Vancouver ACM SIGGRAPH and the Vancity Theatre proudly present the first annual SPARK Animation Festival, September 10 to 14, 2008. Don't miss your chance to attend this fabulous 5-day animation festival with premiere screenings as well as panels and presentations from a world-class line-up of directors, animators and film-makers.

Featured guests include: Mark Osborne & John Stevenson (directors of Kung Fu Panda), Jimmy Hayward & Steve Martino (directors of Horton Hears a Who!), Ed Hooks (author: Acting for Animators), Paul Topolos (designer/matte painter, Pixar), Paul Harrod (director, Bent Image Lab), Markus Manninen & Alex Parkinson (VFX & animation supervisors, DreamWorks).

Limited seating is available at this uniquely intimate opportunity. All sessions are "à la carte" so you can mix and match, but be sure to book your seat early!

Vancouver ACM SIGGRAPH gives special thanks to the BC Innovation Council for their financial support of this event.

PRICING

All sessions "à la carte" – buy only what you have time for... or can afford. See it all for as low as $183 * !!! ($315 for non-members)

Featured Presentations:
Regular: $25 / Groups (5+): $20 (online only) / Members *: $15

Panels & Talks:
Regular: $20 / Groups (5+): $15 (online only) / Members *: $10

Screenings:
Regular: $10 / Members *: $8

Party:
Regular: $10 / FREE for festival-goers

* Members:
Must be an active member of the Vancouver ACM SIGGRAPH chapter, or a PREMIUM member of the Vancouver International Film Centre. If you plan to attend several sessions, consider becoming a member of the chapter before placing your order. For only $35 a year, not only will you save a bundle during the festival, you will also receive further discounts on all events for the entire year.

For details, visit http://membership.sparkcg.ca

Note: ACM SIGGRAPH & ACM members must become local chapter members to receive discounts to chapter festivals & regular events.

SCHEDULE

SCREENING DESCRIPTIONS

Allegro non Troppo
Italy 1976 // Director: Bruno Bozzetto // 85 min // DVD // PG
In Italian w/ English subtitles

Allegro non Troppo is a feature film made up by stories, in which famous classical musical pieces are visualized by means of a modern, ironical and highly qualified animation. Debussy's Prélude à l'après-midi d'un faune, Dvorak's Slavonic Dance N.7, Ravel's Bolero, Sibelius' Valse triste, Vivaldi's Concerto in C-Dur, Stravinsky's The Firebird are the six musical pieces which have inspired stories and animated characters. The stories are presented and connected by a live-action story, in which hilarity results from the same comical mechanisms used in usual cartoons, only in this case applied to human characters and situations. This film technically structured like Walt Disney's famous Fantasia, is prominent for the original way in which it deals with current social themes and motives, using a modern and up to date style. It's a movie for all audiences, whose themes satisfy adults, whose images fascinate even the very young.

Best of SIGGRAPH '08 · Canadian Premiere!!!
2008 // 121 min // HD-CAM

Come experience the world's best animation and visual effects in a special showcase version of the SIGGRAPH Conference's Computer Animation Festival. This primo special edit reel of feature work, art, science, broadcast and games is brought to us by Computer Animation Festival Chair, Jill Smolin.

Screening Sponsor:

Dr. Seuss' Horton Hears a Who!
USA 2008 // Directors: Jimmy Hayward, Steve Martino // 88 min // 35mm // G

Horton the elephant's friends and neighbours think he has gone crazy when he claims that a tiny community lives on a speck of dust.

Cast: Jim Carrey, Steve Carell, Amy Poehler, Jesse McCartney, Isla Fisher, Dan Fogler, Will Arnett, Seth Rogen, Jonah Hill, Carol Burnett, Jaime Pressly, Laura Ortiz, Josh Flitter

Idiots & Angels · Western Canadian Premiere!!!
USA 2008 // Director: Bill Plympton // 78 min // Digibeta // PG

Angel is a selfish, abusive, morally bankrupt man who hangs out at his local bar, berating the other patrons. One day, Angel mysteriously wakes up with a pair of wings on his back. The wings make him do good deeds, contrary to his nature. He desperately tries to rid himself of the good wings, but eventually finds himself fighting those who view the wings as their ticket to fame and fortune.

Kung Fu Panda
USA 2008 // Directors: John Stevenson, Mark Osborne // 92 min // 35mm // G

Enthusiastic, big and a little clumsy, Po is the biggest fan of kung fu around... which doesn't exactly come in handy while working every day in his family's noodle shop. Unexpectedly chosen to fulfill an ancient prophecy, Po's dreams become reality when he joins the world of kung fu and studies alongside his idols, the legendary Furious Five – Tigress, Crane, Mantis, Viper and Monkey – under the leadership of their guru, Master Shifu. But before they know it, the vengeful and treacherous snow leopard Tai Lung is headed their way, and it's up to Po to defend everyone from the oncoming threat. Can he turn his dreams of becoming a kung fu master into reality? Po puts his heart – and his girth – into the task, and the unlikely hero ultimately finds that his greatest weaknesses turn out to be his greatest strengths.

Cast: Jack Black, Dustin Hoffman, Angelina Jolie, Ian McShane, Jackie Chan, Seth Rogen, Lucy Liu, David Cross, Randall Duk Kim, James Hong, Michael Clarke Duncan, Dan Fogler

Marv Newland Retrospective w. Marv Newland
Director: Marv Newland // 90 min // Digibeta

Marv Newland began a career making animated motion pictures in Los Angeles with the creation of the short Bambi Meets Godzilla (1969). He designed and animated television commercials until late 1970 and moved to Toronto.

While in Toronto (1970-1972) he designed, directed and animated television commercials, IDs for Sesame Street and Educational Television, and segments for longer films. Newland was also one of two designers and storyboard artists on the Cinera Productions animated cartoon Super Joe (1971). He was storyboard designer on an unemployment insurance film at Crawley Films in Ottawa, and created designs and layouts for TV commercials for Phos-Cine Productions in New York.

In late 1972, Newland moved to Vancouver, Canada. He spent two years freelancing for local animated film production companies and animation companies in Chicago and Los Angeles. In 1973, Newland created storyboards for the animated television series Barbapapa at Toonder Studios in Holland.

During this session, Marv will recount his life while showing some of his best known work.

Screening Sponsor:

The Pixar Story · Western Canadian Premiere!!!
USA 2007 // Director: Leslie Iwerks // 87 min // 35mm // G

The Pixar Story takes audiences behind the scenes of the groundbreaking company that pioneered a new generation of animation and forever changed the face of filmmaking. Using never-before-seen footage from the Pixar library, along with historic archival animation and first hand accounts by animators, studio executives, directors, producers and voice performers, Academy Award® nominated filmmaker Leslie Iwerks tells the riveting story of the Bay Area start-up that revolutionized Hollywood.

In the mid 1980s, an inspired and inspiring trio of innovators combined their gifts in art, science and business to launch a new way to make 3-D animated films and changed the face of filmmaking forever. Ed Catmull, John Lasseter and Steve Jobs overcame years of creative struggle and financial loss to launch an entirely new animation industry. Starting with the first full length CG film Toy Story, Pixar has entertained millions of people worldwide, and established an unprecedented and as yet unparalleled record of box-office success. Iwerks takes viewers on a dramatic journey filled with personal sacrifice and fueled by passionate belief in the possibilities of a new medium as Pixar Animation Studios is born.

The Pixar Story features exclusive interviews with some of the key players in the Pixar story including John Lasseter, Ed Catmull, Steve Jobs, George Lucas, Michael Eisner, Bob Iger, Tom Hanks, Billy Crystal, Tim Allen, Brad Bird and more.

Screening Sponsor:

Worst Cartoons Ever! with Jerry Beck · Western Canadian Premiere!!!
USA 2007 // 90 min // DVD

Some of the most mind-numbing cartoons ever produced, animation historian Jerry Beck has unearthed the funniest crap-tacular animation originally created for TV in the 1950s and 60s, when budgets were low and production values were lower. You cheer and jeer the antics of Super President, a one man weapon of mass destruction, Sir Gee Whiz, a dirty old man from the moon and Mighty Mr. Titan the physical fitness super hero.

FEATURED PRESENTATIONS, TALKS & PANELS

Animation in Games
with Brett Pascal (Propaganda), Gabriela Meija (independent) & Wayne Gilbert (EA Canada). Moderator: Ian Lloyd (EA Canada).

This panel of game industry veterans will take on many issues that are key to achieving great animation in games. Discussion will be complimented with visual examples that we can all learn from. Topics will include photo-real animation – why photo-real, what is it and can it be achieved in games? The age old conflict of gameplay responsiveness vs. believable animation – is it possible to achieve both? Wii and casual games – does caricatured motion deliver a better experience? Technical, aesthetic and production issues will all play a role in this panel, audience participation is encouraged.

Best of the Web, The
with Andrew Duncan, George Samilski, Johnny Darrell & Ken Priebe. Moderator: Daryl Anselmo.

With a flood of new animation content uploaded every day, the Web becomes increasingly more valuable as a channel for expression, medium for commerce and source of inspiration. What should you be watching? This panel of local industry gurus is keeping tabs, and will unravel, share and celebrate The Best of the Web in this can't miss session.

Braving the Waters of Independence While Staying Small, Adaptable & Creative
with Paul Harrod (Bent Image Lab)

The demands of the current advertising market require that small animation studios display remarkable flexibility and the ability to adapt to new conditions at a moment's notice. Rather than settle back comfortably with a "studio style", the film makers at Bent are encouraged to constantly stretch boundaries and redefine their idiom. BENT Image Lab is a hybrid animation laboratory production studio where award-winning filmmakers, artists, storytellers, animators, and designers come together to create projects for a diverse clientele. The studio stretches the boundaries of concept and design. It is a laboratory where exploration and play go hand in hand.

Building an Animation Studio
with Bruce Alcock (Global Mechanic), Tai Keattivanichily (Monkey Paw), Chuck Johnson (Nerd Corps) & Kirsten Newlands (Studio B). Moderator: Glenn Entis.

What does it take to build a studio in Vancouver in today's climate? How does the studio maintain a client base? Join Bruce Alcock (Global Mechanic), Chuck Johnson (Nerdcorps), Tai Keattivanichvily (Monkey Paw Media) and Kirsten Newlands (Studio B) as they address these questions and many more.

Creating a New Kind of Classic
with Jimmy Hayward (independent) & Steve Martino (Blue Sky Studios)

Directors Jimmy Hayward and Steve Martino discuss bringing the classic Dr. Seuss story, Horton Hears a Who, to a contemporary audience.

Directing Animated Features
with Jimmy Hayward (independent), John Stevenson (DreamWorks), Mark Osborne (DreamWorks) & Steve Martino (Blue Sky Studios). Moderator: Larry Bafia.

Join us for a "roundtable" discussion with directors Jimmy Hayward, Steve Martino, Mark Osborne and John Stevenson. The panel will bring insights into the contemporary realm of feature animation as as what might be in store in the near future.

Making of "Kung Fu Panda", The
with Alex Parkinson (DreamWorks) & Markus Manninen (DreamWorks)

DreamWorks' Alex Parkinson, Crowd Effects Supervisor, and Marcus Manninen, Visual Effects Supervisor, discuss the technical challenges encountered during the making of Kung Fu Panda.

Special Presentation Sponsor:

Moving Forward in Animation by Looking at the Past
with Ed Hooks

Ed Hooks, Author of Acting for Animators and Acting in Animation: A Look at 12 Films, talks about the power of storytelling in animation and what animators can do beyond merely entertaining the audience.

Presentation Sponsor:

Pursuit of Awesomeness, The
with John Stevenson (DreamWorks) & Mark Osborne (DreamWorks)

Directors John Stevenson and Mark Osborne give us their personal perspectives on the making of the DreamWorks hit, Kung Fu Panda.

Surviving as an Independent Animator
with Joanna Priestley, Martin Rose (NFB), Marv Newland & Mike Grimshaw. Moderator: Michael van den Bos.

While studio productions receive the bulk of press and distribution outlets the independent animators continue their struggle to finance, produce and distribute films. Join Joanna Priestley, Marv Newland and Martin Rose as they discuss the independent's challenge in the current film market.

Wall-E for a Year
with Paul Topolos (Pixar)

An artist's experience on WALL·E through images and stories.
Bronze Speaker Sponsor: Davis LLC

Presentation Sponsor:

Women in Animation
with Anne Denman (Studio B), Barbara Dawson (Rainmaker), Jericca Cleland (Rainmaker), Delna Bhesania (Bardel) & Joanna Priestley (independent). Moderator: Leslie Bishko (ECUAD).

Anne Denman, Jerrica-Cleland Hura, Joanna Priestley and Barbara Dawson take a look at the achievements women have attained in the animation industry as well as the continuing challenges in the field.

Presentation Sponsor:

SPEAKERS BIOS

Alcock, Bruce
(Owner/Creative Director, Global Mechanic Media)

Born and raised in Newfoundland, Bruce Alcock has worked internationally as a director for the past 17 years. He continues to develop an all-media approach to production: live action, CGI, drawings, photo-animation, film scratching, clay: experimental animation in a commercial context. He is currently directing the animated short Vive la Rose, in co-production with the NFB. His last film, At the Quinte Hotel, won numerous awards in its run of more than 60 festivals worldwide, including Best Canadian Short at the Ottawa Festival and best short at the San Francsico International Festival.

His design-based TV commercials have led to award-winning campaigns for clients like Coca-Cola, Molson, Kraft, Chrysler, Bell and Proctor & Gamble, with major advertising agencies like Leo Burnett, Ogilvy, Grey, DDB and BBDO. As Creative Director of Global Mechanic Media, Bruce supervises all commercials and TV series made by the studio, including shows for PBS and the Cartoon Network.

www.globalmechanic.com

Anselmo, Daryl
(Co-founder/Director Art, Propaganda Games)

Daryl has 13 years of interactive art experience, previously as Art Director at Electronic Arts Canada. At Electronic Arts, Daryl worked on the NBA Live franchise, and art directed the critically acclaimed and commercially successful Def Jam: Fight For New York, Def Jam Vendetta and NBA Street. He then co-founded Propaganda Games for Disney Interactive Studios, which recently released Turok. There, he currently serves as Director, Art for the studio.

www.propagandagames.com

Bafia, Larry
(Mars Attacks, MI2, Antz...)

An animator who works with numerous media, Larry started his career in stop-motion and claymation. At Will Vinton Studios, Larry was involved with commercial productions as well as television, museum projects and music videos. During his seven year tenure as Commercial Animation Director at PDI/Dreamworks, Larry directed commercials for many top clients including Coca-Cola, Sega, Intel, Kraft, Circle K, and Saturn. Also at PDI/Dreamworks, Larry was also Sequence Lead Animator on several hit films including Antz, Batman & Robin, and A Simple Wish. In addition, Larry served as Lead Animator for the Stop Motion Division on Tim Burton's feature Mars Attacks. Larry headed the Vancouver Film School's Animation Department for the past 5 years. He now works as an independent animator & consultant.

www.imdb.com

Beck, Jerry
(Animation historian, producer, co-writer "Cartoon Brew")

Jerry Beck is an animation historian, cartoon producer and co-writer of the popular animation blog Cartoon Brew. His twelve books on the subject include The Hanna Barbera Treasury, Looney Tunes: The Ultimate Visual Guide and The 50 Greatest Cartoons. He is a former studio exec with Nickelodeon and Disney, and is currently a consulting producer for Warner Bros. Animation.

www.cartoonbrew.com

Bhesania, Delna
(CEO, Bardel)

www.bardel.ca

Bishko, Leslie
(Associate Professor, Emily Carr University of Art + Design)

Leslie Bishko is an Associate Professor in Animation at Emily Carr University of Art + Design, where she teaches 3D computer graphics specializing in character animation, and is a member of the Movement Research Group. An experimental animation filmmaker, her computer animated film, Gasping for Air (1993), won 6 awards at major international festivals. Bishko's history with dance includes dance notation and certification as a Laban Movement Analyst (LMA). Bishko has developed Laban for Animators, which she teaches to computer game companies and animation schools, and is currently expanding into a book. She has collaborated with choreographer Holly Bright on integrating dance with animation onstage. Her research investigates movement styles and communication in animation, and the use of animated imagery for LMA studies.

www.ecuad.ca/~lbishko
www.labanforanimators.com

Cleland, Jericca
(Escape from Planet Earth, Space Chimps, Finding Nemo, Toy Story 2...)

Jericca Cleland is a writer/director/cinematographer working out of her home studio in Vancouver. Raised as a filmmaker in the story-centric environment of Pixar Animation Studios, she pursues the creation of independent films of high caliber and narrative depth. An experienced cinematographer in computer animation, Jericca designed the filming and staging of feature films such as Toy Story 2, Finding Nemo, Space Chimps, and the in progress Escape from Planet Earth. She also writes and directs in live-action and teaches various aspects of both live-action and animated filmmaking.

www.imdb.com

Darrell, Johnny
(Director/Writer, Nerd Corps)

After directing some live-action music videos in the mid-90's, Johnny started his animation career as an editor on the series Beast Wars for Mainframe Entertainment. From there he went on to direct on a number of productions including Spider-Man: The Animated Series for Sony/MTV, Storm Hawks for Cartoon Network/YTV, the animated introductions and categories for the 2003 & 2006 MTV Movie Awards, Stuart Little 3 and co-wrote and directed the feature Tony Hawk in Boom Boom Sabotage. Currently he is directing on the new Nerd Corps comedy series The League of Super Evil for BBC/YTV, co-writing a live-action screenplay Monkey Beach, based on the highly acclaimed, award-winning novel of the same name and is Production Designer / Editor for an up-coming feature documentary on the '70's Vancouver punk scene.

www.nerdcorps.com

Dawson, Barbara
(Rainmaker)

www.rainmaker.com

Denman, Anne
(Head of HR, Studio B)

Anne Denman has an extensive and varied background in animation that spans two decades. She cut her teeth at the renowned International Rocketship Limited, where she worked on numerous productions including the Annecy Grand Prix winner Gary Larson's Tales from the Far Side. From there she moved to the Vancouver Film School where she managed the Classical Animation Department for 8 years. Last year she was Director of the Student Program and Panel Coordinator for Platform International Animation Festival, which debuted in Portland, Oregon, 2007. Now Anne is happily combining all of her experiences and talents by taking the reins as Head of Recruitment/HR at Studio B Productions located in Vancouver, British Columbia.

www.studiobproductions.com

Doucette, Andrew
(Animation Director, Action Pants)

Andrew Doucette has been animating for films, games and television for over 15 years. He began his career at Mainframe Entertainment working on the television show ReBoot and later directing for the animated series Beast Wars. Andrew then moved into film and has worked on 18 features at Industrial Light & Magic and Weta Digital, such as the Star Wars prequels, Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban and The Waterhorse. Later, he joined the games industry at Electronic Arts Canada and worked as Cinematics Director on several titles including Need for Speed: Carbon. Andrew is currently the Animation Director at Vancouver-based Action Pants Inc.

www.actionpantsinc.com

Duncan, Andrew
(Director, writer, performer)

Andrew began directing music videos in the early 90's for local independent Vancouver artists, such as; Sex With Nixon, DDT, Noise Therapy and Nickelback.

Andrew joined Mainframe Entertainment in 1996, as Supervising Editor, with the mandate of streamlining production methods and developing the role of the AVID editor within Mainframe's CGI production pipeline. He began directing at Mainframe in 1997, starting on the landmark CGI series REBOOT and has since directed nine 20-minute episodes at Mainframe, on animated series such as Shadow Raiders, Weird-Ohs, Hot Wheels and Action Man.

In 2000, Andrew took a hiatus from directing with the goal of developing his writing skills and concentrating on personal projects. During this time Andrew also worked for the Vancouver Film School's 3D animation program as the Final Project Supervisor and an Industry Mentor for the 3D Scholarship program.

In 2002, Andrew returned to Mainframe to develop and co-directed (with Johnny Darrell) the animated opening sequence for the 2003 MTV Movie Awards, as well as the thirteen nomination sequences used throughout the broadcast. In 2004, Andrew assumed the role of Series Director for Mattel's massive four and half hour project, HOT WHEELS - ACCELERACERS. On this project Andrew also worked as story editor, motion capture director, animation director, voice performer and motion capture performer.

Andrew is currently working at Propaganda Games as the Animation Director on an upcoming title. He lives in Vancouver with his wife Melanie and son Carter.

dirtylittlekid.blogspot.com

Entis, Glenn
(Educator & consultant)

Glenn Entis is a CG pioneer with over 30 years experience at some of the top companies in interactive and computer graphics. Until June 2008, he was Senior Vice-President, Chief Visual and Technical Officer of Electronic Arts Worldwide studios, with the responsibility of leading EA's worldwide community of over 3000 talented artists and engineers.

Prior to EA, Glenn was CEO of DreamWorks Interactive, where he oversaw the development of the first titles in the Medal of Honor series. He joined EA when EA acquired DreamWorks Interactive in 2000.

Prior to joining DreamWorks in 1995, Glenn co-founded the pioneering animation studio Pacific Data Images (now part of DreamWorks Animation). During his twelve years at PDI, Glenn wrote software, animated, produced, and helped lead the company's growth from "3 guys with a VAX" to one of the top CG studios in the world. In 1998 he received the Scientific and Technical Award from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for his work at PDI.

Glenn graduated from Ohio Wesleyan University with a BFA in Fine Arts and a BA in Philosophy, and lives in Vancouver with his wife and two teenage daughters. He is currently an educator and consultant, as well as the incoming chairman of the Vancouver chapter of ACM SIGGRAPH.

Gilbert, Wayne
(Senior Animation Director, EA Black Box)

Prior to joining EA Black Box as Sr. Animation Director, Wayne had worked on films ranging from Care Bears to Star Wars and The Mummy Returns. After training at Sheridan College in 2D animation his career covered 7 half hour TV specials, commercials, and four independent short films - 2D and CG. He was introduced to games by joining Black Box in 2005.

A stint teaching at Sheridan College was followed by helping to set up the Disney Toronto Studio and then a trip to ILM for seven years where the transition to CG was made. Teaching and lecturing are now confined to EAU Professional Development and working with Animation Mentor online. His book Simplified Drawing for Planning Animation sells worldwide and is mandatory reading in schools.

www.eablackbox.com

Grimshaw, Mike
(One D, Q-Bob, Little Rude Riding Hood, Sittin' Pretty...)

Mike Grimshaw began animating in the eighties, when an economic slowdown interrupted his day job. After learning some skills with a couple of independent short films, he began working at various studios, mainly in Vancouver. Mike still found time to make independent films, and taught part-time for 7 years at Vancouver Film School. Toward the end of the nineties, he began freelancing more, turning to sheet timing (animation timing direction) as a source of income. Eventually, Mike became disillusioned with the direction of the industry, and returned to his day job, working on short films in his spare time. Currently, he works at a major hospital, and is animating three new film projects. Mike lives in Victoria.

www.imdb.com

Harrod, Paul
(Director, Bent Image Lab, Portland)

Paul Harrod has developed a sophisticated visual language over the past two decades working as designer, art director and director of animated and live action projects, with a special emphasis on stop motion. His career as a designer came to full blossom as the Senior Art Director of Vinton Studios in Portland, and ultimately as the production designer and director of five episodes of the Fox TV series, The PJs for which he was nominated for an Annie award in 2000. He went on to direct the first episode of UPN's Gary and Mike series and the pilot for WB's Slacker Cats. Since then he has contributed his skills as both Director and Art Director at Bent Image Lab on numerous commercials including several Kelloggs Twistables spots, Office Max, Cartoon Network, Aflac, Always, ServPro and Quaker Chewy Bars. His commercials for Tractor Supply Company have received attention for their innovative design and dry, understated humor, with Koi Pond voted one of the 50 best spots of 2006 by Adweek.

Paul lives in Portland with his wife, the internationally acclaimed filmmaker, Joanna Priestley.

www.bentimagelab.com

Hayward, Jimmy
(Dr. Seuss' Horton Hears A Who!, Robots, Finding Nemo, Monsters Inc, Toy Story 2, A Bug's Life, Toy Story...)

Jimmy has been a feature animator and filmmaker for more than a decade. Most recently, he directed the whimsical film Dr. Seuss' Horton Hears a Who! for 20th Century Fox and Blue Sky Studios. At Blue Sky, Jimmy also worked as a sequence director and story consultant on hits such as Ice Age: The Meldown (2006) and Robots (2005). Prior to joining Blue Sky, he was a feature animator at Pixar on Finding Nemo (2003), Monsters Inc. (2001), Toy Story 2 (1999) and Toy Story (1995). His early beginnings were in Vancouver making short animated and live-action films and commercials, and working on Mainframe Entertainment's now well-known animated television series Reboot.

www.imdb.com

Hooks, Ed
(Author "Acting for Animators", acting coach)

Ed Hooks pioneered acting training specifically designed for animators instead of stage actors. His books, Acting for Animators and Acting in Animation: A Look at 12 Films are standard texts at animation schools all over the world, and he is in demand as a guest lecturer.

Ed, a theatre professional for three decades, has taught for most major animation studios including Disney Feature Animation, DreamWorks/PDI, Animal Logic, Tippett Studio, Scanline Studios, BioWare, Valve Software, OddWorld Inhabitants, Sony, Microsoft, Electronic Arts, Ubisoft, Rockstar and Midway Games. He has taught at Ringling School of Art and Design (Florida), Ohio State University, Loyola Marymount University (Los Angeles), Vancouver Film School (Canada), Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg (Germany) and HFF (also Germany). He is on the Board of Advisors of the FMX Animation Festival in Stuttgart. In addition, he has conducted workshops for Swansea University's Swansea Animation Days in South Wales, Animex (Teesside England), The National Film School (England), Victorian School of Film and Television and Griffith University (both in Australia) and Nanyang Polytechnic Institute (Singapore). He has twice been a featured speaker at SIGGRAPH in Los Angeles, The Game Developers Conference in San Francisco and the FMX Festival in Stuttgart Germany. This past year, he taught classes in São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro (Brazil).

In addition to his extensive work with animators, Ed Hooks has taught professional level acting classes for stage actors in New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Chicago, where he resides now with his wife, Cally. Ed's personal acting credits include many stage plays, television commercials and more than one hundred television shows, most often in guest-star and co-star billing. He is also the author of The Audition Book (Winning Strategies for Breaking into Theatre, Film and TV), Acting Strategies for the Cyber Age, The Ultimate Scene and Monologue Sourcebook and The Actor's Field Guide - Acting Notes on the Run.

www.edhooks.com

Johnson, Chuck
(Owner, Nerd Corps)

www.nerdcorps.com

Keattivanichily, Tai
(Co-founder, Monkey Paw)

Tai came to Canada with over 6 years experience in art direction, production design and direction for the highly successful 2K Film company in Bangkok, Thailand. There he worked on over a dozen commercials and music videos, two of them award winning for clients such as Leo Burnett and J. Walter Thompson. Tai was also Assistant Art Director for several British and US live action films and a creative director at a record company SP Suppamitte in Thailand.

Tai began his new life in Canada as an assistant animator on several feature films such as The Prince of Egypt, The Road to Eldorado, and Spirit. He then went on to assist Ron and Robert in building the Flash animation department at Bardel Entertainment. He became Technical Director of the highly successful series iMucha Lucha! and Director of the award winning Two Winters animated television special.

Before forming Monkey Paw, Tai was the head of the television series department at Global Mechanic, producing FETCH with Ruff Ruffman for PBS. Tai has a BA of Arts from Silpakorn University in Bangkok.

www.monkeypawmedia.com
monkeypawmedia.blogspot.com

Lloyd, Ian
(Art Director, EA Canada)

Ian Lloyd is a 16-year veteran of the games industry and has been happily and gainfully employed at Electronic Arts Canada in Burnaby since 1997. He is a Sheridan College Classical Animation alumnus (1991) and has primarily supervised character animation, design and modeling at EAC on various projects including the acclaimed SSX snowboarding games and in EAC's industry leading central character modeling/rigging department, The Body Shop.

www.ea.com

Manninen, Markus
(Kung Fu Panda, Over the Hedge, Underworld...)

In 2003, Markus Manninen joined DreamWorks as Visual Effects Supervisor on the 2008 release Kung Fu Panda. Before joining DreamWorks, Markus was Head of 3D Commercials at Europe's largest visual effects facility Framestore CFC, where he worked on award-winning commercials as CG Supervisor and Animation Director. A M.Sc. graduate of Royal Institute of Technology in Sweden, he discovered Computer Graphics at University of Massachusetts, USA. Markus joined Framestore CFC from award-winning animation studio Filmtecknarna in Sweden.

www.dreamworksanimation.com
www.imdb.com

Martino, Steve
(Dr. Seuss' Horton Hears a Who!, Robots...)

Steve has been involved with the design and creation of computer animation, from flying logos to feature films, over the past 25 years. Most recently, he partnered with Jimmy Hayward to direct the feature film Dr. Seuss' Horton Hears a Who! for 20th Century Fox and Blue Sky Studios. Steve came to Blue Sky in 2002 as the Art Director on the movie Robots and has contributed his design support to Ice Age: The Meltdown and the animated short Gone Nutty. Prior to his work in feature films Steve was the Creative Director at Click 3X, 7th Level Inc., and MetroLight Studios where he designed and directed animation for television, interactive media and film. Highlights of this period included a Primetime Emmy Award for Steve's direction of ABC's World of Discovery main title and the opportunity to collaborate with Terry Gilliam and Eric Idle on a series of Monty Python interactive games. Steve got his start in animation when he completed his Masters degree at Ohio State's Computer Graphics Research Group (now ACCAD). He flew his first logo at Cranston/Csuri Productions and honed his design and animation skills on a range of projects from flying maxi-pads to Super Bowl opens for CBS Sports.

www.blueskystudios.com
www.imdb.com

Meija, Gabriela
(Senior Animator, Independent)

Gabriela Mejia has been creating animation for video games for over 9 years. Recently, she was the Lead Animator at Backbone Vancouver, where she directed and supervised the animation for Monster Lab an upcoming WII/DS title. Prior to that she worked on a vast number of tittles, including Death Junior, NBA Street, Fifa Street, NBA Live and NCAA.

In her spare time Gabriela is also a visual artist and enjoys painting in traditional mediums.

Newland, Marv
(Hooray for Sandbox Land, Black Hula, Bambi Meets Godzilla...)

Marv Newland began a career making animated motion pictures in Los Angeles with the creation of the short Bambi Meets Godzilla (1969). He designed and animated television commercials until late 1970 and moved to Toronto, Canada, where he designed, directed and animated television commercials, IDs for Sesame Street and Educational Television. In late 1972, Newland moved to Vancouver. He spent two years freelancing for local animated film production companies and animation companies in Chicago and Los Angeles. In 1973 Newland created storyboards for the animated television series Barbapapa at Toonder Studios in Holland.

In 1975, Newland founded the animated film production company International Rocketship Limited in Vancouver. At Rocketship he produced and directed numerous animated short films including: Sing Beast Sing (1980), Hooray for Sandbox Land (1985), Pink Komkommer (1991), and Fuv (1999). The company also produced short animated films for other directors such as Danny Antonucci and J. Falconer. Newland also designed and directed the National Film Board of Canada vignette, Bill Miner (1978).

Rocketship also produced TV commercials, IDs for MTV, YTV, and Nickelodeon, and two films - Gary Larson's Tales from the Far Side (1994) and a sequel in 1996. The first of these productions won the Grand Prix at the Annecy International Animation Festival in 1995. Outside of Rocketship, Newland has freelanced for other animation companies, including directing episodes of the 3D stop motion series The PJs for Will Vinton Studios in Portland, Oregon.

As a freelance designer, Newland created character designs for the animated television series Being Ian (2003-2004) at Studio B Productions in Vancouver. In 2005 he directed Tête à Tête à Tête, an animated short film for the NFB. Currently Newland is animating his own short film, Scratchy, at International Rocketship.

www.imdb.com

Newlands, Kirsten
(Head of Production, Studio B)

As Head of Production at Studio B, Kirsten is in charge of all Studio B production activities. She currently oversees 6 series in production and handles the ever changing slate of all service and equity projects. Kirsten produced 26 half hours of the first Season of Pucca, based on the global phenomenon of the same name for Jetix UK (Disney) and has credits as Production Supervisor and Production Manager on several live action Canada/UK International Co-Productions. As an Executive Producer she has been involved with CineCity, CHUM Television's commitment to the local film community to help emerging visible minority and aboriginal filmmakers produce short, dramatic films in BC.

Prior to joining Studio B Kirsten was a Post-Production Supervisor on over fifteen feature films, movies of the week and television series. She has produced commercials, music videos and six short films.

She is a past board member of Women in Film and Video Vancouver, and a graduate of the University of Western Ontario and the Canadian Film Centre's Producer's Lab.

www.studiob.com

Osborne, Mark
(Kung Fu Panda, SpongeBob SquarePants, More...)

Academy Award®-nominated director Mark Osborne co-directed the 2008 critically acclaimed animated summer blockbuster Kung Fu Panda, which has netted a worldwide box office of more than $577 million to-date. Featuring the voice talents of Jack Black, Dustin Hoffman, Angelina Jolie, Lucy Liu and Seth Rogen, the DreamWorks family-friendly action-comedy was Osborne's first major studio project.

Osborne was selected to develop Kung Fu Panda on the strength of his award-winning animated short, More, which screened at more that 150 film festivals worldwide and garnered an Oscar® nomination for Best Animated Short, an Annie Award nomination and a Special Jury Prize for Short Films from the Sundance Film Festival.

Osborne also has earned several awards for designing and producing graphics and animation for television, including a Gold Broadcast Design Association award and a Los Angeles Emmy. His small-screen credits include projects for TBS and E! Entertainment Television, the Cartoon Network and Nickelodeon. In addition, Osborne has directed or co-directed commercials and animated music videos, including a Grammy-nominated spoof of Jurassic Park for Weird Al Yankovic and a 2-D animated music video for Stina Nordenstam's Keen Yellow Planet.

Osborne's live-action credits include his independent feature film Dropping Out, which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in 2000 and has developed a cult following. Written by and starring Osborne's brother Kent, the darkly satirical comedy also features David Koechner, John Stamos, Adam Arkin and Fred Willard. His other directing credits include most of the live-action material for the popular animated TV series Spongebob Squarepants, and all of the live-action sequences for The Spongebob Squarepants Movie, starring David Hasselhoff.

Osborne studied foundation art at New York's Pratt Institute before earning his BFA in experimental animation from the California Institute of the Arts. His thesis film, Greener, won numerous awards and screened at more than 40 film festivals worldwide. Osborne was awarded a prestigious Guggenheim Fellowship to assist in the production of his latest stop-motion short film, The Better Half. To read more about Osborne's projects and view his short films including More and Greener, go to: www.happyproduct.com.

www.dreamworksanimation.com
www.imdb.com

Parkinson, Alex
(Kung Fu Panda, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets...)

www.dreamworksanimation.com
www.imdb.com

Pascal, Brett
(Lead Animator, Propaganda)

Brett Pascal has been a working animator for the last 10 years. Of those years, 8 have been spent in the games industry split between Electronic arts and his current employer, Propaganda Games. He most recently completed work supervising animation for the Turok title, and is currently directing and supervising animation for a soon to be released title from Propaganda Games.

www.propagandagames.com

Priebe, Ken
(Author "The Art of Stop-Motion Animation")

Ken Priebe has a BFA from the University of Michigan School of Art & Design and a Classical Animation Certificate from Vancouver Institute of Media Arts (VanArts). He has worked as a 2D animator for Thunderbean Animation and Bigfott Studios, and has an independent animated short film currently in progress.  Ken teaches courses in 2D and Stop-Motion Animation at VanArts, and also teaches animation online for the Academy of Art University Cypercampus. He has written a comprehensive animation textbook called The Art of Stop-Motion Animation (Thomson Course Technology, 2006), and is also a puppeteer, avid film collector, and writer for the website Hollywood Jesus.com. Ken lives in Ladner with his graphic artist wife Janet and their 2-year-old daughter Ariel.

www.vanarts.com

Priestley, Joanna
(Dew Line, Andaluz, Kali Yuga, Surface Dive...)

Joanna Priestley has produced, directed and animated 19 award winning films about relationships, plants, magic, menopause, abstraction and prison. She has had retrospectives at the Museum of Modern Art (New York), Center for Contemporary Art (Warsaw, Poland) and the Stuttgart Animation Festival (Stuttgart, Germany). Priestley received an MFA Degree and the Louis B. Mayer Award from Cal Arts and has received felllowships from the National Endowment for the Arts, the American Film Institute, the MacDowell Colony, Fundación Valparaíso and Creative Capital. She was founding President of ASIFA NW, co-founder and co-director of FILMA: Women's Film Forum and Regional Coordinator of the Northwest Film Center and is also a medicinal herbalist and plant lover.

www.primopix.com
www.imdb.com

Rose, Martin
(Producer, NFB / Associate Professor, ECUAD)

Martin Rose is an associate professor at the Emily Carr University of Art & Design, where he teaches animation. In addition, Martin is currently working as a producer at the National Film Board of Canada, Pacific & Yukon Centre, where he contributes to a range of projects with other animation-artists.

www.nfb.ca
www.ecuad.ca

Samilski, George
(Director/Animator - Mainframe, Nerd Corps, Lucasfilm)

A classically-trained animator with experience in both the television and video game industry, George Samilski has directed CG animated television shows for over ten years and is also well-versed in the language and aspects of the live action film industry. His directing credits include Reboot, Storm Hawks, Star Wars: The Clone Wars, Action Man, War Planets, Transformers: Beast Machines, and Dragon Booster. George has also worked for Electronic Arts on properties including SSX3 and NBA Street 2. Most recently, he was Image Engine's pre-visualization supervisor on the films The Day the Earth Stood Still and Night at the Museum: Escape from the Smithsonian.

www.imdb.com

Stevenson, John
(Kung Fu Panda, Madagascar, Father of the Pride, Shrek 2, Shrek...)

A veteran of DreamWorks/PDI who got his start in the entertainment industry via Jim Henson's The Muppet Show, Stevenson worked for many years in the art department on many films at DreamWorks before helming a number of episodes of their animated primetime show Father of the Pride. He just recently completed work as Director of Kung Fu Panda for Dreamworks.

www.dreamworksanimation.com
www.imdb.com

Topolos, Paul
(Ratatouille, The Incredibles, Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones, Titan A.E. ...)

Paul Topolos has been at Pixar Animation Studios for 6 years as a matte painter and concept artist. Before that he worked at LucasArts and Lucasfilm. He studied fine art in Britain and California.

www.pixar.com
www.imdb.com

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