By our count, at least 40 recent grads worked as animators on Space Chimps, the latest family flick to hit the screens this summer. The animation studio leading the charge on the movie was Vanguard, a Vancouver-based company. When it came time to recruit animators, CG Recruiter Barb Dawson, who has taught Production Management in the 3D program, knew exactly where to go first.

Barb says, “Space Chimps needed to crew top-quality local talent, but also needed to keep a strict budget in order to complete the film. We planned for 1/3 of our crew to be artists with loads of talent and potential but very little experience. Because of my connection with VFS, I knew that it was the place to look for up-and-coming talent, and starting hiring recent grads in the first few moths of production. Many students started in entry level roles and progressed to full artist positions by the end of the film by learning on the job. Though some students were hired from other schools, most came from VFS, as it was the school with the highest level of graduates by far, and those students had the best success rate in production.”

Can’t argue with the woman who does the hiring! Congrats to all those who launched their career this year by launching monkeys into space.

The cast and crew has also been interviewed in a series of podcasts, giving Felipe the chance to speak about his role - at least, we think that’s what he’s doing. We don’t speak Spanish. For those who do, enjoy!

Just a heads-up to those of you hoping to catch the Canadian theatrical premiere of Jack Brooks: Monster Slayer, the fun action-comedy-horror by Film grads Jon Knautz and Patrick White we wrote about last week.

The venue for the Vancouver run has changed to Empire Granville 7 Cinemas. No showtimes listed yet, so keep your eyes peeled - and check the Brookstreet Pictures blog for updates!

Update: On top of everything, Jack Brooks is the cover story for the September ‘08 issue of Fangoria!

Among many other things, Guest discussed his long career, which includes favourites like This is Spinal Tap, Waiting for Guffman, Best in Show, and A Mighty Wind, breaking into the industry (”Tonight is actually my big break,” he joked), and his unique brand of improvised documentary-style comedy.

His process - creating histories for the characters which are given to the actors and carefully outlining the story beats while writing no dialogue - may be out of the ordinary but contains many lessons for filmmakers, writers, and actors alike.

For writers, one of the key points is just how completely Guest believes in traditional three-act story structure, that every scene has clearly defined goals that, even improvised, must be achieved for the story to work. “Improvisation is not just people messing around in a room. It’s incredibly strict,” he said.

“When you’re writing comedy, there’s about three good hours in a day,” he said about his daily writing regimen. “The rest of it is a myth.”

His process - “We shoot in 26, 27 days - then I edit for a year” - as well as his tendency to cut down his own part in a film surprised the filmmakers and actors alike.

Guest discussed all his films at various points in the evening, and frequently returned to 1984’s This is Spinal Tap’s long road to production and 1996’s Waiting for Guffman’s memorable characters. “All the people in Waiting for Guffman are narcissistic and untalented,” he said. “My favourite combination.”

While he prefers to work on his own material, Guest is actually in Vancouver shooting a role in Night at the Museum 2. “The part they offered me is Ivan the Terrible, and I read that and thought, ‘I can make that funny.’”

To most, his career began with Spinal Tap, but he’d toiled for years with National Lampoon and had paid his dues on the road to carving out his own place in the industry: “It was a series of steps. It’s not usually one big thing.”

Before wrapping up the evening and spending some time one-on-one with students outside the theatre, he had important advice for young artists. “If you want to be a writer, director, or actor, there’s nothing to think about: you do it. There’s nothing that will stop you from doing it.”

The film debuts this weekend at the New York City International Independent Film and Video Festival.

Congratulations to everyone involved, including Writer/Director Jean-Sebastien Di Fruscia, Director of Photography Cole Stamm, Producer Veronica Bautista, Editor Leo Lu, Art Director Paul Orlando, and sound designers Craig Carpenter and Gunnar Petersen.

Cole, whose work on the film was recently honoured with a CSC nomination, says: “Everyone worked incredibly hard and was serious about their roles, which helped in delegating certain things and backing up to see the big picture. And, we got to shoot in an insane asylum that was absolutely haunted. That was memorable.”

UPDATE!: The NY Film & Video Festival has two sets of screenings, in July and September. Hail Mary is, in fact, premiering at the September festival. So there’s still time to make travel plans…

Now Sasha, along with his Game Design classmates, has graduated - and he’s already signed on as a level designer with local studio United Front Games. We thought we’d bring the story full circle and catch up with him now that he’s completed the VFS journey.

(Left: Sasha 12 months ago. Right: Sasha at his recent grad, holding the “Best Flash Game” award.)

The last time we blogged about you specifically, Sasha, you were holding a giant cheque and just getting going at VFS. It’s only been a year - how far do you think you’ve come in that time, as a game designer?

Far. I’ve really learned a ton of stuff that just isn’t possible outside of this setting, and I can safely say that what I’ve experienced over the past year, along with the people I’ve met, has definitely put me on the right path. When I first started, I had a bit of experience with level design, and now I have so much more. [ed. Sasha's scholarship application included planning documents for game levels.] The great thing about the program is that it gives you a bit of everything, so that in the end you’re well rounded and ready to explore almost any part of the game design process.

In your year in Game Design, did anything really take you by surprise? Was there anything you enjoyed doing that you didn’t think you would, or something that was eye-opening about the industry?

Pre-production is valuable. Very valuable. I never would have thought that a little planning and preparation could go so far! As for things that I enjoyed that I didn’t think I would, I’d have to say all the public speaking and presenting that the program puts you through. I’m still terrible at it, but it wasn’t as bad as I thought it was going to be, and it really does help later on when you’re pitching to industry veterans. As for eye-openers, I think the biggest one I came across was just how “small” this industry is. Everyone knows everyone, so be nice!

Likewise, any preconceptions about game design shattered?

Games are not easy to make. Ha ha, but seriously, this year has been the most challenging and rewarding thing I’ve ever done, and I’m proud of what our team managed to accomplish. You get what you put in, and this reflects hugely in the final projects we all slaved away on.

We were really impressed by Industry Night… Every team seemed to have all the answers - it was really something to behold and something you all should be proud of. How did you find that experience?

The Industry Night is a lot of things, most notably stressful…

There is just so much riding on that night, no room for errors! But on a lighter note, the night of our presentations is what we’ve all been working so hard towards for the past year, and to finally get there is a bit of shock. It’s like that far-off date that never seems to get any closer, and then all of a sudden you’re at the podium. The overall experience was fantastic. Every team gave great presentations, and I don’t think the night could have gone any smoother.

What’s the biggest piece of advice you’d give a new student coming into the Game Design program at VFS?

Network. Not just with the presenters, mentors, guest speakers, and drop–ins, but with the classes graduating before you, and more importantly, your classmates! The people you meet throughout the year can and most likely will get you a job. Of my classmates currently employed by the industry, all of them found work through some form of networking.

Oh, and make a good game. Be original.

Sasha has promised to check in when UFG’s first title goes gold - so stay tuned!

This Wednesday, July 23 event is a one-of-a-kind opportunity to get a first-hand look at all 13 programs at VFS, meet their Heads of Department and senior faculty, and see award-winning student work.

You’ll also have the chance to meet students and grads, including some we’ve profiled on this very blog - Nicky Forsman and Tihemme Gagnon are but two examples!

VFS Open House
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
6pm – 8pm
VFS Café
390 West Hastings Street

To register for this Open House, email openhouse@vfs.com or call 604.631.3590.

“This was a moving master that traveled three city blocks with 22 actors in an uncontrolled environment,” David explains. “The film was shot in just three takes the version on screen is the third take - we had a terrible crash with the joggers on the first take.”

The video stars Acting for Film & Television grad Peter Breeze and features Acting alumni Michael Aaron Keith and Jillian Pasquayak, who did both Acting Essentials and the one-year Acting program at VFS.

David is hosting a fundraiser on Saturday, where the full festival lineup will be announced. Keep your eyes on outonscreen.com for more festival details!

Daniel’s role as Lead Model Maker on Stargate Atlantis puts him in contention for Outstanding Special Visual Effects for a Series. He was nominated for the same award in 2005 and 2006 for Battlestar Galactica (fellow VFS grad Alec McClymont took home an Emmy in 2007, also for BSG).

A number of VFS grads worked on the Sci Fi miniseries Tin Man - also up for a slew of awards. And two VFS Advisory Board Members - Digital Design’s Matthew Mulder (The Company) and Sound Design’s Paul Sharpe (Tin Man) - are also nominated.

You can peruse the complete list of nominees here.