FMX 2023 also combines a look at past achievements with brand-new developments: The THEN & NOW track highlights visual effects and stop motion animation, while the N.E.W.S. track focuses on future productions by deserving animated filmmakers, including animation producer Manuel Cristóbal (BUÑUEL – IM LABYRINTH DER SCHILDKRÖTEN) with the project THE GLASSWORKER, the first hand-drawn animated film from Pakistan. Series will not be neglected either: a talk on the Netflix show SANDMAN will focus on the VFX highlights of the adaptation of Neil Gaiman’s successful graphic novel. Other companies and universities have also confirmed their participation in the FMX Forum – and Foundry, Maxon and ASUS are new Silver Partners. Tickets for the entire conference and forum programme are still on sale online; however, the Early Bird discount is only valid until 13 March. As a long-standing event partner, the Stuttgart International Festival of Animated Film (ITFS) will be presenting an insight into the upcoming edition.

Programme commitmentsOnsite in Stuttgart: Manuel Cristóbal (BUÑUEL – IM LABYRINTH DER SCHILDKRÖTEN) talks about THE GLASSWORKER Alex Dowding with insights into APOLLO 10 1/2 Juan Pablo Zaramella (LUMINARIS) shows creative process With N.E.W.S., FMX 2023 presents an outstanding series of events with leading creative minds from all over the world. Award-winning animated film producer Manuel Cristóbal (WRINKLES, BUÑUEL – IN THE LABYRINTH OF THE SHIELDS, LOST IN GALICIA) will talk about his recent collaboration with director Usman Riaz on his new film THE GLASSWORKER. Amsterdam-based Studio Submarine is known for its innovative work on high-profile hybrid animation projects, notably Richard Linklater’s APOLLO 10 1/2 and the acclaimed TV series UNDONE – producer Alex Dowding will be on hand to discuss APOLLO 10 1/2. FMX is also delighted to welcome back inspirational stop-motion director Juan Pablo Zaramella from Argentina. His highly acclaimed short film LUMINARIS has won over 324 awards and is a global audience favourite. Juan Pablo is currently working on his new feature film I AM NINA. These two sessions will showcase the exciting creative possibilities that arise when you bring together talent and studios from different parts of the world to explore a wide range of animation techniques. Shelley Page, animation veteran and International Talent Scout, will introduce the N.E.W.S. Talks.

On location in Stuttgart: Georgina Hayns on puppet making for PINOCCHIO and other films Jeffrey Okun shares VFX insights

How can animation and visual effects be practically realised? Ian Failes (befores & afters) curates and moderates two THEN & NOW sessions on ground-breaking innovations in traditional film-making professions. Georgina Hayns, whose filmography includes Guillermo del Toro’s Oscar-nominated PINOCCHIO and several LAIKA films, will talk about her work as a puppet manufacturing supervisor. She will explain how puppets for stop-motion animation films are designed, built and operated using both traditional mechanical puppet mechanisms and 3D printing. Visual effects can also be created hands-on: Visual Effects Supervisor Jeffrey Okun (THE LAST STARFIGHTER, STARGATE or THE LAST SAMURAI) sits down with Ian Failes and Hugo Guerra from Hugo’s Desk for a special LIVE session of their VFX Notes podcast. Together they discuss the joys and sorrows of implementing VFX.

On location in Stuttgart: Matt Kavanagh & Natacha Pianeti from Untold Studios: VFX for the Netflix hit SANDMAN

VFX Lead Matt Kavanagh and VFX Artist Natacha Pianeti (both Untold Studios) take the audience on a sightseeing tour through the making of some of the most memorable sequences from the Netflix hit SANDMAN. Untold Studios worked on over 360 shots, utilising an incredibly wide range of VFX techniques. From the all-consuming hell portal scene to the transformation of Stephen Fry into a meadow to hundreds of photorealistic, painterly CGI cats in the Annie-nominated bonus episode “A Dream of a Thousand Cats”, Kavanagh and Pianeti will share a behind-the-scenes look at the tools and techniques used to bring the series to life. They will also talk about the creative process, challenges and experiences.

Forum News

Numerous companies have now confirmed further workshops and Marketplace participations – and the same applies to the education sector: the School Campus is now fully booked. Forum partners and universities that have not yet been announced can be found here:

Recruiting Hub

Animal Logic, Axis Studios, Blue Zoo Animation, Cinesite, El Ranchito, Electric Theatre Collective, Flying Bark, Framestore, Industrial Light & Magic (ILM), Recom, RISE FX, Rising Sun Pictures, Skydance Animation, Studio Isar Animation, Trixter

Marketplace

Anchorpoint, ASUS, CG Wire, Escape Technology, Graswald, Lenovo, Move AI, Movella, Optitrack, Qualisys, RnDeep, The Captury, Vicon, Zeiss.

Workshops

El Ranchito, Esri, Foundry, Maxon, Prism Pipeline, SAE Institute, Vicon.

School Campus: Breda University of Applied Sciences, Escape Studios, Hochschule Darmstadt University of Applied Sciences, Hochschule Mainz – University of Applied Sciences, Hochschule Offenburg, ifs internationale filmschule köln, Mediadesign Hochschule, MOME Anim | Moholy-Nagy University of Art and Design Budapest, Salzburg University of Applied Sciences, Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD), University of Applied Sciences Upper Austria – School of Informatics, Communications and Media.

Three new Silver Partners: Foundry, Maxon and ASUS

Three leading companies are now also Silver Partners of FMX: Foundry: Foundry offers various software solutions for the media and entertainment industry in the field of visual effects and animation. Maxon: Maxon develops software solutions for creative professionals in the fields of 2D and 3D design, motion graphics, VFX and visualisation. ASUS: ProArt by ASUS offers laptops, desktops, displays, projectors, mainboards and accessories tailored to artistic needs.

30.

International Festival of Animated Film Stuttgart (ITFS)Under the motto “Animation connects!”, the FMX partner event ITFS invites you to Stuttgart from 25 to 30 April 2023 to celebrate the 30th edition together. The focus will be on the latest competition films as well as gems from the past with various best-of programmes. With themes such as “Artificial Intelligence”, the festival will also look to the future. South Africa will also be a country focus. Industry accreditation is still available at a discounted early bird rate until 15 March.

Further information can be found here: https://www.itfs.de.

FMX is funded by the Ministry of Science, Research and the Arts Baden-Württemberg and the Ministry of Economic Affairs, Labour and Tourism Baden-Württemberg, MFG Filmförderung Baden-Württemberg and the City of Stuttgart and takes place in cooperation with ACM Siggraph. FMX is organised by the Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg and hosts the Animation Production Days (APD) together with the Stuttgart International Festival of Animated Film (ITFS).

Further information can be found at: www.fmx.de

The post The Sandman, Early Bird FMX Tickets und mehr first appeared on DIGITAL PRODUCTION and was written by Bela Beier.