FALL 1998 Compai! The 7th International Animation Festival Hiroshima 198 by Deanna Morse I had heard from other filmmakers what a number of films straight. This actually was wonderful festival this is. How it was so well not so much a problem. During the organized, friendly, respectful of the films, screenings, I would take notes in the dark, and how it was so interesting to be in describing the film, or making a sketch of the Hiroshima, to be in Japan. At other film characters or scenes. After each film, I would festivals, I've been with groups of grade the piece. Sometimes my handwriting A filmmakers who talk and talk and talk about was sloppy or overlapped, but at the end of what a fabulous time they had at the the day, I could use my notes to remember Q Hiroshima festival. Now, I have joined that the pieces we saw. U cheerleading club. F It was a rare opportunity to be able to see A I was asked to serve on Selection Committee such a wide variety and quantity of films. It R so I experienced the festival as a bit of an gave me a sampling of what is happening in T "insider". In addition, I was elected animation internationally. And of course, I ~ E Chairperson and was the media saw some wonderful individual pieces; many R . spokesperson. The other members of the did not make the deep cut and were not L committee were Irina Margolina, a producer included in the festival. Later, when I went Y and writer from Russia, Thomas Reynolder, a to Ottawa and SIGGRAPH I was surprised to filmmaker and ASIFA Board member from see some different pieces selected --works p Austria, Thomas Basinger, formerly the that were not even entered in the 1127 we animation programmer for the Stuttgart screened for the Hiroshima competition. u festival (Germany), and Toshio Iwai, an There is an amazing amount of animation, B interactive media artist from Japan. Most of being produced each year. Much of it is L us met each other for the first time at the independent work, self-expression by a single I Selection Committee, and we built solid artist or small group of filmmakers. C friendships working together on the process. E Somewhere about half way through the A T We met in Hiroshima for three weeks in May process, several of us began to feel a bit to view the 1127 entries (from 57 countries), down. It was spring in Japan, but every day I and selected 64 films for competition and we just sat in a dark room, screening films - it & 0 screening during the festival. It was seemed like we never were going to get N interesting, if a bit intense. We met for about through this quantity of work. It was taking 10 hours every day for nearly 3 weeks. We energy to look at each piece with fresh eyes. 0 spent eight hours a day in screening, and then As filmmakers ourselves, we wanted to be F F discussed our selections for another two or fair, to give each piece equal respect. But we three hours. were drinking lots of coffee to stay "up"! A Each of us selected work based on our own One night during our discussion, Sayoko ~ S artistic criteria. However, we were each Kinoshita, the festival director, told us a I looking for powerful animation. We story. It was a long story, and took even F considered each piece on its own merits; we longer to tell since it was translated for us A did not consider nationality in our judgment. from Japanese to English. I will try to I paraphrase it: In old Japan, a young woman C People often ask me how I could keep that got married and went to live on the farm of e her husband's family. The mother-in-law In this Issue instructed the new wife to clear an overgrown n • Hiroshima . 1 field. The new wife looked at the sprawling t • Letter from the EditOL.-----.---------. 2 land, and said "this is not possible! This is r such a huge field, and I can only clear a tiny a • South Park: Greg Colton ---.-----------. 4 patch each day, even though I work so hard!" E I • Non-Scientific Observations -----.-.---- 6 The wise mother-in-law responded, "Don't • Annual Retreat '99 ----------- ... -.- ... -- .. -.-.-.---- 7 look at the entire field, you should only • 3 Frame Challenge . __ . 8 FALL 1998 Hiroshima continued on page 3 Letter from the Editor ASIFAI~ Volunteers and Project Leaders by Jennifer Eldred Newsletter DesignerlEditor & As we look toward ASIFNCentral members that Vice President a new year, now is ASIFNCentral is here to support and Jennifer Eldred a great time to recognize your accomplishments in the [email protected] reflect on the world of animation. Please remember accomplishments when you receive your renewal notices President of ASIFNCentral that membership has its priviledge so Deanna Morse animators in 1998. take advantage of what the [email protected] From our annual ASIFNCentral offers you in our quarterly newsletter and website, a voice retreat this spring Webmaster & Site Designer to featured articles on ASIFNCentral to the animation community. Please send Byron Grush byronts'swcp.com members past and present, it has been a us information we can include in these productive year. I know I personally had publications. If you are interested in Marketing Coordinator a wonderful year, completing work on a submitting an article for the Winter 1999 Dave Daruzska year long project for the National edition the deadline is January 15. Science Olympiad this past spring. There ASIFNCentral: Acknowledging your StoryBoard Contest is no better feeling for an animator than talent! : Mary Lou Haynes, [email protected] completing a project we have put our hearts into and then getting Note: ASIFA International is launching a Conference Chair acknowledgement for our new website in 1999 at www.asifa.net. Mary Lou Haynes, [email protected] accomplishment. Jim Middleton felt this when an article on his animation, "Rush Happy Holidays! Conference Co - Chair Job" was featured in our Summer .J~E1AU. Dave Daruzska edition. So let me remind all Directory Coordinator: WINNERIS CIRCLE Progress Report Randall Rockafellow by Rita Dobias Web site: Rita Dobias is the winner of the 3rd International Helen Victoria Haynes WORW http:/www.asifa.org/animate PEACE Storyboard & Animation Scholarship Competition. E-mail: [email protected] In the past few months I have started to I choose to do this because of Director's work on the animation for the story onion skin feature. It will also make my ASIFAlCentral Conference: board contest. Mainly I have been characters look slightly different from April 3D-May 2, 1998 experimenting with character design the background graphics and stand out a and just the general appearance of the little more during the animation. To contribute or volunteer contact: work. I have decided to use Unfortunately, I have had a some Deanna Morse Macromedia Director along with distractions since I started this project, Phone #: 616.895.3101 MetaCreations Painter. I like the the worst being my husband's accident E-mail: [email protected] realistic look and feeling that painter in early September. Thankfully he is all US mail: ASIFAICentral gives while working on the computer. I right, but he will need my care for about clo Deanna Morse will be using it for the backgrounds as a month. I am going to try to not let that School of Communications well as other objects. keep me from working on this project. I Lake Superior Hall look forward to getting it finished for Grand Valley State University On the other hand I am going to use the the conference next year. Allendale, MI 49401 paint box in Director for my characters. - Rita Dobias AS/FA/Central Mission Statement The purpose of AS/FA/Central is to promote the art of animation To join ASIFAICentrai: locally and internationally and to promote communication among Send a check (payable to animators and between animators and devotees. - adopted 3/92 ASIFAICentral) to the address above. 2 Fall1998 Hiroshima continued from page 1 consider the small patch you are Indian, Welsh, Asian, and Austrian the light source for an acrylic dome clearing." The young wife took this animation; Animation for Peace, and which contained morphed human, advice. Soon, of course, the whole Animation for Children. There were animal or mineral images. These light field was cleared. At the end, we two wonderful presentations on Music sources were choreographed to original laughed as we remembered Sayoko's in Animation by Judith Gruber-Stitzer music, also by Iwai. The animation sage advice, given to us through this and Normand Roger which included was rhythmic and complex. story. works in progress, where we could hear the tracks develop in complexity. Parties. Of course, no festival is The films we selected for the complete without them. ASIFA Japan competition program were varied. For an enthusiastic full house, Academy hosted a roof -top beer garden; there Some conveyed visual statement of Award winner Ray Harryhausen (the were opening and closing receptions, beauty and hope, others told a story. International Honorary President) gave traditional dance and bingo at a temple. Some were quiet poems, others had a retrospective of his puppet animation, One day, buses took filmmakers to louder voices, some tried to shake us with his earliest films, made in his Miyajima Island. Considered one of up, asking us to question our garage in 1945, and clips from the 16 the most beautiful spots in Japan, assumptions.