MEGHAN GUATTERY
Special to The Leader
On Sept. 11, nearly 250 students and staff members piled into a McEwen lecture hall for a screening of the 2013 Ottawa International Animation Festival’s (OIAF) “Best of Ottawa” showcase.
Presented by the Department of Visual Arts and New Media as a part of the Visiting Artist Program (VAP), the compilation ran just over one hour, and included award winners and audience favorites from last year’s festival.
According to the Visual Arts and New Media website, VAP “provides an opportunity for exposure to a variety of art and design professionals from around the country. This program features a variety of thought-provoking speakers each year, plus opportunities to attend several gallery openings each semester. The speakers provide information about the many directions, options and possibilities inherent in art and design from professionals who are working regionally, nationally and internationally.”
All visual arts majors are required to participate in VAP each semester.
“VAP is a great opportunity for students to be exposed to professional art and design, as well as people that have experience as artists outside of a college setting,” said junior Ashley Ludlow, a graphic design and art history double major.
OIAF, which was started in 1976 by the Canadian Film Institute, has been a place for animation and design enthusiasts to come together for almost 40 years. Each year the festival consists of a competition, screenings, talks, parties and professional development workshops.
“This is the fourth consecutive year the festival has been a part of the VAP program,” said Jill Johnston, associate professor of animation and illustration. “It’s one of the largest animation festivals in the world.”
The 11 animated shorts presented in the showcase were created by designers and artists from around the world, including places such as Belgium, Luxembourg, Switzerland and Norway.
“The people working on these animations are using all different types of media,” said Johnston. “It’s good to show our students so they don’t get locked in on just one form.”
Some of the techniques presented in the showcase included stop motion, abstract ink drawing and wool animation. “Plug & Play,” by Michael Frei of Switzerland, was drawn entirely by his index finger using the integrated touchpad of a laptop.
“I’m not an animation major, but I really appreciate the time and effort it takes to put together a five to ten minute animation, which can take weeks to months to make,” said junior Brittany Matthews, a visual arts and new media major. “I love art because it can make you feel so many emotions in one moment, and animation really can capture that by the visual effects, sound and plot line all collaborating.”
The showcase included a screening of “Lonely Bones,” last year’s grand prize winner from France and the Netherlands. Some of the other works included were “But Milk is Important,” “Na Ni Nu Ne No No” and “Wind.”
“This is work the students usually do not have access to, since some artists won’t post their full animations online,” said Johnston.
Johnston, who will be attending the 2014 Ottawa International Animation Festival next week, has created 11 independent films that have screened in places as far away as Japan, Turkey and Croatia.
This year at OIAF, the jury panel will consist of filmmakers, directors, animators, a journalist and even Tom Warburton, the creator of the Cartoon Network program Codename: Kids Next Door.
According to the OIAF website, this year’s festival received 2,033 entries from 70 different countries. Of those, over 100 short films and five feature films were chosen for competition. 71 showcase films were also chosen to represent Canadian, international and student communities.
The 2014 Ottawa International Animation Festival will be held in Ottawa, Ontario from Sept. 17-21.