Monthly Archives: February 2010

Granny O’Grimm

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“Ireland’s Bitterest Granny” is up for an Academy Award.

I was browsing through this year’s nominations for Best Animated Short Film and came across Brown Bag Films‘ Granny O’Grimm’s Sleeping Beauty. Two Irish animation studios have work nominated in the Animation categories this year, which is pretty good – the other is for hand-drawn feature film The Secret of Kells.

I liked all the Short Film nominations, but Grannie O’Grimm’s retelling of Sleeping Beauty is a cracker! For more of Granny, visit her website. The Academy Award ceremony is on March 7.

SCBWI Scotland presents Catherine Rayner

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On March 25, the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators in Scotland is hosting award-winning author-illustrator, Catherine Rayner, in a day-long master class on illustrating children’s picture books.

If you are interested, click here for more information.

Django Films: The Illusionist

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Much anticipated new animation from Sylvain Chomet.

I absolutely loved Belleville Rendez-vous (as it is called in the UK), otherwise known as The Triplets of Belleville by amazing animator Sylvain Chomet and his flagship studio in Edinburgh, Django Films.

An article in today’s Glasgow Herald reports that Chomet’s new film, The Illusionist, is enchanting audiences at the Berlin Film Festival. I really hope it goes into general release soon!

Here’s a short video of Sylvain Chomet sketching and talking about his drawing methods.

Book Illustration Fan Sites #3

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The Art of the Bookplate

I have been thinking about illustrated bookplates this week. I have several for kids that you can download on my Fun page, and I have been thinking about designing more. So I thought I’d do a little research on bookplates and found this excellent blog, Bookplate Junkie. Like the other book illustration fan sites I have recommended here and here, this one has loads of wonderful images of bookplate art and design.

I wish people used more bookplates! I think they show how much a book is cherished by its owner. They are also a bit mysterious – when I find an old book with beautiful, old-fashioned writing on its bookplate, I imagine what that person was like, how he or she got the book, and what happened to him/her.

I am glad there are people like Bookplate Junkie, who care about these artistic little slips of paper that say so much with so few words.