LCAD Animated Short Film Wins the Big Prize at L.A. Film Fest

Submitted by Laguna College of Art and Design:

Under the instruction of legendary Disney Animator, Director and Voice Actor, Eric Goldberg, Attack of the 50-Foot Hero, an animated short created by students of Laguna College of Art & Design’s (LCAD) First Annual Summer Animation Master Class, recently won Best Animation at the 4th Annual New Media Film Festival in Los Angeles. Attack of the 50-Foot Hero was selected by a distinguished panel of judges that included representatives from Pixar, FOX, The Caucus and other industry leaders that include winners and nominees from all major awards including the Oscars, Emmys, Golden Globes, Grammys, Gemini Awards (Canada) and more.

The New Media Film Festival showcases the best in new media - what's new, what's next and honors stories worth telling in all media that are innovative, imaginative and inspirational. It brings the viewer stories that will make them laugh, cry, think and go beyond the ordinary.  The festival celebrates new technologies that exemplify the power of the cinematic arts to inspire and transform.  The well attended and widely publicized event offered an opportunity for film director and LCAD Alumna (2009) Sierra Lewis to accept the accolades showered on the film and its creators.

In addition to earning top honors at the New Media Film Festival, Attack of the 50-Foot Hero, a traditionally animated 2-D short created in the summer of 2012, was honored as an Official Selection at 12 film festivals overall.

“This was our first Animation Master Class at LCAD, and thus such an honor to have won with our first submission of what we hope to be an annual event.” said LCAD Animation Professor David Pruiksma. “We are also supporting and encouraging our graduates to take their films to color and submit them to numerous festivals as well.  It is our goal to make our presence and the excellence of our students shine on the festival circuits around the globe.”

Eric Goldberg, instructor of LCAD’s 2012 Summer Animation Master Class and Project Advisor on “Attack of the 50-Foot Hero” worked on such Disney films as Aladdin, as Lead Animator on the character Genie; Hercules, as the lead animator on Phil; and Pocahontas as Co-Director.

LCAD’s 2nd Annual Summer Animation Master Class, which concluded on August 3, was instructed by renowned special effects, stop motion and puppet ace, Stephen Chiodo. Chihodo oversaw the production of The Sock Thief, a five-minute stop-motion animated short comprised of nearly eight thousand frames, all shot in 4k Ultra HD.  The Sock Thief will be entered in a variety of international film festivals as well.

When asked about the recent project, Pruiksma added, “I was not prepared for the level of quality and professionalism that is exhibited in this summer’s final short. The students were actually putting to use the principles taught in their classes in LCAD animation in this Master Class. I was completely impressed with the designs and in the performances of the characters portrayed in The Sock Thief. Everything from the sets to the motions to the E-motions of the characters was completely believable. The characters thought and lived beyond their composition of wires, latex and lint. In short, I found the second Master Class to be a tremendous success and I could not be more proud of the work of our students than I am when I watched it in its final version with the fantastic score in place.”