• Two of DANS DIGITAL's Works Are Again Selected for the AEAF

  • 2018/10/17 17:40:14  &  BY DANS DIGITAL
  • The 21st AEAF (Australian Animation & Effects Awards Festival) ended perfectly, and DANS DIGITAL's CG animation short film CEEC - Show Case and video commercial NDU - Tianjin Dredging were nominated for the "Finalist in the Best VFX Commercials" and "Finalist in the Best Live Event Installations & Projection", respectively. This is the second time for DANS DIGITAL to be associated with this competition after its first entry last year with four finalists.

     


    CEEC - Show Case is a finalist in the category of “the Best Live Event Installations & Projection” .

    As the eagerly awaited industry event for the film and television advertising, visual effects animation, and special effects production community, AEAF 2018 not only presented visually stunning works but also created opportunities for professional networking. The world's leading experts in the field of digital imaging, 3D animation, gaming, interactive and emerging technology industries were on hand to deliver key speeches one by one. For example, Matt Aitkin, Director of Digital Effects Production at Weta Digital, produced Avengers: Infinity War, Jordan Soles, Vice President of Development and Technology at Rodeo FX, produced Game of Thrones, Simon Pickard, Animation Director of The Tale of Peter Rabbit and others. 
    The panelists gave an in-depth analysis of the recent development of visual effects and VFX production and discussed the future trend. The festival culminated in an awards ceremony at the Chauvel Cinema in Sydney, Australia.


    2018 Animation & Effects Awards Festival Award Ceremony held at Chauvel Cinema.


    2018 Animation & Effects Awards Festival Awards.

    AEAF was established in 1997 and has been held for 21 years. It is a global event that combines competition, presentations and screenings, and it is an important international platform for the exchange of visual effects production and animation works. Each year the event brings together the leaders of the special effects production and 3D animation industry and the best works of 3D animation, post-production effects companies and film studios from all over the world. For example, the Industrial Light & Magic (ILM), the Oscar-winning film and television effects production company; Weta Digital, which produced Avatar and The Lord of the Rings trilogy; MPC, the post-production production company for the Harry Potter series; Framestore, the post-production company for Doctor Strange and Batman; RodeoFX, the post-production company for Game of Thrones, Now You See Me, The Twilight Saga, and Blade Runner 2049, etc., are all regulars in the event.


    The award-winning companies and their representative works in the past years.

    The event in 2018 was divided into 21 categories, with an increase of 3 categories compared to last year. Compared with the entries in previous years, the number of entries this year is much larger and the competition is more intense. In the category of "Film Visual Effects", the finalists included almost all the familiar visual effects blockbusters of the past two years: Avengers: Infinity War, Rampage and Maze Runner: The Death Cure by Weta Digital, a film and television effects production company. Framestore's Thor: Ragnarok and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 as well as MPC's Diana Prince, The Greatest Showman, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales, Alien: Covenant and Blade Runner 2049.


    Some of the finalists in the category of "Film Visual Effects"of the 2018 AEAF.


    According to the AEAF organizing committee, the categories of "Animation Commercials" and "Visual Effects Commercials" continue to have the highest number of entries, and the competition is particularly fierce. The finalists in the "Visual Effects Commercials" category are: the special effects production company Framestore makes film and television commercial, CG animated short film and 3D animated film for Marks & Spencer, which is also the production company for Doctor Strange and Batman; MPC, the special effects production company for the Harry Potter series and Superman, produced an image campaign for the United States Navy (US Navy), a CG animated short film, and a 3D animated film called Sea to Stars; the Honda brand campaign, CG animation short film and 3D animation film produced by Blackbird, which won the Gold Award of D&AD and the Gold Award of ADFEST; Collider and Blackbird, jointly produced a film and TV commercial for ASUS Zenbook (ASUS), which has won 2 Cannes Gold Lions, 4 D&AD Gold Awards and 2 AEAF Gold Awards. In addition to the works of these strong companies, CG animated short films and 3D animated pages of many famous brands are also listed, and films of Mercedes-Benz, TOYOTA, Apple and Nike are among the finalists in this category.


    In the "Best Visual Effects Commercial" category, the following brands were selected: Marks & Spencer, Honda, Mercedes-Benz, MAZDA, Apple, ASUS, etc. 

    As the only Chinese entry in this category, the CG animated short film and 3D animation film TIANAN CYBER PARK T5 was created by DANS DIGITAL, competed with world-renowned post-production companies and international film and television advertising companies, which was a test for DANS DIGITAL. It was the best encouragement for the creators of the film to break through many film and television advertising and branding works. Just as the film implies, the road of innovation of DANS DIGITAL is also courageous despite the hardships, all the way through the thorns and thorns, and finally, we will break out of the thick fog and ushers in a magnificent and brilliant moment.


    The screenshot of TIANAN CYBER PARK T5 by DANS DIGITAL.


    At the same time, another film and television advertising campaign and CG animation short film CEEC - Show Case by DANS DIGITAL was selected in the category of "Live Event Installation & Projection", which is a new attempt in the field of creative experience space and is highly innovative. The background of film is set in the story of a human's pioneering in a distant galaxy during the era of cosmic voyage, and the whole experience simulates the scenario of a human returning to the interplanetary carrier in a vehicle after work. When the elevator rises to the top, the vehicle also just flew to the destination, giving people a sense of immersion. This is a comprehensive innovation integrating virtual scene design, 3D animation production, visual art, world-view architecture design, special effects production technology, special equipment and special application space, bringing a new demonstration for global special effects production technology.


    Diagram of the CEEC - Show Case by DANS DIGITAL.


    CEEC device deployment diagram.


    CEEC device structure diagram.

    One year ago, DANS DIGITAL had four films, commercials, promotional videos, CG animation shorts and 3D animation films in the final round, becoming "the first Chinese company to enter the final round in the 20 years since the establishment of AEAF". This year, DANS DIGITAL was again on the list, which also attracted the attention of the organizers and made them look at the development of China's visual effects and animation industry. From the majestic "City in the Sky" to the unforgettable "Journey into Space", these two different styles of films have been selected as finalists in the CGArchitect International Architectural 3D Competition and won the Busan International Advertising Festival Innovation Crystal Award. It is the best affirmation for us that these two films with different styles are again on the stage of this visual effects animation industry event. Of course, there is no end to innovation, and there is still a long road ahead. We hope that DANS DIGITAL can make more excellent works on the road of innovation.