GumbyFest 2015

Maleficent Director Robert Stromberg Among Film, Animation Industry Leaders Presenters at Gumby Fest 2015 Sept. 19-20

Glendora, CA – What do The Nightmare Before Christmas,Terminator, Aliens, Coraline, James and the Giant Peach, the original Pillsbury Dough-Boy Poppin’ Fresh, Star Trek, and Star Wars have in common? Stop-motion animation and special effects artists who started their careers on The Gumby Show and Davey and Goliath in Glendora.

Many of those artists and others will share their experiences on Saturday, Sept. 19, and Sunday, Sept. 20, at the Citrus College Gumby Fest Stop Motion Festival, Sept. 18-20, at the college, 1000 W. Foothill Blvd., Glendora, CA 91741.

Presentations will be held in the Haugh Performing Arts Center, the Little Theater and in lecture halls.

Robert Stromberg, director of last summer’s hit Maleficent, is among the prestigious speakers featured in the Haugh Performing Arts Center at 3 p.m. on Saturday. He won Art Direction Academy Awards for Avatar and Alice in Wonderland and has numerous credits from Pirates of the Carribean to The Hunger Games.

Also on Saturday is Gumby Through the Years, celebrating Gumby’s 60th Birthday with a film and talk by Joan and Joe Clokey, son of Gumby creator Art Clokey, at 11 a.m. Next is The World of Visual Effects with visual effects guru Harry Walton (Indiana Jones, The Abyss, Who Framed Roger Rabbit, Star Trek, Terminator and many more.) at 1 p.m.

Sunday’s Haugh events start at 11 a.m. with Putting It All Together – The Components To Produce A Stop-Motion Animation at 3 p.m. on Sunday in the Haugh feartures Dalton Grant, owner Red Giant Studios; Bryan Garver, supervising gaffer and stage manager, LAIKA Studios; Tim Hittle, creator of The Jay Clay Trilogy and animator (The New Adventures of Gumby, The Nightmare Before Christmas, James and the Giant Peach); and Sarah Serata, feature film and television producer who has worked with stop-motion legend Henry Selick (Coraline). At 1 p.m. will be Film Focus: “The Nightmare Before Christmas” (And The Gumby Connection) a behind the scenes presentation with animators Tim Hittle, Anthony Scott and Harry Walton. Scott, Hittle and Walton all had their start in the Gumby Studios, and worked together on Nightmare.). At 3 p.m. Creature Feature: Puppets from Jim Hensons’s Creature Shop™ with Senior Puppet Builder Julie Zobel (Sesame Street, Fraggle Rock, Muppets Tonight, Where the Wild Things Are, George of the Jungle, Dr. Doolittle) will be presented.

Tickets for Haugh presentations are $10 per adult and $5 per child. Limited Edition All-Access Passes are available for $25 (one day) and $40 (two day). Tickets and All-Access Passes are available by calling the Haugh Box Office, (626) 963-9411, Tuesday-Saturday, 11 a.m to 4 p.m. For information, visit www.haughpac.com. Gumby Fest 2015 raises funds for the Citrus College Foundation to benefit Visual Arts Department students.

Free panels presented by film and animation industry professionals include:

Women in Animation, Sept. 19, 12 noon, Little Theater with Kristal Babich, comic book and storyboard artist (Tumble Leaf); Margaret Meyer, character designer and builder (Davey & Goliath’s Snowboard Christmas, Coraline, Robot Chicken, Morel Orel); and Victoria Cloyes, prop master on Tumble Leaf.

Running an Animation Studio, Sept. 19, 2015, 2 p.m., Little Theater with Kelli Bixler, founder of stop-motion animation studio Bix Pix Entertainment; Joe Clokey, president of Clokey Productions / Premavision Studios; and Ron Dexter, head of production at Clokey Productions/Premavision.

Stop-Motion Puppet Makers, Sept. 20, 10:15 a.m., Little Theatre with Liz Allen (Coraline, Paranorman, and the upcoming Hell and Back and ABC’s holiday special Buddy the Elf), Nikki Rice Malki (Robot Chicken, Hell and Back, Super Mansion) and Margaret Meyer (Davey & Goliath’s Snowboard Christmas, Coraline, Robot Chicken, Morel Orel).

Stop-Motion University: Colleges Offering Stop-Motion, Sept. 20, 12 noon, Little Theater with Moderator Matt Jackson, Citrus College Digital Arts Instructor. In 2016, Citrus College opens its new Visual Arts Complex, 37,000 square feet of state-of-the-art studios and classrooms for students seeking careers in digital media, animation, studio arts, multimedia productions, photography, entertainment business and more. Representatives of animation departments from Cal Arts, USC, Cal State Los Angeles, and Academy of Art will discuss their programs.

How I Got Into The Industry/ What It Takes To Be An Artist, Sept. 19, 10:15 a.m., Room PA 133 with Kristal Babich, comic book and storyboard artist (Tumble Leaf); Bryan Garver, supervising gaffer and stage manager at LAIKA Studios (Coraline, ParaNorman, The Boxtrolls); Dalton Grant Jr., storyboard artist and owner of Red Giant Studios, who has worked on Cars, Shrek II, and Sponge Bob 2 Movie”; Alex Kamer, animation director at Stoopid Buddies Stoodios who has worked on Morel Orel, Frankenhole, Titan Maximum, Robot Chicken and more; and Margaret Meyer, character designer and builder (Davey & Goliath’s Snowboard Christmas, Coraline, Robot Chicken, Morel Orel).

State of the Art-What’s Next? Sept. 19, 12 noon, Room PA133 with Brian Garver, supervising gaffer and stage manager, LAIKA Studios; John Harvatine IV, producer and director; Tim Hittle, of Pixar Animation and creator of The Jay Clay Trilogy and animator (The Nightmare Before Christmas, James and the Giant Peach, New Adventures of Gumby and more).

3-D Printing for Stop Motion, Sept. 19, 2 p.m., Room PA133 with Visual effects and digital effects artist John Ikuma (Tumble Leaf), Tommy Keiser (Robot Chicken, Hired Gun) and visual artist and instructor Jesse Standlea.

Cultivating a Creative Community, Sept. 20, 12 noon, Room PA133 with Ron Dexter, Clokey Productions/Premavision; John Ikuma, executive editor / founder of Stop Motion Magazine and video effects artist; Anthony Scott, stop-motion animator and animation director and head of animation at Clokey Productions/Premavision who has worked on New Adventures of Gumby, The Nightmare Before Christmas, James and the Giant Peach, Toy Story 2, Corpse Bride and Coraline.

In the Art Studio, Sept. 20, 2 p.m., Room PA133 with Designer/Art Director Jason Kolowski (Pirates of the Caribbean, Dark Knight Rises Fast & Furious, SpongeBob, Robot Chicken,Morel Orel); Set Fabricator Victoria Cloyes (Tumble Leaf); Puppet Maker Margaret Meyer; Alex Kamer, animation director at Stoopid Buddies Stoodios.

Plans continue to develop for Gumby Fest 2015. Learn more about guest speakers, the latest news, and get ticket and All-Access passes details at www.gumbyfest.net.