DISNEY FEATURE ANIMATION promotes DUNCAN ORRELL-JONES
WALT DISNEY FEATURE ANIMATION has promoted DUNCAN ORRELL-JONES to theposition of vice president of finance. In his new role, Orrell-Joneswill oversee operational finance and accounting for Feature Animation'sworldwide operations, including Disney's Burbank, Orlando and Parisanimation studios. Since May 1997, Orrell-Jones has served as thedirector of finance and planning, during which time he has been responsible for developing and managing Feature Animation's labor, expense and capital
Don't miss these Walt Disney Records releases!
Walt Disney Records' DISNEY SWINGING CHRISTMAS is a collection ofholiday favorites performed by the Glenn Miller Orchestra. It includes "TheTwelve Days of Christmas," "Jingle Bells," "Nutcracker Medley" and "TheChristmas Song," among others. The compact disc is available now exclusively at The Disney Store and Disney Theme Parks for US$8.99. . . The TOY STORY 2soundtrack features songs and score by Randy Newman (TOY STORY, A BUG'SLIFE), and performances by Grammy Award-winning Sarah McLachlan,
Digital Leisure releases SPACE ACE DVD-ROM
Digital Leisure has released SPACE ACE DVD-ROM, the sequel to DRAGON'SLAIR. As one of the first animated video games in history, Space Acefeatures non-stop video entertainment. The evil Commander Borf haskidnapped Ace's girlfriend, the beautiful Kimberly, and is plotting toenslave the Earth using his dreaded "Infanto Ray," a weapon that changeseveryone it blasts into a helpless baby. Game enthusiasts can choose toguide Ace, or his weak alter-ego Dexter, through Borf's strongholds to
MACROMEDIA and STAN LEE MEDIA team up on new animated series
Shockwave.com, owned and operated byMacromedia Inc., and Stan Lee, Inc. have teamed up to bring Stan Lee'sfirst episodic Web animation series to life. Stan Lee, the genius behindclassic comic characters like Spider-Man, the X-Men, and the IncredibleHulk, will create his new 5-minute "Web-isodes" using Macromedia Flashtechnology. According to Lee this new venture will allow the whole world tobe part of his new creations without limitations. This exclusive dealincludes Macromedia, Inc.'s $5 million purchase of Stan Lee Media Inc.
MCFARLANE TOYS releases SLEEPY HOLLOW figures
On November 19, Tim Burton's first film since MARS ATTACKS!, SLEEPY HOLLOW, which features a CGI Headless Horseman created by Industrial Light & Magic, will be released. McFarlane Toys, the company responsible for the excellently crafted SPAWN action figures, is releasing several SLEEPY HOLLOW figures. The figures began appearing in retail stores the first week of November, including Toys 'R Us, KB Toys, comic book shops, Spencers, Musicland/Sam Goody, Electronics Boutiques, Babbages, and others.
POKEMON comes to Burger King
Burger King, the US-headquartered fastfood chain, began offering Pokemon toys on November 8, 1999. The eight-weekpromotion includes 57 different toys in 56 days -- one with each kid'smeal. The toys, each of which are packed in a Poke Ball and include one of151 trading cards, is said to be the largest licensing effort ever forBurger King. The toys are part of the licensing for the feature filmPOKEMON: THE FIRST MOVIE which opens November 10, 1999. Consumers can alsopurchase one of six 23K gold plated trading cards for $1.99 with the
LIGHTWAVE OS 9 compatible
Newtek has once again reinforced itscommitment to the Macintosh platform by announcing that Lightwave 3D 5.6,and the recently announced Lightwave 6 is compatible with Apple's new MACOS 9. The new OS 9 platform brings features such as QUICKTIME 4.0 support,floating windows, and faster real-time manipulation to MAC-based Lightwaveusers for the first time. Apple will be releasing OS 9 this month, andLightwave 6 will be available before the end of the year. For moreinformation visit www.apple.com or www.newtek.com.
DREAMWEAVER 3 FIREWORKS 3 STUDIO announced
Macromedia, the producers of popular web and graphics tools Flash, Director, and Freehand, recently announced a new product bundle: Dreamweaver 3 Fireworks 3 studio. The bundle contains new versions of Dreamweaver and Fireworks, however, both of the new versions will be available as stand-alone applications. Dreamweaver, the most popular web authoring tool available to designers, boasts several new features, most notably a new feature which allows users to customize Dreamweaver itself using Javascript, HTML, and XML.
ALIAS|WAVEFRONT ships MAYA 2.5
Alias|Wavefront, producers ofaccredited character animation and visual effects tool Maya, have announceda significant upgrade to the product; an upgrade which brings important newtools to 3D animators and effects artists. Version 2.5 comes complete withMaya Paint Effects: a revolutionary new tool which allows artists to createand animate stunning organic and painterly effects almost instantly. PaintEffects features an extensive library of 2D and 3D preset brushes, which
Chicago International Children's Film Festival announces winners
Four hundred guests crowded the second floor theatre at the ChicagoCultural Center, Sunday, October 24, for the 1999 Gala Awards Ceremony andClosing Night Party of the 16th annual Chicago International Children'sFilm Festival. The following awards for animated films were given out:
Children's Jury Prizes - Feature Films and Videos - Animation
1st Prize, KIRIKOU AND THE SORCERESS by Michel Ocelot (France)
2nd Prize, ANNE FRANK'S DIARY by Julian Wolff (France, Ireland, UK,Netherlands)
Tampere calls for entries
The Tampere 30th International Short Film Festival takes place in Tampere,Finland from March 8 - 12, 2000. Entry deadline is December 7, 1999. As thebiggest short film event in Northern Europe, the Tampere Festival features80 screenings, a film market, and seminars. For more information contact:Tampere International Short Film Festival, Box 305, FIN-33101, Tampere,Finland; Tel. + 358-3-213 003; Fax: + 358-3-223 0121; or E-mail:film.festival@tt.tampere.fi. Also visit www.tampere.fi/festival/film.
Stuttgart calls for entries
The 10th International Trickfilm Festival takes place in Stuttgart, Germanyfrom March 16 - 21, 2000. The entry deadline is December 1, 1999. TheInternational Competition will present the best animated productions fromthe past two years. More than 500 films will be screened at the festival.The Best of Animation includes a selection of the most interesting films inthe history of artistic, animated film. Young Animation is a competitionfeaturing animated films from schools and colleges. The festival will also
Mental Ray: Intel's first foot
mental images recently announced that its high-end Mental Ray renderingsoftware was the first workstation application to run on Intel's firstengineering samples of the IA-64 Itanium-based platform. mental images andIntel have been working hand-in-hand to create a version of Mental Ray thatwas ported and optimized for the Itanium processor. The new platform wasdemonstrated to attendees of the Intel Developer Forum in Palm Springs byIntel CEO Craig Barrett on an early version of Microsoft's 64-bit version
November's Animation World Magazine now on-line!
November is another packed, globe trotting issue as Animation World takes alook at the exciting arena of animated feature films. Heikki Jokinenreveals the health of the European feature market and its high hopes forthe future. Ilene Gannaway takes us inside the production of SonyImageworks' next wower, "Stuart Little." From story to technicalinnovations, Ilene gives us the inside scoop on how Imageworks is turning aCGI mouse, into one of the family. Andrew Osmond debates whether or not
Good news about THE IRON GIANT DVD!
Previously, we reported that Warner Bros. Home Video had announced that THEIRON GIANT DVD would be letterboxed at 1.85:1, which would have beenunfortunate because the film has a 2.35:1 aspect ratio and Brad Birddesigned THE IRON GIANT partly in homage to the very wide CinemaScope filmsof the 1950s. But Warners has changed their mind and the DVD will beletterboxed at 2.35:1. THE IRON GIANT DVD will include letterboxed (2.35:1)and pan & scan versions of the movie, be 16X9, have AC3 and 5.1 surround
Bill Plympton and Larry Lauria honored at SCAD!
The Savannah College of Art and Design will host animators Bill Plymptonand Larry Lauria during the week of November 8, 1999 at the Savannah FilmFestival in Savannah, Georgia...
DAVEY AND GOLIATH comes to DVD
Image Entertainment is releasing Art Clokey's DAVEY AND GOLIATH on DVD andVHS. DAVEY AND GOLIATH was a stop-motion television series that was made byGUMBY creator Art Clokey for the Lutheran Church in America from 1962 to1977. It was usually shown on Sunday morning. In the series, Davey, a boy,and his dog, Goliath, would usually get into some sort of trouble, butlearn a moral lesson by the end of the story. The DAVEY AND GOLIATH DVDwill include eight 14 minute episodes. It is not region coded. Image is
QAS profiles more animators!
The Quickdraw Animation Society web site has been updated, with new profilepages for animators...
Brand new "Career Coach" now on-line in the Student Corner!
Career Coach, our monthly column by Pamela Thompson, a noted authority onjobs and recruiting, has a new installment...
New ADULTS ONLY Plympton Comic of the Week!
Check out this weeks comics for ADULTS ONLY, extracted from thecomic book, "Sleazy Cartoons of Bill Plympton"...
This week's Animation Trivia Quiz: Paramount Pictures and Famous Studios
This week's AWN Animation Trivia Quiz features questions about Paramount Pictures and Famous Studios...
Store Specials - Tooniversal Holiday Specials, Mati Kutt Video
Now available in the AWN Store - Tooniversal Holiday Specials; An Exclusive Mati Kutt Video; Plus, The Ottawa 1999 Festival Catalogue....
A Closer Look: Aardman Goes to Hollywood
DreamWorks SKG, the company behind "The Prince Of Egypt," and distributorof PDI's "Antz," has expressed their pleasure with England-based AardmanAnimations' forthcoming feature "Chicken Run," by signing the PeterLord/David Sproxton/Nick Park company to a four feature deal. Set to bereleased June 23, 2000 in the US, "Chicken Run" is a stop-motion animatedcomedy feature about two chickens, Rocky and Ginger, and their attempt at a"prisoner of war"-type escape from a farm in the 1950s. The film is
THE HOUSE ON HAUNTED HILL finishes third at US boxoffice
Warner Bros.' THE HOUSE ON HAUNTED HILL, with visual effects by Hollywood,California-based K.N.B. EFX Group, Inc., finished third at the US weekendboxoffice with an estimated $7.8 million, for a total of $28.1 million. Thefilm is a remake of the 1958 William Castle horror film that starredVincent Price. Buena Vista's THE SIXTH SENSE, with visual effects byDreamQuest, finished eighth, grossing $3.2 million for a total of $264.1million. The American version of Hayao Miyazaki's PRINCESS MONONOKE, which
Disney reports fourth-quarter slump
Burbank, California-based The Walt Disney Co. has reported a drop infourth-quarter profits. The entertainment company, which owns a filmstudio, a TV network (ABC) and runs theme parks around the world, said netincome fell to $85 million, or 4 cents a share, from $296 million, or 14cents a share, in 1998. Disney's earnings for its fourth quarter whichended September 30 included charges for acquiring Internet search serviceInfoseek Corp. Excluding the charges, profits fell 37 percent to $212
