Mayerson on Animation
- The ProphetDeadline Hollywood is reporting that Salma Hayek is producing an animated version of Kahlil Gibran's book The Prophet. It is an omnibus film with the wrap-around material being directed by Roger Allers (The Lion King). Allers wrote the script as well.The various sequences are being directed by Tomm Moore (The Secret Of Kells), Joan Gratz (Mona Lisa De […]
Cartoon Brew
- Why Does Barack Obama Hate Brad Bird’s “The Incredibles”?The We The People petition website is run by the White House and bills itself as a site that gives “all Americans a way to engage their government on the issues that matter to them.” Any citizen of our great nation can create a petition and round up signatures from other constituents. The petitions that achieve over 100,000 signatures will generate a respons […]
NFB Blog
- Hot Topics | Lighting Wizard Dedo Weigert Discusses Lighting for Documentary, Part 2Recently, celebrated cinematographer and lighting system inventor Dedo Weigert dropped by the NFB’s Montreal headquarters for a day-long workshop on a topic dear to his heart: film lighting. During lunch, the lighting wizard took a few moments to answer our questions about such things as why lighting matters, […]
Cold Hard Flash
- Will We Get More Bites of Dogsnack?Dogsnack, the animated series by Lynn Wang and Ed Skudder, is ready for a cat nap. Season 1 is coming to a close with this 10th episode, titled Final Snack. Will there be a season 2? You’ll just have to wait and see… […]
ToonBoom Resource
- An Ultrabook for AnimationIf you want a portable tablet pc for Toon Boom animation, here is very interesting option: The Samsung Ativ SmartPC Pro 700T. First: This is not designed to replace your desktop PC with a Wacom Cintiq or tablet interface. You will always need the horsepower and precision of a good workstation with a high quality […] […]
Tag Archive
Roddy McManus leaves NFB
I have no idea how I missed this. AWN reported on May 31st that Roddy McManus has stepped down from his position as Executive Producer of the National Film Board of Canada’s Academy Award-winning English-language animation studio. No official word yet about why McManus left the position, to which he was appointed in July 2011,… »
coolest beans: Graham Falk on Adventure Time
Tonight’s episode of Adventure Time was boarded by Graham Falk. I’ve mentioned Graham on here more than a few times. He’s an amazing cartoonist, who’s been hugely influential among the current crop of animators in Canada. He created Untalkative Bunny, one of the more charming kids shows to come out of Canada over the last… »
from the internets: Warren Leonhardt on Animation Insider
Sometimes contributor and all around swell guy, Warren Leonhardt, answered a few questions for Animation Insider. Apparently, Warren used to be a logger, and is too lazy to be an amateur kickboxer. I had no idea he was so… »
RIP Stompin’ Tom Connors
This guy was the real deal. An inspiring Canadian if ever there was one. Here’s an animated connection, courtesy of the NFB and Paul Morstad, it’s Moon Man, from 2004. Moon Man by Paul Morstad, National Film Board of… »
from the internets: J.J. Sedelmaier talks Lightboxes and Peg Bars
Imprint magazine has a great article by New York animator J.J. Sedelmaier that features an awesome array of animation discs and setups that are drifting into antiquity. You young’uns won’t barely recognize most of this stuff, but it’s great to see it all laid out. No Canadian connection mentioned in the article, but I’ll add… »
from the internets: Guys With Pencils talk with Scott Caple
Guys with Pencils podcast, featuring a conversation with Scott Caple. Scott is an instructor at Sheridan, whose resume includes the Incredibles and Raiders of the Lost Ark. Here’s the download link…. »
Michael Fukushima at Reel Asian Film Festival
Following part one of our interview with Michael Fukushima, we present, care of Grayden Laing, Michael’s presentation at this year’s Reel Asian International Film Festival. Michael is the first producer to be honoured by the festival. Traditionally they recognize directors. A selection of films were screened, including Michael’s first film, Minoru: Memory of Exile, that… »
from the internets: Winsor McCay Google Doodle
Google’s got a Winsor McCay homage up today. For those who don’t know him, he’s one of the defining pioneers of animation. He’s best known in cartoon circles for Gertie the Dinosaur, his traveling Vaudeville show where he interacted with an animated Brontosauraus of his own creation, a process that precision timing, and painstaking animation. … »
Attention Directors: Directors Rights Collective of Canada may be holding foreign royalties for you, list attached.
This came in via Mark Mayerson, and seems to be on the up and up. Basically, the DRCC collects foreign royalties on behalf of Canadian directors, and is affiliated with the Directors Guild of Canada. There’s a very long list of directors they are trying to reach, and quite a few are very recognizable(Kaj Pindal,… »
from the internets: Ted Wilson, Animation Insider interview
More Animation Insider interviews: today’s Canadian Animator is Ted Wilson, co-creator of Mondo Media’s Gundarr the Barbarian. Here’s the… »
from the internets: Animation Insider interviews Diamond Dave Merritt
Animation Insider has a great formula. Standardized interview questions that they send out to all kinds of animation types. There’s a pretty huge catalogue on there, including a number of notable Canadians. The latest is “Diamond” Dave Merritt. Whether you know it or not, you’re probably familiar with the man’s work. Have a read here…. »
Post-TAAFI: Guys With Pencils Podcast
There’s going to be a fair bit of post-festival wrap-up to do, but first, I have to get some day-job under my belt. So to keep you all from getting too lonely I’m going to link to the Guys With Pencils podcast. This week they grabbed Nick Cross and Marlo Meekins during their TAAFI visit… »
A conversation with Josh Bowen, creator of Mondo Media’s Goodwin VS Badwin
A little while back, I had a few minutes to chat with Toronto’s Josh Bowen. Josh is an independent producer who had some recent success with Goodwin VS Badwin, a webseries being showcased on Mondo Media’s YouTube channel. GvsB has ranked up a solid chunk of numbers, and while it hasn’t been a breakout… »
press release: Butch Hartman at TAC 2012
Continuing to put their best cartoon foot forward, the Ottawa International Animation Festival, has announced Butch Hartman as a keynote speaker for TAC 2012. I’ve never seen so focused an attempt to please the cartoon crowd form the normally indie-oriented event. Granted, TAC is an industry event, but this is still pretty hardcore cartoonery. Here’s… »
from the internets: Student profile of Kyle Mowat at TAAFI.com
Over on the TAAFI website, there’s an interview with soon-t0-be Sheridan grad, Kyle Mowat. The interviewer is Chris Walsh, a prof at Sheridan, so there’s some clear familiarity between the two. They mainly cover Kyle’s grad film, Ball Pit. Kyle’s work is not what one generally expects when the words “Sheridan Grad” are mentioned. Much… »
TAAFI poster chit-chat with Mike Geiger and Rich Duhaney
About a week or so ago, we posted Mike Geiger‘s design for the inaugural TAAFI poster. Lots of you seem to like its obvious cartoonery, so we decided to ask Mike and Rich Duhaney (of TAAFI) for a little background on the design. Mike’s pretty busy, but he managed to squeeze this out for us:… »
press release: Nerd Corps hires Juli Boylan to head up Consumer Products
With original action series SLUGTERRA launching in the fall on Disney XD, Nerd Corps Entertainment has recruited a new nerd to lead its consumer products activities, Juli Boylan. Boylan will be at Toy Fair in New York this week seeking licensees to help move the program forward and support the global launch. Nerd Corps will… »
press release: Andrew Kerr heading up Consumer Products, Nelvana Enterprises
Toronto, Canada — Corus Entertainment’s Nelvana Enterprises announced the appointment of respected industry veteran Andrew Kerr to Head of Consumer Products, The Americas and Australasia, effective immediately. Kerr brings over 14 years of international industry experience in licensing, consumer products and marketing, and will be responsible for strategy, brand management and development for Nelvana properties including Beyblade, Babar, Franklin… »
RIP, Ron Searle, 1920-2012
The new year is off to a rocky start with the announcement this morning that legendary illustrator Ron Searle has passed at the age of 91. Ron is best known in non-animation circles as the creator of the St. Trinian’s stories, with which I’m admittedly not too familiar. I know him better by his breadth… »
from the internets: Jon Klassen on Cartoon Brew
Great interview by Chris Arrant with Toronto-based artist Jon Klassen over on Cartoon Brew. Jon’s an animation guy who’s moved into illustration and pretty much kicks ass. I’m a fan. Go read. Here’s the… »
press release: Jennifer McCarron joins Atomic Cartoons as Head of Production
VANCOUVER, BC October 17, 2011 – Atomic Cartoons Inc. is proud to announce the addition of Jennifer McCarron to the studio’s management team. An award winning animation producer, Jennifer Twiner-McCarron joins Atomic Cartoons as the Head of Production in October 2011. Over the past 15 years, Jennifer has produced or executive produced dozens of animated… »
from the internets: Mark Mayerson on Animation Insider
Mark Mayerson takes his turn with the usual round of questions on Animation Insider. Here’s the… »
from the internets: Ken Davis on Animation Insider
Storyboard artist Ken Davis shares his thoughts on Animation Insider. Here’s the… »
from the internets: Rob Davies on Animation Insider
Got another Insider interview for you. This one’s with Rob Davies. Rob’s one of the founders of Vancouver’s Atomic Cartoons, and also the guy who gave me my first job in this business back when he was a young hotshot at Studio B. There’s a lot in this one, go read. Here’s the… »
from the internets: Jess Borutski on Animation Insider
One more pillaged from my Awesome List. Here’s Jess on Animation Insider…. »
from the internets: Robbie Anderson on Animation Insider
Here’s another one! Once again, one of our very own, Mr Robbie Anderson, answers the usual round of questions on Animation Insider. I should swipe their format. Here’s the link…. »
from the internets: Mike Geiger on Animation Insider
Animation Insider is on a roll. First Warren Leonhardt, now Mike Geiger. It’s like they swiped my awesome list. Here’s the… »
from the internets: Warren Leonhardt on Animation Insider
Well, well, well.. if it isn’t our very own Sir Warren B Leonhardt the first over on Animation Insider. As someone who is prone to bouts of grumpiness, I’m constantly inspired by Warren’s seemingly boundless positivity and love for what he does. Animation Insider managed to turn the tables on our Mister Leonhardt and get… »
press release: TELETOON PRODUCTION EXECUTIVE LANDS AT MERCURY
Travis Williams leaves Teletoon to head service and co-production development slate at Canada’s Mercury Filmworks August 19, 2011, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada Mercury Filmworks announces former Teletoon production executive Travis Williams as the new head of its development team. In 7 years at Teletoon, Williams supervised the development and production of over 300 hours of television… »
from the internets: Gazette article on David Verrall’s departure from the NFB
David Verrall has been with the NFB for over 30 years, the past 14 as the Executive Producer of the English Language Animation program. The torch is passing this September to Roddy McManus. The Montreal Gazette has a nice piece on the upcoming… »
Checking in with Kevin Parry
I’ve been meaning to post this chat I shared with Kevin Parry. It’s been a busy year for Kevin, with a lot of well-deserved attention from his first film, the Arctic Circle, and the release of a new film, a music video he directed with the help of a few friends. I though it would… »
press release: Bonita Siegel joins Atomic development team
July 15, 2011 Atomic Cartoons is pleased to announce the addition of Bonita Siegel to their development team. Bonita is an experienced Executive Producer and Broadcaster who, in her role as Director of Original Productions at Corus Television, developed, commissioned and supervised production on over 1400 hours of children’s programming for all age groups and… »
Roddy McManus named new top dog for English language animation at NFB
I’m lifting this directly from MediaCaster, since I don’t seem to have received a press release: The National Film Board of Canada (NFB) has named Roddy McManus as the new Executive Producer of its Oscar-winning English-language Animation Studio. McManus succeeds veteran animation producer David Verrall as head of the Montreal-based Animation Studio starting August 8,… »
cool beans: Curtis and Tara
Not sure where to put this. Maybe under profiles, maybe under showcase? Either way, today I’m introducing you to Curtis and Tara. Apart from being two of the most genuinely (as far as I can tell) nice people I’ve met since I got my first job in animation, they also make stuff. They’re responsible for… »
press release: Mercury promotes Sandra Green to VP Finance
Entertainment finance veteran promoted to Mercury Filmworks Vice‐President of Finance Mercury Filmworks is pleased to announce the promotion of Sandra Green from Director of Finance to Vice President, Finance. In her new position Green will report directly to Mercury President Clint Eland and oversee all aspects of the company’s production and corporate finances. Green, a… »
Joseph Gilland’s Elemental Magic special effects workshop (quick review by Barry Sanders)
Friend of the site, Barry Sanders, was fortunate enough to attend Joseph Gilland’s effects workshop in Toronto last week. He was kind enough to send over a quick write up: On Sunday February 20th the Toronto Animated Image Society presented a full day lecture by veteran effects animator Joseph Gilland to a sold out NFB… »