Toon Boom Animation announced today the customer release of Toon Boom Studio v2.5 for PC. Similar to the Mac 2.5 version, Toon Boom Studio for PC now includes a number of exciting features, including:
Toon Boom wishes to thank all its customers who contributed to the Beta testing.
The v2.5 update sells at $ 199 USD for V1 customers and at $ 99 USD for V2 customers. For Academic (schools and students) customers, v2.5 update sells at $ 99 USD for V1 customers and at $ 79 USD for V2 customers.
]]>With powerful features, such as morphing, inverse kinematics and "glue", which enhance the paperless animation production process, Toon Boom Symphony enables studios to produce digital animation of the highest quality. To set up a meeting at one of the upcoming events, please contact Toon Boom at sales@toonboom.com.
Check out the Product Launch details at Toonboom.com
]]>What is a Graphic Designer?
Graphic designers plan, analyze, and create visual solutions to communication problems. They use a variety of print, electronic, and film media and technologies to execute a design that meet clients’ communication needs. They consider cognitive, cultural, physical, and social factors in planning and executing designs appropriate for a given context. Graphic designers use computer software to develop the overall layout and production design of magazines, newspapers, journals, corporate reports, and other publications. They also produce promotional displays and marketing brochures for products and services, design distinctive logos for products and businesses, and develop signs and signage systems for business and government. An increasing number of graphic designers are developing material for Internet Web pages, computer interfaces, and multimedia projects. Graphic designers also produce the credits that appear before and after television programs and movies.
What can you expect from an employer? Some will have a very specific and narrow job description, and some will want you to do a whole load of stuff. Often an in-house graphic designer will be the jack-of-all-trades. You might expect to create the website, brochures, a poster for an upcoming event, and prepare PowerPoint presentations. And then there is the other end of the spectrum where your entry-level job for the first 2 years is scanning photos for Auto Trader Magazine, and placing them into the layout. It all depends on who is hiring, and what they want.
Specialized Occupations
The scope of the graphic designer is far from narrow. A graphic designer can cover many different spectrums and be very job specific. Although there are many related occupations to the graphic designer, 3 of them are dominant in the field.
Earnings
According to the Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2003-2004, median annual earnings for graphic designers were $36,680 in 2002. The middle 50 percent earned between $28,140 and $48,820. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $21,860, and the highest 10 percent earned more than $64,160. Median annual earnings in the industries employing the largest numbers of graphic designers were as follows:
| Advertising and related services | $39,510 |
| Specialized design services | 38, 710 |
| Printing and related support activities | 31,800 |
| Newspaper, periodical, book, and directory publishers | 31,670 |
Outlook
Graphic design, like many creative fields, is intensely competitive. While the outlook for the field is bright considering the increasing demand for graphics, particularly those destined for online uses, it is a field that continues to attract many talented individuals. When considering a career in graphic design it is important to remember how competitive the field is.
No formal degree is required to become a graphic designer, although many entry-level positions require a bachelors degree. Nonetheless, a focused graphic design degree can be enormously beneficial, improving your skills and helping you to develop a strong portfolio, which is generally the most essential part of finding work in the field.
]]>“This program allows anyone to take video and easily create special effects that were once limited to professional animation experts,” according to Animated Communications President Darryl Freedman. “Anyone can use this easy program to create amazing effects by seamlessly combining 3d animation and video.”
One of many features of 3d Chor VES is the patent technology which allows users to attach videos of their heads to three dimensional animation characters. 3d Chor VES includes hundreds of three dimensional actors which can be integrated directly into a movie. “Attach your head to a caterpillar and talk to Alice In Wonderland,” said Freedman. “Add video as a background for your animation. Students in the video can play with the animated characters.”
3 dChor VES has been adopted by the Department of Defense Education Activity (DODEA) for use in their core curriculum for military base high schools throughout the world.
See the 3d Chor VES website for more information about Animated Communications.]]>
Only current registered PC customers are invited to participate in the Beta phase. Instructions will be sent to them directly.
The customer release is scheduled for early December 2004. All customers who purchase Toon Boom Studio for PC between today and the customer release will receive the update at no charge. Upon customer release, the v2.5 update will sell at $ 199 USD for V1 customers and at $ 99 USD for V2 customers.
]]>Initially this version will be applicable to the large-scale studios working in multi-platform environments. This version will be available to single-users during the first quarter of 2005.
OPUS and Concerto join Toon Boom Studio among Toon Boom's highly-acclaimed Mac OS X offerings.
]]>"We are very proud of Concerto's achievements in the digital animation production environment. This new release enables users to maximize even more the software capabilities and output high quality animation cost-effectively," shared Francisco Del Cueto, Vice-President, Technology, at Toon Boom.
"We experienced exceptional results with the use of Concerto on the first season of Mischief City. As we begin production on season two, our team is looking forward to taking advantage of the additional features that the second release of Concerto has to offer," Jerry Popowich, Vice-President, Creative Production at Mercury Filmworks.
Concerto SP1 is available on Windows, Linux and MacOS X. A technical bulletin is available upon request.
]]>"We are very proud of Opus II. Users will not only enjoy a new set of powerful tools but also appreciate the significant improvements made throughout the application," shared Francisco Del Cueto, Vice-President, Technology, at Toon Boom.
Opus has already been the tool of choice for several leading studios' current productions such as King Camera, Warner Bros., Universal, Cromosoma, DPSI, Mercury Filmworks, Jamination, Film Graphics, Hahn Film and Fat Cat.
Opus II is available on Windows, Linux and Mac OS X. A technical bulletin is available upon request.
]]>Advanced drawing and asset management tools combined with a seamless, integrated workflow make Symphony the solution of choice for any studio that aims to save significant overhead costs while adding value to their animations. Building on the advanced features provided by Opus and Concerto, Symphony adds morphing, basic inverse kinematics and "glue" (automatic joint connecting) to your toolset.
"Symphony culminates everything that has been done in animation technology by pushing further the boundaries of creativity and efficiency. This tool brings to the table high-tech features that will not only raise the quality of animation but also reduce significantly the cost of producing animation," shared Joan Vogelesang, President and Chief Executive Officer at Toon Boom.
Nelvana, one of the world's leading international producers and distributors of children's programming and products, is the early adopter of this revolutionary technology and has used it in the production of the series 6Teen and the pilot of Grossology, which will be presented at MIPCOM 2004. "In Toon Boom, Nelvana saw a company poised to raise the bar for 2-D digital animation," said Scott Dyer, Executive VP of Production and Development for Nelvana. "Our early involvement in Symphony, and the adoption of the technology for production and development, will enable us to increase the quality and expressiveness of our work while remaining cost-effective. We're thrilled to be using Symphony in our Toronto studios."
Demos are available at MIPCOM 2004, Booth C1.05.
Symphony will be ready to ship in the first quarter of 2005 and will be available on Windows, Linux and Mac OS X.
]]>It was directed by High Eagle's Geoff Dunbar and produced by Jacqui Davies. Using cutting edge visual techniques, "American Dream" no longer involves the smooth Cadillac but now interweaves animation with a glitzy gala Hollywood opening.
King Camera's Chris King first worked with Gerald Scarfe over 20 years ago when he filmed Pink Floyd's "The Wall" in 1982, with Scarfe designing and directing the animation. Gerald Scarfe, working alongside Sir Cameron Mackintosh, conceived the whole project. They then approached Geoff Dunbar at High Eagle Productions with full designs and storyboards. "I was delighted with everyone's participation - including, of course, King Camera's!" stated Gerald Scarfe.
Subsequently King Camera worked briefly with Richard Purdum Productions on Disney's "Hercules", where Scarfe was the Chief Art Director. "To work with such talents as Gerald, Geoff and Jacqui again is very exciting and it is an exceptionally interesting high profile project for us to be involved in." enthuses Chris King.
The touring show of "Miss Saigon" has just been staged in Plymouth and will be touring across the UK over the next two years. It is one of the biggest touring show in the UK, with a company of over fifty actors and musicians. "Some of the machinery used during the London run of Miss Saigon was too big and heavy to be used in a touring production and Cameron wanted something new. The animation - the first I've done since, "The Wall" - is going to be run at the back of the stage to complement certain scenes." stated Gerald Scarfe.
Producer at High Eagle, Jacqui Davies, arranged for King Camera to be sent costume samples from Costume Designer, Andreane Neofitou for the animation of the "American Dream", in order to match colours to the characters; namely, The Engineer, played by Jon-Jon Briones, and Kim, played by Miriam Valmores Marasiquan and Jennifer Hubilla. King Camera's Senior Digital Artist and Compositor, Tim Barter, created a number of purpose built modules within Toon Boom Animation's OPUS to recreate the "Ink and Water-colour" style of Scarfe's model sheets. As Tim reveals, "It's a fairly daunting task to try and emulate the work of someone with as formidable a reputation and talent as Scarfe's, and then to hone it to Geoff Dunbar and Jacqui Davie' exacting requirements! At times I felt like the forger trying to impress the old master. It was compounded by the usual budgetary restraints, meaning that I not only had to create compositing modules that output in Gerald's style but did so automatically; with little need for further adjustments. This meant I had to pre-visualise every variation on how the animation might be delivered to me and therefore build the resultant module structures before a drop of animation arrived!
Changes in drawing and field size would also mean that the many effects for each character would need to be readily adjustable between key frames. Thankfully Toon Boom's OPUS now allows the use of expressions so I was able do design a single control that would automatically talk to and adjust each and every effect in a network which saved a great deal of time.
I'm glad to say that with the guiding force of Jacqui Davies, coupled with the superb work of High Eagle's Konrad Welz in Final Cut Pro, both Gerald and Geoff were particularly happy with the result."
The touring show of "Miss Saigon" is currently playing at the Alhambra Theatre, Bradford as part of a two-year tour around the UK. The theatres and dates are summarised below: Bradford Alhambra (Aug. 25 -Oct. 23, 2004), King's Glasgow (Oct. 26 - Dec. 4, 2004), New Theatre, Oxford (Dec. 7 -Jan. 8, 2005), Sunderland Empire (Jan. 18 -March 5, 2005), Liverpool Empire (March 8 -April 2, 2005), Norwich Theatre Royal (April 5 - 30, 2005), Milton Keynes Theatre (May 3 -June 4, 2005), Cardiff, Welsh Millennium Centre (June 7 -July 9, 2005), New Victoria Woking (July 12 - Aug. 13, 2005), Press release by Carole Cox, RadiancePR
CREDITS TO ACKNOWLEDGE: Gerald Scarfe, Designer & Creator; Sir Cameron Mackintosh, Director. Chris King, System Administrator at King Camera; Tim Barter, Senior Digital Artist & Compositor at King Camera. Geoff Dunbar, Director for High Eagle, Jacqui Davies, Producer for High Eagle; Post Production and Editing for High Eagle; Konrad Welz; Animation Designer, Mitchell Lemsk; Designer, Adrian Vaux.
"American Dream", for "Miss Saigon" was conceived and designed by Gerald Scarfe with Sir Cameron Macintosh.
]]>"This project gives us the opportunity to use advanced technology. It will enable us to offer producers a tighter control over the entire production workflow and become an attractive partner for international productions," shared Fabien Baboz, Studio Manager at Caribara.
]]>The film is produced by Sir Paul and directed by Geoff Dunbar. The colour work and compositing for both film and DVD linking sequences were provided by King Camera, the leading digital animation bureau, based in London's Soho film village. Chris King, Director and System Administrator, teamed with Tim Barter, the very talented young Digital Artist and Compositor, worked closely with Geoff Dunbar to achieve the high quality look. The film is based on the award-winning book by David Weisner and has a highly textured illustrated style; both Paul and Geoff did not want the flat impersonal style that they felt computers to date can offer.
"With production guidance from Jacqui Davies and the skill of King Camera the results are more than satisfactory." quotes Geoff Dunbar at High Eagle Productions.
This resulted in a BAFTA nomination for "Tuesday" and both Paul and Geoff are quick to point out the excellent contribution of King Camera. The DVD is due for release in the U.K. on 27 September 2004 after a very successful release in the USA. It also features the chart topper, "Rupert and the FROGGO Song" and "Tropic Island Hum", another of Sir Paul's vibrant all family entertainment songs heralding the arrival of a new set of characters to cartoon folk lore, Wirral the Squirrel, his girlfriend Wilhemina and their eccentric friend Froggo, among others.
King Camera used Toon Boom's advanced 2D animation system, USAnimation, as their main tool to assemble the film and linking material. USAnimation is vector-based and is able to handle productions of any duration or resolution. King Camera rendered Film and High Definition resolutions for the DVD and "Tuesday" while other productions have been simultaneously rendered to Macromedia(r) Flash(tm). "With "Tuesday" we had to incorporate extensive use of textures, automatic tones and highlights, mist, light and focal effects, sparkles, ripples, colour timing changes and multi-planning, sometimes for as many as eighty characters per scene, all with separate peg moves! Coupled with the freedom to create and digitally animate many of the scenes from scratch, USAnimation was an ideal tool, allowing us to easily integrate all aspects of the production, make real time changes with Geoff and Jacqui and produce a unique aesthetic look for both film and DVD extras." explains Tim Barter, Digital Artist and Compositor at King Camera.
]]>"The men from King Camera were experienced, professional, perfectionists and they understood the animator's mind. I wanted to rely on their skills totally and I could. Wonderful. And on top of that we got on really well." Stated Michael Dudok de Wit, Director.
With the objective of recapturing the Oscar, BAFTA, Grand Prix & Prix du Public award-winning style of "Father and Daughter", Michael Dudok de Wit decided to approach King Camera. System Administrator, Chris King, and creative Senior Digital Artist & Compositor, Tim Barter brought the production together. Michael initially created colour models in Photoshop while King Camera created special purpose built modules to emulate the various Photoshop blending modes used in the models. As with Michael's previous work, textures were required, not only for the backgrounds but also for all the characters, with some scenes requiring the application of over 70 textures at a time. USAnimation's(r) new Opus upgrade, coupled with Michael's inimitable line quality with it's subtle greyscale variations, achieved the desired effects.
King Camera's full HD capability, teamed with Toon Boom's USAnimations'(r) Opus resolution independent software, enabled the output of two versions simultaneously; in High Definition (HD) at 24 Frames per second and NTSC formats at 30 Frames per second. Tim Barter confirms: "In all we had an extensive use of over 1200 textures across the 60 second commercial. So with the additional need to perfectly retain Michael's outstanding line quality and output to both Hi Def and NTSC within an extremely tight deadline, USAnimation(r) once again proved itself to be an ideal tool." Additionally, King Camera's Chris King made use of Houdini from Side Effects to create snowfall for the commercial and composite NTSC field rendered output from USAnimation's(r) Opus.
The production was highly complex and work intensive, challenged by a deadline that was moved forward by two weeks and resulted in Michael creating artwork through to the very last days of production. With this in mind, King Camera's Senior Digital Artist and Compositor, Tim Barter, decided to structure the compositing of the production so that most of the important textures and colour models could arrive later without impacting on the deadline. To this effect, highly complex compositing modules were created that enabled any characters or textures to be plugged into them. Michael's storyboard was then extrapolated to create proxy characters that would later be scanned in as the real thing. In the process, approximately 1200 proxy textures were created and plugged in, to be replaced as and when the correct textures arrived. This meant that the entire job could be 'composited' long before the actual artwork arrived, with only minor changes to follow.
"The King Camera work ethic is that with proper organisation, communication and pre-visualisation, no production should be stressful or over-run beyond the normal hours in the day! Wishful thinking perhaps, but for the above reasons, working with Michael was an absolute pleasure. Despite Michael's overwhelming workload, he was incredibly organised, which made it possible for me to work from his storyboards, ensuring that neither of us became dependent on the other for material. Michael also had such pre conceived ideas of what he wanted to achieve, that I was able to confidently work in unison with him with the knowledge that our work wouldn't all become redundant as changes were made further down the line. Consequently, despite a curtailed delivery period, a massive workload for Michael and the need to work towards both High Definition and NTSC outputs, the production was wonderfully stress free." Tim Barter from King Camera stated.
]]>Easily grasped by teachers and students alike, Toon Boom Studio (TBS) is a complete animation application useful throughout the school year for teaching all aspects of the animation process. TBS compliments the teaching of traditional animation techniques and principles by emulating traditional tools and techniques, and combining them with a powerful yet comprehensive user interface. Students will be able to use this software for exercises and major projects alike; and it is perfect for building a viable digital portfolio.
Product Features
Drawing tools
3D Scene Stage to position and move 2D elements in 3D space
Lip Synchronization
Reusable assets
Import options
Output options
You can supplement TBS with Toon Boom’s Animation Curriculum and Project Courseware. Each of these products, complete with sample material, makes a useful reference in the classroom.
The Toon Boom Animation Curriculum emulates traditional animation curricula while combining new techniques with traditional methods. Students of all ages experience each step of an animation project from storyboarding to composition. Through the use of a seamless user interface, students can begin learning immediately.
Project Courseware identifies project ideas for students in a K-12 classroom environment. These projects were specifically developed to promote learning through the creation of digital media for everyday subjects such as history, science, and English literature.
Unlike many animation software packages, TBS is affordable, enabling schools and students alike to take advantage of the full version of the software. Toon Boom Animation Inc. has years of experience developing powerhouse applications for animators. They have designed Toon Boom Studio so that it fits seamlessly into your curriculum and features all of the tools you need to create high quality animation. Visit Toon Boom for more information regarding their products and services.
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