Animation Magazine

Author: Ryan Ball

  • Comcast, HIT Ent., PBS, Sesame Workshop Team for Preschool Channel

    A new, 24-hour, digital cable channel for preschool-aged children is on the way from Comcast Corp., HIT Ent. PLC, PBS and Sesame Workshop. The channel is scheduled for launch in the fall of 2005 and will be accompanied by a video-on-demand (VOD) service.

    The channel promises to offer a blend of classic and contemporary favorites selected from more than 4,000 episodes of PBS, Sesame Workshop and HIT shows, including Bob the Builder, Barney, Thomas & Friends and Angelina Ballerina. The companion VOD package will be available to cable companies in the U.S. beginning in early 2005, and will include more than 50 hours of programming for preschoolers and their families.

    Brian L. Roberts, chairman and CEO of Comcast, comments, "We’re committed to launching this new channel in a significant number of our markets, and we will work with other cable and satellite companies to reach as many customers as possible."

  • Nicktoons: Movin’ to EyeToy

    Gamers can now grab some screen time with some of their favorite cartoon characters in THQ’s Nicktoons: Movin’, the first Nickelodeon game for PlayStation 2 with EyeToy. The title is now available at retail outlets throughout North America.

    In Nicktoons: Movin’, players join hosts SpongeBob SquarePants and Patrick Star on screen by way of the motion-sensitive EyeToy USB camera, which plugs into the PlayStation 2 console. Rather than using a hand-held controller, players use their body movements to guide the action in 13 different mini-games, all based on popular Nickelodeon TV shows including SpongeBob SquarePants, The Fairly OddParents, Jimmy Neutron Boy Genius, Rocket Power and Danny Phantom.

    By wildly moving their arms in front of the EyeToy camera, fans can fix Cosmo’s and Wanda’s fish bowl, go for a drive with Mrs. Puff, help Timmy smash robots, go bowling with SpongeBob, aid Danny Phantom in trapping spooky ghosts, assist Jimmy Neutron with a high-powered rocket landing or play a game of street hockey with Otto. Up to eight people can play at a time.

    For more information on Nicktoons: Movin’ for PlayStation 2 EyeToy and Game Boy Advance, or the rest of THQ’s holiday lineup, go to www.thq.com.

  • Warner Bros. Casts Man of Steel

    Warner Bros. Pictures today confirmed rumors that obscure TV actor Brandon Routh has been signed to star as Superman in the upcoming film by X-Men director Bryan Singer. Word of Routh’s casting has been spreading over the Internet this past week but the studio has kept a tight lip until now.

    The 25-year-old Routh beat out thousands of other hopefuls following an exhaustive search that spanned the U.S., the U.K., Canada and Australia. He is expected to don the tights for principal photography in Australia early next year. Produced by Jon Peters, Bryan Singer and Gilbert Adler from a screenplay by Michael Dougherty and Dan Harris, the untitled pic is slated for a 2006 release.

    Singer issued a statement on his choice of a star, saying "Contrary to speculation, it was always my absolute intention to hire an unknown for this role. Brandon is an extremely fine actor who possesses the physical qualifications of Clark Kent/Superman. But he also embodies the legacy and history of this character in a way that makes me certain he’s the right choice."

    Nicholas Cage and Josh Hartnett were attached to the role at points in the film’s long, troubled history, which has seen a number of directors come and go. Brett Ratner, director of Rush Hour and Red Dragon, championed Guiding Light star Matt Bomer before the project was turned over to Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle helmer McG, who looked at a number of lesser-known actors.

    Routh’s television credits include stints on One Life to Live, Gilmore Girls, Will & Grace and Cold Case. He recently wrapped his feature debut in Quantum Ent.’s upcoming film Deadly, starring opposite Laura Prepon and Tess Harper.

  • Madonna, Besson Team for Arthur

    According to The Hollywood Reporter, Madonna has been cast as one of the lead voices in a CG-animated feature film directed by French action auteur Luc Besson (Le Femme Nikita, The Professional, The Fifth Element). Arthur is based on a series of children’s books written by Besson, who also wrote the screenplay and will produce through his Europa Corp.

    Arthur tells the story of a ten-year-old boy who plans to save his grandfather’s house by unearthing treasure hidden in the land of tiny people called Minimoys. Word is that Madonna will lend voice to a character named Princess Selenia, who travels with Arthur to a mysterious forbidden city. No other casting has been announced.

    The English-language French production reportedly has a price tag of $80 million and is slated for release in 2006. Europa is financing the film with help from government subsidies and international presales. A total of $9 million was raised through deals with French broadcasters TF1 and Canal Plus.

    Besson, who has been busy producing a full slate of features including the popular French Taxi series and The Transporter and its upcoming sequel, returns to the director’s chair for the first time since 1999’s The Messenger: The Story of Joan of Arc. For Arthur, he will mix 3D animation by French studio Buf Compagnie and live-action sequences.

    Madonna’s husband, director Guy Ritchie (Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, Snatch) is also working with Europa on a heist film titled Revolver, starring Jason Statham (The Transporter) and Ray Liotta (Goodfellas).

  • Nickelodeon Asia Adopts Kampung Boy

    Nickelodeon Asia is set to air episodes of Kampung Boy, an animated series based on the comic strip by world-renowned cartoonist Mohamed Nor Khalid, known professionally as Datuk Lat. The show, which won the Best Animated Television Series award at the Annecy Int’l Film Festival, will join the broadcaster’s lineup in November.

    Produced by Malaysia-based multi-media group Astro All Asia Networks (Astro), in conjunction with U.S.-based Matinee Ent. and pasi (Philippine Animation Studio Inc.) in Manila, Kampung Boy chronicles the adventures of Mat, a nine year old boy who lives in a traditional village tucked away in the lush jungle of Malaysia. The show tackles such themes as loyalty, family and ecology as Mat and his loved ones struggle to maintain traditional values in an ever-changing, technology-obsessed world.

    Broadcast arrangements were negotiated by Syahrizan Mansor, director of programming and acquisitions for Nickelodeon Asia with Frank Saperstein, exec. producer/creative director of pasi and Ira Tuffile, manager of Media Sales for the Astro Group.

    Lat’s cartoons and comic books have been popular in South East Asia and throughout the world for more than 20 years. For the series, he created the character designs and key artwork, and worked closely with Emmy-nominated producer/director Frank Saperstein to develop storylines and preserve the overall integrity of the franchise. Saperstein was responsible for all elements of production, regularly shuttling between facilities in Kuala Lumpur, Manila and Los Angeles.

  • Futurama’s Cohen, Ice Cube Rap Up Fox Pilot

    Daily Variety reports that Futurama co-creator and exec. producer David X. Cohen and rapper/actor Ice Cube (Barbershop, Anaconda) are teaming to produce a half-hour animated series for Fox Television. The broadcaster has ordered a pilot for Grandmaster Freak & The Furious 15, a comedy rooted in the burgeoning hip-hop scene of the 1980s.

    Set in Englewood, N.J., birthplace of pioneering rap label Sugar Hill Records, Grandmaster Freak will center on a 17-year-old high school student who leads an old-school rap crew. In addition to using vintage hits from the Sugar Hill Gang and other trailblazers, the series will incorporate original musical numbers. Ice Cube is likely to provide a voice but he will not play the lead.

    The show was created by Cohen, who will write and exec produce with Cube Vision, the production shingle of Ice Cube and his producing partner, Matt Alvarez. Alvarez and Cube also serve as exec producers.

    Cube Vision exec produced the hit film, Barbershop, and recently hooked up with State Street to develop a TV version for Showtime. Ice Cube will next appear in the Columbia Pictures holiday film, Are We There Yet?, the first pic under a partnership between Cube Vision and Revolution Studios.

  • Activision Develops X-Men Legends Sequel

    Fans of the recently released action role playing game, X-Men Legends, will be happy to know that Activision is developing a sequel with Raven Software. Based on the popular, 40-year-old Marvel superhero franchise, the game will continue the adventures of the band of mutant fighters of evil.

    According to Activision, the original X-Men Legends is on track to be the best-selling game in the franchise’s history. The title has struck a chord with gamers by challenging them to master the unique attributes of their favorite X-Men. Players create, customize and control teams of four mutants as they embark on a quest to stop the extinction of mankind.

    Ames Kirshen, director of video game development at Marvel, comments, "We are thrilled with the critical and consumer response to X-Men Legends. Marvel and Activision are committed to ensuring that the X-Men Legends series will continue to be a top-notch game franchise for years to come."

    There is no word yet on when the sequel is expected to arrive in stores. The first X-Men Legends is available worldwide for PlayStation 2, Xbox and GameCube.

  • ION Fest to Honor DPS Film Roman, Fleischer

    The ION Int’l Animation, Gaming and Short Film Festival will recognize the 20th anniversary of DPS Film Roman, the Emmy Award-winning animation studio behind the hit Fox shows The Simpsons and King of the Hill. The fest’s opening night gala, beginning at 7:30 p.m. on Oct. 28 at The Pacific Theatre in Culver City, Calif., will also feature the first-ever Max Fleischer Lifetime Achievement Award, presented this year to Fleischer Studios.

    Simpsons voice cast members Dan Castellaneta, Julie Kavner, Nancy Cartwright, Yeardley Smith and Hank Azaria will be on hand for the DPS Film Roman salute, as will King of the Hill stars David Herman, Kathy Najimy and Brittany Murphy. Nzinga Blake from Cartoon Network’s Fridays will also be among the celebrities in attendance. The opening night presentation will be immediately followed by a red-carpet after-party at Culver Hotel.

    "I’m honored that ION can launch itself as a festival by celebrating DPS Film Roman for 20 phenomenal years of cutting edge work," says festival founder Chris Davies. "This festival’s mandate is to reflect the brilliance and innovation of just such work. The worlds of animation and film are rapidly merging with games and ION sees this convergence as the future of content."

    The inaugural ION Animation, Games and Short Film Festival and Summit is being held at The Culver Studios and throughout downtown Culver City Oct. 28-31. The Culver Studios will host screenings of high-quality animation, short films, music videos and games by filmmakers and gaming companies from around the world. Other Culver City venues will house panel discussions and various other events.

    The three-day summit gives students, educators, creatives and executives a unique forum for exchanging ideas so they will be better positioned to meet the demands of the changing entertainment landscape. It also serves as a venue for gaming companies to introduce new products and technologies to eager audiences of early adopters.

    The festival will close on Oct. 31with a special Kid’s Day, featuring educational workshops and a special screening of Mainframe Ent.’s animated hit Halloween special, Scary Godmother.

    Registration will be held each day from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. at Culver Hotel, located at 9336 West Washington Blvd. in Culver City. To see the full schedule of events and to obtain passes and screening tickets, go to www.ionfilmfestival.com.

    As an Animation Magazine Reader, you can receive 20% off the regular price of tickets to the ION Film Festival. Simply go to www.ionfilmfestival.com and type in the code word: corp or mention us at the box office.

    You also have the chance to win 2 free screening passes! Send an e-mail (50 words or less) to webmaster@www.animationmagazine.net, telling us the most heart-wrenching or pathetic reason as to why you deserve to win.

    (Our version of the 1950s show Queen for A Day!)

    Your e-mail must be received by Thursday, October 21, at 12 noon PST. Include your phone number and mailing address. We will notify the winners by Friday, October 22.

  • Mattel, Disney Ask: Scene It?

    Mattel’s popular DVD-based trivia game, Scene It?, just got a bit more animated. Just in time for the holidays, the company has introduced a version devoted exclusively to Disney favorites. Disney Scene It? is now available at retail.

    Disney Scene It? combines traditional board game play with technology, featuring more than 600 movie visuals, hundreds of characters and 1,100 trivia questions for the whole family. Players are asked to test their knowledge of such Mouse House favorites as Fantasia, Old Yeller, Beauty and the Beast, Toy Story and Brother Bear.

    With the patented DVD Optreve technology, the Disney Scene It? DVD automatically shuffles the questions and deals them at random to keep the game fresh by eliminating repeats. This 3D multimedia match of memory, logic and Disney and Disney/Pixar knowledge is suggested for ages 6 and up, and retails for around $39.99.

  • Scholastic, Cartoon Network Ink Publishing Deal

    Children’s book publisher Scholastic has signed on to be the exclusive U.S. publisher of books based on four new original series from Cartoon Network. The new deal expands an existing partnership that began in 1999 with the release of books based on the cabler’s hit series The Powerpuff Girls. Scholastic plans to begin rolling the new titles out in the fall of 2005.

    The agreement includes publishing rights for Codename: Kids Next Door (girls 5-11), Foster’s Home for Imaginary Friends, (boys and girls 4-8) Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi (tween girls ages 7-11) and The Life and Times of Juniper Lee (tween girls ages 7-11).

    Now in its fourth season, Codename: Kids Next Door follows the adventures of five pint-sized super-spies who use homemade inventions to battle some truly odd villains. It is currently Cartoon Network’s second highest-rated show.

    The hot new Foster’s Home for Imaginary Friends centers on a unique friendship between a boy, his imaginary friend and the strange inhabitants of a very special boarding house. Its 90-minute premiere on August 13 was the best series premiere among key kids demographics in Cartoon Network history.

    Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi debuts Nov. 26. The series blends live-action and animation as it chronicles the fantastic adventures of two real-life Japanese rock stars.

    The Life and Times of Juniper Lee, set to premiere in March of 2005, tells the story of a regular 11-year-old with a very unusual job–fighting the forces of mischief and chaos that hide everywhere.

    Scholastic hopes the new titles continue a track record of success with Cartoon Network-branded fare. From 2000 to 2004, the publisher released more than one hundred Powerpuff Girls books in various formats and has sold more than 6.6 million copies.

  • Warner to Launch Atomic Betty on Home Vid

    Warner Home Video has inked a worldwide home video distribution agreement with Toronto-based Breakthrough Animation for the animated series Atomic Betty. The Canada-France co-production was created by Atomic Cartoons and co-produced with Breakthrough Media and France’s Tele-image Kids, in association with TELETOON Canada and with the participation of the Shaw Fund and the Canadian Television Fund. It began airing weekly on Cartoon Network in September.

    Under the terms of the agreement, Warner Home Video will distribute the first two seasons, consisting of 52 half-hour episodes, in the U.S. and most international home video markets.

    Atomic Betty employs Flash animation and some CG to chronicle the exploits of an extraordinary little girl from the Canadian town of Moosejaw Heights. To her friends and family, Betty is the sweet and brainy girl next door. But when the galaxy beckons, she sheds her humdrum persona and becomes Atomic Betty, Galactic Guardian and Defender of the Cosmos. The property was conceived by Atomic Cartoons principals Trevor Bentley, Mauro Casalese, Rob Davies and Olaf Miller.

    Commenting on the home video deal, Davies tells Animation Magazine Online, "We’re extremely happy because it’s been a really long road to get to this point. Obviously, Warner Home Video is the largest distribution company on the planet, so it’s a huge deal for us to be given the thumbs-up by them."

    The series is the first original production for Atomic Cartoons, which up to this point has been solely involved in providing animation services to clients. Davies tells us the studio is currently developing other properties as it continues to do service work and to produce the continuing adventures of Betty. He notes, "We’re hoping the success we’re having with Betty will send the positive message, ‘Hey, these guys not only have the ideas but they can also pull them off."

    Davies says and his colleagues would also like to be involved in DVD bonus features and other aspects of Atomic Betty’s home video presentation. "Our fingers are crossed," he comments. "It’s our baby, so we would like to be involved wherever we can. Atomic Cartoons has enjoyed terrific creative collaboration with our co-production partners, Breakthrough Animation and Teleimages Kids, and we are looking to expand on that model in other mediums and areas. We’ve animated Atomic Betty bumpers, movie trailers and commercials and are planning on being as actively involved as possible with the merchandising art and the licensees. The Joy Tasjien Marketing Group handles the master license and we’ve built a strong relationship with them to help bolster and maintain the ever-growing Betty brand. Video games is another area we’d like to be involved in and there are negotiations in place for that."

    The Warner Home Video agreement closely follows Breakthrough’s recent Atomic Betty partnerships with such industry leaders as Playmates (master toy license) and Penguin Books.

  • DVD Celebrates 40 Years of Rudolph

    It’s hard to believe that the most famous reindeer of all is turning 40 this year. As the perennial holiday classic Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer gets set for its 40th annual broadcast, Classic Media has released a special anniversary collector’s edition DVD. The Rankin & Bass stop-motion favorite will is also featured in the repackaged Original Television Christmas Classics three-disc gift pack.

    The new Rudolph DVD includes an interview with award-winning Rudolph producer Arthur Rankin, a segment including the Fame and Fortune song, and interactive Rudolph trivia game and the original TV promo. As an added bonus, Grammy Award-winning artists Destiny’s Child have recorded their own version of the special’s title song, which is included as a free CD single. The DVD lists for $16.98.

    The Original Television Christmas Classic three-disc gift set, now available as a new book-bound keepsake, includes such timeless favorites as Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, Frosty the Snowman, Frosty Returns, Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town and The Little Drummer Boy.

    Extras include an animated pencil test from the making of Frosty the Snowman, an interactive Frosty puzzle and Spanish-language versions of each feature. Also included is a free bonus CD that features twelve of the most popular holiday songs recorded by the Silver and Gold Singers, including A Holly Jolly Christmas, Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town, Put One Foot in Front of the Other, and We’re a Couple of Misfits. The disc set carries a suggested retail price of $39.98.

  • ANIMAX Helps Teens Cope with Chemo

    Los Angeles, Calif.-based animation studio ANIMAX has produced a series of six short animated webisodes titled Coping with Chemo for the Starlight Starbright Foundation. The pieces are aimed at helping teens with cancer deal with the impact chemotherapy has on their lives and their bodies, and can be found at www.slsb.org/chemo.

    Funded by the ESA Foundation, the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society and the Insurance Industry Charitable Foundation, the animated webisodes follow the lives of two young people–Isabel and Marcus–as they first learn they have cancer, then cope with the initial treatment and follow up. The three and a half minute-long installments include The Diagnosis, Telling Your Friends, Side Effects, When Your Hair Comes Out, Making Tough Decisions and Celebrating Your Last Treatments.

    ANIMAX created more than 20 minutes of animation using a hybrid combination of traditional techniques and Macromedia Flash. A commitment to making the episodes accessible to teens accessing the web from a dial-up connection imposed file-size constraints, but the team managed to create compelling visuals and characters.

    The voiceover talent and voice director donated their time to the project. Sessions were directed by seven-time Emmy Award winner Andrea Romano, who is now directing Justice League Unlimited and Teen Titans for Warner Bros. and Avatar for Nickelodeon. The voice of Marcus was performed by Greg Cipes, who has the lead in Disney’s upcoming animated feature, The Wild, and plays Beast Boy on Teen Titans. Kamali Minter provided the voice of Isabel. She plays one of the "Shortys" in DreamWorks Shark Tale, currently in theaters.

    For ANIMAX, Coping With Chemo was produced by Michael Bellavia and Tim Jones, with Al Rosson as animation supervisor. Rosson and Ed Frayna provided character designs for animators Sergey Maksimovich, Alexanrd Savchenko and Vladimir Vereschagin.

    Starlight Starbright Children’s Foundation is an international non-profit organization dedicated to brightening the lives of seriously ill children and their families through innovative programs that empower, educate, entertain, and inspire.

  • WWE Sues over Game License

    World Wrestling Entertainment Inc. (WWE) yesterday filed a civil lawsuit in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York alleging wrongdoing on the behalf of toy company JAKKS Pacific. The suit specifically targets a video game license held by the joint venture company operated by JAKKS Pacific and video game publisher THQ Inc.

    Charges lobbied against JAKKS Pacific and others include 14 counts of racketeering, bribery and money laundering. JAKKS Pacific denies any allegations and believes that it will be completely vindicated in the litigation. Other defendants in the suit include former WWE licensing agent Stanley Shenker & Associates (SSAI) and Bell Licensing.

    In response to the suit, THQ issued a statement saying that it is not directly accused of any wrongdoing in the complaint and is unaware of any illegal activities. The game publisher also states that it is committed to preserving its rights under the game license and feels that its relationship with the WWE is still mutually satisfactory.

    The lawsuit will have no effect on THQ games currently scheduled for release, including WWE SmackDown! vs. Raw, which is slated to ship on November 2.

    JAKKS Pacific designs and markets a broad range of toys and leisure products under such brand names as Flying Colors, Play Along, Road Champs, Remco, Child Guidance, Pentech, Trendmasters, Toymax, Funnoodle, Go Fly a Kite and ColorWorkshop.

  • Medal of Honor Goes to the Dogs

    Electronic Arts announced that the next chapter in its highly successful Medal of Honor series is slated to arrive on shelves in the spring of 2005. Developed by EA Los Angeles (EALA), Medal of Honor: Dogs of War will be released under the EA GAMES brand for Sony PlayStation 2, GameCube and Xbox.

    The acclaimed Medal of Honor franchise has been credited with pioneering the first person shooter WWII genre with its debut in 1999. Dogs of War promises to advance the series by introducing gamers to a new way of playing, while continuing to deliver a unflinching picture of warfare and its gut-wrenching brutality.

    The game transports players to 1942 as the Nazi war machine rages across a devastated European landscape. With the British on the brink, Lt. William Holt of the OSS is sent on a secret mission by order of the President of the United States. On his own, or with his squad, Holt is pivotal in helping to turn the tide in four of the most crucial battles leading to victory in Europe.

    As with the original Medal of Honor, producers sought counsel from numerous expert sources to make certain the game is historically accurate and as realistic as possible. The EALA development team continues to work closely with the Congressional Medal of Honor Society to ensure that Medal of Honor: Dogs of War reflects the ideals and integrity of the prestigious Medal of Honor.

  • Shrek Headed to Broadway

    According to Daily Variety, Oscar-winning director Sam Mendes (American Beauty, Road to Perdition) is heading up a Broadway stage adaptation of DreamWorks’ Shrek film property. Mendes will oversee the New York production through his Scamp Film & Theater shingle before turning it over to Jason Moore, the Tony-nominated director of the puppet musical, Avenue Q, in 2006.

    In leaping from the screen to the Great White Way, Shrek follows in the footsteps of such Disney animated features as Beauty and the Beast and The Lion King. Both of those stage adaptations met with enormous success on both coasts and are currently running.

    Bill Damaschke, head of creative production for DreamWorks Animation and a producer of Shark Tale, is listed as the studio supervisor. Developmental readings are expected to begin next year.

    Moore is also developing a live-action musical based on Disney’s The Hunchback of Notre Dame for ABC and Mendes is set to direct a screen version of Christopher Bond’s musical thriller, Sweeny Todd.

  • House of Moves Puts Video Mods in Motion

    If you’ve caught MTV2’s new animated series, Video Mods, you’ve seen some of today’s hottest music videos recreated by characters from best-selling video games. Getting those 3D game heroes and vixens to move like rock stars is the work of motion-capture studio House of Moves, a division of VICON Motion Systems.

    Video Mods uses motion derived from real performers to drive the 3D game characters. Motion capture sessions were done at House of Moves using the facility’s 120x60x24-foot motion capture stage and VICON motion-capture camera array. Singers, instrumentalists and dancers were captured to create a musical band setup and deliver life-like animation for application to characters and environments provided by game publishers such as Electronic Arts, Vivendi Universal Games, Bioware, Majesco and Take Two Interactive.

    Video Mods exec. producer and director Tony Shiff comments, "The data we record does not just approximate the motion of the professional musicians and actors we cast–it is their motion. It was great to be watching the final animated clips with some of the motion-captured band members and see the excitement when they saw authentic musician moves." He notes that the project began at House of Moves, which receives production company billing alongside his Big Bear Ent., when it became clear that the same techniques the studio was using on other projects could be applied to the more on-the-fly production style of music videos.

    The project involved four days of initial motion capture with VICON MCam2 cameras recording upwards of 600 shots, each lasting one to four minutes. Additional sessions were done for pick-ups using new top-of-the-line VICON MX40s.

    Recent Video Mods installments include Lil’ Jon’s “Get Low,” recreated by the video game Fight Club; Evanescence’s "Everybody’s Fool" via BloodRayne 2; the Fountains of Wayne’s “Stacey’s Mom” featuring The Sims 2; and the Von Bondies video “Cmon Cmon,” overhauled by Tribes: Vengeance. Other episodes feature the music of The Black Eyed Peas, New Found Glory, The Darkness, Christina Milian, Ying Yang Twins and The Vines, mixed with games such as SSX 3, Outlaw Golf 2, Jade Empire, Fight Night and Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude.

    The next episode of Video Mods can be seen on MTV2 on Saturday, Oct. 30, at 9:30 p.m. ET/6:30 p.m. PT.

  • Sparx Flies to L.A.

    Award-winning French animation and digital effects producer, Sparx, today announced that it is expanding in the U.S. market with the opening an office in Los Angeles. The new location will be managed by Laddie Ervin, Sparx’ new VP of business development for North America. Ervin is also the co-founder of the Los Angeles-based entertainment production company, Sparkshore Prods. LLC.

    Founded in 1995 and based in Paris, France, Sparx is one of Europe’s top 3D animation studios. The company employs 100 digital artists in Paris and 120 artists and programmers at its fully owned studio in Ho Chi Min City, Vietnam. Some of its more notable credits include the Emmy Award-winning children’s TV series Rolie Polie Olie, an award-winning CG movie trailer for Doug Chaing’s Robota and the award-winning children’s series, Zoe Kezako.

    Prior to joining Sparx and assuming responsibility for its L.A. operations, Ervin worked as a senior producer at video game giant Atari Inc. Before that, he served as the director of program development at the G4 television network, which recently fused with TechTV to form G4TechTV.

    Sparx CEO Jean-Philippe Agati comments, "The time is right to expand our operations to the U.S. and to offer our creative talent and expertise to Hollywood. With the company’s studios in Paris and Vietnam, Sparx can offer high-end animation and visual effects services at very attractive prices."

    Before his recent move to Sparx, Agati was the general manager of one of Europe’s largest interactive entertainment companies, Infogrames SA, which has taken on the Atari name. He most recently served as the head of production at Atari’s office in Santa Monica, where he managed such hit franchises as The Matrix, Unreal, Dungeons & Dragons, The Terminator and Godzilla.

  • Shrek 2, Dykstra Feted at Hollywood Film Fest

    The 8th Annual Hollywood Film Festival concluded Monday night with an awards gala ceremony at the Beverly Hilton Hotel. Among the honorees was DreamWorks’ Shrek 2, which received the special Hollywood Animation Award. Vis wiz John Dykstra was also honored for his pioneering work in visual effects from Star Wars to Spider-Man.

    Directed by Andrew Adamson (who co-directed Shrek with Vickey Jensen), Kelly Asbury and Conrad Vernon, Shrek 2 earned $435.6 million domestically to become the top-grossing animated film in history. The comedy sequel boasts an all-star voice cast that includes Mike Myers, Eddie Murphy, Cameron Diaz, Julie Andrews, Antonio Banderas, John Cleese, Rupert Everett and Jennifer Saunders.

    Shrek 2 was also nominated for the fest’s Hollywood Movie of the Year Award, but lost to Michael Moore’s controversial Fahrenheit 9/11, which was chosen by the public via online voting at the Yahoo! Movies and Entertainment Tonight websites. The DreamWorks toon was the only animated film among the nominees, which also included DreamWorks’ Collateral, Sony’s Spider-Man 2, New Market’s The Passion of the Christ, Fox SearchLight’s Napoleon Dynamite, Miramax’s Hero, Lions Gate’s Fahrenheit 9/11, Universal’s The Bourne Supremacy and Focus Features’ The Motorcycle Diaries and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.

    Nominated for the Golden Palm award at the Cannes Film Festival earlier this year, Shrek 2 is a frontrunner in this year’s Oscar race for Best Animated Feature.

    Dykstra studied industrial design at Long Beach State before hooking up with George Lucas to work on the groundbreaking 1977 blockbuster, Star Wars. For the film, he designed and built the first computer-controlled motion control system, dubbed the Dystraflex, which made the pic’s amazing outer space dogfight sequences possible. He then took his talents to TV with the expensive, Star Wars-like 1978 series, Battlestar Galactica, and went on to produce effects for such films as Lifeforce (1985), Batman Forever (1995), Stuart Little (1999), Spider-Man (2002) and Spider-Man 2 (2004). Dykstra is now at work on Sony Pictures’ Spider-Man 3, which is slated for release around 2007.

  • The Incredibles Goes Mobile

    As the highly anticipated Disney/Pixar animated feature, The Incredibles, nears its Nov. 5 release, the Walt Disney Co. is offering fans in the U.S. and abroad an array of wireless fare inspired by the film. The mobile content is now rolling out with major carriers worldwide.

    Available content includes several Incredibles games, each designed to optimize game play for different handset capabilities. The Incredibles Adventure is an action game designed specially for more robust handsets. Players maneuver Bob and Helen Parr, otherwise known as Mr. and Mrs. Incredible, to defeat the villain Syndrome. Players can seamlessly switch characters throughout the game, tapping each one’s unique powers to defeat enemies, solve puzzles and avoid traps.

    The Incredibles arcade-style game follows Violet, Bob and Helen’s shy daughter, as she battles flying robots to score points and earn extra lives, and an Incredibles 3D game is in development for later release.

    Other offerings include voice and polyphonic ringtones inspired by the film. Mr. Incredible’s tones, for instance, announce, "Phones Ringing. Yoohoo. Are you gonna answer it?" and "Hello? Yeah I’m Mr. Incredible."

    U.S. customers can download The Incredibles Fan Magazine, which allows users to view film and character information as well as purchase wallpapers, screensavers, character voice-tones and more.

    Other products available in international markets and planned for later release in the U.S. include 3D wallpapers, animated photo frames, calendar graphics, 40-voice polyphonic ringtones and promotional video trailers. More information on all products can be found at www.disneymobile.com.