Superfad has delivered an impressive 3D spot for the Sony PS3, directed by Kevin Lau and Frank Pichel. Superfad’s animation of the ‘exploding’ PS3 are tightly integrated with the videogame footage but also make a unique impression of their own because of the stylized b&w art direction. The use of a simple grey background also heightens the impact of the piece. It’s refreshing to see such restraint on the part of directors working with CG.

(via Motionographer)

What to make of Robert Zemeckis’ Beowulf.

Is it to be considered a pure animated film or a digitally enhanced live action feature? Is it of a piece with Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within and Polar Express? Or does it end up in the company of 300, Sin City or Sky Captain and The World Of Tomorrow?

I haven’t seen the film; I’ve only seen the trailers and clips. So far, I’m not impressed. And so far I’m having a hard time accepting this as an animated feature. Should this film compete for an Annie or an Oscar against Persepolis, Ratatouille and The Simpsons Movie?

Buzz from the first public screenings this weekend is overwhelmingly positive (these screenings were in 3-D Imax). This film is shaping up to be huge at the box office. Early reviewers are blown away by both the filmmaking and the technical razzle dazzle. Even sourpuss film critic Jeffery Wells at Hollywood Elsewhere (no fan of animation nor sword & sorcery pics himself) has posted an ecstatic rave:

“Robert Zemeckis’s Beowulf is an exceptional film on its own terms, but the 3-D version I saw last night is, no exaggeration, something close to stupendous… This film is obviously animated through and through. It deserves the Best Feature Animation Oscar, bar none. I don’t care what anyone says — this is not live-action except in the most rudimentary sense of the physical acting aspects, which represent, in my view, a relatively small portion of the whole.”

I’ll decide for myself what camp this picture falls into after I actually see it. In the meantime, I’d be interested in hearing what our readers have to say.

Performance capture and opera: a match made in heaven. Quick, get Robert Zemeckis on the phone and have him follow up Beowulf with this:

(Thanks, Pete Emslie)

Starting today, Leslie Iwerks independent documentary The Pixar Story will begin a small Oscar-qualifying run in 14 select cities across the United States.

The film contains never-before-seen footage from the Pixar library, along with exclusive interviews with some of the key players in the Pixar story including John Lasseter, Ed Catmull, Steve Jobs, George Lucas, Brad Bird, Michael Eisner, Bob Iger, Tom Hanks, Billy Crystal and more. Go see it if it’s playing in your area - it’s incredibly informative and very entertaining.

SCREENING SCHEDULE: October 23-25, 2007
Chicago – Landmark Century Centre Cinema
Dallas – Landmark The Magnolia
Detroit – Landmark Maple Art Theatre

October 30 - November 1, 2007
Washington DC – Landmark E Street Cinema
New Orleans – Landmark Canal Place Cinema
Denver – Landmark Chez Artiste
Seattle – Landmark Metro Cinemas

November 6-8, 2007
San Diego – Landmark La Jolla Village Cinemas
Boston – Landmark Kendall Square Cinema
Atlanta – Landmark Midtown Art Cinema
Milwaukee – Landmark Downer Theatre
Indianapolis – Landmark Keystone Art Cinema
Minneapolis – Landmark Lagoon Cinema

November 13-15
San Francisco – Landmark Lumiere Theatre

Iwerks’ award-winning theatrical documentary The Hand Behind the Mouse-The Ub Iwerks Story will be included on the forthcoming Disney Treasures: Oswald The Lucky Rabbit dvd, on sale Dec. 11th.

Cold Rush is a new French student film created by Mikael Lynen, Simon Corbaux, Tristan Urbin and Rémi Certhoux at the Supinfocom school. My enthusiasm for the film was slightly dampened by the plodding pace of storytelling and unsatisfying ending, but the short has a lot going for it including a grand cinematic vision and a well-conceived near-monochromatic production design. As a piece of student CG, it’s undeniably impressive, and from a technical standpoint trumps many professional CG productions. Watch the film HERE (57mb QuickTime file) and read more behind-the-scenes details at CGSociety.com.

(Thanks, Tim Bjorklund)

I’m sorry to say I have no interest in video games. But I’ve been curious about these new Looney Tunes titles. Today Variety reviews and pans the new Playstation game, Acme Arsenal, but thinks the other one, the Nintendo DS game Duck Amuck, is a classic. Read the review here.

It’s an encouraging sign for the development of CG animation that we are increasingly seeing young artists creating computer work that is non-photoreal and more evocative than descriptive. A prime example of this is a piece we wrote about a while back: RGBXYZ by David O’Reilly. A more recent bit of stylized CG that came my way is the short Elk Cloner by student filmmaker Jason Fletcher, aka Isoceles, who created it at SAIC. Even after reading the artist statement and supporting documentation (Elk Cloner was an early computer virus that infected the Apple II), I can’t say I have much of a clue of what it’s about. But is a piece worth recommending, and features an original filmmaking voice combined with a refreshingly abstract approach to CGI.

I’m sorry. This is the worst thing we’ve ever posted on the Brew. I’m horrified—and yet can’t stop laughing. Thanks to Jeremy Bernstein at DreamWorks for directing me toward these.