World Premiere Of North Of Blue By Indie Animation Queen – Joanna Priestley

WORLD PREMIERE OF “North Of Blue” BY INDIE ANIMATION QUEEN – JOANNA PRIESTLEY

Acclaimed Indie animation queen Joanna Priestley has jumped off the deep end of the image pool into a luscious, mind bending, abstract animated feature film that will premiere at the Hollywood Theatre (Portland, OR) on September 21, 2017 at 7 PM. North of Blue (60 min.) began in the mysterious winter landscape of the far north where Priestley was filmmaker-in-residence at the Klondike Institute of Art and Culture in Dawson City, Canada. Continue reading... “World Premiere Of North Of Blue By Indie Animation Queen – Joanna Priestley”

HouseSpecial’s ‘Jailbreak’ Takes Best Picture at the We Like ‘Em Short Film Festival

Jailbreak - a stop-motion short from HouseSpecial

HouseSpecial took home the award for Best Picture at the We Like ‘Em Short Film Festival held on August 17-20, 2017 in Baker City, Oregon. Aaron Sorenson wrote and directed the winning stop-motion film, Jailbreak, which was shot in black and white. The story follows the daring escape of a desperate prisoner fleeing his nightmarish cell in pursuit of sweet punishment. The design is German Expressionist-inspired, but with a decidedly adult twist.

“Everything about Jailbreak is perfect – beautifully shot, perfect timing and hilarious. Continue reading... “HouseSpecial’s ‘Jailbreak’ Takes Best Picture at the We Like ‘Em Short Film Festival”

Netflix Orders New Show, “Disenchantment”, From Matt Groening

Netflix has given Oregonian, Matt Groening,  a 20-episode order for a new animated comedy, “Disenchantment.”  The adult fantasy comedy is about “life and death, love and sex, and how to keep laughing in a world full of suffering and idiots, despite what the elders and wizards and other jerks tell you,” Groening told Variety.

Matt Groening was born and raised in Portland, then moved to LA in the 1980’s to work at a newspaper.  It was there that he began drawing a comic strip called “Life in Hell.” Continue reading... “Netflix Orders New Show, “Disenchantment”, From Matt Groening”

BENT Design Lab hits ‘Bulls-eye” with stop motion animated TV spot for Oregon Lottery

Design Lab Director Solomon Burbridge crafted two :15 second energetic, stop motion spots for the 2017 Keno “Bulls Eye” campaign in collaboration with the creative team from Pollinate.

Burbridge guided his team to blend visual influences from classic musical dance numbers of Busby Berkeley with contemporary motion art.

The first thing you notice is the energetic, playful feeling of the spot, syncopated to a driving club beat:

“I approached this with our animation team as a collaborative affair. Essentially, we became an improv troupe of pencils, collectively searching out a non-linear (but parse-able) way to promote fun and elevate everyday objects into graphic motion art,” says Burbridge. Continue reading... “BENT Design Lab hits ‘Bulls-eye” with stop motion animated TV spot for Oregon Lottery”

NW Animation Fest 2017 Kicks Off May 10th In Portland, & May 19th in Eugene.

Tickets are now on sale for the 2017 NW Animation Fest in both Portland (May 10-14) and Eugene (May 19-21).  Don’t miss out, there is a huge and diverse offering of animation work to see. Continue reading... “NW Animation Fest 2017 Kicks Off May 10th In Portland, & May 19th in Eugene.”

#OregonMade Animated Comedy Series Turns America’s Obsession With Weight & Body Image Into Morbidly-Funny Cartoons

https://vimeo.com/206132887

WATCH the first 5 cartoons on Vimeo.

The recently-launched SmashTheHive Studio in SE Portland has just debuted its first production —the “My American Waistline” animated comedy series. This fearless, unapologetic and politically-incorrect collection of bite-size shorts leaves no muffin top unturned or moob unchafed in its unsparing quest to expose America’s fixation on over-eating, under-eating, ripped abs, apple bottoms and surgical enhancement.

The project is the brainchild of SmashTheHive founder and award-winning sound designer Jason Edwards, whose credits include ten independent features, numerous animated shorts and three major network television series. Continue reading... “#OregonMade Animated Comedy Series Turns America’s Obsession With Weight & Body Image Into Morbidly-Funny Cartoons”

“Oregon’s Animation Magic” On OPB TV

Don’t miss out! Get an exclusive look at how animation gets made in Oregon, from the studios of Portland’s indie animators to the heavyweights in the stop-motion animation industry. “Oregon’s Animation Magic: An Oregon Art Beat Special” premieres tonight, April 27, at 8 p.m. on OPB TV and online at the same time at opb.org/animation.

Explore more of “Oregon’s Animation Magic” on OPB’s special series page, here: http://www.opb.org/artsandlife/series/animation/ 

  Continue reading... ““Oregon’s Animation Magic” On OPB TV”

This Fall Animating Life:The Art, Science, and Wonder of LAIKA Comes to Portland Art Museum

The Boxtrolls, courtesy of LAIKA

Behind the scenes, the Oregon animation studio, LAIKA, is an amazing collection of animators, artists, cutting-edge tech, and good, old-fashioned story-telling, and this fall you will be able to explore LAIKA’s “creative process” from start to finish at the Portland Art Museum.

The Northwest Film Center and the Portland Art Museum have partnered with LAIKA to present the immersive experience.

For more information look here, the exhibit opens October 14, 2017-May 20, 2018.

#OregonMade

#OregonMadeShows Continue reading... “This Fall Animating Life:The Art, Science, and Wonder of LAIKA Comes to Portland Art Museum”

via VFX/PDX – A VFX/CG/Post Job Fair – Coming Monday 3/20 @ CENTRL (east)

As Grimm fades to black, it’s hard not to get a little nostalgic considering the massive contribution to our local VFX scene. But this also signals a call to action and the need to pull together quickly, to keep as many of the dozens of Ex-Grimm artists here and gainfully employed as possible.  Local studios, agencies, and other companies operating in the VFX/CG/Post/Game space are on baord.

Next Monday, March 20, from 5-7pm at co-working space CENTRL (Eastside), VFX/PDX presents “A Very Grimm Happy Hour.” Continue reading... “via VFX/PDX – A VFX/CG/Post Job Fair – Coming Monday 3/20 @ CENTRL (east)”

Congrats To LAIKA’s “Kubo And The Two Strings” On Three Annie Award Wins

Congratulations to LAIKA on their three Annie Award wins for “Kubo And The Two Strings“:

  • Production Design in an Animated Feature Production
    Nelson Lowry, Trevor Dalmer, August Hall, Ean McNamara
    KUBO AND THE TWO STRINGS
  • Character Animation in an Animated Feature Production
    Jan Maas
    KUBO AND THE TWO STRINGS
    Laika
  • Editorial in an Animated Feature Production
    Christopher Murrie
    KUBO AND THE TWO STRINGS

We will all be watching the  2017 Academy Awards later this month as “Kubo” garnered two nominations for,  Animated Feature, and Visual Effects. Continue reading... “Congrats To LAIKA’s “Kubo And The Two Strings” On Three Annie Award Wins”