ITE 06/18/01

 

Press Release No. 13/07

Embargoed until delivery of speeches on 25 September 2007

 

Toon Boom Animation Festival 2007
ONE-MONTH INTERNSHIP IN RENOWNED ANIMATION STUDIOS IN CANADA FOR FIRST PRIZE WINNERS

            The winners of the inaugural Toon Boom Animation Festival 2007 have been unveiled with students from Institute of Technical Education (ITE) emerging as the champion of this competition. Members of the first prize winning team will be travelling to Montreal, Toronto, and Ottawa in Canada, for a one-month work stint in renowned animation studios, Oasis Animation (www.oasisanimation.com), Nelvana Ltd (www.nelvana.com) and Mercury Filmworks (www.mercuryfilmworks.com) respectively.

2           Toon Boom Animation Festival 2007 is an online digital animation competition using applications software from Toon Boom Animation Inc (Canada). Officially launched on 2 April 2007, the Singapore Edition of the Festival was the first to be held outside Canada.

3           Jointly organised by Toon Boom Animation Inc (Canada), the Canadian High Commission and the Media Development Authority of Singapore (MDA), with the Institute of Technical Education (ITE) as Technology Partner, the Festival has attracted many creative talents from among young Singaporeans, to produce compelling and interesting animation content using Toon Boom software, which was used in popular cartoon series like Sponge Bob Square Pants and The Simpsons.

4           A total of 45 team entries from various learning institutions in Singapore were submitted for the competition, and three of these have won the hearts of the professional jury panel, as well as online voters, to clinch top spots. The list of winners is indicated at Annex A.

An All-Enriching Experience

5           Ms Joan Vogelesang, President and Chief Executive Officer, Toon Boom Animation Inc, shared: “We were extremely pleased to see the quality of the entries and the effort put in by the students to deliver very interesting animated shorts. We would like to congratulate all the participants for the wonderful teamwork, and look forward to welcoming the members of the winning team to Canada. Nelvana, Mercury Filmworks and Oasis Animation will give them a unique work experience which will surely be a stepping stone to continue learning animation techniques and pursue a career in the stimulating animation industry.”

6           His Excellency Alan Virtue, High Commissioner of Canada to Singapore, added: "I am delighted to award the winners of the Toon Boom Animation contest the internships to three of Canada's leading animation studios. Canada is a world leader in the Interactive & Digital Media (IDM) industry, so this is a special opportunity for the students to learn from some of the best in a real work environment. The exposure to the Canadian IDM industry and way of life in Toronto, Montréal and Ottawa will be invaluable towards their future as aspiring animators. I am positive that each student will return to Singapore having gained excellent training, skills and diverse international experience, along with many great memories."

7          Ms Pam Hu, Director (Community & International Relations), MDA said: “ Students as young as 12 years have demonstrated their adeptness and know-how in interactive digital media (IDM) such as animation. This further reinforces Singapore's media industry at the forefront of today's digital age. MDA is proud to be one of the organisers of Toon Boom Animation Festival as it has provided a platform in engaging our young students to express their creativity and showcase their IDM skills via their submissions, thus demonstrating how digital media can enhance work, learning or play.”

8          Dr Ricky Tam, Principal of ITE College Central, said: “ITE is extremely pleased to be a proud partner of Toon Boom Animation Inc (Canada) and believes this collaboration will take us to greater heights in Interactive Digital Media in Singapore.”

Invitation to the Media

9           The three top teams, as well as the seven teams which are deserving of merit awards will receive their prizes from His Excellency Alan Virtue, High Commissioner of Canada to Singapore, at the Toon Boom Festival 2007 Awards Ceremony.

10         The Ceremony will be held at the Canadian High Commission, 1, George Street, #11-01, at 9 am. The Ceremony programme and Quote Sheet are enclosed at Annexes B and C respectively.

11         Members of the media are invited to the Awards Ceremony and do a coverage of the event.

Media Contacts

Mohd Jailani Nathan Head/Publicity ITE DID: 6772 0805	Ms Karina Bessoudo Marketing Director Toon Boom Animation Inc ( Canada) Email: karina@toonboom.com
Ms Sharon Tan Manager/Communications Media Development Authority DID: 6837 9011	Ms Ng Swee Leng Public & Cultural Affairs Officer Canadian High Commission DID : 6854 5852

 

 

Annex A

TOON BOOM ANIMATION FESTIVAL 2007
AWARDS CEREMONY

List of Winners

Top Prize Winners
First Prize
Title of Animation Clip:	Ville D’Harmonie
Institution:	ITE College Central (Bedok Campus)
Team Members:	Boo James Lim Ji Wei Chin Shuenn Hua
Second Prize
Title of Animation Clip:	Singapore Idol
Institution:	Griffiths Primary School
Team Members:	Seetoh Yu Fang Duranka Jayasinghe Nurul Abdul Shukor
Third Prize
Title of Animation Clip:	Singapore is a Fine City
Institution:	ITE College Central (Bedok Campus)
Team Members:	Ng Zi Cheng Soo Jit Yi
Merit Award Winners
Title of Animation Clip:	Lim Bo Seng’s Letter
Institution:	ITE College Central (MacPherson Campus)
Team Members:	Ying Hong Liew Rosli Zainal
Title of Animation Clip:	The Four Stages of Depression
Institution:	Nanyang Polytechnic
Team Members:	Sarah Isabel Tan Tryphena Lam Goh Kian Loon Andrew
Title of Animation Clip:	The Gum Incident
Institution:	ITE College Central (Bedok Campus)
Team Members:	Yi Xiong Ho Mylene Koh Wee Hua Choo
Title of Animation Clip:	Good Service, Anyone?
Institution:	ITE College Central (Bedok Campus)
Team Members:	Haizam Abdul Salim Masturah Hashim
Title of Animation Clip:	Animater Dream
Institution:	ITE College Central (MacPherson Campus)
Team Members:	Desiree Nor Ong Kenny Choe Shou Yi Thum
Title of Animation Clip:	The Coin
Institution:	ITE College Central (MacPherson Campus)
Team Members:	Ngian Zhao Hui Soh Jian Wen
Title of Animation Clip:	A Dog’s Life
Institution:	ITE College Central (Bedok Campus)
Team Members:	Muhammad Khafian Nasir Tan Yihang

 

 

Annex B

 

 

TOON BOOM ANIMATION FESTIVAL 2007
AWARDS CEREMONY

 

Ceremony Programme

9:00 am	Arrival of guests
9:30 am	Guests and media to be seated
9:45 am	Address by His Excellency Alan Virtue High Commissioner of Canada to Singapore Address by Ms Pam Hu, Director, Community & International Relations, Media Development Authority Address by Dr Ricky Tam Principal, ITE College Central Screening of winning clips Presentation of awards by His Excellency Alan Virtue High Commissioner of Canada to Singapore
10:15 am	Refreshments and media interviews
11:00 am	End of Programme

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Annex C

 

Quotes from Top Prize Winners

“We maybe first prize winners but the real crunch will be the one-month stint in the animation studios in Canada. We could hardly wait to take on real projects using the Toon Boom software. We are also there as Singapore’s Ambassadors, and we hope to do our best in showcasing our skills…”

- James Boo
ITE College Central

 

“We were surprised, very happy that we won. Most of all, we are proud that we were the only primary school that made it.”

- Nurul Abdul Shukor
Griffiths Primary School

 

“The whole experience of working against time to prepare an animation clip using the Toon Boom software which we only picked up recently, is enriching in itself. Winning the third prize is a bonus!”

- Ng Zi Cheng
ITE College Central

 

Quotes from Judges

“It was a pleasure to review the enthusiastic and inspiring entries in the Toon Boom Animation contest. The students did a great job in creating imaginative works, while exploring the themes relevant to Singapore today. I am also extremely happy that some students will have hands-on experience working in world class studios using Emmy-award winning and cutting-edge technologies. Their time in Canada will no doubt be enriching and rewarding."

- Mr Edmund Lee
Trade Commissioner
Canadian High Commission

 

“The Toon Boom Animation Festival provides a good platform for aspiring animators as young as 12 yrs old; to learn and create animation clips using the Toon Boom animation software. The students have done really well with their attention-grabbing submissions. MDA is happy to support this initiative which aims to bring about greater awareness of the potential of New Media for work learning or play as well as to nurture young talents to augment Singapore’s creative and digital arts industries.”

- Mr Eric Tan
AssistantDirector, Community & International Relations
Media Development Authority