41 Imagine the impossible

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Copyright © 2007. Sony Creative Software Inc. All rights reserved.

VP8a_Stash.indd 1 8/8/07 4:45:45 PM Animation inspires games. Effects merge with film. Science conspires with art. Imagination and reality converge.

Get fmx-ed! Come discover what has made fmx one of the hotspot events for digital media professionals worldwide: www.fmx.de

fmx/08 is an event by Filmakademie Baden-Wuerttemberg in collaboration with VES - Visual Effects Society, Stuttgart International Festival of Animated Film and AIAS - Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences. fmx/08 is organized by the Institute of Animation, Visual Effects and Digital Postproduction, Filmakademie Baden-Wuerttemberg and NX Publishing. fmx/08 is funded by Staatsministerium Baden-Wuerttemberg, Wirtschaftsministerium Baden-Wuerttemberg, MFG Medien- und Filmgesellschaft Baden-Wuerttemberg and the FFA German Federal Film Board.

stash_booklet_anzeige-02.indd 7 08.01.2008 17:25:57 Inspiration. Everywhere.

MUNICH JAKARTA MINNEAPOLIS SAN DIEGO LIMA BANGKOK KUALA LUMPUR SANTA MONICA HONG KONG TORONTO NEW YORK LONDON TEL AVIV

CAPETOWN ISTANBUL SINGAPORE TOKYO VANCOUVER CARACAS PARIS GHENT NEW DELHI BANGKOK SHENZHEN BELO HORIZONTE HAMBURG

Find a Stash retailer near you at www.stashmedia.tv/community As screenings of the Stash Best of 2007 get underway around the world (and the companion two-disk collection rolls out the door), the stash pressure is on to play pundit and spew some sort of drivel about the DVD MAGAZINE 41 state of the animation and VFX universe. Stash Media Inc. There have been technical improvements in the software and hardware Editor: Stephen Price tools, the number of screens demanding content continues to grow, Publisher: Greg robins and new studios sprout like mushrooms every couple of hours – all Associate editor: HEATHER GRIEVE important ingredients – but none are new. Associate publisher: CHRISTINE STEAD Account managers: STACY JAMES FRY, Here’s an idea: What feels new is a certain overall mood or zeitgeist. APRIL HARVEY For the sake of drama and sound-bite-ability I’ll call it the NO FEAR Producer: BRANDON DEMARCO factor (so much more punchy than an “up-tick in courage” or “wanton Submissions coordinator: ABBEY KERR abandon runs amuck”). Music editor: STEVE MARCHESE Here’s what I mean: Fear of technology, fear of outrageous ideas, fear Proofing editor: MARILEE BOITSON of budgets, fear of schedule, fear of clients, and fear of failure are all in Preview director/producer: retreat. A quick glance at this month’s line-up will demonstrate… STACY JAMES FRY Preview editor: JEAN-DENIS ROUETTE How else to explain our lead-off spot from Park Village for Greenpeace Montage editor: JEFF ZEMETIS where light actually does shine out of many asses? No fear of Contributing producer: ERIC ALBA outrageous ideas. Technical guidance: IAN HASKIN How else to explain Simon Tofield and Vinicius Costa choosing to learn Cover image: AKAMA STUDIO brand new animation software during tight production schedules? No

WWW.STASHMEDIA.TV fear of technology. ISSN 1712-5928 And what about Neill Blomkamp starting from scratch on three new Legal things: Stash Magazine and Stash DVD Halo 3 virals because all his work on the feature film is locked away in are published 12 times per year by Stash development hell? No fear of failure. Media Inc. All rights reserved and contents copyright Stash Media Inc. No part of this booklet nor the Stash DVD may be copied Like I said, it’s just an idea. But damn, I hope I’m right. without express written permission from the publisher. Stash Media Inc.does not promote or endorse products, services or events advertised by third party advertisers. Stephen Price Submissions: www.stashmedia.tv/submit Editor Subscriptions: www.stashmedia.tv Contact: Stash Media Inc. New York, February 2008 484-1641 Lonsdale Avenue, North Vancouver, [email protected] BC V7M 2J5 Canada. Curated in New York. Printed in Canada. stash 41.01

Greenpeace “Sunshine” Viral :45

Agency: Escape Partners Director: Sven Harding Production/VFX: Park Village www.parkvillage.co.uk How do you divert the Red Bull- addled minds of 16 to 24-year-old men to think (at least momentarily) about something as politically correct as energy-efficient light bulbs? We’re pretty sure Escape Partners and Park Village director Sven Harding have found a way with this viral – the first attempt by Greenpeace to reach this demo, “It has been hard for us to get the message across that there are simple things that people can do to affect climate change,” says Martin Atkin, Greenpeace’s Amsterdam-based head of creative development. “By taking a For Park Village light-hearted approach to a serious Director: Sven Harding issue like the need to save energy, Producer: Polly Du Plessis we can reach the generation who Production Assistant: really will make the difference in Adam Dolman tackling climate change.” 1st AD : Gary Lansbury DOP : Adam Frisch s t a s h 41.02

For TBWA\China Adidas “Together”, CDs: Yang Yeo, John Merrifield “ZHENG ZHI” CD/copy: Sarawut Hengsawad TVCs 2x :60 (director’s cuts) CD/AD: Elvis Chau Associate CD: Lesley Zhou Agency: ADs: Nie Lang, Xia Zheng, TBWA\China Susie Sun, Amani Qian Directors: Copy: Lesley Zhou, Nicky Zhang, Marie Hyon, Marco Spier Michelle Wu Production: For Stink Stink/PSYOP EPs: Daniel Bergman VFX: Producer: Mungo Maclagan Psyop DOP: Alex Melman www.psyop.tv For Psyop “The main challenge was figuring Directors: Marie Hyon, out a way to create the right Marco Spier mixture of live action and pencil,” EP: Justin Booth-Clibborn admits Psyop co-directors Marie Producer: Lucia Grillo Hyon and Marco Spier. “We’d Associate producer: Nathan Jew made these beautiful style frames, Assistant producer: Kay Chen then we had to figure out how Lead TD: Pakorn Bupphavesa to make them move. Hence a Designers: Kim Dulaney, three-month R&D process with Marie Hyon, Joshua Harvey CG: Mike Papagni, Rich Magan, Roto: Joseph Oberle, Josh Bush, the help of countless compositors, TD: Alvin Bae, Bashir Hamid, Chris Pete Hamilton, Helen Choi, Carlos Rosario, Leslie Chung, and our collaborators, Boolab, Bach, Damon Ciarelli, Ted Kofsatis, Anthony Patti, Tatchapon Tiffany Chung, Will Frazier, in Barcelona. Finally, we hit upon Tony Barbieri Letwirojkul, Andreas Berner Max Kornev, Rich Pernice, a solution that incorporated VFX super: Theo Maniatis Massive: Joerg Liebold, Jelena Vukosav composite techniques with hand- Modeling/rigging: Lee Wolland, Dave Barosin Editor: Cass Vanini drawn cell animation. In total, we Kitty Lin, Anthony Patti, Jaye Kim Compositors: Matt Hanson, Assistant editor: Brett Goldberg had about 65 people working Lead animator: Pat Porter Bee Jin Tan, Elliot Blanchard, on the spots – from 3D to roto to Animators: Ian Brauner, Justin Audio Post: Sound Lounge Borja Pena, Eric Concepcion, compositing to tracking – you name Burton, Nicholas Johnnides, Music Production: Songzu Makoto Sato, Theo Maniatis, it, we used it.” Gerald Ding, Eddy Estevez, Chris Aska Otake , Joe Vitale Toolkit Santoianni, Jae Ham, Jed Mitchell, Tracking: Hyunjeen Lee, Seung XSI, Maya, Massive, After Effects, Melanie Tonkin Hyung Lee Flame stash 41.03 Microsoft Zune “Academy of Dreams”, For TAG, San Francisco “The Ballad of Tina Pink” CDs: Geoff Edwards, TVCs :60 x 2 Scott Duchon AD: Ben Wolan Copy: Rick Herrera Agency: DOB: Jan O’Malley T.A.G./McCann Worldgroup Producer: Ben Latimer Director: Assistant producer: Mandie Bowe Patrick Daughters For The Directors Bureau Production: EP: Melissa Culligan The Director’s Bureau Director: Patrick Daughters DOP: Shawn Kim VFX: Line producer: Youree Henley Method Studios Süperfad For Method Studios www.methodstudios.com Lead 2D VFX artist: www.superfad.com Katrina Salicrup CG CD: Laurent Ledru Method and Süperfad conjure 2D VFX artist: Kyle Obley, an ambitious and surreal mix of Miles Essmiller, Zach Lo 2D/3D elements, particle effects, 3D VFX artist: Chris Smallfield, greenscreen and carefully graded Matt Wheeler HD stock footage for these Zune Visual effects shoot super: spots, but according to Laurent Katrina Salicrup, Laurent Ledru Ledru, CG CD at Method in Santa Visual effects EP: Lisa Houck Monica, the most difficult shot was Visual EP: Luisa Murray the man transforming into little For Süperfad cubes. “Even before it was shot, CD: Will Hyde I worked for three weeks just on Producer: Nate Barr how we could slice him up in an EP: Robert Sanborn artistic and aesthetically pleasing Animator: David Holm way.” The solution? Flame for compositing and Maya for 3D. “If Toolkit we could have done it practically, Flame, Maya, Photoshop we would have, but it’s a little too Watch Behind the Scenes on spectacular for that.” the DVD stash 41.04

Net10 “Sharak” TVC :45

For Droga5 Agency: Creative chairman: David Droga Droga5 ECD: Ted Royer, Duncan Marshall Director: Creative: Alex Lea, Kevin Brady MichAel Foran EP/broadcast director: Sally-Ann Dale Animation: Producer: Robin Feldman World Leaders Character design: Ted Royer, Alex Entertainment Lea, Eric Fensler www.wleaders.com For World Leaders Michael Foran and Matthew Entertainment I. Jenkins of New York Director: Michael Foran animation studio World Leaders AD: Matthew I. Jenkins Entertainment compliment the EP: Charlie Miller dry absurdity of this spot (part Producer: Ben Stein of a multi-spot campaign from Droga5) with a style sheet dredged Toolkit up from a forgotten Saturday Flash, Photoshop, After Effects morning in the 70s. “We wanted to create the impression of aged film stock from that era,” says Foran. “So we employed techniques that emulated the damage the footage would have gone through.” Storyboards, animatics and animation were done in Flash, inking and painting handled in Photoshop, compositing and effects via After Effects. stash 41.05

Jeep “Ten Little Vehicles” TVC, cinema, viral :60

Agency: KNSK, Hamburg Director: Michael Reissinger Production/animation: Deli Pictures www.delipictures.de Deli Pictures in Hamburg, who received a lot of attention for their mesmerizing VW Phaeton “Galanty Show” spot in 2007 (see Stash 30) just completed this chirpy 3D clip for Jeep combining 100+ children’s drawings and 10 weeks of toil for hometown agency KNSK. Michael Reissinger, head of creation/GM at Deli says the goal was to “create a branded film in a very unseen and friendly way while presenting the multiple features of the Jeep in various driving situations and the advantages over other cars without the For KNSK For Deli Pictures Sound design/music: NHB Ton denunciation of competitive Producer: Kerstin Arndt EP: Sebastian Hellge Hamburg, Markenfilm GmbH brands. And last but not least, to CD: Claudia Bach Director: Michael Reissinger Toolkit promote the Jeep claim: ‘There is Copy: Fabian Tritsch, Lennert VFX super: Christian Reimann Photoshop, XSI, After Effects, only one!’” Wendt, Lisa Port, Anna Schroeder, 3D: Thomas Volkmann, Malte Flame Watch Behind the Scenes on Nina Burmeister Sarnes the DVD Illustration: Maurice, Tom, Enzo, 2D: Robert Rhee Don-sun, Michi, Kim-Eyleen, Flame: Christian Reimann Johanna-Marie, Emma, Kurt, AD: Michael Reissinger Louisa stash 41.06

Flaunt Magazine For Royale Experimental film EP: Jen Lucero Design: Kyle Smith CDs: Jayson Whitmore, Clients: Brien Holman Flaunt Magazine Design/animation director: Diesel Anthony Furlong Director: Lead animation: Jake Portman Royale Animation: David Glicksman, Animation: Kevin Tonkin Royale Cell animation: Taik Lee, www.weareroyale.com Jason Brubaker Rotoscoping: Stephanie Tucker, Flaunt Magazine, the newsstand Tiffany Germann staple with the ambitious and Music/sound composing: impossibly cool cover designs, Chris Zipple embellished their ninth anniversary issue with a DVD insertion that Toolkit included this piece of co-branded After Effects, Cinema 4D, 3ds fun created by Royale, the new Max, Final Cut Pro, Photoshop, Hollywood design/animation Illustrator shop. Royale’s Alex Gorodetzki, recalls the tricky part was uniting the Diesel and Flaunt brands in a visually invigorating way. “We used the pages of Flaunt as the medium to paint every part of this world the Diesel models exist in. If we needed the color yellow, we would find a yellow page and scan it.” Schedule: four weeks. stash 41.07

Amnesty International France “Bullet” Viral

Agency: TBWA\Paris Director: Les Blin Production: Festen Films VFX: For Festen Films Chez Eddy Director: Les Blin www.chezeddy.com Producer: Christian Delhaye With their studio only a few blocks For Chez Eddy from the Eiffel Tower, Chez Eddy VFX production: Jean-François is situated at the very heart of Bourrel, Jérôme Calvet the animation/VFX renaissance VFX super: Christophe Delamare, underway in France. This online Jean-Charles Kerninon piece won a Silver Lion in the Development: Mathieu Sauvage Human Rights Awareness Dynamics animation: category at the 2007 Cannes Baptiste Van Opstal Lions. Head of VFX Jean-François Tracking/keyframe animation: Bourrel says the team developed Yannick Dinant, proprietary enhancements to Maya Jean-Michel Ponthieu to ensure the CG bullet and paper Shading/lighting: integrated seamlessly with the Jean-Charles Kerninon live action pages. Schedule: two Compositing/grading: weeks pre-production, five weeks Jean-Charles Kerninon, of post Laurent Srey For TBWA\Paris Toolkit ECD: Erik Vervroegen Maya, Fusion, Flame AD: Nicolas Moreau Copy: Nicolas Moreau Account super: Guillaume Allilaire stash 41.08

Mercedes Benz “Anticipez Les Dangers” Viral Agency: Proximity BBDO Director: AKAMA STUDIO Animation/VFX: AKAMA Studio www.akamastudio.com A sleek new online film designed and produced by Akama Studio in Paris for the Mercedes Benz site www.anticipezlesdangers.com. “The creative aspect was very interesting because we worked with the creative team of Proximity BBDO to create a sufficiently original universe highlighting the For AKAMA Studio anticipation capacities of the new VFX production: Alexandre Ada, Mercedes S Class,” says Akama Cedric Jeanne, Emilie Nicodex VFX supervisor Alexandre Ada. VFX supervision: Alexandre Ada, “Therefore we developed the Cedric Jeanne idea of a ‘room of dangers’. The Layout/edit: Alexandre Ada, main technical challenge was to Cedric Jeanne develop the creative concept and Modeling: Kevin Albert, manufacture it, in only five weeks.” Floriant Jugon Keyframe animation: For Proximity BBDO Helder Pereira, Yann Lepeu Creative team: Bruno Moreira, Kurt Shading/lighting/compositing: Novack, Cédric Gueret, Vincent Maxime Luere, Pierre Gobilliard, Wibaux, Guillaume Rancurel Leon Berelle Toolkit 3ds Max, After Effects stash 41.09

E4 “Zombies” Broadcast design

Client: E4 Director: Oliver Reid VFX: Hot Head Films www.hotheadfilms.co.uk “I tend to make the stings I do by myself comparatively simplistic, but this time I wanted to take it up a level in terms of its complexity.” Yes, you read correctly, Oliver Reid of London’s Hot Head Films designed, modeled, animated, rendered and composited this zombie-fest for British satellite channel E4 all by his lonesome. The five weeks of production time included learning to work SynthEyes tracking software and turning down the acting services of drunk locals while shooting at night in a dodgy area of Bristol. For E4 Commissioners: Jason Delahunty, Selena Cunningham For Hot Head Films Director/animator: Oliver Reid Steadicam: Toby Howell Toolkit LightWave, After Effects, Modo, FPrime, SynthEyes stash 41.10 E4 Christmas “Gran Taclores” Broadcast design

Client: Channel 4 Television Director: Darren Dubicki Animation: Aardman Animations www.aardman.com Telling a narrative story over several clips that he knew would not always run in order was just the first obstacle met by director Darren Dubicki and the Aardman crew for these IDs “based on Christmas Eve tradition, but with a large dose of absurdity.” Other challenges included converting summer background plates into winter and making the lead character as tactile as possible. “I wanted to keep Gran rich and warm, in keeping with her environment. Playing with For Aardman Animations Lighting: Darren Dubicki, Toolkit subsurface scattering on the face Producer: Laura Pepper Andy Proctor Maya, RenderMan, After Effects, helped to give her a richer, warmer Director: Darren Dubicki Compositing: Darren Dubicki Body Paint 3D, Photoshop, Fusion skin quality.” Schedule: 12 weeks Animation: Adam Cootes, Pascale TD: Philip Child For Channel 4 Bories, John Ogden, Alan Short Music: Bram Ttwheam E4 sr producer: Jason Delahunty Model build/texture: Mikey Ford, Sound: Will Norie E4 CD: Neil Gorringe Tom Lord, Steve Roberts, Thanks to: Tom Downes, Bobby Proctor Ben Toogood, Jim Lewis Rigging: Victor Vinyals, Steve Roberts stash 41.11

MTV Brazil “MTV HD”, “VFMD MTV”, “Video Music Brazil” Broadcast design x 3 Director: Vinicius Costa Production/animation: Vinicius Costa www.vinareel.tv Animation (Video Music Brazil): MTV HD: VFDM MTV MB07 (Video Music Brazil 2007) Animatorio “I noticed many commercials for “This show represents a music “MTV was very open to new ideas; www.animatorio.com.br the new HD standard were usually encyclopedia documentary where they only demanded we produce Although he only has two and a using some very complex CG every episode presents a specific a visually new, strange and half years on-the-job experience, material and very intense footage music style. It was amazing doing experimental look. A big part of the young Brazilian designer/director so I decided to create something the whole project. It was the first challenge was to create a common Vinicius Costa is not pulling any really simple and straight forward time I had to direct, do the casting, communication inside and outside punches with his recent mograph – a macro visualization of fur – to choose the wardrobe, model the the team – it was very difficult to work for MTV Brazil. Self-taught express the advantage of high CG, render, color and animate; explain since there wasn’t any with a touch of finishing school definition and make all the viewers simply awesome! After some ordinary objects in the scene – it from the Art Institute of Vancouver, from different ages understand nights without sleeping everything was just full of crazy projections Costa had developed a robust how deep the new image would was worth it.” Schedule: two forming and de-forming images.” portfolio and still projects a rookie be.” weeks for concept and casting, Schedule: three weeks (opening, enthusiasm when talking about two weeks for production. bumpers, categories, editing). Schedule: develop the concept, his work. At press time he is in learn the software, animate and For MTV For MTV production on seven more MTV finish in two weeks. Director: Rodrigo Pimenta MTV director: Rodrigo Pimenta IDs for the summer season in AD/production: Vinicius Costa AD/concept: Vinicius Costa Brazil. Final Cut: Carlos Issa For Animatorio Director/production: Guto Terni, Gabriel Almeida, Hugo Mineo Takahashi, Jose Rubens Almeida Toolkit Cinema 4D, Maya, After Effects, Toonz, Final Cut Pro stash 41.12A41.11 stash 41.12B

VH1Sci VCshristmas. Fi Show Branding Toshiba “Lovebirds” Broadcast design Viral

Client: Agency: SMTVci F Ni Cetworkshannel Dentsu, Japan Director:Production: Animation: MGNETan vs M ediaMachine CTRL Animation: CTRL draws on their origami MCTRLan vs Machine addiction and love of fine art paper Dwww.c-trl.comarkside Animation sculptures for this viral built around www.manvsmachine.co.uk“The main challenge was reducing the simple brief: The beauty of www.dsanim.comthe concepts of science and fiction black, white, red and blue. “Our Miketo geometric Alderson, forms director without at London being biggest challenge really was design/direction/animationtoo literal or to abstract,” says studio keeping within the minimal look ManShoshana vs Machine Diamond says at the CTR mainL in that we set for ourselves at the challengeNew York aboutcooking this up show this holidayopen onset of this project. Great motion confectionfor a TV special was, on“offering Halo 3. a “Whathealthy graphics so frequently translates doseshape of would Christmas science cheer be? without What into a very busy and involved look, theshape clichés,” would while fiction reflecting be? Our VH1’s so while doing this piece there contentsolution andwas brandto design values. something The were times we really wanted to add scheduleboth architectural for the entire and organicbranding effects and extra visual spiffiness package,but also surreal including and this familiar.” 20” image but we had to fight against our spot,Schedule: six 6” one IDs, week three for animated concept, own habits and say ‘no, not this menudesign; backgrounds, one week for clip execution. title and time around’”. Schedule: 10 days information crawl: concept/design, For CTRL For CTRL one week; production, two weeks. CDs: Devan Simunovich, CD: Devan Simunovich, ForNika Man Offenbac vs Machine Nika Offenbac CProducer:oncept/design/direction/ Nicky Maser Producer: Nicky Maser compositing:Animators: Evan Tim Johnson, Swift, Music: Pick Me Up MikeGordon Alderson Henson Animators: Evan Johnson, Ivy Lam Sound Design: Kotchy For Darkside Animation Toolkit DToolkitirectors: Andrew Bishop, Maya, After Effects, Photoshop, SimonMaya, APfterercy Effects, Photoshop, Illustrator, Final Cut Illustrator, Final Cut stash 41.13

“Leo’s Song” Music video

Director: Impactist Animation: Impactist www.impactists.com In the words of Impactist directors Kelly Meador and Daniel Elwing, “When a geometric visitor from another planet becomes your new roommate and shares with you the tragic state of its home world, you drop your guitar and see what you can do.” Their tale of polygonal peace and understanding was created in homage to a local neighborhood cat named Leo and their lazy afternoon interactions with him. Echoing the delicate accompanying music track (also by Impactist), the visuals were kept simple with hand drawn characters rendered with pen on paper, enhanced with watercolors and animated in After Effects. For Impactist Directors/designers/animators: Kelly Meador, Daniel Elwing Toolkit Photoshop, After Effects, scanner, electronic and real instruments MORE NEWS + MORE INSPIRATION + FEATURE STORIES + JOBS + EVENTS + STUFF WE HAVEN’T EVEN THOUGHT OF YET = THE BRAND NEW FEED ANIMATION VFX DESIGN

feedhere.com stash 41.14

“MajorieDaw” Short film

Director: between the live action shots and Conkerco CG. Nearly 40% of all the shots didn’t exist in the original rushes. Production: These had to be created from a Academy Films combination of HD footage, digital VFX: stills, matte paintings and CG. Moving Picture Company www.moving-picture.com “A huge amount of time was also spent digitally recreating London directing collective areas of London, and grading Conkerco and MPC combine all non-film elements to appear forces to create a brooding and like 35mm. This enabled us to dreamlike vision of the children’s use MPC’s motion capture and rhyme See Saw, Marjorie Daw. crowd replication skills to create “The concept of the earth being realistic flows of people through rocked back and forth by a girl the streets.” on a seesaw was the beginning point,” says Conkerco. “But For Academy Films we didn’t want the viewer to Director: Conkerco experience the film as a voyeur, Producer: Mark Whittow-Williams we wanted them to feel like they DOP: Tom Townend had been on the ride with the city’s For The Moving Picture occupants. Company “The [restricted] budget meant EP: Graham Bird most of the shots had to be Sr producer: Sean Costelloe creatively combined. The Sr VFX producer: Jim Radford basketball court scene was shot Music: Efterklang “Prey and on location, and then we wheeled Predator” in a trampoline, and employed the Sound design: Wave Engineer: services of some local gymnasts Ashley Smith to do all the aerial acrobatics right there. One of the toughest Toolkit aspects was creating continuity Combustion, Flame, Maya, Alice, PAPI stash 41.15

Eastern Conference Champions “The Box” Music video Record label: Suretone Records Director: Elliot Jokelson Production: Ghost Robot Animation: Humouring the Fates www.fates.com Drummer Greg Lyons of Philadelphia band Eastern Conference Champions calls this video (the first the trio has not shot and directed themselves) “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest meets A-ha”. The director they trusted for the job was Philly native Elliot Jokelson – repped out of Ghost Robot in NY – who in turn trusted the ambitious animation treatment to Tampa, Florida, 2D specialists Humouring the Fates who hand-rendered every frame. For Ghost Robot For Suretone Records Director: Elliot Jokelson Commissioner: Leily Labuda EPs: Mark De Pace, Zachary Mortensen For Humouring the Fates Animation director: Jesse Norton stash 41.16

“Cat Man Do” Short film

Director: For Tandem Films Simon Tofield Writer: Simon Tofield Production: Director: Simon Tofield Tandem Films Animation: Simon Tofield Voice: Simon Tofield Animation: Music: Russell Pay Simon Tofield www.tandemfilms.com Toolkit Flash Cat Man Do is director Simon Tofield’s “teach yourself Flash” project that has taken over the web (as of January 2008 the film has racked up over 3.5 million views on YouTube alone) and is the genesis for an upcoming series of films on the manic behaviour of cats. The two biggest challenges for feline enthusiast Tofield, now signed to Tandem Films in London, was the frustration of learning how to animate in Flash under a self- imposed one week deadline and coping with Hugh, his third kitten and the source of inspiration for the project. stash 41.17

Newsround “The Wrong Trainers - Samara’s Story” Documentary segment Agency: CBBC Director: Layla Atkinson Animation: Trunk www.trunk.me.uk This affecting clip from London’s Trunk, originally shown on Newsround, the BBC’s flagship news show for children, is part of a BBC documentary highlighting child poverty in the UK and has garnered a shelf-full of animation awards including a BAFTA and a double victory at Annecy. Director/ animator Layla Atkinson keeps the heart wrenching tale from slipping into the morose with simplified line work and palate and a careful sense of composition and pacing that echo the underlying optimism in Samara’s VO. For CBBC Producer: Kez Margerie For Trunk Director/animator: Layla Atkinson Producer: Richard Barnett stash 41.18

“The Kingdom” Feature film titles

Client: Universal Pictures Director: Peter Berg For Pic Agency Animation: CD: Jarik Van Sluijs, Julio Ferrario Pic Agency Producer: Pamela Green www.picagency.com AD: Stephan Burle LA-based creative shop Pic Storyboards: Stephan Burle Agency wraps up eight decades 2D Animator: Stephan Burle of complex, oil-stained relations 3D Animators: Gary Hebert, between the USA and Saudi Clint Chang, Greg Reynard Arabia in a three-minute title Compositor: Gary Hebert sequence for Universal Pictures. Editor: Jarik Van Sluijs PIC producer Pamela Green, who Researchers: Daniela Roth, spent inordinate amounts of time Pamela Green fact checking and clearing rights Toolkit for the 128 pieces of historical Avid Express Pro, After Effects, footage, reveals director Peter Cinema4D, Photoshop, Illustrator Berg’s creative brief was simple: “He didn’t want it to feel like a history lesson his parents would watch. He wanted it to be exciting and compelling and have a lot of information to educate the audience before we get into the movie.” Schedule: nine months. stash 41.19

Electrelane “In Berlin” Music video

Record label: Too Pure / Beggars Director: Cassiano Prado Production: Emenes Animation: Nois www.nois.tv This dark clip for Brighton’s all- woman band Electrolane marks the first project for Nois, the new multi-city collective with ambitious plans for commercial and music video production, motion graphics, performance and installation art. Director Cassiano Prado is one of five founding Brazilian artists who are spread across London, Los Angeles and Sao Paulo. For Nois For Emenes 3D super/3D modeling/render: Director: Cassiano Prado Jerome Haupert Producers: Tupaq Felber, 3D character animation: Alfredo Alex Carvalho, Marko Zawadzki, Takashi Hisa Nick Grgic Particles: Shaun Yue AD: Andrezza Valentin Compositing: Cassiano Prado Designer: Mario de Toledo-Sader Editor: Cem Kaya DP: Alex Carvalho, Liz Smith Sound fx: Paulo Beto stash 41.20

The Happy Bullets “The Vice and the Virtue Ministry” Music video

Record label: Undeniable Records Director: Nader Husseini Production: Rick Zessar Animation: Nader Husseini www.folio01.com Director Nader Husseini, who lives in Dallas and pays the bills designing and animating for ReelFX, describes his ambitious video for local pop-rockers Happy Bullets as a journey through the rise and fall of a surreal industrial society. “The Bullets wanted a whimsical yet dark portrayal of a dysfunctional bourgeois society preoccupied with materialism and the pursuit of wealth. “My goal and largest overall challenge was to have the entire journey through this world happen with one continuous camera move. We decided to create the video utilizing only After Effects, Photoshop and Illustrator. No external 3D programs were used. stash 41.20

TMheika most “Lollipop technically” challenging sectionMusic video of the video was shooting, tracking and composing the scene whereRecord the label: camera pulls away from theCasablanca band as they stand on the moon and then continues past Director: their heads as they discuss their Bonzom finances at the table. Animation: “PTassionhe project Pictures was done after hours onwww.passion-pictures.com personal time – there were no client-imposed deadlines. If youBonzom filter isout the procrastination collective name and for consideredfive young itFrench a 40-hour-a-week animators (Jack, gig,Kalkair, I’d say Pozla, it took Waterlili three and to four Moke), monthsall recent to graduates complete. of T herenowned shoot tookFrench one animation day. Research schools and Les planningGobelins, for La the Poudriere shoot took and a coupleL’ESAAT of. Tweeks.”hey’ve worked together as animators on series and feature Dprojects,irector: Nincludingader Husseini the multi-award Rwinningesearch/development: “Persepolis” which was Nselectedader Husseini, to represent Corey France Snyder Catonceptualization: the 2008 Oscars. Earlier this Nyear,ader P Hassionusseini, Paris Happy offered Bullets, them For Casablanca Ctheorey opportunity Snyder to gather their Commissioner: John Hassay Ccreativeamera energiesop: Corey for Snyder commercial Arepresentation.rt design: Nader This Husseini project for For Passion Pictures Character design: Bryce Wymer, Director: Bonzom London singer Mika, Bonzom’s Nfirstader musicHusseini video, expands on the Producers: Marc Bodin-Joyeux, Animation: Nader Husseini, Nicola Finn, Katie Mackin whimsical design of the artist’s Cwebsiteorey Snyder, (www.mikasounds.com). Sean Rivet Animation: Bonzom Producer: Rick Zessar Toolkit Story boards: Arthur Nichols, Flash Brandon Bruce Toolkit After Effects, Photoshop, Illustrator stash 41.21

Sony PS3 Viral

Client: Sony Computer Entertainment Europe Director: Red Design Production/animation: Mainframe www.mainframe.co.uk This online film deftly turns a shopping list of the PlayStation 3’s functions into a riveting multimedia adventure. And that, according to Mainframe’s Adam Jenns, was the project’s major creative hurdle, “We were trying to balance the clients needs to show what the machine does with Mainframe’s and Red Design’s desire to make everything look interesting. Technically the challenge was to fit the hand drawn technique together For Red Design with the 3D elements and maintain CD: Ed Templeton a consistent look throughout the SFX/audio mix: SNK Media piece.” Schedule: five weeks Toolkit Maya, After Effects, pencil, paper stash 41.22

For Platige Image The Witcher Director: Tomek Baginski Game cinematic EP: Marcin Kobylecki 2D: Damian Bajowski, Game developer: Micha Dziekan, Krzysztof CD Projeckt RED Fornalczyk, Krzysztof Kamrowski, Rafa Wojtunik Director: 3D: Maciek Jackiewicz, Arkadiusz Tomek Baginski Jurcan, Szymon Kaszuba, Animation: Jakub Knapik, Grzegorz Krysik, Platige Image Szymon Kuúmierczyk, Sawek www.platige.com Latos, Damian Nenow, Radosaw Nowakowski, Kamil Pohl, Andrzej In the past nine years Platige Sykut, Selim Sykut, Marcin Waúko Image has grown from four bodies Character animation: Emil Drozda, to over 50, won a BAFTA and been Michal Hrydziuszko, Lukasz nominated for an Oscar but this Kubioski, Grzegorz Kukuú, clip is the Warsaw studio’s first Zbigniew Lenard, Andrzej Zawada, game trailer. To handle the 200+ TD: Bartek Opatowiecki CG shots, director Tomek Baginski R&D: Lukasz Sobisz, Adam says the company opened a whole Wierzchowski new division and estimates 60% of Compositing: Maciek Jackiewicz, the work went into the creation of Adam Janeczek, Krzysztof a specialized production pipeline. Kamrowski, Marcin Pazera, “Luckily, CD Projekt RED gave us Andrzej Sykut, Selim Sykut a relatively long time to create the Stunts: Maciek Kwiatkowski, video. I won’t deny that we lost Pawe Pliszka some time with mistakes and dead IT: Piotr GÍtka, Tomasz Kruszona ends. This is the price you have to Music: Pawe Blaszczak, pay if you are a rookie.” Adam Skorupa Sound FX: Adam Skorupa Edit: Andrzej Dπbrowski stash 41.23

Asics “Top Impact Line” Viral/retail

Agency: Dentsu Inc., Osaka Director: Quayola Production: onedotzero Animation: Onedotzero www.onedotzero.com Quayola, aka Italian visual artist/ director/designer Davide Quagliola and winner of the onedotzero/MTV Bloom competition, brings his Roman roots and his fascination with geometric abstraction to bear on this clip built around da Vinci’s “Truvian Man” and used in Asics stores throughout Japan. The clip produced and animated by London’s onedotzero was supplemented with graphic designs for convention and internal use and a print campaign. For onedotzero Director/designer: Quayola CD: Shane RJ Walter Producers: Shane RJ Walter, Sam Pattinson Animation assistant: Dave Penn Graphics assistant: Jo Shallow Image license: Getty Images stash 41.24

HIT “Cockroach Mosquitoes Quit India” TVC For Publicis Ambience Mumbai CDs: Prasanna Sankhe, Agency: Ramanuj Shastry Publicis Ambience Advt. AD: Prasanna Sankhe Pvt Ltd. For Equinox Films Director: Director: Ram Madhvani Ram Madhvani DP: Kartik Vijay Production: Producer: Manoj Shroff Equinox Films For Prime Focus VFX: Creative: Merzin Tavaria Prime Focus VFX super: Ashish Pradhan www.primefocus.co.in Modeling lead: Aakash Shivdasani The comedic chaos of this Modeling: Kumareshan Kannan, spot – all the cockroaches and Prashant Kambli mosquitoes in India flee to China Dynamics lead: Sachin Paranjpe when the sub-continent starts Dynamics: Tushar Shah, using HIT brand bug killer – Gulzar Buchia, Rahul Mullick belies the frantic post work and Tracking lead: Vishal Bengare “tracking nightmare” endured Tracking: Varun Walia by Prime Focus in Mumbai. The Lighting lead: Sandesh Pai facility used up nearly all of the Lighting: Shirdhar Neelkanthan, six-day post schedule running Asif Iqubal the unpredictable Sony HDV Render wranglers: Amit Desai, pro footage through an array of Anish Holla tracking tools including boujou, Compositors: Deva Paul, PF Tracker and Monet and then Somesh Ghosh synching it to a 3D environment Toolkit to support the CG insects. That Maya, boujou, PF Tracker, Monet, left barely six hours for the final Digital Fusion composite of up to 60 layers of footage and VFX. stash 41.25

TOTUMA + PLANTA XMAS 2008 Viral

Directors: Totuma Estudio Planta Animation: Totuma For Totuma www.totuma.net CDs/copy: Edward Thomas, “We wanted to use our Xmas card Hubert Reinfeld as a vehicle to say a little more ADs: Pablo Iranzo, Cristina than the traditional ‘Merry Xmas Briceño, Vladimir Mihalkov and happy 2008’,” says Hubert Creative producer: Reinfeld lead creative at Totuma. Pedro Gonzalez “And yes, maybe if we think that Illustration/design: Pablo Iranzo, graphic design or rock ‘n’ roll can Andreina Diaz, Daniella Isamit, make a difference we’re very naive Marcos Andrade, Leonardo ... but is there a better time of Gonzalez, Francis Barroeta the year to dream about a better Animation: Marcos Medvedov, world?” The studio, with offices in Ruben Fariñas, Pablo Iranzo, Venezuela and Florida, kept itself Pedro Da Silva, Glenis Dias, fueled for the two-week schedule Marcos Andrade, Francis Barroeta, on great amounts of ponche Daniella Isamit crema (alcohol) and pan jamón y Programming: Manuel Piña, hallacas (a traditional Xmas dish). Glenis Dias Stop motion: Ruben Fariñas, Vladimir Mihalkov For Planta Music/audio direction, production, post production: Alain Gomez, Ivan Urbina, Cesar Muñoz, Carlos Mayoral, Cardopusher Toolkit After Effects, Maya, Photoshop, Illustrator stash 41.26

Delhaize TVC :45

Agency: TBWA\Brussels Director: Fraggleboo Production: Chez Eddy Animation: Chez Eddy www.chezeddy.com Part of the Christmas 2007 campaign for Delhaize supermarkets running on Belgian TV. “As usual, time was a challenge,” concedes Chez Eddy head of VFX Jean-François Bourrel, “but over the past few years, we built a strong pipeline around Maya, allowing us to avoid the limitations of reference scene files through in-house automatic setup and vertex baking software, and a clever way to handle texture files. It gave us flexibility to go For TBWA\Brussels For Chez Eddy Toolkit back and forth painlessly between EP: Mieke Vandewalle Director: Fraggleboo Maya, Fusion design and modeling/texturing, CD: François Daubresse Character/background design: which allowed greater creative AD: Benoit Hilson Eric Guillon freedom.” Schedule: nine weeks Music: Frits Sundermann from storyboard approval. stash 41.27

“Circle Squared” Viral

Client: NY Times Director: Todd St. John Animation: HunterGatherer www.huntergatherer.net Todd St. John and his New York studio can always be counted on for projects that start with intriguing ideas and finish with memorable visuals – whether the style is blown-out electro- maximism like their packaging for For HunterGatherer MTV’s Sunday Stew (see Stash Designer/director: Todd St. John 13) or clean and geometric like Story: Gary Benzel, Todd St. John this stop-motion piece for the Music: Steven Nereo NY Times’ ‘T’ Magazine website. Animation/models: Jeff Shepherd, St. John says the brief was to Phil Pinto, Ken Edge, tell a story around giving in an Todd St. John unconventional way and admits, Producer: Julie Shevach “The models were all made Toolkit out of wood by hand, and their After Effects, CS3 making took up the majority of the production schedule.” Schedule: 3.5 weeks stash 41.28

Elephant Girl the trunk had to be the release Short Film and not the cause of tension, so from there it was obvious that it Director: would take a viscous black fluid David Lobser filling the room to provide the danger the plot required. From Animation: there the question why followed David Lobser from one circumstance to the www.dlobser.com next until I found myself outside in Raised in Colorado and schooled the prairie during one of the most at SVA in New York, freelance intense miller moth migrations in visual effects artist, director, and the latter half of this century. The artist David Lobser sites David wind crisp and cool in the fall, Lynch, Mathew Barney, Kenneth running sheets through the fields Anger and Michael Snow among of wheat, and whistling through his influences for this peculiar tale the maze of telephone poles and of lust and corrosive black goo. slowly stripping the paint from the “Elephant Girl grew backwards abandoned house at the end of out of the image of a nubile the way. brunette straddling the trunk of “Elephant Girl is the result of a crispy, wizened old elephant. carefully placing disconnected The elephant, being merely a imagery into a dramatic structure. stuffed head on a wall, certainly The images I used had to pass appreciated the situation and the test of being interesting after could provide the benefits of weeks or months, even years experience, but it was the girl and after I first imagined them. Also, her journey to this strange meeting props to Jamie Haggerty. His that I wanted to see. score brought everything together. “The main question I had to work Sound is huge for animation, very through was how she arrived in often more important than the such a sticky situation. She could animation itself.” have been riding the elephant in Director: David Lobser such a provocative manner for fun, Music: Jamie Haggerty but that wasn’t the sort of drama I was interested in. Straddling Toolkit Maya, After Effects, Photoshop stash 41.31

Halo 3 Virals x 3

Client: Microsoft/Bungie Director: Neill Blomkamp Production: Weta Workshop VFX: Origami Digital LLC HT Limited www.origamidigital.com While progress on his feature film adaptation of Halo drifts slowly through limbo, director Neill Blomkamp, Bungie Studios and Microsoft blast forward with these three online promotional shorts for the Halo 3 game. With all the development work and designs for the film version off limits, every element had to be created from scratch. Filming took place in a For Weta Workshop Wellington, NZ landfill with soldier’s Sr engineer: Dave Irons gear and props delivered by Engineer: Peter Osborne Weta Workshop along with a fully functional FWD Warthog, decked For Origami Digital out with working gun, digital VFX super: Oliver Hotz displays, and airbags. Origami Compositors: Koichi Minamizuka, Digital in LA took on all CG and Jerome Cheng compositing work including the 3D: Thomas Koch, Josh Hooker, characters mocapped with their Scott Kinsey own system called Loco. Designer: Scott Kinsey Mocap assistant: Kyoko Hattori Stay inspired with this definitive collection of the Own 40 extraordinary animation, VFX and motion most spectacular commercials, music videos, graphics projects from Stash DVD Magazine – all virals, broadcast designs, game cinematics and in one stunning 2-disk collection PLUS a 60-page short films of 2007. book of stills, credits, production notes and links. www.stashmedia.tv/collections Coming soon... MUSIC MOTION VIDEOS GRAPHICS The STASH Music Video collection: The STASH Motion Graphics collection: A two-hour feast of the most innovative A sweeping treasury of 60 motion design music-driven projects the planet has projects guaranteed to inspire you. ever witnessed. Curated by Justin Cone.

Check the line-ups of all the Stash Collections at www.stashmedia.tv/collections

Limited time introductory offer: Pre-order now and save $30 when you grab both. www.stashmedia.tv