International Animation Stars Come To Dundee

PROJECTOR

INTERNATIONAL ANIMATION STARS COME TO DUNDEE

PROJECTOR,
the festival that celebrates the best in the animation world, is back
at Dundee Contemporary Arts from 30 January–2 February 2008. It will be
launched on Saturday 26 January with a special screening of Anders Rønnow Klarlund’s Strings.

PROJECTOR,
which is now in its seventh year, is the only festival in Scotland
dedicated to animation. It is renowned for the quality of its speakers,
bringing luminaries and specialists together to present a series of
screenings, workshops, masterclasses and panels – the programme
promotes an exchange of information and opportunity with audiences and
participants from within the industry, students, and fans of the genre.

As well as Scottish premieres of films including Persepolis and The Three Musketeers, and the UK premiere of Free Jimmy, some of the high-level guests who will participate in PROJECTOR in 2008 include: Sharon Colman, who hails from the shores of Loch Lomond, director of Oscar-nominated Badgered and now with DreamWorks in LA; Ed Hooks, acting coach to Pixar, Disney and DreamWorks; Nicolas Schmerkin, founder of studio Autour de Minuit; Bill Plympton, Oscar-nominated director; Abi Feijó and Regina Pessoa, directors of award-winning films Clandestino and Tragic Story with Happy Ending; Phil Mulloy, multi-award winning director; Francis McKee, Director of the Centre for Contemporary Arts in Glasgow; and Jayne Pilling, Director of the British Animation Awards.

Originally
a one-day event dedicated to professionals, PROJECTOR has now grown to
a four-day event encompassing a wide range of events with a broader
public appeal. The growing numbers of participants include animation
professionals working across television, film and new media and
students of these areas, as well as supporting agencies and interested
members of the public.

Susie Wilson, director, says:

‘I’ve worked hard over the past year to develop
an international event that would combine creativity and networking
with a practical understanding of key creative and business issues.
It’s unbelievably exciting to have the international guests arriving to
deliver expertise to the industry but it’s equally, if
not more, exciting that much of the talent is coming from within
Scotland’s shores. Many of the delegates are from abroad which just
shows how important PROJECTOR has become in the animation calendar.
And, like any good visual festival, it’s highly entertaining.’

For
the first time this year, there will be a PROJECTOR
artist-in-residence. ‘Drawing the Experience’ is artist Jenny Soep’s
interpretation of the time she spends experiencing the festival. Tune
in daily to http://jennysoep.blogspot.com.

30 January–2 February 2008 │ Dundee Contemporary Arts │ Tickets £5-£50

To book call 01382 386 961 or email [email protected] │ www.projectorfest.com

Full programme below.

For further information please contact

Helen Loughlin 07784 319 868 / [email protected] or

Susie Wilson, Director, 01382 386 714 / 07968 849 170 / [email protected]

– Ends –

Notes to Editors

1. PROJECTOR is the creation of Susie Wilson who established the festival in 2001. Recognising
the need for a dedicated platform for the exhibition, exploration and
promotion of animation in Scotland, PROJECTOR’s mission is to develop
an international event that would combine ? stimulation and networking
with practical understanding of key creative and business issues.

2. PROJECTOR
is sponsored by Scottish Enterprise Tayside, Scottish Screen,
University of Dundee, manipulate, Skillset, BAFTA Scotland, and
University of Abertay Dundee.

3. Previous guests at PROJECTOR
include: Chris Landreth, Oscar-winning director of ‘Ryan’; Sylvain
Chomet, Oscar-nominated director of ‘Belleville Rendezvous’; Shelley
Page, Head of DreamWorks Europe; Philip Hunt, Head of Studio AKA; Helen
Nabarro, Head of BBC Animation Unit; Ed Hooks, acting coach to Pixar
and Disney Studios; Claire Jennings, producer of Aardman feature
‘Chicken Run’ and Oscar-winning ‘Father and Daughter’; Dave Burgess,
lead animator at DreamWorks LA; Grant Morrison, writer for 2000AD and
Universal Studios; Jayne Pilling, Director of the British Animation
Awards.

4. High-resolution logos available.

5. High-resolution image of Susie Wilson available.

6. Participants available for interview before the festival starts are Sharon Colman and Bill Plympton. Jayne Pilling.

7. Participants available for interview during the festival are: Ed Hooks; Nicolas Schmerkin; Bill Plympton; Abi Feijó and Regina Pessoa; Jonathan Clements; Jayne Pilling; Phil Mulloy; and Francis McKee

FULL PROJECTOR 2008 PROGRAMME BY DATE

Saturday 26 January 2008

17.30 Screening: Strings

Wednesday 30 January 2008

13.00 Screening: Hot Shorts 1

15.00 Workshop: Acting for Animators w. Ed Hooks

19.00 Screening: Hot Shorts 2

21.00 Masterclass: Autour de Minuit w. Nicolas Schmerkin

Thursday 31 January 2008

13.00 Screening: Hot Shorts 3

15.00 Screening: Paprika

17.00 Masterclass: Scratching the Surface w. Francis McKee

19.00 Screening: No Strings Attached

Friday 1 February 2008

21.00 Masterclass: Phil Mulloy w. Phil Mulloy

11.00 Screening: Hot Shorts 1

13.00 Masterclass: Japanese Animation in the Digital Age w. Jonathan Clements

15.00 Screening: Hot Shorts 2

17.00 Masterclass: Rocket to LA w. Sharon Colman

19.00 Screening: Text and Type

21.00 Panel: The State of the (Animation) Nation

22.00 Party

Saturday 2 February 2008

11.00 Screening: Hot Shorts 3

13.00 Screening: The Three Musketeers

15.00 Masterclass: Idiots and Angels w. Bill Plympton

15.00 Workshop: The Optical Toybox w. Abi Feijó & Regina Pessoa

17.00 Screening: No Strings Attached

19.00 Screening: Persepolis

21.00 Screening: Free Jimmy

PROJECTOR 2008 PROGRAMME BY EVENT TYPE

Masterclasses:

Wednesday 30 January 2008

21:00 Autour de Minuit

Since Nicolas Schmerkin
founded Autour de Minuit in 2001, the production company has developed
a portfolio of uncommon quality with artists as singular and
uncompromising as Mat&SpoN, Rosto and Chris Shepherd. Diverse as
they may be, it's the constant communication with hybridisation that
forms the key, fruitful element in AtM's character.

Thursday 31 January 2008

17:00 Scratching the Surface

Francis McKee,
Director of the Centre for Contemporary Arts in Glasgow, will explore
the tensions and synergies between animation created for the cinema and
that created with a gallery space in mind, while investigating the
shared spaces, in the work of directors such as David Shrigley, Matt
Hulse, William Kentridge and Anthony McCall.

Thursday 31 January 2008

21:00 Phil Mulloy on Phil Mulloy

Phil Mulloy
employs his unique insight into the provocative and highly original
animation talent that is Phil Mulloy to give us a fascinating study of
a fierce, black comic wit at work in an heroic quest against all that
is kitsch and sentimental. His blunt, at times brutal style,
exquisitely displays the disorder and contradictions of our elaborate
human condition.

Friday 1 February 2008

13:00 Japanese Animation in the Digital Age

Jonathan Clements,
co-author of 'The Anime Encyclopedia: A Guide to Japanese Animation
since 1917', charts the rise of digital animation in Japan. From its
early role as a gimmick to its modern position as the industry's
standard process, how did digital technology change editing techniques,
staffing policies and even storylines?

Friday 1 February 2008

17:00 Rocket to LA

Sharon Colman's
'Badgered' is a short film of a sleepy mustelid and nuclear warheads
that won an Oscar nomination last year. Beginning as an illustrator at
Glasgow School of Art, she is now a story artist at DreamWorks; here
she'll discuss the influences of the former, the reality of the latter,
and the connections and tensions between the two.

Saturday 2 February 2008

15:00 Idiots and Angels

Simply put, Bill Plympton
is one of the world's most successful independent animators. While
touching on an analysis of his techniques, vision and goals, Bill shows
world exclusive clips from his brand new feature ‘Idiots and Angels’,
and everyone present is gifted with an original work of art.

Industry Panel:

Friday 1 February 2008

21:00 The State of the (Animation) Nation with the Projector All-Stars

All
speakers at the Festival will discuss animation creation, production
and distribution in their respective countries and experiences. Joining
the debate will be Biljana Labovic, producer for Bill Plympton, and
Jayne Pilling, director of the British Animation Awards.

Workshops:

Wednesday 30 January 2008

15:00 ‘Acting for Animators’

Ed Hooks,
acting coach to Pixar, Disney and DreamWorks, returns for a 4 hour
workshop focusing on character design through acting by the animator,
in particular the connections between thought, emotion and physical
movement.

Saturday 2 February 2008

15:00 ‘The Optical Toybox’

Abi Feijo and Regina Pessao
will use the contents of their Optical Toybox to explore the creation
of animation with zoetropes, flipbooks, thaumatropes and folioscopes.
They illustrate the workshop with working models using images from
their award-winning films ‘Clandestino’ and ‘Tragic Story with Happy
Ending’.