Cartoon Brew Pick

‘A Dangerous Journey’ by Ruth Beni

"A Dangerous Journey" (part funded by Comic Relief) warns young African women of the dangers of being coerced and tricked into prostitution by traffickers who use scare tactics perpetrated by native doctors and false promises.

motion capture

‘Lord of the Rings’ Animation Supervisor Randall William Cook Speaks Out On Andy Serkis

Our post on Andy Serkis's inflammatory rhetoric about the limited role of animators on his motion capture performances generated a robust, often heated, discussion in the comments. By far, the most informative comment was provided by 3-time Oscar winner Randall William Cook, who was the animation supervisor and designer at WETA on the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy that was released between 2001 and 2003.

Interviews

Interview: Ralph Bakshi on the Animation Industry, Then & Now

Ralph Bakshi pulled himself away from his drawing desk in New Mexico to chat with Cartoon Brew about his legacy, his latest project "The Last Days of Coney Island," which he recently funded on Kickstarter, and what he really thinks about the computer’s role in animation these days.

Cartoon Brew Pick

‘Monster in the Closet’ by Yves Geleyn

Every day at least 6 children age 0 to 18 are injured in an unintentional shooting, and 75% of gun shot injuries to children under ten that are serious enough to require hospitalization are due to unintentional shootings.

Events

This Sunday in London: Centennial Tribute to Pioneering Animator Joy Batchelor

On Sunday April 13, as part of the Bird’s Eye Film Festival, the Barbican art centre in London is set to hold an event to mark the centenary of animator Joy Batchelor. Speaking at the event will be Joy’s daughter Vivien Halas; author and former Channel 4 commissioning editor for animation Clare Kitson; BFI animation curator Jez Stewart, and film critic Brian Sibley, whose work includes books on Disney and Aardman.

Artist of the Day

Artist of the Day: Wouter Tulp

Rotterdam, Netherlands-based Wouter Tulp creates a variety of narrative illustration work for children's books, editorial use, and animated films. Also a skilled caricaturist, Tulp sketches and paints some well-known heads with humor and embellishment.

Cartoon Brew Pick

‘Doctor, My Son is an Animator’ by Marcos Magalhaes

“He doesn't play football… he’s only drawing, all the time. What’s his problem, Doctor?” Only a specialist can find out… Real animators were asked to give their animated and live action testimonies about their childhood as animators. It is indeed a strange condition...

Advertising

New Spots: Hermès by Julien Vallée and Honda by Smith & Foulkes

The following two spots attracted my attention for the inventive ways in which they mixed live-action with animation: "Metamorphosis" for Hermès, directed by Julien Vallée of Vallée Duhamel, and "Inner Beauty" for Honda, directed by the venerable production team of Smith & Foulkes through Nexus Productions.

Cartoon Brew Pick

‘Bird World’ by Alastair McColl

Sparrow is struck by a plane and lands wounded in a mysterious city inhabited by anthropomorphized birds. With the chaos of urban life all around him, Sparrow goes on a heady journey of self-discovery and is faced with a choice: should he follow his natural instinct and flee, or adapt his nature and embrace city life.

Interviews

Animation Breakdown’s Alex McDonald and Kevin Sukho Lee on Launching A New Festival

The Los Angeles indie animation event of the season takes place tomorrow, Saturday March 8th, at The Cinefamily. Animation Breakdown Roundup! is a collection of over two dozen shorts by seasoned indie stars (Vince Collins, Emily Hubley), current filmmakers (Kirsten Lepore, Takeshi Murata, Devin Flynn, Allison Schulnik, Galen Pehrson, Amy Lockhart, Matt & Paul Layzell, Garrett Davis, Charles Huettner, Caleb Wood, Alex Schubert) and next-wavers (Peter Millard, Sean Buckelew, Quique Rivera Rivera.)

Books

Seth MacFarlane’s First Novel Will Be Released Tomorrow

Seth MacFarlane can do anything: create animation, make live-action features, sing, act, produce live-action sitcoms and science documentaries, host the Oscars, and add to that list now, write novels. Of course, whether he does any of it well is another question.

TV

‘SpongeBob SquarePants’ Oral History

This 36,000-word oral history of SpongeBob SquarePants compiled by Hogan’s Alley editor Tom Heintjes contains interviews with over twenty …

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