SPECIAL GUEST

HENRY SELICK   At GLAS 2016 we are proud to feature the work of an animator and director whose films have delighted and inspired a new generation of filmmakers: Henry Selick. As director of the films Coraline and The Nightmare Before Christmas, Selick has made some of the most internationally recognized animated films of all time. They were not only pivotal for the current resurgence of stop-motion, but helped transform the perception of what animation could be and what it could accomplish. His work showed general audiences that animation was not a form to be confined, but rather continuously explored in both its narrative and physical forms. Selick joins us after the screening for a discussion. Keep an eye out for more details and information about this event which will be announced soon.  

NARRATIVE + GRADUATE FILMS JURY

JEREMY CLAPIN Jeremy Clapin (France) attended the Ecole des Arts Decoratifs de Paris. He has been active in a wide variety of fields: art direction,illustration, animator and director. He shares his time between commercials, music video, independent short film and as a teacher. His film Skhizein, won more than 90 awards in festivals (including Annecy, Cannes and Clermont-Ferrand). In 2012, he joined PAPY3D Productions and directs Palmipedarium, entirely made using Open Source software (Blender). Currently he’s developing a feature film with Marc du Pontavice, for Xilam films productions.   HISKO HULSING Hisko Hulsing (1971, Amsterdam) is a painter, storyboard artist, illustrator, writer, composer and director of animated films. His films Junkyard and Seventeen won numerous awards on international film festivals and were both official Dutch entries for the Oscars. He worked on projects with directors like Richard Linklater and Brett Morgen. Hisko and his team made animation for Cobain: Montage of Heck (Morgen/HBO/Universal Pictures), based on audio recordings of Kurt Cobain.     KIRSTEN LEPORE Kirsten Lepore is a director and animator based in LA. Her films have taken top prizes at SXSW, Slamdance, the Stuttgart Animation festival, Florida Film Fest, the Vimeo Awards, the Annie Awards and many others.  She’s given presentations everywhere from Pixar to Portugal and has also been featured in Juxtapoz, Shots Magazine, Animation Magazine, Focus Features, and named one of the 50 most creative people by Creativity Magazine. With a client list including Google, MTV, Cartoon Network, Yo Gabba Gabba, Newsweek, Whole Foods, Toyota, Facebook, Nickelodeon, Nestle, and Glamour Magazine, her work has been featured on TV, the web, in museums, and at international film festivals.  

NON-NARRATIVE + UNDERGRADUATE + COMMISSIONED FILMS JURY

NOBUAKI DOI Nobuaki Doi was born in Tokyo in 1981. He earned his Ph.D. from the University of Tokyo, completing his thesis on the animated films of Yuri Norstein. In 2015, he was commissioned as festival director for New Chitose International Animation Festival. Doi has worked as a curator, researcher, and critic of animation. He was a co-founder of CALF, a collective of Japanese independent animators that produces DVDs of independent Japanese animations and introduces Japanese audiences to excellent foreign animations through special screening events. After taking over the CALF distribution division, Doi established New Deer, Inc. in 2015.   SARA GUNNARSDOTTIR Sara Gunnardottir was born and raised in the capital area of Iceland, Reykjavik. She obtained a BFA degree in Fine Arts and received an MFA degree in Experimental Animation from California Institute of the Arts.  Sara received acclaim for her short film Pirate of Love, after which she continued on with other projects and recently, the animation direction on Diary of a Teenage Girl. She currently live and work in Brooklyn, New York.       GERBEN SCHERMER Gerben Schermer started the Holland Animation Film Festival together with animation filmmaker Gerrit van Dijk in 1985. The festival takes place every spring at several locations in the city of Utrecht, the Netherlands. HAFF is known for its choice for quality and innovation. Its programming is ambitious, yet intimate and accessible. Schermer’s passion for the continuation of animation as an independent art form has led to a distinguished career in festival selection and programming. Schermer has held positions as a board member and consultant for national and international organisations.    

CHILDREN’S JURY

RACHEL HO Rachel Ho is a Singaporean animator and multimedia artist. She received her BFA in Experimental Animation from the California Institute of the Arts. Her films and performances have been featured at festivals such as the Live Arts Exchange Festival and Slamdance Film Festival.         BROOKE KEESLING Brooke Keesling is the Director of Animation Talent Development at Disney Television Animation. She works closely with production and development on current series such as Gravity Falls, Star and the Forces of Evil and Wander Over Yonder. Before joining Disney, Brooke was the Manager of Animation Talent Development at Cartoon Network Studios for four years. Brooke has an MFA from CalArts where she produced several films including the student Oscar winning animated short, Boobie Girl. Keesling is an instructor in the Character Animation department at CalArts and she sits on the Board of Directors for ASIFA Hollywood and GLAS Animation.   LINDA SIMENSKY Linda Simensky is currently Senior Director of Children’s Programming for PBS. Simensky began her career with a nine-year tenure at Nickelodeon, where she helped build the animation department and launch such popular series as Rugrats, Doug and The Ren & Stimpy Show. She was Senior Vice President of Original Animation for Cartoon Network, where she oversaw the development and series production of The Powerpuff Girls, Dexter’s Laboratory, Samurai Jack, Courage the Cowardly Dog and other major projects. Simensky is a past-president of ASIFA-East and the founder of New York chapter of Women in Animation.  

US JURY

TOM BROWN Tom Brown is a British; Brooklyn based Director, Illustrator, and Loner. His award winning films have screened in festivals worldwide, redeeming his commercial work.             TOM FULP Tom Fulp is the creator of Newgrounds.com and co-Founder of the Behemoth. Newgrounds is a home on the web for independent animation, games, art and music. The Behemoth is known for hand-drawn console hits such as Alien Hominid, Castle Crashers, BattleBlock Theater and the upcoming Pit People.         PETER MILLARD Peter Millard is from the Malvern Hills in England but is now based in South London after studying at the Royal College of Art. His absurdist hand painted short animations have been exhibited and shown internationally at several international film festivals and galleries including retrospectives in Japan.