Masterclass with the Master himself!

A REMINDER: TASI is organizing an interactive workshop on Character Design, Concept Development and Production processes on 5th December, 2008 from 3 pm to 6 pm at Whistling Woods International, Goregaon, Mumbai.

The Father of Indian Animation, Ram Mohan or ‘Sirjee’ as he is fondly called will be conducting the workshop and this is a session which should not be missed.

Ram Mohan needs no introduction. Any Indian animator who has not heard of him should not be doing animation!

So make sure that you are there with your sketchpads and pencils to learn from the Master himself - for details of the workshop and to register online go to the TASI website (click here)

CGTantra event postponed

Please inform everybody you know might have been planning to attend the event tomorrow that it has been indefinitely postponed. We will post updates as soon as we get them. As of now, as a sign of respect to those who were affectd in any way by the Mumbai terror attacks, and considering the safety of all those attending the event, it has been postponed to December. Details will be announced later.

CGT Anniversary Celebrations

CGTantra is celebrating its 4th Anniversary at the Mumbai University YBR Auditorium, Kalina, Mumbai on Saturday, 29th Nov, 10.00 am onwards.

It will be a celebration of 4 years of the CGT community, where CGT will honour friends and organisations who have supported their initiatives in the last 4 years.

For the previous 3 celebrations, they had speakers and guests coming from all over the world. This year, they have planned something different.

CGT will commemorate its 4 year long journey with friends and supporters from the industry by honouring them and having lots of fun.

The highlights of the programme are:

• A detailed making of Roadside Romeo-by Tata Elxsi, VCL
• Launch of New products and features of CGTANTRA
• CGTANTRA Community Honours to all our speakers, supporting Educational organisations, Studios and technology companies as well as volunteers
• Announcement of CGTANTRA Community Excellence Awards categories to be given during CGTEXPO.
• Rock Show by Student Volunteers Team.

The summit would cover the following topics:

· Gaming on the road to 2011: An overview on how the India Gaming industry plans to gear up to reach the estimated target ofUs$200 mn.

· Driving the Gaming Eco System – Opportunities an Challenges: This session provides a unique opportunity to look at what drives Gaming in India.

· Infrastructure and Technology – Opportunities and Challenges: The backbone of gaming is based on technology – what do the tech guys have to say about this industry.

· Distribution and Access - Opportunities and Challenges: Distribution and access form the core of gaming. How is India taking gaming to the masses.

· Marketing and Advertising: Understanding of media structure, media potential, consumption habits, etc. Case studies on successful brand partnerships, insights & learning.

The Gaming Summit will have leading industry stalwarts coming from the varied fields namely, gaming, media, advertising fraternity, addressing important dynamics of the industry. There will be panel discussions addressing different topics which will involve industry players from diverse fraternities.

Some of the speakers are:

Mr. Rajesh Sawhney, President Reliance Entertainment Ltd.
Mr. Rohit Sharma, Chief Operating Officer, Zapak Digital Entertainment Ltd.
Mr. Prakash Bagri, Director Marketing, Intel (South Asia)
Mr. Quentin Poulet, Chief Executive Officer, Kreeda
Mr. Nishant Goyal, Manager-Sales, South East Asia, NVIDIA
Mr. Jaspreet Bindra, Regional Director - Entertainment and Devices, Microsoft India.
Mr. Madan Sanglikar, Partner, Inventions - Mindshare

The first day went of well with the auditorium packed to full capacity and I’m looking forward to the second day today with some very interesting presentations announced.

The preparations have been hectic. A lot of hard work has gone into organizing this year’s Anifest India, as always! With an expected turnout of over 1500 people, this long weekend is going to be one hell of a big party, with lots to do, lots to learn and many many people to meet. I’m going to be there - to participate and also as one of the committee members of TASI. And I do hope many of you join us. For details, do visit the TASI website. I haven’t had a chance to update the AAA blog because I have been handling the responsiblity of maintaining and updating the TASI website as well. I will be covering the event on all 3 days - 15th to 17th Aug. But it will be a lot more interesting to attend it rather than just read about it later.

So be there… Or be square!

TASI’s much awaited ANIFEST INDIA 2008 will be held this year on August 15th, 16th and 17th at IDC, IIT Powai in Mumbai.

They have already announced the ‘Call For Entries’ for the Viewers’ Choice Awards and this time there is an added category too.

1. Short Films : Students

2. Short Films : Professional

3. Advertising Commercials

The last date for submitting your entries is 15th July, 2008.

Lots of exciting stuff is being planned and with the beautiful IIT campus as the backdrop, there will be many interactive and hands-on workshops this year.

Further details will be announced soon, so stay tuned!

Attendees at nextMEDIA gain an expert understanding of the most important areas of development in the interactive media industry and learn how to create and execute profitable digital media strategies.

AAA caught up with Biren Ghose, CEO of Kahani World Inc. who is one of the prominent speakers at the digital content show in Banff, Alberta, Canada from the 6th to 8th June 2008, where India is featured as the “emerging market” for discussion. Biren Ghose will be presenting his thesis on “Storytelling 2.0″ which will explore how storytelling will change in a world where the viewer will influence its course.

There is a panel on emerging markets where key decision makers from major media companies network in a retreat based environment. Key participants featured here include:

Jim Louderback, CEO, Revision3
Leader of one of the world’s most successful Internet TV platforms.

Joseph Ferreira, GM & SVP of CBS Audience Network, CBS Interactive, CBS
Senior executive who oversee programming and syndication decisions for the newly-created and recently-launched CBS Audience Network.

Biren Ghose, President and CEO, Kahani World Inc.
Team leader at Kahani Word Inc. and principal innovator of “Indian/Asian-themed” animated movies with the strong potential for computer and mobile games, licensing and merchandising.

James Cooper, Creative Director, Another Anomaly
Award-winning creative director responsible for developing the agency’s products and non-traditional partnerships.

Jeff Barr, Senior Web Services Evangelist, Amazon.com
Responsible for furthering awareness of web services and inspiring developers to create innovative applications using Amazon Web Services.

Claude Galipeau, VP Interactive, Astral Media Inc.
Executive responsible for the digital strategy of Astral’s three business lines: radio, TV, and outdoor display advertising.

Jeremy Wright, CEO & President, b5media
Serial entrepreneur and head of one of North America’s leading blog networks.

Stephan Argent, VP, Digital Media, CTV
Executive responsible for CTV’s digital media strategy and initiatives across all digital platforms.

David U.K., Managing Director, Heavy.com (Canada)
14-year media veteran responsible for Heavy’s Canadian operations, including revenue, ad sales, programming, content licensing and distribution.

Dominique-Sebastien Forest, General Manager, Digital Media and E-commerce, Quebecor Media Inc.
Senior executive responsible for Canoe’s digital content and wireless distribution strategy; also in charge of building and operating a new e-commerce global environment for Quebecor Media online activities.

Kevin Bartus, VP of Digital Media, Rogers Media
Executive responsible for the digital and on-line assets of Rogers Media Inc.

Maria Hale, VP Content, Product & Services, TELUS
Executive responsible for acquiring and managing content featured across TELUS TV, broadband and mobile

The India panel gives a chance for the entire conference to meet the players who are leading the digital media industry in India. They will present the opportunities that are emerging and how to access India across media platforms both traditional and emerging from the perpspective of entertainment, publishing and mobile. The panel is comprised of:

* Neeraj Roy, Managing Director & CEO, Hungama Mobile
* Parmesh Shahani, Head of Vision and Opportunities, Mahindra & Mahindra
* Gaurav Dhillon, CEO, Jaman
* Gotham Chopra, Chief Creative Officer, Virgin Comics
* Ajit Balakrishnan, Chairman & CEO, Rediff.com
* Biren Ghose, CEO & President, Kahani World Inc.

“It’s one thing to talk about 360 degree content, but quite another to be able to successfully create and adapt stories and yet make them compelling across the convergence media chain of platforms! My session on Storytelling 2.0 will be a sharing of the paradigm with other experts that spend their waking hours trying to find formats and attention as storytelling moves to the iPods, PDAs, screens in malls and of course the web! Of course my accent will be on the youth and on animation! The age of user generated storied and collaborative themes all add to the complexity and fun in being a content player in this future space!” said Biren Ghose and went on to add, “As regards the emerging markets panel with old friends like Neeraj Roy, partners like Gotham Chopra and stalwarts like Ajit on the India panel I think the Indian flag will flap strong over this most delightful of venues at Banff!”

The Fairmont Banff Springs is one of the world’s finest heritage resorts. Modeled after a Scottish baronial castle and set amid the grandeur of the Canadian Rockies, “The Springs” is a grand and gracious edifice, combining timeless elegance and 38,000 sqaure foot spa facilities! “If this bunch of folks did not think digital content was fun, they would not have come to such a beautiful place to work!” concluded Biren.

Three speakers will share their recent work and elucidate on the entire process of conceptualizing and planning up untill the actual production begins.

Santosh Sawant - Creative Director, Phoebus Creations, Mumbai

Uttam Pal - Independent Animator & Film-maker, Mumbai

Rudra Matsa - Founder & CEO, Panel Animation Studios, Hyderabad

With examples from their own films, the speakers will take you through the process from concept to the final blue-print. Phases discussed will include intellectual property (IP) creation, story, script, storyboarding, animatics, character and environment design, colour keys, sound design and much more!

Visit the TASI website for more information.