October, 2002
ANIMATORS UNITE REMEMBERS CHUCK JONES.
Animators Unite, Inc., a not-for-profit corporation that provides informational and promotional services to the animation industry, has dedicated an entire area of their site in remembrance of animator Chuck Jones. Included is a ten-minute interview that Chuck Jones had back in 1994 on THE CHARLIE ROSE SHOW, a biography of Chuck Jones’ life and achievements and a forum to post your comments. Also included are links to additional sites to learn more about this amazing artist. Visit the Animators Unite Website at:
–> http://www.animatorsunite.com

Animators Unite recently partnered with Bill Plympton to host his revolutionary Ani-Cam, where you can watch Bill create his next feature film, HAIR HIGH, live on the Internet.
–> http://www.hairhigh.com

See the actual article at [ AWN ].

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January 31, 2003
Animators Unite is proud to announce that it is now exempt from taxation under Section 501(c)(3) of the United States Internal Revenue Code.

If you would like to support our mission to provide free informational and promotional services to the animation industry please make a tax deductible donation. You can use our donation tool at [ http://www.animatorsunite.org/donate ] or you can send a check made payable to Animators Unite, Inc. 525 85th Street, Brooklyn, NY 11209.

As a result of receiving tax exempt status, we hope that we will be able to further accomplish our goal to promote the art of animation and build public awareness of independent animation.

Thank you for your continued support!

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by Jake Friedman

Witty animation with mature themes have inspired most of us [watch “Stoned Wheat” on Youtube.com] but much credit should probably be given to JJ Sedelmaier. Very few studios have a track record like JJ Sedelmaier Productions; upon entry of the studio, which currently houses six hired full-time staff, nearly a hundred awards grace the shelves. This is the studio that introduced us to SNL’s “TV Funhouse” the first season of “Beavis and Butthead,” the intro to “Strangers with Candy,” countless memorable animated commercials, and most recently the Tek Jansen sequences on “The Colbert Report.”

In an age of CG departments in 2D studios, or in which all the drawing done is on digital Wacom tablets and Cintiq screens, Sedelmaier’s studio, co-run by JJ and wife Patrice, stands out in the sea of time. It’s a studio that encourages a creative vibe with hands-on art, using [ooh!] light discs and [ah!] pencils. I was recently graced with freelance animation work at the White Plains studio, where one of my first tasks there was cleanup and inking with pens on paper!

There’s no question of Sedelmaier’s strength in the New York animation community, but I wanted to uncover the secrets of the masked man, Sedelmaier himself.

JF: What’s your sense of quality work that you strive for?

JJS: It’s based on really thinking about why something is designed the way it is and trying to keep it as valid as I can. You can have something that feels conventional, but there should be something about it that sparkles. Sometimes it’s a glorious, luscious style. Other times the style is very rudimentary, even crude, but there’s still something charming or smart about it. (Read the article)

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Animators Unite is proud to introduce its new site format. We are still committed to our original goals which are to provide educational, informational and promotional services to those in and who want to be a part of the animation industry. However we are changing how we go about this, we have now adopted more of a blog like structure, which will allow you as the user to comment on stories or just about any other section on the site. We believe that this more organized way to create discussion will be much more beneficial to our users.

We have also restructured one of our strongest sections, which was the festival page. Now you can see what festival due dates are coming up, just by checking the Festival calendar to the right of this page. The RSS feed icon above the calendar will allow those using Apple’s iCal, to subscribe to our calender and receive periodic updates regarding new festivals.

Over the next year we plan to finish up this major redeployment as well as transition to a more modern system of video content delivery. We hope that you come back and come back often to check out all the new things that we are doing on Animators Unite.

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by Rob Kohr

Interference Inc. authored a guerrilla marketing campaign in 10 cities, that involved neon signs of a Mooninite from Cartoon Network’s show, Aqua Teen Hunger Force. At this point Boston police have arrested 2 employees of Interference Inc. Boston believed that these signs might have been some sort of bomb threat and even managed to detonate one with explosives to make sure that this was nothing more than a prank or as Boston’s Mayor Menino is calling it a hoax device.

(Read the article)

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by Rob Kohr
Going into the theater I really didn’t know much about this movie other than it was written by and directed by two Americans, Anthony Weintraub and Michael Arias respectively. I also knew that it was animated by the studio that made the really wonderful film “Mind Games” which I also saw last year at the same venue, the MOMA. What I didn’t expect was a film that was over all disappointing and dull to the point that people were walking out early. (Read the article)

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by Rob Kohr

Personally I didn’t want to use this story to bring up this issue, though I knew it would be inevitable after I heard about the murders committed earlier this week at Virgina Tech. As is the custom in the United States, when ever a tragic event involving a “youth” and guns happens, the pundits come out screaming that video games are at fault. Without fail, after the Columbine shootings back in 1999, everyone was quick to blame games and recording artists such as Marylin Manson. I am finding it hard to not push my political views on this and am instead looking at it form the standpoint of someone working in the Media / Gaming Industry. Those in that industry have to be aware of the the people they vote for and how they will effect their livelihood. (Read the article)

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TO OPEN IN LOS ANGELES ON APRIL 13, 2007

Writer/Director Bill Plympton will attend the opening night of the exclusive run at the Laemmle Sunset which will also include his Oscar®-nominated short “Guard Dog.” (Read the article)

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