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Digital
Media FX News Archives
Thursday
- April 19, 2001
- Shrek Premiere Screening
Set for April 22
- Original XFX Artwork
and Sci-Fi Film Props Being Auctioned
- Nickelodeon to Expand Video
Game and Interactivity Base
- News Link of the Day
- 10 Things Every Kid Wants to Know About Spy Kids
Shrek
Premiere Screening Set for April 22
(by digitalmediafx.com) The premiere screening of Shrek
will take place this Sunday, April 22, at the Mann Village Theater.
In attendance for the premiere screening will be Mike Myers, Eddie
Murphy, Cameron Diaz and John Lithgow as well as celebrities,
artists, and DreamWorks principals such as Jeffrey Katzenberg.
The animated
film, considered to be a shoe-in blockbuster, will open nationwide
on May 18. DreamWorks has put its heaviest marketing campaign
ever behind the film which doesn't hide the fact that it takes
potshots at Disney and popular Disney animated films.
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 Original
XFX Artwork and Sci-Fi Film Props Being Auctioned
(by digitalmediafx.com) A number of special effect artwork
pieces, animatronics, and props are being auctioned off on eBay
with part of the proceeds going to The Michael J. Fox Foundation
for Parkinson's Research. You can access the auctions here.
XFX studios
is the main FX company providing the auction material. Acclaimed
for its surreal effects in many sci-fi and horror films, Steve
Johnson's XFX Studios is one of Hollywood's premier special effects
houses. The studio will offer more than 1,000 unique objects and
3,000 pieces of artwork used on the big and small screen. Some
items include:
-- The "SIL"
character stunt mask from Species II, est. $10,000/15,000
-- Animatronic heads and spider droids from Virus, est. $2,500/3,500
each
-- Masks from The Shining, est. $250/350 each
-- Animatronic frog from Magnolia, est. $500/700
-- Fully animatronic robot from Evolver, est. $5,000/7,000
-- Talking animatronic corpse from The Stand, est. $5,000/7,000
-- Blues Brothers 2000 bull skeleton rod puppet, est. $5,000/7,000
-- Working sketches from hit movies such as Anaconda, Species,
Species II,
Virus, and others, est. $100/200 each
"This
online sale gives sci-fi movie lovers a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity
to own the actual character model or prop used in their favorite
films," says Catherine Williamson, Butterfields specialist
in charge of this sale. "XFX is opening its doors to the
public, something no other major effects house has done in recent
history."
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Nickelodeon
to Expand Video Game and Interactivity Base
(by digitalmediafx.com) On April 11, Digital Media FX published
an
article on how Nickelodeon was turning its Rugrats
into a successful franchise. Nickelodeon is now working on "spreading
the wealth" to its other shows as well after an announcement
that it has formed a strategic relationship with THQ to release
several original video games based on its TV shows.
According
to a Nickelodeon press release, "Nickelodeon and THQ will
develop videogames based upon original characters and storylines
with the potential to become television, film, online and consumer
product franchises."
"While
our main objective is to publish videogames based on original,
fun and irreverent characters, the perfect property would transcend
the world of videogames into TV, movies, online, magazine and
consumer products," stated Albie Hecht, Nickelodeon's President
of Film and TV Entertainment. "Nickelodeon will leverage
the power of MTV Networks and Viacom to market and promote our
original videogames like no one else can."
Under the
new agreement, THQ will publish and distribute the videogames
while Stephen Youngwood, Vice President of Nickelodeon Interactive
and Book Publishing, will manage the relationship from the Nickelodeon
side. Both companies are presently accepting and evaluating game
submissions.
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News Link
of the Day - 10 Things Every Kid Wants to Know About Spy
Kids
According to the Star-Telegram:
"Spy
Kids must've been doing some espionage of its own before it hit
theaters a few weeks ago: So far, it's had the goods on Bridget,
Josie and Joe. Bridget Jones's Diary, Josie and the Pussycats
and Joe Dirt, that is, all of which Spy Kids beat at the box office.
The movie's
a big hit with parents and children, and some inquiring kids want
to know about it. So we put 11-year-old Master Jack Newton --
son of Family Day! Editor Catherine Newton -- on the case. Jack
came up with these questions for Austin-based director Robert
Rodriguez, who happened to be globe-trotting spy style at the
time. But our fax of Jack's quest for facts finally caught up
with R-Rod, who graciously took time out of his busy schedule
to answer..."
Click
here for the full story.
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