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Previous News
10.28.06
* My Name is
Earl .... A
live action show (humans, not puppets) on NBC TV
( A Flash-heavy  site). I do not watch
much TV episodic drama, weekly sitcoms, and especially not,
those reality type competition series (like Survivor). I
prefer documentaries, nature/science, some news
specials/programs and such, and of course, my escapism
is rental movies, especially the classics and catching
independent flicks/shorts whenever I can. I only mention
this Earl show because, apparently,
there will be some brief Stop Mo scenes
in one of the episodes (Nov 16). It looks like a few of
the 'Robot Chicken' crew, freelancing on the side, worked
on it. Check out this short article about it, Animating Earl Edit 10.29.06
* Fantastic
Mr. Fox ....
I thought I heard about this just a few years ago. This
was going to be an ALL  Stop Motion flick.
Since then, complete dead silence until
now; just released press about it. Fox Animation
is the new player that's picking up Mr.
Fox. What do you think; the Fox
"suits" chose this project
because the title of this animation project has "Fox"?
Duh ...What kind of marketing strategy is that  or
maybe just a coincidence? I thought Fox Animation
was defunct, no more. Wes Anderson is
the appointed director of 'Mr. Fox'. The
press release says, "a number of animation
forms, including a heavy dose of stop-motion".
We shall see, we shall see. Do not instantly believe
everything you read on the internet. Fox Hounds Anderson's 'Mr Fox' & Link 2. The press releases do not say, who
or what studio or crew will
be doing the actual animation. IMDb shows Henry Selick as
originally going to be associated with project, but that
could be old information. FYI: Roald Dahl wrote
the screenplay for "You Only Live Twice" (1967). Also, listen to Robbie
Williams' "Millenium" (1999) which samples the Twice
intro theme Edit 10.29.06
* Some
salient points by Henry Selick ..... He is revealing a little more
teaser info about  Coraline. I like his observations about the element
of darkness in films and why should it not apply
to animation? It looks like, Henry is going against the Tinsel
Town Suit's myopic mentality of generally stereotyping
"animation" as, for kids
entertainment only. Let's hope Henry has the
creative freedom. Laika is behind him and also Focus Features (a division of Universal
Pictures). Read, Coraline Test Shooting Underway
* Now for
your pleasure .... some
Chicken  .... E.T. returns home in 'Robot
Chicken' spoof
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10.21.06
* Stop
Mo-Pho: Covers
ScreamFest '06 & Offering SMA Logo
Products .... Some
small Stop Motion happenings at the event with the Chiodo Brothers being one of the highlights.
If you did not know, the brothers
authored a recent childrens book and
there is some percolating buzz
happening with them with regards to possible Stop
Motion projects. At the end of this blog, there
is link to Keith Brett's (aka Stop
Mo-Pho) report. Also, Keith's Bride of Wire Studio is now offering, emblem/logo
products that represents Stop Motion
Animation "universally".
The logo does not promote any specific
website or any kind of product or movie.
My own sense, since
the beginning of Stop Motion history, it
seems to have been "Cursed"!  ;
always struggling for recognition and gets no respect by the CGI addicted, mainstream Tinsel
Town "Suits". I do not
want to start ranting again, about the apathy of you lurkers at
the Stop Motion Message board, but
instead, for the moment, I want to send out
Love  and Positivity  Vibes
in this blog/news installment. If you still
will not come out of your closet
& speak-up, at least do
something "inside your closet"  to help
create public awareness about Stop
Motion Animation. Buy yourself some SMA
shirts, coffee mugs, buttons,
etc, and also get them as gifts, and spread
the SMA Gospel. Bride of Wire
Studio is offering them through Cafe
Press. They (Cafe Press) get the lion's share of
the price (to produce the items), but Keith has kept his
overhead to just about zero for the sake
of making this available to you all. Here is Keith's Bride of Wire News-Blog about ScreamFest '06
and this is link to Bride of Wire Products. Last week, Keith posted
ScreamFest larger pictures at message board (last pic, that
is Keith in middle, the taller dude with eyeglasses) but no
message replies from you, acknowledging it (What's wrong
with you peoples!?)
* Stop Motion
Software & Tools Update .... Again, what's up with yous
people? The people at AnimatorDV have  recently announced at the message board, that they will be
offering a Free Version of one of their introductory
animation frame grabbing programs (PC-Windows). Geeez .... how you
all take this for granted, you
Internet-iPod-MySpacey generation; no
appreciation. You should "thank"
AnimatorDV and email them or post at the message board. Be grateful
that there are a minority of software authors
catering to this esoteric animation art-craft called
Stop Motion. The software
providers are the unsung heros.
For more professional work and more "bells &
whistles" features such as using Digital
Still Cameras for Stop Motion, they offer more
sophisticated & higher level AnimatorDV Software.
Another Stop
Motion Sofware provider has recently updated
their product. It was formerly called Video
Blender 2 but now renamed as Frames and has more robust features. This company focuses on
an overall Stop Motion package that seems to geared to
the educational market, or to teach a group of
kids, or just to sort-of home school
Stop Motion; for beginners to start
learning hands-on & tactile creativity
expression. Tech4 Learning offers
guidelines & much online
documentation for teachers or home schoolers in
setting up an animation curriculum.
I recently received an interesting
FYI email. This is not a frame grabbing
capture program, but for post production music
work. The company is called FlexiMusic. There are 4 separate programs (PC-Windows)
and each program has a specialty application. Then there
is one music creation program for kids. I have not yet
explored in depth, post production music work for
animation, but for the budget minded,
FlexiMusic  looks appealing for
perhaps beginning music creation for
your Stop Motion Animations. The website
is thorough in describing
each application's features. They offer
a no obligation, Free 7 day trial download
of actual use (not just 7
calendar days). The programs are affordable
and even more cost-effective, if you buy
the whole package of programs. They seem to have much
more "bells & whistles" than the other
freebie music programs with only basic features. The site
seems friendly and perhaps responsive (good customer
service). Also, in their Support
section, they have a pretty good FAQ. If
you have the inclination, why don't you give the
programs a try? Let me know how the programs work,
and also, post it at the message board so that everyone
can know. Edit 10.22.06
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10.14.06
* This is
Halloween, this is Halloween .... I am the one hiding
under your Bed! Starting to get more press releases
in my inbox hyping-up NMBC 3D.
Opens next Friday, October 20. I will
try and be all positive & cheery,
but just going back in time when NMBC
 originally came out, a summary ....
"When 'The Nightmare Before Christmas' was
released in 1993, it proved to be a massive hit for the
critics ... and only that. Grossing somewhere around $50
million at the box office, it was initially considered by
Disney as a major flop. Not much enthusiasm for Stop
Motion, by the Mouse "suits". That was
the old Disney. Hopefully with the new Disney-Pixar
powers that be, they will be more bold,
cutting edge, in supporting different
aesthetics, concepts, styles (not just CGI
& homogenized storylines). I am hearing buzz that Disney
will not abandon 2D animation and will
return to it. Well, that is a start. How
about supporting new Stop Motion projects?
Here is a quick interview with one of the
head people overseeing the transformation  of NMBC into Stereo
3D, New Dimension for ''Nightmare
Before Christmas'.
It seems that there are no plans to
release 3D DVDs. I get the feeling, the "suits"
for now, want the 3D bait-hook,
to draw people "out" to the theaters.
Unfortunately, NMBC will have a
limited release for the 3D version.
Here is a list where it will play in USA & Canada. I do not know if NMBC-3D
will be internationally released. It
will exclusively play at theaters equipped with the
proprietary Real 3D Cinema System.
A new NMB C 2 disc music CD being released too, with some guest
muscian/singer artists doing a few songs
from NMBC. I kind of 'Dig', She
Wants Revenge interpretation of "Kidnap the
Sandy Claws". You can listen
to some samples at Nightmare 3D MySpace Site . The NMBC teaser clip will first
attempt to download. You can quickly turn off the player,
then scroll down the MySpace page to hear the song
streams. This is a Flash intensive website and
biased towards broadband internet connections.
"Sorry" to Dial-up internet users  . Maybe give up your cell phones and use that saved money to get
high speed internet? 
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10.07.06
* Dreamworks
and Aardman No More? Am I good or what!?  Why
am I bragging? About 6 months ago I could feel it
in my guts that the relationship
between those studios was kind of shakey.
DreamWorks press releases at the time, suggested that
their financial woes was partly due to  the Wallace & Gromit movie's
poor box office; DreamWorks sort-of
using Aardman as a scapegoat?? In my view, Stop Motion
is a whole different culture and has
its own creativity style and production
methods which are very different,
compared to the mouse-clicking
'Puter CGI production pipeline and mindset. CGI
only specialty studios are indoctrinated in
their high techy, plug'n play animation production system
and IMO, they cannot understand Stop Motion;
its idiocyncrasies, organic-ness
and looser style. I am not
dissing DreamWorks here. I just like to be direct,
to the point, and you know that many
times, I play Devil's Advocate. Okay, read for yourself, Splitsville for DreamWorks and
Aardman? Is Th-Th-That All, Folks? also about sameness of CGI (If NY
Times forces you to subscribe to read article, clear all
cookies in your cache, and open new browser window / or try this, same article by author, different title)
Take a look at my Gandalf, Crystal Ball-like
rant/prediction earlier in year. Edit 10.08.06
* Underground
Animation Art/Craft: Schools Teaching Stop Mo = Rare There seems to be frequent
requests at the message board about Stop Motion specific
schools. For the innocent newbies, I am saddened
to give you the news, it appears, in most USA
educational institutions (public, private, &
trade schools), Stop Motion does
not seem to have any status and
generally disregarded. Schools /
Universities caught-up in the world
dominating CGI 'Puter animation , and
following behind CGI, Traditional 2D drawn
animation is given priority. Stop Motion
is usually, so way last . I am not
whining. I actually do not give a rat's pink butt what
mainstream does. Make your own world &
reality, follow your own path, try & learn on your
own, and do not to listen to all the outside
crap from the homogenized mainstream media.
Do not
ask me to predict the future
of Stop Motion, although currently, it
seems to be having some sort of c omeback in mainstream and other
markets. Also, strong thanks to the internet;
informing and exposing
to the general public about our
Animation Art/Craft. Stop Motion is not
an "industry". It has had a
volatile existence since the beginning of cinema history.
Do Stop Motion because you have a passion for it (and
keep your day job). Oh yes, back to schools ....
my Stop Mo Bro, Ken A. Priebe, the
author of the new book, The Art of Stop Motion Animation (I was the technical editor of
book ), also teaches one
of the rare, specialty Stop
Motion focused courses at VanArts Institute of Media Arts (in Canada). For those newbies
seeking in-person guidance from a mentor-instructor, Ken
is the dude to give you a solid Stop
Motion foundation. Edit 10.08.06
* 'Henry
Selick Retrospective' Sorry you missed it (so did I) Whassup with The
Oregonian? I have not gone to any advertising
agency school and I know how to do better advanced
marketing & promotion. They announce the Selick talk,
the same day of the event. Duh? Anyway ... you can
catch a brief interview online with Henry .... you da
Stop Mo man, Selick Talk at NW Film
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