Event Updates: AWUK's Virtual F * ck Up Night, VES Set Presenters, Maxon 2022 Lineup and more

March 3 2022

Animated Women UK (animatedwomenuk. com) will organize a virtual F * ck Up Night event on the evening of Tuesday 8 March, International Women's Day. After a successful first event in December 2020, F * ck Up Night returns with a new panel of speakers from the visual effects and animation industry who gather on Zoom to share their experiences and talk about "how to achieve something positive. from bullshit and failures ". The event is free for AWUK members or £ 5 for non-members; tickets available here

Led by AWUK Animation Co-Chair Dara McGarry, the speakers will share their “less than successful moments” and what they have learned from them. This is followed by an opportunity for all attendees to participate in a question and answer session via live chat and discussion on Zoom. Participants will then be invited to split into smaller groups and encouraged to share their stories. Speakers:

Debra Coleman, founder of Open Frame Coaching and alumna of Animated Women UK Achieve program
Bianca Iancu, Lead Animation at Bompa Studio
Emma Taylor Gilli, Digital Matte Painter at One of Us
Karla Young, Head of PR, Marketing & Communications at Jellyfish Pictures.

Above: Guillermo del Toro, Lynwen Brennan. Bottom: Drew Carey, Tawny Newsome, Phil Tippett, Denis Villeneuve.

The Visual Effects Society (VES, visualeffectssociety.com) announced the full list of special award winners and award presenters for the 20th Annual VES Awards, recognizing the outstanding artistry of visual effects and innovation in film, animation, television, advertising and video games and effects professionals visuals that bring this job to life (see full list of candidates here). During the ceremony on Tuesday 8 March at The Beverly Hilton Hotel, prizes will be awarded in 25 categories and the program will include special presentations. The winners and the speakers are (in order of formation):

Guillermo del Toro - current Oscar-winning director / nominee (Nightmare Alley); VES Award for Creative Excellence container
Lynwen Brennan - EVP / General Manager of Lucasfilm; VES Lifetime Achievement Award container
Drew Carey - VES Awards host; The Price is Right, Whose Line is It Anyway?
Denis Villeneuve. - Oscar-nominated director Dune, Dune: Part 2
Alfred Molina - Spider-Man: No Way Home, Trollhunters: Rise of the Titans
Tawny Newsome - Space Force, Star Trek: Lower Decks
Deborah Cox - Grammy Award-nominated / multi-platinum R&B / pop recording artist; Eleven station
Phil Tippett - Academy Award Winning Visual Effects Supervisor
Jim Morris - President, Pixar Animation Studios; founding president of VES
Eric Bourque - Senior Director, Engineering at Autodesk, presenting the VES-Autodesk Student Award

Another exciting virtual session of VIEW Conference has been added to the calendar. Following the news of the panels of Oscar nominees for animation and visual effects, Italy's CG confab announced that it will be hosting five Oscar nominees for animated short films on Wednesday, March 16 at 9:30 am PST / 17:30 pm. UK / 18:30 CET. Registration is free (sign up here) but donations in support of VIEW programming are appreciated (donate here).

The event features director Joanna Quinn and writer / producer Les Mills (Art Affairs), director Hugo Covarrubias and executive producer Tevo Diaz (Beast), director Anton Dyakov (Boxballet), directors Mikey Please and Daniel Ojari (Robin Robin) and director Alberto Mielgo and producer and CG supervisor Leo Sánchez (The Windshield Wiper). Ramin Zahed, Editor-in-Chief of Animation Magazine, is moderating!

Why shouldn't animated short filmmakers have their “Oscar moment” live on TV?

Speaking of the Oscars, The Animation Guild (IATSE Local 839) reportedly denounced the Academy's decision to cut the presentation of the best animated short from its live show this year. The category is one of eight (including the original score) that will be prerecorded and re-entered into the telecast on March 27 in what the Academy hopes will be a "tighter" three-hour show.

The TAG Board's statement on change, as shared by Cartoon Brew, reads: “Short films are critical to show the diversity of voices around the world and excluding them from live broadcasting affects inclusion efforts. Cinema is a collaborative enterprise and every contribution is essential. We are disappointed with the Academy's decision to send a message that some artistic endeavors are less valuable than others. We strongly believe that the artistry behind animated short films and the other seven categories should be presented and accepted in the live television broadcast. "

Maxon has announced its full offering of 3D events, VFX and motion design for its user community for 2022. The annual schedule includes the return of the popular 3D and Motion Design show, weekly webinars and, after two years of canceled shows, a promising return to events in person, starting with NAB 2022 (April 24-27); April 3D and the Motion Design Show are expected to be broadcast live from the Maxon NAB booth.

The 3D and Motion Design shows will continue to feature presentations from motion graphics experts and visual effects artists showing professional 3D techniques and real-world production workflows using Maxon's Cinema 4D, Redshift and Red Giant product lines, as well as the new ZBrush tools. New for 2022, each show will open with Maxon's “News and Notes”. Presentations from each event will be streamed live and will be available online shortly after airing on 3DMotionShow.com and Maxon's YouTube channel. The 3D and Motion Design shows begin March 23 at 8:30 am PT with speakers including 3D generalist Matt Milstead, Rocket Lasso founder Chris Schmidt, concept / character artist Pablo Munoz Gomez, and Character Director Michael Pavlovich , Weapon and Vehicle Art at Certain Affinity. Further performances are scheduled for May 18, June 22, July 20, SIGGRAPH (August 8-11), September 28, October 19, November 9 and December 7.

Numerous webinars will also be broadcast live each week with the themes “Demystifying Post-Production” (Monday at 9:00 am PST), “Hands-on with Maxon” (Wednesday at 8:00 am PST), “Max On Color” (1 Thurs and 3rd Thursdays, 9:00 am PST), “Ask the Trainer” (2nd and 4th Thursdays, 8:00 am PST) and “VFX and Chill” (Fridays at 10:00 am PST). Check out the weekly topics and register at maxon.net/en/events.

The site in Spanish Animation for adults released its second annual list of the best animated works of the year, voted on by a panel of industry professionals, journalists, critics, researchers and festival organizers. The 2021 list published here covers three key categories of animated achievement (titles in alphabetical order):

Feature films: Belle, Cryptozoo, Encanto, Evangelion 3.0 + 1.01 Thrice Upon a Time, Flee, The Summit of the Gods, Luca, Mad God, Raya and the Last Dragon, The Mitchells vs. the Machines
Series: Arcane, Cut along the dotted line, Invincible, Cosmic Kid, City of Ghosts, Love Death + Robots, Marvel What If… ?, Maya and the Three, Rick and Morty, Tuca & Bertie
Short films: Affairs of the Art, Bad Seeds, Beast, Easter Eggs, Namoo, Us Again, Robin Robin, Swallow the Universe, Twenty Something, The Windshield Wiper

The Walt Disney Family Museum announced its next big special exhibition, The Jungle Book: Making a Masterpiece by Walt Disney, to celebrate the 55th anniversary of the beloved animated classic. Curated by acclaimed Disney animator and legend Andreas Deja, the exhibition will debut in summer 2022 in the Diane Disney Miller exhibition hall and will explore the creative intricacies behind the film, including the characters' unique personalities, voices, artwork, cutting-edge techniques, memorable songs by brothers Sherman and Terry Gilkyson, the impact of Walt's death during production and the film's enduring popularity. Further details will be announced in April.

In conjunction with this exhibition, the museum will also present its first cause awareness exhibition, Creative Conservation: Endangered Animal Art, in the Lower Lobby and Theater Gallery. In collaboration with five wildlife sanctuaries located around the world, the exhibit will be open to all museum ticket holders free of charge and will feature abstract creations and footprints of rescued and rehabilitated animals, complemented by wildlife-inspired artwork from Deja. All the works will be available for purchase through the museum's website, with the proceeds supporting the wildlife sanctuaries.

But wait, there's more ...

Public voting is now open for the EE Game of the Year Award, which will be presented at the BAFTA Game Awards (April 7). The six candidates selected by the jury are Chicory: A Colorful Tale, Deathloop, It Takes Two, Metroid Dread, The Forgotten City and Unpacking. Game fans can vote for their favorite on ee.co.uk by 18pm. GMT on April 00, 1.

WIFTV announced the official selection for the 2022 Vancouver International Women in Film Festival (March 8-13; Vancouver, BC). Among 33 films from 12 countries, animated highlights include Mélanie Saint-Germain's Elles, PA's The Ancestral Tree Duquette and Martina Scarpelli's music video for Kai's “A Little Too Much”. viff.ca

SIGGRAPH 2022 (Aug 8-11; Vancouver, BC) Electronic Theater applications are open. Deadline: March 22, 2022. s2022.siggraph.org

The Swedish International Film Festival (10-13 April; Arvika, Sweden) invites you to attend its live event, including animated and experimental films and music videos. Deadline: March 9, 2022 (early bird) / March 31 (final). thesiff.com

Cartoon Forum 2022 (September 19-22; Toulouse, France) is open for project submissions - don't miss the chance to present your animated series / TV special to 950 animation professionals this fall! Deadline: May 9, 2022. cartoon-media.eu