Filmmaker and animator Jared D. Weiss recently released his latest animated short, Brazey, which is now available for viewing on Vimeo. Weiss is a creative filmmaker who created an impressive short, featuring music that was recorded all in one take, and then the short was animated to the music that was recorded directly without any storyboards or script.
We all love animation here, but I don’t think any of us, writer or reader, love animation as much as my next interview subject. John Canemaker is both an animator and an animation historian. As an author and documentary filmmaker, he’s written extensively about animation powerhouses like Disney and Warner Brothers. As an animator, his work has been seen on shows like Sesame Street and Pee-Wee’s Playhouse, as well as at film festivals the world over. He’s even won an Academy Award for Best Animated Short, an honor accorded him for his short The Moon And The Son: An Imagined Conversation. Here’s a highlight reel of Mr. Canemaker’s work over the years from his YouTube channel:
Machinima and Warner Bros. Animation have released a new trailer for the upcoming animated web series for Justice League: Gods and Monsters Chronicles. The series is produced and co-written by DC and animation luminary in Bruce Timm. Justice League: Gods and Monsters Chronicles serves as the prelude to the upcoming animated movie, Justice League: Gods and Monsters. While Timm has worked on some DC animated shorts, this is his first major project since wrapping up the Green Lantern animated series and also The Dark Knight Returns animated movie. The new trailer is available below.
Just when you thought the appearances of Spider-Man couldn’t get any bigger…another Spider-Man movie gets announced. But this one is in animated form!
Monstera Deliciosa is another very strong animated short that was used as an opening for the International Festival of Animated Film (FIFA) Annecy 2009. In it we follow a middle-aged lamp lighter who is fascinated by the appearance of some lights dancing around the greenhouse in which he works. Upon touching one of the glowing orbs a fairy appears. Intrigued by the effect of touch on the lights, he gives chase as they fly away, unaware they might lead him to his end. This short was created by second year Gobelins students, Jeremy Macedo, Julien Perron, Ornélie Prioul, Remi Salmon.
Le Lac Gele is a gorgeous little short that was made as an opening for the International Festival of Animated Film (FIFA) Annecy 2009. An elderly man is guided by a strange dog to the edge of a frozen lake in a distant land. Here he plays witness to a light show from which he may not return. Le Lac Gelé was created by Gobelins second year students, Jean-David Fabre, Fabien Guillaume, Sébastien Hary, Paul Nivet, Vincent Verniers. The music was done by Mathieu Alvado.
Paramore recently released a new animated music video for Anklebiters from their self-titled album. The video was directed by Jordan Bruner and animated by Bruner, Greg Lytle and Blake Patrick. Anklebiters mixes hand drawn and cut out art styles to create some really trippy and cool characters, some that seem to be Pac-Man inspired. The song is a hell of a lot of fun too. It’s great to hear Paramore maturing, exploring who they are and experimenting with their sound. It’s a strong album and you should definitely check it out.
Bon Appetit is an adorably designed and fun short from Craig Knowles and David Ridges. In this 2009 short, a mother and daughter decide to sit on a part bench next to a monster that decides to steal the little girl’s ice cream cone. Watch it and you too will learn important life lessons such as:
ROSA is a post-apocalyptic sci-fi animated short that was released in 2011. Rosa, a cyborg, is mankind’s last hope for restoration of the Earth’s ecosystem. She awakens in a ruined area and is thrust into a fight or flight situation. She must survive a battle against two other cyborgs or Earth’s hopes will perish with her. This short chronicles that battle.
As part of their 8-bit Cinema feature, Cinefix recently created a short in which they retold the events of the original Iron Man film in the 8-bit style of Mega Man. Here for your viewing pleasure is Iron Man in 60 Seconds. For more information on 8-bit Cinefix and 8-bit Cinema, be sure to check out their Youtube channel.
Ah, music videos. It’s always fascinating to see what happens when they mix music with my favorite storytelling medium. Let’s sit back and watch Kalopsia, which is off of the new Queens of the Stone Age Album, Like Clockwork. For more info on the album, visit the official Queens of the Stone Age site, mygodisthesun.com.
Chill out to this music video by Professor Soap a.k.a. Ryan Mauskopf. In it, an astronaut takes off in his ship and takes a trip through a black hole. If you visit his site, you’ll be able to download some storyboards from the animated short.