My pick from Flip

If I was going to go to just one event at the Flip Animation Festival (and remember this is me I’m talking about not necessarily you) then it’d be Animation in the YouTube Generation on Friday 2nd November from 3.30-6pm.

This panel discussion will look at the impact of new and emerging online platforms and tools and will ask what the opportunities are for animators and filmmakers and can online distribution and exhibition lead to professional commissions? The panel comprises an exiting line up of animators who have had a significant impact online and who mix this ‘amateur’ work with professional commissions: Greg McLeod, from the Brother’s McLeod who are responsible for the recent Skittles ad campaign and whose ‘Spamland’ has received nearly 1m views on You Tube; Lasse Gjertson, whose films have had a huge impact on You Tube, particularly ‘Amateur which has received more than 6m views and 6 honours, including most viewed all time; Katy Davis, who has been shortlisted for the MyMovie Mashup competition and has been a feature profile on MySpace and produced the award winning short animation, Gone Fishing. The panel will also include Ana Kronschnabl: author of Plug in Turn on: A Guide to Internet Filmmaking and is the founder of plugincinema.com. The panel will be chaired by Kate Taylor who has worked in short film distribution and exhibition since 1998 and has been involved in a number of leading festivals and agencies, including Kinofilm, onedotzero, British Council and is co-founder of the London Short Film Festival.

While this has the potential to be full of people who don’t know anything spouting off about “user generated content” and coming up with strategies to make the wonderful mess of YouTube into something resembling the old ways (sorry, I get carried away) I have a feeling this will be rather more interesting and useful than that, mainly because of the appearance of Lasse Gjertson who does stuff like this:

There is, of course, loads more going on over the three days of the festival. Check the site for details or pick up a program about the place.