goldfish - Get busy living

good video by mike Scott for new single by Goldfish - get busy living
Mike Scott South African website
Happyland shorts

Rico LeBrun

- At the start of Disney’s production of Bambi, Rico LeBrun, an established Italian artist, who was teaching at Chouinard Institute, was employed to help teach the studio’s artists to learn how to draw animals. He created some intense classes where animators concentrated on the anatomy of deer and other animals. The story goes that LeBrun went so far as to cut open a deer’s corpse and slowly peel away parts of the animal for drawing and study.

good animation blog - Michael Sporn animation
lots of good things here...

look at November for example

animator and organisation blogs

Felix Massie
Helene Friren
Matthew Walker
David OReilly
Samantha Moore
Max Hattler
Spencer Cross
Steve May
jim Le Fevre



workbook.com Illustration and photography stable
little chimp society
punto y raya
apengine animate projects news
lux online

that's enough for now...

what the bods are writing about.

the abstracts of the papers delivered at the recent aniimation conference in Edinburgh this Summer. an event hosted by SAS Society of Animation studies.

bike or Car? Bristol Blog with definite car bias

It may make walking less pleasant, but it isn't enough to stop the locals and students from getting in our way...
this blog about Bristol Traffic is written in a voice that would like to erase pedestrians and cyclists and make a beautiful place for cars and vans to park where ever they please.
Good pictures of Bristol, but lots of posts! too many, erring on the obsessive.

Nowa ksiazka (new book 1975)

New book 1975
Zbigniew 'Zbig' Rybczynski, of Tango fame. uses nine continuous shots over ten minutes and choreographs his characters through the frames and story - one of the cameras is on a bus - and is worth a second look at the incident other than that of the main protagonist.

Liu Xiaobo

Liu Xiaobo, a jailed Chinese rights activist, has won the 2010 Nobel Peace prize, prompting a strong reaction from China.

Announcing the award in the Norwegian capital, Oslo, on Friday, Thorbjoern Jagland, the Norwegian Nobel Committee chairman, said Liu was a symbol for the fight for human rights in China.

"China has become a big power in economic terms as well as political terms, and it is normal that big powers should be under criticism,'' he said .

Liu is in prison for helping to organise and disseminate a document called Charter 08, which calls for sweeping political reforms in China, including freedom of assembly, expression and religion. The 54-year-old literary critic and former professor was sentenced last Christmas Day to 11 years in jail for subversion.

In response to the Oslo announcement, China said that giving the prize to "criminal" Liu ran contrary to the principles of the award, and warned ties with Norway would suffer.

carl stalling Documentary

"Stalling was consistently an innovator. He was the first music director to extensively use the metronome to time film scores. He was one of three composers, along with Max Steiner and Scott Bradley, credited with the invention of the click track. His stock-in-trade was the "musical pun," where he used references to popular songs, or even classical pieces, to add a dimension of humor to the action on the screen. Working with legendary directors Tex Avery, Bob Clampett, Friz Freleng, Robert McKimson, and Chuck Jones, he developed the "Looney Tunes" style of very rapid and tightly coordinated musical cues, punctuated with both instrumental and recorded sound effects."

david shrigley

the hilbert curve

The Hilbert curve is a space filling curve that visits every point in a square grid with a size of 2×2, 4×4, 8×8, 16×16, or any other power of 2. It was first described by David Hilbert in 1892. The basic elements of the Hilbert curves are what I call "cups" (a square with one open side) and "joins" (a vector that joins two cups). The "open" side of a cup can be top, bottom, left or right. In addition, every cup has two end-points, and each of these can be the "entry" point or the "exit" point. So, there are eight possible varieties of cups. In practice, a Hilbert curve uses only four types of cups. In a similar vein, a join has a direction: up, down, left or right.
can work in 3D (image 2).

RSA animate

A lecture, The Empathic Civilisation, by Bestselling author, political adviser and social and ethical prophet Jeremy Rifkin investigates the evolution of empathy and the profound ways that it has shaped our development and our society. it and many others are animated by RSA animate and done large on a drywipe board. super image/text accompaniment to go with some great talks.

It really is a wow, the man barely pauses for breath.

For over 250 years the Royal Society for the encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce (RSA) has been a cradle of enlightenment thinking and a force for social progress. Our approach is multi-disciplinary, politically independent and combines cutting edge research and policy development with practical action.
the RSA
8 John Adam Street
London
WC2N 6EZ
UK

tom and love and theft

Tom
Love and theft
Andreas Hykade, film bilder.

Ginger Baker Jams

Ginger Baker Jams Rhubarb Ginger Baker Drummer.

Also, Tony Allen playing in Bristol tomorrow, 7/10/10. link.

story and stuff

this is an interesting site. story fanatic
dramatica I havn't fully explored - but it may or may not be good. I tend to steer clear of rigid dogma. see their 12 questions and see for yourself.

I like this though. temple of the seven golden camels a good collection of links, and a frequently posted site by Mr Mark Kennedy, a storyboard artist in CA.

a good line from the dramatica 12 essential questions was "Every story is set against the issues which arise from a single problem. The problem itself will fall into one of four broad categories. If you want the problem to grow out of a situation, then choose Situation; if you want the problem to emanate from an activity, then choose Activity. If you want the problem to evolve from fixed attitudes and states of mind, then choose Fixed Attitude; and if you want the problem to result from the characters' manipulations and ways of thinking, then choose Manipulation." see more detail here
and this breakdown of Toy Story illuminates the dramatica agenda quite well. some food for thought there.


Robert McKee - guru or not?
Nick Cage and Brian Cox in Adaption, written by Charlie Kauffman Dir. Spike Jonze.

place

good collector of Place pictures, here, Keef. keef is a graduate of the School of Visual Arts in New York City. His thesis film—a twelve minute experimental meditation on memory titled No Exit—won a record-breaking three Dusty Awards for Best Alternative Cinema, Best Editing, and Best Directing. He has a rather good website.

Olly Moss posters Olly Moss' site he has some neat ideas, such as redesigns for classic games (above).

Keith Loutit’s awesome tilt-shift time-lapse "This is a personal project that would not have been possible without the support of the Westpac Rescue Helicopter Service. Thanks to the entire team for their generous access during training exercises and patrols this Summer." Keith Loutit

tilt shift collection

useful conversion chart

wondered how many pixels in an inch or centimeter?
this may assist, (------)the designers toolbox.
while we are on this - The grid - the gridsystem -
Eg - 30 word press grid systems
art in my coffee drawings in Latte
Lucid movement things in super slo-mo

wordle - cheesey word manipulation gizmo
280slides - unwatermarked presentation device similar to powerpoint, not bad.


I digress, the grid, the banner, have shivered into standards - and these are to be used, rather than ignored, or reinvented.

UK PM for a hundred years or so

1895-1902 Marquis of Salisbury Conservative
1902-1905 Arthur James Balfour Conservative
1905-1908 Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman Liberal
1908-1916 Herbert Henry Asquith Liberal
1916-1922 David Lloyd George Coalition
1922-1923 Andrew Bonar Law Conservative
1923-1924 Stanley Baldwin Conservative
1924 James Ramsay Macdonald Labour
1924-1929 Stanley Baldwin Conservative
1929-1935 James Ramsay Macdonald Coalition
1935-1937 Stanley Baldwin Coalition
1937-1940 Neville Chamberlain Coalition
1940-1945 Sir Winston Churchill Coalition
1945-1951 Clement Attlee Labour
1951-1955 Sir Winston Churchill Conservative
1955-1957 Sir Anthony Eden Conservative
1957-1963 Harold Macmillan Conservative
1963-1964 Sir Alec Douglas-Home Conservative
1964-1970 Harold Wilson Labour
1970-1974 Edward Heath Conservative
1974-1976 Harold Wilson Labour
1976-1979 James Callaghan Labour
1979-1990 Margaret Thatcher Conservative
1990-1997 John Major Conservative
1997-2007­ Anthony Blair Labour
2007-2010 Gordon Brown Labour
2010- David Cameron Coalition

isms

"Here are 234 different isms, each representing a philosophical, political or moral doctrine or a belief system. In selecting terms for the list, I have deliberately avoided any word which apply ism to a personal name, so that Marxism doesn't count although it is otherwise an ideal candidate for the list. I also excluded isms which do not refer to a specific belief system, such as impressionism (an artistic movement) or alcoholism (a disease)." Stephen Chrisomalis.

Word Definition
absolutism doctrine of government by a single absolute ruler; autocracy
absurdism doctrine that we live in an irrational universe
academicism doctrine that nothing can be known
accidentalism theory that events do not have causes
acosmism disbelief in existence of eternal universe distinct from God
adamitism nakedness for religious reasons
adevism denial of gods of mythology and legend
adiaphorism doctrine of theological indifference or latitudinarianism
adoptionism belief that Christ was the adopted and not natural son of God
aestheticism doctrine that beauty is central to other moral principles
agapism ethics of love
agathism belief in ultimate triumph of good despite evil means
agnosticism doctrine that we can know nothing beyond material phenomena
anarchism doctrine that all governments should be abolished
animism attribution of soul to inanimate objects
annihilationism doctrine that the wicked are utterly destroyed after death
anthropomorphism attribution of human qualities to non-human things
anthropotheism belief that gods are only deified men
antidisestablishmentarianism doctrine opposed to removing Church of England's official religion status
antilapsarianism denial of doctrine of the fall of humanity
antinomianism doctrine of the rejection of moral law
antipedobaptism denial of validity of infant baptism
apocalypticism doctrine of the imminent end of the world
asceticism doctrine that self-denial of the body permits spiritual enlightenment
aspheterism denial of the right to private property
atheism belief that there is no God
atomism belief that the universe consists of small indivisible particles
autosoterism belief that one can obtain salvation through oneself
autotheism belief that one is God incarnate or that one is Christ
bitheism belief in two gods
bonism the doctrine that the world is good but not perfect
bullionism belief in the importance of metallic currency in economics
capitalism doctrine that private ownership and free markets should govern economies
casualism the belief that chance governs all things
catabaptism belief in the wrongness of infant baptism
catastrophism belief in rapid geological and biological change
collectivism doctrine of communal control of means of production
collegialism theory that church is independent from the state
conceptualism theory that universal truths exist as mental concepts
conservatism belief in maintaining political and social traditions
constructivism belief that knowledge and reality do not have an objective value
cosmism belief that the cosmos is a self-existing whole
cosmotheism the belief that identifies God with the cosmos
deism belief in God but rejection of religion
determinism doctrine that events are predetermined by preceding events or laws
diphysitism belief in the dual nature of Christ
ditheism belief in two equal gods, one good and one evil
ditheletism doctrine that Christ had two wills
dualism doctrine that the universe is controlled by one good and one evil force
egalitarianism belief that humans ought to be equal in rights and privileges
egoism doctrine that the pursuit of self-interest is the highest good
egotheism identification of oneself with God
eidolism belief in ghosts
emotivism theory that moral statements are inherently biased
empiricism doctrine that the experience of the senses is the only source of knowledge
entryism doctrine of joining a group to change its policies
epiphenomenalism doctrine that mental processes are epiphenomena of brain activity
eternalism the belief that matter has existed eternally
eudaemonism ethical belief that happiness equals morality
euhemerism explanation of mythology as growing out of history
existentialism doctrine of individual human responsibility in an unfathomable universe
experientialism doctrine that knowledge comes from experience
fallibilism the doctrine that empirical knowledge is uncertain
fatalism doctrine that events are fixed and humans are powerless
fideism doctrine that knowledge depends on faith over reason
finalism belief that an end has or can be reached
fortuitism belief in evolution by chance variation
functionalism doctrine emphasising utility and function
geocentrism belief that Earth is the centre of the universe
gnosticism belief that freedom derives solely from knowledge
gradualism belief that things proceed by degrees
gymnobiblism belief that the Bible can be presented to unlearned without commentary
hedonism belief that pleasure is the highest good
henism doctrine that there is only one kind of existence
henotheism belief in one tribal god, but not as the only god
historicism belief that all phenomena are historically determined
holism doctrine that parts of any thing must be understood in relation to the whole
holobaptism belief in baptism with total immersion in water
humanism belief that human interests and mind are paramount
humanitarianism doctrine that the highest moral obligation is to improve human welfare
hylicism materialism
hylomorphism belief that matter is cause of the universe
hylopathism belief in ability of matter to affect the spiritual world
hylotheism belief that the universe is purely material
hylozoism doctrine that all matter is endowed with life
idealism belief that our experiences of the world consist of ideas
identism doctrine that objective and subjective, or matter and mind, are identical
ignorantism doctrine that ignorance is a favourable thing
illuminism belief in an inward spiritual light
illusionism belief that the external world is philosophy
imagism doctrine of use of precise images with unrestricted subject
immanentism belief in an immanent or permanent god
immaterialism the doctrine that there is no material substance
immoralism rejection of morality
indifferentism the belief that all religions are equally valid
individualism belief that individual interests and rights are paramount
instrumentalism doctrine that ideas are instruments of action
intellectualism belief that all knowledge is derived from reason
interactionism belief that mind and body act on each other
introspectionism doctrine that knowledge of mind must derive from introspection
intuitionism belief that the perception of truth is by intuition
irreligionism system of belief that is hostile to religions
kathenotheism polytheism in which each god is considered single and supreme
kenotism doctrine that Christ rid himself of divinity in becoming human
laicism doctrine of opposition to clergy and priests
latitudinarianism doctrine of broad liberality in religious belief and conduct
laxism belief that an unlikely opinion may be safely followed
legalism belief that salvation depends on strict adherence to the law
liberalism doctrine of social change and tolerance
libertarianism doctrine that personal liberty is the highest value
malism the belief that the world is evil
materialism belief that matter is the only extant substance
mechanism belief that life is explainable by mechanical forces
meliorism the belief the world tends to become better
mentalism belief that the world can be explained as aspect of the mind
messianism belief in a single messiah or saviour
millenarianism belief that an ideal society will be produced in the near future
modalism belief in unity of Father, Son and Holy Spirit
monadism theory that there exist ultimate units of being
monergism theory that the Holy Spirit alone can act
monism belief that all things can be placed in one category
monophysitism belief that Christ was primarily divine but in human form
monopsychism belief that individuals have a single eternal soul
monotheism belief in only one God
monotheletism belief that Christ had only one will
mortalism belief that the soul is mortal
mutualism belief in mutual dependence of society and the individual
nativism belief that the mind possesses inborn thoughts
naturalism belief that the world can be explained in terms of natural forces
necessarianism theory that actions are determined by prior history; fatalism
neonomianism theory that the gospel abrogates earlier moral codes
neovitalism theory that total material explanation is impossible
nihilism denial of all reality; extreme scepticism
nominalism doctrine that naming of things defines reality
nomism view that moral conduct consists in observance of laws
noumenalism belief in existence of noumena
nullibilism denial that the soul exists in space
numenism belief in local deities or spirits
objectivism doctrine that all reality is objective
omnism belief in all religions
optimism doctrine that we live in the best of all possible worlds
organicism conception of life or society as an organism
paedobaptism doctrine of infant baptism
panaesthetism theory that consciousness may inhere generally in matter
pancosmism theory that the material universe is all that exists
panegoism solipsism
panentheism belief that world is part but not all of God’s being
panpsychism theory that all nature has a psychic side
pansexualism theory that all thought derived from sexual instinct
panspermatism belief in origin of life from extraterrestrial germs
pantheism belief that the universe is God; belief in many gods
panzoism belief that humans and animals share vital life energy
parallelism belief that matter and mind don’t interact but relate
pejorism severe pessimism
perfectibilism doctrine that humans capable of becoming perfect
perfectionism doctrine that moral perfection constitutes the highest value
personalism doctrine that humans possess spiritual freedom
pessimism doctrine that the universe is essentially evil
phenomenalism belief that phenomena are the only realities
physicalism belief that all phenomena reducible to verifiable assertions
physitheism attribution of physical form and attributes to deities
pluralism belief that reality consists of several kinds or entities
polytheism belief in multiple deities
positivism doctrine that that which is not observable is not knowable
pragmatism doctrine emphasizing practical value of philosophy
predestinarianism belief that what ever is to happen is already fixed
prescriptivism belief that moral edicts are merely orders with no truth value
primitivism doctrine that a simple and natural life is morally best
privatism attitude of avoiding involvement in outside interests
probabiliorism belief that when in doubt one must choose most likely answer
probabilism belief that knowledge is always probable but never absolute
psilanthropism denial of Christ's divinity
psychism belief in universal soul
psychomorphism doctrine that inanimate objects have human mentality
psychopannychism belief souls sleep from death to resurrection
psychotheism doctrine that God is a purely spiritual entity
pyrrhonism total or radical skepticism
quietism doctrine of enlightenment through mental tranquility
racism belief that race is the primary determinant of human capacities
rationalism belief that reason is the fundamental source of knowledge
realism doctrine that objects of cognition are real
reductionism belief that complex phenomena are reducible to simple ones
regalism doctrine of the monarch's supremacy in church affairs
representationalism doctrine that ideas rather than external objects are basis of knowledge
republicanism belief that a republic is the best form of government
resistentialism humorous theory that inanimate objects display malice towards humans
romanticism belief in sentimental feeling in artistic expression
sacerdotalism belief that priests are necessary mediators between God and mankind
sacramentarianism belief that sacraments have unusual properties
scientism belief that the methods of science are universally applicable
self-determinism doctrine that the actions of a self are determined by itself
sensationalism belief that ideas originate solely in sensation
siderism belief that the stars influence human affairs
skepticism doctrine that true knowledge is always uncertain
socialism doctrine of centralized state control of wealth and property
solarism excessive use of solar myths in explaining mythology
solifidianism doctrine that faith alone will ensure salvation
solipsism theory that self-existence is the only certainty
somatism materialism
spatialism doctrine that matter has only spatial, temporal and causal properties
spiritualism belief that nothing is real except the soul or spirit
stercoranism belief that the consecrated Eucharist is digested and evacuated
stoicism belief in indifference to pleasure or pain
subjectivism doctrine that all knowledge is subjective
substantialism belief that there is a real existence underlying phenomena
syndicalism doctrine of direct worker control of capital
synergism belief that human will and divine spirit cooperate in salvation
terminism doctrine that there is a time limit for repentance
thanatism belief that the soul dies with the body
theism belief in the existence of God without special revelation
theocentrism belief that God is central fact of existence
theopantism belief that God is the only reality
theopsychism belief that the soul is of a divine nature
thnetopsychism belief that the soul dies with the body, to be reborn on day of judgement
titanism spirit of revolt or defiance against social conventions
tolerationism doctrine of toleration of religious differences
totemism belief that a group has a special kinship with an object or animal
transcendentalism theory that emphasizes that which transcends perception
transmigrationism belief that soul passes into other body at death
trialism doctrine that humans have three separate essences (body, soul, spirit)
tritheism belief that the members of the Trinity are separate gods
triumphalism belief in the superiority of one particular religious creed
tuism theory that individuals have a second or other self
tutiorism doctrine that one should take the safer moral course
tychism theory that accepts role of pure chance
ubiquitarianism belief that Christ is everywhere
undulationism theory that light consists of waves
universalism belief in universal salvation
utilitarianism belief that utility of actions determines moral value
vitalism the doctrine that there is a vital force behind life
voluntarism belief that the will dominates the intellect
zoism doctrine that life originates from a single vital principle
zoomorphism conception of a god or man in animal form
zootheism attribution of divine qualities to animals

list compiled by Stephen Chrisomalis © 2007 . Links to this page may be made without permission.

Paulo Ucello at the Ashmolean

The hunt in the forest by Ucello is housed in the Ashmolean Museum. there are Rafael drawings and Rembrandt Drawings.

see the collections here/ Ashmolean Museum Oxford

genre site

this is quite simplistic.
a sort of blended cheese, or cocktail cherry.

blog which tries to catagorise things filmsite - they have a useful glossary of terms ...

TAG the animators Guild

TAG the animators guild is a mix of histories, current industry shenanigans in LA, and opinions of the four main directors of the TAG.
"The thoughts and observations of the leaders of The Animation Guild (TAG), Local 839 IATSE. Steve Hulett is the Business Representative, Kevin Koch is the President, Steve Kaplan is the Organizer and Jeff Massie is the Recording Secretary."
example posts/
here - thoughts on 3D
here - political animation
here - motion capture debate.
the thrust is business, future dev and emerging forms of animation and broadcast. there are the usual comments of yays and nays. but a post everyday and a deep archive makes this worth a look.

dude you have no koran

DUDE remix
newsreel

thanks to Alan for the nudge.

Quite a good Belgian site on storyboarding -

atelier - layout I find is quite a comprehensive glossary of terms. it is french, but quite clear, and I would argue the language is common.

"Le rough est effectué par un dessinateur souvent spécialisé, le roughman, qui utilise des gammes de feutres sur des supports papier destinés à cet usage (papiers dits lay-out, fins, lisses, relativement transparents)."

I like the name 'Le roughman', though it does nothing for gender equality such as layout artist.

Le roughman exerce la plupart du temps en free-lance et doit se constituer lui-même sa clientèle auprès des agences de pub et des directeurs artistiques.

I like "des agences de pub" too. pub shortened publicite = advertising = ads.

I am a roughman in the pub business! (easy tiger).

what is a sizzle reel?

Come across a new expression - and figuring out what it is...
A sizzle reel is a leak, a trailer, a documentary of a project. a deliberate programme made during a bigger production. the opposite end to the 'extras' that would be on the DVD. it is a promotional hype of a larger project after production has been granted.
heres one for Walking dead - that is due to launch in late October.
(that is almost worth a study in itself - with the history of the walking dead comics)


But a Sizzle reel, includes shots from the film - key shots but not spoilers. interviews with cast and crew, short vox pop though not in depth. it is almost a twitter of the film. statements of less than 180 characters.

they cover conferences too; lay a 'Rock' track down - a few timelapse clips of 'people' soound bite interview of delegates just as they have got off stage - bingo cymbal finish - this one chimes all the gongs - they are usually about 4.30mins and finish with a great big pat on the back for themselves

friday man - Wilhelm Ostwald (1853-1932)

In 1909, Wilhelm Ostwald (1853-1932) — who came from the Baltic — received the Nobel prize for chemistry for his work on catalysis. Ostwald, who had been instrumental in the foundation of the first Zeitschrift für Physicalische Chemie, was also something of a pioneer outside his own immediate field.


His final passion, was the theory of colours, and after his retirement (at the age of only 53), he devoted himself to the laws of colour in the hope of developing a scientific basis for their perceived harmonies. His Farbfibel "The colour primer" published in 1916, introduced a colour system devoted to this task (and survived for 15 editions).

Ostwald, attempted to devise a system based on perception and equalising the respective differences between individual colours. He selected an group of variables: namely, colour-content, white-content and black-content. He also introduced the special term "full colour", by which he meant a colour which permitted the sensation of one single colour-tone, and was not tempered by white or black. To be more accurate, we could say that a full colour is an optimally pure colour — in other words, of maximum saturation and at the same time bright.

We can thus formulate the guiding principle behind Ostwald's theory of colour in the following way: the most universal mixture is the mixture of full colours, white and black. Ostwald proceeds systematically, drawing a distinction between chromatic and achromatic colours.

Bio here from coloursystem.com

What I like about Ostwald is, the inclusion of green as a primary. makes sense really - rather than three, his colour circle had 24 hues, and about eight greens.
yellow red blue green. four basic colours: yellow to the north; red to the east; blue (to be more exact, ultramarine) to the south; and sea-green to the west. Theo van Doesburgand images and Piet Mondrian were fans. and I love this Max Bill Print.

red and blue milky way ad

the red and blue milky way ad.
Here
do a script analysis,
greedy red is fat - cannot make the vital leap over the ravine because red is FAT/
the blue makes the jump because it went the milky way...
looks very Bill Plympton. (I will investigate). thread.

first released 1989, re-released 2010, recession?

there is another one - Satellite and Meteor - grim copy, more dated somehow.

on this tip - TRIO - a jacobs chocolate biscuit with caramel in three segments - had an extended run with loud girl character and a two piece hippy band. hey man! also John Peel voice over tag line. it was one of those transcending ads that became popular culture and impersonated on the street.

Like clifford the dragon's Listerine - fresh breath 'puff - hello!' - the subsequent versions lacked the spark. trying to recreate the spontaneous magic of the first ones, but failing.

When ads become self referential they are failing their job. the Lloyds bank ad with a fat banker who is asking 'where's the black horse?' and happy when he sees it. equally as bad as any halifax ads.

compilation of 80's ads here seems to be a lot of fairytale ads. the nokia, the lloyds,

mark Craste of Studio Aka has changed the Lloyds vibe - but there is still a horse - inside of a dot of the dots on the typo card at the end... very nearly gone, but not quite.

Drawn

Quite liking this blog, at the moment, Drawn Why? good set of links, and a taste that transcends the borders of processes, and is lightfoot.
eg talking of Aaron leightons Spirit city...
"I recently snagged a copy of Aaron Leighton’s Spirit City Toronto from Koyama Press.

Inserting drawings of creatures into real-world photos may not be new (see: Monster’s in Real Places, Aaron Brady’s Magic Camera, and Avid Liongoren’s Project 365)


but there’s something about Aaron’s simple geometric spirit creatures inserted into the seemingly mundane landscape of urban Toronto that really resonates with me. He manages to turn an environment that’s familiar to me into something otherworldly.

good.

Ottawa

In one place - The Ottawa Animation Newsletter - you get links to all their sponsors main sites - it is not a bad collection of North American and Candadian Scene, Ping off to the NFB,

friday man - Alberto cavalcanti

"Alberto de Almeida Cavalcanti was born in Rio de Janeiro on 6 February 1897, the son of a noted mathematician. He left Brazil at the age of fifteen to study architecture and interior design at the School of Fine Arts in Geneva, from where he moved to Paris to take up work as a set designer in a film studio. As one of a group of young avant-garde artists surrounding Marcel l'Herbier and Louis Delluc, Cavalcanti soon began producing and directing films on his own account, among them the pioneering 'city symphony' Rien que les heures (France, 1926), which reputedly inspired Dziga Vertov's more celebrated Man with a Movie Camera (USSR, 1929). It has been suggested that the key influences at this early stage of Cavalcanti's career came from the French realist tradition and, to a lesser extent, from surrealism". BFI - Alberto Cavalcanti ...Cavalcanti's British work, defying hard-and-fast distinctions between art and entertainment, is arguably his best: it is certainly his most consistent. However, Ian Aitken contends that he lacked the dedicated careerist's political savvy, and that in Britain he was thrown off creative course by the demands of the documentary form and the commercial film industry. He certainly seems to have felt an outsider at both the GPO and Ealing, and indeed in aesthetic terms his contribution to British cinema does have something of a maverick quality. Yet he was clearly a significant mentor to younger colleagues, and it is as a mentor and as a producer that he made a particularly decisive impact."

Dead of Night (1945)


The Dummy - part 1 part 2 part 3

The granddaddy of them all, this 62-year-old Ealing Studios' production remains the subgenre's seminal work. Directed by Alberto Cavalcanti, Charles Crichton, Basil Dearden and Robert Hamer, this sterling British film binds its five tales via the predicament of Walter Craig (Mervyn Johns), who arrives at a manor house and proceeds to inform the guests that they've all been part of his recurring dream; when a psychologist expresses disbelief at this paranormal déjà vu, the other visitors tell personal anecdotes of the supernatural. That this framing device maintains an overpowering sense of mystery and dread up until the superb, descent-into-insanity finale is reason enough to sing "Dead of Night"'s praises. The fact that its individual yarns — including one about a game of hide and seek that leads a young girl to tuck a ghost into bed, and another concerning a race car driver who, after an accident, is visited by death's coachman — are uniformly efficient and inventive helps makes it an enduring classic. Not to mention that, with the incomparably unnerving "The Ventriloquist's Dummy," about a frazzled ventriloquist and his malevolent wooden partner, it set the template for hordes of (generally less scary, stupider) killer-doll imitators. Cavalcanti's story - a talented ventriloquist is driven to attempted murder by his apparently conscious dummy - is eerie and gripping, and features a powerful performance by Michael Redgrave as the troubled and finally unhinged ventriloquist.

Jonas Mekas on Paris hilton

Lovelt talk to camera film by Jonas Mekas about being able to change your mind - as a right, and an attack on the press for negative reporting on someone changing their mind.
video here

DVD replication and duplication

this company - Refine in London - quote one request...
24/7 - quote 2 request
10th planet - quote 3 request

let's see

Scanned mouse

the thief Archive

the thief Archive is a you tube channel..., there are some ads there that are really hard to find anywhere else.
it is the kind of joy when you watch a VHS of a movie recorded in the 80's off the TV, and it has breaks for the ads. the premise is that the thief has lifted the ads and posted them. lots of Richard Williams stuff...
this Corona Fizzical drawn animation
this Art Babbit doc
and this interesting cut of the thief and cobbler, that shows finished scenes, linetests and animatic phases. Sound track voice and music are fixed...
All material is edited, compiled and restored by Garrett Gilchrist. This channel founded by Patrick McCart and currently run by Garrett Gilchrist.

film competition deadline end of August

the Robin Hood Tax
"t’s really easy to enter: we’re looking for films that tell the audience about The Robin Hood Tax in an interesting and innovative way.

The Robin Hood Tax is a tiny tax on banks that would give billions to tackle poverty and climate change, here and abroad. The public have bailed out the banks to the tune of £20 trillion in total. In the UK alone the bailout cost £31,250 per person. Isn’t it now time society was paid back?

Our message to governments is clear: “Tax the banks, not the people.”

We think the Robin Hood Tax could be the most important idea of this generation. What do you think? "

Judging Criteria
The panel of top film and advertising talent will be looking for films that are bold, original and have a strong voice using the following criteria. Think big. Try something new. If you can create something that changes even one person’s perspective then you are succeeding.

* Creativity – Films that take the idea and interpret it in new ways. Why does it matter to you?
* Clarity – We’re looking for films that cut through the complexities of the subject and present a clear, strong argument for why this idea is a no brainer.
* Inspiring – Will it get people excited? Will it inspire people to sign up to the campaign? Will people want to send it onto their friends and family?
* Promotion – We will consider the number of Youtube views your film receives so get sharing. Your film deserves to be seen as widely as possible.

The essentials:

* Duration – Films must be between 60-90 seconds including the compulsory end slides and logo.
* Language – Films must be in English language or subtitled in English
* Content – Your film deserves to be seen by everyone so make sure it can be. Please make sure it’s U/PG rated

Beer o Clock

(A Babylonian tablet inscribed with the directions for brewing beer (c. 3100BC). It is part of a series of tablets that account for an order of 134,813 liters of barley to be delivered to the brewery at the temple of Inanna in Uruk over the course of 37 months!)
Is it Beer O'Clock?

Our Survey says... info from a Survey by Brewers SABMiller compiled the Time for a Beer report.

"Beer O'clock at 6.14pm demonstrates how the idea of swift pint at early doors is a distant memory."

More than 7500 drinkers were studied. The Dutch start drinking latest at 7.19pm, while Germans are last to leave the bar.

Calling time

Shows average time of first drink of the day and average time of last drink of the day.

Country First Beer Last Beer

Denmark 16.14 22.44

Slovakia 17.14 21.24

Poland 17.25 22.02

Spain 17.46 21.05

Hungary 17.55 21.23

France 17.58 20.33

Sweden 18.06 22.14

Czech Rep 18.12 22.39

Britain 18.14 22.37

Belgium 18.18 22.06

Romania 18.27 21.57

Germany 18.35 22.59

Russia 18.42 22.25

Italy 19.07 22.51

Holland 19.19 22.49

Circle movement.

circle movement 01

microscopy leading to improve 'form drawing'

Just a thought, but started thinking about diatoms. when they were first observed, and the inclusion of form in drawing... a good blog about atlantis and Bacon is here,
“This theory proposes that the Voynich Manuscript may be a faux book, which was created between 1610 and 1620, and made to look as though it came from Francis Bacon’s fictional island of New Atlantis. And as such, that it was made to look much older than it was, and that it includes a map of the fictional Bensalem, along with both real and fanciful representations of optics and other devices, flora and fauna, the Arts and sciences, astronomy and astrology. And, that much of this was reflected from past, real works, but distorted into an imaginative reflection of how the author thought they would have been perceived and practiced by the advanced, fictional culture of New Atlantis. The theory further supposes that it may have been created under the influence of, and possibly created by someone from, the circle of Francis Bacon’s near contemporaries and their world. These include Cornelis Drebbel, Michael Maier, Solomon De Caus, Johann Valentin Andreae, William Shakespeare, Ben Jonson, Simon Forman, Robert Fludd, among others.” H. Rich SantaColoma.
But that is a sidetrack. Pulling focus over diatoms revealed form - that the observer at the time could only represent by drawing - they drew what they saw, and experienced with one eye.


An essay I would like to get my hands on is by William A Locy - (found the first page) -Glass and glass grinding, and light clarity through tubes...

Galileo, cast his gaze out. got into quite a bit of trouble for it with the Catholic church, eventually went blind under house arrest. a good further read from Encyclopedia Britannica, Here. "In 1634 he completed Discorsi e dimostrazioni mathematiche intorno a due nuove scienze attenenti alla meccanica (Dialogue Concerning Two New Sciences), in which he recapitulated the results of his early experiments and his mature meditations on the principles of mechanics. This, in many respects his most valuable work, was printed by Louis Elzevirs at Leiden in 1638. His last telescopic discovery--that of the Moon's diurnal and monthly librations (wobbling from side to side)--was made in 1637, only a few months before he became blind... He continued his scientific correspondence; he thought out the application of the pendulum to the regulation of clockwork, which the Dutch scientist Christiaan Huygens put into practice in 1656."

Halifax - FUNDADA ARTISTS' FILM FESTIVAL 2010

fundadaartistsfilmfestival
14th - 20th August 2010
Square Chapel, Halifax, UK
FREE ENTRY
ARTISTS showing...
Kevin Boniface (UK), Alice Bradshaw (UK), Adam Brandon (UK), Sara Brannan (UK), Sarah Buckius (USA), Jane & Mike Chavez-Dawson (UK), Çağlar Çetin (TR), David Cochrane (UK), Robert Crosse (UK), Keren Cytter (DE), eddie d (NL), John Deller (UK), Doplgenger (SRB), Eagle & Feather (UK), Sarah Filmer (UK), Şinasi Güneş (TR), Maggie Hall (UK), Sarah Harbridge (UK), Clare Harris (UK), Max Hattler (UK), Sam Holden (UK), Robin Kiteley & Samuel Stocks (UK), Sai Hua Kuan (SG/UK), Lemeh42 (IT), Lernert & Sander (NL), Sarah Lüdemann (DE), Rä di Martino (BE), Joanne Masding (UK), Fumiko Matsuyama (DE), Kit Merritt (UK), Vincent Meessen (BE), Milk, Two Sugars (UK), Lin de Mol (NL), Marlanna and Daniel O'Reilly (UK), Elodie Pong (CH), Sara Rajaei (NL), Thomas Rummelhoff (NO), Manuel Saiz (IT), Sebaldo (UK), Semiconductor (UK), Tory Smith (UK), Splitty McCheeks (UK), Jacki Storey (UK), Saskia Takens-Milne (UK), Paul Tarragó (UK), Tether / Grin & Slutsky (UK), Kathy Toth (UK), Jenny Triggs (UK), Barry Valentino (USA), Jorge García Velayos (ES), Katleen Vermeir & Ronny Heiremans (BE), Tom Walker (UK), Roland Wegerer (AT), Tomoyuki Yago (JP), Gerald Zahn (AT) ...

Garfield minus Garfield

I am liking this; Garfield without Garfield nonsense... super sabotage. (book)

model making opportunity in Budapest

Deadline August 15 (it was the 31 july, so they are looking to fill spots) - - for a one week workshop in MOME, Budapest. (€150 incl accomodation seems a bargain to me)...
Location: Budapest
Number of participants: 15
Language of the workshop: english
Duration of the workshop: 23-29 August 2010
Tuition fee: 150 euro (we do not charge tuition fee for participants coming from V4 countries)
The tuition fee includes the followings: workshops, lectures, studio visits, accommodation, berakfast and lunch every day during the workshop.
Application: please download the application form from here and send it attached with your resume to Szandra Deutsch szandra@momeline.hu.
Application deadline: 15th of August 2010

Stop motion animation has a great tradition in Eastern Europe. We are inviting young professionals to be a part of that heritage by practicing and improving their stop motion animation skills. We are offering an opportunity for the participants to learn from the best animators, in order to reach a higher level in stop motion animating.

If you would like to learn how to merge the traditional hand- made puppet animation and the digital technique, and if you are interested in puppet fabrication, special effects, and digital postproduction, send your application form and your resume to the following email address: szandra@momeline.hu
Lecturers will come from the following partner institutes:

• The Academy of Fine Arts in Poznan
• Film School Zlín
• Academy of Performing Arts Bratislava

The following themes will be covered during the workshops:

• Basic puppet techniques
• Basic animation movements
• Advanced animation movements (jump, flying, lip sync, face gestures etc.)
• Effect animation (rain, smoke, fog, liquids, fire, sparkling, etc.)
• Lighting
• Sound editing
• Timing for animation
• CGI postproduction
• Production and postproduction studio visit in Budapest

interesting exhibition "menu"

went to ReAnimate Exhibition in Newtown, on til 22 Aug 2010. what I found, and liked as an idea were the hooks that had matt/frosted laminated menus of the screening and the order of play, and duration... when you are done just hang them back up.
they were an odd format, about A4 length but narrower. A good idea to suggest for next year show, perhaps.
Also whist we are on it, they made a good pen to screen work in. sides 4 x (8x4),roof 4 x (8x4)but lengthways,
walls short end down - so space is 16 x 8 x 8. imagine these three side by side// just a few benches in side them. black painted walls and roof - open ended opposite screening wall.

Film UK shutting down

Jeremy Hunt Culture and media Secretary
Caution here when flaming this closure as a bad thing. it is worth a little reflection. An article from Prospect magazine in December reveals the salereies of some of the key personnel as being hugely inflated.
... A DCMS written reply this summer confirmed that four executives are earning more than a cabinet minister (that is, more than £144,520). Others argue that, if bonuses are included, the figure is actually seven. These figures bear no comparison to salaries in the industry itself: the head of development is on a cool £165,000 a year, at least three times the industry norm. Given these salaries, it is not surprising that the last four year’s accounts show overheads running at a staggering £8m—more than the total government funding for the bodies the UKFC replaced. The accounts also show that these overheads make up 25 per cent of the income that the Council derives from its lottery income. In 2008, for example, the UKFC received £29.7m in direct lottery grants and another £5.7m in recoupment from previous lottery investments. Besides spending £8m on itself, the UKFC put not one penny of its return from films back into film production, a feat it has managed every year that it has existed.
My thoughts about schemes are that schemes are good, but they do exert editorial control over the work produced, and that work becomes dilute, and manipulated by the scheme.
More films, less money, less editorial control over content. Less hefty saleries for the scheme honchos. shutting down maybe good to save these overinflated wages - but if it is at the expense of film funding - then not so good.

For Balance - there is a good Guardian Article about the closure. and out of it - this is a worrying quote;
No one I've spoken to is encouraged by the line in culture secretary Jeremy Hunt's statement that reads: "The changes I have proposed today would help us deliver fantastic culture, media and sport, while ensuring value for money for the public and transparency about where taxpayers' money is spent."

Jeremy Hunt - what does he look like?
Charity shops - there's another thing...