Project Worksheep, at its fourth edition
A number of animation makers renowned internationally or active in the local film industry will be present at the 11th edition of the International Animation Film Festival Anim’est, to reveal to the lovers of animation a few of the secrets behind this complex and fascinating branch of cinematography.
For the first time, the host of the educational endeavours of Anim’est – made concrete through a series of presentations, masterclasses and workshops – is the International Center for Research and Education in Creative Technologies – CINETic, an ambitious research project in the field of art and cinematography at the National University of Theater and Cinematographic Arts I.L. Caragiale
A highlight of the guest list of the festival this year is the presence of Shelley Page, one of the longest-lasting members of the famous animation studio DreamWorks Animation, who will teach a masterclass on Character Design & Development for Animation. Her name has been well-known in the field for over 30 years and she has taken part in a lot of famous features, such as Shrek, Shark Tale, Madagascar, Kung Fu Panda or How to Train Your Dragon. On this year’s edition Shelley will also be on the jury of the competitions of international short films and student-made short films.
An event worth attending for whoever wishes to discover the process behind the production of a stop-motion animation feature is the meeting with Anthony Farquar-Smith, key-animator for celebrated features such as Corpse Bride (d. Tim Burton) or Fantastic Mr. Fox (d. Wes Anderson). Anthony will be a part of the jury for the international feature films competition and Romanian short films competition and will give a must-see presentation: Stop Motion, Roald Dahl and Wes Anderson. How three very different things combined to make ‘The Fantastic Mr. Fox’.
In addition to this, the Anim’est 2016 programme includes a series of invitations behind the scenes of Belgian animation. Present in Bucharest will be Eric Goossens, the founder of Walking the Dog, one of the most important Belgian animation studios, Vincent Gilot, head of the animation department at Le Cambre school, one of the most important art and design institutions in Belgium, Ben Stassen, director and producer of the 3D animation Robinson Crusoe, and Eric Franssen, director of Wallonie Bruxelles Images.
More than a peek behind the scenes, Anim’est offers the most enthusiastic fans of animation a chance to practise various techniques and to create their own animated product, under the guidance of specialists. This year, Vincent Gilot, together with a group of students of Le Cambre school, will organize a workshop for the young animators taking part in the festival. More details coming soon.
The young viewers (aged 8 to 12) will also have the chance to take part in demonstration workshops on stop-motion, pixilation and cut-out (paper), in the company of trainers Serghei Chiviriga, Ana Dobrescu and Ion Aramă. Participation will be free of charge, and details on registration can be requested at ana@animest.ro. Also on both weekends of the festival, between the first and the second screening, the young viewers will be invited to creative workshops starting from the topics and characters of the films they have watched. These workshops will be held by Clubul Meu – Ateliere Recreative Tei, by Ion Creangă Theatre and by Marta Curteanu, acteress/child entertainer; participation is free of charge and does not require registration.
Project worksheep, open for submission
With the help of HBO Romania, Anim’est restarts Project WorkSheep, the contest for short animated film projects, now at its fourth edition. Young animators are encouraged to present their projects in front of professionals in the field. The best project will be awarded a prize of 1000 $ offered by HBO Romania and will also receive coaching for its further development. This year the jury is made up of: Anthony Farquar-Smith, director and animator, Martin Vandas, producer at the company MAUR Film Ltd., Jean-Cristophe Soulageon, director of production company Les Films Sauvages, Dan Panaitescu, animator at DSG, and Vlad Ilicevici, executive director of Anim’est.
Presentation will be preceded by a workshop during which the selected projects will receive guidance from Joe King, professor at Royal College of Art, London, and Udo Prinsen, animator. Submission deadline is October 4th, and more details are available on the site of Anim’est.
The eleventh edition of the International Animation Film Festival Anim’est will take place between October 7th and 16th 2016 at CinemaPRO, Cinema Elvire Popesco, Cinemateca Eforie, The Cervantes Institute, CINETic Center, DESCHIS Gastrobar Club Fabrica and Club Control. The tickets for projections – worth 10 lei each – will be available on www.eventbook.ro, and also in cinemas throughout the festival. The access to presentations and masterclasses is free, as long as there are seats available.
The International Animation Film Festival Anim’est, a member of the paneuropean network Cartoon, is organized by the Este’n’est Association, with support from the National Center for Cinematography, the Ministry of Culture, the Administration of National Cultural Funds, the Cineasts’ Union in Romania and the Romanian Cultural Institute.
