Animation Mentor, the Berkeley-based online character animation school, was selected by San Francisco radio station Alice @ 97.3 as a partner on its Alices 3-Minute Film Festival. The modern adult contemporary station unveils a new Morning Show-themed short film, each year, as part of the celebration. This years short was co-directed by Animation Mentors co-founder/creative director Carlos Baena, whose motion picture credits include FINDING NEMO and CARS. It is entitled SWAT MONKEY: THE BEGINNING, and debuted Saturday, April 8, at the 2006 award show at Bimbos 365 Club in San Francisco.
SWAT MONKEY is a racy monster spoof that features the voices of Morning Show hosts Sarah and No Name. Animation Mentor staff designer Rachel Ito co-developed the films characters with Baena.
We are excited to partner with Alice Radio, said Bobby S. Beck, president/co-founder, Animation Mentor. Alice and No Names show is always fun and entertaining, which is something we value very highly at our character animation school.
Founded in 2002, the 3-Minute Film Festival honors the best in very, very short films in four categories: drama/documentary, comedy, animation and music videos. Radio Alice chooses a leader in the Bay Area entertainment community to create the annual Morning Show short. In exchange for producing SWAT MONKEY, Animation Mentor will receive promotional and marketing opportunities via Alice Radio.
Alice @ 97.3 (www.radioalice.com) is owned and operated by CBS RADIO, one of the largest major-market radio operators in the U.S. A division of CBS Corp., CBS RADIO operates 179 radio stations, the majority of which are in the nations top 50 markets. CBS RADIO also owns and operates owns FREE-FM 106.9 (KIFR), KCBS-AM, KFRC-FM, KITS (Live 105), KYCY-AM (KYOURADIO), KPIX-TV and KBHK-TV in the Bay Area. For information about the competition, check www.radioalice.com.
AnimationMentor.com is an e-learning school at which top working professionals teach the art of character animation to students worldwide. Opened March 2005, the school offers an eighteen-month program built from the ground up by its founders, Bobby Beck, Shawn Kelly and Carlos Baena whose combined credits include FINDING NEMO, THE INCREDIBLES and STAR WARS: EPISODE 3. AnimationMentor.coms California-certified curriculum includes student mentoring; expert audio/video lectures; live, real-time Q&A sessions (web classes); eCritiques and 24/7 creative community. More information at www.animationmentor.com.
Rick DeMott
Animation World Network
Creator of Rick's Flicks Picks
