Vol.Vol. 22 IssueIssue 99 December 1997 Gaming!Gaming! JetJet PilotPilot ReviewsReviews FlightFlight SimsSims GamesGames onon thethe WebWeb ToolsTools 101101 Multimedia Down Under InsideInside TheThe Plus: A Conversation NeverhoodNeverhood with Jerzy Kucia and Piotr Dumala Table of Contents December 1997 Vol. 2, . No. 9 4 Editor’s Notebook It’s getting to be time to pay attention... 5 Letters: [email protected] GAMING! 7 Welcome To The Neverhood Doug TenNapel and Mike Dietz take us on a full tour of The Neverhood, a cutting-edge studio which uses claymation to create interactive games. 11 Plus: Mike Dietz explains The Neverhood’s unique stop-motion animation process in detail. 13 Multimedia Down Under Mark Morrison gives us the lowdown on the Australian multimedia world. Despite government support and eager talent, distance and distribution remain two challenges. 18 PlayStation:An Unassuming Jack Why is the Sony PlayStation becoming the most popular home gaming console? Joseph Szadkowski sheds light on their shrewd, and simple, business plan. 22 Tools of the Trade:What Do I Need to Create Interactive Games? Interactive producer Tim Samoff describes his favorite tools for making interactive games. 25 Online Gaming: From Avatars to Wizards Christopher Harz explains how to get started in the new world of cyberspace. 29 MIPCOM Meets MILIA MIPCOM consultant Frederique Doumic answers her most frequently asked questions regarding the merging of the gaming and animation industries. 34 Russia: Gaming for Everybody Natalya Loukinykh gives us an inside look at the potential of Russia’s digital future. 37 1997 Gaming Report:The Best of the Bunch Animation World Magazine’s picks for the top animated games of 1997. SURVEYS 40 The Future of Gaming A panel of gaming experts look deep into their crystal balls to predict where the industry is headed. OTHER ARTICLES 44 A Conversation With Piotr Dumala and Jerzy Kucia Melissa Chimovitz interviews Polish independent animators Jerzy Kucia and Piotr Dumala, with the help of oTTo Alder, at the Fantoche Film Festival. THE STUDENT CORNER 51 How to Find a Job in Multimedia Pamela Kleibrink Thompson shares her expert advice on how to break into this burgeoning field. FESTIVALS, EVENTS: December 1997 55 Cinanima:A Festival by the Sea Cinanima, Portugal’s international animated film festival, is reviewed by Sayoko Kinoshita. © Animation World Network 1997. All rights reserved. No part of the periodical may be reproduced without the consent of Animation World Network. ANIMATION WORLD MAGAZINE December 1997 2 Table of Contents December 1997 Vol. 2, . No. 9 68 The SAS Conference in Utrecht Gunnar Strøm relates the papers and ideas of the 9th Society for Animation Studies Conference. 60 Sitges: Horror and Animation in Barcelona Independent animation superstar, Bill Plympton describes his time at Festival Int. De Cineme Fantastic De Sitges in Barcelona, Spain. 62 The 25th Annual Annie Awards ASIFA-Hollywood’s night to shine was a real winner! REVIEWS: Films: 64 Un Jour:A Woman’s Metaphorical Narrative Don Perro reviews Un Jour, Marie Paccou’s latest film about a woman who wakes up with a man in her belly. Books: 66 Encyclopedia Simpsonica Joe Toledo reviews The Simpsons: A Complete Guide to our Favorite Family which details every fact of Simpson trivia known to man - plus some! Software: 68 Flight Simulators:A Bird’s Eye View Pilot Daniel Rein applies his knowledge from both the Air Force and the commercial airlines business, to his top flight simulator game picks. HIDDEN TREASURES: 70 The Castle of Pastime: Kratochvile Edgar Dutka details one of his favorite places; the permanent exhibition of Czech animated film at the Kratochvile Castle. NEWS 72 Animation World News Voice Actor Don Messick Dies, Wolfmill Pockets First WGA Deal, SGI Sizes Down, Liepzig and Cable Ace Winners and more. DESERT ISLAND 79 On A Desert Island With....Gaming Gurus Theresa Duncan, Lorne Lanning and Doug TenNapel reveal their top ten animated films. AWN COMICS 80 Dirdy Birdy by John Dilworth 81 Next Issue’s Highlights Cover: Original cover art created by Joseph Sanabria at The Neverhood exclusively for Animation December 1997 World Magazine. © Animation World Network 1997. All rights reserved. No part of the periodical may be reproduced without the consent of Animation World Network. ANIMATION WORLD MAGAZINE December 1997 3 by Heather Kenyon Gaming: It’s getting to be time field grows in use and prevalence find an appropriate place for you to pay attention... in our daily lives. In this month’s sur- even if it isn’t listed as your exact vey, “The Future of Gaming,” some objective, so don’t worry about per- For the past several years, key players in the gaming biz offer haps missing out on work by being I’ve felt that I was just too busy to us their ideas on what lies ahead. focused. delve into the world of gaming. I would also like to draw I would also like to thank There is so much to do each and attention to this month’s Student Daniel Rein and his brother, Major every day, who has time to spend Corner article “How to Find a Job Mike Rein for their fascinating article blasting things away or dropping in Multimedia” by Pamela Kleibrink “Flight Simulators: A Bird’s Eye View.” little bricks into slots? Recently, how- Thompson. Even if you aren’t look- After speaking to everyone from our ever, I thought I could feel some- ing for a job specifically in multi- local air force base to the Pentagon, thing beginning to creep up on me, media, I suggest you read this arti- I came across Major Mike Rein in the that I could feel a shadow about to cle. Pamela offers a lot of solid Air Force Personnel Center in Texas. fall over me. Yes, it was gaming, advice to anyone looking for a job. He hooked me up with his brother, telling me that it was time to pay Furthermore, her and we sent attention. This issue forced me to words about port- them nearly a take a look at the games that are folios, resumés dozen flight out there, and was I surprised! The and demo reels simulator best of them are creative and fun. are right on the games. Now Gaming, is in fact a massive money, even for we, non-pilots, industry that I feel will begin to traditional anima- can hear from impact an animation artist’s life more tion job seekers. an expert and more. As graphics continue to When I was which flight evolve and consumers’ appetites reviewing portfo- simulator create a demand for more detailed lios at Hanna- games are plots, the talents of people from the Barbera, nothing most like flying traditional animation areas will be was more frustrat- the real thing. recruited into the world of interac- ing than opening Speaking with tive animation. I don’t think they will up a portfolio and them and edit- defect completely, but I can see a having it explode ing the article day when freelancing for an ani- on my desk into a surely proved mation studio and then going to flurry of loose to me that fly- freelance at a gaming company will paper. Plus, ing a small, be viewed as the norm. The upside when people at festivals would zippy jet is a world unto its own and is going to be more companies hand me CD-ROMs as portfolios, I’d indeed, a very complex and difficult added to the work-giving mix. In think, “Thanks, it proves that you are one. For those of us used to stand- fact, some studios are already there. really technologically savvy, but ing firmly on the ground, it is hard Jeff Fino of Wild Brain, whose when it is 6:00 p.m., and I have to to imagine situations where things Green Eggs and Ham just won the review all of the incoming portfo- are happening so fast one is hard- Annie Award for Outstanding lios...I don’t have time to take the ly aware of where the ground even Achievement in an Animated CD, go downstairs, print out the is! Interactive Production, recently told images for the producers who don’t This was a fun and an inter- us that they work on games and have CD-ROM players in their esting issue to put together. I hope their traditional animation projects offices, etc.” It is better to call and you find it just as intriguing. As side by side. get it right the first time so that always, we, welcome your com- All in all, this diversion into recruiters can truly, fairly evaluate ments and ideas at multimedia has bolstered my opin- the art work. The pet peeves of [email protected]. ion that perhaps the statement recruiters could go on and on and “Animation, the Art Form of the 21st on for pages. But a good recruiter Until next time... Century” is true, as the multimedia will look at your art and be able to Heather ANIMATION WORLD MAGAZINE December 1997 4 [email protected] December 1997 AWM welcomes letters to the edi- demean Harvey Deneroff’s writing amassed a large amount of knowl- tor and encourages this to be used but I think it would have been wiser edge about the film, Anastasia, in as a forum for the discussion of on your part to think again before order to write The Art of Anastasia. ideas and feedback on issues raised asking somebody connected so While he did write the book, he was in prior Magazine editions. closely with the film to write a not directly involved with the pro- review of it.