Northern Exposure

It's another busy period with little blogging time available; I'm currently hard at work cackhandedly educating today's youth working on some more science-ey films while alternately hard at work cackhandedly educating today's not-so-youthful youth putting Project Group Hug together, the next milestone deadline for which is the beginning of April. So between the two I'll be radio silent for the rest of the month.
In the meantime check out a video interview with NFB director Marie-Josée Saint-Pierre, whose film Jutra has, in the time since my original February article went up, gone on to win both a Canadian Screen Award as well as a Jutra Award, suitably enough.

 

On the subject of the NFB, I was able to catch up with Chris Landreth, director of the Oscar-winning Ryan, on his involvement as Mentoring Director of the most recent Hothouse apprenticeship programme which the Film Board have run since 2003. You can read more in our interview here as well as some insight into each of the scheme's participants: Esteban Azuela, Stephanie Braithwaite, Alex Boya, Alexandra Lemay, Frances Adair Mckenzie, Neal Moignard, Benjamín Mugica and Kathleen Weldon.

Chris is also the director of the Annecy Cristal-winning Subconscious Password, for which Steve interviewed him when we were at the festival back in 2013:

 

If you missed it at the time, you can hear the full interview in episode 15 of the Skwigly Podcast.

Blessed Days

First things first - Radio 1 debuted Faith No More's new single 'Superhero' last night. This is the one I've been most vocal about being on tenterhooks to hear - having been at its first ever live performance last year - and it's so unbelievably goddamn great the English language frankly comes up pathetically short when it comes to existing adjectives that might describe how utterly elated I am.

Their new LP Sol Invictus (their first since 1997) isn't out until mid-May, so fingers crossed my skull doesn't pop in anticipation before then.
Another reason to be cheerful was discovering my animation had made an unexpected appearance on The Anthony Cumia Show when my old O&A/Jim Norton short (the dancing chicken one) recently got played by accident. To my relief it got a good response, have a watch here my friends:

Post by Ben Mitchell - Creative Offal.

While I'm still typing things I'll point you in the direction of Skwigly where fellow cartoon-making personage Matt Walker has done this month's site banner:

Matt Walker

Also worth mentioning the other two excellent 2015 banners, Rumpus for January and Tony Johnson for February. Talented bunch we're amongst, us Skwigly lot:

Rumpus

Tony Johnson