Animation Magazine

Author: Ryan Ball

  • Japan’s Icot Founds Toon Fund

    Daily Variety reports that Osaka, Japan-based content-management company Icot has launched two movie funds, one specifically for animation. A 24-episode animated series titled Rabugetsu Chu will be bankrolled by private-sector investors ponying up a total of $3.4 million through brokerage Mizuho Securities.

    Slated for network broadcast in 2006, Rabugetsu Chu (Love Get Chu) is based on developer Marie Koizumi’s popular mobile game in which a girl pursues her dream of becoming a voice actor. Mitsuhiro Togo is set to direct and Radix and Ariko System will produce. Investors will buy shares through an online brokerage, while another $5 million is raised for three live-action pics.

    Icot is a year-old conglomerate of 10 companies led by Kansai Electric Power and ad agency Dentsu. The group will manage all rights to projects produced with the new funds and other funds it will establish each year.

  • Ghost Rider Glimpses Hit the Web

    Another Marvel comic book superhero is coming to the big screen and Sony Pictures has released a 10-second teaser featuring some vfx shots on the official web site. Ghost Rider, starring Nicholas Cage, is set to blaze into theaters on Feb. 16, 2007.

    Based on one of Marvel’s lesser-known franchises, Ghost Rider will feature Cage as Johnny Blaze, a stunt motorcyclist who gives up his soul to become a flaming-skulled avenging demon and defeat the power-hungry son of Satan. Hulk co-star Sam Elliot returns to Marvel territory in a supporting role and the Easy Rider himself, Peter Fonda, shows up for some more two-wheeling action. Sony Pictures Imageworks and Digital Dream are handling the bulk of the visual effects work, including Cage’s fiery transformations.

    The film is being directed by Mark Steven Johnson, who previously helmed the Marvel adaptation Daredevil and wrote the screenplay for the less successful Daredevil spin-off, Elektra. Johnson penned the Ghost Rider screenplay with David S. Goyer, the scribe behind such comic-to-screen treatments as Batman Begins, Blade II, Blade: Trinity and the upcoming The Flash and the Batman Begins sequel.

    To check out the teaser trailer and other details about Ghost Rider, cruise over to the movie’s official web site at www.sonypictures.com/movies/ghostrider.

  • Kong to Paw Special BFCA Award

    It seems the complexities of creating an animated performance are finally being recognized with a special award to be presented by The Broadcast Film Critics Association during the 11th annual Critics’ Choice Awards gala. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the 25-foot simian star of Peter Jackson’s King Kong remake will receive the Distinguished Achievement in Performing Arts Award on Jan. 9.

    The motion-capture performance by actor Andy Serkis and the CG augmentations by the animators at Weta Digital in New Zealand will be honored for the ‘revolutionary leap forward in synthesizing visual effects with an actor’s performance.’ Serkis will accept the award.

    BFCA president Joey Berlin told the Reporter, “Many BFCA members wanted to vote for Kong for best actor because they were so impressed by the astonishing way in which he expresses love, lust, humor and rage in the tradition of the finest human actors. The BFCA board of directors feels this recognition is necessary to live up to our goal of honoring the finest in cinematic achievement at the Critics’ Choice Awards show.’

    King Kong has also been nominated for Best Picture by the BFCA. Jackson and his team at Weta are reportedly creating some new footage exclusively for the awards ceremony at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium on Jan. 9. A live broadcast of the event will be carried on the WB Network. See the full lists of BFCA nominees at www.bfca.org.

  • WAC Welcomes New Sponsor NVIDIA

    World Animation Celebration (WAC), Animation Magazine‘s online film festival, is pleased to announce new sponsor NVIDIA, a market leader in graphics and digital media processors. Joining existing WAC sponsor Bauhaus Software, NVIDIA will supply each of our quarterly winners with an NVIDIA Quadro graphics processor card, a professional solution for the fastest application performance and highest quality workstation graphics.

    NVIDIA Quadro products are the world’s most successful workstation graphics brand, relied upon to drive critical applications by the largest install base of professionals in the industry. With NVIDIA Quadro4, NVIDIA once again set the standard for professional graphics solutions by delivering revolutionary features for professional 3D performance and improved business productivity. More information on NVIDIA products is available at www.nvidia.com.

    Bauhaus offers a range of products that fundamentally change the economics of producing 2D animation and visual effects content. All Bauhaus products are based on a fully digital, real-time and resolution-unlimited workflow, and are engineered specifically for artists. Mirage is Bauhaus’ innovative 2D animation and special effects system that changes the traditional linear paper/digital workflow used in most animation studios to a completely-digital, highly-collaborative workflow. Learn more at www.bauhaussoftware.com.

    With the support of NVIDIA and Bauhaus Software, Animation Magazine will continue throughout the year to bring you fantastic, new short films from around the world. To see what’s showing now, head over to www.animationmagazine.net/wac for your FREE, all-access festival pass. New movies will be added soon, so keep checking back. And tell your friends! Information on submitting your own short animated film can be found at www.animationmagazine.net/wac_entry_form.html.

  • Win Aqua Teen Hunger Force Vol. 4!

    Aqua Teen Hunger Force Volume 4 is friggin’ awesome and we’ve got your chance to win a copy of this two-disc set featuring 13 episodes of the [adult swim] favorite. Just head over to the Animag Funbag at www.animationmagazine.net/wac/fun_bag.html and take a stab at our fun new contest!

    Created by Mat Maiellaro and Dave Willis, Aqua Teen Hunger Force is an absurd comedy series about three fast food products sharing a rental home in New Jersey. Side dishes on the DVD include commentary on all installments, promos, footage from the [adult swim] Panel at Comic-Con 2004, the never-before seen “Spacecataz” episode, a fan art gallery of puppet-talking promos and a behind-the-scenes look at the recording of episode #55, ‘Spacegate World.” There’s even a trailer for the upcoming Aqua Teen Hunger Force movie, which doesn’t have a release date yet. Warner Home Video lists this latest DVD set at $29.98.

  • BOXX, ProMAX Cut Together for Editing

    Animation producers and other film, video and broadcast professionals will soon have dedicated editing hardware and software solutions neatly packed together through a new partnership between Austin, Texas-based BOXX Technologies Inc. and Irvine, Calif.-based ProMAX Systems Inc. BOXX will complement its range of specialized 3DBOXX workstations and RenderBOXX render nodes for vfx and animation with ProMAX’s extensive line of fully integrated video editing systems and powerful SAN storage solutions.

    ProMAX will power a range of video editing systems with purpose-built BOXX workstations optimized to provide both performance and reliability when running advanced video editing applications. In addition, customers will have access to greater specialized technical support resources that will cover all the major steps of the creation process from shooting and applying computer graphics to compositing, editing and authoring.

    BOXX Technologies CEO Rick Krause comments, ‘BOXX and ProMAX have perfectly complementary strategies that can be combined to deliver real value to both customer communities.’ ProMAX CEO Dan Hatch adds, ‘The timing is right to combine forces with BOXX and make a significant impact in the increasingly democratized video space.’

    Dave Fish, director of intermediate and educational markets for Avid Technology, says his company is very excited about the teaming of ProMax and BOXX. ‘This new relationship takes ProMax’s system integration expertise and pairs it with one of the best PC solutions in the market,’ he remarks. ‘Solutions from Avid, our video division, and Softimage, our animation and effects division, will truly leverage the processing power of BOXX and the integration expertise of ProMax.’

    BOXX and ProMAX will engage in joint marketing activities in order to leverage each other’s market and customer expertise. More information on BOXX Technologies is available at www.boxxtech.com, and ProMax Solutions is found on the web at www.promax.com.

  • Game Sales Down, Midway Drops Axe

    While it’s a foregone conclusion that certain sectors of the video game industry have been quite naughty this year, it seems everyone is suffering as game sales dip during what is traditionally the most profitable quarter for interactive entertainment. The industry-wide slump has forced major publisher/developer Midway to lay off somewhere between 8% and 11% of its workforce, according to Daily Variety.

    Also hurt is Electronic Arts (EA), which Tuesday updated its fiscal outlook with the announcement that it expects third- and fourth-quarter net revenue and earnings to be ‘well below both the financial guidance provided by EA on November 1, 2005, as well as current consensus estimates.’

    “Holiday sales are not meeting expectations,” says EA chairman and CEO Larry Probst. “For the December quarter, it is likely the industry will be down double digits on a percentage basis.”

    Despite having the No.1 best-selling game with Call of Duty 2 for Xbox 360, publisher/developer Activision also downgraded its outlook, blaming significantly increased marketing spending and a general 20% drop in software sales in the U.S. during the critical months of October and November.

    ‘For the quarter, we still expect to generate significant revenues; however, we are disappointed that our earnings performance will come in substantially below our previous outlook,” states Michael Griffith, president and CEO of Activision Publishing, Inc.

    Some fingers are pointing at a dearth of quality in 2005 game titles and gamer reluctance to spend money on current generation product as more next-gen consoles make their way to stores in 2006. The only next-gen console to arrive at retail in time for the 2005 holiday rush is Microsoft’s Xbox 360, which hasn’t been selling as fast as expected due to product shortages. Next year brings competition in the form of Sony’s PlayStation 3 and Nintendo’s Revolution. The excitement building around these releases has game makers hopeful for a better greener Christmas in ’06.

  • Serenity, Brothers Grimm Hit Disc

    A pair of late-summer vfx movies land on video shelves today, just in time for some last-minute holiday shopping. Fans of FOX’s short-lived sci-fi/Western series, Firefly, can pick up the big-screen spin-off, Serenity, while Terry Gilliam devotees add the director’s latest effort, The Brothers Grimm, to their collections.

    Marking the feature directorial debut of TV creator Joss Whedon (Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, Firefly) Serenity centers on a band of intergalactic outlaws who emerge as unlikely heroes when a young telepath is hunted by a totalitarian military regime known as The Universal Alliance. The film boasts impressive visual effects work by Zoic Studios and a strong cast led by series regulars Nathan Fillion (Dracula 2000, Saving Private Ryan), Gina Torres (The Matrix Revolutions, The Matrix Reloaded), Alan Tudyk (I, Robot, Into the West) and Adam Baldwin (Men In Black, The Poseidon Adventure).

    The Serenity DVD includes such bonus materials as deleted scenes, outtakes, a special introduction and feature commentary by Whedon, and the featurettes Re-lighting the Firefly and What’s in a Firefly? The disc from Fox Home Entertainment carries a suggested retail price of $29.98.

    The Brothers Grimm stars Matt Damon and Heath Ledger as legendary 19th Century German fairytale crafters Will and Jake Grimm, here depicted as con artists who travel the Napoleonic countryside defeating monsters and demons for a fee. When their exploits are brought to the attention of French authorities, the not-so-daring duo is forced to deal with a real magical curse in an enchanted forest where young girls are disappearing. Classic stories such as Little Red Riding Hood, Hansel and Gretel and Cinderella are woven into the plot with help from the digital effects artists at Artem Ltd. The work was overseen by visual effects supervisor Kent Houston, who previously helmed vfx work on Gilliam’s Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas and Twelve Monkeys.

    Bonus Materials included with the Brothers Grimm DVD include commentary by Gilliam, deleted scenes, a behind-the-scenes featurette titled Bringing the Fairytale to Life and an effects featurette titled The Visual Magic of The Brothers Grimm. The Buena Vista Home Entertainment release lists for $29.98.

  • Action Rules New Cartoon Net Lineup

    Robots, monster hunters, alien shape-shifters and dragon slayers abound in Cartoon Network’s new Saturday Morning lineup, starting on Jan. 14. Sophomore hit The Life and Times of Juniper Lee is back, along with the new original series Ben 10 and fresh acquisitions Robotboy, Zixx and Dragon Hunters.

    The lineup will kick off at 9 a.m. with Alphanim’s Robotboy, produced by Cartoon Network Europe and France 3, with animation duties divided among LuxAnimation in Luxemburg, Emation in Korea and Monigotes in Spain. Tapping into the classic Pinocchio mythology, the show centers on a powerful battle robot who dreams of becoming a real boy. To keep his destructive powers from falling into the hands of evil genius Dr Kamikazi, Robotboy’s creator sends him far away to live with his number one fan, Tommy Turnbull. Now it’s up to Tommy and pals Gus and Lola to protect the world’s most powerful fighting machine from the clutches of Dr Kamikazi and his mutant clone armies.

    Back for season two, The Life and Times of Juniper Lee follows at 9:30 a.m. with the continuing adventures of a regular pre-teen with the unusual responsibilities of keeping the delicate balance between the real world and the realm of magic. The series is created by former Real World cast member Judd Winick and produced by Cartoon Network’s Burbank studio. The bulk of the animation service work is handled by Rough Draft in Korea.

    The 10 a.m. slot will be filled by Ben 10, a new half-hour sci-fi action/adventure series that follows the adventures of a 10-year-old boy who can transform into any one of 10 alien beings with fantastic superpowers thanks to his out-of-this-world wristwatch. Created by Man of Action (the collective name for Joe Casey, Joe Kelly, Duncan Rouleau and Steve Seagle), the 26-episode show is produced by Cartoon Network Studios.

    There’s more alien action loaded up for 10:30 as the network premieres Zixx from Thunderbird Films Inc. and CG animation studio Mainframe. Aimed at kids 8-12, the sci-fi show chronicles the adventures of an unlikely team of heroes who join forces in a quest to save the universe from evil. Led by fearless alien operative Zixx Phunkee Zee, a contingent of human boys and girls contribute their strategy game smarts to the battle in ‘The Keep”a third dimension labyrinth which operates like a video game. The show was developed by Alex Raff’ of Savi Media and Debbie Nightingale of The Nightingale Co., in association with YTV.

    Roundng out the Saturday morning lineup at 11 a.m. is Dragon Hunters. Produced by French animation house Futurikon and managed by BRB Internacional, the series follows the misadventures of Lian Chi and Gwizdo, two warriors who have to take on more than 50 dragons in a fantasy medieval world set in the future. Having pulled strong numbers with its debut on French TV, the show has attracted major licensees in the video games, comics, trading cards and collectibles sectors.

  • Buckley in the Marketing Mix at Bakers Man

    Bill Buckley has been named chief marketing officer for the Bakers Man family of companies, including animation shop TrueLight Ent., Bakers Man Prods., Bakers Man Technology Group, Bakers Man Entertainment Group and Image Quest Studios. The announcement was made by Paul Kartsonis, founder and CEO of Bakers Man, a company focused on internet-based technology, marketing communications and digital information management for the entertainment industry.

    In his new role, Buckley will develop and oversee the marketing, sales and media relations efforts for Bakers Man. In addition to servicing existing accounts in theatrical, home entertainment, music and platform games, Buckley will be instrumental in expanding the company’s offerings into areas such as animated viral marketing efforts.

    Buckley previously served as head of his own firm, Buckley Consulting, where he provided contract and project services to various companies, including Bakers Man. Other positions held by Buckley over the years include exec VP of convention sales and services for the Los Angeles Convention and Visitors Bureau, exec VP of entertainment marketing for public relations and marketing firm Rogers & Cowan and national director of entertainment sales & promotions at Marriott International.

    TrueLight Ent. is a full-service studio specializing in CG, Flash and traditional animation production. The subsidiary of Bakers Man develops original entertainment content for traditional distribution, in addition to creating marketing concepts. The studio is located on the web at www.truelightentertainment.com. More information on Bakers Man is available at www.bakersman.com.

  • Autodesk Offers Combustion 4, Cleaner 6.5 for Mac

    In its efforts to better support the Macintosh-based digital content creation community, the Autodesk Media & Entertainment division has released Autodesk Combustion 4 for Macintosh and Autodesk Cleaner 6.5 for Macintosh. Together, the products offer Mac users new tools for desktop visual effects/motion graphics and desktop encoding and media mastering.

    Now shipping, Combustion 4 for Mac promises enhanced interoperability with third-party applications, improved paint tools and other workflow efficiencies. The package has been employed by Meteor Studios on 20th Century Fox’s Fantastic Four, Zoic Studios for Universal’s Serenity and Sci Fi Channel’s Battlestar Galactica series, and Digital Pictures Iloura, Australia on Mandarin Films Co.’s The Seven Swords (Qi jian).

    New features of Version 4 include Diamond Keyer, a second generation of sophisticated keying algorithms derived from Autodesk’s Discreet Flame; Time-Warp, a fully key-frameable, time-remapping operator for quickly creating slow motion and speed-up effects; B-spline vector shapes and new point-grouping for faster, more efficient rotoscoping; custom capsules for creating and saving encapsulated single or grouped operator nodes; a new optimized operator to quickly merge two layers of the same size using any of the transfer nodes in Combustion software; and enhanced paint tools including grids and rulers, Bspline in paint and new customized brushes.

    Autodesk Combustion 4 software for Mac is available now for a suggested

    retail price of $995. Upgrade pricing from Combustion 3 is listed at $249.

    Autodesk Cleaner 6.5 for Macintosh is the newest update to the company’s professional desktop application for encoding and optimizing video content for delivery formats ranging from the Internet and DVD to handheld mobile devices. Following on the heels of the release of Cleaner XL 1.5 for Windows, Cleaner 6.5 for Mac offers encoding support for Apple’s QuickTime 7 player, DivX 6.0, and Kinoma Producer, allowing widescreen MPEG-4 playback on Palm Powered handhelds and the Sony PSP video player. Also included is the Flix exporter from On2 Technologies, which allows compressionists to publish video in the Macromedia Flash-supported flv and .swf formats.

    Autodesk Cleaner 6.5 for Macintosh is available now for the suggested retail price of $599.00 (same price for Cleaner XL 1.5 for Windows). Upgrade pricing from Cleaner 6 Macintosh or Cleaner XL Windows to the current versions is

    $125.00, while upgrade pricing from Cleaner 4 or 5 to Cleaner 6.5 Macintosh or to Cleaner 1.5 XL Windows is listed at $179.00. More information on all products is available at www.autodesk.com.

  • Genius Grabs Porchlight’s Benjamin Bear for Home Vid

    In its efforts to build a U.S. licensing and merchandising brand for the internationally popular preschool animated series, The Secret World of Benjamin Bear, PorchLight Ent. has licensed home entertainment rights to Genius Products Inc. The deal follows on the heals of Porchlight’s acquisition of U.S. broadcast, video and merchandising rights from Canada’s Amberwood Ent., producer of Benjamin Bear.

    Aimed at kids 3-5, The Secret World of Benjamin Bear presents an enchanted place where teddy bears lead lives full of amazing adventures. In each episode, Benjamin Bear guides rookie teddy bear Howie through exciting escapades in their quest to bring happiness and comfort to kids, while trying hard to remember such ‘teddy bear rules,’ as not letting humans see them move.

    Under the new licensing deal, Genius maintains exclusive home video distribution rights in the U.S. for 9 half-hour episodes of the series, which has captivated young viewers throughout Canada, Europe, Asia and the Middle East. Commissioned by Family Channel Canada, the show has to date been licensed to more than 60 territories worldwide.

    Jonathan Wiseman, director of sales and marketing for Amberwood, comments, ‘The deal with Genius is the first step in feeding the expanding interest in the series throughout the United States. Clearly, our strategic alliance with PorchLight will quickly bring The Secret World of Benjamin Bear to the U.S. audience as a series and a brand.’

    Other brands currently handled on home video by Genius Products include Bazooka, Jay Jay The Jet Plane, National Lampoon, The Twilight Zone, Baby Genius, Tonka, My Little Pony, Curious George and Paddington Bear.

  • ION Fest Buggy for Mantis Parable

    The second annual ION Int’l Animation, Games & Short Film Festival concluded over the weekend at the UCLA Campus in Westwood with the awarding of best-of-the-fest kudos. This year’s event saw a total of 47 animated films screening and competing for ION’s top prize.

    Nabbing the Animation of the Year Award was Josh Staub’s The Mantis Parable, a short CG fable of longing, rebirth and redemption set in the insect world. The film has racked up a number of awards over the year, including Best Animation at the Palm Springs Int’l Festival of Short Films and the Winnipeg Int’l Film Festival.

    Staub worked on Mantis at night while holding down a day job as an art and visual design director for Cyan Worlds Inc., where he most recently helped develop the video game Uru: Ages Beyond Myst. He has worked in video game development for the past 11 years and notes on his website (www.themanisparable.com) that this film marks his first foray into linear storytelling.

    Last year’s Best Animation ION award went to Shane Acker’s dark, CG-animated adventure short, 9, which eventually caught the eye of famed filmmaker Tim Burton. Burton is now developing into a feature film with Acker set to direct.

    ION’s Game of the Year Award for 2005 was given to Activision’s /I>Call of Duty 2, while James P. Gleason’s Antebody left with Short Film of the Year. Meanwhile, Music Video of the Year went to Con Toda Palabra from Canadian filmmakers Brigitte Henry and Ralph Dfouni. More information on the ION Festival can be found at www.ionfilmfest.com.

  • Network LIVE Captures Live Gorillaz

    Gorillaz, a virtual rock band fronted by funky, computer-animated characters, brings its sold-out Nov. 1-5 live show to the web with help from Network LIVE, a multi-platform digital media company. The presentation combines live audio with other multimedia elements including video illustrations and animation footage created exclusively for the show by Gorillaz visual director Jamie Hewlett and his studio team at Zombie Flesh Eaters.

    The international cast of musicians who collaborated on the award-winning Gorillaz album, Demon Days, performed the entire track list to sold-out crowds at the Manchester Opera House in Manchester, England. Special Guests included Bootie Brown (Pharcyde), De La Soul, Roots Manuva, Martina Topley Bird and the Wynthenshawe Children’s Choir.

    Fans who missed the live performance can experience it via a custom-designed interactive environment on AOLMusic.com and on XM Satellite Radio channels.47 and 43. Rare footage includes animated interviews with the Gorillaz characters and never-before-seen video of the late Ibrahim Ferrer (Buena Vista Social Club) performing “Latin Simone” from Gorillaz self-titled debut album. Also included are three music videos: “Feel Good Inc.,” “DARE” and “Dirty Harry.” To link directly to the concert on AOL, go to http://www2.fanscape.com/networklive/redirects/gorillaz.aspx.

  • Simpsons Dominates WGA Noms

    FOX’s The Simpsons got a whole lot of love when The Writers Guild of America (WGA) released its list of nominees for its 2006 Television and Radio Awards. In fact, the long-running primetime toon was the only animated series to get any love at all from the guild.

    The animation category this year is completely filled out by Simpsons installments. Episodes getting the nod are: ‘The Father, The Son and the Holy Guest Star’ (The Simpsons), written byMatt Warburton, ‘The Girl Who Slept Too Little’ by John Frink, ‘Mommie Beerest’, by Michael Price, ‘See Homer Run by Stephanie Gillis, ‘Thank God It’s Doomsday’ by Don Payne and ‘There’s Something About Marrying’ by J. Stewart Burns.

    Curious snubs include fellow FOX comedy toons, Family Gu and American Dad, as well as standout newcomers such as Aaron McGruder’s The Boondocks on Cartoon Network’s [adult swim] and the network’s new hit kids’ show, Camp Lazlo, to name a few.

    The 2006 Writers Guild Awards recognize scripts that were originally broadcast between Dec. 1, 2004, and Nov. 30, 2005. The winners will be announced at the awards ceremonies on both coasts on Saturday, Feb. 4. The Los Angeles event will be held at the Hollywood Palladium, while the New York kudo fest is set for the Waldorf Astoria. A full list of nominees is available at www.wga.org/subpage_newsevents.aspx?id=1493.

  • Kong Top Banana at Box Office

    Kong may have emerged as king of the North American box office over the weekend, but his roar was a bit subdued. The $200 million vfx extravaganza was expected to be a major blockbuster but only mustered a $50 million weekend domestically. The remake by Peter Jackson and Universal Pictures pawed just north of $66 million since opening on Wednesday, performing well below industry expectations.

    King Kong got off to a slow start, earning less than $10 million on Wednesday. However, the pic got a much-needed weekend boost and saw solid returns coming in from overseas markets, where the film was No. 1 as well. Foreign moviegoers plunked down $80 million, bringing the film’s worldwide gross to an estimated $146 million. The family-friendly film’s cume should continue to climb over the holidays as kids get let out from school.

    The big ape’s major competition came from Disney’s and Walden Media’s adaptation of C.S. Lewis’ The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe. The fantasy flick remained strong in its second weekend with an estimated draw of $31 million, bringing its domestic gross to around $112 million.

    The weekend’s top five features three big vfx efforts. Warner Bros.’ Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire conjured up approximately $6 million in week five to ring in at No. 4 with behind the 20th Century Fox comedy The Family Stone. The fifth spot was claimed by Warner Bros.’ political thriller, Syriana, a film emerging as a major awards season contender.

    The Weinstein Co.’s animated feature, Hoodwinked!, also opened over the weekend in select threaters in Los Angeles in order to qualify for Academy Award consideration. The fractured fairy tale will roll out in fairly wide release on Jan. 13. Read more about the CG comedy, as well as the effects in King Kong, in the January issue of Animation Magazine.

  • Filmmaker Makes Waves with The Movies

    When Activision and Lionhead Studios released their latest simulation title, The Movies, they probably had no idea that the game would become an instrument for social commentary. Nevertheless, French designer Alex Chan took advantage of the title’s machinima capabilities to produce a short film that has been garnering international media attention for its take on the political climate that led to the wave of race riots that recently swept through parts of France.

    The Movies allows gamers to take control of a major motion picture studio, building it from the ground up and calling all the shots on their own flicks. Players try to stay ahead of the fierce competition by obtaining the best scripts and making sound business and creative decisions.

    Titled The French Democracy, Chan’s film was posted on the game’s official website (www.themoviesgame.com) on Nov. 22 and has since attracted the attention of such major news outlets as The Washington Post, Business Week and leading French publication 20 Minutes.

    More than a million users have logged onto The Movies site since its Nov. 8 launch. Most visitors come to watch the gamer-made movies, which now number more than 19,000 with new entries being uploaded each day. Players can easily post their creations from within the game while their consoles are connected to the Internet.

  • Hong Kong Int’l FILMART Set for March

    The Hong Kong Int’l Film & TV Market (FILMART) returns to Hall 5 of the Hong Kong Convention & Exhibition Centre March 20-23, 2006. Organized by the Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC), the annual event is held concurrently with the Hong Kong-Asia Film Financing Forum (HAF) and focuses on the latest trends in the Asian and international marketplace. Those encouraged to attend include film and TV producers and distributors, animation companies, broadcasters, cinema operators, festival organizers and other entertainment content and service providers.

    According to a survey commissioned last year by HKTDC, visitors and exhibitors ranked FILMART the most important film and entertainment industry event in Asia, followed by the Tokyo Film Market (TIFCOM) and the Pusan Film Market. Last year’s edition attracted more than 350 exhibitors and 2,800 visitors from the global entertainment industry. Participants from 42 countries showed up as organizers saw double-digit growth in the number of exhibitors and visitors from Europe and the U.S.

    HKTDC’s director of service promotion, Raymond Yip, comments, “FILMART represents a golden opportunity for International companies to explore the emerging business opportunities with Hong Kong as a gateway into the Chinese mainland, especially with the implementation of CEPA [(Closer Economic Partnership Agreement)].’

    A highlight of the three-day event is the Digital Entertainment Pavilion, which brings together companies specializing in animation, digital post-production, online games and edu-tainment software. Last year’s overseas participants included The Animation Council of the Philippines and Singapore Animators Connection.

    “We weren’t expecting such a huge turnout of international companies,” Grace Dimaranan, VP of the Animation Council of the Philippines, commented after the show. “So far we’ve met companies from France, Russia and Malaysia who are looking for TV content and are also interested in outsourcing 2D and 3D animation work to the Philippines.”

    The mart is open only to those working in the trade. Buyers who Register on or before Feb. 18, 2006, will receive free admission. The regular admission fee is $260 per person (HK$2000). The Hong Kong Convention & Exhibition Centre is located at 1 Expo Drive, Wanchai, Hong Kong (Harbour Road Entrance).

    More information on the fair and online registration can be found at www.hkfilmart.com/hkfilmart. The site also hosts an online screening room where visitors can catch trailers of some of the animated programs brought to the event by exhibitors. The new clips should be posted in January.

  • Bix Pix Brings Stop-mo to SNL

    Kelli Bixler, co-founder of Chicago-based clay animation studio BixPix, has informed us that her team has completed a short piece of animation that will air this weekend on Saturday Night Live. Airing at 11:30 on NBC, the Dec. 17 show will be hosted by Jack Black (King Kong), with musical guest Neil Young.

    Controversial radio personality Howard Stern is also scheduled to make an appearance during the broadcast, but it’s the animation we’re tuning in for. Bixler says she’s sworn to secrecy regarding many details of the piece, revealing only this: ‘It’s approximately 2 1/2 minutes of stop-motion animation. The theme is Christmas and it parodies the ol’ Suzy Snowflake style of animation, which is very simplistic.’

    Bix Pix previously worked for NBC on an award-winning commercial spot that celebrates the broadcaster’s 75 years of Memories on NBC. The clay-animated walk down memory lane from Bonanza to The West Wing won Bix Pix the Gold and Silver Plaque at the 2003 Chicago Int’l Television Awards, and was a finalist in the New York Film Festival. You can check out a clip at www.bixpix.com. The website also features a clip from the company’s new 35mm short, Red Planet Blues, produced in association with Mixed Emotions Prods.

  • No Monster Wednesday for Kong

    He can bust out of ‘escape-proof’ chains, but the Eighth Wonder of the World didn’t shatter any box office records on its first day in theaters. Peter Jackson’s remake of King Kong earned $9.7 million on Wednesday, disappointing Universal execs who were hoping for a performance to match the mid-week bow of Jackson’s last epic, The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King.

    The final installment in Jackson’s J.R.R. Tolkein trilogy adaptation, The Return of the King opened on a December Wednesday in 2003 and earned more than $34 million on day one before going on to grab $377 million in North America alone. Sony’s Spider-Man 2 still holds the record, however, hauling in just north of $40 million during its Wednesday debut in 2004.

    Universal is hopeful that business for Kong will pick up over the weekend, citing as an example DreamWorks’ Shrek 2, which was slow out of the gate but managed a stellar $108 million five-day take. But unlike the svelte, 93-minute cartoon, King Kong is saddled with a three-hour run time, which will limit the number of screenings each venue can squeeze into each day.

    King Kong is beating his chest in 3,568 theaters, more thn 100 fewer than last weekend’s champ, The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe from Disney and Walden Media. That film opened to $67 million, a realistic number for Kong to topple with its enticing CG animation and other effects work by Weta.