Kodak

from the top left: DeWitt Davis, Pat Smith, Bill Plympton,
Max Porter, Ru Kuwahata, David Levy, Signe Baumane

For about 6 years, Signe Baumane and myself have been organizing the Kodak Animation Show, and each year it gets bigger and bigger. This year, despite a major blizzard, we had standing room only. In fact, we had to turn away several people because of the fire safety regulations.

still from "Guard Dog Global Jam" by Bill Plympton

The show itself was a little different from the past. There were fewer films and a number of works in progress. We started out with the finished version of my "Guard Dog Global Jam" and the audience enjoyed the wide variety of techniques and differing levels of professionalism.

Then David Levy showed his wonderful short, "Grandpa looked like William Powell" and did a funny Q and A. Next was a fabulous short by Ru Kuwahata and Max Porter that was called "Something Left, Something Taken". The audience was charmed by the Hitchcockian story and original look. They were there for an intriguing Q and A led by Signe Baumane asking about their sex life. "Accumulonimbus", by Andy Kennedy was a quirky look through the history of mankind in a tumble dryer. Signe introduced Ruth Lingford's "Little Deaths", a very stylish film about people describing orgasms, and Signe was also one of the voiceover interviewees. Then She showed 3 excerpts from her new feature "Rocks In My Pockets", which an amazing style that is totally refreshing. Pat Smith showed his new film "Masks", a beautiful and dark exploration of the battle of humanity. And I closed with a mysterious work in progress.

still from "Something Left, Something Taken" by Max Porter and Ru Kuwahata
still from "Masks" by Patrick Smith

still from "Rocks In My Pockets" by Signe Baumane

still from "Little Deaths" by Ruth Lingford

Afterward was the fun part, where we all retired to a local bar, Billy Barks, where everyone got to chat with the filmmakers, and critique the films and basically get drunk.

I personally want to thank Signe Baumane, all the filmmakers, and especially the people at Kodak: Anne Hubbell, who was stuck in the Atlanta Airport, Susan Selig and DeWitt Davis.