Portfolio.(2006 SIGGRAPH Animation Festival)

>> "The setup, payoff, and comic timing make this one of the most humorous films this year."

>> "Another example of great design, animation, and gag all coming together in a superb, technically tight edit. A hilariously funny piece."

>> "A brilliant, behind-the-scenes demonstration of a mind-boggling and complex sequence."

>> "The fresh look of this film, the comic timing, and tight animation make it a very clear favorite."

>> "One of the best examples of character animation in the entire show. Absolutely tight timing with wonderfully subtle eye movements, voice talent, staging, character design, lighting, set dressing, and much more."

These are but a few of the accolades and observations made by Digital Fauxtography's Terrence Masson, chair of the 2006 SIGGRAPH Animation Festival, about some of the projects that will be shown at this year's event later this month. "From across the globe, the word is out that the Computer Animation Festival is one of the premier venues for showcasing artistic and technical talent in the film world," says Masson. "The competition among [submissions] was fierce."

Nearly 100 animation selections from more than 725 entries were chosen for the Animation Festival: 34 appearing in the Electronic Theater (see the Portfolio section of the June issue for a detailed look at that venue) and 63 featured in the Animation Theater. Among those are a mixture of 2D and 3D animations from the worlds of feature film, short films, scientific visualizations, game cinematics, television commercials and specials, and more. Some projects were created by high-profile special effects facilities such as Digital Domain, Framestore CFC, and Cinesite, while others were crafted by boutique facilities like Psyop and Rhinofx. Others were generated by academia at universities such as the University of Alabama and the University of California, Berkeley, while a good number of animated shorts and other projects were submitted by students at various schools and animation colleges, including California Institute ...