JURY OF INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION FOR THE BEST STOP MOTION ANIMATION

 

BERND OGRODNIK With a formal background in classical music, and fine woodworking,  Bernd Ogrodnik has been a prominent figure in the world of Puppetry since 1986. He is Artistic Director and Co-founder of the Icelandic Center for Puppetry Arts, and serves as Master Puppeteer for the National Theater of Iceland. He has toured all over Europe, Canada, the USA and Asia as a performer and lecturer at International (Puppet-) Theater Festivals, Universities and Conferences. He has been performing and creating Marionettes, Puppets, and Masks for various Theaters around the world, for Collectors and Museums, Commercials, TV and Film.

Filmography: 1987 - Puppet Master for “Paper Peter”, TV series - German /Icelandic Co-production, 1988 - Puppet Master for “Paper Peter”, the movie – Iceland, 1989 - “Gryla and her 13 sons”, - TV-Iceland, 1993 - Documentary “The Puppet Master”, TV – NY, USA, 2002/03 - Puppet Master for “Strings” the movie - Denmark, 2004 - Puppet Master for “Samuel”, educational accident prevention program, produced for Icelandic TV, 2005 - Puppet Master for “The Magic Book” 24 TV episodes for Icelandic TV, 2007 - Three 15 seconds TV commercials for the bank, S 24, 2008 - TV commercial for Mænuskaðastofnun (Institude of Spinal Cord Injury), 2009 - 8 episodes of Felix in cooperation with RÚV and Samtök Iðnaðarins

 

ALEX BRÜEL FLAGSTAD, born 1980 in Næstved, Denmark. Through Den Fri Ungdomsuddannelse  (school for creative development) Alex Brüel Flagstad started his film carrier working at Nordic Film Studios in Lyngby. In 2001 alex entered the Danish media school, studying photography and manuscript-writing. In this period Alex directed and filmed several short features and music videos. In 2006 Alex began working with clay stop motion animation, the first work was an installation called "Mice", which was exhibited in Berlin 2007. Ever since Alex Brüel Flagstad has been making music videos, cinema and tv spots as well as short films in clay, writing, developing, animating and filming his material under the artist synomum Porkfish. Alex Brüel Flagstad is currently working on his first longer short film, The Hopper. 

 

Michele Jannuzzi MA(RCA) born in Pozzuoli in 1967. He graduates in 1987 from Centro Scolastico Industrie Artistiche (CSIA), Lugano. From 1987 to 1989 he is Junior designer at Studio Milani, Giubiasco. From 1990 to 1992 he attends the Faculty of Design for Communication at the Royal College of Art, London where he receives a Master of Arts (with Distinction) degree. From 1992 to 1993 he is Designer with the agency Lambie-Nairn+Company, London. Michele co-founds Jannuzzi Smith in 1993. From 1994 to 2001 he is Lecturer at Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design, London and from 2001 to 2005 at Università della Svizzera italiana (USI), Lugano. He is Guest lecturer at Kingston University; at the Royal College of Art, London; at Università degli studi Federico II, Neaples; at SUPSI, Lugano. Michele was also a speaker at the conferences: Fore Communications, Pittsburgh, 2000; IntApps, Vienna, 2001; Design Network Switzerland Annual Conference, Castagnola, 2001; Workshop Design, Morcone, 2005; Design2context, Zürcher Hochschule der Künste, Zurich, 2006; Britische Grafik seit 1960, Museum für Gestaltung, Zurigo, 2007; Re-brand, Ringier Group, Locarno, 2010. Michele is the author of several texts on the subject of design and comunication including: Dotlinepixel, notes on cross-media design, GCE, 2000; Branding an architectural practice, Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA), 2010. He was a Juror for the design awards: Grafill, Oslo, 1999; D&AD Awards, London, 2001, 2004 and 2006; Best Magazine Awards, London 2002 and 2005.

 

TOMASZ MAJEWSKI, culture and film expert, assistant professor at the Institute of Theory of Culture, Cathedral of Media and Audiovisual Culture at the University of Łódź, lecturer of animation history at Higher School of Film, Television and Theatre. Author of texts devoted to group memory, film and theory of pop culture that were published in “Teksty Drugie”, “Przegląd Kulturoznawczy”, “Dialog”. Editor in chief of anthology “Rekonfiguracje modernizmu. Nowoczesność i kultura popularna” (Reconfigurations of modernism. Modernity and popular culture) (2009), publication “Pamięć Shoa” (Memory of Shoa), “Kulturowe reprezentacje i praktyki upamiętniania” (Cultural representations and commemoration practices) (2009), author of a book "Dialektyczne feerie. Szkoła frankfurcka i kultura popularna" (Dialectic feeria. Frankfurt school and popular culture) whose extensive fragments refer to philosophical interpretation of animation. Participant of a research project Modi Memorandi at Centrum Badań Historycznych (Centre of History Studies) PAN in Berlin; regularly cooperates with Lodz Museum of Art and Dialogue Centre in title of Marek Edelman.

 

FERENC MIKULÁS He was born on the 17^th August, 1940. In the spring of 1957 - because of his participation in the Revolution - he was dismissed from secondary school. Then he worked as an unskilled worker and later as a geodetic surveyor. He wrote scripts and directed short films.  From 1970 he was getting acquainted with animated cartoon films at the Pannónia Film Studio. Since the 1^st June, 1971 he has been the Head of the Kecskemét Animation Studio, since then the films of the studio have won more then 70 prizes at various international festivals. Several series and short films were produced on the base of his idea, e.g. “Hungarian Folk Tales”, “Legends from the Hungarian History”, “Tales of King Matthias”, “100 Years Ago”, “Tale about the Miraculous Deer”, “Fotolife”, “Souvenir” etc. Since 1993 he has been the Director of the Kecskemét Animation Film Festival which was started on his initiative. “KAFF” became an international festival in 1996 by inviting the European animated features and TV Specials into the competition. During the last 20 years it developed into the most important biannual animation event in the region.  Between 1997-2000 he was a member of the Board of Directors of ASIFA (Association of International Animation Film Artists). He was member of jury at several festivals in the world, such as Chiavari (Italy), Seoul (South-Korea), Ankara (Turkey), Beijing (China). For his activities he got the Golden Cross of Distinction of the Hungarian Republic in 1995. In 2004 he was awarded at Chiavari International Animation Film Festival by “Max Massimino Garniér” award for his more than 30 years long work he made in the interest of the Hungarian and international animation culture as the director of Kecskemétfilm Ltd. and Kecskemét Animation Film Festival. Awarded with Béla Balázs Prize in 2008. In the same year he has won the Prima Award of Bács-Kiskun County. At present he is the Managing Director of Kecskemétfilm Ltd., the producer of the films made in this studio and the Director of the Kecskemét Animation Film Festival.

 

 

 

JURY OF POLISH COMPETITION FOR THE BEST ANIMATION

WITOLD GIERSZ (1927, Częstochowa) director and script writer of animated films. Studied economics in Katowice. In 1950 replied to advertisement of Cooperative of Animated Film in Bielsko-Biala and started to collaborate with them as an animator. After 4 years he became director’s assistant and chief animator. He participated in realization of Lechosław Marszalek’s “Koziołeczek” (Little Goat) and “Pani Twardowska” (Mrs Twardowska). Founder of Animated Film Studio in 1956, a branch of Animated Film Studio in Bielsko-Biała that became self- reliant and changed its name to Film Miniatures Studio. As a director of animation, he debuted in 1956 with “Tajemnica starego zamku” (Mystery of an old castle). He completed his film studies only in 1974 at an extern studies of the direction department of Łódź School of Film. He received his diploma 3 years later. At that time he was already one of the leading authors of animated films in Poland. He is an author of a few dozens films some of which, like “Mały western” (Short western), “Czerwone i czarne” (Red and black), “Koń” (Horse) or “Oczekiwanie” (Awaiting), have found permanent place in Polish animation. Currently Witold Giersz cooperates with TV Studio of Animation Films in Poznań. He is a winner of numerous awards for his work within the area of animated films among others of the Ministry of Culture award for the total of his work within animation (1979, 2001), award of Prime Minister for his work for children and youth (1979, 1981), award in title of Zenon Wasilewski (1979) and many other awards at the most important short film festivals, e.g. in Cracow or Oberhasuen, as well as at festivals of films for children in Cannes or Poznań.

 

TOMEK DUCKI (1982, Budapest) is an artist and filmmaker but he mostly perceives himself as a free spirit of art. He was working as an animation director and graphic designer on several animated shorts, music videos, posters and visuals. Tomek was born into a Hungarian-Polish family. He completed an MA in Animation and Visual Communication at the Hungarian Moholy Nagy University of Art and Design and another MA in Animation Direction at the National Film and Television School in the UK. During the last couple of years he freelanced in several European countries, such as Poland, Hungary, UK, France and Ireland. Tomek's Hungarian graduation film, Life Line won over twenty prizes across Europe, and received a Cartoon D'or nomination in 2007. Tomek currently lives and works in Krakow, Poland.

 

HANNA MARGOLIS author of animated films and historian of art. She studied at Warsaw School of Art and at University of Warsaw, also got a scholarship at Sorbonne and ENSAD in Paris. She realized a film “Kino Czar” (Cinema Charm) (2000) based on J. Brzechwa’s poem “Giraffe”; and „Titanic World” (produced by SMF in 2009). She also deals with film criticism and history of Polish animation. She lives and works in Warsaw. 

Filmography: 2000 „Kino Czar”, 2009 „Titanic World”

 

WIOLA SOWA is laureate of the polish Scholarship of Ministry of Culture and Art, the City of Kraków Creative Scholarship in the field of film, and the Goethe Institut Scholarship. Since 2008 she is the head of the polish section of ASIFA  and since 2010 – the expert of Polish Film Institute. In 2010 she was a part of the Hiroshima International Animation Festival selection committee. Wiola creates auteur animated films, combining traditional animation with cutting edge computer techniques. Her films characterizes a refined design, combined in an unconventional way with music and sound. She documents human experiences, creating moving and emotional portraits of her protagonists. 

Filmography: 2007 „Refreny”, „Sekwens” (cooperation), 2008 „Wyrok na życie” (graphic design)

 

DENIS VIREN (1988, Moscow) Graduate of All-Russian State University of Cinematography named after S. Gerasimov (VGIK), the Film Studies Department. He’s been publishing since 2005 as well as translating from Polish into Russian. The main subject of his research is art of Central Europe, particularly Polish. Postgraduate of aesthetics in State Institute of Art Sciences (Moscow). His theme is “Avant-garde tendencies in Polish film of 1960-80’s” (advisor – Irina Rubanova). He works as a film expert at Polish Institute in Moscow.