NewsReel 05/12/08

Passion Pictures sign new French Directors

Passion Pictures announces the signing of four new directors Sebastien Cannone, Arnaud & Jerome, Dimitri Stankowicz and Jean Lecointre, all of whom are based at the company’s Paris office, Passion Paris. Collectively, these directors’ work spans a range of styles including mixed media, motion graphics, and character animation. Passion Pictures will represent the directors for commercials, music videos and online content in France, the UK and in the USA.

Passion Pictures’ CEO and executive producer Andrew Ruhemann says, “There is an exceptional pool of animation talent in France at the moment, which Passion Paris is perfectly placed to discover. We are very proud to welcome these exciting new directors to our roster.”

Sebastien Cannone

Sebastien Cannone combines live action with realistic CG animation to create beautifully crafted films which both mimic and distort reality. His award winning campaign for Virgin 17 Radio (Best On-Air Ident, Promax BDA Gold 2008) features an array of bizarre but convincingly life-like characters in simple live action settings. They include a giant octopus–like creature moving through a city, a woman whose hair moves as though it were living tentacles and an art gallery containing an enormous metallic sculpture, with a life of its own.
http://www.passion-pictures.com/flash.html#page=d124

Arnaud and Jerome

Film makers Arnaud Delord and Jerome Combe work together as a directing partnership called Arnaud & Jerome, combining their skills in design, live action, and computer animation. Their first project for Passion Paris is a commercial for French ready meal brand Marie which uses a blend of live action settings and animated characters. The distinctive style of their work is achieved using motion capture and CG animation.
http://www.passion-pictures.com/flash.html#page=d123

Dimitri Stankowicz

Dimitri Stankowicz designs and directs animation in a simple, graphic style. Some of his work is 2D animation and some is created in camera frequently using natural textures such as paper, leaves and paint.
http://www.passion-pictures.com/flash.html#page=d114

Jean Lecointre

Jean Lecointre’s surreal narratives are acted out by strange composite characters made out of unlikely objects such as fruit, flowers and biscuits. His quirky, collage animation style uses still photographs, live action and animation which is composited using After FX.
http://www.passion-pictures.com/flash.html#page=d118

For further information please contact Sian at Passion Pictures
Tel: +44 207 323 9933 email: sian@passion-pictures.com


All Stand Up and Welcome Harold

Founded by Director/Producer Lee Scharfstein, creative development, creation and execution company harold group has officially launched in NYC. The boutique entity, comprised of four creative directors/directors, including Scharfstein, will act as both a creative services agency and production company, working in tandem with advertising agencies as well as direct to client.

"I surveyed the advertising landscape and saw a real need for a dynamic specialty firm," noted Scharfstein. "Traditional as well as new media agencies often find a gap between their great ideas and the ability to creatively execute them. Harold's passion for melding technologies to create multiplatform content will aid in making that vital connection with the target audience."

Want more!?? Look here!!

DownloadsVisit harold group


McKenna joins A52

Recently a52's executive producer Ron Cosentino proudly announced the addition of award-winning VFX supervisor and artist Andy McKenna to his full-time staff in the position of Lead Flame Artist. At a52, which is well known for its artful contributions to major commercial, music video and television projects.

Since beginning his career in 1994, he has established himself as one of the world's premier VFX artists working in commercials, music videos and feature films. "For as long as I can remember," he says, "a52 has been one of the most prestigious VFX companies in the United States.

There is a certain sense of style and sophistication to the finish of all work that a52 produces. It's pretty obvious why the top directors all do work here...."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8n71875hvN8 .

Z Animation Receives Annie Award Nomination

TV Commercial Animation company Z Animation has been nominated for an Annie Award in the category of Best Animated Television Commercial for its work on “Sarah,” a traditionally-animated 2D public service spot for agency Martin Williams Advertising in Minneapolis and client Citizens for a Safer Minnesota.

French director/designer Caroline Attia made her American commercial debut with this simple yet emotionally charged anti-gun violence :60 spot. Presented by ASIFA-Hollywood, the Annie Awards will be presented January 30, 2009 at UCLA’s Royce Hall.
When Martin/Williams copywriter Jake Lancaster, VP/Director of Production Stan Prinsen and VP/Group Creative Director Randy Tatum decided to adapt for television what was originally a radio spot, they were drawn to Attia’s playful fashionista style.

“We didn’t want to lead anyone on, but at the same time, we wanted to present this girl’s journey as a happy story, and Caroline’s style lent itself to that,” Prinsen explains. “She is so talented and collaborative, and just hit it coming out of the gate.”Z Animation founder and Executive Producer Peter Barg stated, “I am thrilled for both Caroline and the creative team at Martin/Williams who worked together so closely to make 'Sarah' a reality. It just shows that sometimes, the simplest medium can convey the most powerful ideas.”

Check it out at:

http://www.zanimation.tv/recent.cfm?RecentWorkID=29

http://www.zanimation.tv/

National Zero-G(eographic)

Gravity – overrated isn’t it? I mean, who really needs it. Unfortunately, since Newton ate an apple under a heavy tree and invented the bloody thing we’ve been stuck with it. Or something like that. We don’t know – The Reel deals with ads, not sciences.

Joshing aside, if there’s one thing that pretty much unites all ads it’s the fact that the people, products and places involved are all subject to the laws of physics. Well not any more, as brothers and sisters London have created a set of idents for the National Geographic channel that reduce the G’s to zero!

Made to correspond with the channel’s upcoming Space Week event, the campaign is the first time a TV channel and European agency have filmed in total weightlessness. To achieve the effects, the creative team took National Geographic’s iconic yellow border, 20 cubes of jelly, a rack of pool balls, four balloons, two apples, several torches, four packs of M&M’s shoved them in a G-Force One airplane.

Travelling to the Nevada Desert, the team, headed up by creative directors Steve Shannon of brothers and sisters and Lee Parker of National Geographic Channel UK, experienced weightlessness in a specially-adapted Boeing 727 aircraft - the G-Force One. The same type of plane used by NASA to train their astronauts, the aircraft performed a series of high-altitude flight movements, during which the plane climbed at a 45 degree angle to approximately 10,000 metres before freefalling rapidly in what is known as a parabolic curve. The top of each curve allows 30 seconds of true weightlessness – achieving zero gravity.

The crew experienced 17 parabolic dives in the vomit comet, giving them just eight and a half minutes to record the idents. Strategically positioned camera crews captured each angle, ensuring that every second of zero gravity was recorded on film. Each time zero gravity was achieved, every member of the crew on board was sent floating – lights, cameras and props in hand – as the action commenced. Amazingly, the majority of the shots worked!

The resulting idents are ‘experiments’ in zero gravity with various objects, including a handful of pool balls being hit by the cue ball, the bursting of a balloon filled with water; and crew members sliding up the walls of the plane, throwing each other to play catch. Smartly retaining the shambolic spontaneity of the shoot (for evidence just check out the terrific Making Of) by leaving in the accidental socks and crew floating in to view, the idents contain a truth that wouldn’t be achieved through a CG interpretation of the experience. Coupled with the fact that Nat Geo views got to recommend the items they wanted to go all Jim-Bexley Speed, the resulting work combines the channel identity, explorative nature and sense of fun with aplomb.

http://www.brothersandsisters.co.uk/