August 2012
Feature film: 'Toys in the Attic'
Posted by Fred on Sun 5 Aug 2012 - 18:21
Pixar is not the only studio that can make movies about anthropomorphic toys. The Cartoon Brew website announces that on September 7, indy distributor Hannover House will release an English-language dub of Czech director Ji?í Barta’s 2009 feature Na p?d? (In the Attic) in America, as Toys in the Attic. This is a mixed feature combining stop-motion puppetry, 2D cartoon animation, and live action.
It’s an analogy based on the cultural and political contrasts of the Cold War era; the world of the attic is divided into the land of happy toys in the West and the Land of Evil in the East.
The Cartoon Brew presents the new 2012 American theatrical poster, which implies that Toys in the Attic is like Pixar’s Toy Story trilogy as made by Tim Burton, and the 2009 Czech trailer.
Short film: Loscon XIV's 'Clearance Papers'
Posted by Fred on Sun 5 Aug 2012 - 18:46Did I ever tell you that I once wrote a movie script? It was Furry, too.
This was twenty-five years ago, in 1987. Clearance Papers was only a 9-minute amateur film – an embarrassingly amateurish amateur film – but for a two-man effort, it wasn’t too bad.
Short film: 'Metro'
Posted by Fred on Sun 5 Aug 2012 - 22:20The Cartoon Brew website has posted Metro, a 2011 student film directed by Jake Wyatt and produced by him and others at the Brigham Young University for Animation.
It is a 4:45 minute cartoon that does not become anthropomorphic until its last moments, but it is a charming animal fantasy for most of its length.
San Francisco's furry night club covered in culture magazine 'The Bold Italic'
Posted by Patch Packrat on Sun 5 Aug 2012 - 22:23In San Francisco culture magazine The Bold Italic, SF's legendary monthly furry club night gets a classy writeup: Plush Life: Jesse Hirsch goes animal style with furries at Frolic.
According to his profile,
Jesse is restaurant critic for the San Francisco Examiner. His writing has also appeared in SF Weekly, the Chronicle, the New York Times, San Francisco magazine, the Wall Street Journal and a few really funny emails.
Want to create a character for a long-running furry webcomic?
Posted by Cubist on Sun 5 Aug 2012 - 22:32Furry webcomic At Arm's Length will soon see its 500th strip uploaded for your viewing pleasure! To celebrate and commemorate the occasion, DarkwingDork (the writer) and Brooke Scovil (the artist) have decided to hold a contest for the strip's loyal readers: Create a character who could be a recurring guest-star in AAL. [Details 'below the fold'.]
July 2012 Newsbytes archive
Posted by crossaffliction on Mon 6 Aug 2012 - 00:28This month’s contributors include dronon, earthfurst, Fred, GreenReaper, Higgs Raccoon, RingtailedFox, and TwilightShadow.
Music video: 'Parler le Fracas'
Posted by Fred on Mon 6 Aug 2012 - 21:10The Cartoon Brew website says that Parler le Fracas, a 4:26-minute French music video created by Wasaru for Le Peuple de l’Herbe, is sort of an update of Orwell’s Animal Farm.
Put the emphasis on “sort of”; fat pig capitalists oppressing other-animal workers have been a common image of communistic (as distinct from Communist) propaganda since long before Orwell. Be that as it may, this is superficially anthropomorphic, although it feels more like humans in cheap animal-head masks.
'The Boy Who Cried Wolf' updated by automatic sheep collars
Posted by Fred on Tue 7 Aug 2012 - 21:52Wired reports that Swiss scientists are trying to develop a sheep collar that will notify shepherds when wolves attack their sheep, and will release a chemical deterrent.
Video: Another 'A Fox Tale'
Posted by Fred on Fri 10 Aug 2012 - 17:37How many stories and videos titled A Fox Tale or Tail have there been? Here is one more, courtesy of the Cartoon Brew website, from student animators Thomas Bozovic, Alexandre Cazals, Julien Legay, and Chao Ma in 2011 at France’s Supinfocom Arles.
Review: 'ROAR' vol. 4, edited by Buck C. Turner (by Fred Patten)
Posted by Fred on Wed 15 Aug 2012 - 23:44
Here is the fourth approximately-annual anthology of “literary” (non-erotic) anthropomorphic fiction from Bad Dog Books. There are practically no magazines of anthropomorphic fiction published today, leaving ROAR as one of the few remaining markets for anthropomorphic short stories.
This fourth volume has the theme of “fame”:
Fame—that siren song Celebrity has many stories. Perhaps it is nothing more than an incredible tale. What amazing lengths people will go to in order to find it—or escape from it. In this volume of ROAR, twelve authors explore what celebrity means and how its impact is felt. New stories from celebrated anthropomorphic authors such as Tim Susman, Mary E. Lowd, and Whyte Yoté share these pages with talented newcomers.
Editor's note: This is the first of two reviews of ROAR 4; the second, by Roz Gibson, is here.
Bad Dog Books/FurPlanet Productions, June 2012, trade paperback $19.95 (iii + 297 pages).
'Humpday Gamedays' hosted by Gaming Furever
Posted by JoJoJoshua on Wed 15 Aug 2012 - 23:53
GamingFurever.com will be hosting weekly game meetups with any furry that wants to participate, encouraging a coming together of the fandom over all consoles and platforms. They will be held on Wednesday evenings for the foreseeable future, and all gamers are invited to attend.
Highlighted games will be featured each week, so players looking for a specific challenge can know they'll find others to play with in certain games. The matches will be live-streamed from various gamers, and participants are invited to stream their games during the event as well.
'Heat 9' interview: Series editor Alopex
Posted by Isiah Jacobs on Thu 16 Aug 2012 - 00:48
Isiah had the chance to interview most of the contributors to annual adult anthology Heat 9, published by Sofawolf; some could not be reached. Related interviews: Whyte Yote & Alastair Wildfire – Kandrel & Scappo – Camron & Vantid – Huskyteer – Kyell Gold & Nimrais – Tempe O'kun
Isiah Jacobs: Alopex, thank you so much for coming on! It's a pleasure to have one of the Sofa Wolves here!
Alopex: Thank you for having me! It's not often the editors get the attention of the media. :)
Isiah Jacobs: I agree! I see interviews featuring films and you mostly see the actors. You never see the minds behind the magic, like the writers, the producers, the directors, etc.
Alopex: That's what the director commentary tracks are wonderful for...at least with films.
Isiah Jacobs: There is your "Afterglow" with Heat, but you're only given so much room to express your thoughts.
Alopex: Well, it was a good idea initially, but often I struggle to find something new to say that doesn't just rehash what the volume was about. Sometimes having a limited space to fill is a blessing -- especially when I leave that part until the very end. :)
Isiah Jacobs: And we'll be getting to that in just a bit. This is the ninth instalment of Heat, and the range of the authors and illustrators in this volume is amazing. Do you feel that you've come a long way since the first issue?