Channel Frederator Blog

Check out this new series being produced over at Worldwide Biggies. On the Bubble is a news show hosted by four college kids - an anchorwoman (the only one that takes the show seriously) and three goofy guys. The series does a good job of mocking very current events, a special challenge for animated content. It’s great to see the Internet finally enabling us to break that barrier. The series was created by Adam de la Peña (well known for his work on The Man Show and Crank Yankers) and written by Glasgow Phillips (South Park) and is part of a Sierra Mist campaign.

All in all, the animators over at Worldwide Biggies have done a great job. It’s great to see some really nice art and animation on an Internet series that probably turns around an episode a week.

Above you’ll find a promo for On the Bubble that’s running on the front page [Read more…]

John Canemaker interviewed Richard Williams Monday night at MOMA. The event was sold out and the place was packed with students, as Willliam’s book The Animator’s Survival Kit is an essential read for animation majors around the world.
Williams is always an entertaining speaker, fond of leaping out of his chair to act out anecdotes. He presented clips from:

• The Little Island (his first short)
• A Christmas Carol (his first Oscar win)
• Who Framed Roger Rabbit? (more Oscars)
• The Charge of the Light Brigade
• Return of the Pink Panther titles
• Amazing “The Greedy” sequence from Raggedy Ann and Andy (animated by Emery Hawkins)
• Trailer for The Thief and The Cobbler (never released in its proper form)
• Commercial Reel

The night was very much a chance to promote the release of a 16 DVD version of his well-regarded Animation Masterclass. The Animation Survival Kit Animated consists of Williams “performing” the class live at Blue Sky Studios (about ten years ago) intercut with animated examples that illustrate his ideas. Okay, so the set costs over $900, but at least most art schools will buy one.

After the jump, some choice quotes from the evening. Also, the Return of the Pink Panther titles in teeny tiny form on the ubiquitous YouTube… [Read more…]

According to the Anime News Network, “Astroboy” will open on October 23, 2009. Imagi did an incredible job with their TMNT feature. I am really looking forward to this new film.

-Floyd Bishop

Here’s an extremely strange (partly) animated life-size bird costume video for “Me-I” by TV On The Radio. It’s from 2007…but I just discovered it.

Daniel Garcia and Mixtape Club are responsible for the feathery flight of fancy. There’s a Flickr behind-the-scenes page here.

Tv on the Radio was on my mind because there’s an interview with Tunde Adebimpe at the Wall Street Journal website this week. He has a part in the new film Rachel Getting Married. And the band has a new album out today; it’s called Dear Science.

Here’s the bonus animation connection: TV On the Radio’s frontman Adebimpe used to work at MTV Animation (on Celebrity Deathmatch). He’s multi-talented, having starred in the indie film Jump Tomorrow, self-published comics, and I once saw him do an amazing version of “Just a Gigilo” at a karaoke night in Brooklyn.

—Anne D. Bernstein

If only I had this back in the 80’s, I would have a whole lot more quarters than I do now. YouTube user NightmareTX has created an annotated video that shows which buttons you need to press, and when you need to press them, in order to complete Don Bluth’s “Dragon’s Lair”. This game was always more fun to watch than play, in my opinion. Now you can watch it al the way through, and know what the player is doing to get past some of the harder bits.-Floyd Bishop 

Ghibli World has posted an extensive interview and studio visit with French animation director (and writer and production designer and etc.) Michel Ocelot, creator of the films Kirikou and the Sourceress, Kirikou and the Wild Beasts, and Azur and Asmar. (Why on this site? Studio Ghibli is responsible for releasing his films in Japan.)

Some choice quotes:

“All my heroes are me, but much better. It is obvious that Kirikou is telling what I would like to tell. He is ideal. Not giving up. I never gave up and, in the long run, I won. But I had a very hard life, having been a jobless person most of the time. I refused mediocre TV series I was proposed. This kind of things. Kirikou is very honest. He never thinks about lying. He has sharp ideas. That’s what I like. He loves people…”

“I do my work as best as I can. That is all. Now, dear spectator, try and like it. I did my job, it is your turn. I am endeavoring to charm you and do good to you, whatever your age, nationality or gender is. I never thought of doing a film for children…but that is the way it is…Kids do not want any more than grown-ups to be treated as babies, and their fresh brain is here to take in all kinds of information.”

More Ocelot news: In October, a DVD collection of Ocelot’s short works will be released in France. In November, the Weinstein company will release an American DVD version of Azur and Asmar.

Here’s an excerpt from his very first film, Les Trois Inventeurs, where he animated elaborate paper cut-outs; it will be included on the French DVD:

After the jump: “Earth Intruders”, a video he made for Bjork in 2007… [Read more…]

Adam Koford over at Drawn! has posted a great link to Alex Toth art. While some of it has been seen elsewhere, there are some great unpublished pieces. It would be great to see artwork of this caliber in a modern television series.

-Floyd Bishop

Anime News Network is reporting that  Cartoon Network is ending Toonami tonight, after a run of 11 years. While the programming block has been showing only Naruto recently, some other featured titles included Voltron, Robotech, Sailor Moon, Dragon Ball, Ronin Warriors, G-Force: Guardians of Space, Blue Submarine No. 6, Tenchi Muyo!, Cardcaptors, Zoids, .hack//SIGN, Yu Yu Hakusho, Rurouni Kenshin, The Big O, Outlaw Star, Yu-Gi-Oh!, Cyborg 009, Duel Masters, Astro Boy, Gundam, Rave Master, Zatch Bell, One Piece, Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo, Pokémon, MÄR, The Prince of Tennis, Megaman Star Force, Bakugan Battle Brawlers, and Blue Dragon.

The 2002 live-action Spider-Man film will run instead of Toonami on September 27.

-Floyd Bishop

Disney will be releasing “Sleeping Beauty” on Blu Ray disc in October. The title will also be available on DVD.

In production from 1951 until the end of 1958, this film set a record for the longest production schedule in the studio’s history. This record was later tied by “The Black Cauldron”. Featuring elaborate backgrounds and a much more angular character design, this film was initially no favorite of critics.

While the film seems to drag in some spots, it gives us perhaps one of the best villains in animation, Maleficant.

Maleficant is pure evil, from here color scheme, to her voice by Eleanor Audley (also the voice of Madame Leota in the Haunted Mansion), and animation by Marc Davis. In my opinion, the film is worth the purchase price just to see her in action in HD.

-Floyd Bishop

Many of you have experienced the animation awesomeness that is Channel Frederator Raw. As of this post, 976 of you, to be exact.

Channel Frederator Raw is a great way to share your artwork, upload your cartoons, and meet up with other animators and fans of animation world wide. There are a ton of groups, a very active forum, and you also get your own customizable page.

If you haven’t yet joined, what are you waiting for? You could be member number 1,000!