sky. “So it’s an honor to be able to shine a light in a unique unfiltered way, along with T Bone, Bill and Drew, on these buried fables covering the creation of great music, chance artist meetings, untimely deaths and freak occurrences that altered the course of modern music.”
Drawn & Recorded will illumine the lives of iconic musicians from Elvis Presley, Louis Armstrong and Blind Willie Johnson to current rock and hip-hop stars, digging deep into music history to find and relate fascinating, thought-provoking and touching stories that don’t often come to light. The shorts, produced in Christie’s distinctive style, will cover all manner of post-session anecdotes, from the hilarious to the tragic and everything in between.
“I have always been fascinated by the stories behind, underneath and around music,” said Christie. “Music is very mystical and with animation we can get into that realm to explore it without being subject to the laws of gravity or time and space. Plus, there’s no one better to mine the rich world of music history with than legendary super-producer T Bone Burnett, brilliant music writer and producer Bill Flanagan and Van Toffler, the wizard behind many of the most iconic MTV shows.”
Drawn & Recorded is currently in production. A distribution platform for the series will be announced in the next few weeks.
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Turner Europe, Middle East and Africa has promoted Cecilia Persson to Vice President of Programming and Content Strategy Kids EMEA, Acquisitions and Co-Production International. The shift will see Persson carrying over her duties as head of acquisitions and co-productions for the international division and consolidating that team with programming under her leadership.
Persson is now responsible for managing and leading programming strategy across EMEA for all Turner’s kids linear and digital platforms She will report directly to Patricia Hidalgo, Chief Content & Creative Officer – Kids EMEA and Kids Strategy International. Hidalgo noted in the announcement that increasing worldwide competition and the challenges of emerging platforms make it essential for Turner to unite its programming and content acquisition decision makers.
Turner currently has a broadcast presence in 70 countries, with 18 channels reaching more than 130 million households across EMEA. Flagship kids’ channel Cartoon Network is firmly established as the No. 1 pay TV channel for boys in the region (with action hero favorite Ben 10 returning this fall), and recently launched cult hit The Powerpuff Girls.
The Australian Centre for the Moving Image (ACMI) in Melbourne will be celebrating the extraordinary animated collaboration of two-time Archibald Prize winner Del Kathryn Barton and acclaimed filmmaker Brendan Fletcher with a new exhibition, “Del Kathryn Barton: The Nightingale and the Rose,” which opens June 21 and runs through September 18, 2016.
The exhibit in ACMI’s Gallery 2 will feature original artworks, hand-crafted paper props, photos of the animation production process and behind-the-scenes interviews with the creative team — as well as a space to watch the film in its entirety.
Produced by Aquarius Films, The Nightingale and the Rose features the voices of some of Australia’s best known actors, including Mia Wasikowska, David Wenham and Geoffrey Rush, as well as a score by singer-songwriter Sarah Blasko. It won Best Australian Short Film at the Melbourne International Film Festival in 2015 and was nominated for the Crystal Bear at Berlin the same year. The film has its genesis in a commission by the ARTAND Foundation (previously Art & Australia), which in 2010 asked Del Kathryn Barton to reimagine the timeless fairytale with original artworks.
Adapted from Oscar Wilde’s classic story, the 14-minute short blends Barton’s distinctive painting, papercraft, stop-motion and digital effects and manipulation (produced with some help from Method Studios) to explore the tragic fairytale story of the Nightingale, who gives up her life so that the Student can offer a red rose to the girl he admires, only for her to spurn his gift and cause him to swear off love completely.
“From the making of my paintings and drawings for the [Art&Australia] book project, to a three year (and often agonising) marathon making the animation, the Nightingale experience has been an extraordinary and multifaceted creative journey,” says Barton. “I feel so blessed to have shared the challenges of this journey with so many talented collaborators and to have created relationships that will no doubt enable many more film projects. I am truly in love with this exciting, exacting medium!”
Just shy of a month after it was announced that Blue Sky Studios had offered a multi-million dollar settlement, Sony Pictures Animation and Imageworks are following suit (no pun intended) by proposing a deal to resolve their roles in the on-going legal action by animation artists against major studios for alleged wage fixing and anti-poaching agreements.
According to an April 29 case management filing by lawyers for the plaintiffs (Robert Nitsch Jr., David Wentworth and Georgia Cano), “Plaintiffs have reached a settlement with Defendants Sony Pictures Imageworks Inc. and Sony Pictures Animation Inc. and by early next week will file a motion for preliminary approval of this settlement.” The plaintiffs’ legal team hopes to schedule a hearing with Judge Lucy Koh for the Sony settlement alongside the June 16 one for the Blue Sky deal.
Deadline‘s Dominic Patten reports that Sony has offered $13 million to be paid to the original plaintiffs and other members of the potential class-action (a hearing to determine the class certification is set for this Friday, May 6). Patten adds that, like Blue Sky’s proposal, SPA/Imageworks are not intending the settlement to represent an admission of wrongdoing.
It remains to be seen whether the other major studios named in the suit — including DreamWorks Animation, Disney, Pixar, Lucasfilm and the defunct Imagemovers Digital — will also offer monetary settlements, or fight the antitrust allegations in court.
On Saturday night, the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences presented the 43rd Annual Daytime Creative Arts Emmy Awards at a gala ceremony held in the California Ballroom of the Westin Bonaventure Hotel in downtown Los Angeles.
This year’s Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to prolific voice actor Frank Welker, best known as the voice of Megatron in Transformers and as Fred Jones in Scooby-Doo. (Also appearing onstage as presented were Bob Bergen, the voice of Porky Pig, and Reid Scott of Turbo FAST.) It was an sparkling night for animation all in all, with the winners representing the diversity of stories and styles on today’s screens.
Amazon Studios breakout stop-motion hit Tumble Leaf eked out the highest number of wins for an individual series, taking the top Preschool Animated Program prize as well as awards for Directing and Individual Achievement. Nickelodeon’s Peter Rabbit, Peg + Cat from PBS and Netflix’s All Hail King Julien claimed two awards each.
By studio, DreamWorks Animation Television was the clear leader, earning five awards for its popular Netflix original series The Adventures of Puss in Boots, Dinotrux, All Hail King Julien and Dragons: Race to the Edge.
A select list of key winners follows:
Outstanding Pre-School Children’s Series Sesame Street – PBS
Executive Producer Carol-Lynn Parente, Supervising Prod. Nadine Zylstra, Senior Prod. Benjamin Lehmann, Coordinating Prod. April Coleman, Producer Mindy Fila, Line Prod. Stephanie Longardo
Outstanding Pre-School Children’s Animated Program Tumble Leaf – Amazon
Executive Prods. Kelli Bixler and Drew Hodges, Co-Executive Prods. Carin Greenberg, Alice Wilder and Ed. D.; Prods. Jodi Downs and Sarah Serata; Line Prod. Matthew Cuny
Outstanding Special Class Animated Program Peter Rabbit – Nickelodeon
Executive Prods. Cathal Gaffney, Darragh O’Connell, Paula Rosenthal; Co-Executive Prods. Mark Huckerby, Nick Ostler; Supervising Prod. Olexa W. Hewryk; Senior Prod. Sarah Blondine Mullervy; Prods. Gillian Higgins, Karen Ialacci, Erik Vignau; Line Prod. Rachel Simon; Executive Prod. (Silvergate) Mary Durkan; Executive Prods. (Frederick Warne) Ronnie Fairweather, Francesca Dow
Outstanding Performer in an Animated Program Jeff Bennett as Mayor Luskey Transformers Rescue Bots – Discovery Family
Outstanding Casting for an Animated Series or Special Ania O’Hare The Adventures of Puss in Boots – Netflix
Outstanding Individual Achievement in Animation
CHARACTER DESIGNER: Chad Weatherford, Dinotrux – Netflix
STORYBOARD ARTIST: Benjamin Sanders, Peter Rabbit – Nickelodeon
PRODUCTION DESIGNER: Mike Houston, The Mind of a Chef – PBS
SUPERVISING ANIMATOR: Michael Granberry, Tumble Leaf – Amazon
Outstanding Writing in a Preschool Animated Program Peg + Cat – PBS
Head Writer Billy Lopez, Writers Billy Aronson, David Steven Cohen, Kevin Del Aguila, Dustin Ferrer, Qui Nguyen, Jennifer Oxley
Outstanding Writing in an Animated Program All Hail King Julien – Netflix
Writer/Producer Mitch Watson, Story Editor Michael Ryan, Writers Sharon Flynn, Elliott Owen
Outstanding Directing in an Animated Program Tumble Leaf – Amazon
Director Drew Hodges
Outstanding Main Title and Graphic Design The Mind of a Chef – PBS
Art Director Daniel de Graaf, Design & Graphics Director Adam Lupsha, Lead Artist Mike Houston
Outstanding Sound Mixing – Animation Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles – Nickelodeon
Production Mixers Justin Brinsfield, Matt Corey, Manny Grijalva; Re-Recording Mixer DJ Lynch; SFX Mixer Jeff Shiffman
Outstanding Sound Editing – Animation Dragons: Race to the Edge – Netflix
Supervising Sound Editor Otis Van Osten, Sound Editor Joshua Aaron Johnson, Foley Supervisor Roger Pallan, Dialog Editor Jason Oliver
Outstanding Music Direction and Composition Peg + Cat – PBS
Music Supervisor Steven Rebollido, Music Director J. Walter Hawkes, Composers Martin Erskine, D.D. Jackson
Outstanding Original Song “True Bromance” Frederik Wiedmann (Composer), Mitch Watson (Lyricist) All Hail King Julien – Netflix
The 23rd Stuttgart Festival of Animated Film (ITFS) wrapped up in the German city over the weekend, and the selected prize winners definitely lived up to the year’s motto “Animation for Grown-Ups,” representing the broad spectrum of stories that can be told through animated artistry, and the hunger of audiences around the world for films with powerful messages and impactful stories.
The 2016 festival welcomed roughly 80,000 visitors to the seven cinemas and the Open Air theater at the Schlossplatz — which on a day of record-breaking cold still attracted about 1,000 eager viewers to a screening of Mark Osborne’s The Little Prince.
Key awards went to International Grand Prix-winning short Kaputt by Alexander Lahl and Volker Schlecht, Tricks for Kids Best Children’s Series international winner The Long Long Holiday from Les Armateures and Blue Spirit studio, and AniMovie feature winner Psychonauts, the Forgotten Children by Pedro Rivero and Alberto Vazquez.
This year’s ITFS also introduced the first Amazon Audience Award, determined by online voting, and Local Heroes Games Award. The festival was further enriched by partnerships with the Stuttgart Opera, an Animation Lounge hosted at Das Gerber, the Arab Animation Forum at Stiftung Geisstrasse and the Wall of Animation at Breuninger Modehaus, where the world’s largest animation canvas evolved over the course of eight days of live painting.
The next IFTS will take place May 2-7, 2017. The 2016 Stuttgart Festival of Animated Films winners are:
International Competition
Grand Prix: Kaputt (Broken)
Directors: Alexander Lahl, Volker Schlecht
Production: Die Kulturingenieure (Germany)
Lotte Reiniger Promotion Award: Afternoon Class
Director: Seoro Oh (Korea)
SWR Audience Award: Paniek!
Directors: Joost Lieuwma, Daan Velsink
Production: il Luster Films (Netherlands)
TELE 5 “Leider geil!” Special Award: Ivan’s Need
Directors: Veronica L. Montano, Manuela Leuenberger, Lukas Suter
Production: Hochschule Luzern – Design & Kunst (Switzerland)
Amazon Audience Award: Chateau de Sable
Directors: Quentin Deleau, Lucie Foncelle, Maxime Goudal, Julien Paris, Sylvain Robert
Production: Ecole Superieure des Metiers Artistiques (France)
Best Student Film: Pro Mamu (About a Mother)
Director: Dina Velikovskaya
Production: School Studio Shar (Russia)
FANtastic Award: Toutes Nuancees (All Their Shades)
Director: Chloe Alliez
Productions: Ecole National Superieur des Art Visuels de la Cambre (Belgium)
Tricks for Kids
Best Animated Children’s Short Film: Alike
Directors: Daniel Martinez Lara, Nicolas Matji
Production: La Fiesta PC (Spain)
Best Children’s Animated Series – National: Petzi: Schildkroteninsel
Directors: Michael Bohnenstingl, Paul Cichon, Johannes Weiland
Production: Studio Soil (Germany)
Best Children’s Animated Series – International: The Long Long Holiday: The Secret
Director: Paul Leluc
Production: Les Armateurs, Blue Spirit Studio (France)
AniMovie
Best Full-Length Animated Film: Psychonauts, The Forgotten Children
Directors: Pedro Rivero, Alberto Vazquez
Production: Basque Films, ZircoZine Animation, Abrakam Estudio, La Competencia (Spain)
German Animation Screenplay Award: John Chambers,Die Olchis – der Film
German Voice Actor Award: Kostja Ullmann as Sam in Sam O’Cool(a.k.a. Yellowbird)
Crazy Horse 48-Hour Animation Jam
Winner: Team Lebanon: Lea Azar, Marylin Haddad
Local Heroes Games Award
Winner: The Inner World by Tobia Frisch
Production: Studio Fizbin
Publisher: Headup Games
Animation industry veteran Andy Heyward has launched a new destination for collectible animation cel artwork. Andy Heyward Animation Art offers limited edition hand painted, signed and numbered animation cels related to programs either created, written or produced by the prolific toon talent.
Some of these titles go back to the early days of Heyward’s career as a writer at Hanna-Barbera in the 1970s (working on cartoons such as Scooby-Doo, Smurfs, Harlem Globetrotters and Yogi’s All Star Laff-A-Lympics) while others come from his tenure at DIC Entertainment (Inspector Gadget, Real Ghostbusters, Heathcliff, Dennis the Menace) and more recently from his current post as CEO and Chairman of Genius Brands International.
Animation cel marketer and collector Joe Mariam approached Heyward with the business plan: create original, hand-painted animation cels in limited, numbered editions of 50 pieces, based on the old school, hand-drawn toons Heyward built his career on. Teaming up with former Hanna-Barbera creative director Iraj Paran, the partners were able to put together a small crew of “old timers” who still had the required cel painting skills.
Andy Heyward Animation Art is launching with offerings from four properties: Inspector Gadget (two original compositions), Stan Lee’s Mighty 7 (three, featuring different heroes and Stan Lee), Captain Planet (one) and Warren Buffett’s Secret Millionaires Club (one). Each hand-painted cel will be signed by Heyward, and the Mighty 7, Captain Planet and Secret Millionaires cels will be co-signed by Stan Lee, Ted Turner and Warren Buffett, respectively.
Each limited-edition piece will also come with an official AHAA seal and signed Certificate of Authenticity. Cels are available now through AndyHeywardAnimationArt.com, priced at $249.
Inspector GadgetStan’s Strong ArmStan’s Strong Arm COA
Industry veteran Pam Westman has been tapped to fill the role of Head of Nelvana Enterprises, tasked with overseeing global brand development and management across the Corus Entertainment-owned company’s portfolio — including retail management, licensing, consumer products, content sales and digital.
Westman brings with her over 20 years of experience in these avenues, and will have an active role in setting Nelvana’s strategy within the larger Corus landscape. She will report to Scott Dyer, President of Nelvana.
Most recently, Westman was Director of Integration for Staples Canada. Prior to this, she was EVP of HIT Entertainment (the global entertainment company behind Bob the Builder, Barney and Thomas the Tank Engine), where she lead the Canadian, U.S. and Latin American divisions through a period of strong growth. She was also part of the senior executive team that completed the sale of HIT to Mattel.
It’s been decades since the Fonz literally “jumped the shark” on TV classic Happy Days, but this week Henry Winkler and his former co-stars Michael McKean and David Lander (a.k.a. Lenny and Squiggy) are reuniting to provide guest voices for a brand-new episode of SpongeBob SquarePants.
“Sharks vs. Pods” premieres Wednesday, May 4 at 5:30 p.m. ET/PT on Nickelodeon, right after a new episode of the channel’s latest original animated comedy, The Loud House (be sure to pick up our May 2016 issue to read more about it).
The episode introduces viewers to “The Sharks” — the toughest guys in town, who get SpongeBob caught up in their latest confrontation. Henry Winkler voices Sharkface, a tough guy who grew up on the “mean streets” of Bikini Bottom; Michael McKean voices Lonnie, a skateboarding punk from the Red Hook neighborhood; and David Lander is Donnie, a guy who grew up in an upper-class family in Bikini Heights.
