Toronto Animated Image Society

It's Friday, so here's some bunnies...

2011-06-24T15:50:00.000-07:00

Went a wanderin' to see how many bunny films from last nights TAIS summer showcase have shown up online. I manage to scare 4 out of the rabbit hole that is the interwebs. So here's some hoppy goodness to get yer weekend started right. Enjoy!

TAIS showcase 2011 and BunnyJam films

2011-06-16T15:07:00.000-07:00

Cookies And Bunny from Onno Knuvers on Vimeo.

Got the list of films in the Showcase and our Bunny themed anijam, hot off the presses from Madi. You can watch one of the entries above, courtesy of animator Onno Knuvers. Naturally, been busy with the work, so didn't have time to animate a bunny film (Noooooo!) but I am tracking down some fine lapidary prizing from some fine local bunnyectic technomologists. Here's the list of programmed films and Bunnyjam participants!

Program animated shorts TAIS SHOWCASE 2011

1. How to get the girl – Anshyn Anstee - Vancouver
2. Amourette – Maja Gehrig - Switzerland
3. Ooh La La – Sharon Katz - Ottawa
4. Black Moon – Brandon Blommaert - Calgary
5. Counting Sheeps - Neely Goniodsky - Montreal
6. Tara's Dream- Patrick Jenkins - Toronto
7. Wolves – Rafael Sommerhalder - Switzerland
8. Hick-Ups – Pascaline J. Knight - Montreal
9. The Manifesto Edition – Rune & Erik Eriksson - Norway
10. Sorry Film Not ready _ Janet Perlman - Montreal
11. Freud, Fish and the Butterfly – Haiyang Wang - China
12. Fitting in - Taylor Annisette - Mississauga
13. Paso Doble – Jamie Metzger - Waterloo
14. Fester Goes Fishing – Aaron Long - Toronto
15. Comin' Round – Barbara Whitmer - Toronto
16. The socking truth – Lisa Leung - Toronto
17. URS - Moritz Mayerhofer - Germany
18. Something left, Something Taken – Max Porter & Ru Kuwahata - US

Installations:
1. The Machine Wolf-Chris Juraschka - Waterdown
2. Courious Lights- Kate Wilson – Toronto

Bunny Jam participants

1. Americo Gomes
2. Ariel Villaverde
3. Bryce Hallett & Emma Lander
4. Cathy Kuo
5. Claire Bennett
6. Dalton Sharp
7. Dimitri Tcherbadji
8. Evan Maruszewski
9. Jerry Fuchs
10. John Creson & Adam Rosen
11. John Weldon
12. Jonathan Cheeseman & Charles Wilson
13. Joseph Troy
14. Joshua Robertson
15. Judith Van Der Made
16. Kayliegh Tresson
17. Kohila & Santhya Kurunathan
18. Larry Barriere
19. Lynn Wilton
20. Madi Piller
21. Mac MacCord
22. Michael Darmanin
23. Mike Weiss
24. Monica Gutierrez
25. Nick Cross
26. Nick Fox-Gieg
27. Onno Knuvers
28. Eurico da Costa Ng
29. Raphael Rosenwald
30. Richard Reeves
31. Vince Vaitiekunas

Quite a lineup! Screening happens June 23, 2011 at 7:30pm at Innis Town Hall (University of Toronto, 2 Sussex Avenue). Big comfy theatre with great seats, a great screen and great A/C. Hope to see you thar!

Life in the Analog Age: Hearing Test

2011-05-17T15:39:00.000-07:00

Ah, the thoroughly entertaining paranoia of lil' kids. A lil' nostalgia from Gabe Swarr. More orange and blue reminisces to be found on his site. Late!

DRIFT: The Elements

2011-05-11T17:01:00.000-07:00

Sweet Joosy Jebus, it's been awhile! More on what happened to the blog later, meanwhile Madi wanted me to post this toute suite. Check it!

Call for applications to:
The Toronto Animated Image Society and Art For Commuters
DRIFT: The Elements
Deadline Submissions: June 24, 2011

The Toronto Animated Image Society is seeking proposals for a commissioned project.

DRIFT: The Elements takes for its theme the essential elements of life: Earth, Wind, Fire and Water; elements that can give or take LIFE.
Artists are invited to explore their own personal interpretation of these fundamental elements with a focus on abstraction and experimentation.
Each successful applicant will produce a one to three minute animation exploring this theme.
Projects will be completed between July and September 2011.
TAIS will offer support for the development and production process of the projects.
Selected participants will be expected to attend a workshop prior to receiving access to equipment.
Works will be screened on October 1, 2011 for 12 straight hours overnight at Nuit Blanche 2011 on the Onestop Network of 300 television screens in the Toronto Transit Commission Subway System.
DRIFT: The Elements will dominate the underground tunnels, bringing art to over one million commuters, without interruption from the news and advertisements that usually populate the screens.
The works will also be hosted on the www.onestopallnight.com website.

Selected artists will receive:
· TAIS Full Studio Membership – including equipment access worth $150 each
· $400 cash honorarium
· Mentoring & support from an experienced instructor
Each application must include:
· Project description – 200 to 300 words
· CV, resume, or brief bio
· Samples of recent work (i.e., CD or DVD for time-based artists; maximum of 10 images on CD for visual artists)
· A self-addressed, stamped envelope. Submissions without a SASE will not be returned.

Selected artists will be announced on June 30, 2011

Contact and mailing address for submissions:
TAIS Programming Committee
Toronto Animated Image Society
60 Atlantic Avenue, Suite 102
Toronto. Ontario, M6K 1X9
Email: tais@bellnet.ca <mailto:tais@bellnet.ca>
Phone: 416-533-7889

Umbilically connected to animation

2010-10-29T15:44:00.000-07:00

No animation here, but you can learn a lot from studying the timing, synchronicity and just plain clever business being demonstrated here. The Umbilical Brothers are an Australian comedy duo, composed of David Collins and Shane Dundas. Their animated shenanigans have got them on David Letterman's lil' late night thang and they've done Just For Laughs. Check 'em out for some live-action inspiration. More to come! Thanks to Bob Wiseman for tellin' me bout these doods.

InSitu and AquaJam gone live!

2010-10-25T14:31:00.000-07:00

Tara, our erstwhile admin, has informed me that the animation's for Tais's In Situ project and this summer's Aqua Jam have been posted to the Tais YouTube page, as well as the TAIS main site. Here's a sampler from the In Situ films:

More viewable on the TAIS main site. As well, here's the AquaJam! A real treat for me, 'cause thanks to sunspot activity I wasn't able to make the screening at the Tranzac.

The board members will be meeting this week to discuss all the crazy shenanigans planned for the new year. I'll post what we're up to (if I can!) early in November. Meanwhile, enjoy! More to come...

The Housing Crisis made simple. And adorable.

2010-09-27T15:35:00.000-07:00

Found this lil' gem online while, uh, searching for lil' gems online. Heh. This one was created by Stephen Neary ('member Chicken Cowboy?) for NPR's Planet Money. A neat 'nick note's' rendition of the U.S. housing crisis and a great straightforward explanation of the 'toxic assets' what led to it, it also includes some great writing (courtesy of the show's hosts), nice sound design by one Rob Arnott and of course, some really clever animation from Mr. Neary. Really like the sketchy/solid style and color design as well. Nicely done! Go on over to his blog and say hey, as in hey, we want more shorts like this one, please mister? O.k., gotta go earn my keep. More to come!

Lego Stop-Mo a Go-Go. God I'm a dork...

2010-09-22T15:26:00.001-07:00

If you've got a kid who loves the Legos and the animation, you could do worse than getting him/her one of these lovely lil' Lego Stop-mo cameras. O.k., it's not exactly Dragon software and a Canon SLR (see, I know stuff!) but it is a nice lil' straightforward camera that comes with some basic capture software and two lil' Lego men. Plus it's cute as hell.

Some caveats based on reviews I've read. Image quality is a lil' grainy, but o.k. in a kind of super-8 lo-fi kinda way. See the sample animation below, courtesy of Kid's Tech Review.

The 4-way button on the back is cool, but there's no labeling, so figuring out what does what will require a bit of a read. The software is the same situation, not quite as intuitive as it could be.

It's also a lil' pricey at 100 semolians. A more practical purchase might be a half-decent webcam and a free download of Framethief or AnimatorDV Simple. Still, if you want an all-in-one package for that kid in your life with animation aspirations, it ain't bad.

Flip gets flipped to October

2010-09-22T09:10:00.000-07:00

Don't know if I've ever mentioned Frozen North. They're a local Toronto game developer that were slated to drop their first game, 'Flip's Twisted World' on the Wii. Drop date was Sept. 21, which has come and gone. So, whence Flip?

Well, got an email back from one of the dev. team. Turns out you'll have to slot this game as an early Halloween treat. Manufacturing woes have knocked Flip back a month to October 19th.

The guys at Frozen North have been workin' their collective asses off on this, their first game, and if Jim Sterling over at Destructoid is any judge (and he is) it's going to be well worth the money of any TAIS game fans and your families. Plus, the MSRP of $29.99 will be easy on the pocket book.

It's local, it's Canadian, it's they're first Wii game, and it's inexpensive. Go get you one on the 19th of Rocktober. Don't worry, I'll post a reminder. Meanwhile, check out the trailer above. More to come!

MegaPupsh!

2010-09-20T14:21:00.000-07:00

Beginning of the week, better get yer cute on. Got a copy of Capcom's Mega Man artbook for a friend. Flippin' through the 8-bit era goodness, got inspired to sketch up the Nemu-Nemu pups as Mega Man and Proto Man, with bird buddy Pollo as Beat. Pleasant way to spend a Sunday afternoon. More actual news to come!

Eleven in Motion Gallery and DVD launch

2010-09-16T06:43:00.000-07:00

Wherf, what a summer. Launched a new Iphone game, sitting on our biggest Flash game ever, so the blog has been neglected. Apologies! More postings in the fall, starting with this announcement. Eleven in Motion, a special melange of abstract painting and animation, will be happening this month! Painting from the 50's meet the animation talents of 11 Canadian contemporaries. The event includes a DVD launch, so you can take in the show, then take it with. Go to the TAIS site for all the details. More to come!

Extra Life 2010

2010-07-27T14:31:00.000-07:00

Just a quick post to show y'all my latest. Technically, this was completed last fall, but I delivered so late (the day of the event) that the dude I did it fer, Jeromy 'Doc' Adams (the voice and sound you'll hear) decided to hang onto it for the 2010 event. So, I dusted it off in May, tweaked the animation for the smoothness, and re-shipped it to him in Texas, where he worked his usual audio magic.

The 'event' I referred to is Extra Life, a gaming charity Doc started to honor a young friend who died of cancer. Money used to go to one fine establishment, but now the charity is connected with the Children's Miracle Network, so whatever cash is raised can be designated to go to a particular hospital in the CMN. So visit the EL website, get yer game on and help out some kids in the process. Cheers!

U900 -Twist And Shout

2010-07-08T15:01:00.000-07:00

Hotter than it needs to be out there in the big smoke today, so here's some crazy cute to cool you down. Amigurumi animation sensei Yosuke Kihara, aka KeroKeroKingDX (I hear he takes his moniker from a fave video game) has once again teamed up with Japan's U900 to give us a cover of the Phil Medley and Bert Russell song 'Twist and Shout' (as made famous by them Beatles).

As it turns out, this is just one track of a whole album of uke-flavored Beatles covers. So if you like your McCartney with a side o' poi, get yerself a copy of 'Ukulele Mystery Tour'. Oh, and while yer at it, go buy the rest of U900's albums and throw sensei Kihara some love on his YouTube page. Late!

TAIS summer showcase hilights

2010-07-08T14:57:00.001-07:00

By all accounts this year's Summer Showcase was a beaut, with tons of great films and filmmakers in attendance. Madi managed to snap a few shots at the show, and sent 'em along to me along with the list of lucky (make that talented) winners. Good on ya, everyone! More cool events to come.

---
Jury Prizes:
Best of Show - Gold - AMOEBA by Patrick Jenkins
2nd place - Silver - THE ISLAND by Trevor Anderson
honourable mention - Bronze - SKETCHI by Lily Sun
Best Aqua Jam - "Where Are You?" by Jonathan Cheeseman

Audience Choice Awards:
Best of Show - WEENIE WAGON WOE by Willy Ashworth
Best Aqua Jam - (tie!) "Surf Film" by Marc Beurteaux and "Water" by Mike
Weiss
----

Award winners and jury photo:
(from L to R) Patrick Jenkins, Jonathan Cheeseman, Willy Ashworth, Ellen
Besen (jury member), Marc Beurteaux, Mike Weiss, Renata Mohamed (jury
member)

Best of Ottawa screening next week!

2010-07-06T15:06:00.001-07:00

Quick post to let y'all know that if you missed Ottawa '09, you can still catch some hilights and enjoy air-conditioned comfyness at our Best of Ottawa screening next Thursday! Here's the skinny:

1.2 Best of Ottawa International Animation Festival Screening

Enjoy highlights from the 2009 edition of the OIAF, co-presented by the Toronto Animated Image Society and the NFB Mediatheque. The Ottawa International Animation Festival (OIAF) is the largest of its kind in North America, attracting film buffs, art lovers, filmmakers, and cartoon fans from around the world to the nation's capital. The 2010 Festival takes place October 20th-24th.

Best of Ottawa International Animation Festival Screening
Thursday, July 15, 2010, 7 PM
NFB Cinema, 150 John Street
$6, $4 for TAIS members, students, seniors, Front Row passholders

Films screening include:
Love on the Line, Postalolio, Please Say Something, The Bellow’s March, Chick, The Black Dog’s Progress, Magic Cube and Ping-Pong, The Art of Drowning, History of the Meat Packing District, MGMT Kids, The Terrible Thing of Alpha-9! And Inherent Obligations

Come on downs, bring friends, and decompress with some cool toons. Later!

Run for the Toad

2010-06-25T14:45:00.000-07:00

Ottawa animation fans will instantly recognize the above character as Mistletoad from the 1999 series "Toad Patrol". Seems Peggy and George Sarson, series creators, have organized a wee bit of a jog 'round and about Paris, Ontario...if you can call a 25 or 50 click trail run a bit of a jog. Buddy of mine Eric shot this poster to me...no word yet if the Sarsons have or plan to print any wall-size (please!). Meanwhile, the event happens in the fall, so if you wanna get yer run on, check out the event FAQ. Have a happy weekend, and stay the hades away from downtown T'rawna. Out!

TAIS Summer Showcase 2010

2010-06-17T15:04:00.000-07:00

Whee, what a summer! Games galore, but work galore too! Don't worry, we've got toons galore comin' up next week for our Summer Showcase! Being on the board I was privy to the selection of the films, and we've got a hell of a lineup for ya. Here's them details:

You are cordially invited to join TAIS for an evening celebrating the best new animations from Toronto and beyond! Short animated films of all styles and genres will be screened, along with entries from our animated jam session, the Aqua Jam. We’ll also screen the cameraless animations created over the year at our monthly Incubator sessions. Awards and reception will follow screening. An event not to be missed! Come out and support your local animation scene.

TAIS ANIMATION SHOWCASE
THURSDAY, JUNE 24, 2010
7:30 PM; doors open at 7:00 PM
At the TRANZAC CLUB (292 Brunswick Avenue – off Bloor St. near Bathurst St.)
$8 general admission; $6 for TAIS members

Program includes:
"The Orange" by Nick Fox-Gieg
"Everybody" by Steve Reinke & Jessie Mott
“Weenie Wagon Woe” by Willy Ashworth
"I Need an Escape Plan" by Julie Doucet & Anne-Françoise Jacques
"Beneath the Eye of Time" by Madi Piller
"Recipe" by Martha Griffith
"Birth" by Signe Baumane
"Amoeba" by Patrick Jenkins
"The Animator" by Marc Beurteaux
"The Arctic Circle" by Kevin Parry
"Heavenly Bodies" by Mike Weiss
"Nukie Goes Bonkers" by Jonathan Amitay
"William's Creatures" by Pasquale La Montagna
... And so much more!

With installations:
"Thalé" by Barry Doupé
"A Typical Morning for Green and Blue" by Andrew James Paterson

**Please note: Admittance to the screening is restricted to those 18 years of age or older. Under the Ontario Theatres Act, we are required to adopt a blanket adult rating in order to hold public screenings without having to submit all works to a review board for classification.

**Like with all TAIS Programming and events, the Showcase is generously supported by the Canada Council for the Arts (Media Arts Section), the Ontario Arts Council and the Toronto Arts Council.

See you next week!

--------------------------------------------
Toronto Animated Image Society
60 Atlantic Avenue, Suite 102
Toronto, ON M6K 1X9
Canada
416-533-7889
tais@bellnet.ca
www.tais.ca

Thoughts for Kazu

2010-05-31T16:24:00.000-07:00

Just learned that comic artist and friend of TAIS Kazu Kibiushi's sister Juri was murdered. Cold comfort that they've caught the freak that did it. Thoughts and prayers with you, man.

U900- Ukelele Mystery Tour

2010-05-30T17:20:00.000-07:00

A quick post on this luverly holiday weekend to letcha know that U900, animated uke band extraordinaire, has a new album dropping in July. Here's an uber-cute take on an old classic. Enjoy!

TAIS Aqujam!

2010-05-21T16:29:00.001-07:00

First off, apple-logies for the long absence, the day job has been keeping me hopping, but not so much that I can't spare a lil' time to remind y'all of our upcoming Aquajam! Yep, we've done machines, monsters and chickens, so water was the next logical step. I think. Anyhoo, here's them details:

TAIS AQUA JAM 2010 - Call for Submissions

We are proud to announce that this year¹s theme for the TAIS AniJam, ten
second animations that will screen in rapid succession at the TAIS Showcase
in June, is ... Aqua! Underwater critters and cephalopods, acid rain,
flushing toilets, aqua flora and fauna, and any other idea you may have
related to the life aquatic.

Get those ideas flowing!

Submission deadline: May 31, 2010.

Submit your films as quicktime files on CD/DVD-Rom, via ftp or link to your
webspace with the submission form, a brief bio and two 2 x 3 stills (high
res jpeg) from your film. Format of all Aqua Jam submissions should be 720 x
480 Quicktime files.

Send your submissions to:
Toronto Animated Image Society
Aqua Jam Submission
60 Atlantic Ave. Suite 102
Toronto, Ontario M6K 1X9
CANADA

If you want to submit your film digitally via email in .zip format, via file
hosting or via ftp link, send to tais@bellnet.ca

All Aqua Jam submissions will be screened as part of the TAIS Animation
Showcase at the Tranzac Club (292 Brunswick Ave) in Toronto, Canada on June
24, 2010, 7:00 pm.

So if you've been by the TAIS site and already know about the event, send in yer films! For those what have just heard about it, still time to knock out a quick 10 seconds and send it on in. More posts more often to follow!

Unicef spokesman RAYMAN and friends

2010-04-19T18:47:00.001-07:00

Just found these awesome vids featuring Ubisoft mascot Rayman and the Rabbid characters from the Rayman Raving Rabbids games series. Broadly scene in Europe and fairly well known in North America thanks to a series of shorts promoting the first game's release, these were (obviously) made for french television. Enjoy!

Pixilation Weekend!

2010-04-06T15:52:00.000-07:00

"The Game" Stop motion / Pixilation Music Video from viralmess on Vimeo.

Long time no speaky! Sorry for the long absence, but things are a' brewing at TAIS, and you'll be able to get a taste this weekend. We've got a workshop on Pixilation...what, praytell, is that, you ask?

Pixilation Weekend!
Pixilation is a stop motion technique where live actors are used, often with other props and puppets, as a frame-by-frame subject in an animated film. Over the course of a weekend, learn how to create a pixilation animation from start to finish with plenty of hands-on activities to get you inspired.

Dates: April 10-11
Times: 11 am – 5 pm
Location: TAIS Studio, 60 Atlantic Ave
$65 members, $90 non-members
SPOTS STILL AVAILABLE

Check out the embed above, 'The Game', a music video for band Rodeo Massacre, for a prime example of what Pixilation looks like. More to come!

Mike Geiger's Olympic Spirit

2010-02-19T09:57:00.000-08:00

New one from Mike Geiger, this time it's a take on the whole Olympic funding thing. I think what Mike has to say here is pretty evident in the animation. Actually, this nicely animated piece of social disturbance was created in conjunction with CITIZENShift, "a National Film Board of Canada website dedicated to citizen engagement and social change." Nice to see the NFB continues to give citizens a voice...written, spoken, filmed or in this case, animated. Good on ya!

Either way, it's typical Geiger goofiness, and nicely done. Check out Mike's other animations on his YouTube page, and check out CITIZENShift, see if you want to contribute. More to come!

UPDATE- Fergot, check out Mike's Blog as well!

Despicable Me: Minions vs. Rabbids FIGHT!

2010-02-17T12:18:00.000-08:00

The new Universal feature "Despicable Me" opens soon, a story about the world's #2 supervillain vying for the top-dog position...there's a heartwarming life-affirming tale with 3 orphans mixed in there somewheres. My big thing right now is not the film's main character, but his homies.

Seems the second banana has cooked up some groovy lil' henchman. Now, you get your inspiration where you can find it, hell knows my GUNBunnies short cribs from Robotech and Macross and Gundam (oh, my!). But...well, you be the judge. Here's a promo film featuring a bit o' comic biz with the Minions.

Now here's a bit of goofy goodness featuring Michel Ancel's Rabbid characters, stars of the Ubisoft video game series.

Mebbe it's the non-verbal facial mugging, the deadpan-to-manic delivery or the proportions of the characters, but if the ol' production lounge over at Illumination Ent. doesn't have a Wii and a copy of 'Rabbids Go Home' in it, I'll eat my dog bowl. Whaddya think? Comments welcome, people. More to come!

Animator needs funds badly!

2010-02-09T15:08:00.000-08:00

O.k., mebbe not badly, but animator Nick Cross, he of 'Waif of Persephone' and 'Yellow Cake' fame, does need your help. He's started his latest opus, 'The Pig Farmer' and needs people to pitch in a few bucks to help him fund the production. He's got various levels of funding, and if you can see your way to sending him at least 25 dollars, he'll give you a credit in the film! Payday is comin', so pony up a few dollars so we can see Nick's latest sooner rather than later. More to come! Oh, and thanks to Aaron Simpson for the heads up. For anyone not familiar with Nick's work, witness 'Yellow Cake', posted below. Enjoy!

U900

2010-02-09T09:42:00.000-08:00

A lil' treat today courtesy of fellow blogger John Martz and Japanese Uke masters U900. Check out this sweet lil' video...cute as hell, simple but nicely animated, damn clever. Their ukulele treatment of old American guitar instrumentals is damn infectious. Check out their MySpace page for more crocheted ukulele goodness. More to come!

Jonathan Amitay strips down to the truth

2010-02-05T15:19:00.000-08:00

Just heard from TAIS member and gentle, retiring soul Jonathan Amitay, who is under the weather due to having to go under the knife. Wish him well, dammit! Here's his 2007 take on the ol' 'Emperor's New Clothes' chestnut, which he gives his usual life-affirming touch.

O.k., enough with the sarcasm. Jon's stock n' trade is political commentary...he's one of those guys who can't help but comment on the state of the world and mankind's self-abusive nature, and it informs everything he does, including his dark but apt take on an old classic fairy-tale which is supposed to be a funny story about a naked fat guy. I'll have a full profile of Jon and maybe some new stuff of his to show you, just as soon as he's feeling a bit better. More to come!

TAIS presents: A Weekend of Visual Music

2010-01-28T15:00:00.000-08:00

This weekend we're featuring the improvised abstract animations of Jean Detheux. He'll be discussing his filmmaking process, the idea of 'visual music', and premiering his latest, 'Inemuri 2', along with a screening of his other works, a live performance and even a workshop! I've managed to track down a sample of his work on YouTube...'Jazz' 1 is an excerpt from a live performance in November '09.

You can also view tons of sample images and Quicktimes on M. Detheux's site.

The venue? Le Labo, in Toronto's groovy Distillery District. Le Labo is " a francophone media and integrated arts lab offering opportunities in production, training & showings." Come in out of the cold and check out this cool event. Thanks to our arts council partners and event hosts, and to M. Detheux for comin' out on a frosty weekend. Later!

DVD toon bargoon

2010-01-19T15:53:00.000-08:00

Just a quick note to let y'all know the Mission Hill DVD boxed set is on sale at the Best Buys for $14.99 in Canuck bucks. Directed by two ex-Simpsons helmers and designed by Lauren MacMullen, also a Simpsons director, this was a series that, like the Oblongs, never really got a chance to evolve in the glut of me-too adult animated series that were being produced at the time, with Warner's cancelling the series after airing just six episodes. All 13 episodes ran on Teletoon in 2000, and it had a pretty big following overseas. Great writing and some funny performances from Brian Posehn and Tom Kenny...and it's fourteen bucks. Go get a copy and enjoy. More to come.

Vintage CG

2010-01-14T15:14:00.001-08:00

Browsing through the archives over at the Vintage CG page on YouTubes. Man, things has come a ways! Here's an example. Above, CGI composite shots (no audio, copyrighted musics, sorry) from the 1988 sci-fi series Captain Power.

And here, 'Defective', a short film from 2008 animated by one dude, VFS student Rani Naamani. Quite the evolution our tools have made, neh? A pencil remains a pencil, however, and Rani shows off some great traditional animation chops. Meanwhile, thank the dudes from ARCCA Animation (I think this is them) and other early poly-pioneers for paving the way for shlubs like me to whip up unwrap-mapped goodness on my desktop PC. Cheers! And check out the Vintage CG channel on YouTube for more lo-fi loco-mations. More to come!

John K. being John K.

2010-01-12T10:30:00.001-08:00

Back in the day, think 1994 or so, my college buddy Mike S. and I were tits-deep in the Algonquin College Animation/Television course. Mike was (and I believe still is) a huge Ren and Stimpy fan, and patterned a project he was workin' on after John K.'s style. He got a chance to talk to John, and the dude not only incouraged Mike, he took him and some other lucky so-n'-so's out to lunch, where he whipped out pad and paper and made Mike a mini-bible there on the spot. (Mike, if ya still got it...Jpegs, briddah!)

Apparently, John makes a habit o' this. In 1998 budding animator Amir Avni sent a letter to John, hoping for a few good words. What he got back was an 8-page mini-bible , an original drawing and a copy of one of Preston Blair's immortal animation 'how to' books. The dudes over at the 'Letters of Note' blog got wind, and Amir was nice enough to let 'em post the letter in full...nice!

I think young Amir found the attention inspiring...he's in his 4th year at Sheridan and apparently his stuff is the shizz-nizz. Now this is how you do...senior industry guys take note, if you want to improve the state of animation, inspire them young'uns!

Of course, John K. has been online and sharing his worldly wisdom for freakin' YEARS. His blog is a repository of all things toon, and contains a world of knowledge on drawing skills, layouts, boards, everything you could want. Go and check it out. Meanwhile, thanks to the dudes over at 'Letters of Note' and Digg dude Mr. BabyMan for bringin' this to me attention. Oh, and hey John, if yer readin' this, good on ya, bitch! By the way, just got the Mighty Mouse boxed set...I'll report in at week's end. Later!

DVD sets is mighty-mighty!

2010-01-05T15:00:00.001-08:00

Starting 2010 off right with the release of the cartoon which pretty much started the whole trend of director-based shows in North America. You'll remember the tale...dark lord of amination Ralph Bakshi sought to re-invent a classic. Some religious type got a hair up his ass about something, show cancelled. But, it got John K. off and running, and started the careers of a whole bunch of other good fellas who gave us a whole lot of good shows. Haven't seen many of these, so I'll be ordering up my copy tomorrow. Go and get you one. Thanks to Cartoon Brew for the heads up.

Also like to point out that Robot Chicken season 4 is out on DVD as of early last month! Some inspired craziness to be had here, and some great stop-mo courtesy of a new camera rig that can sweep through shots like a handicam...nice! Bonus is the 'Full-Assed' Christmas special, with what has to be the best animal character since Seth's giraffe, Comet the reindeer. Both sets on sale at Amazon, so go spend them gift cands. More to follow!

Animation Prezzies pt. Deux and a Half

2009-12-18T14:13:00.000-08:00

More goodies for the animator or animation fan on yer shoppin' list:

Character Animation Crash Course by Eric Goldberg
Animation Unleashed by Ellen Besen with Bryce Hallett
Elemental Magic by Joseph Gilland (books)

Between Eric's practical step-by-step breakdown on timing, character elements, overlaps, etc., Ellen and Bryce's story and dramatic structure guidance and Joseph's amazing and clear advice on traditional effects, it's been a damn spanky year for animation books. I'd recommend any or all of these, and they're all available fer buyin' at The Labyrinth. Not sure if they've got 'em on hand at The Beguiling, but no doubt they can order ya up a copy of each. If ya gotta, all three can be had from teh Amazons here, here and here. Go! Learn! Become mighty 'mators!

I'll have more gear and books and shtuff for you in the new year...right now, I'm off to get me a copy of 'A Boy and His Blob'. Cheers!

Animation Prezzies!

2009-12-18T10:23:00.000-08:00

Just thought I'd whip out a quick list of goodies that you might consider for those luvved ones on yer Xmas list this year. Or Hanukkah. Or Qwanza. Or Friday the 18th. Whatever, these are great gift ideas for you animation lovin' compadres out there.

RUN HAMSTER RUN (IPHONE GAME)

If you've got a friend with an Iphone who's an animation nut, this hand-drawn puzzler from animation Erin Humiston is just the thang. Produced by Erin and a small crew in Florida, it's available now at the Itunes App Store! Gift a copy, then get a copy for yesself...that's an order. Courtesy of Cartoon Brew.

A BOY AND HIS BLOB (NINTENDO WII GAME)

Released in October, this game for the Wii features hand-drawn side scrolling action in a more anime-inspired vein. Fun for adults and kid-friendly as well, you navigate around obstacle and enemies by feeding your pet blob jellybeans...different flavors, different effects. From WayForward Technologies, developers of the fabulously fun Shantae game (tons of hand animation, great stuff!)

Whoops! Running long with this post...more goodies to come!

Aardman does Flipnote

2009-12-10T14:37:00.000-08:00

Here's a couple of sweet lil' treats from our homies at Destructoid...seems there's a great lil' animation tool for the Nintendo DSi called Flipnote Studio, and in order to show it off proper the powers that be at the big N summoned the forces of Aardman Animation to create spots actually animated on the DSi! Nice! Apparently they've commissioned a whole bunch o' these to promote the DSi itself and upcoming Zelda game Spirit Tracks. I'll keep you posted. More to come...

Kevin Manthei sez hey!

2009-12-01T15:02:00.000-08:00

First off, apologies all 'round for the singular post last month...super busy at the day job, managed to take a week off for vacation and to take care of some last minute shtuffs, and now that it's all done I'm all yers, you blogomites you.

Timing is pretty good, for lo and behold I popped open the emails yesterday to find a note from the indefatigable Kevin Manthei, the sonic guru behind many a fine 'toon soundtrack, including personal fave Invader Zim. You'll remember I was talkin' to him way back in the Soundtrack phase of 'First Time Out', my lil' bunnies and bots film. Seems he was waltzing through old emails, and wanted to know how I was doin'. Thanks for checkin' in, dood!

Here's a sample of his tawdry wares. If you want to check out more of his audible aristry, drop by his website! More to come...

Joseph Gilland: Elemental Magic Man

2009-11-02T14:37:00.000-08:00

Those of you out there have been blessed in the past with all sorts of character animation goodness, the latest greatest offering being Eric Goldberg's excellent 'Character Animation Crash Course!'. Effects animation, however, seems to get only a passing nod in books...although books from Richard Williams and the estate of Osamu Tezuka do a great job covering the basics. I think it's because so few people have made a name for theysselves as FX animators...they remain the great unsung of animated film. Michel Gagne comes immediately to mind, and through an e-mail to him asking his opinion on this dearth of FX tutelage comes word of a new book.

'Elemental Magic', the new book by industry vet and Gagne homey Joseph Gilland is a book a long time in coming. Joseph who, you say? Yeah, I said that too, which is exactly the problem when it comes to FX animation. Joseph has the distinction of being FX supervisor on one of my fave Disney flicks of the last 10 years, Lilo and Stitch, as well as Mulan, Brother Bear, and Tarzan...the dude knows his shit, obviously, and the book is getting kudos all over. He did a signing up at Ottawa '09, which I'm kicking myself for missing, but a copy can be yours by hitting up the Amazon.ca. Do it now, it's 37% off as of this posting, freakin' bargoon! And yes, don't y'all worry, we will be getting a copy for the TAIS library. Special thanks again to Michel Gagne for the heads up...he's written the forward to the book. Nuff said, go get you one.

Eleven in Motion

2009-10-30T15:31:00.000-07:00

Headin' off for a busy weekend, cleanin' up my dump of an apartment and effects/character animation to boot! More on that later. Fer now, here's a quick reminder of this TAIS special event coming up soon!

--------------------------

Eleven in Motion: Abstract Expressions in Animation

The Toronto Animated Image Society (TAIS) in conjunction with Cinematheque Ontario and Christopher Cutts Gallery, is pleased to announce the premiere of Eleven in Motion: Abstract Expressions in Animation, a commissioned project of eleven new animated works inspired by the art of the Painters Eleven. The premiere screening takes place November 11, 2009, 8 PM at the Cinematheque Ontario and will be attended by all eleven filmmakers from across Canada. The screening is free to the public.

Following the premiere, the new animated works, alongside paintings by the Painters Eleven, will be on display at the Christopher Cutts Gallery from November 18 – 25, 2009. The gallery opening takes place November 18, 2009, 6 to 9 PM.

There will be an artists’ talk on Tuesday November 17, 2009 from 7 to 9 PM at the NFB Mediatheque with all the participating artists.

New Works by:

Rick Raxlen (inspired by Harold Town)
Patrick Jenkins (inspired by Kazuo Nakamura)
Élise Simard (inspired by Alexandra Luke)
Richard Reeves (inspired by Walter Yarwood)
Nick Fox-Gieg (inspired by Oscar Cahén)
Félix Dufour-Laperriére (inspired by Jack Bush)
Ellen Besen (inspired by Tom Hodgson)
Steven Woloshen (inspired by Jock Macdonald)
Pasquale LaMontagna (inspired by William Ronald)
Craig Marshall (inspired by Ray Mead)
Lisa Morse (inspired by Hortense Gordon)

Free World Premiere Screening
Wednesday, November 11, 2009, 8 PM
Cinematheque Ontario
Art Gallery of Ontario, Jackman Hall
317 Dundas Street West

Gallery Opening
Wednesday, November 18, 6 – 9 PM
Christopher Cutts Gallery
21 Morrow Avenue
Exhibit will be on Display November 18 – 25, 2009

Free Artist Talk
Tuesday, November 17, 7 PM
NFB Mediatheque
150 John Street

This program was made possible thanks to the generous support of the Canada Council for the Arts and The Petman Foundation.

Special thanks to our corporate sponsors:
Hotel Victoria & Videoscope

And our production partners:
Cinevic, Main Film, Atlantic Filmmakers Co-op, Liaison of Independent Filmmakers, Niagara Custom Lab and Creative Post.

8 Bit Pwny Club

2009-10-19T10:05:00.000-07:00

Some inspired 8-bit flavoured insanity from the fellows at Weebl's Stuff. Really love the shaky cam and the site of old video game characters chatting on a couch. Enjoy!

Extra life: Extra Tired!

2009-10-17T04:25:00.000-07:00

Whoof! Haven't pulled one o' these genuine all-nighters in a looong time. Extra Life is a twenny-four hour gaming marathon, and in order to finish this dedicatory (was supposed to be promotional, thank you flu) I've been here for almost 24. But y'know what? A marathon animation session is a finger massage from the angels compared to what kids with cancer have to go through, so it's all good, baby. Doc's group could be the ones to push the research cash over the top to a cure, so like I sed, go over and get him a few bucks. Meanwhiles, here's a taster. I'll post the final version just as soon as I get the audio from Doc. I'm out...later, playas.

Extra Life, extra work!

2009-10-16T21:53:00.000-07:00

A rare after midnight posting, as I sit here elbows deep in hot polygons trying to finish up my short film for the fellas over at Sarcastic Gamer. Looks like I could be here to see the sun rise...if I is, I'll post some animation. Meanwhile, head on over to Doc's site and pony up a few bucks for the kids, wouldja? Thanks!

Reminder: Nuit Blanche this weekend!

2009-10-02T15:33:00.000-07:00

Just a quick reminder of the Nuit Blanche happenings this weekend at The Rhino. In addition to selections from the Summer Showcase '09, we'll also be screening the TAIS Chickenjam! So if you missed it on the big screen, you can see it with a pint and some wings this weekend. Here's the online version to whet the ol' appetite. Later!

TAIS at Nuit Blanche

2009-09-29T15:06:00.001-07:00

Quick post to let y'all know about our whacky Nuit Blanche shenanigans at the Rhino this weekend:

Nuit Blanche at the Rhino with TAIS

The Toronto Animated Image Society and The Rhino Bar are pleased to present
an all night event as part of Scotiabank Nuit Blanche 2009. Short animated
films, mostly by local Toronto artists, will be projected all night long
from sundown to sun up on the patio of the Rhino.

Works by: Janice Shulman, Jonathan Amitay, Malcolm Sutherland, Patrick
Jenkins, Marc Beurteaux, Flemish Beauty, Élise Simard, Lena Chun, Adam
Temple, Rick Raxlen and more!

THE RHINO ANIMATED FILM FEST
OCTOBER 3, 7PM - OCTOBER 4, 7 AM
@ The Rhino Bar
1249 QUEEN ST. WEST, 416-535-8089
FREE!

Come on down, grab the beer, and watch them aminations. Later!

Mukpuddy gets on their high horse...

2009-09-28T09:46:00.000-07:00

So here's a great new pilot from our New Zealand homies Mukpuddy Animation. It's a buddy comedy featuring a neurotic horse who's a lil', um, embarrasingly deficient (hence the pants) and his adorable, anti-social dickhead of a bunny room-mate. Definitley could see this as a recurring web series, could make a good fit on Comedy Network...'course, they'd have to change it to a Moose and a Beaver. My only issue; Stallion makes it sound like a western somehow. I'd suggest 'Horse in the City', but Mo Willems might send his rabid ninjabats after me. Either way, check it out, give 'em a lil' positive feedback or constructive criticism on their YouTube page. Thanks to Aaron over at CHF for bringin' this to my attention! Cuz, I'm all important n' shit. I am, you know. Sniff. More later.

Sidekick

2009-09-17T15:25:00.000-07:00

Nothing I hate worse than haters ('cept mebbe teen vampire novel fans) and for some unknown reason that's what Todd Kaufmann seems to be getting for this awesome series pitch vid on them there YouTubes. Sound off...this looks, sounds and feels like it could be a riot. But, no busty anime chicks or panty shots. Geez, Todd, don'tcha know how to pander to them masses yet? More to come...

TAIS Nooze!

2009-09-16T14:23:00.001-07:00

Hokay, our squishy summer seems to be at an end. Time for bright leaves, hot tea, woodsmoke...and TAIS Fall events! Here's what's comin' up real soon, straight from the site, featuring TAIS homies Richard Reeves, Patrick Jenkins, Mike Weiss and others!
--------------------
Cut and Paste Photo Collage Animation Project Premiering at Gallery 44

The Toronto Animated Image Society and Gallery 44 Centre for Contemporary
Photography are pleased to present eight commissioned works made as part of
the Cut and Paste Photo Collage Animation Project. The films, premiering in
the Vitrines at Gallery 44, bring together photography and animation to
explore the subject of ³feeling photography².

New works by:

soJin Chun
Paola Denegri
Koko Kurunathan & Ambereen Siddiqui
Christine Lucy Latimer
Sue Lloyd
Kathleen Mullen
Elena Potter
Evan Tapper

Opening Reception:
Friday, September 18 from 6:00 to 8:00 pm
Gallery 44 Centre for Contemporary Photography
401 Richmond Street West, Suite #120

Works will be on exhibit in the Vitrines at Gallery 44 from September 12
October 17.
Gallery 44 is open Tuesday to Saturday 11 am 5 pm

***

New Workshops at TAIS!

New workshops announced for the Fall/Winter season!
Workshop registration now open! Advanced payment in cash or cheque required
to reserve your space. For more info, contact tais@bellnet.ca or
416-533-7889
Send cheques to: Toronto Animated Image Society, 60 Atlantic Ave. Suite 102,
Toronto ON, M6K 1X9
(please make cheques payable to Toronto Animated Image Society and note
which workshop you are interested in registering for)

Stop-motion Animation Workshop with Mike Weiss
Puppet building, puppet animation fundamentals, and a "How To" intro to
independent Stop Motion.
Date: October 3
Time: 10 am 5 pm
Location: TAIS Studio, 60 Atlantic Ave
$35 members, $50 non-members

Digital Rotoscoping with Madi Piller
Learn how to apply rotoscoping techniques in the digital age.
Date: December 3, 2009
Time: 7 pm 10 pm
Location: TAIS Studio, 60 Atlantic Ave
$35 members, $50 non-members

Paint on Glass workshop with Patrick Jenkins
A five hour hands-on workshop exploring paint-on-glass animation techniques
with Patrick Jenkins, in conjunction with the ³Eleven in Motion: Abstract
Expressions in Animation² program.
Date: November 14, 2009
Time: 12 pm 5 pm
Location: TAIS Studio, 60 Atlantic Ave
$35 members, $50 non-members

Cameraless Animation and Animated Sound with Richard Reeves
Learn the basics of scratching image AND sound from master scratcher Richard
Reeves, in conjunction with the ³Eleven in Motion: Abstract Expressions in
Animation² program in November.
Date and time: to be announced stay tuned for more info

Classic Animation on Paper 101 with Bryce Hallett
Learn the basics of classical animation on paper in a two day workshop with
Bryce Hallett. Bryce will school you on pencil tests, animation principles,
cycles, and some quick and dirty animation shortcuts.
Dates: November 29 & December 6
Time: 11 am 5 pm
Location: TAIS Studio, 60 Atlantic Ave
$65 members, $90 non-members
Animation paper & pegbar included

Don¹t delay. Reserve today!
-------------------------------------

That's all for now. More details as they become available. And fer you board members: meeting on Wednesday, September 30th! Laters!

Hey, Bats!

2009-09-04T13:44:00.001-07:00

O.k., one commentary on the whole Disney-Marvel thang...ain't this cool? Nicked from the Deviant Art page of one Andrew Dickman...go comment on his stuff so's he don't get angry at me! Good on ya, Andrew. More to come.

Uhhh...

2009-09-04T13:34:00.000-07:00

I could comment on the recent "Pete Elmslie: Art Critic" thang, or Disney buyin' Marvel, or stuffs, but hey, it's the cusp of the Labor Day weekend, so, here's some inspired insanity from Japan, of course. Courtesy of our ever-luvin' homies at Cartoon Brew. Have a good one, and expect more and better posts in the fall. Cheers!

LazyBoy's Demo is Reel...groovy.

2009-08-20T14:48:00.000-07:00

Just perusin' my YouTube subscriptions, and noticed that my man LazyBoy (a.k.a. Lazy Muffin, a.k.a. Israeli animator and sick phoink Yotam Perel) has posted a new demo reel, showcasing his many animated transgressions. Recently, LazyBoy had a hit on his hands, garnering a whole bunch of views on hooligan animation site Newgrounds for a piece he did based on pervy podcast The Distorted View Show. Good on ya, ya lazy bastard. Right now, he's havin' to deal with his upcoming compulsory service in the IDF...so all y'all what was 10 minutes late cuz of the traffics this morning, quit yer whinin'. More to come.

Comic Store Events!

2009-08-07T15:06:00.001-07:00

I've also been lax with the book store nooze for all you comic and art book fans, so lemme tell ya 'bout two events happenin' this weekend. First off, our humble homies at the Labyrinth are holding a 'Mighty Muggs' art show, character design showdown and charity sale...man, talk about a full dance card. Details about what you can get and what you should bring are on their blog.

Second, our graphic guerrilla buddies over at the Beguiling are welcoming new Tank Girl artist Rufus Dayglo (lovin' that name, fella) as drops across the pond to celebrate his run on the series. Just be aware that if you wanna shake hands with Rufus, the event is tonight, Friday the 7th! Sorry for the late warning, it's been that kind of a week. Plus, on Tuesday it's the Marvel 70th Anniversary and Sale. Prepare to get poor, comics fans. Sounds like a full weekend. More to come...enjoy yo'selves, ya heah!

Mercury Filmworks needs a few good men...uh, people.

2009-08-07T14:52:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the lack of posts, punkaroos...guess the ChickenJam took it outta me, cuz I've been doing nothin' but lazin' round them interwebnets. But the fall is comin', and according to the fine folks over at Toon Boom there's opportunities to be had. Seems Mercury Filmworks up in Ottawa has a hit on their hands with porcine pals Toot and Puddle, and are lookin' to expand. So if you think you've got the chops, shoot your URLs and portfolios up to 'em, and mebbe you'll get the nod. Good luck!

Les Drew and Janet Perlman

2009-07-17T15:06:00.000-07:00

Just wanted to end the week with a post of Les Drew's immortal 'Blue Safety Dog' in 'Every Dog's Guide to the Playground', which I discovered on YouTube in the process of searching out Janet Perlman's ChickenJam entry, viewable on her site. In the process of locating her site, I found out that she's got a new film! Produced at Acme Filmworks for client Liberty Mutal, it's titled 'Hot Seat'.

More to come.

Splashworks promo vid

2009-07-17T14:43:00.000-07:00

Fer all y'all wondering what this pooch does for a day job (yeah, you 3 guys), here's a promo vid featuring screens and sample gameplay from some of our games. A lil' background; Splashworks.com has been around since '96, and was formed by a trio of buddies fresh from the CD-Rom wars who wanted to make games where there was a lil' more attention paid to quality, and a lil' less paid to the bottom line (and abusing your Dilberted employees...go read 'Microserfs' or 'JPod', you'll get the picture). Worked on the animation and interfaces for quite a few of these, the most notable being the skateboarding and parkour games. And now, we'se branching into Iphone apps! Lotta fun, and it keeps me in pencils and pixels. Enjoy. Oh, and if you like what ya see, go play sumpin'...is all free, baby. Later!

ChickenJam Online!

2009-07-10T14:41:00.000-07:00

If you've been by the TAIS main site, you've noticed that the full version of the ChickenJam was uploaded to the newly minted TAIS Youtube page (been using me own up to this point) and is ready to enjoy. Kudos to Tara and Madi for the edit, Bryce for the V.O., and our sponsors Line Boil, Nemu-Nemu and the NFB.

And extra special thanks to our filmmakers: Martin Sal, Alex Novitski, Ariel Villaverde, Camille Grandjean, Jesse Jind, Jonathan Amitay, John F. Weldon, Max Hall, Neil Lapointe (who?), Daniel Epton, David Pagurek van Mossel, Jeff Tran, Fabian Dores Pais, Greg Parker, Mike Constable, Adam Fitzgerald, Hector Borboa, Janet Perlman, Joseph Troy, Lisa Murzin & Cesar Forero, Lorenzo West, Matt Hartwell, Michael Jessen, Michael Tallon, Mike Funt, Charles Wilson, Olanrewaju Oluwafemi, Nick Fox-Gieg, Onno Knuvers, Peter Giesbrecht, John F. Weldon, Raphael Rosenwald, Jonathan Cheeseman, Robert Shedlowich, Susan Justin, Tammy Dubinsky, and Madi Piller.

Photos and other stuffs from the TAIS Showcase next week. Have the happy weekend!

Vegan Delights from Halifax!

2009-07-08T09:10:00.000-07:00

Special event comin' up at CineCycle this Friday, a BBQ and screening of animated and partially-so works by Haligonian filmmaker Siloen Daley (that's part one of her film 'Olive Prepares' embedded above) and her circle o' film friends from Nova Scotia. More details follow. Friday looks to be a beaut, so get off yer ass!
------------------
Vegan Delights from Halifax, NS – BBQ, Screening and Discussion with SILOEN DALEY

Siloen Daley presents a program of animated and partially animated films made over the past ten years by herself and other Haligonian women filmmakers who were inspirational to her. Come check out what’s sure to be a fun event, complete with BBQ delights, at the infamous Cinecycle screening coach house! Featuring the works of Becka Barker, Amy Lockhart, Katherine Sheehan, Shelley Wallace, Helen Hill, Helen Bredin, Andrea Dorfman and, of course, Siloen Daley. Discussion with Siloen Daley follows screening.

Friday, July 10th
BBQ begins at 6:30 PM
Screening at 8:00 pm
at Cinecycle (in the old coach house down the lane behind 129 Spadina Ave., on the east side between Richmond St. W. and Adelaide St. W.)

**note: vegan and meat delights will be available at the BBQ

www.tais.ca/vegans.html

Patrick rides the 'Tubes

2009-07-03T15:18:00.000-07:00

Just got an email from Patrick Jenkins, former TAIS head-honcho and all-round animated individual. He's got some choice cuts from some of his films up on his newly minted YouTube page, including the above clip from his award-winning film "Labyrinth". Go check 'em out. More on the ChickenJam next week! Oh, and Anonymous, if you want me to post yer chicken film, I'm gonna need to know who y'are! Just sayin' is all. More later.

**UPDATE**-man, gotta learn to read the WHOLE email. Seems there's a couple of interviews with Patrick up online...he's talkin' bout production of his films 'Labyrinth' and 'The Skateboarder'. Go. Watch. Learn. More to come!

Chicken Helper

2009-06-30T14:44:00.000-07:00

Two pullets what got past the post yesterday, Martin Sal's toothy entry which started the jam, and Rafael Rosenwald's take on throttling poultry as a way to relieve stress. More to come!

UPDATE- added this lil' number to the ones here. Animation and design by Ariel Villaverde. Sound by Ivan Rusev. Really love the look here, thanks for getting me the link Ariel!

Chicken Jam hilites

2009-06-29T09:55:00.000-07:00

Ba-Kawk! - Watch more amazing videos here

O.k., here's all the Chickenjam submissions I could find online. The whole evening was a-flippin'-mazing, and the crowd lost it when we screened these, and more than 20 others! I'll have a full report later in the week. Enjoy! And show these filmmakers some love by bloggin' about them or forum posting, Twitter, whatever...they rock.

Marjane needs our help!

2009-06-25T09:43:00.001-07:00

Hate to get political on y'all, but there's nothin' for it. By now everybody knows just how bad things are on the ground in Iran following the 'election'. Well, Marjane Satrapi, author and illustrator of 'Persepolis' (go see the movie! read the book!) has started a petition asking the U.N. to get off its ass and do something. Go read it...then sign it. If you've seen Marjane's stuff, you know it's a beautiful country suffering from an ugly government, and the shit they pullin' just ain't right. Thanks. Heads-up courtesy of John Martz over at Drawn!

Chicken Cowboy

2009-06-23T14:49:00.000-07:00

Just to remind ya...Thursday's the night of the big TAIS Summer Showcase, so don't be doing nothin' else! In the meantime, here's some southwestern flava'd chicken for ya, courtesy of one Stephen Neary...it's the trailer to his full New York University senior film 'Chicken Cowboy', up on them thar YouTubes for a limited time. Damnit, Stephen, why din't ya send us something for the ChickenJam? You would've been in good company...more on all the excellent submissions later this week. Meanwhile, enjoy the trailer and go see the full film, while you can!

The Mysterious Stranger

2009-06-19T14:59:00.000-07:00

Went lookin' for 'Disturbing Animation' on them thar YouTubes, and looky what I found. An excerpt from Will Vinton's 'The Adventures of Mark Twain', a claymation feature film and one of my teenage faves. And disturbing it is...as the kids get a lesson in the value of life from Ol' Nick hisself. Enjoy!

Bad Kitty, Good Cartoon

2009-06-15T15:04:00.000-07:00

I am posting this not becuz of the kitty (great design) or the weird, abrupt ending (caught me by surprise) nor the fact that it comes from Andy Coyle, a dude who (up 'til a few weeks back) worked for FatKat, one studio what will be missed.

No, I'm posting this for one reason. Changing channels by whacking the clicker with yer tail. Genius. More to come.

Bryce On Animation...and on, and on

2009-06-12T15:44:00.000-07:00

Before I head off for a weekend of vid'ya games and pretzels (and doing the trailers for the Chickenjam...I ain't fergot, Tara) I'll just leave you with this lil' comic gem what I found on Bryce Hallett's website...I feel yer pain, Bryce. Did the Security Guard thing for four freakin' yars. Gave me a lotta time to draw between tours, tho'...more to come next week!

Chickenjam Sponsor: Nemu-Nemu

2009-06-11T15:04:00.000-07:00

Here's my entry for the upcoming TAIS 'Chickenjam!' How, do you ask, do I justify this as a chicken cartoon? Nemu (the second pup, Anpan being the airborne pooch) is wearing a silly chicken hat. And the birdie character is named 'Pollo' (Spanish for 'chicken'). C'mon, ain't that enuff? Birdie! Pups! Silly Chicken Hat! What do you people want from me?!?

On to other things. I like having excuses to promote indy artists at TAIS events, which is part of what TAIS is all 'bouts. Last year, we gave away some excellent monsters courtesy of Toronto's own Monster Factory. So when Bryce came up with 'Chickens' as the theme for this year's animation jam, I knew my go-to peoples. (Pollo? See how it all comes together?)

Kimonokitsy Studios is a husband-and-wife team composed of Audra Furuichi (who does the drawrings) and her hubby Scott Yoshinaga (who does site admin, business and co-writes the strip). They've been posting their ubercute anime-flava'd web comic Nemu-Nemu since 2005, and the strip is a big enough hit that Audra works on it full-time. One of the strip's new characters is the small yellow bird named 'Pollo'. Hence my thinly veiled excuse for getting 'em to send us some swag for the contest.

And what great goodies we gots! Signed and doodled copies of their latest compilations, canvas totes with Nemu and Pollo on 'em, 'Pollo' stuffies and signed prints of the strip (featuring chickens) that Audra and Scott whipped up for the Easter edition of the East Oahu Sun...did I mention they hails from Hawaii?

Right now Audra and Scott are relaxing after a grueling (but productive) span of comics conventions and crafts shows (the last being Fanime '09 in San Jose), with the next one being in December. That's it, gotta run and get this batch o' goodness to Tara for safekeeping at TAIS H.Q. June 25th is fast approaching, so mark it on yer calenders. Oh, and go check out them Nemu-Nemu strips...it'll put the smile on yer face. Later!

Beat by Flower Power!

2009-06-04T15:55:00.000-07:00

There were only two films selected in the KAFI 2009 web film category this year...my goofy lil' PSA, and this bit of 1930's flavored botanical violence. Guess which won? Man, if I gotta lose, there's worse films to lose to, believe me. Congrats to Phil Dubrovsky and Dale Hayward...plant abuse never looked so good! More on the upcoming TAIS showcase and Chickenjam tomorry...

Into the Labyrinth...plus, nooze!

2009-06-04T15:43:00.001-07:00

Some big beautiful stills from Patrick Jenkin's noir homage "Labyrinth", which took 1st place in it's category at KAFI this year. Animated by paint on plexiglass under the camera, Patrick debuted it last summer, and it's been nothin' but kudos since. Nice job! Wanna see it? Come to the TAIS Showcase, cuz it's on the program.

Also on the program is a slew of some of the best animated shorts the board has seen in a dog's age...seriously, it took fer freakin' ever to create a program this year (nice works, Madi and Tara) and to top it all off, we also have 30+ chicken films to look forward to as part of the ChickenJam! I'll be announcing our latest sponsor tomorrow. Meanwhile, take a gander at these stills, and drop by Pat's website. More to come!

K'Naan- T.I.A.

2009-05-15T14:54:00.000-07:00

I'll leave you with this peice o' beauty to start yer long weekend. Just caught K'naan's new video T.I.A. (This Is Africa), where the Somalia-born, Toronto livin' rap poet calls out all them dudes what thinks they livin' the thug life, 'cuz he grew up the real deal, in one of the most vibrant, and yeah, troubled countries on Earth. Lovin' this sound, and the video is a smooth but fast collage of color and symbol, photo elements mixin' with video and animation to paint his original home as beautiful and dangerous, a true crucible. His latest, 'Troubadour' is out on the iTunes...go get it!

artist: K'NAAN
song: T.I.A
album: Troubadour
label: A&M/Octone Records
directed/shot by: NABIL
post: Gustavo & Clara for Wizardflex
production co: Partizan ent.

Free Comics Day 2009

2009-05-12T09:32:00.000-07:00

This week I'm all about the comics. Made it out to Free Comics Day at the Beguiling, and brought my trusty Xacti. Managed to get Clayton Hamner (C-Ton), Tara Tallan (Galaxion), Kean Soo (Jellaby) and Chip Zdarsky (Monster Cops) in my sites, and they gives good interview. Sorry it took a week to get this up, but, hey, everything is a production with me. Music by the most excellent Tettix (go download his stuffs!). More to come!

Graham and Scott are cool doodz.

2009-05-11T09:30:00.000-07:00

TCAF was soggy yet satisfying this year, with a massive layout of indy comics guys and gals hawkin' their tawdry wares and doin' their thing. And lo' and behold, there was not only an animation flava goin' on, but a vidya games thang too! Scott Campbell, character designer of Double-Fine's 'Psychonauts' game, and Graham Annable, animator and comic artist responsible for YouTube editor fave 'Grickle', were both in attendance, signing books and posters and generally being awesome. Scott's hardcover just came out...not yet available from Double-Fine's store, but is in on teh Azamons. Graham's got a new book out, 'Stickleback', and promises a new Grickle animated funny 'just as soon as I get some time to spare.' Nice meeting you, guys! Oh, and a video/animated treat comin' tomorrow (probably). More later!

Pilot me into a brick wall...

2009-05-08T15:09:00.000-07:00

The end of the week finds me obsessed with pilots after watching a (thank the animation gods) aborted attempt at bringing back 'The Get Along Gang'...in 3d, of course, the industry's current fave cliche. Found some interesting stuffs on the YouTubes amongst the desperate and the sad. (Don't stop making those 'series pilots' and posting 'em, kids...they're not only hilarious, they're tiny cautionary tales about the value of learning to freakin' animate, ya jerks.)

Larry and Steve (HB, 1997)

'member Hanna-Barbera's excellent "What a Cartoon" program? Here's Seth McFarlane's first stab at prime-time, a toon featuring the prototypical 'Brian' and 'Peter' characters from his student film, minus the filth. Here named 'Steve' and 'Larry', it's pretty much based on McFarlane's previous student film, 'The Life of Larry'. McFarlane would go on to die alone and forgotten in a Hamilton Tim Horton's parkin lot. That, or milk these two characters for more moolah than Yahweh.

Plastic Man (Warner Bros. 2008)

Here's an interesting one. 'Plastic Man', with a goofy semi-Kricfalusi look and a feel very reminiscent of an earlier Warner's series, 'Freakazoid'. No Steven Speilberg to champion this one, and Cartoon Network took a pass. The character does show up in the new "Brave and the Bold" Batman series, so it's not a total loss.

Jumpin' Jupiter (Mark Mason, 2007)

Here's a cute lil' thang, a pilot for a potential preschool series with space toddlers flyin' about. Animated by Mark Mason and his homey Johnathan Booth. Great example of character action selling personality, no 'talking heads' here, just some nice bouncy character gags. Seems these guys have quite a few pilots under their belts...nice stuff!

Hmm...this pilot thang is interesting. Think I'll institute 'Pilot Fridays', dig up some series non-starters and some prototypes that led to other thangs, and end the week with 'em. Whaddya think? Feedback me. Oh, and don't ferget to hit TCAF tomorrow. Right, I'm out.

Kosher-mation!

2009-05-06T14:57:00.000-07:00

Had a request for 'Almonds and Wine' by Arnie Lipsey, but alas, it exists not online. Madi is on the case, seeing if it's on DVD alone or as part of a compilation. Meanwhile, here's a couple of faves...a selection from Pilar Newton's nicely produced 'Kabbalatoons', and Dan Meth's immortal 'Hebrew Crunk'. Hope that holds ya over, Steven! More to come...

TCAF and free comix!

2009-05-04T14:53:00.000-07:00

Hey! First off, apologies to our homies at The Beguiling and The Labyrinth for no heads up on Free Comics Day, which happened over the weekend. Don't worry, the real comix-palooza comes this weekend as the Toronto Comic Arts Festival happens once again, this time at the Toronto Reference Library (just get off the TTC at Yonge & Bloor, point yer ass north, and follow the geekling hordes.) There will be tons of indies there signing their latest, so bring your wallet. Oh, and a special comix related treat (plus TAIS nooze of course) comin' up in a day or so. Cheers!

Note: Labyrinth's minions will not be there in any official capacity, I'm afraid...this is pretty much Beguiling's gig for indy animators, not yer typical vendor show. Don't fret...next show that Labyrinth will be at is Anime North, coming up later this month. Bonus!

Jewish Animation is the fo-shizzle

2009-04-24T15:10:00.000-07:00

Last night's showcase of Jewish animated films was such a hit, I could just plotz. According to Madi, it was a packed house, with 130 people in attendance including Arnie Lipsey, Eugene Fedorenko and Nick Fox-Gieg. All in all, a darn good time.

Speakin' o' good times, don't forget our upcoming workshops with the forementioned Mr. Fox-Gieg and Mike Weiss. More info in the Workshops section of the TAIS site, or just hit the link. I'm out, cheers!

Fred loves the chicken! (not literally, you pervs...)

2009-04-22T14:35:00.000-07:00

Just a quick post with Episode #176 (!) of Channel Frederator, now featuring more chicken! Yep, the powers that be at the big red Fred were nice enough to program the ChickenJam trailer into this week's episode...look for it at around the five minute mark. And stick around for the rest of the show, o' course! From the site:

"First up, we have a sweet music video for Broken Social Scene's "Pitter Patter Goes by Heart" called "Note To Self." Second is the Manila Folder Classifieds and the adventures therein. Certainly, there are no adventures quite like the ones in the Manila Folder Classifieds, as you will see. and finally, we have something cool with "I've Got Nothing," a look at the creative process and the response to the blank page."

Sounds cool. Check it. And start makin' your chicken-a-mations, right after you mark May 29th and June 25th on your calendars. Get it to us by the first date, so we can throw it up on the big screen at the NFB Cinema come the second. I'm out...more later!

TAIS Showcase and Jam info!

2009-04-16T10:03:00.000-07:00

Seems to be a bit o' confoosion on dates n' stuff, so here' s a followup to letcha know when everything surrounding the TAIS Summer Showcase is happenin'. Remember, if you got any questions about anything TAIS, the contact info is under the pic of the cute lil' foxy guy with the big green sword off to the right, in me profile.

TAIS Summer Showcase

Deadline: May 29, 2009 - 5:00 pm

Have you made an animated short film in the last two years? Want it to screen to a packed house as part of the fantastic TAIS Animation Showcase at the NFB this June? Then submit!

All Genres, mediums, themes! Films must be under 15 minutes in length.

Screeners should be in either MiniDV or Quick Time Movie films on DVD/CD. (NOTE: we'll accept FTP submissions as well, just e-mail us to let us know that's your plan first!)

Send your submission to:
Toronto Animated Image Society
TAIS Showcase 2009
60 Atlantic Avenue
Toronto, ON
M6K 1X9

Please include the submission form, a brief description, an artist bio and contact information, as well as two film stills (tiff or jpg @ 300 dpi - 2 x 3) . Description, bio, contact info and film stills may be emailed to tais@bellnet.ca or included in submission package.

TAIS ChickenJam

Deadline: May 29, 2009

TAIS is at it again with its annual Animated Jam session, or Anijam!

This year’s theme is... Chickens! Yes, you heard right. Chickens of the World, chickens of the sea, chickens of the forest, chicken scratch. Poulet of all sorts.

Create a 10 second long animated film that somehow encompasses our chicken theme! Use any animation technique you want... just make it delicious! Submit it to TAIS and we’ll edit the submissions into a chicken AniJam film which will screen at the TAIS Summer Showcase at the National Film Board this June!

Plus, we’ve got tons of giveaways!

Submit your films on CD/DVD-Rom or via email/file hosting link with the submission form, a brief bio and 2 stills (jpeg) from your film. Format of all Chicken Jam submissions should be a 720 x 480 Quicktime.

Send submissions with the submission form, a brief bio and two stills (jpeg) from your film to:

Toronto Animated Image Society
Chicken Jam
60 Atlantic Avenue, Suite 102
Toronto, Ontario
M6K 1X9
CANADA

Want to send it digitally? OK! Email us a zipped file, email us an ftp link to download from, email us a file hosting link to:

tais@bellnet.ca

There you is! We had an anonymous person o' interest leave commentary that they didn't know the dates...hope this gives you the info you needs. Now submit them films! And give a hand to our erstwhile admin Tara for putting all the website stuffs together. More later!

EDIT: Our anonymous friend is back, makin' this ol' pooch feel like an idiot...justifiably so, tho'. He/she points out that I forgot to post the event date and locale! The TAIS Summer Showcase and ChickenJam will be screened at the National Film Board of Canda Cinema, here in Toronto, on June 25th. Here's a link to the map: I'll do a follow-up post with screen times and ticket prices (should be about five bucks...bargoon) closer to the event. Thanks for the reminder, Anonymous...love yer poetry!

TAIS nooze! April edition

2009-04-14T14:59:00.000-07:00

Hookay, bunch o' stuff to cover here. Latest TAIS newsletter done be out (thank you Tara and Madi), but there's just too much goodness to post it all here. Honestly, it's huge. So, if ya wanna reads it, become a member! Come on, ya know ya wanna.

I finally managed to get the DEFINITIVE version of the ChickenJam trailer up...for a while there, we was going through sponsors like nobodies bidness. I originally wanted to get Toon Boom onboard, but them's busy folks...hopefully I'll get ahold of somebody there before the big date. And MyToons? Ah, alas, MyToons. Amid has posted about it, read it here. So, officially, our event sponsors are:

Channel Frederator: Eric Homan's given the green light to run the trailer in the April 21st episode of the big red cartoon show. Noice!

Line Boil: Aaron Simpson's sister site for all things animated. Aaron already gave us some of that there pimpage, and he's also shippin' us some shoits. My man!

NFB: Michael Fukushima over at the National Film Board got us 9 dvd's of chicken-flava'd short animated goodness, as well as a venue (The most awesome NFB Cinematheque here in Toronto) to host the event. Good on ya!

Finally, I've got a line on some prizing from afar...specifically, Honalulu. More on that later. Meanwhile, relax, sit back, watch a decidely green ep. of the Fred, and I'll be back with more nooze. Be sure to drop by the TAIS website and click on the links on the left...Tara's been updating like mad!

The Brothers Krause go Upstate on yo' ass.

2009-04-09T09:56:00.001-07:00

An excellent, if slightly biased (Amid has always had a serious hair up his bum about Flash, no offense to 'im) interview with Fran and Will Krause, two of New York's finest, sharing their wisdom and experience about pitchin' and producin' pilots. In this case, the pilot is for 'The Upsate Four', their most excellently animated short, half of which appears above. If you want to get a few ideas about how not to make your Flash-a-mations look like paper puppets, and what trying to sell a series to a network is like, it's all layed out here. Read, and grow wise, young pupil. And watch the 'toon, its, like, freakin' gorgeous.

Da hardest workin' man in Flash-biz...

2009-04-08T15:37:00.001-07:00

Gotta love that Aaron Simpson...dude not only takes time to give TAIS some serious pimpage on Cold Hard Flash, but now, he's a one-man employment site, tryin' to get his animation homies work in these troubled times. Check out da amination from Brittney Lee above. Then hire her, 'cuz Aaron sez to. Yep, he's a great representative of the online animation community.

Plus, I hear he makes one hell of a vodka martini.

O.k., 'nuff with the gush. Check out CHF and the sister site Line Boil for animation shtuffs that you will likes. More on the ChickenJam later...with possible mentions of Hawaii?

TAIS Info Bomb!

2009-04-07T09:42:00.000-07:00

Brace yerselves, buckaroos...here's all what's goin' downs at TAIS currently. And we've got more stuffs planned! Yeah, we're nuts. Here's the skinny:

------------------
1 CUT AND PASTE PHOTO COLLAGE ANIMATION PROJECT
Toronto Animated Image Society & Gallery 44 Centre for Contemporary
Photography Call for Applications

Gallery 44 and TAIS are seeking proposals for a commissioned project that
brings together photography and animation. Each successful applicant will
produce a 1 to 3 minute photo-based animation exploring the subject of
³feeling photography², the title and theme of a conference hosted by the
Toronto Photography Seminar in October 2009. The animations will be
premiered in the Vitrines of Gallery 44 during the Feeling Photography
conference.

The conference "Feeling Photography" will bring together scholars working in a range of interpretive and theoretical approaches to interrogate the relationship between affect, emotion, and/or feeling and photographic meaning. Gallery 44 and TAIS want to support the creation of artworks that explore similar themes.

Projects will be completed between May and August 2009. TAIS and Gallery 44 will offer support for the development and production process of the projects.

Selected artists will receive:
· Gallery 44 Membership
· TAIS Full Studio Membership
· $300 honorarium
· Photo Animation Workshop at TAIS
· Imacon and Flatbed Scanning workshop at Gallery 44
· $50 materials fee

Each application must include:
· Project description 200 to 300 words
· CV, resume, or brief bio
· Samples of recent work (i.e., CD or DVD for time-based artists;
maximum of 10 images on CD for visual artists)
· A self-addressed, stamped envelope. Submissions without a SASE will
not be returned.

Submit to the TAIS office via email or Snail Mail by April 24, 2009
60 Atlantic Avenue, Suite 102
Toronto. Ontario
M6K 1X9
Email: tais@bellnet.ca

For more info, please visit www.tais.ca/cutnpaste.html

2 TAIS ANIMATION SHOWCASE CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS
Have you made an animated short film in the last two years? Want it to
screen to a packed house as part of the fantastic TAIS Animation Showcase atthe NFB this June? Then submit!

All Genres, mediums, subjects, themes- Under 15 minutes in length.

Screeners should be in either MiniDV or Quick Time Movie files on DVD/CD.

Send your submission to:
Toronto Animated Image Society
TAIS Showcase 2009
60 Atlantic Avenue
Toronto, ON
M6K 1X9

Please include the submission form below, a brief description, an artist bio
and contact information, as well as two film stills (tiff or jpg @ 300 dpi -
2 x 3) . Description, bio, contact info and film stills may be emailed to
tais@bellnet.ca or included in submission package. Application form can be
found here: http://www.tais.ca/opencall.html

Deadline for submissions: Friday May 29, 5:00 pm

3 TAIS ANIMATED JAM 2009 CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS
We are proud to announce this year¹s theme for the TAIS AniJam, ten second animations that will screen in rapid succession at the TAIS Showcase in June. This year's theme is... Chickens! Yes, you heard right. Chickens of the World, chickens of the sea, chickens of the forest, chicken scratch...poulet of all sorts.

Get cracking on those animations!
Deadline for submissions is May 29th, 2009 at 5:00 pm.
For more info or to download a submission form visit:
http://www.tais.ca/chickenjam.html

4 STOP MOTION WORKSHOP WITH MIKE WEISS
Puppet building, puppet animation fundamentals, and a "How To" intro to
independent Stop Motion.

April 26th, 2009
10 am 5 pm
At the TAIS Studio, 60 Atlantic Avenue
$35 members, $50 non-members (Pre-registration required)
Only a few spots left. Register soon to avoid disappointment.
To register, contact the TAIS office at tais@bellnet.ca or by calling
416-533-7889

5 LEARN HOW TO MAKE AN ANIMATED FILM FROM SCRATCH IN FLASH
Mentor/workshop facilitator Nick Fox-Gieg will lead a group of participants
from start to finish on the ³how-to² of making an animated film in flash.
This two month workshop will include instruction in using flash for
animation, creative consultation on your project¹s structure, and access to
the TAIS studio for completion of your film. The course will culminate in a
public screening of the works created.

Dates:
May 9, 2009 11 am 5 pm
Every other Thursday evening in May/June from 7-9 pm
May 14, May 28, June 11, June 25

Cost: $250 members, $300 non-members

Interested participants should send expressions of interest to the TAIS
office by April 25, 2009. Submissions should include:
· Contact information
· 1-2 paragraph proposal of work to be created
· A brief bio that outlines what skills or relevant experience you have
with animation/illustration/digital imaging
· Samples of your work (i.e., website portfolio, CD or DVD for
time-based artists; maximum of 10 images on CD for visual artists)
· Please also include what, if any, equipment you can bring to aid in
the creation of your project. A Wacom tablet and a laptop with Flash 8 or
later installed will be especially useful.

Send submissions to:
Flash Workshop
Toronto Animated Image Society
60 Atlantic Avenue, Suite 102
Toronto, On M6K 1X9
Via email:
tais@bellnet.ca

6 THE RETURN OF THE INCUBATOR EXTENDS...
We¹ve had so much fun and such good response to the incubators over the
winter months that we¹re going to keep them going! Join us on the 1st
Wednesday of every month for our quilting circle style incubators, where
guests show their works in process, share animation knowledge and gossip
while keeping their fingers busy with related crafts. This month, TAIS
representatives will be on hand with all the tools and know how you¹ll
require to get working on some simple DIY cameraless animation.

Wednesday, May 6th
60 Atlantic Avenue, Suite 102
7:00 pm 9:00 pm
$5 suggested donation for scratchers to cover the cost of materials

7 A SHOWCASE OF JEWISH ANIMATED FILMS
In conjunction with Mural Routes, TAIS is pleased to present a screening of
eight short Jewish animated films curated by TAIS president Madi Piller,
followed by a discussion & light refreshments.

Following the presentation, one of the animated films will be chosen as the
subject of a colourful mosaic mural to be installed on Bathurst St. (at
Lawrence avenue) as part of a community beatification project.

A Showcase of Jewish Animated Films
Thursday, April 23 6:30 pm
at Barbara Frum Branch, Toronto Public Library (20 Covington Road)
Admission: FREE!

For more info, visit www.muralroutes.com
------------

Whoof! Did I say skinny? Well, there's plenny to keep y'all busy there, so hit them links, sign up or get more info. Cheers!

Jon Izen rides that Magic Pony

2009-04-07T09:27:00.000-07:00

Just got an e-mail via Tara at TAIS HQ from merry nutbar Jon Izen, he of 'Black and White' fame! Seems he's gonna have hisself an art opening at one of my fave joints, The Magic Pony, on April 17th! Naturally, I'll have to be there. I'll bring the Xacti and grab some vids of the show for all to enjoy. If you're in T'rawna that day, drop by and show the dude some love...after all, he animated what you see above, along with homey Ivan Rusev. Enjoy!

Recyclamation, Disney styles

2009-04-06T09:48:00.000-07:00

Someone done gone and compiled all the re-uses from 'Robin Hood', which, becuz of a teeny budget, sourced characters and animation sequences from 'Jungle Book', 'Aristocats' and 'Snow White'. Either this is a 'hah, gotcha!' moment, or a rare glimpse at how to creatively re-use old footage as source for a budget title. Me, I'm kinda in the middle...'Robin' had it's moments, but generally was a big pile 'o lackluster, and this montage just goes to prove the point. Don't be too hard on the folks back then, though...this was the first animated flick produced after ol' Walt shuffled off the mortal coil. Courtesy of web culture site Dark Roasted Blend.

TAIS Chickenjam!

2009-03-31T17:04:00.000-07:00

Lil' late in coming, I know, but we're finally off and running with this year's anijam event, the CHICKENJAM! Yep, it's all about the poultry this year as we take submissions for 10 seconds each of feathery animated goodness. Standard rules from last year apply...make it a 10 second animated film, make it about or around the theme, and submit a .QT format vid file to TAIS by May 30th.

Special thanks to Bryce for the audio werks, and the nicely cheesy v.o. And thanks to Michael Fukushima over at the NFB. He's gotten us some DVD's featuring chicken-related shorts from the NFB's animation archives. We'll be getting more goodies as the date draws nearer. In the meantime, get cracking on those films!

TAIS Nooze!

2009-03-30T14:56:00.000-07:00

O.k., some bits of news to start yer week. TAIS is working with The Images Festival to present a bizarre of the bizarre, so to speak. Included in the programme is Jim Trainor's new short, 'The Presentation Theme'. Details below!

On Screen 1: "A Human Drawing Blood From a Bound Prisoner, an Anthropomorphic Cat Doing the Same"
Sunday, April 5 6pm at the Joseph Workman Theatre (1001 Queen Street West)
Admission: Pay What You Can

TAIS is pleased to co-present "A Human Drawing Blood From a Bound Prisoner, an Anthropomorphic Cat Doing the Same", a programme of short films in conjunction with The Images Festival. Features new work from Jim Trainor!
For more info visit www.imagesfestival.com
-----------------

Next, a workshop with puppet animator Mike Weiss! He'll be holding court, giving the downlow on techniques he used to bring his film 'Inheritance' to life. Here's the scoop:

Stop Motion Animation Workshop with Mike Weiss

Puppet building, puppet animation fundamentals, and a "How To" intro to independent Stop Motion.
Sunday, April 26th, 2009. 10 am - 5 pm
At the TAIS Studio, 60 Atlantic Avenue
$35 members, $50 non-members (Pre-registration required)
To register, contact the TAIS office at tais@bellnet.ca or by calling 416-533-7889

By the way, STASH, the monthly DVD magazine, feature Mike in issue 29...copies still availables.
-------------------------

Finally, our erstwhile and indefatigable admin, Tara, has sat down for an interview with education networking and community blog Learning in the City. Tara's interview nicely capsulizes TAIS as and organization and what we do in the animation and arts community...definitely a worthy read.

Well, that's all the nooze what's fit fer print today. Big announcement (with fresh animation!) tomorrow, punkaroos...stay tooned.

Selections de Felix

2009-03-20T14:52:00.000-07:00

Gisele Kerozene dir. Jan Kounen

A few choice films personally chosen by TAIS board member and all-'round tasteful dude Felix. 'Gisele Kerozene', directed by Jan Kounen, is some Norm McLaren inspired nuttiness that includes one of the weirdest chase scenes ever filmed. 'Isle of Flowers', pts. 1 and 2, directed by Jorge Furtado, is, according to Felix "one of my favourite shorts/animations today (after missing it for 10 years!). It's from Brazil, political and pretty fast paced." Enjoy! Oh, and the slow season ends next week...we've had our General Meeting and there's tons of events, workshops and one special announcement comin' just around the bend...stay tooned.

KAFI: They likes me!

2009-03-03T10:11:00.000-08:00

O.k., If it seems like I'm goin' a bit overboard in my excitement, this is the first full-fledged honest-to-gosh animation fest I've been accepted into, and the fact that it's KAFI, one of the biggest n' best, just knocks my socks off even further. You might remember that this lil' toon was created for Jeromy 'Doc' Adams (the voice) for his 'Extra Life' gaming charity, which incidentally raised over 100, 000 semolians for pediatric cancer research. Hopefully, I had a lil' to do in spreading the word about the event with my 'toon. Here's the YouTube:

I'd like to thank Doc for his awesome sound and v.o. work, and Eric Zermeno for his tips on colors and characters. Doc's gonna be doing the event again this year in October, so be sure to sign up, play them games and heal them kids!

And yep, I've already got plans to do another promo; I'll keep ya posted. Here's a letter from Doc explaining his motivation behind the event, and hence, mine. More later!

KAFI 2009 official selections announced!

2009-03-03T10:03:00.000-08:00

O.k., slow to the post here...the .pdf of official selections for the 2009 Kalamazoo Animation Festival International were posted about a week and a half back, but I've been busy with stuffs, some of which you'll see in the next post. From the website:

"These films were selected from over 555 films from around the world for competition screening-judging in the Commissioned, Independent, Student and Web categories. This year's films have a variety of styles, story lines and techniques from the young artists (12 and under) to the seasoned professionals and independents. All films selected as a Finalist will be shown on the big screen during KAFI at the historic State Theatre in downtown Kalamazoo."

Congrats to one and all who got the nod! Gotta see if'n I can't make it to this one...if not, I know Madi at least will be in attendance. And now, for a related announcement.

Oldelaf - le Café

2009-02-27T16:06:00.000-08:00

From France, a cautionary tale to end the week...go easy on the Juan Valdez juice, er you'll wind up murdering a granny. From the French (obviously) band Oldelaf, directed by Stephanie Marguerite and Emilie Tarascou. Subtitles pour les maudis anglais (tabernac) courtesy of the French Kisses blog. A biento!

TAIS Gallery updated!

2009-02-25T14:49:00.000-08:00

Tara, our erstwhile admin, just wanted me to let y'all know that the TAIS Member Gallery has been updated! It now includes links to the sites and works of:

Charuvi Agrawal, Willy Ashworth, Nassim Azadi, Lise Beaudry, Veronika Belianina, Marc Beurteaux, Lukas Blakk, Guillermina Buzio, Daisy Chia, David N. Cobden,Grant Dix, Mark Dowsett, Stephanie Dudley, Jabari Elliot, Cesar Forero, Alexander Gelis ,Bryce Hallett, Patrick Jenkins, Susan Justin, Lisa Murzin, Craig Marshall, Allyson Mitchell, Justin Murphy, Madi Piller, Barry Sanders, Ruth Tait, Jeffrey Tran, Bob Wiseman, Christine Whitlock and Dong Yuxiao. Damn, that's whole lotta peoples. Go check out their stuffs!

I'll be doing profiles of all the artists in the Member Gallery this year...here's a taster. Lil' film called "Dundas n' Bathurst", created in just 20 days by TAIS members Charuvi and Jeff Tran. Got top prize at TUFF. Enjoy!

Get yer bran

2009-02-19T17:08:00.000-08:00

Video from nutty nutbars The Bran Flakes. Animated in the Flash by Susan DeLint, link courtesy of our homey Fred. Enjoy.

Comparo: Terra vs. Skywhales

2009-02-19T16:21:00.000-08:00

Bit of a brew-ha-ha here over the trailer to what the folks over at Cartoon Brew consider to be yet another in a string of me-too 3d features, complete with a credit roll larded down with 'voice talent' and ho-hum designs. 'Battle for Terra' has an interesting concept, though...always wanted to do the 'alien invasion in reverse' story, wonder why no one's ever tackled it before in any real way. And if a studio has, please, let me know.

The film brought to mind (the mind in this case belonging to Chuck R.) a short film from way back called SkyWhales...essentially evoking the same kind of alien imagery as Terra, an alien race living side-by-side with giant flyin' critters. Anyhoo, both are presented here for your delectation. More to come!

Lazyboy pimps Newgrounds

2009-02-17T18:08:00.000-08:00

Lazyboy is an animator from Israel, most famous for his cartoons created for pervy podcast Distorted View, and for being highly, badly, umm...well just watch this cartoon.

Newgrounds is a website for content creators to share animations, games and novelties made in Flash. It's free for anyone, and one of the greatest online animation communties we have. Yeah, it's pretty much wall-to-wall porn. Badly drawn wall-to-wall porn. Just watch the toon, dammit. Thank you.

p.s.: If you're thinking of downloading and listening to the Distorted View show, ahhh, don't. Just, don't. Let it go, trust me, unless you've got a carbon-fibre soul and kevlar eardrums, you don't wanna expose yerself. O.k., you done been warn'd.

3x Super Robot Heartbreak

2009-02-05T15:16:00.000-08:00

3x Super Robot Heartbreak from Black brow. on Vimeo.

Anyone 'member this great bot toon when it appeared on the Fred? Really like this one, great use of typography, timing and music. Enjoy! Oh, and more on them chickens later.

Fred Loves Kirsten!

2009-02-03T15:04:00.000-08:00

Been a loooong damn time since I've tossed the Fred some love, so here's a shout out to Big Red as he launches a new profiles series, basically dedicating a single ep. to one outstanding animator-type person. That person? Kirsten LePore! Not familiar with her work, so I'm gonna check out this ep, then hop by her site. Here's to Fred for spreadin' that animation luv all over them interwebnets.

Skunk Fu for You!

2009-01-30T15:28:00.000-08:00

Yeah, I know Aaron's covered this stuff, but I only just got my Skunk Fu DVD in the mail from the Amazon, and I've become a fan. Really lovin' the 'no line' style...not only calligraphic, but also frees up time to focus on moving the characters rather than fretting about finessing line weights n' stuff. These two cycles courtesy of Alessandra Sorrentino...go check out her YouTube page for more goodness.

Right, off for the weekend...mebbe this ol' pooch'll have a surprise or two for y'all next week. Cheers!

Bob on tour!

2009-01-29T15:02:00.000-08:00

Bob Wiseman, TAIS board-briddah and travellin' troubador, is off on tour! Here's a sample of his singin' n' pickin', accompanied by animation courtesy of Toronto's own Kathleen Phillips. He's gonna be packin' some samples of TAIS member animation with him on his journeys...stay for the show, enjoy the music (buy his CD, dammit) and mebbe he'll show you some aminations...if you ask nice. Bob will be crossin' the country, then headin' on down to New Zealand (Hey, Bob, drop in on the MukPuddies and say Hi!) to cap off the tour. Man, that's a long walk. Check out the tour schedule below. More later!

31 Jan 2009