The FLiP Annecy Survival Guide

Annecy - an ancient medieval town in the French Alps

The International Festival of Animation at Annecy is the world’s biggest animation festival. It can be a slightly overwhelming experience; there are so many things going on at once that it can be hard to feel like you really get to make the most of being there. Alongside the film festival is MIFA – the world’s biggest animation marketplace, a brain-boiling congress of industry types furiously buying and selling. But Annecy is an event that every animator should go to at least once – if only to get a feeling for the sheer size and diversity of the modern animation industry.

The Thief and The Cobbler At Annecy

On stage at Annecy - Le Voleur et Le Cordonnier

Friday 19 June was the last day of the MIFA marketplace at Annecy, and also a rare chance to see The Thief and The Cobbler (en Francais: “Le voleur et le cordonnier”) original director’s cut – presented by the director himself.  Dad got a standing ovation when he came on stage, and he dedicated the screening to the memory of Ken Harris, one of Chuck Jones’ top animators on the Looney Tunes series and the man responsible for much of the animation of The Thief himself.

Nassos Vakalis Talks about "Dinner For Few", and Reveals the Secrets of Entering and Winning Festivals

Dinner for Few

Nassos Vakalis' film “Dinner for Few” has been entering and winning festivals all over the world. We asked Nassos, who by day is a storyboard artist at DreamWorks, to explain the secrets of entering and winning film competitions. What does it make to make a success of a short film project?

Submit your Indie Film Project now to Cartoon Movie

Cartoon Movie 2014

The Deadline to submit a feature film project to Cartoon Movie is 26 November 2014. Are you looking for co-producers, financing and distributors for your animated feature film project? If so, you should submit it to Cartoon Movie! If your film gets selected, you will be able to pitch it to almost 1,000 animation and industry professionals from forty countries. Present at Cartoon Movie are 200 buyers, including 120 distributors & sales agents.

Withoutabox.com - For Your Festival Submission Sanity

Did I mention my new short Chief, Your Butt's on Fire this week?   We're in festival submission mode around here, and just as film has gone digital, so has the submission process.  Thankfully, my wife discovered withoutabox.com.

This is going to sound like a big freaking commercial, but if you are an indie filmmaker, this could really help you.  On the Withoutabox site, you fill out a form about your film, then upload a web-quality Quicktime file.  When you find a festival you like, you click "qualify" and see if your form jives with that festival's submission form.   You make whatever adjustments you need to make, then click "submit" and it's done.  No making umpteen copies of your film,  no writing umpteen descriptions of you film.

Done!

Mr. Magoo Shorts Screening Almost in Sight

One of the truly great things about Los Angeles is the unique film screenings geared toward industry people.  On Saturday, September 15, Animazing Spotlight will host a tribute to U.P.A. Studios at the Alex Theater in Glendale.

From 3 to 5 PM, Tom Sito will host the panel of Bob Kurtz, John Andrews, and Fred Crippen as they discuss U.P.A.'s influence with clips from various shorts.  Tom told FLIP,  "Friz Freleng once said, 'When I die, I don't want to go to Heaven. I want to go to UPA.' Join us as we hear about why this studio had such a big impact on the art of animation in the mid-twentieth century."

At 7:00, twenty U.P.A. shorts will be screened on the big screen, with fresh, restored prints.  Along with five Mr. Magoo's, will be all fifteen Oscar nominated shorts.  Here's a complete list:  

Robin Hoodlum, 1949

Ragtime Bear, 1949

Magic Fluke, 1950

Barefaced Flatfoot, 1951

Fuddy Duddy Buddy, 1951

Trouble Indemnity, 1951

Gerald McBoing-Boing, 1951

Hotsy Footsy, 1952

Rooty Toot Toot, 1952

Man Alive, 1952

Madeline, 1953

Pink and Blue Blues, 1953

Christopher Crumpet, 1954

The Tell Tale Heart, 1954

Magoo's Express, 1955

When Magoo Flew, 1955

Magoo's Puddle Jumper, 1957

Jaywalker, 1957

McBoing on Planet Moo, 1957

Trees & Jamaica Daddy, 1958

Check their website for tickets, http://www.animazspot.com 
Sounds like a fun Saturday night to me!
-Steve

Montreal Stop Motion Film Festival Teaser 2012

My old friend and colleague Luc Chamberland has just finished a charming stop motion teaser for the Montreal Stop Motion Film Festival 2012. I love stop motion animation - and I have huge respect for animators who can pull off animating an entire scene straight ahead without the benefit of an undo button.

Luc and I worked together in 1999 on "Joseph - King of Dreams", a straight-to-video sequel to the Prince of Egypt, animated by Bardel Animation in Vancouver. It was huge fun to work on, although the crew was pretty green and the standard of draughtsmanship required by the project was very high. I gave a lot of lectures while I was there, and when I left many of the crew did some drawings for me by way of a leaving present. Here's one of them:

I must have spent a lot of time on the phone. Also I am not sure what, exactly, was wrong with my nose. Maybe it was the Canadian winter.

The drawing that really confused me however was this one - it was a flyer for an acting class I was doing. Why I am I naked? And what's with the porn star thing?

I still don't get it. Something to do with the Canadian sense of humour.

- Alex