Computer Animation Festival Electronic Theater Platinum Pass Full Conference Pass Full Conference One-Day Pass Student One-Day Pass Electronic Theater Ticket Screening Dates/Times: 17 – 20 Nov 2019, Sun – Wed (9am – 6pm) Venue: Mezzanine Meeting Room M9 (Mezzanine Level, Merivale St) Screening Dates/Times: 18 Nov 2019, Mon (4.15pm – 7pm) 19 Nov 2019, Tues (6.15pm – 8.15pm) 20 Nov 2019, Wed (1pm – 3pm) Venue: Mezzanine Meeting Room M9 (Great Hall 1&2, Foyer Level, Merivale St) Ratatoskr Creator(s): Meike, Lena-Carolin Studio/Organization Affiliation(s): Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg, Animationsinstitut Country(s) of Origin: Germany Synopsis: Two things immediately stand out when watching the student film Ratatoskr: the high production quality of its characters and the complexity of its environment. From the upper, bright layer of the world-tree of Yggdrasil, to the darker, cave-like lower layer, each set of this film is overflowing with details in every nook and cranny. The environment became a character in and of itself during production, being planned out carefully to make only specific areas visible in an effort to tackle the enormous complexity of our Maya scenes once set-dressing had started. So how did we tackle this important part of the storytelling? Our approach was to split out the set-dressing into several Maya scenes and use Maya's paint effects. After having first created a big asset library of plants, we realized that they would not work as well as we had hoped, and that we would need something that would grow around the tree-trunks more organically - some procedural generated vegetation, that takes the actual surface and the underlying normal orientation into account. A bunch of bespoke plant presets, pipeline scripts and automations helped us to paint directly on the high-poly surfaces of the tree trunks, convert everything to polygons, handle UVs, and finally write out a geometry cache. Using this approach, every member of the team was capable of creating environments by themselves, which was a huge time-saver and productivity-booster for us. Everything was assembled via a scenegraph-XML file (which saved world space position and references to all of the scene elements) that was later parsed into Katana to assemble the individual cached assets together. In summary, it is fair to say that Katana, and our shotgun-based pipeline, were the most important pillars for accomplishing a high production quality throughout the film. Kinky Kitchen Creator(s): Bea, Laura Studio/Organization Affiliation(s): Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg, Animationsinstitut Country(s) of Origin: Germany Synopsis: What exactly makes Kinky Kitchen special? We live in a time where sexuality is no longer a strong taboo, but is still treated cautiously. Since in our film we depict sexuality as something quite normal by simply driving the camera past funny protagonists, the confrontation becomes a pleasure for everyone. We are happy and proud that Kinky Kitchen did not only cause lustful glances from us, but also gets attention from people all over the world. An excerpt of the festivals that featured Kinky Kitchen so far underlines this: Siggraph USA, Animest, Briefs Erotic Short Film Festival, Cartoons Underground, Cortoon Festival, Fish&Chips Film Festival, GirlsGoMovie, Kaboom, LGBTQ Short Films, Animatou International Festival, Monstra, Montgomery International Festival, Ottawa Film Festival, Pop Porn Festival, Porn Film Festival, Saga Adeline, Shnit Short Festival, Stuff MX Festival, Thessaloniki Animation Festival, FMX What makes Kinky Kitchen special is the gimmick with the expectations of the audience. What do you expect when you hear sexual noises? Since everything takes place in a colorful and plastic-like world, it seems all the more irritating to listen to explicit noises. It is interesting to observe the audience's reaction to the film's breakdown. It is important to us that the structure of the trailers plays with this concept of society. The expectation of the sexual action builds up and is told by the simple camera work in a plot twist, as a casualness. The camera simply pans past the event without stopping, influencing the story or taking a judgmental stance. For our director Bea, film has always been a powerful instrument and a large and important part of her work as a medium for depicting sexuality in public space. Our wish is to portray sexuality as something normal in the real world and thus to train the acceptance of society. Pumpers Paradise Creator(s): Eddy, Aleksandra Studio/Organization Affiliation(s): Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg, Animationsinstitut Country(s) of Origin: Germany Synopsis: Pumpers' Paradise is the first sketch series, which focus exclusively on the modern fitness-culture while made by absolute non-fitness people. We created a world filled with bodybuilders with just five rigs and without using any muscle-system. The project was also supported by our own pipeline, developed by fellow-students. The Gift Creator(s): Against, Marc Studio/Organization Affiliation(s): Passion Paris Production Country(s) of Origin: France Synopsis: Driven by last year’s success, it is with no surprise that Manor along with their agency BETC Shopper and Passion Paris, have decided for the second year running, and without hesitation, to dream up a new Christmas tale. The main challenge was to update the last year characters, to give them a fresh look and add new environments, while keeping the same universe feeling. Forglemmegei Creator(s): Katarina, Michelle Ann NARDONE &. Anja PERL Studio/Organization Affiliation(s): Miyu Distribution Country(s) of Origin: France Synopsis: When a lifelong friend departs, a stubborn old man has to face his inner fears in order to restore peace to his mind. Deepness of the Fry Creator(s): August, Michelle Ann NARDONE &. Anja PERL Studio/Organization Affiliation(s): Miyu Distribution Country(s) of Origin: France Synopsis: What makes us special? What makes us stand out? What makes us unique? Nothing. Selfish Creator(s): Po Chien Studio/Organization Affiliation(s): Sheridan College Country(s) of Origin: Taiwan Synopsis: "Selfish" is about human beings are consuming delicious seafood, but sea animals are suffering from the trash we made-- not only do we eat them but also make their living environment poisonous and miserable. The film was selected in several international film festivals, such as Edmonton International Film Festival, Rhode Island International Film Festival, International Short Film Festival in Drama and Oakville Film Festival. "Birth of Planet Earth" Fulldome Excerpt: Photosynthesis in a Chromatophore Creator(s): Donna, Robert Studio/Organization Affiliation(s): The National Center for Supercomputing Applications (NCSA), University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Beckman Institute, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Country(s) of Origin: United States of America Synopsis: This visualization of the quantum-mechanical process of photosynthesis involved combining structural models from atomic, protein, organelle, and cell scales. We descend into a prehistoric hot spring, revealing primitive bacteria which use an early form of photosynthesis to turn sunlight into chemical energy in structures called chromatophores. This fulldome animation follows the energy through progressively more stable forms: a captured photon; electronic excitation; pumped protons; and finally, synthesis of ATP molecules. The team used VMD, a GPU-accelerated molecular visualization tool, to create geometric abstractions from a 5-million-atom static snapshot of the scientific research model. To achieve an organic flight path through the 3D data, they adapted their Virtual Director camera choreography software to interface with VMD. In Houdini, they choreographed particle effects which were then exported to VMD for rendering of the hero chromatophore. Nine more layers were rendered in Houdini’s Mantra, including 500,000 instanced chromatophores and particle effects, 300 high-resolution cell membranes, and depth passes to control luminance and depth effects. The visualization treatments from Houdini and VMD were combined in Nuke for a seamless flight through this dynamic microscopic light show. The Heretic (Part 1) Creator(s): Veselin, Silvia Studio/Organization Affiliation(s): Unity Technologies Country(s) of Origin: Sweden Synopsis: One of the biggest artistic and technical challenges today is creating photorealistic, animated humans. The Heretic is Unity’s first attempt to tackle this and is scoped with the purpose to establish a pipeline and a bar of quality. It’s a real-time short running at 30 fps at 1440p on a consumer-class desktop PC, combining 3D and 4D scanning in order to obtain both a high-quality set of textures and poses and believable, realistic movement. This first part of the project was revealed at GDC 2019. Maestro Creator(s): ILLOGIC, Théophile Dufresne /. Victor Caire Studio/Organization Affiliation(s): Miyu Distribution Country(s) of Origin: France Synopsis: Deep into a forest, a gathering of wild animals start a nocturnal opera, conducted by a squirrel. Gunpowder Creator(s): Romane, Nathanael, Léa, Benoît, Pei-Hsuan, Anne-Lise, Philippe Studio/Organization Affiliation(s): Je Regarde, Supinfocom Rubika Country(s) of Origin: France Synopsis: lt's teatime! Unfortunately for Phileas all his teaboxes are empty! He decides to go get some to the source, in China! 400 Mph Creator(s): Paul-Eugène, Julia, Lorraine, Alice, Natacha, Quentin, Philippe Studio/Organization Affiliation(s): Je Regarde, Supinfocom Rubika Country(s) of Origin: France Synopsis: On the Bonneville salt flats, the sound of roaring engines can be heard in the distance. At the wheel is Icarus, a chimpanzee hell-bent on transcending the limits of speed. Aboard iconic and increasingly powerful vehicles, Icarus will attempt to reach the ultimate speed of 400 Mph, thought to be impossible for land vehicles. As Icarus reaches for the sky, will he prevail or be consumed by his self-destructive quest? Deloitte - At the Beginning of Everything Creator(s): Nahuel Matias, Ailin Studio/Organization Affiliation(s): Onesal Co. Ltd Country(s) of Origin: Japan Synopsis: World's largest consulting firm Deloitte has released the global campaign ‘Make Your Impact’ via Deloitte Digital. Deloitte invited Onesal to design and animate the brand film for the campaign. Our task was to illustrate new technologies and its impact in the world in an optimistic, inviting way, showing how decisions we make today, make tomorrow. Starting with a green dot, we did an abstract exploration of the evolution of the dot from different perspectives.Transforming, expanding, and creating new meaning, yet always returning the circular green dot to start over. Splendor Creator(s): Joe Studio/Organization Affiliation(s): Musashino Art University Country(s) of Origin: Japan Synopsis: “Splendor” is an algorithmic computer animation piece that features geometrical patterns found in Japanese traditional crafts. This work specifically focused on Kiriko (Japanese cut glass) and Kumiko (Japanese wooden lattice work). Both are characterized by expert craftsmanship featuring intricate geometrical patterns. This project used a computer algorithm to describe and recreate these traditional patterns. To simulate the traditional patterns, it focused on a technique called an L-system, which is normally used for modeling and simulating the growth of plants in the field of computer-generated imagery. An L-system can generate a string of characters by rewriting itself based upon a specific grammar. Also, by replacing the character strings with a geometry, it enables to generate complicated two- and three-dimensional structures. In addition, L-systems can easily display the process of the growing shapes as an animation. Based on the above characteristics, I was able to simulate not only the geometrical patterns of Kiriko and Kumiko, but also the process of their pattern growth. To describe the patterns using an L-system in more familiar terms, I used an approach of emulating a growing tree. I defined grammatical rules by considering the pattern of a plant growing branches from the trunk and then buds and flowers blooming from the branches. All of the patterns in this work were generated using a single L-system with a modification of the grammatical rules. The patterns created are faithful to tradition and are found in real artifacts in Japan. The Ostrich Politic [Best Student Project] Creator(s): Mohammad, Moïra Studio/Organization Affiliation(s): Miyu Distribution Country(s) of Origin: France Synopsis: Ostriches carry on their daily activities burying their heads, believing It’s an instinctive behavior. However, one day a research by phylogeneticist Dr. Kays proves otherwise. Hedgehog Creator(s): Vaibhav KESWANI, Jeanne LAUREAU, Colombine MAJOU, Morgane MATTARD, Kaisa PIRTTINEN, Jong-ha YOON, Moïra Studio/Organization Affiliation(s): Miyu Distribution Country(s) of Origin: France Synopsis: A little boy speaks about hedgehogs all the time to everybody. Best Friend Creator(s): Nicholas OLIVIERI, Yi SHEN, Juliana DE LUCCA, Varun NAIR, David FELIU, Moïra Studio/Organization Affiliation(s): Miyu Distribution Country(s) of Origin: France Synopsis: In a near future, a lonely man is addicted to a product called «Best Friend» which offers him perfect virtual friends. NASA's Black Marble Night Lights Used to Examine Disaster Recovery in Puerto Rico Creator(s): Kel Studio/Organization Affiliation(s): NASA, USRA Country(s) of Origin: United States of America Synopsis: At night, Earth is lit up in bright strings of roads dotted with cities and towns as human-made artificial light takes center stage. During 2017's Hurricane Maria, Puerto Rico's lights went out. In the days, weeks and months that followed, NASA researchers developed neighborhood-scale maps of lighting in communities across Puerto Rico. To do this, they combined satellite data of Earth at night from the NASA/NOAA Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership satellite with USGS/NASA Landsat data and OpenStreetMap data. They monitored where and when the electricity grid was restored, and analyzed the demographics and physical attributes of neighborhoods longest affected by the power outages. Power failures across Puerto Rico’s rural communities accounted for 61 percent of the estimated cost of 3.9 billion customer-interruption hours, six months after Hurricane Maria. These regions are primarily rural in the mountainous interior of the island where residents were without power for over 120 days. However, even more heavily populated areas had variable recovery rates between neighborhoods, with suburbs often lagging behind urban centers. The absence of electricity as seen in the night lights data offers a new way to visualize storm impacts to vulnerable communities across the entirety of Puerto Rico on a daily basis. ILM Behind the Magic 2019 Creator(s): Greg Studio/Organization Affiliation(s): Industrial Light & Magic Country(s) of Origin: United States of America Synopsis: A sample of the visual effects and animation work created in 2019 for a variety of feature films including Birdbox, Aquaman, Captain Marvel, Avengers: Endgame, and Bumblebee. Mascot Creator(s): LEEHA, KIHYUK Studio/Organization Affiliation(s): Studio LEEHA Country(s) of Origin: South Korea Synopsis: The fox who wants to be a mascot for the city goes to a mascot training academy. He lives in a very tiny house and works many part-time jobs. He is still getting many Mascot auditions with taking loans at a high-interest rates for undergoing plastic surgery. Spring [Jury Prize] Creator(s): Andy, Francesco Studio/Organization Affiliation(s): Blender Country(s) of Origin: Netherlands Synopsis: Spring is the story of a shepherd girl and her dog, who face ancient spirits in order to continue the cycle of life. This poetic and visually stunning short film was written and directed by Andy Goralczyk, inspired by his childhood in the mountains of Germany. The Spring team used the development version of Blender 2.80 for the entire production, before the software was in official Beta even. As for all of Blender’s Open Movies, the entire production process and all its source files are being shared on the production platform Blender Cloud. Kids [BEST IN SHOW] Creator(s): Michael, Mario Studio/Organization Affiliation(s): Some Shorts, Playables Country(s) of Origin: Netherlands, Switzerland Synopsis: KIDS is a game of crowds. The project consists of a short film, an interactive animation and an art installation. How do we define ourselves when we are all equal? Who is steering the crowd? What if it is heading in the wrong direction? Where does the individual end and the group begin? What is done by choice, and what under duress? KIDS was made using traditional 2D hand-drawn line animation in black and white. The animation was assembled, composited and choreographed using a game engine with a custom-made animation system in conjunction with physics simulations. The characters in a crowd behave much like matter: They attract and repel, lead and follow, grow and shrink, align and separate. They are purely defined by how they relate to one other - without showing any distinguishable features. KIDS is the second collaboration of filmmaker Michael Frei and game designer Mario von Rickenbach after their project PLUG & PLAY. The project is co-produced by Playables, SRG SSR and Arte. The app is published by Double Fine Presents for mobile devices and computers.
