Smart State animators kings of the TV jungle
A pompous lion, a drum-playing gorilla, a prima donna alligator and one very gallant iguana have scurried off the pages of a classic children’s book and into the Queensland-produced multi-million dollar animated television series, Animalia.
Thanks largely to the talents of Smart State animators and visual effects artists, the 40-part series has set a new benchmark for TV animation worldwide, bringing Graeme Base’s much-loved A-to-Z menagerie of animal illustrations to three-dimensional life.
The series features animation of the quality employed in films such as Shrek and Happy Feet, a level of technical sophistication previously unseen on television.
Animalia received an enthusiastic reception when previewed to major international broadcasters in New York and London and was officially launched in Cannes, France, earlier this year.
Led by executive producers Graeme Base, Murray Pope and Ewan Burnett in association with Los Angelesbased PorchLight Entertainment, Animalia is due to hit small screens in Australia, United Kingdom, United States and Canada this September and October.
A team of local and international designers, 3D animators, editors and directors based themselves in Queensland specifically to work on the project.
Ewan Burnett, managing director of Burberry Productions which developed the series, said Gold Coast animation house Photon VFX was awarded the task of achieving feature quality animation for the small screen.
“We had to find a way to rescale a highly creative, technologically complex process to realise a project of such unprecedented ambition,” Mr Burnett said.
Plasticine models sculpted by Gold Coast animatronics artist John Cox – a 2007 Smart State Ambassador – provided the team with a real-world reference point for developing virtual geometric models in the initial animation stage.
“Visual effects artists and animators then digitally refined the characters, providing surface texture, lighting, movement, expression and other nuances – even down to details like the creatures’ whiskers – to re-create the layered, painterly look of the picture book,” Mr Burnett said.
Queensland animators were among hundreds of people trained for the groundbreaking production, which, upon completion, will have created over 300 jobs and injected over $20 million into Queensland’s economy.
The Queensland Government, through the Pacific Film and Television Commission, provided $1.6 million to help with the making of the series.
As well, Photon VFX, located at Warner Roadshow Studios near the Gold Coast, received $200,000 through the Creative Industries Unit of the Department of State Development to develop the leading edge technology used in the production.
Photon VFX founder Dale Duguid said Animalia provided an outlet for both high end digital and emerging young talent, which meant invaluable intellectual property would be retained in Queensland.
“High levels of automation within our animation pipeline will enable our workforce to compete head on with low-labour-cost operations throughout the world,” Mr Duguid said.
Established in 1991, Photon VFX has worked on major productions by Paramount, 20th Century Fox, MGM, Disney, Columbia, Sony, Warner Bros. and Village Roadshow.
Melbourne author and illustrator Graeme Base’s wildly popular book, Animalia, has sold over three million copies worldwide since it was published more than 20 years ago.
Website: http://www.animalia.tv
Last reviewed 23 July 2007
