Animatus News, September 2005

Greetings from Animatus! Here’s the latest news concerning
our workshops and current projects. (Scroll down for the Subway
DVD update!)

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OCTOBER ANIMATION WORKSHOPS ARE FILLING UP

If you’re thinking of attending our classes beginning Saturday,
October 8, sign up now while spots are still available! We expect
these sessions to SELL OUT, so don’t delay.

The Animation Workshop
Fall 2005
Saturdays (choose morning or afternoon)
October 8, 15, 22 & 29

Got questions? Call 585-232-3949 for more info. Or visit our website
at http://animatusstudio.com/workshops to sign up online or print
out a form.

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ROCHESTER ANIMATION EVENT:
DON HERTZFELDT AT THE GEORGE EASTMAN HOUSE

Don’t miss the Bitter Films Retrospective this Saturday! The George
Eastman House is bringing independent animator Don Hertzfeldt to
town for a night of films and commentary.

SEPTEMBER 24 SAT. 8 p.m.
Don Hertzfeldt in person! A Bitter Films Retrospective
(program running time approx. 105 min.)

Over the last ten years, a loyal cult following has developed over the
uproariously funny short films of independent American animator
Don Hertzfeldt. Using deceptively simple stick figure protagonists
and brilliant comic timing, Hertzfeldt’s hand-drawn cartoons can
keep an audience in stitches while simultaneously investigating
surrealist and existentialist philosophies. An artist in the great
tradition of Chuck Jones and Tex Avery, Hertzfeldt will be with us
in person as we present this complete retrospective of work
produced at his Bitter Films Studio, including AH, L’AMOUR
(1995), GENRE (1996), LILY AND JIM (1997), BILLY’S
BALLOON (1998), the Oscar-nominated REJECTED (2000),
THE MEANING OF LIFE (2005) and more.

Tickets: $8, $6 members and students.
Advance tickets will be made available in September.
No Take-10 tickets or passes.

George Eastman House
900 East Avenue, Rochester, NY 14607
www.eastmanhouse.org
(585) 271-3361

For more about Don and his films, visit his excellent website at
http://bitterfilms.com

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SUBWAY DVD PULLING INTO THE STATION

We are in the last stages of authoring on our special edition DVD
of THE END OF THE LINE – ROCHESTER’S SUBWAY.
We are making the last tweaks and planning to send materials
off to press next week. The projected release date is October 18th.

The End of the Line tells the little known story of the rail line that
operated in a former section of the Erie Canal from 1927 until its
abandonment in 1956.

SPECIAL FEATURES:
# Over one hundred and fifty photographs
# Artifacts of the subway
# A period motion picture and soundtrack
# Original artwork
# Video of the subway’s last surviving passenger car and one
of the last men to operate it
# Unique footage of the subway’s doomed remnants

Expect another update when we’re ready to accept pre-orders!

Find out more at http://www.animatusstudio.com/subway

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NEW FRESH TOONES SCREENINGS

PARALLEL WORLDS, the latest Fresh Toone from Dave Puls,
continues to gain festival attention.

Synopsis:

The abuse of the Iraqi prisioners by American soldiers moved
filmmaker Dave Puls to reexamine his own memories of working at a
New York State Mental Hospital in the early 1970’s. For all the
scandalous imagery involved the film ends by assuring the
viewer that such abuses can be diminished by two important
measures, now practiced in the New York State Psychiatric Centers.

Here are three upcoming screenings:

Eureka! International Film Festival New York City, October 2005
http://eurekaiff.com/

Vermont International Film Fest Burlington, VT, October 2005
http://www.vtiff.org/viff_films.html

The Education Channel Tampa, Florida
http://www.educationchannel.org