Author Archives: Mike

The Los Angeles Film School – Computer Animation Program present “The 1^st Annual LAFILM Animation “Smash” Festival

Two Days of Computer Animation Festival fun including Live Digital Sculpting & Modeling Demonstrations, Webinars, Screenings, Contests, Workshops and Much much more….All things Animation! Come out and join the Fun!!!

Some of the events listed are:

Chaos Group/VRAY webinar (Live) from Bulgaria

Peter Clarke presents “Mech Robot” from Legacy Studios along with the “Behind the Scenes: Making of the Robot”

• ·       Wired Magazine and YouTube commissioned Legacy Effects and The Stan Winston School of Character Arts to partner up and create this mech robot to celebrate practical effects and “geek culture”. Legacy created the 9’9″ tall, 400 lbs. cosplay robot in 24 days. It is an example of the mech designs they have created for blockbuster hits like Iron Man and Pacific Rim. The piece was featured at the 2013 Comic Con event and on the KTLA morning show. This robot is made of aluminum and polyurethane. It has a voice modulator and motion activated sound effects and lighting. One of the creators, Peter Clarke will be on site at LAFILM school to talk more about the robot’s awesome design and build.

• ·       Cinzia Angelini has worked as an animator in productions involving traditional as well as computer animation for more than twenty years. Her body of work includes features like “Spirit”, “Bolt” and “Spider-man 2”, the production of the Universal theme park ride for “Despicable Me”, and the role of story artist on the “Minions Movie” at Illumination Entertainment. She currently enjoys working as a story artist at Dreamworks Animation, and is also directing her own independent short film, “Mila”, due out in 2015

About “Mila”:

• ·       With little more than imagination, and a touch of humanity, a young girl manages to survive war, and discover hope.
• ·       The tragedy of War unfortunately did not end with the children of World War II. Even today, children continue to suffer from the ravages of conflict in many places around the world. It is their current plight that moves me to take action. To that end, I strive to produce “Mila”, an animated short that presents the most tragic collateral damage of War as its theme – the youngest civilians. Though often overlooked and rarely mentioned by the media, civilians are the first to be hit, and their children, the last to be remembered

The Animation Smash Festival will be Oct. 24^th – 25^th and will host various contests and (Live) demos, workshops, and Industry presentations (workshops and presentations are open to public).  *also we will be Raffling off – one of a kind “Animation Smash Festival” T-shirts.

A showing of various “Robot themed” movies, will also be shown throughout the event.

For any questions on this event please contact Lori Hammond, Program Director- ASCA & ASGP,lhammond@lafilm.edu

IRELAND’S FIRST ANIMATED SITCOM NEWSBAG LAUNCHES ON 3e

The first production from animation studio Icehouse premieres on 3e on Saturday 12 October at 22:00

Dublin, 09 October 2013 – Animation studio Icehouse’s first series, Newsbag, is an animated sitcom created by Gerard Barrett (Pilgrim Hill) produced in Dublin featuring an all-Irish voice cast. The 10 x 22 min series will air in a prime time slot on Saturday nights on 3e.
Newsbag follows the adventures of Lenny, Gig and Moss; three Irish lads who work for a dysfunctional online news website in Dublin run by a wealthy megalomaniac named Dundee. Together the trio pursue hot news trends such as the wave of Twitter-addiction spreading across the country, a spud shortage that brings Ireland closer to another famine, and a presidential visit to Ireland that goes drastically wrong.
Creator Gerard Barrett said, “Setting the series around three friends working in an online news website in Dublin had great potential for storylines set around all types of news stories.”
Icehouse is a new prime time animation studio that discovers and supports new and emerging writers, directors and artists. With headquarters in Dublin and Los Angeles, Icehouse encourages creative experimentation in the production of animated comedy and action.
Newsbag is a first for Irish television, where adult audiences are more used to animated sitcoms imported from America. The series is a homegrown production written by a team of Irish writers led by Gerard Barrett, directed by Maurice Joyce and animated in Dublin.
TV3 Director of Content, Jeff Ford, said: “We are excited to be teaming up with Icehouse Media to bring 3e viewers Ireland’s first animated adult comedy series. This unique animation is a fantastic addition to the many home-grown programming and talent that TV3 Group supports. It also highlights the importance of the BAI fund which contributes to the continuous relationship between TV3 and the independent sector.” Read More:

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I Fight Dragons performing at Anime Midwest

Rosemont, IL - October 9, 2013 – Anime Midwest is enthused to announce that Chicago-based video game rock band I Fight Dragons will be performing at Anime Midwest 2014. Anime Midwest will be held July 4-6, 2014 at the Hyatt Regency O’Hare in Rosemont, Illinois.

I Fight Dragons is a video-game rock band from Chicago. Their music flares with an epic combination of pop/rock with chiptune, featuring electronic sounds made using Nintendo Game Boys and Nintendo Entertainment Systems. To date they have released one full length album: 2011’s “KABOOM!” which came out on Photo Finish / Atlantic Records, in addition to two EPs: 2009’s Cool Is Just a Number and 2010’s Welcome to the Breakdown. They just finished a massive Kickstarter, raising over $100,000 for the latest upcoming album, Project Atma. Their music has been featured on Nintendo Video as well as on the WWE. They have toured the USA with acts such as mc chris, 3OH!3, Cobra Starship, The Protomen, and Travie McCoy.

I Fight Dragons joins Anime Midwest as part of a neverending epic concert series, headlined by Steam Powered Giraffe and also featuring Frenchy and the Punk and V is for Villains. The full guest list is online at http://animemidwest.com/guests

Anime Midwest expects over 8,000 fans to converge on the Hyatt Regency and the Stephens Convention Center to celebrate their mutual love of Japanese animation, video games, and music. Registration is currently $40 through November 20th, and can be purchased online at http://animemidwest.com/

 

ABC Commercial Confirmed as Home Entertainment Partner on Animated Web Series “The Eggsperts” from Flying Bark Productions and Blake eLearning 

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA – October 2, 2013…..

Flying Bark Productions and Blake eLearning today confirmed ABC Commercial as the home entertainment partner on the recently announced animated web series “The Eggsperts”.

ABC Commercial will release the 11 x 7 minute series produced by RE Productions Pty Limited and developed with the assistance of Screen NSW on DVD.

Based on the highly successful e-learning website, ABC Reading Eggs, the series will be a stimulating and educational production for four to seven year olds, available for download via Android and Apple mobile devices as well as to all ABC Reading Eggs subscribers.

“We are thrilled to have ABC Commercial on board as our home entertainment partner.  The series will deliver a rich educational experience for children making the trusted ABC for Kids brand a perfect fit for “The Eggsperts” DVD release” said Flying Bark Productions Managing Director, Jim Ballantine.

The ABC Reading Eggs website reaches over two million members from over 169 countries and is a highly successful property in the education and eLearning market for its target age group and a highly successful online reading program for children aged 3-13.

Life in Eggleston and the surrounding lands is one giant puzzle and the Eggsperts are on a mission to deliver new eggs to their homelands, crack the special hatching word and welcome an eggstraordinary critter as it hatches into their quirky world!  Sam, Jazz and Tom are the very best egg hatchers – but they are also good at getting distracted.  Sometimes they find themselves caught up in the wild, whimsical and wonderful things they see along the way!  Luckily they are “eggsperts”, and together they find ways to get back on track and get their new Critter friend hatched!

Children experience and learn new and exciting things every day – just like the Eggsperts.  Each episode brings children on a new adventure of discovery in a fun and playful environment and features one or more of the characters facing a quirky challenge. The stories reflect a combination of charm and adventure which underpins the website design and experience.  Targeted at preschool children, the series focuses on the use of phonemic awareness, letter recognition and socio-emotional learning – three key elements in a child’s journey in learning to read.  The episodes include sound and word play, rhymes, songs and tongue-twisting fun.

Learning should be associated with fun, excitement and a feeling of accomplishment.  As children solve the clues, with the help of the Eggsperts, they associate learning and teamwork as a positive and rewarding experience, as they help to hatch the egg and find a reward inside!  The goal is to motivate children to learn and to encourage curiosity and creativity as they explore the colourful and fun world of the Eggsperts!

With an extensive and distinguished legacy as one of Australia’s leading entertainment producers, Flying Bark Productions is at the forefront of the animation industry, creating film and television content that delights and captivates pre-school, young adult and family audiences worldwide.

www.flyingbark.com.au

Blake eLearning is a leading independent publisher that specialises in creating high quality literacy and numeracy resources for schools and educators throughout the world. With over 2.6 million members in 169 countries, ABC Reading Eggs is an online reading program that teaches children aged 3-13 the core literacy skills needed for lifetime reading success. The program provides a comprehensive sequence of online lessons, games and ebooks that make learning fun and motivational for young children.

The ABC Reading Eggs program has been developed by a highly experienced team of teachers, educational writers, animators and web developers.

www.readingeggs.com