VIEW Conference 2023, an English-speaking event, takes place 15-20 October, 2023, in the beautiful baroque city of Turin, Italy. Tickets are now available from the official VIEW Conference website:

Register for VIEW Conference 2023: https://www.viewconference.it/pages/registration

Henry Selick is the Academy Award-nominated director of stop-motion animated films including Laika’s BAFTA Award-winning Coraline, which he wrote, directed and co-produced. Attending in person, he will share his wealth of talent and experience at VIEW Conference 2023. Not only will Selick give an unmissable on-stage presentation, but he will also deliver a special workshop giving attendees a once-in-a-lifetime chance to interact with and learn from a true master of his craft.

As Vice President and Executive Creative Director of Lucasfilm, Academy Award-winner Doug Chiang oversees designs for the Star Wars franchise, including films, theme parks, games, and new media. He will be attending VIEW Conference 2023 in person, appearing live on stage to deliver a special presentation on his inspiring work. In addition, Chiang will lead a hands-on workshop giving attendees an unrivaled opportunity to learn from and work with an authentic design genius.

Hal Hickel is one of Industrial Light & Magic’s most experienced Animation Supervisors. He will appear live on stage at VIEW Conference with an eye-popping presentation on the extraordinary animation and visual effects of the award-winning Disney+ Star Wars streaming series The Mandalorian – Season 3. Hickel will also bring to the event his unique skills as a mentor, inviting the VIEW Conference audience to ‘ask him anything’ about the world of animation and VFX.

“I am thrilled to reveal our first trio of speakers confirmed for VIEW Conference 2023,” says Conference Director Dr. Maria Elena Gutierrez, “and even more excited to announce that they will all be attending this year’s event in person. With their incredible suite of presentations and workshops, Henry Selick, Doug Chiang and Hal Hickel will bring a special magic to VIEW Conference, and give everyone who attends the event a unique opportunity to meet their heroes. And this is just the beginning! I cannot wait to announce some of the other legendary masters who will be speaking this October in beautiful Turin.”

Momentum is already building for VIEW Conference 2023, fueled by the astonishing success of its online “PreVIEW” events, traditionally held during the months preceding the conference itself. For example, in March, VIEW Conference hosted an exclusive one-hour panel with the directors of all five films competing for the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature, including Guillermo del Toro and Mark Gustafson with “Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio,” Domee Shi with “Turning Red,” Joel Crawford with “Puss in Boots: The Last Wish,” Chris Williams with “The Sea Beast,” and Dean Fleischer Camp with “Marcel the Shell with Shoes On.” The panel was sold out, attracting a global audience of over 5,000 people.

About the Speakers

Henry Selick

In addition to the award-winning Coraline, Henry Selick directed Disney’s The Nightmare Before Christmas and James and the Giant Peach, both produced by Tim Burton. In 2022, Selick made a triumphant return to stop-motion feature animation as director of Netflix Animation’s Wendell & Wild. Based on an original story by Selick, the film was co-written and co-produced with Jordan Peel.

Fascinated with animation from a young age, Selick studied animation at CalArts. He received Student Academy Award nominations for his student films Phases and Tube Tales, both of which are now preserved in the Academy Film Archive. Selick began his professional career at Walt Disney Studios working on films including Pete’s Dragon and The Fox and the Hound. In addition to his BAFTA for Coraline, he has received two Annie Awards and multiple awards from a number of festivals including the Annecy International Animated Film Festival.

Doug Chiang

Doug Chiang’s Star Wars experience spans over 25 years, beginning in 1995 when George Lucas selected him as Head of the Lucasfilm art department for the Star Wars prequel films. Since then he has been Lucasfilm’s principal designer for Disney World Resort’s Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge and Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser, and Production Designer on Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. Chiang is currently Vice President and Executive Creative Director of Lucasfilm, and Production Designer for Star Wars live-action series including The Mandalorian, The Book of Boba Fett, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Ahsoka, and Skeleton Crew.

Chiang began his career as a stop-motion animator on the TV series Pee Wee’s Playhouse, before working as a commercial TV Director for Rhythm and Hues, then Creative Director at Industrial Light & Magic. In 2006 he partnered with the Walt Disney Company and Robert Zemeckis to form ImageMovers Digital, a new digital film studio built around IceBlink Studios, the design studio he formed in 2002. During this period he was Production Designer for a number of Robert Zemeckis films including The Polar Express, Beowulf, and Disney’s A Christmas Carol. He recently reunited with the director as Production Designer on Disney’s Pinocchio (2022).

Working with the award-winning author Orson Scott Card, Chiang co-wrote the illustrated novel Robota. His artwork has been exhibited worldwide, and he has received awards including an Academy Award, two British Academy Awards, two Clio Awards, a Theo Award, a VES Award, a Webby, The Genie Visionary Award, and an Art Directors Guild Award.

Hal Hickel

Hal Hickel joined Industrial Light & Magic in 1996 as an Animator on The Lost World: Jurassic Park, he graduated to Lead Animator on Star Wars: Episode I The Phantom Menace, then Animation Supervisor on Steven Spielberg’s A.I. Artificial Intelligence.

Hickel has since worked on multiple award-winning films including Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest, Guillermo del Toro’s Pacific Rim and Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. He also served as Animation Director on the Academy Award-winning Rango, ILM’s first animated feature. Most recently, Hickel has been Production Animation Supervisor on all three seasons of The Mandalorian, and Consulting Animation Supervisor on The Book of Boba Fett.

Hickel began his professional career as a clay animator and motion-control operator at Will Vinton Studios, after studying Film Graphics at CalArts. He received both an Oscar and a BAFTA Award for his work on Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest. He has also received two Primetime Emmy Awards, both for The Mandalorian, plus multiple other award wins and nominations.

About VIEW Conference

An English speaking event, VIEW Conference 2023 takes place from October 15-20 in the beautiful baroque city of Torino, Italy. Attending the event in person guarantees an unrivaled opportunity for people to soak up the atmosphere and meet their heroes and mentors. Meanwhile, full online access enables a global audience to enjoy the conference via exclusive livestream.

The international VIEW Conference brings together industry professionals, thought leaders, students and enthusiasts not only to share and celebrate the latest achievements in Animation, VFX and Games, but also to share their visions of the future. The conference’s vibrant and inclusive atmosphere is designed to enlighten and inspire, with an extensive live program of talks, presentations, workshops and masterclasses embracing cutting-edge thinking on such diverse topics as Storytelling, Virtual Production, Computer Graphics, Interactive & Immersive Media, VR/AR/Mixed Reality and the Metaverse, Artificial Intelligence, Real-Time Rendering and much, much more.

The post Award-Winning Filmmakers To Appear In Person At VIEW Conference 2023: Stop-Motion Legend Henry Selick, Lucasfilm’s Doug Chiang and ILM’s Hal Hickel appeared first on Skwigly Animation Magazine.

Fiona Campbell, Chair of RTS NI said: “What a year it’s been for Northern Ireland on-screen production across all platforms which has been reflected in the quality of entries this year. All our finalists are great examples of the outstanding content being produced in Northern Ireland which is enjoyed by audiences worldwide. We look forward to coming together at the awards to celebrate the achievements of our people and productions and I wish all the finalists every success on the night.”

Richard Williams, Chief Executive, Northern Ireland Screen said: “Northern Ireland Screen is delighted to once again support the RTS NI Awards. The RTS is a long standing and prestigious organisation which we are proud to work alongside.  The real joy of this event is that it is a rare, if not unique, opportunity for hugely diverse people and companies that make up the screen industry to celebrate their collective creative output and to see the full scale of the industry.”

Eddie Doyle, Head of Content Commissioning, BBC Northern Ireland said: “The RTS NI Awards recognise the skills, talent and creative excellence of television production in Northern Ireland . We are pleased to support the awards again this year..”

Zach Willis, Co-Founder, Ka-Boom, headline sponsor of the RTS NI Awards says: “Television production in Northern Ireland is thriving and Ka-Boom is once again delighted to support the RTS NI Awards to highlight the best of the best at the Awards ceremony next month.”

Gareth McGreevy, Chair of RTS NI Awards said: “As an educational charity, the RTS encourages and celebrates work in television and its related fields and our Northern Ireland Awards now in their 8^th year, enable us to recognise the extraordinary talent that is so evident in Northern Ireland’s creative industries. The judging panels have commented on the particularly high standard this year and we look forward to coming together as an industry next month in what has become a staple event in the industry calendar.”

The RTS NI Programme Awards 2023 with headline sponsor Ka-Boom are delivered with support from BBC Northern Ireland, Northern Ireland Screen and Channel 4.

 The Awards Ceremony will be held in Belfast City Hall on Thursday 1 June 2023.The Royal Television Society Northern Ireland Programme Awards 2023 Finalists are:

Childrens and Animation: 

• Happy the Hoglet (Paper Owl Films)
• ODO (Sixteen South/Letko)
• Silverpoint (Zodiak Kids & Family Productions UK)

Comedy:

• Derry Girls 3 (Hat Trick Production)
• Free Gaff (Green Inc Film & TV)
• William of Orangedale (Hat Trick Productions NI)

Current Affairs:

• Spotlight: The Babymaker Uncovered (BBCNI)
• Spotlight: Police, WhatsApp and Whistleblowers (BBCNI)
• Up Close – Home Terror (UTV)

Documentary:

• James Joyce’s Ulysses (DoubleBand Films and Lone Star Productions)
• Quinn Country (Fine Point Films)
• The Real Derry: Jamie-Lee O’Donnell (Tyrone Productions)
• Young Plato: The Philosophy Boys of Ardoyne (Aisling Productions and Soilsiu Films)

Drama:

• Bloodlands: Series 2 (Hat Trick Productions)
• Doineann (DoubleBand Films)
• Wreck (Euston Films)

Entertainment:

• Beauty Queen and Single (Stellify Media)
• Live At The Waterfront! (Green Inc Film & TV)
• The Belfast Mixtape: Songs from Lockdown (BBCNI)

 Factual Entertainment:

• Ceol Le Toal (Big Mountain Productions)
• Strawbridge over the Drawbridge (BBCNI)
• The Fast and the Farmer-ish (Alleycats TV)

Lifestyle/Features:

• B&B By The Sea (Afro-Mic Productions)
• Chronicles of Strangford (Waddell Media)
• The Hotel People (Waddell Media)

News Coverage:

• BBC Newsline – Cresslough (BBCNI)
• UTV Live – Cresslough (UTV)
• UTV Live – Dying on the Streets (UTV)

On Screen Talent:

• Holly Hamilton (in Victory in Vienna by Clean Slate Productions)
• Jamie-Lee O’Donnell (in The Real Derry: Jamie-Lee O’Donnell by Tyrone Production)
• Theo Dorgan (in An Buachaill Gealgháireach (The Laughing Boy / To Yelasto Paidi by Imagine Media Productions Ltd)

Original Music Score:

• An Buachaill Gealghaireach: The Laughing Boy (Eleni Karaindrou; Imagine Media)
• Nowhere Special (Andrew Simon McAllister)
• Wreck (Steve Lynch, Noemi Spanos, Chris Baugh, Ryan J Brown; Euston Films, Fremantle Media)

Specialist Factual:

• Brian Friel: Shy Man, Showman (Walk on Air Films and Ronachan Films)
• Fergal Keane: Living with PTSD (State of Grace Films)
• The White Handkerchief (Open Reel Productions)

The post Happy the Hoglet, ODO, and Silverpoint Make up Animation Nominees at RTS NI Programme Awards appeared first on Skwigly Animation Magazine.

“CAFÉ is an unparalleled gathering of visual effects and animation experts, designed to bring together the industry’s specialists and showcase the exceptional talent found in Quebec,” said Christine Maestracci, CEO  of the Quebec Film and Television Council (QFTC), organizer of the event. “This second edition will highlight today’s technologies and tomorrow’s innovations, stimulate the creativity of the next generation and celebrate the breadth of the work done by local and international players. The event features inspiring panels,  lectures from world-renowned guests, unforgettable business encounters and unique activities, and  emphasizes the fact that Quebec is one of the world’s three major hubs for visual effects and animation.”

Understanding Tomorrow’s Possibilities

The event features several high-profile talks by Quebec specialists and international experts. Four keynote  presentations will mark the conference:

• As an exclusive sneak peek, Sony Pictures Imageworks and Sony Pictures Animation will unveil and comment on footage from Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse just days before its release;
• Nick Marshall and Melaina Mace, DNEG’s DFX Supervisor and CG Supervisor respectively, will reveal their creative approach to the post-apocalyptic world of the acclaimed series The Last of Us;
• Geoffrey Baumann, Marvel Studios’ Production VFX Supervisor, will talk about the underwater work done for the visual effects on Black Panther: Wakanda Forever;
• Director Pierre Perifel and Jean-Pierre Sans, head of animation at DreamWorks Animation Studios, will give a behind-the-scenes look at the animated film The Bad Guys.

Seventeen other lectures are on the program. Among them:

• Pixar studio will focus on the RenderMan rendering tool and its future use in a context of artificial intelligence, virtual reality, etc.;
• WeFX will recount the steps taken to create the character Lotion Lady from the episode “The Outside” of Guillermo del Toro’s Cabinet of Curiosities;
• Pixomondo’s talk will focus on the creation of the real-time digital environment for the movie Star Trek: Strange New Worlds.

The entire program is available on the CAFÉ website at https://cafe-vfx.com/en/2023-program/.

Taking Stock of the Current Issues

A significant proportion of CAFÉ 2023 will be devoted to the environmental aspects. Details concerning the  Rolling Green program will be presented, and the need for the industry to make the shift to green production will be demonstrated. A QFTC initiative focused on environmentally responsible audiovisual production in  Quebec, Rolling Green promotes and fosters the adoption of responsible practices at all stages of production.

CAFÉ will promote discussion and explore the next steps for the program in order to achieve greener VFX  and animation studio productions.

A research and development activity will take place over an entire afternoon. Led by the CDRIN and  SYNTHÈSE, this event will involve panels of experts from the academic and business worlds. Participants will focus on applied research, integration of new technologies and new trends in computer graphics R&D.

Network, Meet, and Improve

Other highlights and themes of this second edition:

• Partner Stage: Meet with animation and visual effects specialists who will speak about the projects they are working on and the collaborations that make the Quebec industry successful;
• Education Zone hosted by SYNTHÈSE: This area will feature portfolio review activities for students and an art exhibit of printed works on canvas;
• The Living Spaces: A casual area where participants can have a coffee, relax and chat without having to leave the premises. This is also where the cocktail parties will be held to allow visitors to network and end the day on a high note.

A Showcase for the Industry and Its Members

As a side event to CAFÉ, from May 15 to 17, a familiarization tour focused on visual effects and animation will introduce Quebec studios and producers to the event’s international guests. They will be able to appreciate the scope of our sector, the variety of our expertise, and the exceptional range of our talent and creativity. In addition to visiting visual effects and animation studios, participants will attend talks and connect with CAFÉ’s partners.

A Unique Opportunity

A QFTC initiative produced by Kaliko Productions, CAFÉ 2023 will be attended by over 800 specialists and professionals of the VFX and animation world. The event will be held at Montréal’s Palais des congrès on  May 16 and 17, from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. (doors will be open from 8:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.).

All tickets include access to talks, scheduled activities, and Living Spaces. The business tickets also grant access to the Business Space, the cocktail parties and the MeetToMatch business meeting platform. For ticketing, click here.

CAFÉ 2023 is made possible by our partners Autodesk, A.A. Studios, Hybride Technologies, Raynault VFX,  Rodeo FX, SYNTHÈSE – Pôle Image Québec, Tonic DNA, École NAD-UQAC, Framestore, Mikros Animation,  Rayon FX, BUF, L’Atelier Animation, Folks VFX, Hypertec, Montréal International, 80 Level, Animation World  Network, ACM Siggraph Montréal, befores & afters magazine, VES MTL and VFX Voice.

The post CAFÉ 2023: An unmissable event for visual effects and animation appeared first on Skwigly Animation Magazine.

Founded in 1985, New Designers has helped launch the careers of some of the UK’s most prolific designers including Bethan Gray, Jay Osgerby, Stella McCartney and Lee Broom and for the last 38 years it has continued to provide a platform for graduates to present their visionary ideas to the public and industry professionals that are looking to source the most cutting-edge talent, crafts, and designs.

ND SELECTS

ND Selects is a curated space at New Designers dedicated to shining a light on new businesses in the design industry. Visitors who attend the event ready to seek out the hottest design trends can expect to see products that have just made it to market. This area is always sought out by industry leaders who attend the show ready to commission or invest in the latest new products and by the design conscious public looking to buy direct from up and coming designers.

Each exhibitor is hand-selected by a panel of industry experts for their innovative designs. For 2023 we are delighted to announce the curator for this year’s ND Selects, Louisa Pacifico, founder of Future Icons. Louisa selects makers and designers to represent and nurture through business consultancy and curated showcases. Most notably, she developed and managed the curated showcases for The Future of Craft at London Craft Week, gallery venues within the iconic Burlington Arcade in Mayfair.

ND AWARDS

This year’s event sees the return of the New Designers Awards Programme, the prestigious awards programme which sees some of the UK’s leading design brands including Hallmark, Joseph Joseph, Anglepoise, Tatty Devine and Habitat present accolades to the most creative and forward-thinking exhibitors. The 2023 show sees over 30 awards, each of which offering different prizes and industry opportunities that will help graduates’ transition into the professional world.

ND FUTURES

ND Futures is the name given to New Designers schools programme which is aimed at 15-18 year olds, offering them guidance and inspiration to consider a future career in design. For 2023 New Designers are expanding on ND Futures creating ND Futures Fund which will allow visitors to donate at checkout to support the event facilitating places for underprivileged school children in the borough to visit New Designers and start their journey on a design career.

ND EDUCATES

The much anticipated talks and workshops programme returns for 2023 giving visitors the opportunity to hear from leading brands, designers and industry experts as they offer unique insights into the latest design trends and discuss key themes within the design sector. The full ND23 programme will be announced shortly but key emerging themes will be designing with the cost of living crisis, innovation in sustainable design and the circular economy, and diversity in design. Confirmed highlights include; panel discussions led by editors from Creative Review and Design Week, talks by designers from Habitat, and inspiring leaders in design including Tom Faulkner, and Louisa Pacifico, Future Icons who will discuss their careers to date, as well as sessions on designing for optimism and tips to overcome creative jealousy led by artist/graphic designer June Minyama-Smithson.

The post Save The Date: New Designers Returns to London For 2023 appeared first on Skwigly Animation Magazine.

The CEE Animation Forum  has announced its 11th edition, the leading pitching, financing, and co-production event for animated projects in Central and Eastern Europe. Animators, directors and industry professionals have until April 30, 2023, to submit their works in four categories:

• Feature Films (minimum length of 60 minutes; in concept, in development or in production)
• Series and TV Specials (web and TV series of any format and single films, minimum length of 20 minutes; all stages of development except for concept stage)
• Short Films (maximum length of 20 minutes; all stages of development except for concept stage)
• Rising Stars (student short films, maximum length of 20 minutes, all stages of development except for concept stage)

Every year, almost 200 film professionals are invited to witness the pitching competition between the most promising European animation projects. The two-day event is set to take place from 8-9 November 2023, in Pilsen, Czech Republic.

The main part of the programme is the traditional pitching competition, which is open to European animated projects currently in development or in production. Submissions are accepted in the four categories, with specific guidelines for each category’s length and development stage.

The CEE Animation Forum is a platform intended to showcase European talent and creative works. It helps professionals find co-production partners, financing, and distribution for their projects, as well as build lasting networks of producers, creatives, and international decision-makers from all fields. The CEEA Forum places great emphasis on networking in the form of
1:1 meetings.

Details about the call: https://ceeanimation.eu/forum/2023-cee-animation-forum/call

Guidelines: https://ceeanimation.eu/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/CEEAForum_23_Guidelines.pdf

Submission form: https://ceeanimation.eu/cee-animation-forum-2023/

The post CEE Animation Forum 2023: Call for entries is OPEN appeared first on Skwigly Animation Magazine.

RTSNI Student Animation Award 2023 Winner

In partnership with Northern Ireland Screen, these awards encourage, nurture and reward the talent, potential and enthusiasm of students in colleges and universities across Northern Ireland creating film and video content.

The Animation Award went to Ulster University Belfast for Sleeper, a very slick production by Josh McAvoy, Eva Robinson, Sinéad Burns and Cathal Daniel Murphy with great music, sound design and a memorable style of animation with impressive visual world building using cutting edge motion technology. Michael Berryman from Ulster University was also highly commended for his solo animation The Butterfly Effect, a charming sweet film aimed at younger audiences.

The Comedy and Entertainment Award went to Real Lads of Lockdown, a production by Ulster University Belfast students Aidan Rafferty, Eve Drumm, Keelan Sexton, Gareth Rodgers, Ruairi Craig and Aaron Crilly which wasn’t afraid to touch on the more serious aspects of the pandemic while providing lots of laugh out loud moments – a great balance of comedy and pathos. Fried, Not Baked by Belfast Met Film and Television School students Ciara McCready, Stewart Burns, Fearghal McKee, Angus McDowell and Ethan Thompson was highly commended in this category for its humorous take on investigative journalism.

Ulster University at Magee were the winners in the Drama category for A Hollow Tree by Cathal Fitzpatrick which the judges felt had a great opening scene which succeeded in being genuinely scary with a real sense of foreboding throughout. Queens University Belfast students Erin Mills, Jamie Murray, Nic Doyle, Ben Cheney and Grainne McGirr were Highly commended in this category for their drama Worms.

There were two Factual Award winners – The Lone Sailor, a moving and inspiring documentary about triumph in the face of challenge by Ulster University at Magee student Malachy O’Hanlon and Technical Difficulties by Queens University Belfast students Aisling Skillen, Andrew Ballentine, Lynn Porter, Oisin McCoy and Olga Weyrich for its really interesting look into the techno scene in Northern Ireland.  Kirill by Jasper Banerjee, Alex Donaldson, James Poston and Mark McKibbin from Queens University Belfast was also highly commended in this category.

And the Craft Award for excellence in writing work was awarded to the Real Lads of Lockdown writer and director Aidan Rafferty from Ulster University, Belfast as the judges said the script, style and tone were captured fantastically and the writing stood out among the other entries.

Fiona Campbell, Chair of RTS NI said: “The judges were hugely impressed by the creativity and imagination shown in this year’s entries. We wish all our winners every success in the national RTS Student Television Awards taking place in London this June. This is the tenth year of the RTS NI Student Awards which has provided a high-profile platform for the work of so many students over the years kickstarting their careers in the creative industries.”

Bernard McCloskey, Head of Education, Northern Ireland Screen said: “It was a privilege to recognise and reward the outstanding achievements of the RTS NI award winners tonight. The event was a showcase of the incredible skills and experience of students across Northern Ireland, and I look forward to watching their impact on our vibrant screen industries.”

Keynote speaker Jannine Waddell, MD of Waddell Media said: “These awards celebrate the wealth of young talent emerging from our colleges, providing our students with an amazing opportunity to have their talent seen and celebrated by industry professionals. Over the past ten years the RTS NI has played a huge role in supporting the next generation of content creators and winning one of these awards provides students with a prestigious accolade to help them with their future careers.”

Last night’s award winners will go forward to the national RTS Student Media Awards in June in London.

The post Ulster University Belfast short ‘Sleeper’ Scoops Animation Award at RTS NI Student Television Awards appeared first on Skwigly Animation Magazine.

Portugal, Argentina, and Spain top the list of countries with the most nominations with 10, 9 and 8, respectively. Colombia and Uruguay have 2 nominations each, while Brazil, Chile and Peru have one nomination each. Five of the finalists are co-productions between countries in the Ibero-American region, including Ecuador and Mexico.

João Gonzalez’ “Ice Merchants” from Portugal—a work that competes for the 2023 Oscar in the Animated Short Film category—, together with Juan Pablo Zaramella’s “Pasajero” from Argentina, are the titles that have received the most nominations, distributed in four categories. The short film “O Homem do Lixo” and the feature film “Nayola”, both from Portugal, have been nominated in 3 and 2 categories respectively, thus reflecting the international momentum of Portuguese animation.

A jury made up of Andrea Fernández (Chilean, Art Director for The Cuphead Show!), Julio Bonet (Adult Animation Manager for Netflix, UK), Risa Cohen (film and video-game Producer and Executive Producer, US), Robert Jaszczurowski (Producer and Director at GS Animation/Grupa Smacznego, Poland), and Simón Wilches-Castro (Colombian, Creative Director at Titmouse Studios, US) will be in charge of choosing the winners, which will be announced on May 13, in San Cristóbal de La Laguna, on the island of Tenerife.

The presentation ceremony took place at the Embassy of Portugal in Madrid, on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of Portuguese animation, and was attended by Laura Castro, Island Director of Tourism for the Cabildo de Tenerife; Pablo Conde, Director for Fashion, Habitat and Cultural Industries at ICEX; Camilo Vázquez, Advisor to the Director General of the ICAA; Víctor Herreruela, Technical Unit Coordinator of Ibermedia; João Mira Gomes, Portuguese Ambassador to Spain; and Bea Bartolomé, Director of the Quirino Awards, as well as representatives of the embassies of Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Mexico, Peru, Portugal and Uruguay.

Finalists by category

All of the finalist works in the Best Feature Film category were produced in 2D animation. Debut films and titles aimed at young/adult audiences predominate in this category, in which works from Colombia, Portugal, Brazil and Spain were selected. Set in a dystopian world, the Colombian “La Otra Forma” marks the feature debut of director Diego Guzmán. The film was awarded Best Animated Feature Film at the Sitges Film Festival 2022. Portuguese director José Miguel Ribeiro will also compete with his first work, “Nayola”. This Praça Filmes production in co-production with Belgium, France and the Netherlands tells the story of three generations of women over the 25 years of the Angolan Civil War. Based on a successful Brazilian animated series for children, “Tromba Trem – O Filme” is the feature debut of director, producer, and screenwriter Zé Brandão. “Unicorn Wars” by Galician director Alberto Vázquez completes the list of nominees in this category. With this, his second feature film, Vázquez recently won the Goya for Best Animated Film and now goes after his third Quirino, having already won the award in the Best Short Film category with “Decorado” and “Homeless Home” in 2018 and 2021, respectively.

The Best Series category is dominated by 2D animation for children, including the Spanish series “Polinopolis” by María Antolini and Martin Guido—produced by Mago Production in co-production with Mexico, France, and Argentina—, and “Jasmine & Jambo” by Silvia Cortés, which seeks to present musical concepts and genres to a child audience. “La Orquestita”, a series directed by Juan Carve and produced jointly by studios and channels from Peru, Uruguay, Colombia, Argentina, and Spain, also seeks to musically inspire children. The list of finalists in this category is completed with the Chilean “Petit – Season 3” by Bernardita Ojeda, which competes for the third time after having participated in 2019 with the first season of this series and having won the Quirino, two years later, with the second season.

Portuguese animation stands out in the Best Short Film category with two of the three finalists selected: “O Homem do Lixo” by Laura Gonçalves and “Ice Merchants” by João Gonzalez. The first one is a Bando à Parte production that was awarded at the last edition of Animafest Zagreb, while Gonzalez is competing again at the Quirino after having won the award for Best Animation School Short Film with “Nestor” in 2020. Also an Oscar finalist, the short film is a Cola Animation production in co-production with France and the UK. The finalist trio is completed with “Pasajero”, a new stop-motion work by Argentine director Juan Pablo Zaramella, who in 2018 won the Quirino for Best Series with “El hombre más chiquito del mundo”.

As in the last edition, Spanish animation dominates in the Best Animation School Short Film category with two works created at the Universitat Politècnica de València: “Chimborazo” by Keila Cepeda (in co-production with Ecuador) and “Papirola” by Fabián Molinaro. This category is completed with “Carlos Montaña”, a short film by Ita Romero from the Universidad Nacional de Córdoba (Argentina).

In addition to the aforementioned categories, the Quirino will also give awards in the categories of Best Commissioned Animation, Best Video Game Animation, and in three technical categories: Best Visual Development, Best Animation Design, and Best Sound Design and Original Music.

For the full list of finalists, please click on the following link.

The post The Ibero-American Animation Quirino Awards Announce the Finalists For Their Sixth Edition appeared first on Skwigly Animation Magazine.

VIEW Conference is proud to present a virtual discussion with a distinguished panel of the directors behind this year’s Academy Award® nominees for Best Animated Short Film. This FREE online event takes place on Tuesday, February 28th, 2023 at 9:00am PST / 5:00pm UK / 18:00 CET.

Register for the FREE online session “Five Oscar Contenders For Best Animated Short”: viewconference.it/article/815/five-oscar-contenders-for-best-animated-short

The panel is moderated by Dan Sarto, editor-in-chief of Animation World Network, and features:

• Peter Baynton and Charlie Mackesy – “The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse”
• Amanda Forbis and Wendy Tilby – “The Flying Sailor”
• João González – “Ice Merchants”
• Sara Gunnarsdóttir – “My Year of Dicks”
• Lachlan Pendragon – “An Ostrich Told Me the World Is Fake and I Think I Believe It”

“I am struck not only by the incredible beauty of this year’s Best Animated Short Film Oscar nominees,” says Conference Director Dr. Maria Elena Gutierrez, “but also by the amazing variety of subject matter and technique on display. The directors have demonstrated an extraordinary level of commitment and creativity in making their films, and it is truly an honor for VIEW Conference to welcome them to this special panel.”

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences presented its first Oscar for an animated short film to Walt Disney for the Silly Symphonies cartoon “Flowers and Tree,” at the 5th Academy Awards ceremony in 1932. The category at the time was known as ‘Short Subjects, Cartoons.’ Disney triumphed every year through the rest of that decade, before Fred Quimby joined the ranks of winners in 1940 with MGM’s “The Milky Way.” Recent winners include “Hair Love,” “If Anything Happens I Love You,” and “The Windshield Wiper.”

An international community of over 10,000 artists, filmmakers and executives, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences was founded in 1927, with Douglas Fairbanks as its first president. The 95th Academy Awards is scheduled to take place on Sunday, March 12, 2023, at the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood.

Biographies

Peter Baynton studied character animation at Central St Martin’s, London. “Over the Hill,” his first film after graduating, won The McLaren Award for Best British Animation, and he was selected by Screen International as a UK Star of Tomorrow. After years of making shorts and commercials, in 2015 he followed his heart to pursue longer form animation, working on films including “Paddington 2” and “The Tiger Who Came to Tea.”

Charlie Mackesy began his career as a cartoonist for The Spectator, before becoming a book illustrator for Oxford University Press. His internationally bestselling book “The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse” was published in 2019 and has since been translated into over 40 different languages and dialects. Charlie’s paintings have been exhibited widely and his bronzes can be found in public spaces in London.

Amanda Forbis joined the National Film Board of Canada in 1990 as animation director on the educational film “The Reluctant Deckhand.” Wendy Tilby’s first film, the Oscar-nominated “Strings” (1991), won many international awards. Forbis and Tilby teamed up to co-direct “When the Day Breaks” (1999) and “Wild Life” (2011), both of which were nominated for an Academy Award.

João Gonzalez is a film director, animator, illustrator and a musician, who trained at Escola Superior de Media Artes e Design in Portugal, and at London’s Royal College Art. His films “Nestor” and “The Voyager” won multiple awards. In 2022, his film “Ice Merchants” won the Cannes Jury Prize for Best Short Film in competition at the Critics Week, a first for a Portuguese filmmaker. Gonzalez composes the score for all his films, occasionally performing the music live.

Sara Gunnarsdóttir received her BFA from the Icelandic Academy of the Arts, while also part of the electro punk band Donna Mess. She has created animation, music videos and artwork for film and television, including Marielle Heller’s debut feature “The Diary of a Teenage Girl,” and HBO’s Emmy-nominated “The Case Against Adnan Sayed.”

Lachlan Pendragon is a writer, director, animator from Brisbane, Australia. He is a Student Academy Award-winner for his stop motion animated short film, “An Ostrich Told Me the World is Fake and I Think I Believe It”. Lachlan created the short through a Doctor of Visual Arts program at Griffith Film School in Brisbane.

Stream sessions on-demand from VIEW Conference 2022: viewconference.it/pages/registration

An international community of over 10,000 artists, filmmakers and executives, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences was founded in 1927, with Douglas Fairbanks as its first president. The 95th Academy Awards is scheduled to take place on Sunday, March 12, 2023, at the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood.

The post FREE Virtual Panel with Directors of Oscar Contenders for Best Animated Short: VIEW Conference PreVIEW appeared first on Skwigly Animation Magazine.

Baboon Animation and GoKidGo announce a five-property podcast deal, starting with Stories from Pooh Corner (working title), inspired by A.A. Milnes classic children’s book “Winnie-the-Pooh.”

Baboon, whose credits include Angry Birds and Gigantosaurus, recently announced their prequel feature, on the heels of the cuddly bear and his mates entering the public domain in the US last year. The podcast, like the feature, will explore the characters’ young lives before the tales in the book took place.

“These younger characters will have big, fresh appeal for a brand-new kid audience,” said Baboon founder and DreamWorks alum Mike de Seve (Madagascar, Monsters vs. Aliens).

The new “Pooh Corner” stories will acquaint preschool-age children with all the classic pals from Milne’s Hundred Acre Wood, and introduce new characters.

“We’re excited to present the A. A. Milne book’s cuddly crew with a fresh perspective for 21st-century kids,” said GoKidGo co-founder and CEO Maia Glikman. “Stories from Pooh Corner is a unique opportunity to build an enriching world for pre-schoolers filled with adventures, learning opportunities, and—of course—hilarious characters!”

The “Pooh Corner” podcast represents a continuation of GoKidGo’s success creating fresh audio IP for future series development, as their team has recently done with R.L. Stine’s Story Club in co-production with Happy Nest.

“Taking an audio-first approach to Baboon’s great IPs supports children’s imaginations – with an eye toward developing the most compelling stories into animated series,” said GoKidGo co-founder and COO Jennifer Clary.

Kristin Myers, Senior Executive at UTA Audio, believes GoKidGo’s levelling-up of kids and family content in podcasting is what the industry needs. “These are exactly the type of trailblazing partnerships we like to see. Audio offers the perfect playful way into franchise expansion. You can lay breadcrumbs for your listeners to follow you into original adventures that deepen experiences with known characters and places, or introduce new ones! And these stories can then have a second life in TV, film, the stage, games, you name it.”

Baboon and GoKidGo have yet to announce a release date but the Stories from Pooh Corner podcast is expected to be available sometime in 2023.

The post Baboon and GoKidGo Launch Winnie-the-Pooh Podcast as Part of Multi-IP Deal appeared first on Skwigly Animation Magazine.

Register for the FREE online session “Five Oscar Contenders for Best Animated Feature”viewconference.it/article/814/five-oscar-contenders-for-best-animated-feature

The panel is moderated by Ramin Zahed, editor-in-chief of Animation Magazine, and features:

• Guillermo del Toro and Mark Gustafson – “Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio.”
• Domee Shi – “Turning Red”
• Joel Crawford – “Puss in Boots: The Last Wish”
• Chris Williams – “The Sea Beast”
• Dean Fleischer Camp – “Marcel the Shell with Shoes On”

“What an incredible line-up of nominees we have for this year’s Oscar for Best Animated Feature,” says Conference Director Dr. Maria Elena Gutierrez. “I am proud that VIEW Conference is bringing together the filmmakers for a free virtual discussion, to share their passion and creative energy with a worldwide audience. I urge everyone with an interest in animation to register for the event now – you won’t want to miss it!”

Stream sessions on-demand from VIEW Conference 2022: viewconference.it/pages/registration

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences first acknowledged the potential of animated features at the 11th Academy Awards in 1939, when Walt Disney received an Honorary Oscar for his groundbreaking motion picture SNOW WHITE AND THE SEVEN DWARFS. In the following decades, other animated features were occasionally honored with Special Achievement awards. The modern category of Best Animated Feature was introduced in 2002, at the 74th Academy Awards, at which producer Aron Warner received the iconic gold statuette for DreamWorks Pictures’ SHREK.

An international community of over 10,000 artists, filmmakers and executives, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences was founded in 1927, with Douglas Fairbanks as its first president. The 95th Academy Awards is scheduled to take place on Sunday, March 12, 2023, at the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood.

The post FREE Virtual Panel with Directors of Oscar Contenders for Best Animated Feature Special VIEW Conference PreVIEW Event appeared first on Skwigly Animation Magazine.

Multi-Emmy award-winning company Baboon Animation (Angry Birds, Gigantosaurus) has joined forces with Fonda Snyder and Israeli creators Neta Holzer and Allon Zaslansky to produce CHEEZ N NUGGET: GONE BAD, a 2D slapstick buddy comedy about the unlikely and undying friendship between two fun foods. The series is Executive-Produced by industry veteran Fonda Snyder (Storyopolis, Alchemy Ink).

The top-shelf alliance seeks production partners, distribution and broadcasters for what promises to be a classic buddy comedy with non-stop laughs.

The new animated series follows Cheez and Nugget, two fated best friends living in a food product world, where it’s super cool to be fresh, healthy, low-calorie, low-fat, gluten-free, lactose-free, organic, and… well… they are not. One is a stinky cheese ball, a former adorable child star and Nugget is—well, a Nugget, origins unknown.

When this unlikely pair finds out they share the exact same expiration-stamp – they create the best BUCKET LIST ever, determined to do it all!  These two will do anything to live every day to the fullest- even if it means leaving a trail of destruction behind them – which happens every time.

The high-calorie comedy was inspired by Snyder, conceptualized by Neta Holzer (Animation Director) and Zaslansky (Writer) and written by the team at Baboon.

The series is planned as a 2D animated, 26 x 11 minutes show for kids aged 6-11 using a POC cast.

Mike de Seve, co-creator of Warner Media’s top-rated slapstick series Taffy said, “When it comes to buddy teams, Cheez n Nugget take the cake. I mean literally in episode 6 when they take the cake out to lunch. And out to lunch is really what this show is.”

Executive producer Fonda Snyder said, “It’s got friendship and heart that leaps off the plate and does a dance in your lap so make sure not to forget your napkin.”

“We are absolutely hilarious,” said the brash and excitable Cheez, or would if she was real.

Co-creator and writer Allon Zaslansky, added, “They aren’t real?”

The show will also be developed as a podcast via Baboon’s new voice company.

“Let the kids make their own damn drawing in their head,” said Baboon creative director Jeff Hylton.

“Well except the pictures are so darn fun to draw. and look at. That’s why we plan to do both,” says co-creator and art and animation director Neta Holzer.

The post CHEEZ and NUGGET Series to be Produced by Baboon, Fonda Snyder and Zaslansky&Holzer appeared first on Skwigly Animation Magazine.

Taking place over two evenings from 23-24 February at Portview Trade Centre in Belfast, RENDR, which is supported by NI Screen, the Arts Council of Northern Ireland and Belfast City Council, will welcome creative minds from across the global film, gaming, animation and immersive tech industries to explore the space where creativity and technology collide.

Attendees will gain insight and inspiration from up to 30 speakers whose expertise spans the breadth of the creative industries.

Mike Reiss, the longest-serving writer and producer of The Simpsons, by Matt Groening (Image courtesy of JComms)

Among the speakers is Mike Reiss, the longest-serving writer and producer of The Simpsons. Reiss, who co-wrote The Simpsons Movie, will discuss his illustrious career as part of the team behind the long-running animated sitcom, offering an insider’s perspective into the creative process that has seen the show rise to the status of cultural phenomenon.

Also announced as a speaker is Tara Rueping, an art director at Warner Bros. Animation whose most recent work includes the upcoming animated series Gremlins: Secrets of the Mogwai, a prequel to the 1984 feature film Gremlins which is due to air later this year on HBO Max.

Still from Armour, an animated short film by Blue Zoo (Image courtesy of JComms)

Tom Box, co-founder of the Emmy-winning animation studio Blue Zoo, will also speak at the festival. The first major animation studio in the world to achieve B Corp status, its work includes children’s TV shows Pip and Posy, Numberblocks, It’s Pony and The Adventures of Paddington.

Other speakers include Gio Ferrari, animation director and head of story at Irish animation studio Cartoon Saloon, creators of the Oscar-nominated WolfWalkers and recent Netflix feature My Father’s Dragon; Colin Williams, founder of Sixteen South, the BAFTA-winning animation studio behind series such as Lily’s Driftwood Bay, WildWoods and Big City Park; and JAM Media’s Theresa McCearney and Richard Gordon, creators of comedy-adventure series Nova Jones and other children’s programming.

RENDR is delighted to welcome such a prestigious lineup of speakers from the animation industry to Belfast. The festival is an opportunity to hear from world-class talent whose expertise and experience encompasses some of the most celebrated animated features and TV series of recent times. We hope RENDR can inspire audiences while celebrating the work of some of the industry’s most prominent and influential creatives.

-Michael Weir (Festival Director)

For the full list of speakers and to book tickets, visit RENDRfestival.com and stay up to date with the latest developments and announcements on the festival’s Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn.

The post RENDR Festival welcomes award-winning animators to speaker lineup appeared first on Skwigly Animation Magazine.

From among the twenty projects participating in the workshop, a selection that combines new talents with renowned industry professionals, only ten of them will become finalists and will have the opportunity to make their pitch during the event. An international jury, composed of four industry professionals, will be in charge of selecting the three winning projects.  These will be presented at Annecy MIFA 2023 during the Next Lab Generation conference, and  will receive a gross payment of 8,000 Euros in aid for development, three months of mentoring, and a travel bag and accreditation for one representative from the project to attend the Annecy Festival 2023.

From Germany, Dan Franke, VR artist and co-founder and director of Studio Syro, an animation studio made up of an international team of artists who use the virtual reality painting tool “Quill” to create experiences both inside and outside the VR environment, will be a member of the jury.  He recently directed “Tales From Soda Island”, the world’s first series created entirely in virtual reality. He is also a strong advocate of the potential of these tools to revolutionize the animation industry and is dedicated to sharing his knowledge by teaching Quill workshops throughout Europe.

This jury is also composed by the Spanish Dune Blanco, co-founder of the creative studio Mr. Klaus Studio, where she develops new IPs both in-house and commissioned; and of the association MIA (Women in the Animation Industry). Dune is dedicated to visual and creative development for animation and video games, and has worked for production companies such as Cartoon Network, CANAL+, Ánima Kitchent and many others. She is also the creator and director of the animation series project “Bust a Danz”, selected by the CIMA Impulsa program, which is supported by NETFLIX.

From France we also find as part of the jury Marc Aguesse founder of Catsuka, a prestigious website dedicated to animated films since 2000, in addition to a television program broadcast for 8 years on the French TV channel Nolife and a section in Animeland and Animascope magazines. He has also collaborated with festivals and organizations such as the Pompidou Center in Paris, or the French Animation Film Association, among many others. In 2012, he became editor-in-chief of the program “Nuit 4.0” on France 4 channel, and since 2016 he has been a permanent member of the French Academy of Cinematographic Arts and Techniques and of the Animation Short Film Committee.

The jury is completed by Armenian professional Susanna Khachatryan, PhD in Economics from Yerevan State University since 2010. Thereafter, Susanna started exploring business opportunities in the field of design and animation. In 2018 she co-founded OnOff Studio and has been working as an executive producer since then. Since 2020, she has been producing the animated feature film ZAKO.

On March 3rd and 4th at Espacio Rastro Madrid will take place this meeting point for industry professionals, which will feature various conferences and space for networking. The conference “Making a movie with Quill: Zako” will be held by the Armenian animation studio OnOff, in which the studio will share its experience of making and producing an animated feature film entirely with Quill.  The feature film is supported by the National Film Center of Armenia (NCCA) and tells a true story, the life of Sargis Mangasaryan, a Soviet Armenian painter, who applied his creative skills to draw portraits of prison guards in order to survive and keep his sanity during World War II. Susan Khachatryan and Tigran Arakelyan, producer and director of Zako will talk about the status of the project, what challenges they faced from both the creative and production sides and why they chose this technology.

On Saturday morning it will be the turn of the finalist project pitches where they will show the piece they have made and all the work and progress experienced in the workshop. More details of the program will be announced shortly and the deadline to obtain accreditation for this benchmark event in the field of animation production, which focuses on the use of disruptive technologies in the virtual environment will be opened.

Next Lab Generation 2023 is sponsored by the Community of Madrid through the Council for Culture, Tourism, and Sport as a main sponsor, with financial support from the Institute for Cinematography and Audiovisual Arts (ICAA), as part of the Recovery, Transformation, and Resilience Plan advanced by the European Union, additional sponsorship by the Ministry of Culture, DeAPlaneta Entertainment, and the Municipal Government of Madrid, and collaboration from Enisa, Annecy Festival, and Weird Market.

The post Next Lab Generation 2023 Jury Revealed appeared first on Skwigly Animation Magazine.

Fantasy hybrids of machines and nature, story about unavoidable metamorphoses, climate changes, destructive forces of war and strength of hope – it’s all captured in 7-minute animation directed by Andrzej Jobczyk and produced by Warsaw studio Letko. Film has already begun its journey to winning the most important award in the movie industry. In a few weeks we will find out if it was successful.

“Airborne” is a story placed in a surreal world of living, flying machines. As a result of a crash, they start to change into plants and insects. What seems to be the end, starts a new chapter, and at the place of the catastrophe life awakens. It’s a story about passion, power of nature and destructive force of war.

The animation was produced by Letko studio in Warsaw, specializing in the creation, production and promotion of animated film projects, which has many international successes to its credit, such as well received by viewers and critics co-production “Kill it and leave this town” directed by Mariusz Wilczyński.  The series “Odo” loved and watched in nearly 160 countries around the world.

It’s a giant success for Polish animation and our team. And the beginning of a journey to winning that most desired award in movie industry. Next to wonderful story, “Airborne” contains a lot of elements worth appreciating: dynamic animation of nature’s elements or special visual appeal of the world that was created. The key, however, was director’s commitment and superb teamwork that influenced final effect, perfectly received on the most important international festivals

Piotr Szczepanowicz, Letko studio

For direction, screenplay and the whole visual side of the 7-minute animation responsible is Andrzej Jobczyk whose works connect natural sciences and minimalist surrealism.

The film was inspired by my childhood memories. I grew up surrounded by nature and as a child I loved planes and everything regarding aviation. Connecting these two symbolisms and their permeation was beginning of a story about evanescence and rebirth – Andrzej Jobczyk explains and highlights how crucial was support provided by studio Letko that helped specifying film’s concept.

Film’s narrative develops a few parallel plotlines. In the story created by Jobczyk it is possible to notice ecological themes crowned with hope that nature will find a way to transform disastrous results of human war machines’ interference into space available for blossoming of a new life.

Extraordinarily captivating visual layer of animation is complemented by thrilling music score by Jakub Słomkowski and Rafał Smoliński. Audio effects were prepared by Michał Fojcik, thanks to whom conceptual graphics became more real and sensual, and fantasy hybrids of machines and nature gained their own voice. The one responsible for editing was Nikodem Chabior who previously cooperated with Monika Brodka and Bovska. Executive producer was Martyna Siwińska.

Thanks to ongoing For Your Consideration Best Animated Short campaign during which creators strive for Academy members’ attention, animation produced by Warsaw studio Letko is available to watch on the www.airborneshortanimation.com website.

The film has been co-financed by Polish Film Institute.

The post Polish Animated Short ‘Airborne’ by Andrzej Jobczyk Has Ambitions For Oscar appeared first on Skwigly Animation Magazine.

All-Access tickets are now available providing 3 months of on-demand streaming access to all keynotes, panels, talks, workshops, and masterclasses from VIEW Conference 2022. For a smaller fee, the budget Light Pass offers the same access to keynotes, panels and talks, but excludes workshops and masterclasses.

Purchase tickets for VIEW Conference 2022 On-Demand Edition:

https://www.viewconference.it/pages/registration

This extensive collection of session recordings from VIEW Conference 2022 includes a special track exploring the latest big ideas about the Metaverse, curated by Epic Games’ Marc Petit, plus a host of sessions covering recently-released animated features, exclusive previews of upcoming movies, eye-opening breakdowns of the latest innovations in VFX, deep dives into classic films and heartfelt debate about the nature of storytelling. Meanwhile an extraordinary array of panels, presentations and workshops digs into new technologies and creative ideas in games, VR/AR/XR, AI, virtual production and much more.

View the complete list of keynotes, panels, talks, workshops and masterclasses available in the VIEW Conference 2022 On-Demand Edition:

https://www.viewconference.it/article/808/view-2022-on-demand-edition

Save the Date 

VIEW Conference is thrilled to confirm 15-20 October, 2023, as the official dates for VIEW Conference 2023. Once again this English-language event will take place in Torino, Italy, with a stellar mix of keynotes, panels, talks, workshops, and masterclasses. Full online access will allow a global audience to enjoy the conference via livestream.

“This is a wonderful time of year for VIEW Conference,” says Conference Director Dr. Maria Elena Gutierrez, “On the one hand it is a joy to reflect on the spectacular success of this year’s conference. Launching the 2022 On-Demand Edition gives us the perfect opportunity to share all our beautiful memories of the event with the whole world. On the other hand, I am excited to contemplate what lies ahead. Every year we strive to make the conference bigger and better than ever, and I know in my heart that VIEW Conference 2023 will be no exception!”

The post VIEW Conference Launches On-Demand Access to Sessions from 2022 Announces Dates for VIEW Conference 2023 appeared first on Skwigly Animation Magazine.

Marking the fifth anniversary of the Quirino Awards, LatAm cinema – a trade website specializing in information about the film industry – released a special supplement that can be read online or downloaded from this link.

Titled 5 Years Drawing the Shores of Iberoamerican Animation Closer, the publication reviews the history of the event and includes opinions from 15 winning artists on the importance of the awards. The digital magazine also analyzes the promotion of new talents through the award category for Best School Short and includes a profile of Quirino Cristiani, the animation pioneer after whom the awards are named.

Created in 2007 and based in Montevideo, LatAm Cinema is a leading source of information for Latin American film and animation professionals, with more than 15,000 unique visitors per month.

Bea Bartolomé, New Director of the Quirino Awards

Organizers for the Quirino Awards for Iberoamerican Animation announced today that Bea Bartolomé will assume as the new director of the event at the upcoming edition of the awards, to be held in San Cristobal de La Laguna, Tenerife from May 11 to 13, 2023. Bartolomé has worked as a producer since the creation of the awards in 2017 and will be replacing José Luis Farias, co-creator and director of the first five editions of the Quirino Awards, who will continue to work with the event as executive producer.

In addition to her new role, Bartolomé is the coordinator of Weird Market, International Market for Animation, Video Games, and New Media – now in its 14th year – and a coordinator at Next Lab Generation, a new initiative connecting art and technology in digital content and the animation industry. Previously, she was a producer at Bridging the Gap, an international laboratory for animated full-length films and series, and worked in the production department for various international film events, such as Alcine – the Alcalá de Henares Film Festival – LesGaiCineMad – the Madrid International LGBT Film Festival – UNIFEST – the International University Film Festival – and the German Film Festival of Madrid, among others.

In 2019 and 2020, she was part of the Production Assistance Committee for Full-length and Short Films at ICAA (Spain’s Institute for Cinematography and Audiovisual Art) and also worked with the Production Assistance for short animated films in 2022 with Proimágenes Colombia. She has also served on juries for various festivals, including Animarkt Stop Motion Forum (Poland, 2021), ANIMA LATINA Latin American Animated Film Festival (Argentina, 2021), Ajayufest, Ajayu International Animated Film Festival (Peru, 2020), Pixelatl, Animation, Video Game, and Comic Festival (Mexico, 2019), and the Aguilar de Campoo International Short Film Festival (Spain, 2014).

Final Weeks to Submit Works for the Sixth Edition of the Quirino Awards

Submissions of works for the sixth edition of the Quirino Awards will be accepted until December 15. As in previous editions, selected works will receive awards in six main categories: Feature Film, Series, Short Film, School Short Film, Commissioned Film, and Video Game Animation. In addition, the event will recognize the best works in three technical categories: Visual Development, Animation Design, and Original Sound and Music Design. Works competing in the main categories will automatically be considered for the technical categories.

The call for submissions is aimed at works produced mainly in any of the 23 countries in Iberoamerica and premiered in 2022. In the Feature Film, Series, and Video Game Animation categories, however, works premiered between June 1, 2021 and December 31, 2022 are also eligible for consideration. Works may be submitted by the directors, producers, or distributors responsible for the content. Registration is open over the Festhome platform until December 15, 2022 at 11:59 p.m. (local time in Spain) and competition terms are available at this link.

Among all of the works submitted, the Selection Committee will pick six nominees in each category, to be announced in February of 2023. Subsequently, an international jury will select three finalists in each category to compete for the awards announced at the ceremony to be held on May 13, 2023 in San Cristobal de La Laguna.

The post Quirino Awards: 5 Years Drawing the Shores of Iberoamerican Animation Closer appeared first on Skwigly Animation Magazine.

The UK indie have teamed up with Creative Director Massimo Fenati (Clown, Terry Pratchett’s The Abominable Snow Baby, Quentin Blake’s Box of Treasures) and Executive Producer Tess Cuming (Terry Pratchett’s The Abominable Snow Baby, Quentin Blake’s Box of Treasures) to set up the new venture, which will be based in London and will be producing a wide range of animation series, films and specials using the wealth of talent based in the UK and across Europe.

Massimo Fenati will be joining the board of directors of Eaglet Films, alongside Executive Producer Tess Cuming and Head of Production Isobel Nicholson.

Eagle Eye Drama’s Chief Creative Officer Jo McGrath says: “Our core aspiration when we set up Eagle Eye was to break exciting new talent into the UK production community, so we were always very keen to diversify and broaden our portfolio to encompass children’s and family programming. Our successful foray into animated Christmas specials has been rapidly expanding into a substantial animation slate which now encompasses a major 6-part BBC series and a movie development, so it made perfect sense to create a new venture under the visionary creative leadership of Massimo Fenati to allow this burgeoning side of the company to truly flourish and reach its full potential’’.

Eaglet Films’ Creative Director Massimo Fenati says: “My collaboration with Eagle Eye started just over two years ago, but it feels like a long time as we’ve achieved so much. At the start of the covid outbreak, when all drama productions ground to a halt, I suggested to the three founding partners that Eagle Eye should dip its toe into animation, as that allows for remote working. Only a month later our first production was greenlit. Since then, it’s been a wonderful ride that has brought us more commissions, funded developments, adaptations of work by exciting authors such as Quentin Blake and Terry Pratchett, and even a Children’s BAFTA nomination for Julie Walters, the star of our most recent production. I’m now delighted to consolidate my creative partnership with the Eagle Eye team and look forward to our new venture Eaglet Films taking flight soon with new TV series and feature films”.

The post Eagle Eye Drama Launches New Animation-Focused Indie appeared first on Skwigly Animation Magazine.

An intensive two days were filled with a wide range of magnificent projects, which were searching for potential partners in the live audiences and via virtual platforms. “Most of all, it was amazing to observe the student teams that presented their work to audiences with great courage. Proof of this support is that the audience award was given to a project from the Rising Stars section,” said Marta Jallageas, Managing Director of the CEE Animation Forum. It was also clearly demonstrated that the world of animation has a substantial female presence in pitching projects, with a high ratio of 36 women to 27 men.

An important part of the programme was the panel discussion with representatives of national television broadcasters, during which the audience was introduced to Petr Farkaš (CT, Czech Republic), Halka Marčeková (RTVS, Slovakia), Audronė Šepetė (LRT, Lithuania), Tiivi Tuur (ERR, Estonia), Zane Valeniece (LTV, Latvia), and Kresimir Zubcic (HRT, Croatia). With a united voice, those broadcasters who were present agreed that support for local productions is a priority for them when purchasing animation projects, despite the current adverse financial situation.

CEE Animation is an active player in the animation industry and regularly opens up themes that weigh on film professionals. During the closed meeting between representatives of TVs and CEE Animation, potential steps to help animation creation in the Central and Eastern European region were discussed. CEE Animation tries to stimulate the conditions under which projects can materialise bring those works into being. The meeting of the representatives of television broadcasters from the CEE region also opened up the question of possible co-ordination of co-operation with regard to support for domestic productions.

LIST OF WINNERS

AUDIENCE AWARD
I´ll Be There When You Wake Up
d. Nina Chubinishvili, p. Willem de Kooning Academie, Netherlands

FEATURE FILMS CATEGORY
Jury: Lubica Orechovská (Pubres), Richard Lutterbeck (TrickStudio Lutterbeck), Valentin Rebondy (Cinema Public Films)

WINNER: The Helpers

1. Betina Bożek, p. Grzegorz Skorupski, Animoon, Poland

Jury statement: We found the project to be very courageous and challenging in terms of telling the story by selecting different visual styles and genres. It´s fresh and new. It comes with a universal topic – how much love can surprise us at any time and literally brings so much colours into our previous “waffle” dry world. It also illustrates how much determination these costs. During the presentation we were given a very clear picture about the intention of the creative and production team.

SPECIAL MENTION: Sorya

1. Denis Do, p. Sébastien Onomo, Marion Boffelli, Special Touch Studios, France

Jury statement: We like this project for its precious and authentic connection between its core topic, story, place and its director. We grew attached to the strong female character, a young girl named Sorya, becoming an independent woman, just like her homeland Cambodia is quickly changing into an open and modern society. The plot is full of energy and is also visually strong, which immediately gets you hooked. And it is a great musical adventure!

CATEGORY SERIES / TV SPECIALS
Jury: Kristel Tõldsepp (A Film), Michelle Hoekstra (lemming film), Hisko Hulsing

WINNER: Bug City

1. Jøran Wærdahl, p. Kjersti Greger, Klipp og Lim, Norway

Jury statement: We were impressed by the unique style and tone of this project. It seems a very brave move to let the story take place in a dark and gloomy world, completely inhabited by insects. However, we are convinced that the combination ofdrama and dark humor will end up being very entertaining.

SPECIAL MENTION: Lemon and Berry

1. Ilenia Cotardo, Piotr Ficner, p. Anna Mroczek, WJT / Likaon, Poland

Jury statement: The project has relatable characters, rich visuals and is well-suited for the target audience. The presentation was well-prepared and convincing.

CATEGORY SHORT FILMS

Jury: Alexandre Siqueira (BAP – Animation Studios), Milo Cremer Eindhoven (Submarine), Bastien Martin (Camera, etc)

WINNER: Supersilly

1. Veronica Martiradonna, p. Ron Dyens, Sacrebleu Productions, France

Jury statement: Supersilly showcases a promising and daring union of story and style. The animation excites, capturing spontaneity and an organic feel in its movement. But, more importantly, the project offers a singular voice that needs to be heard.

SPECIAL MENTION: Funfair

1. Éva Darabos, p. József Fülöp, Orsolya Sipos, SALTO Films, Hungary

Jury statement: Éva Darabos has built a world that we are keen to explore further, having charmed us with its grotesque and humorous style.

CATEGORY RISING STARS

Jury: Eleanor Coleman (Indie Sales), Luca Tóth, Ivan Zuber (Laïdak FIlms)

WINNER: The Spell

1. Dora Pejić Bach, p. University of Ljubljana, Academy of Fine Arts and Design – ALUO, Slovenia

WINNER: The Chicken´s Calling

1. Rebecca Osterberg, p. Hochschule Wismar, Germany

Jury statement: For the first time in the history of the CEE Animation Forum, there will be 2 winners who will share the prize. Why? Because we are convinced that these very different projects both stood out and deserve the top recognition. They are both well developed, radically different and most importantly very authentic and doable. We are so looking forward to seeing these films completed.

CEE ANIMATION WORKSHOP – 2023 scholarship award

The Girl With Occupied Eyes
d. André Carrilho, p. Hemi Fortes, Blablabla Media, Portugal

CICLIC AWARD – 35,000 EUR
Funfair
d. Éva Darabos, p. József Fülöp, Orsolya Sipos, SALTO Films, Hungary

TVPAINT AWARD – professional licence
M-0
d. Vivien Csigó, p. Moholy-Nagy University of Art and Design Budapest, Hungary

CARTOON FORUM – direct access 2023 award
9 Million Colors
d. Bára Anna Stejskalová, p. Jakub Kostal, Bionaut, Czech Republic

ANIMARKT STOP MOTION FORUM – direct access 2023 award
Bug City
d. Jøran Wærdahl, p. Kjersti Greger, Klipp og Lim, Norway

Bruno
d. Danas Bereznickas, p. Inesa Ivanova, MB Danas Bereznickas, Lithuania

KIDS KINO INDUSTRY – direct access 2023 award
Billy & the Boingo Band
d. & p. Shabnam Rezaei, Big Bad Boo Studios, Austria

CEE Animation is financially supported by the Creative Europe – MEDIA Programme of the European Union, the International Visegrad Fund, and organised in co-operation with Eurimages. It is also co-funded by state funds and foundations and professional organisations from Croatia (Hulahop), Czech Republic (APA, Audiovisual Producers´ Association), Poland (SPPA, Polish Animation Producers Association), Slovakia (APAF, Slovak Association of Animated Film Producers) and Slovenia (DSAF, Slovene Animated Film Association).

The post CEE Animation Forum 2022 Announces Its Winners appeared first on Skwigly Animation Magazine.