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T H E B U S I N E S S , T E C H N O L O G Y & A R T O F A N I M A T I O N

October2007

w w w . a n i m a t i o n m a g a z i n e . n e t

Tak and the Power of Juju:Tak and the Power of JuNick's CG Tribe Has SpokenNick's CG Tribe Has Spo

Fall TV PreviewFall TV Preview[adult swim]s Lucy,[adult swim]s Lucy,

Daughter of the DevilDaughter of the DevilSkunk Fu! debutsSkunk Fu! debuts

on Kids WB!on Kids WB!

For navigation instructions please click herentents | Zoom In | Zoom Out Search Issue | Next Page

For navigation instructions please click herentents | Zoom In | Zoom Out Search Issue | Next Page

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Volume 21, Issue 10, Number 177, October 2007

4 Frame-by-FrameOctober Animation Planner ... Books We Love .... Aaron Augenblick discusses his toon studios work

on David Wains indie feature, The Ten . [by Ryan Ball]

8 Gaming8 Channeling Chuck Jones. Looney Tunes fans get Daffy with Duck Amuck on DS. [by Ryan Ball]

10 Shorts10 So, Whats Next, Dude? A young London-based animator discusses the mysterious ways you can

take control of your career. [by Ian W. Gouldstone]

12 HomeEntertainment12 The Samurai Critic: Reviews of the

latest anime titles on DVD. [by Charles

Solomon] 14 Familiar Faces in NewSituations. New animated TV shows and

movies on DVD.

16 Television16 One Helluva Gal! [adult swim] has adate with Lucy, Daughter of the Devil.[by Ryan Ball] 18 A Different Kettle ofFish. Sushi Pack promises to be one ofthe most original new toons of the fallseason. 20 Wild at Heart. National

Geographic Kids, BBC and King Rollo Fi lms offer a delightful new preschool show which combines2D animation with live-action wildlife footage. 22 Fall TV Preview Section 26 Smells Like A Hit!Skunk Fu! kicks into action on Kids WB! this fall. 28 New Faces and Classic Icons. Kids WB!s newfall lineup. 30 Time for Terric Tribal Magic. Nicks rst in-house CG toon, Tak and the Power of Juju,delivers awesome visuals and memorable characters. 32 MIPCOM Jr. Snapshots. Eight projects tolook for at the Cannes market. 36 Meet the Buyers! Everything you need to know about MIPCOMJr. TV execs. 39 The ABCs of Reading. A new PBS animated series has crafted a clever way ofteaching preschoolers how to read. 40 Cartoon Forum Preview. What to expect at the event inCatalunya . 44 Heroes with Lasting SuperPowers. Our guest columnist looks back at the origins ofthe rst animated Fantastic Four show. [by Stuart Fischer] 45 Hungarian Rhapsody. Whats new atBudapests Studio Baestarts.

46 New Media46 Waiting for the Right Phone Plan! Animation industry insiders are wondering how much longer they have to wait for thetoon revolution to take off on cell phones in the U.S. [by Chris Grove]

48 VFX48 Alice in Zombie Land. How the crack team at Mr. X delivered digital zombies, killer crows and Milla Jovovich clonesfor Resident Evil: Extinction . [by Ron Magid] 52 Cause & Effects. Two new CG-animated ads put humans in impossiblesituations. [by Barbara Robertson] 54 Digital Magic. [by Chris Grove] 56 Tech Reviews. [by Todd Sheridan Perry]

58 Opportunities58 London Calling Digital Disciples. The London Film Academy launches a state-of-the-art digital vfx program. [by EllenWolff] 60 3D Pete. Mysteries of the Jedi mind. [by Mike Fisher]

On the Cover: Nickelodeons new CG-animated series Tak and the Power of the Juju s got game. Also, [adult swim]s Lucy,Daughter of the Devil and Kids WB!s Skunk Fu! are part of our annual Fall TV Preview issue.MIPCOM Junior Cover: Captain Flamingo: Breakthrough Animation, Heroic Film Company, Atomic Cartoons and PASI Animation. Produced inassociation with YTV Canada. Atomic Betty: Breakthrough Animation, Atomic Cartoons and Teleimages Kids. Produced in association with TeletoonCanada, M6 and Teletoon France. Miss Bg: Breakthrough Animation and Ellipsanime. Produced in association with TVOntario and France 5. JimmyTwo Shoes: Breakthrough Animation. Produced in association with Teletoon Canada and Jetix Europe.

Cartoon Forum Cover: Studio Baestarts new animated series, Huhu, brings its classic silent comedy sensibilities to Cartoon Forum.

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Corrections: In last months issue, an article stated that The Simpsons Movie was animated at Film Roman with overseas work from Rough DraftKorea. The movie was actually split 50/50 split between Rough Draft Studios U.S. and Film Roman--with overseas work from Rough Draft Korea.Comic-Con issue: Dan Povenmire and Jeff Swampy Marsh are co-creators as well as co-executive producers of Disney ChannelsPhineas and Ferb .4848

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ANIMATION MAGAZINEOctober 2007

Vol. 21, Issue 10, No. [email protected]

President Jean ThorenPublisher Jodi Bluth

Accounting Jan BayouthWebmaster Eric Brandenberg

EDITORIAL [email protected] Ramin Zahed

Web and Gaming Editor Ryan BallContributing Editors Chris Grove, Ron Magid,

Barbara RobertsonEditorial Assistant Mercedes Milligan

Copy Editor Roberta StreetAnimation Art Advisor Ron Barbagallo

Digital Reviews Editor Todd Sheridan PerryContributors Mike Fisher, Stuart Fischer, IanW. Gouldstone, Robby London, Thomas J.

McLean, Charles Solomon, Ellen Wolff

ADVERTISING [email protected]

Sheri Shelton

[email protected] and Production Director Susanne Rector

[email protected] Director Jan Bayouth

Circulation Administrator Alexis Beebe

TO ADVERTISE:Phone: 818-991-2884Fax: 818-991-3773

Email:[email protected]:www.animationmagazine.net

List RentalQuantum List Marketing

480-860-6036ANIMATION MAGAZINE

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Animation Magazine 2007 Animation Magazine

Prior written approval must be obtained to duplicate any and all contents.The copyrights and trademarks of images featured herein are the property of their respective

owners. Animation Magazine acknowledges the creators and copyright

holders of the materials mentioned herein, and does not seek to infringe on those rights.Printed in the U.S.A.

The summer of 2007 is over, folks! That means all the number crunchersin Hollywood are looking back at the ticket sales and celebrating thefact that a new record was set at the domestic (and possibly) global boxofce. As we went to press this month, we got word that despite all theearly doom and gloom reports, audiences spent over $4.003 billion at themovies between May 1 and August 26. This beats last summers $3.633billion (revenues are up 10.18% and attendance increased 5.35%) as well

as the big record summer of 2004 which was $3.95 billion by Labor Day!Sure, these numbers denitely need a little footnote to remind everyone of ticket price

inationaverage ticket prices were $6.21 in 2004, compared to $6.85 in 2007. Nevertheless, inthe animation and vfx universe, folks should be ordering up the bubbly, as nine out of the top10 blockbusters of the season were either animated or heavily reliant on visual effects.

The amazing performance of DreamWorksShrek the Third, Disney/PixarsRatatouilleandFoxsThe Simpsons Movieshould give everyone renewed hope in the future of animatedfeatures. Homer and his spider pig also proved that you dont have to rely on happy shinyCG projects to win the hearts of audience all over the world. Some even argue that the

heavyhitters in the vfx realmSpider-Man 3, Pirates of the Caribbean 3,Transfomersand Harry Potter andthe Order of the Phoenixhad more

in common with cartoons thanactual live-action movies.

Ramin [email protected]

Quote of the Month

Two frames later, Bourne

dispatched his aardvark

enemy with a crushing

elbow to the throat.

Michael Slezaks winning entry from an EW.com write-a-photo-caption contest, in con-nection with last months news that Matt Damon will make an animated guest appear-

ance on the long-running Cookie Jar/PBS series, Arthur .

Rank Title Studio U.S. * Intl. *

1. Spider-Man 3 [Sony] $336.5 $553.6

2. Shrek the Third [DreamWorks/Paramount] $321 $417.8

3. Transformers [Disney] $308.8 $367.2

4. Pirates of the Caribbean 3 [Disney] $308.1 $649.7

5. Harry Potter & the Order of the Phoenix[Warner Bros.]

$283.8 $612.2

6. Ratatouille [Disney] $199.3 $174.2

7. The Bourne Ultimatum [Universal] $187.4 $52.6

8. The Simpsons Movie [Fox] $174.2 $270.2

9. Knocked Up [Universal] $147.8 $25.5

10. Live Free Or Die Hard [Fox] $133.2 $215.3Source: www.boxofcemojo.com 8/28/07 * Gross in Millions

Lets just hope that the splendid report cards for thesemovies translate to better pay and more respect for thetalented men and women who work long hours to deliver our favorite animated lms. To paraphrase that old sawfromField of Dreams, if you build an awesome toon, theywill comeand happily cough up their hard-earnedmoneyto see it on the big screen!





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The Animat ion P lanner

October2Youmay have to take a big duffel bagto the DVD store today to carryout all the cool new animatedreleasesA Flintstones Christmas Carol , Disneys The Jungle Book: Platinum Edition , Tom & Jerry: A Nutcracker Tale andThe Year Without a Santa Claus: Deluxe

Edition .

2-3Brand LicensingEurope brings toy andlicensing execs to Londonthis week (http://show.brandlicensingexpo.com).

6-7Its time to buy or sellthe next big animated TVshow in Cannes at the annualMIPCOM Jr.market (www.mipcomjunior.com).

5 Immortal warriors try tosave the world from forcesof evil in the faux-medievalfantasy movieThe Dark Is Rising , which starsDeadwoods Ian McShane, opening intheaters nationwide today.

8-11/12Catch somecutting-edge Flash-animatedand motion graphics projectsat AlbuquerquesBest in theSW Festival(www.bestinthesw.com). Also starting today inCannes Palais des Festivals isthe annual TV confab known asMIPCOM(www.mipcom.com).

9 An odd trio of newanimated DVD releases

arrive today:Ben 10: Season 2 , Bratz Super Babyz and VeggieTales: The Wonderful Wizard of

Has . Its all aboutwhat oats yourboat, baby!

11-18The8th Annual SanDiego Asian Film Festival ofAnimationoffers a 90-minutecompilation of animated shorts(www.sdaff.org).

16The more impressionableaudiences may get a kick out ofthe newCharlie and Lola: Vol.6 DVD, while theolder, slightlydisturbed fanswill denitelyeat up everyminute ofSquidbillies:

Volume One!

18-28Chances are youllnd some quality animatedprojects at the 24th edition ofthe Chicago Intl ChildrensFilm Festival(www.cicff.org).

18Disney re-releasesThe Nightmare before Christmas 3D in theaters today.

19A husband-and-wife teamtrack down vampires in a smallAlaskan town in the featureadaptation of the graphic novel30 Days of Night , which stars Josh Hartnett, Melissa George

and Ben Foster.

26Jigsaw is supposedlydead, but that doesnt meanthe sadistic games wontcontinue inSaw IV , directed byDarren Lynn Bousman.

31Youll ndplenty of feature lm buyers,sellers and nanciers at theAmerican Film Marketin SantaMonica, Calif., this week (www.ifta-online.com/afm).

30 Just in time for Halloween,Warner Bros. unleashesShaggy and Scooby-Doo Get a Clue Vol. 1 . Lifeis also sweeter today thanks to thestudios two other hot releases,Looney Tunes: Golden Collection Vol. 5 and

Looney Tunes: Spotlight Collection Vol. 5 .

To get your companys events and products lis ted in this monthl y calendar, please e-mail [email protected]

24-28The nights arepretty long in Helsinki this timeof year, but youll have plentyof chances to see some coolshorts at the citysAnimatricksAnimationFestival(www.ani-matricks.net).

18-21Check out all thecool new videogames beingprepared for upcoming monthsat the E for All Expo 2007atthe L.A. Convention Center(www.eforallexpo.com).

23Entourage s Vinnie Chase hasnothing to do withThe Adventures of Aquaman: The Complete Collection DVDthat comes out today. Other top homeentertainment choices todayare Disneys early springfun-packed CG-animatedmovieMeet the Robinsons orSuper Powers Team: Galactic Guardians .





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F R A M E - B Y - F R A M E

O C T 0 7

W W W . A N I M A T I O N M A G A Z I N E . N E T

6

Books We LoveThe lazy days of summer may be ofcially draw-ing to a close, but that doesnt mean we have togive up on reading about our favorite animatedprojects and people. This month, we have threeexcellent book suggestions that should get ani-mation fans drooling like Pavlovs pooch:

Halas & Batchelor Cartoons: An AnimatedHistoryBy Vivien Halas and Paul Wells (Southbank Publishing, $35)

J oy Batchelor and John Halas are widely known as theteam behind the 1954 adap-tation of George Orwells AnimalFarm, which was considered Britainsrst feature-length animated movie.However, true animation fans knowthat their legacy goes far beyondthat one feature. Between 1940and 1995, Halas & Batchelor was one of the U.K.s mostinuential animation studios, and this book, penned bytheir daughter Vivien Halas and other experts, looks at itsinner workings and critical inuences. Animation professor Paul Wells also provides viewers with well-researched com-mentary on works such as The Tales of Hoffnung , ButteryBall and Autobahn . The tome includes a chapter by JimWalker on the teams commercial work, a lovely intro byAardmans Nick Park and several scholarly essays pennedby the likes of Karl Cohen and John Canemaker. In the

words of animation expert John Canemaker, If there werea king and queen of British animation, those crowns wouldsurely belong to the estimable husband-and-wife team ofHalas and Batchelor. Looking at the beautifully designedand richly illustrated pages of this book (which comes witha DVD sampler of their projects, including Magic Canvas,The Figurehead, The History of the Cinema, Automania

2000, The Symphony Orchestra and Know Your EuropeansUK), were sure youll have to agree.

The Ofcial Price Guide to DisneyCollectibles(House of Collectibles, Second Edition, $29.95)

Finally, a book that will come in handy for those of us whond ourselves wondering about the true value of, say,a Steamboat Willie ceramic magnet or Cruella De Vil hair roller mug. Thousands of Disneyana itemsfromcomic books and movie cels to music boxes,

dolls and snow globesare featured in this info-packed volume that will come to your aid whenyoure making your bid on eBay or cleaning outAunt Harriets dusty old attic. The publishers arepromising over 28,000 items listed within morethan 125 sections (and 1,040 pages) with full-col-or photos and current values for every darn list-ing! And were not just talking about classic 2D charactersfrom the Golden AgePixar characters and live-actionitems are also invited to this price guide parade!

Stan Lee: ConversationsEdited by Jeff McLaughlin (University Press of Mississippi, $20)

Perhaps no other living gure in the world of superhe-roes and comic books receives more well-deservedadmiration and attention than Stan Lee, the creator

of such timeless characters as Spi-der-Man, The X-Men, The FantasticFour, Iron Man and The IncredibleHulk. Unlike many comic-book mas-ters, however, he is also incred-ibly friendly, press-savvy and an all-around charming man. Edited byJeff McLaughlin, the new collectionof interviews is a great way to learn

about his creative process, his viewson the role of superheroes and mythology in our cul-ture, the evolution of the comic biz, and to simply get asense of this charming and talented man. The interviews(1968-2005) are culled from his conversations with thelikes of cartoonists Jack Kirby, Harvey Kurtzman and RoyThomas, talk show legend Dick Cavett and DC Com-ics head Jenette Kahn (who is Marvels main rival!).Die-hard fans will want to get their hands on this book especially because it includes Lees never-before-pub-lished 1970 poem titled God Woke. Overall, a greatway to celebrate the legacy of this ebullient genius andall-around great human being.

Ramin Zahed





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F R A ME -B Y -F R A ME WWW

.A NI MA T I ONMA

GA Z I NE .NE T

O C T 0 7

7

Although most of the reviews of THINK-Films indie comedyThe Tenhave men-tioned the offbeat humor and quirkycast list, many failed to point out that one of thebest sequences in the feature was animated byNew York-based Augenblick Studios (best knownfor its raunchy contributions to MTV2s cult hit,Wonder Showzen). The Tenis currently playing inlimited release in the U.S. and is well worth the

trip to the nearest art house.The Tenis co-written and directed by the tal-

ented David Wain, director of Wet Hot Ameri-can Summer and one-third of the comedytroupe Stella, which had a brilliant, but short-lived, series on Comedy Central last year. WainsStella cohorts, Michael Ian Black and MichaelShowalter, appear briey in the lm as part of anensemble cast that includes Paul Rudd, JessicaAlba, Winona Ryder, Famke Janssen, Liev Sch-reiber, Adam Brody, Gretchen Mol, Rob Corddry,Oliver Platt and Ron Silver. Also making appear-

ances are a number of former members ofcomedy collective The State, including Ken Ma-rino, who co-wrote the lm with Wain.

Following his role in the hit summer comedyKnocked Up, Paul Rudd introduces each of TheTens silly, pseudo morality tales, which arebased on the Ten Commandments. About half-way through, we get Thou shall not bear falsewitness, which is illustrated by the story of ananimated Rhino (voiced by H. Jon BenjaminfromDr. Katzand Home Moviesfame) who winsfriends and inuences people by making up liesabout others. Like the boy who cried wolf, he

soon nds that all the animals soon disbelieveevery word he says, even as he warns them ofimpending doom.

The animation by Augenblick Studios is a col-orful and cheery mix of Flash, PhotoShop andAfter Effects that harkens back to the early daysof animation as it depicts gruesome cartoon vi-olence and animal fornication. Aaron Augen-blick served as animation director and charac-ter designer, leading a team of six artists thatspent about four months creating the sequencebasically as a labor of love.

Wain, who wanted to tackle a lot of differentgenres in the movie, contacted Augenblick be-

cause he was a fan of the work the studio did onWonder Showzen and asked if it was even pos-sible given the lms small budget. I was like,Yeah, yeah, lets do it! Augenblick tells us. Iwas so excited because I was also a big fan ofWet Hot American Summer , and it was the samepeople working on it. Other than my own festi-val projects, I havent gotten to do 35mm, so Iwas just really excited to do something in a lm.

Right from the beginning, David Wain and

Ken Marino were referencing old Fleischer car-toons, which I think is one of the things that theywere sort of attracted to in our stuff, Augenblick continues. We do stuff thats pretty apprecia-tive of 30s-era cartoons. They wanted a multi-tude of characters all sort of bouncing alongand dancing and that kind of stuff. Fleischer car-toons have always been my favorites, so my ap-proach was to try to do it in a style that wasevocative of Betty Boopand Popeye , without

trying to make it look old. I didnt want to try anddo some faux-retro piece like in [our web series]Golden Age, as if it were an old cartoon. I want-ed to do it in a style that was evocative of thosecartoons, but still really vibrant with bright colors,dirty humor and disturbing, gross visuals. The ap-proach was to imagine what Fleischer Studioswould do if they were around today and theywere animating an all-animal orgy.

Augenblick tells us that working onThe Tenwas probably the most fun he and his crewhave had to date, though it was a lot of hardwork making the piece look really traditional.Even though we drew it in Flash, every single

frame is hand-drawn, and we did all traditionalin-betweening, he notes. We tried not tocheat as much as possible by staying awayfrom doing computer moves and stuff like that.It was denitely a hand-drawn, labor-intensivepiece. We knew that the movie was going to beso good that we just kind of went all-out on it.

After all that work, Augenblick says hes a bitdisappointed that the animation hasnt been

showing up in any of the lms marketing efforts.

One of the things the promotional team de-cided was that theyre trying to keep the ani-mation almost like a secret, he says. They kindof want people to be surprised when it comeson, so theyre trying not to put it in most of theads. Were sort of like this unfortunate, hiddensecret in the movie.

Augenblick Studios is currently working on anew series titledSuperjailfor Cartoon Networks[adult swim]. The team is starting production this

month on 10 episodes of the show, which Au-genblick says is about a jail that operates as if itwere run by Willy Wonka. Its a hyper-violent,psychedelic, really cartoony jail and theres ba-sically non-stop action from beginning to end,he explains. Were denitely trying to push do-ing a really, really fully animated show on TV. Itspretty wild. Were writing the scripts right nowand its going to be great! Q

Tips on Animating anAnimal Orgy

Aaron Augenblick chats about his studios work on DavidWains indie feature, The Ten . by Ryan Ball

You can watch a clip from Superjailand learn more about Augenblick Studios at www.augenblickstudios.

com. The ofcial site for The Ten can be found at www.thetenmovie.com.

Ken Marino (left) and Aaron Augenblick





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A n y o n ewho hase v e r wanted to reachinto a Warner Bros.cartoon and takepart in the fun nowhas a chance todo exactly that asWarner Bros. Inter-active debuts

Looney Tunes:Duck Amuck for the Nintendo DShandheld gamesystem. Using thedevices uniquestylus and micro-phone, players can interact with DaffyDuck just like the unseen animator does in the classic 1951 Chuck Jonescartoon, Duck Amuck , on which thegame is based.

These days, its not that often thatDaffy appears as more than just anicon, says Duck Amuck designer RobBuchanan of WayForward Technolo-gies. In Duck Amuck , Daffy is aliveand is even aware hes in a video-game. For those of us who lovedwatching Daffy Duck cartoons grow-ing up, its a real treat!

While Buchanan believes there is stilla lot of potential to unlock in the DSplatform, he feels Duck Amuck takesadvantage of its ca-

pabilities by givingLooney Tunes loversa whole new way toenjoy the madcapfun the cartoons arefamous for. For in-stance, players canpick Daffy up andtoss him around or poke him in thehead, then listen tohim gripe about it.At one point in thegame, the stylus can

even be used to erase hisbody and draw him a newone.

It was important for Way-Forward and Warner Bros.Interactive to make thegame feel like a real Loo-ney Tunes cartoon, com-plete with authentic propdesigns, dialogue andcharacter poses. They even

went so far as to dig upDaffys character modelsheet from 1953 to use as areference for the anima-tion.

Basically, we channeledChuck Jones

the whole time, Bu-chanan remarks.

Buchanan tells us thatthey adopted a devel-opment process that

was more akin to an ani-mation production thana video game, creatingthe scripts in storyboardform rather than just writ-ing dialogue. Too manycartoons rely on dia-logue now, I think. Inthose days it was allabout the visual gags.

Animation for thegame was created in

Adobe Flash by Ghost-

bot. Buchanan says heand his team were initiallyhesitant to do it that waybecause if it came outlooking too smooth or toolimited, it wouldnt meshwith the iconic LooneyTunes style. In the end, itwas pulled off brilliantly,he states. The advan-tage to doing it all withFlash was that fewer ani-mators could create thesame volume of work,

making it easi-er to keep Daf-fy consistentfrom onescene or reac-tion to thenext. It alsogave us exibil-ity to use theanimation in-game at whatever sizewe needed it, since the vector-based

images that Flash uses can be scaledup or down perfectly. It saved us a lotof technical headaches.

Players get to be the headache inDuck Amuck as they prod and ha-rangue Daffy to see just how angry

they can make him.Buchanan thinksgamers will nd thisaspect of the gamemost satisfying, espe-cially after the wacky

quacker makesenough snotty re-marks. If the title issuccessful enough,perhaps fans will getto torture other Loo-ney Tunes favorites inthe future. Personal-ly, Id love to seemore of this concepton the DS! Buchan-an enthuses. Maybe

a Messin with Marvin or a Fiddle with

Fudd game!All joking aside, there was a 1955 se-

quel to the Duck Amuck cartooncalled Rabbit Rampage , which Bu-chanan feels would make a perfectfollow-up to the game. Itd be fantas-tic to see some classic Bugs Bunny ani-mation and humor brought back theway we did for Duck Amuck DS. Q

Channeling Chuck JonesLooney Tunes fans get Daffy with Duck Amuck on DS.

by Ryan Ball

Duck Amuck will be released forNintendo DS on October 9, alongwith the Warner Bros. Interactive title

Looney Tunes: Acme Arsenal forXbox 360, Wii and PlayStation 2.





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Its always a popular question from theaudience during Q&As. Sometimes itfeels a bit like a padding question to llup an embarrassingly quiet interview alongthe lines of Who are your inuences? or What software did you use? But often-times theres a genuine interest (at least fromme). Indeed, ever since my last lm,guy101,started doing the rounds, So whats next?

has been the question that makes me sweatbullets. I love that it puts me on the spot andgives me a snapshot of where I am in time,but I hate it for the same exact reasons.

Back when I graduated from the RoyalCollege of Art in 2005, I thought I knew howto answer it. I had heard other fresh-meatanimation directors in similar positions tomine declare, Im going to make another lm or Im going to direct a music videofor this emergent indie electro band. I wasso impressed and I wished that I could besaying the same few words implicit of being

caught up in that whirlwind of activity andracing toward my animation directors des-tiny. So I started to allude nonchalantly topersonal work, writing and even a fewof the projects I was working on as a Mayaor After Effects monkey.

I was really obsessed with the idea of be-ing busyor at least being perceived to bebusy. The truth was that I was ghting with agazillion other super-talented people in order to work overtime as a nomadic freelancer earning minor pay for projects that were re-ally offering little personal gratication. Andas much as I genuinely enjoyed bringing the

super-stylized anthropomorphisms spoutingnon sequitur humor to life, I could never real-ly get behind using them as tools for peopleto forget their lives. It often made me think of a quotation from Albert Einstein: Perfec-tion of means and confusion of goals seem,in my opinion, to characterize our time.

Indeed, this personal dissatisfaction car-ried on for a couple of years as guy101

worked its way through loads of festivals.It picked up some huge awards, too: Anaward from the Royal Television Society,a few animation festival Grand Prix, a BestShort from a festival called Cinekink (you

work that one out for yourself) and even aBAFTA back in February Undeniably, the

lm was a success. But I still wasnt. And asthe prizes piled up, I became more awareof the creative space between where I waswhen I made the lm and where I was atevery one of those prize ceremonies. As for the Q&A sessions, I pined for questions aboutmy lm and my background, while I secretlyloathed my answer to So, whats next?

So one day, I decided to change theanswer. I ditched all the nomadic free lancework, the brutal competition and the wholered sea marketwhere the blood of all theghting animators and studios had stainedthe water. I decided to nd the much more

tranquil blue seas.Right about now, Im

very conscious of thefact that I havent toldyou where the blue

seas are. And I wont,because everyone hastheir own. Just realizethat animators are in-credibly marketable not because of their practical skills, but be-cause of the careful balance of emotionaland intellectual intelligences that drive thoseskills. Where else can you nd people whoare both technical savants and emotionalempaths? That symphonic combination is sorare, and yet so important these days. Con-sider any emergent complex social technol-ogythe web, government, games, etc. Asthese offerings stray further away from whatpeople can traditionally grasp, they requireimmensely capable people not only to un-derstand them, but then repackage themso that other people can (Maybe even asa super-realistic anthropomorphism?). So,take a step back, Im sure you can nd your-self a blue sea.

Of course, in theory, it all sounds very sim-ple. Well, it sure isnt. On the blue sea, thefuture is unknown. The path is undetermined.

And it isincredibly lonely. I go to sleep atnight trying to gure out whats going tohappen next, where my next paycheck iscoming from, and thinking about all the stuffI need to learn the next day, the next month

and the next year. But I do sleep. And I doit well because although I am uncertain of

where my life is going, I am condent thatIm steering it.

Nowadays, I really enjoy Q&A sessions.Maybe its because I am more secure. Or perhaps its because I feel less pressure toperform. Or it could just be that I love thelook on peoples faces when I get to tellthem what is actually next. QIan W. Gouldstones guy101 recently wonthe top student prize at Platform Anima-tion Festival. If he tells you about his su-per-secret follow-up project, he may haveto kill you. Find out more about his work atwww.iwgouldstone.com.

So, Whats Next, Dude?A young London-based animator discusses the mysterious

ways you can take control of your career after winningtruckloads of festival prizes. by Ian W. Gouldstone

Ian W.Gouldstone

I go to sleep at night trying to gure out whats going to happennext, where my next paycheck is coming from, and thinking aboutall the stuff I need to learn the next day, the next month and thenext year.





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Although its generally regarded as aninnocent medium, animation hasbeen linked to politics since the sec-ond decade of the 20th century. ColonelHeeza Liars African Hunt,a partial spoof ofTheodore Roosevelt, was released in 1914;Quirino Cristiani lmed his satiricalEl Apstolin1917; and Winsor McCay made The Sinking of the Lusitaniain 1918. In recent years, Japaneseanimators have tackled ecological crises, pol-

lution, the problems of an aging populationand the threats posed by an unregulated mili-tary-industrial complex. But the controversysurrounding the Japanese governments re-fusal to acknowledge crimes committed dur-ing WWII makes the bold handling of the sub- ject in Tetsujin 28a surprise.

During the latter days of the Pacic War (Atruly terrible time for Japan), ace scientist Dr.Kaneda created the prototype Tetsujin, a gi-gantic robot-soldier that would be used againstthe Allies. (Articially aged footage shows how

Tetsujin robots would attack San Francisco.)Appalled at what he had done, Dr. Kanedaleaked the location of his laboratory to theAmericans to ensure its destructionand hisown death. A decade later, Tetsujin arises fromthe ruins of the lab and comes to Tokyo, whereit encounters Dr. Kanedas son, Shotaro, andDr. Shikishima, his former apprentice.

At 10, Shotaro is already a top-notch boydetective. Like his European counterpart, Tin-tin, he notices clues the police overlook andmakes connections that escape others. Al-though he drives a car, Shotaro is less indepen-

dent than Tintin and less of a ghter: Dr. Shiki-shima and Police Chief Otsuka have carefullyoverseen his upbringing. When Tetsujin reap-pears, Shotaro immediately establishes a bondwith his fathers other son. Like other robotsof the pre-Gundam era, Tetsujin is an indepen-dent entity that Shotaro directs by manipulat-ing the knobs and levers on a small controlbox.

Tetsujin brings Shotaro into contact with hisfathers old associates, many of whom havebeen trying to escape their pasts. Dr. Furanken(whose name suggests the Japanese pronun-ciation of Frankenstein) performed experi-

ments on corpses, including thebody of his own son. When helearns that the cyborg-monster that once was his son still lives, Dr.Furanken does Lady Macbethone better and sees blood owingfrom his hands.

Guilt haunts many of the char-acters in Tetsujin 28. Although thescientists insist, We had no choice,they regret creating things that should never have been brought into this world. Not all thevillains are scientists, or even Japanese. Usinga corporate shell as a cover, the internationalPX Syndicate plots to use robots to take over the burgeoning Japanese economy. In onemulti-part adventure, American mobster ThrillSuspense steals the control box and uses Tetsu- jin to commit robberies.

Suspenses actions precipitate a debateover Tetsujins nature that runs through the rest

of the series: Is the robot a weapon or a tool?If Tetsujin is essentially a weapon, it must bedestroyed before it can do any damage; if it isinherently a tool, its actions depend on theusers intent. Suspense might use Tetsujin for il-legal activities, but Shotaro never would. Theongoing discussion becomes a metaphor for atomic energy, which can also be used as aweapon or a toolas the Japanese know onlytoo well.

The Tetsujin 28series (2004) is a remake ofGigantor (1963), themecha series that aired insyndication in America during the late 1960s.The original manga, Tetsujin 28 Gou, was cre-ated by Mitsuteru Yokoyama (1934-2004) in1956. Ironically, Yokoyama said the Tetsujin ro-bot was inspired by the American B-29s he sawbomb his native Kobe when he was a boy.Since its initial publication,Tetsujin 28 Gouhasbeen adapted to two other animated series,an animated feature and a live-action lm.Yokoyamas reections on the war and its af-

tereffects clearly struck a chord in Japaneseaudiences.For the 2004 remake, the lmmakers were

careful to preserve the Tezuka-in-uenced look of 50s mangaand animation. Tetsujin has anose like a carrot stuck in asnowmans face, a round bodyand thick, heavy limbs. With hislarge eyes, wide face andchubby legs, Shotaro suggests across between Astroboy andLinus Van Pelt. Dr. Furanken and

many of the other scientists sportthe stiff cockscombs of hair Te-

zuka often gave his characters.At the end of the series, Chief Otsuka calls

Tetsujin a ghost from the war sent back toremind us, to keep us from forgetting our crimes. Dr. Shikishima replies, We have to fullyacknowledge our crimes Perhaps a time willcome to be punished for them.

Thats not the sort of conclusion audiencesexpect from a cartoon show. Q

by Charles Solomon

T h e S a m u r a i C r i t i c :R e v i e w s o f t h e l a t e s t a n i m e t i t l e s o n D V D

Tetsujin 28: The Complete Set[Geneon: $39.98, four discs]





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4

SpongeBob SquarePants:Season 5, Vol. 1

[Paramount, $36.99]Two of Nicks highest-rated animatedseasons will compete for your eyeballsthis month. First up, theres the rst col-lection of episodes from the fth (andcurrent) season of the yellow absor-

bent hero from Bikini Bottom. The two-disc release kicks off with the one-hour ashback special which looks at whythe friendship between Plankton and

Mr. Krabs turned sour.Among other highlights:

Squidward installs anelectrical fence to

keep SpongeBoband Patrick fromsneaking into his

room; Mr. Krabs de-

cides to sell SpongeBobmerchandise; Squidwardsventriloquist dummy becomesmore popular than Squidward;and SpongeBob blows off his

friends when he falls in love with aKrabby Patty! [Release date: Sept. 4]

Avatar Complete Book 2[Paramount, $64.99]

Nicks other popular 2D show Ava-tar: The Last Air Bender will have all

the episodes of Book 2 (thats over eight hours) released on a collectors-dream ve-disc set this month as well. Inthe second season opener, which airedin March 2006, our 12-year-old hero isplagued with nightmares resulting fromhis powerful Avatar State. Aang and

the gang meet an Earth Kingdom gen-eral who has big plans for defeatingthe Fire Nation, while Princes sister hassome seemingly good news from PrinceZuko and Uncle Iroh. Two fascinatingnew characters are introduced in Book 2, and youll love the epic-type nale ofthis season which is beautifully mount-ed, fast-paced and thrilling to watch.

[Release date: Sept. 11]

Josie and the Pussycats:The Complete Series

[Turner Home Ent., $26.98]If you watched Saturday morning TV

shows in 1970 (or caught up with themon Boomerang), you can probablyhum the opening theme song to thissilly, formula-driven and ultimately veryaddictive Hanna-Barbera series. Based

on one of the Archie Comics charac-ters, the toon follows the adventures ofglobe-trotting band members Josie,Valerie and Melody; Alan the roadie;Alexandra (his scheming sister); andSebastian the Cat who manage tosave the world from evil forces through-out the 16-episode run of the show (be-fore they all take off ina runaway spaceshipin the absurd spinoff,

Josie in Outer Space ).The two-disc set also

includes a docu aboutJosies creator, DanDeCarlo. Trivia note:Melodys singing voicewas provided by noneother than Charlies Angel Cheryl Ladd!Far out! [Release date: Sept. 18]

Robot Chicken: Season 2[Cartoon Network, $29.98]

Seth Green and Matthew Senreichsstop-motion toy comedy spoof hitsnew heights in this two-disc collection,

which features19 glorious epi-sodes plus them u c h - l o v e dStar Wars -

themed spe-cial half-hour outing (with a voice castwhich includes George Lucas, Mark Hamill, Seth McFarlane, Conan OBrienand Malcolm McDowell). Here aresome of the episode descriptions thatcrack us up: The Six Million Peso Man ;Leader of the Thundercats suffers as apet; A Very Dragonball Z Christmas ;Old dancing guy from the Six Flagscommercials saves and ruins the day;Lindsay Lohan enters the world of High-lander ; My Little Ponies of the Apoca-lypse; Senior Mutant Ninja Turtles ;George W. Bush discovers his Jedi pow-ers; Care Bears care a lotabout eth-nic cleansing; The ugly side of RainbowBrite; Beastmaster takes Broadway bystorm; Vince Vaughn Bangs Your Mom ;Meet Caspers brother Jasper, theDouchebag Ghost! Seriously, folks, itdoesnt get better than this! [Releasedate: Sept. 4]

Tekkon Kinkreet[Sony, $26.96]

American born director Mi-chael Arias ( The Animatrix )injected an almost Europe-an sensibility to some of theanime traditions in this beau-tifully drawn tale of two

street urchins whobattle with traditionalassassins and hostilealiens in a decayingmetropolis of the future. Critics

praised Arias vision as well asthe humanity of its storyline andthe deep friendship betweenthe two lead characters (The ti-tle Tekkon Kinkreet is a play on

the Japanese words for concrete, ironand muscle.) The DVD includes a con-versation with Arias and British bandPlaid who provide the soundtrack, au-dio commentary and The Making of Tekkon: Director Michael Arias 300 DayDiary. Its denitely an original and visu-ally remarkable trip. [Release date:Sept. 25] Q

Familiar Faces in New SituationsSay good-bye to summer by planning marathon viewings

of some of todays top TV toons and a fresh anime journey from an American director.

by Ramin Zahed





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