We are very pleased to introduce you to our new AMCRS member gretels gold!
gretels gold specialize in the development and financing of animation projects and family entertainment formats.
Their managing director Gisela Schäfer has over 25 years of experience in the industry and close relationships to companies such as LEONINE, ZDF, ARD, BETA Film, ZDF Studios and edel kids. International co-operations, e.g. in Benelux, France, India, Italy, Malaysia and Singapore, form a further basis for projects. Gisela Schäfer has produced numerous projects, including the feature films “The Ogglies – Welcome to Smelliville”, “Yakari – The Film” and TV-series such as “Henrietta – The Cow” and hybrid productions such as “Let it Glow – How Pauline Saved Christmas”.
A warm welcome! Find out more about gretels gold here!
Yakari
April 19, 2024
German Computer Game Award 2024 for THE BEAR!
The Bear, Mucks! Games, Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg
The interactive bedtime story THE BEAR – A STORY FROM THE WORLD OF GRA has won the German Computer Game Award (DCP) in the category “Best Graphic Design”. THE BEAR is the debut work of Clara Deitmar, Julius Dorsel and Luzie Kehle – all former students of the Animationsinstitut at Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg. The team accepted the award yesterday evening in Munich.
THE BEAR is an interactive experience for tablets. Two friends, the bear and the little one, embark on a journey through a dreamy universe where they collect stars and experience stories together. THE BEAR is about rediscovering the intimate and emotional state just before falling asleep.
Winning the DCP feels like a dream for the team: “It was absolutely amazing to be part of the DCP this year! The nominations alone meant so much to us – winning is just phenomenal. We couldn’t have wished for a better start for our newly founded studio.”
The German Computer Game Award is the most important prize for games in Germany and is endowed with around 800,000€. It is awarded by the Federal Government, represented by the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action, together with game – Association of the German Games Industry and the Digital Games Culture Foundation.
For Jan Pinkava, Director of the Animationsinstitut, the triumph at the DCP is a strong signal for Ludwigsburg as a games location: “To put it simply: The Filmakademie is in Ludwigsburg, and Ludwigsburg is a growing centre for the creative arts. Our Interactive Media teaching is about content – what the artwork does and what it means – with a special emphasis on storytelling. That is why our talented students produce meaningful work, like THE BEAR. At the Animationsinstitut we are proud of our extraordinary students and their contribution to the region.“
While still studying Interactive Media, Deitmar, Dorsel and Kehle founded the studio Mucks! Games, under whose name they recently published THE BEAR. The game is available for iOS systems.
Find out more about WORLD OF GRA and THE BEAR here.
Mucks! Games at DCP 2024, Photo by Sebastian Reuter/Getty Images for Marchsreiter Communications
April 2, 2024
Night of Shame on April 26, 2024!
Night of Shame
Night of Shame is the curated film show that celebrates filmmakers’ worst! From charmingly incompetent to all out shameful – established directors excavate their questionable films and submit them to the fascinated gaze of a live audience. An introduction, a screening and an on-stage interview with our host Michael Bohnenstingl. Slightly uncomfortable or outrageously funny! Finally our filmmaker is rewarded by the redemptive applause of a loving crowd. Night of Shame makes you feel humbled, elated, and a bit closer to each other. Because ultimately: “We’re all the same in our shame.”
The next Stuttgart Animation Meetup will take place on Tuesday, March 26, 2024, 19:30 CET at Flora & Fauna (U-Bahn Mineralbäder). Tables are reserved inside. Let’s talk, drink and connect the regional industry!
The Meetup is open to everyone – whether student, senior artist, newcomer or animation fan! Here, everyone can chat about the industry, connect with each other, and whoever wants can scribble cartoons and characters with the others.
Julia, Michael and Kris are looking forward to seeing you!
March 1, 2024
Pre Fixe with Animation Lounge: Die auditive Ebene im Animationsfilm
Together with the Film- und Medienfestival gGmbH (organizer of Stuttgart International Festival of Animated Film) and the AMCRS, MFG organizes the Pre Fixe with Animation Lounge as a prelude to the monthly network meeting of the film industry (Jour Fixe), at which speakers from the animation film scene report on current projects using practical examples and provide insights into their work.
On Monday, March 11, 2024 at 18:00 CET, Foley artist and sound designer Luis Schöffend will talk about “Die auditive Ebene im Animationsfilm” (The auditory level in animated film).
In animated films, sound design plays a crucial role as there’s no traditional original sound like in game or documentary films. Foley artist and sound designer Luis Schöffend provides insight into organizational, creative, and technical aspects relevant to sound design in animated films. The presentation is aimed at all professionals in the animation film industry, as well as interested listeners from other fields. Through various film examples, it becomes apparent how handcrafted sounds and creative sound designs breathe life into animated images. And just as diverse as each film is, so too is the consideration for sound design.
Sound creation
Luis Schöffend
Luis Schöffend works as a sound effects artist on animated, dramatic, and documentary films, games, radio plays, theater, and performances. As a sound designer, his work is predominantly heard in animated films and series, as well as in experimental formats. The films and their sound design in which Luis has been involved have been recognized multiple times, including winning the German Film Award (“Lola, Best Sound Design”) and at the Filmfest Dresden (“Goldener Reiter, Filmton”).
The event will take place at the Kulturzentrum Merlin, Augustenstraße 72, 70178 Stuttgart. Admission is free.
20. Stuttgart Animation Meetup on February 27, 2024
The next Stuttgart Animation Meetup will take place on Tuesday, February 27, 2024, 19:30 CET at Flora & Fauna (U-Bahn Mineralbäder). Tables are reserved inside. Let’s talk, drink and connect the regional industry!
The Meetup is open to everyone – whether student, senior artist, newcomer or animation fan! Here, everyone can chat about the industry, connect with each other, and whoever wants can scribble cartoons and characters with the others.
Julia, Michael and Kris are looking forward to seeing you!
February 25, 2024
Talent Meet-Up BW 2024
Are you at the beginning of your own start-up, currently immersed in developing a new game, or still studying – perhaps “something with media”? Do you come more from an (academic) background but wish to connect with others from the animation, film, and games industries because you value cross-industry exchange? Do you welcome inspiration from a wide range of media sectors, enjoy meeting new people, and aren’t afraid of technological innovation?
Then the TALENT Meet-up BW 2024 is the right thing for you! Apply now for one of the 20 spots in this free, exclusive program with a unique networking opportunity.
Immerse yourself in the Stuttgart Animated Week together with other young professionals and visit the FMX – Film & Media Exchange (April 23-26, 2024), the Stuttgart International Festival of Animated Film (April 23-28, 2024) and the APD Conference (April 23, 2024) of the Animation Production Days with a free Combi Ticket. You will be supported in networking, you will receive individual program tips and the framework for the best possible exchange – with each other and in the international industry. Last but not least, you will get to know regional support services and contacts so that nothing stands in the way of your professional future in THE LÄND.
The FMX will take place from April 23 to 26, 2024 on site at Haus der Wirtschaft. Numerous presentations will subsequently be available online on demand from April 27 to May 31. The ITFS will take place in Stuttgart from April 23 to 28, 2024 at various locations and on Stuttgart’s Schlossplatz. The co-production market Animation Production Days will be organized as a cooperation between FMX and ITFS from April 23 to 25, 2024.
From now on, FMX Conference, Day and Online Passes as well as ITFS Festival and Professional Passesare are available in their ticket shops. Worthwhile for visiting both events is a Combi Pass which is available in both the FMX and ITFS ticket shops (until March 15 at the Early Bird rate).
Wanted: Professor (m/f/d) for Media Design at Hochschule Offenburg
Media Faculty, Hochschule Offenburg
The Media Faculty (M) at Hochschule Offenburg invites applications for a W2 professorship in media design, in particular animation, for the winter semester 2024/25 or later.
They are looking for a personality who will strengthen the design department of the Media Faculty. The artistic-scientific professorship should cover the basic area of animation in the Bachelor’s program, both in analog and digital techniques, in terms of practice and content, and teach the basic principles of animation. The deepening of knowledge in the 2nd stage of studies and the conceptual, practical and technical supervision of student projects in both the Bachelor’s and Master’s programs, from the idea to the finished work, are also part of the areas of responsibility.
The focal points that should ideally be covered are illustration, 2D / 3D animation, motion design, stop motion, games, AI-supported tools, knowledge of animation and art history.
The application deadline is March 3, 2024. If you have any questions, please contact Vice Dean Prof. Sabine Hirtes at 0781 205-4720 or sabine.hirtes@hs-offenburg.de.
February 9, 2024
UP Designstudio new AMCRS HERO!
DÜRR Material Supply Systems
Time to introduce you to a new AMCRS HERO – we are delighted to welcome UP Designstudio on board!
In interdisciplinary teamwork, they create animation and interaction to turn complex and technical content into catchy stories for industry, medical technology, education and consumer goods. This results in digital and physical products that convey values, strengthen brand identity and inspire users.
