Animated Thoughts: OIAF 2019, pt. 1

Flowers from the Victoria's Mansion's Faerie garden
greeted me upon my arrival.

Fall is upon us, which means that it's time for my yearly pilgrimage to the second largest animation festival in the world (largest in the Western hemisphere) -- as well as time for my yearly rambling blog posts about "what I did on my (working) vacation".

Well, no trip to the Ottawa International Animation Festival would be complete without a stop over in Toronto. So, I massaged my schedule such that I'd drive out to Canada on Monday morning and leave for Ottawa on Wednesday. Wouldn't have as much time on the shores of Lake Ontario as last year, but such is life. I enjoy every minute spent with our neighbors to the North.

Monday:

It's been an odd year. For whatever reason, 2019 has felt really surreal, even moreso because it was the end of September and it was time for my vacation. As I drove to Toronto, it honestly didn't feel real, like it was still the beginning of the year and I was looking months down the road on the calendar.

But, time off is time off, so best to make the most of it.

My plans for Toronto were to enjoy a "Best of" tour focused around the two Tasty Tours I did last year ('Chocolate Lovers' and 'Kensington Market'). So as soon as the car was parked and the suitcase was in my hotel room, I beat a hasty path to Monga Fried Chicken and Soma Chocolatemaker for a late lunch followed by hot chocolate and cookies for dessert.

Walked around town afterwards and found a good used book on origami at the ABC Book Store as well as some hard-to-find comics over at BMV Books for my old college roommate. Wish I could see the look on his face when he opens up his 'care package' from up North.

I went for the Mayan recipe.
Tasty with a little bite from the peppers!

Stopped by Ginger for dinner and then curled up with the 'Origami Omnibus' -- visions of animating 3d CGI origami critters danced through my head as I drifted off to sleep.

I needed my rest, it was going to be a big day tomorrow.

Tuesday:

Sleep was fitful -- got to sleep, woke up at 4 a.m., tossed and turned, slept a little more. Finally got out of bed around 8-ish. Made a quick run to the St. Lawrence Market and bought my brother his yearly ration of mustard from Kozlick's. Once they were safely deposited in the trunk of my car, it was off to the CN Tower for the Edgewalk!

For years, I've been joking with family and friends about going to the top of the CN Tower and walking around the outside, just above the 360 Restaurant. Well, it was put-up-or-shut-up time, so I plunked down the cash and donned the flightsuit.

For those who don't know, the Edgewalk is where they take you up to a secure room 351 meters (1151 feet) from the ground and from there you get to walk around the outside of the observation deck/restaurant area.

The Edgewalk is below the Skypod and
above the restaurant.

Well, the folks I went with made the Edgewalk experience really fun -- as did the handlers who took us through the event. It was a really good time, I'd recommend it to anyone. And while it was really tough to push the boundaries of my comfort zone, I'm really glad I did it. I've always had a sort of love/hate relationship with heights that has become more 'hate' than 'love' as I get older. Knowing that I'm capable of facing my fears was well worth the time and money spent -- and you couldn't beat the view of Downtown Toronto!

The following is a video that they gave us of the trip if you'd like to see highlights of what you do during the half-hour experience. If you pay close attention, you can also see all my nervous tics as I'm standing there, debating all the life choices that brought me to this point in time.

On the way out, I picked up the Lego CN Tower kit in order to commemorate my Edgewalk experience. I had planned on doing an animation of the CN Tower last year but couldn't find the model so ended up doing the Arc d'Triomph instead. It actually worked out for the best. Once I got the set home and put together, it was pretty clear that trying to animate that kit would have been an exercise in frustration.

The rest of the day was a blur. I skipped going to the ROM (eh, the Dutch Masters paintings exhibit will still be there when I return for TAAFI's Industry weekend in November) and instead went for some gourmet popcorn and poutine -- Toronto Popcorn Company and Moo Frites in Kensington Market. Then had my yearly Cherry Arctic Rush over at the Dragon City Mall.



Yup, this is pretty much my idea of a relaxing vacation.

Did a little more sightseeing, then went back to the CN Tower that evening. Part of the Edgewalk experience is a full-access ticket to the Tower and Skypod (to be used within the following three days) and I had planned something special for that night.

Ah, my sweet, sweet Toffle...

Last year, I received an extra Toffle when on the Kensington Market tour, so I saved it all year for a special occasion. I ate this remaining Toffle to commemorate the day's experience, slowly savoring the taste of butter tart and chocolate. This time I enjoyed the view of Toronto from the enclosed observation deck and the Skypod. Was still a little difficult to force myself to walk on the observation deck's glass floor, but... little steps and all that.



The next morning, it was off to Ottawa for five fun filled days of animation screenings, retrospectives, panels, and parties!

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Festival Season, pt. 1: TAAFI 2018 or is it 2019?

This year, the management of TAAFI decided to split the festival into two parts: the first was an industry day back in November 2018, which was filled with presentations and talks given by industry luminaries, and the second was three days of the animation screenings we know and love so well.

With it being the beginning of the year, I decided to forgo taking any vacation time off of work to see the sights in Toronto and just drive out on Friday morning. However, after checking in to my hotel, I had some time before the evening's opening ceremonies and first screening, so I quickly grabbed a late lunch at Monga Fried Chicken (if you've never been, I highly recommend it) and gathered lots of photo references at the Royal Ontario Museum all on my way over to the Hot Docs Cinema.

My goal at the ROM this time out was seeing "Zuul" as he was now on display. For those who don't know, Zuul is the name of the ankylosaur "recently" discovered in Montana and purchased by the ROM. Paired up in the display with a gorgosaurus model, apparently of the skeleton found near Zuul, along with examples of other ankylosaur bits for comparison, examples of man-made armor, and some videogames that were used to teach kids about how much damage an ankylosaur could do when it swung it's armored club of a tail.

"Zuul crurivastator - the destroyer of shins"
(or some of him... parts are a model)

However, before leaving the ROM, I snuck over to the geology wing while they were setting up for a fund-raising event and took some photos of a couple gemstones and minerals that I had missed back during September's visit.

Then it was off to the Hot Docs cinema where I spent the better part of the weekend talking to Lynn Dana Wilton, Pam Rose, and Lynne Slater while waiting for the screenings to start. And although there were some pretty solid short films during the TAAFI experience, for me, the high-point of the screening lineup was the two feature-length animated films: Ruben Bryant, Collector and MFKZ. Both films were surreal experiences in their own way -- Ruben through the incorporation of classic works of art into its visual style and MFKZ through the frenetic action and character designs that looked like they leapt off the pages of Metal Hurlant magazine. I had many a wistful thought of the Waterloo Festival since these were two movies that would undoubtedly been screened by Joe Chen.

The rest of the festival was a blur with some really creative short films, a pre-release screening of How to Train Your Dragon 3 -- complete with a post-screening Q&A from director Dean DeBlois and Hiccup voice-actor Jay Baruchel -- and time left over for mixing with colleagues and students.

I'm honestly not sure if TAAFI will stick to this format, but I personally appreciated it. I love both TAAFI events (industry and screening) for different reasons. Both events focus on the two parts of the Ottawa International Animation Festival that I enjoy the most: animation presentations and films. And now with the new format, I can enjoy them to their utmost without having to skip out on one to enjoy the other. For someone like me who travels five hours to Toronto, having TAAFI now being two festival events may be a little more pricey, but they're both worth making the trip.

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Animated Thoughts: TAIS SummerJam 2012

June had arrived, so that meant it was time to make my yearly visit to Toronto for the TAIS summer screening. Due to a scheduling conflict with the first ever TAAFI festival, our screening was moved to the beginning of June instead of our usual last weekend of June. That was the first major change that I encountered during this trip, but sadly it wouldn't be the last.

I am sad to report that this was the final TAIS summer screening to be held at the NFB Mediatheque. It turns out that the National Film Board of Canada will be closing several of its Mediatheque locations including the one on John Street. And if that wasn't enough of a kick in the gut, the building that housed TAIS and all our production equipment was sold by the city to a developer. So, our board of directors is currently looking for a new location as we've received our walking papers. While I understand that change is inevitable, losing those two locations still hurts my heart.

My first TAIS workshop was with Martine Chartrand at the NFB Mediatheque on John Street. Since then, I've returned to both the Mediatheque and the TAIS production offices several times each year to take workshops, attend screenings, and be a part of the vibrant animation community that both TAIS and the NFB support in Toronto. While I do not know of any plans to re-open the Mediatheque in a different area in Toronto, TAIS will be moving to a new location in the not too distant future. One can only hope that the new location will provide some benefits that overcome what we are losing -- like a small theatre to screen our films.

But, on Friday evening, I arrived at the Mediatheque for the TAIS competition screening--blissfully ignorant of the massive changes to our beloved community. Like earlier screenings, there was a wonderful variety of subject matter and techniques to be found in the films. I absolutely loved Patrick Jenkins' new paint-on-glass film "Sorceress" and as usual, my 10 second AniJam entry film got a good round of laughs. Afterwards, during the after screening party, I spent a fair amount of quality time talking to Lynn Dana Wilton about our web presences, professional reactions to her Women in Animation interview on my blog, and a couple of our ideas that have been floating around in the ether. I'm pleased to report that Lynn has had a few job offers based upon her increased web presence (including my interview of her and her new Vimeo page). However, schedules must be kept and Lynn had to catch a train back home. So, after the Mediatheque closed and we said our goodbyes, a small group of us drove over to Chinatown for dinner and discussion of the films. This afterglow experience has come to be one of my favorite parts of the TAIS events. I love hearing about what everyone else is working on and it's a great opportunity to cross-pollininate ideas and techniques with other animators.

Well, through the magic of the Internet (and the willingness of animators to use said Internet to promote and distribute their films), here are some links to films that I really enjoyed.

"Sorceress" by Patrick Jenkins
Admittedly, I'm biased because Patrick has become one of my favorite independant filmmakers over the years. However, Patrick's film "Sorceress" continues his exploration into a film-noir world of paint-on-glass animation.


"Sticky Ends" by Osman Cerfon
While it's a little too dark for my tastes, this film has an impeccable sense of timing and wit that carries it's subject matter past the realm of gruesome into that rare spot reserved for Wil-e Coyote and the Roadrunner cartoons.


"Snowdrifter" by Mack Carruthers
Cute character, decent animation with a funny payoff at the end of the film.


"Luminaris" by Juan Pablo Zaramella
It's rare that you see pixillation much less pixillation that is done well. This was a very fun film that provides an interesting snapshot into the heart of Argentinian bureaucracy.


"More than Winning" by Nick Fox-Geig
 I like the stream-of-consciousness images paired up with the tight, focused narration.
More Than Winning from Nick Fox-Gieg on Vimeo.

Also, check out his film "The Orange" on his Vimeo page if you get the chance.

"(Re)Cycle" by Lynn Dana Wilton
Having seen Lynn's film on a television during her TAIS workshop, it was really fun to see how well her designs and animation played out on a large, theatre-sized screen.


And here's my entry in the AniJam "Technical Difficulties" theme:
Now granted, I was gearing my film towards the crowd, but it still got a genuine laugh nonetheless.

Well, as the TAIS and NFB screenings were Friday and Saturday evening, I had lots of time during the weekend to walk around Toronto and see the sights, as well as funnel a little spending cash into the local economy whenever I saw the rare item that I could live without, but choose not to -- like the Gundam 08th Team mecha and hovertank figures I found at the Silver Snail. It was a close race between that and the 6" Gigan PVC figure, but having seen those for sale on Amazon.com, I figured I could pick one up later. When would I ever see a mint Gundam 08th Team figure with the hovertank all the accessories for $20 Canadian? If they had a Mothra figure in stock, it would've been a far more difficult decision. Del Toro's film "Pacific Rim" can't get finished fast enough!

But, more often than not, over the weekend I found myself revisiting locations from my memories of past trips as far back as 1975: the CN Tower, the Eaton Centre, the underground city, the Art Gallery of Ontario, the NFB, LeMarche Movenpik, the former location of Gingsburg and Wong, and the Lake Ontario waterfront. I walked away with no epiphanies other than the cliche about how the only constant out there is change.

On Saturday, I walked over to the Picasso exhibit at the Art Gallery of Ontario (thanks again for the ticket Madi). While I've always been more of a Monet and Renoir fan, I was awestruck by the variety of Picasso's work, especially the contrast between his paintings using lush, defined brushstrokes versus the ones that represented figures using geometric color patterns. The AGO did a great job arranging the paintings, drawings and sculpture chronologically and they even provided a handout that explained what was going on in Picasso's life during each period and how it influenced his art.

Since the NFB's evening animation screening wasn't for a couple hours, I walked down to the CN Tower and had lunch at the Horizon's restaurant overlooking the waterfront. As my thoughts tried to process the future loss of the NFB over an incredible view of Toronto, I took the time to stand on the glass floor. Nothing like gut-wrenching fear (or a near death experience) to shock you out of a dark place. My mind moving back towards a balanced center, I snapped some photographs of the trains at the foot of the Tower, then walked down by the harborfront and did some reading. A short streetcar ride back to Queen and Spadina and I arrived just in time to see all the ambulances and firetrucks on the way to the Eaton Centre. Turns out that there had been a gang shooting in the food court that I walked through the previous day. The shooter's target was dead and several bystanders were caught in the crossfire. Darkness, it would seem, was determined to make it's presence felt.

That evening, I made my last trip to the NFB Mediatheque for their animation screening "Creations, Obsessions, and Sensations". It was filled with classics like "Hot Stuff", "Every Child" and "Great Toy Robbery" as well as newer films from classic directors--like Paul Driessen's "Oedipus". While the films were good and the company was better, the weekend ended up overcast when Madi told me the news that TAIS had been served notice that their building was sold to developers so we had to find a new location by the Fall.

Sunday I drove home. I left Toronto with a sense of melancholy since it would be the last time I'd experience TAIS and the NFB in it's current state. As the Gardnier Expressway was closed down, I had to find a route along the East side of Toronto through Greektown and over by the science center before I could find an open entry onto the 401. As frustrating as it was to get out of Toronto, the different sights made me think about how much of the city I have yet to see. So when the TAIS board moves us into a new location, there will be new sights to see and things to do before and after the next workshop. So I would end my trip on a high-note, and put an end to the melancholy, I stopped by the Cambridge Butterfly Conservatory (now with quail) and got some beautiful photographs.

Take time to recharge

In other news, Jon and I drove to Toronto the weekend of February 21st. I've been dealing with cabin fever for two months now and had to get out of town. What better than to visit Toronto during the winter, eh? :)

Due to the incoming snowstorm, Jon and I left at 2:30 a.m. on Saturday morning, instead of the original plan of 4 a.m. There was NO traffic on the road. We made the drive in 4 hours 30 minutes instead of the usual 5 hours. By 7 a.m., we were checking into the hotel.

After brunch at Movenpik, we spent the mid-morning at the Royal Ontario Art Museum where Jon was giggling and running around looking at the pre-Raphelite exihibition. Apparently, that's one of his favorite art periods. Personally, I just wandered around in a sleep-deprived daze and daydreamed. Saw a nice geometric glass sculpture that I'm trying to duplicate in my 3-d animation program.

A quick snack later, and we were on our way to the TAIS workshop at the NFB Mediatheque. This time it was Lynn Smith who was showcasing her films.

Afterwards, we got to the real reason why I drove to Toronto. Ellen Besen, the creative director for the Kalamazoo Animation Festival International, had asked me to speak at KAFI this year on the topic of Forensic Animation (as well as run a paint-on-glass hands-on workshop). So, since she lives in Toronto, it was the perfect opportunity to meet up and discuss what I could bring to the table and see if it meshed with her vision of this year's KAFI. All I can say is 'wow!' Over dinner and a two-hour discussion, I'm even more jazzed to speak at KAFI than I was before. Going to be a good year for festivals! Of course, now I've got two months to boil down ten years of Forensic Animation experience into a one-hour lecture (w/a half-hour of Q&A afterwards). Well, Ellen left early, so Jon and I finished up dinner talking to Lynn and members from TAIS that we met at last year's summer screening. Afterwards, we went back to the hotel and collapsed. Being up since 2:30a.m. and only getting an hour nap finally caught up with us.

On Sunday, we got up, checked out, had breakfast, and drove back to the NFB where we spent the next eight hours studying under Lynn as she taught us her particular style of cut-out and paint-on-glass animation. I spent more time soaking up the creative atmosphere and jotting down notes on animation ideas than I did working under the camera. Jon came up with this cute little transition film about a cat sleeping. We're still editing the film at the moment, but will post it up on the site when it's done.

Around 5 p.m., we wrapped up the workshop, helped TAIS load their equipment into the van, and then said our goodbyes to Madi, Tara, Lynn and the rest of TAIS. It was dinner at Montana's, then we hightailed it back to Michigan, arriving a little after midnight.

The TAIS workshop had the desired effect. I'm jazzed about talking at KAFI, charged up to work on the animated commercials for Replay, and am burning through the client work that is standing between me and my personal film projects. With all the cultural opportunities in Toronto, moving out there is getting more and more attractive every day. ;)