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Is the world ready for some crazy World War II battles between Allied soldiers and Nazi-trained dinosaurs? That’s what Brown Bag’s L.A.-based animation label Icehouse and game developer 800 North are hoping. The two companies have teamed up with Metalocalypse creator Tommy Blacha to adapt the indie video game Dino D-Day into an animated series. The announcement was made by Icehouse creative director Darragh O’Connell. Blacha will exec produce the series with Icehouse’s Gregory R. Little and 800 North’s Abe Scheuermann.
The series will use Valve’s SFM software to simultaneously create the series and a new version of the game, which will share assets and be released side-by-side. Little brought the property to Icehouse based on his experience as producer of Deep, the previously announced animated feature film that also uses Valve’s SFM software.
“Abe and Brian created an awesome world that we’re going to have a great time expanding with Tommy’s help,” says Little. “We’re excited to use SFM to give fans multiple points of entry, not only via the game and series but also through fan-created content.”
Scheuermann & Ulrich created and produced the game independently using Valve’s Source game engine and released it successfully in 2011 on Steam, Valve’s game distribution platform. The game will be featured on Steam in a Free Weekend promotion starting Thursday, April 25, 2013 and continuing through the weekend with new maps and content released to players.
The game and series follow a team of Allied soldiers as they battle bloodthirsty Nazi-trained dinosaurs and each other’s obnoxious egos.
Scheuermann said, “We’re looking forward to bringing the comedy and action from the game into a narrative format, and we love Tommy’s ideas for that. We have always seen the Dino D-Day world as a funny alternate universe with the perfect match up: the Greatest Generation vs giant, prehistoric predators.”
Blacha has a history of success in animated comedy and has also written for live-action series including Late Night with Conan O’Brien and Da Ali G Show.
He said, “The first time I saw the Dino D-Day game I was hooked. It’s great working on things that are unique and off the wall like that. I love it!”
Production on the next version of the game is already underway, with series production expected to start before the end of the year.
Timmy and his troublesome godparents are back! Nickelodeon premieres the ninth season of the Emmy Award-winning animated series, The Fairly OddParents, on Saturday (May 4) at 9:30 a.m. The Fairly OddParents follows the magical adventures of 10-year-old Timmy Turner and his well-meaning fairy godparents who grant him wishes. After 12 years on the air, The Fairly OddParents continues to rank among the network’s top programs and reached more than 20 million K2-11 in 1Q13. The Fairly OddParents will air regularly on Saturdays at 9:30 a.m. on Nickelodeon.
“The Fairly OddParents exemplifies what has made Nickelodeon a leader in animation – innovative, amazingly funny, creator-driven content,” said Russell Hicks, President of Content Development and Production. “Kids have fallen in love with the magical world Butch Hartman has created and we are delighted to serve up a new season filled with fun and entertaining adventures for our audience.”
In the season nine premiere, “Turner & Pooch,” Mr. Crocker realizes that Timmy’s dog, Sparky, has magical powers. Eager to use the fairy dog’s powers to fulfill his own wishes, Mr. Crocker hypnotizes Sparky in an attempt to turn him against Timmy.
Now available for free on iTunes is the exclusive never-before-seen The Fairly OddParents documentary, The Making of Sparky: A DOG-umentary. Narrated by creator Butch Hartman, the “dog-umentary” provides fans with an inside look at how the newest addition to this magical family, Sparky, went from just an idea to the loveable talking fairy dog on TV. The “dog-umentary” and full episodes of The Fairly OddParents are available at bit.ly/11ihQx2.
The Fairly OddParents is created and executive produced by Nickelodeon hit-maker Butch Hartman. The animated series cast includes Tara Strong (Ultimate Spider-Man) as Timmy Turner, Susanne Blakeslee (Shrek the Third) as Wanda, Daran Norris (T.U.F.F. Puppy) as Cosmo, Grey DeLisle (T.U.F.F. Puppy) as Vicky, Carlos Alazraqui (Happy Feet) as Mr. Crocker and Matt Taylor (South Park, Open Season) as Sparky. The series is produced at the Nickelodeon Animation Studios in Burbank, Calif.
Butch Hartman began his animation career as an assistant animator on An American Tail. He created his own shorts for What a Cartoon!, and also wrote and directed episodes of Dexter’s Laboratory, Cow & Chicken and Johnny Bravo. Hartman joined Nickelodeon in 1998 where he created and produced several cartoon shorts for the Oh Yeah! Cartoons series, including The Fairly OddParents. Commemorating the 10th anniversary of the animated series, Hartman brought the series to life in the 2010 live-action/CG animated hit TV movie, A Fairly OddMovie: Grow Up, Timmy Turner! The series came to life once again with the 2012 holiday-themed sequel, A Fairly Odd Christmas, drawing 4.5 million total viewers. Hartman is also the creator of Nickelodeon’s animated series Danny Phantom and T.U.F.F. Puppy.
A new animated series based on Graham Roumieu’s books about the life and adventures of Bigfoot is being developed by FX Network and actor Seth Rogen, according to Deadline.com. Roumeiu’s pseudo autobiographies centers on a bipolar hopeless romantic Bigfoot that lacks the ability to properly express himself, living in both the human and animal world of Pine Falls but not quite fitting in to either one.
The show will be written and exec produced by Matt McKenna (American Dad), Rogen, Evan Goldeberg, Roumieu, the Jimmy Miller Co. and Floyd County Prods. Animation.
FX is seeking a good animated show to air with its hit adult series Archer. It also ordered animated comedy pilot Chosen, exec produced by Danny McBride, at the end of December.
New York’s School of Visual Arts has revealed the line-up of presenters for the awards ceremony which will cap off the 24th Annual Dusty Film & Animation Festival (dusty.sva.edu), taking place May 4-7. The awards ceremony will take place Tuesday, May 7 at 6:30 pm at the SVA Theatre and feature celebrity presenters from the worlds of film and animation.
Presenters include: actress Melissa Leo (Oscar winner, The Fighter) presenting the Outstanding Film Award; production sound mixer Chris Newman (three-time Oscar winner: The Exorcist, Amadeus, The English Patient) presenting the Sound Award; screenwriter Geoffrey Fletcher (Oscar winner, Precious) presenting the Screenwriting Award; editor Peter C. Frank (Dirty Dancing, The Verdict) presenting the Editing Award; NYWIFT president Alexis Alexanian presenting the New York Women in Film & Television Award; producer Rose Vincelli Gustine (producer for the Independent Filmmaker Project) presenting the IFP Award; animator Frank Gresham (Cartoon Network, MTV Productions) presenting the Traditional Animation Awards; producer and media entrepreneur Fred Seibert (founder of Channel Frederator) presenting the Stop Motion Animation Award; documentarian Lisa Jackson (Emmy winner, The Secret Life of Barbie) presenting the Outstanding Documentary Award; and media personality Valerie Smaldone emcees the awards. Additional presenters are to be announced.
The Dusty Film & Animation Festival was established with the mission of introducing films made by BFA Film, Video & Animation Department thesis students to a wider audience, and was named after SVA Founder Silas “Dusty” H. Rhodes. This year’s headlining sponsors are: AbelCine; Act Zero Films; Adorama Rental Company; AJA Video Systems; Animation Magazine; Avid Technology, Inc.; B&H Photo; Bryan Singer; CAVA – SVA Computer Store; Channel Frederator; Emmett/Furla Films; Feature Systems/Kits and Expendables; Foto Care; Gotham Sound & Communications, Inc.; Independent Filmmaker Project (IFP); Machinima, Inc.; National Board of Review; New York Women in Film & Television; Nice Shoes; Offhollywood; Rota6; Scheimpflug; and SCS Agency, Inc. One hundred percent of the sponsors’ donations will benefit thesis students in the form of grants and in-kind gifts.
After a week of competing internet rumors, Twitch Film has triumphantly announced confirmation of their hint at a live-action version of Ghibli Studios’ anime classic Kiki’s Delivery Service, based on the popular novel by Kadono Eiko. The follow up report cites Japanese news outlets Sports Nippon and Sports Hochi as confirming both the project and that director Shimizu Takashi (The Grudge, Ju-On) is on board. They additionally note that 16-year-old figure skater Koshiba Fuka has been cast as the lead.
The rumors were initially dismissed after a statement from Ghibli that “We have nothing to do with it” was interpreted as a denial that it was happening at all. The statement is clarified in the fact that the story does not belong to Ghibli.
The novel written by Eiko and illustrated by Akiko Hayashi was first published by Fukuinkan Shoten in 1985; its popularity lead to four more books, the most recent one released in 2009. The story follows Kiki, a young witch whose mother is also a witch but whose father is merely human. Upon turning 13, Kiki must spend a year on her own in a town without other witches, accompanied by her cat JIji, and use her magic abilities to earn a living. The novel inspired a stage musical and manga series in addition to the Hayao Miyazaki film.
While Miyazaki’s animated take used only the first book for source material, acclaimed horror helmer Takashi’s take will reportedly delve into the events of the first two books and go deeper into Kiki’s story.
The hotly anticipated return of Doc Hammer and Jackson Publick’s hit Adult Swim series The Venture Bros. has been pushed to June 2 from its originally announced May 19 launch. The season will still kick off with a two-episode premiere airing at midnight on the new date.
According to AS: The fifth season of The Venture Bros. picks up moments after the stunning climax of season 4 and hits the ground running for a season of globe-trotting adventure and stay-at-home suspense. But no matter where it runs—from the steamy jungles of Central America, to the sparkling sands of the Greek Islands, to the seedy back alleys of Tangier, to the jagged cliffs of By-Golly Gulch—the Venture family can’t escape the treachery of enemies old, new, and within.
The new season of the 2D animated series is being produced by L.A.’s Titmouse, Inc. and remains written, directed and exec produced by Publick and Hammer. You can learn more about the show and the new season in our May ’13 issue article.
You’re a new animated comedy. Here it is, Friday night, and you’re excited. It’s going to be a big evening for you.
Your audience doesn’t know much about you, but she’s excited, too. Maybe she found you online. Maybe a friend hooked you up. Either way, you’ll soon be sitting across from each other for the evening, the lights low, and even if place is crowded, it’s going to be just you and her.
It’s the next morning. She can’t stop thinking about you. She laughs remembering something you said. She’s telling all her friends about you, even her work friends. Before you know it she’s taking you home to her family over Christmas. She’s in love!
Or instead it goes like this: She’s fidgety all night; doesn’t laugh at your jokes. She goes home exhausted, and when her roommate asks her how it was she doesn’t want to talk about it. It’s so unfair! You know deep down you’re a good movie. You have good ideas, you have a good heart. And you blew a ton of money to look your best. What did you do wrong?
If you’re the producer or writer of an animated feature, you’ve invested a lot in this night. What dating tips could someone give you to improve your luck? Here are a few:
Don’t waste her time. Don’t get so caught up in being witty or good looking that the night is half over and she still can’t figure out what you’re about. Tell her your dreams and goals right away. There’s nothing more charismatic than someone who knows exactly what they want and says so. Does your hero have a big problem (like Toy Story)? Or a big dream (Kung Fu Panda or Ratatouille)?
Either way, make sure you know exactly what that goal is for your hero. Then say it simply, and say it early if you want her to become emotionally invested.
Picture this: She sits down wanting to know more about you. She’s expecting a little small talk to get the evening rolling. Instead you say your wife was killed suddenly and now your handicapped son has gone missing. You’ll cross heaven and earth to find him—he’s all you have. She is riveted. Naturally—you’re Finding Nemo.
Lady and the Tramp
Keep her laughing. Start with some humor—and don’t lose your sense of humor later. Even if you end up talking about some pretty heavy stuff. Humor is a magic key that will keep the audience emotionally open to you during the tougher parts, and actually let you go deeper without it ever getting dreary. She came hoping for an emotional connection with you. Humor can help get you there.
Take her someplace she’s never been. She’s already gone to the Serengeti and under the sea. So take her to a miniature Western town populated by strange desert animals. And keep peppering the night with little surprises. Create a shark attack, but then have the sharks turn out to be vegetarians. Turn your heroine’s mom into a bear.
Date age-appropriately! Hey, do what you want in your private life. But in movies, be a stickler about the demographics. Say you have a successful TV brand for kids four to six, and now you’re making the leap to the big screen. In making a bigger movie don’t accidentally make a more grown-up movie. Be sensitive. If your movie’s about little bunnies making it to the big city for the first time, don’t scare the droppings out of your tiny fans because you feel you have to fill the big screen with excitement.
Shrek
Let her know what you stand for. What are your values—or, in movie terms, what’s your theme? Is your theme that love conquers all? Or that we must learn to let go? Your theme is the value system that ultimately will organize your whole story and give you that satisfying ending she’ll remember—her good night kiss. In Shrek, it’s that love trumps beauty. That ending plants a whopper on her she won’t soon forget. Why? Because the movie knew its theme and said it with confidence.
I find this little “date” analogy fun—and useful, because it focuses your attention where it should be: on that person in the seat facing you. Remember, you invited her, and you’re asking her to stay there for 90 minutes. Are you giving her enough reason to? If you are, it could be the romance of a lifetime.
Mike de Seve is a former staff director at DreamWorks Feature Animation and one of the original Beavis and Butt-Head series and feature directors. He is currently creative director of Baboon Animation, a group of multi-Emmy-winning, Oscar-nominated writers and directors based in New York. Write him at mike@baboonanimation.com.
Don’t worry, there isn’t going to be a science quiz at the end of this week’s blog. The “DNA” in question is the great, and unfortunately late, Texas-based animation studio that was responsible for the hit TV show and feature Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius, and the 2006 film The Ant Bully. DNA Productions (the name was derived from its founders’ names, John A. Davis and Keith Alcorn…D ‘n A…get it?) followed a life-path that has occurred all too often in recent decades: a small, regional commercial house works its way up to a national profile, then has some major successes, and next thing you know, the bubble bursts.
I first discovered DNA through the cartoons that introduced them to most toonheads, Nanna & Lil’ Puss Puss, the short, raucous, edgy adventures of an old woman and her not-to-be-trusted cat.
What made the series so pure was that it was not done for any client, but rather made by the filmmakers––Davis, Alcorn and Paul Claerhout––for their own kicks. Back in 1993, I spoke with D and A about the Nanna cartoons, which were then starting to make a splash on the festival circuit. “The first two or three we did were down-time projects, things for our own amusement,” John Davis told me, adding:
“We didn’t really know what we were going to do with them other than show our friends and laugh at them. We used to watch Rocky and Bullwinkle as kids, and we’re up against the same problems they were up against, which is producing inexpensive animation and yet having it be entertaining. So you design it to be just funny to look at, even if it doesn’t move a whole lot.”
Nanna & Lil’ Puss Puss
The black-and-white cartoons recall the single-line look of Tom Terrific. As for the outrageous content––in one cartoon, Nanna dies and goes to Heaven (where she meets John F. Kennedy, exposed brains and all), but is sent back to Earth, only to discover that Puss Puss has eaten her leg––Keith Alcorn noted that the series was drawing surprising fans:
“It’s funny how you can get away with things in live action that’s just too offensive if it’s animated. But people that I wouldn’t think would care for fourth grade boy’s bathroom humor, they love it! They love the theme song, which is one of the silliest songs ever written. Every time we got to post a new episode of Nanna and Lil’ Puss Puss, as soon as I walk in the door, they’ll start singing it to me, and yelling ‘Mother of God!’ through the building.” [“Mother of God!” is Nanna’s catchphrase.]
DNA may be gone, but the cartoons live on through YouTube. D and A remain active as well, having teamed most recently for Nickelodeon’s Planet Sheen for O Entertainment. Whether Nanna & Lil’ Puss Puss was ahead of its time, or right on time, and a harbinger of things to come, is a topic for discussion. But these days, the very notion of making a whole series of cartoons just for the sheer holy hell of it can elicit only one response: “Mother of GOD!”
Following in the footsteps of Wallace and Gromit, another popular Aardman character is getting ready for its big movie adventure. The Bristol-based animation studio announced today that its teaming up with StudioCanal to launch a new Shaun the Sheep feature for spring of 2015. The stop-motion animated feature (yay…it’s not CG!) will be written and directed by Mark Burton (Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit) and Richard Starzak. StudioCanal is financing and will distribute the film in the UK, France, Germany, Australia and New Zealand.
In the movie, Shaun’s mischief inadvertently forces the Farmer to leave the farm, so Shaun, Bitzer and the rest of the flock will have to plan a trip to the big city to rescue him.
“Shaun and his friends have a massive global following,” exec chair and co-founder of Aardman David Sproxton told the BBC. “We are very excited about being able to put them into a bigger adventure for the big screen.”
The wooly star first made his debut in Nick Park’s Oscar-winning short A Close Shave. Shaun was then given his own preschool animated series on the CBBC in 2007, and the show has been a huge hit in 170 countries since then. A spin-off of the show, Timmy Time, has also been hugely popular since its debut in 2009.
Aardman’s previous theatrical expeditions were: Chicken Run (2000), Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit (2005), Flushed Away (2006), Arthur Christmas (2011) and last year’s The Pirates! Band of Misfits.
South Africa’s Triggerfish Animation Studios announced this week that Steve Buscemi (Boardwalk Empire) and Anika Noni Rose (The Princess and the Frog) have joined the voice cast of its upcoming feature Khumba. The 3-D, CG-animated feature, which will make its debut at the Annecy Festival in June, also showcases the voice talents of Liam Neeson, Laurence Fishburne, Anna-Sophia Robb, Jake T. Austin, Loretta Devine and Richard E. Grant.
Buscemi, who has voiced numerous animated characters in features such as Monsters, Inc., Charlotte’s Web, Monster House and Hotel Transylvania, plays the colorful vagabond character Skalk in Khumba. He will next be heard reprising his role as the voice of Randall Boggs in Pixar’s Monsters University. Noni Rose joins the cast as Lungisa, Khumba’s mother and wife of Fishburne’s character, Seko.
Khumba tells the story of a half-striped Zebra (Austin) who is blamed for a severe drought by his superstitious herd. He leaves his home in search of the magic waterhole where legend has it the first Zebras got their stripes. Teaming up with an overprotective, sassy wildebeest (Devine) and a self-obsessed ostrich (Grant), this plucky young zebra meets an array of wacky characters in an unforgettable adventure through the Great Karoo to earn his stripes.
The original story was penned by Triggerfish writers Raffaella Delle Donne and Anthony Silverston in consultation with Jonathan Roberts, co-writer of The Lion King. Silverston is also the director. Stuart Forrest of Triggerfish Animation Studios (Zambezia) produced the feature. The film is represented internationally by Edward Noeltner’s Cinema Management Group. Millennium Entertainment will be releasing the film in the US later this year.
“With his trademark voice, Steve Buscemi took the character of Skalk in a new and exciting direction,” says Edward Noeltner, president of Cinema Management Group, who will be bringing the film to the Cannes market in May. “Anika Noni Rose as Khumba’s mother brought a wonderful sense of warmth and tenderness to her character of Lungisa. We couldn’t be more thrilled to have them both onboard to complete the voice cast for Khumba.”
Stuart Forrest, CEO of Triggerfish Animation, adds “We are continuously impressed with the amount of gifted actors that our film has attracted. Buscemi brings a unique skill set to Khumba and the voice work he’s recorded gives us a great deal of humor in the film. Anika Noni Rose likewise brings alive her character in a way that not many could.”
Ever since its debut in 1999, French studio Xilam’s high-energy animated series Oggy and the Cockroaches has been an audience favorite in many regions of the world. This year, the Tex Avery-inspired characters will take their adventures to the big screen in a feature that will premiere at the Annecy Festival in June, and then will be released in French theaters on August 7.
Written and directed by series veteran Oliver Jean-Marie, Oggy and the Cockroaches: The Movie (Oggy et Les Cafards: Le Film) will chronicle the adventures of a blue cat named Oggy, who is constantly tormented by a trio of cockroaches named Joey, Dee Dee and Marky. The 2D animated pic is exec produced by Xilam founder and exec producer Marc Du Pontavice (Shuriken School, Les Daltons, Lucky Luke)
Outside of France, the series has also generated a big audience in Asia Pacific. The new season of Oggy and the Cockroaches, which is co-produced by Cartoon Network Asia finds Oggy head over heels in love with newcomer Olivia, his pretty next door neighbor, while pesky roaches, Joey, Marky and Dee Dee do their best to wreak havoc on his home.
Disney Channel’s live-action sitcom Good Luck Charlie will have some unusual guests drop by for its season four premiere as Kermit the Frog, Miss Piggy and more Muppet pals pay a visit. The episode will air at 7:30 p.m. this Sunday, April 28 on Disney.
In the episode, the Duncan family decides to build their dream house after there is infested with termites. Everyone is on board except Charlie (Mia Talerco). The Muppets come in during a dream Teddy (Bridgit Mendler) has in which the felted friends help her realize she wants to stay in the family home. Funnyman Fozzie Bear and Animal will also appear, and an original Muppets song will be featured. Check out this preview of the song from Disney Channel:
The organizers of the SIGGRAPH 2013 Technical Papers program have revealed details of what those looking for the latest in scholarly work related to computer graphics and interactive techniques can look forward to at the 40th conference and exhibit, taking place July 21-25 at the Anaheim Convention Center.
“Computer Graphics is a dynamic and ever-changing field in many ways,” says Marc Alexa, SIGGRAPH 2013 Technical Papers Chair from Technische Universität Berlin. “The range of ground-breaking papers presented at SIGGRAPH is getting broader every year, now also encompassing 3D printing, and fabricating realistic materials as well as generating ever more realistic images of complex phenomena.”
115 technical papers out of 480 submissions were accepted this year, representing an acceptance rate of 24 percent (one percent higher than 2012). The selected papers were chosen by a distinguished committee of academia and industry experts. This year’s Technical Papers program also includes conference presentations for 37 papers published this year in the journal ACM Transactions on Graphics (TOG).
Here are some highlights of the program:
OpenFab: A Programmable Pipeline for Multi-Material Fabrication
Authors: Kiril Vidimce, Szu-Po Wang, Jonathan Ragan-Kelley and Wojciech Matusik, Massachusetts Institute of Technology CSAIL
OpenFab is a programmable pipeline for synthesis of multi-material 3D printed objects that is inspired by RenderMan and modern GPU pipelines. It supports procedural evaluation of geometric detail and material composition, using shader-like fablets. It is implemented in a streaming fashion within a fixed memory usage target.
Opacity Optimization for 3D Line Fields
Authors: Tobias Günther, Christian Roessl, and Holger Theisel, Otto-von-Guericke-Universität Magdeburg
For visualizing dense line fields, this method selects lines by view-dependent opacity optimizations and applies them to real-time free navigation in flow data, medical imaging, physics, and computer graphics.
AIREAL: Interactive Tactile Experiences in Free Air
Authors: Rajinder Sodhi, University of Illinois; Ivan Poupyrev, Matthew Glisson, Ali Israr, Disney Research, The Walt Disney Company
AIREAL is a tactile feedback device that delivers effective and expressive tactile sensations in free air, without requiring the user to wear a physical device. Combined with interactive graphics and applications, AIREAL enables users to feel virtual objects, experience free-air textures and receive haptic feedback with free-space gestures.
Bi-Scale Appearance Fabrication
Authors: Yanxiang Lan, Tsinghua University; Yue Dong, Microsoft Research Asia; Fabio Pellacini, Sapienza Universita’ Di Roma, Dartmouth College; Xin Tong, Microsoft Research Asia
A system for fabricating surfaces with desired spatially varying reflectance, including anisotropic ones, and local shading frames.
Map-Based Exploration of Intrinsic Shape Differences and Variability
Authors: Raif Rustamov, Stanford University; Maks Ovsjanikov, École Polytechnique; Omri Azencot, Mirela Ben-Chen, Technion – Israel Institute of Technology; Frederic Chazal, INRIA Saclay – Île-de-France; and Leonidas Guibas, Stanford University
A novel formulation of shape differences, aimed at providing detailed information about the location and nature of the differences or distortions between the shapes being compared. This difference operator is much more informative than a scalar similarity score, so it is useful in applications requiring more refined shape comparisons.
Highly Adaptive Liquid Simulations on Tetrahedral Meshes
Authors: Ryoichi Ando, Kyushu University; Nils Thuerey, ScanlineVFX GmbH; and Chris Wojtan, Institute of Science and Technology Austria
This new method for efficiently simulating fluid simulations with extreme amounts of spatial adaptivity combines several key components to produce a simulation algorithm that is capable of creating animations at high effective resolutions while avoiding common pitfalls like inaccurate boundary conditions and inefficient computation.
Visit s2013.siggraph.org for more information on this year’s event.
VFX company Double Negative has launched Double Negative TV, a new division of Dneg dedicated to visual effects creation for television.
Dneg TV will be headed up by 20-year VFX veteran Jonathan Privett, previously head of Film & TV/VFX supervisor at Rushes, VFX producer Louise Hussey and VFX supervisor Hayden Jones. Between them they have over 50 years of success in VFX for television, delivering high-end visuals for major broadcasters in the UK and USA, including the BBC, ITV, Kudos, Discovery, Red Planet, HBO and ABC.
“Television drama continues to break new ground and offer fantastic creative challenges and the government’s recent instigation of 25 percent tax breaks to encourage additional US and UK inward investment into high end TV Drama, means that it is the perfect time to launch Dneg TV,” says Dneg managing director Alex Hope.
“Our focus will be solely on TV, and we will be applying and leveraging the technologies and talent from Dneg in a way that makes it appropriate for TV VFX time frames and budgets,” Privett commented. “It’s an exciting time for TV VFX and we’re very much looking forward to setting up in our new home at Dneg.”
The first project Dneg TV will work on will be Ridley Scott’s The Vatican for Showtime. Among the recent features Double Negative has contributed to are The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, Rush, Man of Steel, Fast and Furious 6, Les Miserables and Skyfall.
Not even a Lufthansa airlines strike could keep FMX 2013, the renowned conference on animation, vfx, games and transmedia, from starting Tuesday (April 23) in Stuttgart, Germany. An anticipated 3500 attendees from around the globe, including heavy-hitters from Pixar, Autodesk, Ubisoft, industry professionals, students and enthusiasts arrived for an array of panels, workshops, screenings and discussions to explore the impact of the latest developments, trends and risks of the digital age as they pertain to this year’s theme “Lean, Smart and Agile.”
Some of the day’s highlights were the transmedia keynote address from acclaimed children’s best-selling German author Cornelia Funke (The Thief Lord, Inkheart). For her, the main theme was about using technology as a companion to traditional methods of storytelling. In conjunction with Guillermo del Toro’s Mirada Studios, she and producer Andy Merkin created an interactive app called MirrorWorld for the iPad. It’s comprised of all her Reckless books and creates a visual digital experience for readers. The app enables them to discover more about the story, characters and the best-selling author’s rich, magical world.
Funke described the process of working with Mirada as a blending of the old craft and new craft coming together to create something new.
“I wanted them to build me a ’breathing book,’ something we could invent together,” she said. “The app would fall in between a game and a movie. For adults and not for children.”
“We’re using technology to further enhance the narrative,” added Merkin.
The relationship with Mirada allowed Funke to explore corners of her literary world she had never seen before. The studio suggested themes and ideas for the app closely based on the books. She then wrote five short stories, which were developed into the interactive content.
Cornelia Funke
“As an illustrator and writer, creating the app opened up lots of creativity and inspiration.”
Like most novelists who have watched their work undergo the studio film development process and be turned into, as Funke put it, “…a movie experience that neither explored nor taught anything about her story’s world,” she found the transmedia project deeply satisfying. She participated in all aspects of creative control. From conception to cover art to packaging., MirrorWorld turned out exactly how she wanted it to be.
Christophe Hery, senior scientist at Pixar Animation Studios, and curator of the conference’s lighting track for the past ten years, offered another perspective on the conference theme.
“Technology has made it possible to work faster and more creatively. Images have become artistically richer. With the right tools, work can be done economically. If done well, we can have it all and be lean, smart and agile.”
He also saw FMX as a great opportunity for students and professionals to be exposed to more ideas and to bring about change in the related fields.
“It’s not just about witnessing change and the trends but participating in change.”
In the afternoon, Hery presented a talk on innovative lighting models and rendering methods for the new Pixar short The Blue Umbrella.
The Mackevision demo booth attracts tech aficionados at FMX 2013.
A bustle of activity went on at the event’s Recruitment Hub where talent scouts from international animation and VFX companies, game studios and ad agencies reached out to future employees. Armin Pohl, CEO of Mackevision Medien Design, the premier producer of breathtaking CG visualization for car companies like Mercedes Benz, shared his company’s perspective on the industry’s developments as it applies to FMX’s theme.
“We offer smart solutions to difficult questions.”
He began in the field 18 years ago as a 3D compositor in a classical video production house, which created films and commercials for car company clients. He experienced firsthand how economic changes had affected the automotive landscape.
“2008 was a bad year for the car industry. We had to devise ways to be cost efficient, smarter and faster while using the full force of CG technology to deliver the best work on the market.”
When asked his views on the impact of cost-cutting and streamlined technologies as pertains to the current VFX crisis, he expressed a sage point-of-view.
“Automatization is neither good nor bad, but a natural evolution.” However, he reflected there will always be demand for highly skilled people to take care of work quality and storytelling. Technological advancement must still resonate with people to matter. “It’s all about emotion, still connecting us to the rest of the species,” he said.
The most poignant part of the day came from Rhythm and Hues’ compositing supervisor Chris Kenny, as he began his talk on the “unfilmable” Life of Pi. “We’re still here but we’ll never be the same,” he said, referring to the companies recent financial troubles and subsequent sale to Prana Studios. He then went on to deliver fascinating insight into the problem solving and VFX pipeline involved to create the company’s visually arresting work for the Oscar-winning movie.
FMX attendees test the new Plop the Croc game, “Rollin’ Wild: The Game.”
The Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences is planning a special evening dedicated to the visual effects magic of Ang Lee’s Oscar-winning feature Life of Pi. Hosted by Academy governor Bill Kroyer, the “Deconstructing Pi” event will be held on Monday, May 6 at 7:30 p.m. at the Academy’s Samuel Goldwyn Theater in Beverly Hills.
Oscar-winning visual effects artists Bill Westenhofer, Erik-Jan De Boer and Donald R. Elliott, Oscar-winning cinematographer Claudio Miranda, previsualization supervisor Brad Alexander and Oscar-nominated editor Tim Squyres will be on-hand to present behind-the-scenes footage and clips and to discuss some of the special techniques used to create the film’s stereoscopic 3-D magic. Topics will include shot concepts, previsualization, location design, depth scripting and the complexities of combining live-action plates with extensive visual effects.
Doors open at 6:30 p.m. and all seating in unreserved. Ticket prices are $5 general admission/$3 for Academy members and students with a valid ID. To buy tickets online, visit www.oscars.org.
Nine animated features from around the world will be competing for the prestigious Cristal Award at the Annecy Animation Festival this June.
The features, as reported by Variety today are (in alphabetical order):
2096: A Story of Love and Fury
Directed by: Luiz Bolognese (Buriti Films, Gullane, Brazil)
The Apostle
Directed by: Fernando Cortizo (Artefactor Productions, Spain)
Arjun: The Warrior Prince
Directed by: Arnab Chaudhuri (UTV, Disney, India)
Berserk Golden Age Arc II: The Battle of Doldrey
Directed by: Toshiyuki Kubooka, Michael Sinterniklaas(Lucent Pictures, Studio 4°C, Warner Bros., Japan)
Jasmine
Directed by: Alain Ughetto (Les Films du Tambour de Soie, France)
Khumba
Directed by: Anthony Silverston (Triggerfish, South Africa)
Legends of Oz: Dorothy’s Return
Directed by: Dan St. Pierre and Will Finn (Summertime Ent., U.S.)
My Mommy is in America and She Met Buffalo Bill
Directed by: Marc Boréal & Thibaut Chatel (Label Anim, Melusine, France, Luxembourg)
Pinocchio
Directed by: Enzo D’Alo (Cometa Films, Iris Productions, 2d3D, Walking the Dog; Italy, Luxembourg, France, Belgium)
As previously announced, Disney/Pixar’s Monsters University is the festival’s opening movie. Other U.S. titles screening out of competition include Chris Sullivan’s Consuming Spirits, Kevin Schreck’s Persistence of Vision and Don Hertzfeldt’s It’s a Beautiful Day. Cartoon Network’s Brian Miller, director Robert Morgan and producer Didier Brunner of Les Armateurs are this year’s feature film jurors.
Here is the complete list of animated features that are screening outside the competition:
After School Midnighters
Directed by: Hitoshi TAKEKIYO (Japan)
Aya de Yopougon
Directed by: Marguerite ABOUET, Clément OUBRERIE (France)
Blood-C: The Last Dark
Directed by: Naoyoshi SHIOTANI (Japan)
Consuming Spirits
Directed by: Christopher Sullivan (U.S.)
El Santos vs la Tetona Mendoza
Directed by: Alejandro Lozano LOZANO (Mexico)
Gusuko-Budori no Denki
Directed by: Gisaburo SUGII (Japan)
It’s Such a Beautiful Day
Directed by: Don Hertzfeldt (U.S.)
One Piece Film Z
Directed by: Tatsuya Nagamine (Japan)
Persistence of Vision
Directed by: Kevin Sschreck (U.S.)
Sakasama no Patema
Directed by: Yasuhiro Yoshiura (Japan)
The Legend of Sarila
Directed by: Nancy Savard (Canada)
The Snow Queen
Directed by: Maxim Sveshnikov, Vladlen Barbe (Russia)
Tito on Ice
Directed by: Max Andersson, Helena Ahonen (Sweden)
Among the other special screenings are Universal/Illumination’s Despicable Me 2 and Olivier Jean-Marie’s Oggy and the Cockroaches. The 37th edition of the festival runs June 10-15 in under the artistic director of newcomer Marcel Jean. Poland is the featured country, and an homage to Polish animator Jerzy Kucia is also part of this year’s eclectic program. For more info, visit www.annecy.org.
+ Kids’ production company Sixteen South has appointed Emily Whinnett as its new head of development. Whinnett was formerly the director of production and development for Chapman Entertainment, where she helped develop and produce shows including Fifi and the Flowertots, Roary the Racing Car, Raa Raa the Noisy Little Lion and Little Charley Bear. She joins the Northern Ireland-based studio with a specific mandate to develop projects across animation, live action and puppetry. She will be working with Sixteen South’s creative director, Colin Williams, leading the development team, managing the development slate and attending the markets.
Sixteen South
+ Zodiak Kids has inked a new deal with Nickelodeon for a second season of the CG preschool series Tickety Toc, to air on Nick channels worldwide, including Nick Jr. in the U.S. and U.K. The 26 x 11 season two brings the total up to 78 x 11; Nick has additionally ordered three half-hour specials as part of the agreement. The show stars twins Tommy and Tallulah and their adventures within the magical Tickety Toc clock. The series is created and directed by FunnyFlux Ent. founder and president, Gil Hoon Jung; Nigel Pickard and Vanessa Hill for the Foundation (part of Zodiak Kids) are EPS; Karina Stanford-Smith is series producer.
Tickety Toc
+ Sardine Productions is partnering with Société Radio-Canada to bring the popular Leon book series by Annie Groovie (La Court Échelle Publishing) to a new platform with an interactive comic-book app. The comic-books, augmented by animated vignettes, follow Leon and his Cyclops friends on their hilarious misadventures. The app is available through iTunes and Google Play.
Rainmaker Entertainment, who earlier this year brought us Escape from Planet Earth, has joined forces with indie production company Blockade Entertainment to produce a stereoscopic CG theatrical feature based on the hit PlayStation videogame franchise, Ratchet and Clank. The games, first released in 2002, are published by Sony Computer Entertainment America and developed by Insomniac Games. Primary production has begun at Rainmaker’s Vancouver studio.
Due for an early 2015 release, the film will be directed by Jericca Cleland and produced by Blockade CEO Brad Foxhoven and VP of development David Wohl, with Rainmaker president Michael Hefferon as exec producer and Kim Dent Wilder and Kylie Ellis as supervising producer and producer. Key talent from the game will reprise their roles for the film, including James A. Taylor as Ratchet, David Kaye as Clank and Jim Ward as Qwark. Insomniac senior writer TJ Fixman wrote the screenplay.
Ratchet and Clank tells the story of two unlikely heroes as they struggle to stop a vile alien named Chairman Drek from destroying every planet in the Solana Galaxy. Ratchet is the last of his kind – a foolhardy “lombax” who has grown up alone on a backwater planet with no family of his own. Clank is a pint-sized robot with more brains than brawn. When the two stumble upon a dangerous weapon capable of destroying entire planets, they must join forces with a team of colorful heroes called The Galactic Rangers in order to save the galaxy. Along the way they’ll learn about heroism, friendship, and the importance of discovering one’s own identity.
Co-financing was arranged by Film Financial Services (FFS) and includes Rainmaker as the lead investor along with China’s CNHK – part of the Wanda family of companies.
Remember a few years ago when Nickelodeon was blaming its diminished ratings on Netflix and the popularity of its animated series SpongeBob SquarePants on the disc/streaming service? Well, the absorbent yellow dude might have to find a new culprit soon as Netflix announced that it plans to let its deal to carry Nickelodeon, BET and MTV content expire next month. The vid sub service did note that it might continue to keep licensing some of the cablers’ shows.
Netflix said it has been moving away from broad, multi-year deals with networks and cable channels, in favor of more selective licensing arrangements to carry programs that will work best for its subscribers.
Netflix Chief Executive Reed Hastings, in a letter to shareholders, said a recent deal with Warner Bros. Television illustrates the subscription service’s more handpicked approach to programming.
“Many of our earliest deals were with networks and cable networks and included some shows that have not proven successful,” Hastings wrote. He further added that cable networks often hold back the most popular shows for as long as possible to keep cable and satellite distributors happy. “By dealing directly with producers of TV shows, we are better positioned to pick just those shows that we believe will work best, and secure rights that may be otherwise blocked by TV carriage and transmission deals.”
“With all the recently added fresh programming from Disney, Cartoon Network, Hasbro’s The Hub and DreamWorks Animation, we have a great kids offering,” Hastings added.
Analysts believe that Viacom’s distribution deal with Netflix was hurting Nickelodeon’s regular viewership.
