...the Marvel #1000

Pinoy comic book artist Leinil Yu part of landmark Marvel #1000

Rick Olivares | ABS-CBN News

25  August 2019

MANILA -- Filipino comic book artist Leinil Francis Yu has been selected to be one of the creators whose work will be featured in the landmark Marvel #1000.

Marvel #1000 which hits the racks of comic book specialty shops all over the world this Wednesday, August 28, is a landmark issue that celebrates the 80th anniversary of Marvel Comics. 

It will feature 80 creative teams from some of the publishing company’s superstar creators like Chris Claremont (Uncanny X-Men), Jason Aaron (The Mighty Thor), Peter David (The Incredible Hulk), Gerry Conway (The Amazing Spider-Man), Joe Quesada (Daredevil), as well as guest creators that include basketball legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Taboo of alternative hip hop group The Black Eyed Peas, and filmmaking duo Phil Lord and Christopher Miller (21 Jump Street and Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse).

Yu is arguably the most successful Filipino artist to work on American comics with his career spanning from the mid-1990s up to today. He has continued to work on high-profile projects as befitting a top name in the industry.

Of his involvement in Marvel Comics #1000, Yu succinctly said: “I’d be heartbroken if I were left out of this monumental issue.”

Yu has worked on every major character in both Marvel and DC Comics’ line as well as for independents that includes The Avengers, Captain America, The Indestructible Hulk, Wolverine, The Uncanny X-Men, Batman/Danger Girl, Superman: Birthright, and Buffy the Vampire Slayer to name but a few from his portfolio.

This October, Yu’s latest work will be on the new X-Men comic with acclaimed writer Jonathan Hickman.

Marvel Comics #1000 will look back to its own origin story in Marvel Comics #1 that was first published on August 31, 1939 when the company was known as Timely Comics. The very first panel of Marvel Comics #1000 will reflect a panel from the original first issue and go on to reveal more mysteries of the Marvel Universe, featuring an enigmatic artifact known as the Eternity Mask.

During the recent San Diego Comic Con, Marvel Comics editor-in-chief CB Cebulski also divulged that Darth Vader (Marvel Comics is owned by Disney, which also owns Star Wars) will appear in the landmark issue tying in the Star Wars Universe to Marvel’s.

Marvel’s 80th Anniversary will also be celebrated locally from August 25 to September 1 at the Block Atrium of SM North EDSA and SM Seaside Cebu where Filipina superhero, Wave, will be formally launched.

Marvel Comics #1000 will be available locally through specialty shops such as Comic Odyssey, Filbar’s, Comic Quest, and Planet X.

...the Pinoy talent

Pixar Co-Founder Ralph Guggenheim Lauds Filipino Talent

 

BULLETIN ENTERTAINMENT EXCLUSIVE

By ANNIE S. ALEJO

July 30, 2012

 

 

 

Ralph Guggenheim notes the huge potential in the Philippine Creative Services sector (File Photo)

 
 
 MANILA, Philippines - Marking the maiden staging of the Film, Animation and Gaming Congress of the Department of Tourism on July 26 and 27 was the participation of acclaimed international film and animation professionals, among them Nickelodeon’s Eli Noyes, Cartoon Network Online creator Doug Barry and Pixar co-founder Ralph Guggenheim.
 
Guggenheim, who has served as the Vice President of Feature Animation for Pixar Studios and as lead producer for the 1997 animated hit “Toy Story,” and who has been executive producer for Electronic Arts, now runs Alligator Planet LLC. His current company is involved in projects that put him in business with various offshore production studios. While he is yet to work with a Filipino studio, he does know our rich history in the creative field.

“Philippines has a long history of animation that I know goes back at least… it’s 20 years that I’ve been involved in this sort of thing and I know that it goes further than that,” Guggenheim tells Bulletin Entertainment on the last day of the Congress. “And there’s a number of great studios that are here and a number of great young artists whose work we’ve seen over the last few days [that we’ve been in the country]. So we think there’s huge potential here.”

The Congress, with the theme “Made in the Philippines: From Storytelling to Storyselling,” coincided with the Cinemalaya Film Festival. It aimed to help filmmakers (producers/directors), original content creators, and various other people in Philippine Creative Industries to identify issues and challenges that face them, as well as the various opportunities open to them.

It had also planted the seed in the development of a globally competitive Creative Services in the country. In fact, according to a DTI press release, the Creative Services sector reported revenues in 2011 of about US$142 million for animation and US$7 million for game development. It employs almost 10,000 creative workers and support workers as well.

Of bigger and perhaps more worldwide opportunities for local artists, Guggenheim notes, “All of the studios that I know have started because a few artists came together and built something and it became larger and larger and they did better and better work as time went on. They weren’t all experts when they started but their expertise grew and their knowledge grew as they worked together. And it’s an industry where young talent is always appreciated and always desired, so there’s no question that this could happen.”

Perhaps his visit would become beneficial to both him and our local artists.  “We always do a lot of projects with overseas companies and we’re always looking for a new, young talent and companies that are capable of creating stuff and that can work together with us in ah… projects. So yeah, we are always in search for that and we think the Philippines will be a great place to work.”

Guggenheim and some fellow speakers planned to wrap up their second day of the Congress on the 27th by staying a few more hours at the CCP. “I will see my first film at Cinemalaya this afternoon. We’ve been busy with the conference,” he smiles. “We love independent films and I’ve heard Cinemalaya has great filmmakers and great films so I’m ready to relax and enjoy some films.”

As advice to young creators, Guggenheim closes the interview by offering, “I was once so young [boy] who had an interest in animation, got together with some people I knew and liked, and things grew and changed and our company became successful. But we didn’t start with anything more than a dream and an idea of what we wanted to do.”


Indeed, big dreams come true not just in the make-believe world of movies and animation but, as Guggenheim proves, also in real life.

...the Young Global Leader

Filipino student chosen Young Global Leader 2012

Philippine Daily Inquirer

Sunday, March 11th, 2012

 

 

 

CARANDANG. De La Salle grad

A Filipino scholar in the United Kingdom has been chosen the 2012 Young Global Leader (YGL) by the World Economic Forum.

A statement from the British Embassy in Manila said Benedict Carandang, 30, was one of the youngest selected for the prestigious honor from thousands of nominees across the world and joins the 191 other honorees of the YGL Class of 2012.

Carandang, a graduate of De La Salle University in Manila, is currently in the United Kingdom pursuing an MBA at the University of Westminster under the Chevening Scholarship Program of the UK’s Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO).


Creative industries

He was nominated for the Young Global Leaders scheme for his work promoting the creative industries in his home country.

The Young Global Leaders are selected by the World Economic Forum each year to recognize the world’s most distinguished leaders under the age of 40.

At just 24, Carandang co-founded Tuldok Animation Studios, a social enterprise that aims to promote creative talent in the Philippines through animation. Since then, he has become a champion of the country’s creative industries and has been recognized for his work through awards in 2008 from the British Council’s International Young Creative Entrepreneur for Screen scheme and in 2009 he was awarded the Most Inspiring Young Entrepreneur by the Philippine Center for Entrepreneurship. Most recently, he was the recipient of the prestigious Chevening Scholarship awarded by the UK FCO which enabled him to pursue his postgraduate studies in the United Kingdom.

Of the Young Global Leader title, Carandang said, “I have a lot to thank the United Kingdom for opening my horizons about the positive impact of the creative economy, on how it can help effect change and perhaps even become a catalyst in my country by creating more jobs using the talent and entrepreneurship of my countrymen.”

Carandang is now hoping to use his knowledge from the Westminster MBA to continue his work to help support his social enterprise and as part of his commitment to help shape the global future with the Young Global Leaders community around the world.

The honor, bestowed each year by the forum, recognizes up to 200 outstanding young leaders from around the world for their professional accomplishments, commitment to society and potential to contribute to shaping the future of the world. Past YGLs include Maria Bartiromo, anchor and managing editor, Wall Street Journal Report, CNBC, USA; David Cameron, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom; Esther Duflo, professor of Economics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA; Larry Page, cofounder and Chief Executive Officer, Google, USA; Zhang Xin, Chief Executive Officer, SOHO China, People’s Republic of China.

19 Southeast Asians

For 2012, the forum has selected 192 YGLs from 59 countries and all sectors of society, including business; civil society; social entrepreneurs; politics and government; arts and culture; and opinion and media. The new class originates from East Asia (38), South Asia (19), Europe (46), Middle East and North Africa (15), sub-Saharan Africa (18), North America (37) and Latin America (19).

...the Cartoon pool of talents

Filipinos can really draw,’ says cable network exec

 

By: Oliver M. Pulumbarit
Philippine Daily Inquirer

December 15, 2011

 

 

 

SILAS Hickey: “Has everyone been to art schools here?”

“There are lots of Filipino kids who are incredible at drawing,” enthused Silas Hickey, Hong Kong-based Cartoon Network Asia Pacific creative director.

Hickey visited the country in March to scout for animation industry talents, and recently returned to promote various Cartoon Network projects such as “Johnny Bravo Goes to Bollywood” and “Ben 10: Destroy All Aliens.”

He was a guest speaker at Animahenasyon 2011, the annual Filipino animation festival held in November. Hickey also shared updates on his talent search at a press conference in Quezon City.

“People here can really draw,” Hickey said. “It’s interesting. Has everyone been to art schools or is it just like anyone can draw? In terms of animation, Hanna-Barbera used to be here; they had a training program. But it’s not just those people. There are studios on the outskirts of Manila, little houses and stuff… it’s really incredible.”

Discoveries

His first visit yielded other “really exciting” discoveries. “There are some incredible established studios in the Philippines,” Hickey said. “[There are many] very skilled animators here. We are continuing negotiations with some of these larger studios, to perhaps work on some of our Cartoon Network properties. We need to tap into that. That’s what we’re trying to do since I came here in March. We’ve had some very successful meetings, met some really wonderful people in the industry. We have plans to work with these more established studios as well as individuals.”

Snaptoons

Hickey also talked about the Snaptoons (Short New Asia Pacific Cartoons) program, an ongoing regional project aimed at discovering new, original content. “How that works is there’ll be some sort of solicitation that goes out mainly to professionals,” Hickey said. “We’ll approach studios, animation professionals, directors and writers, and we’ll ask them to submit ideas. It’s not free; we pay them to do that. We’ll make those into ‘shorts.’ If it’s successfully received, we’ll consider making that into a telemovie or a series.”

“There’ll be a solicitation to sort a Philippine Snaptoons,” he added. “There’s something like that on the horizon. Actually, what we’re considering is to have a regional Snaptoons; we can also [include] Korea or Japan.”

Hickey observed that Filipinos have unique advantages. “The thing that’s always encouraging about the Philippines is we do get lots and lots of material [from Filipinos],” he said. “There really is a sort of understanding of western culture.”

Many successful original properties debuted in the shorts format, according to Hickey. “Johnny Bravo started as a short. It’s a great concept and there’s a lot less risk if you have that concept, rather than just launching a multimillion-dollar series.”

Hickey has advice on content-creation, specifically the parameters of irreverence: “It’s case by case; you can’t do certain things in India that’s totally fine in Australia. You have to be very sensitive, very careful that you don’t make any mistakes.”

He added that kids primarily want entertainment, so certain things must be avoided. “We don’t want to make content that comes off as sounding preachy. Kids don’t like it,” he said. “Contemporize it in some way. Really write a story and characters with export potential in mind!”

...the Universal Studio's animator

Passion, perseverance spell success for Philippine-based animator

By Rima Jessamine M. Granali
Philippine Daily Inquirer

 Friday, October 28th, 2011

 

Like the characters in his animated works, Fernan Lagran has proved that following one’s heart can lead to success.

Animator/director Lagran is one of the artists behind globally successful cartoons like Walt Disney’s “Lilo and Stitch,” Universal Studio’s “Land Before Time” and Emmy award winning series “Curious George.”

Lagran is currently a project director for Toon City Animation Inc. based in Mandaluyong City.
“I oversee everything, the entire production from layout, animation, clean-up, among others, and handle an average of 25 artists,” said the artist, a licensed nurse by profession.

After a client sends the story board, Lagran instructs his artists on how the scenes should be created. When their work passes his standards, the drawings are digitally processed.

Before shipping the scenes, Lagran views the first runs with Toon City’s creative director Russ Mooney and sometimes, with the client in a digital room run by software Avid, where the black and white drawings come to life.

The consummate animator had always loved drawing and painting. When he was still in grade school, his father enrolled him at Arts Instruction Schools (AIS), a correspondence school-based in Minnesota.

“My father knew I had talent. When I was young, we used to draw together. My mom would be the judge. Of course, my mom would let me win,” he said with a laugh.

Throughout high school, Lagran juggled academics and sessions at AIS, and joined every art contest in town.

“Winning in drawing and painting contests helped me gain exposure, experience and confidence,” he said. His achievements include the Blue Ribbon Art Award, which is given to the best AIS students from all over the world.

A chance encounter with a friend proved to be his ticket to the world of animation. “I once tried selling computer packages in Parañaque after college. A colleague who happened to see my portfolio introduced me to his sibling working for an animation company,” Lagran said.

But he appeared to have been prepared for the calling all his life.


The nursing graduate from the University of Santo Tomas recalled that while in college, he would spend time at the university’s central library to read art books. “I was curious and hungry for information,” he said.

Taking up nursing to please his mother who wanted him to become a doctor, Lagran later took an expected detour. “I had intended to follow my mom but I felt I would do better if I were in the field of the arts, so I asked her to let me choose the career I wanted after finishing college,” he said.

“If you want to excel, you have to work hard for it. You have to be passionate and knowledgeable,” he added.

When he was Mooney’s assistant, he recalled a time when he retouched piles of rejected drawings reaching almost 4-feet high.

Sensing his perseverance and a great attention to details, Mooney deemed him ripe for promotion as project director at Toon City.

Today, Lagran shares his passion and expertise with aspiring animators to help raise the standards in the country’s thriving animation industry.

Lagran gives inspirational talks to students and trains some of Toon City’s entrants, passing on what he learned from AIS and from reference tools at the Toon City library. Phinma has also tapped him to teach professors, who will pass on the fundamentals of the art to their students in Araullo University, Cagayan de Oro University, University of Pangasinan and University of Iloilo.

Apart from Mooney, he also draws inspiration from former bosses Ric Jamlig and Zaldy Zuno who served as his mentors when he was just starting out.

“The country is blessed with talented artists,” Lagran said. “My proposal is to teach Drawing 101 (basic principles of Arts) as early as in grade school to help gifted students hone their talents at an early age.”

The lack of animators who are skilled in both 2D and 3D services is one of the challenges faced by the industry, he said.

“Changing times call for adaptability. What’s ‘in’ today may not be useful tomorrow. Right now, technology challenges the traditional 2D animation medium and somehow dictates the trend,” Lagran added.

India, one of the Philippines’ closest competitors in the creative outsourcing arena, is ahead in terms of 3D animation technology, he said.

Filipino 2D animators are just starting to learn the intricacies of 3D, but their knack for humor and their great attitude towards work will always be an advantage, he said.

Big animation studios like Walt Disney and Warner Brothers prefer Filipino animators because “we understand American comedy,” Lagran added.

But if he were to create an original concept, it would highlight “the Filipino brand of comedy – funny yet heartwarming,” he said. “Definitely not slapstick and violence. As animators, we are accountable to our viewers, mostly children. It should reflect the aspirations of the Filipino community and should be a good influence on children.”

...the co-director of Pixar

Cavite-born UST alum co-directs Pixar film

By: Ruben V. Nepales
Philippine Daily Inquirer

04 September 2011

FILIPINO animator Ronnie del Carmen (below) served as story supervisor of “UP,” a computer-animated comedy-adventure film produced by Pixar.

LOS ANGELES – Folks, pop open the champagne: Cavite-born, University of Santo Tomas-educated Ronnie del Carmen is codirecting a film at Pixar. It’s one of the biggest and most important breaks ever given to a Filipino-American in the US movie industry.

Ronnie, one of the talented “Pixnoys” in the acclaimed animation studio, is collaborating with director Pete Docter and producer Jonas Rivera in the project with the working title, “The Untitled Pixar Movie That Takes You Inside The Mind.”

A statement from the studio reads, “Pixar takes audiences on incredible journeys into extraordinary worlds – from the darkest depths of the ocean to the top of the tepui mountains in South America; from the fictional metropolis of Monstropolis to a futuristic fantasy of outer space… The inventive new film will take you to a place that everyone knows, but no one has ever seen: the world inside the human mind.

The film reunites Ronnie, Pete and Jonas, who worked as story supervisor, director and producer, respectively, of “UP,” the first animated movie to ever open the Cannes Film Festival. “UP” swept the best animated feature honors, including the Academy and Golden Globe Awards, in 2009.

There’s buzz that the movie’s script is being written by Michael Arndt, whose credits include “Toy Story 3” and “Little Miss Sunshine,” which won him a best original screenplay Oscar. Reports suggested that the film’s story is “specifically about the formation of ideas.” The exciting premise promises a highly original movie that would inspire Pixar’s geniuses to further push the possibilities of animation artistry and technology.

Disney announced this film project, including Ronnie as a codirector, and another new film, “Monsters University,” at the recent D23 Expo, an annual event.

Lectures back Home

del carmen(photo: PIXAR WIKI)

Ronnie, who majored in advertising at UST’s College of Fine Arts and Design, worked in Makati’s top ad agencies. After moving to the United States, he began in television animation, working on such shows as “Freakazoid!,” “Where’s Waldo?,” “Widget, the World Watcher” and the “Batman” animated series. He worked at DreamWorks and Warner Bros. before settling at Pixar, where his credits include being the story supervisor on “Finding Nemo” and handling the story duties on “Wall-E” and “Ratatouille.”

He directed the short film, “Dug’s New Mission,” which came with the “UP” DVD-Blu-ray. Ronnie has won several awards, including an Annie (which honors the best in animation) for storyboarding in an animated feature (DreamWorks’ “Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron”) and a Daytime Emmy for best special class animated program (as director of “Freakazoid!”).

On his trips back home, Ronnie finds time to give lectures and encourage aspiring animation talents. He has shared his talents with DC and Dark Horse comic readers and publishes his comic book series, Paper Biscuit.

Ronnie’s brothers, Louie and Rick, who are also UST alums, are enjoying burgeoning careers as animators in rival studios.

...the Pinoy animators

'Animating' Filipinos for a global market

By Dan V. Paurom
Philippine Daily Inquirer

Monday, May 30th, 2011

FILIPINO DIGITAL animators may soon be joining the global animation industry as they expand their work portfolios.

The country’s first full animated feature film “Urduja” is reminiscent of Disney classics with its charming hand-drawn style. Local animators have also released the first Filipino 3D film in theaters, “RPG Metanoia,” showing that Filipinos have the potential to create world-class animated feature films.

Despite the considerable gains, however, the local animation scene still has a long way to go due to a lack of skilled digital animators. This is partly because there are very few opportunities for Filipinos to gain the necessary skills.

Digimation UK, an animation school based in the United Kingdom, wants to change all that. In a press conference, it announced it would be offering 3D digital animation courses at reasonable prices at La Consolacion College Manila (LCCM).

Dilip Amdekar, chief executive officer and dean of Digimation, said this was an opportunity for Filipinos to get into the billion-dollar gaming and animation industry.

Amdekar said, with the quality and level of education they were offering, Filipinos would have access to high-paying digital animation jobs.

Suren, a teacher at Digimation UK, said simply knowing digital manipulation and computer programs such as Maya and Adobe Photoshop was not enough to succeed in the business.

Aspiring animators should have a burning passion and love for their craft. Educators should not only teach students the needed technical skills but also ignite the spark of creativity inherent in everyone.

Suren showed a video presentation made by Digimation UK students on the history of animation—from crude cave paintings to motion “scopes” of the late 19th century and today’s advanced computer programs capable of projecting entire worlds before global audiences.

An impressive segment broke down explosion scenes in Hollywood movies to show viewers how they were made and how much effort was taken to make them look as realistic as possible.

Present during the press conference was Ryan Flynn, a principal lecturer in games design at University of Greenwich in the United Kingdom. Flynn said the entertainment industry always thrived, especially during times of recession, because of the masses’ insatiable demand for entertainment.

Flynn added that anyone with skills in digital animation could work from their beds at home and, on their laptops, create games that could sell immediately. He cited Angry Birds, a simple game made by a small team of skilled individuals that became a hit worldwide with more than 200 million downloads.

But Flynn said, despite the potential of the games industry, there was a shortage of qualified digital animators. Many game developers had to settle for professionals with limited skills.

Digimation UK hoped that by offering accessible quality education, they could help individuals get respectable positions and salaries in a respectable field.

The school offers two-year courses that teach students technical skills that can also be used in many other fields related to computer programming.

Students who graduate from the two-year courses can take advance animation courses at the prestigious University of Greenwich in London.