Laura Lucas

The second annual animation mini festival will have one big difference from last year’s: student work.

“Last year went really, really well ? there were 125 student attendees and 25 participants in the kids’ workshop,” said Cable Hardin, assistant professor of visual arts.

This year, the festival will show around a dozen animated short movies. “Some shorts are highlights from the Ottawa Film Festival. There are shorts by Bill Plympton, Pat Smith (who spoke on campus last year) and PES, who does stop motion,” said Hardin.

Shorts, as Hardin said, are one to ten minute movies. Hardin said he chose films from animation outlets that are aware of new animation. Some examples include the Ottawa Animation Festival, independent animators and students.

Three students who have their work in the festival are Isaac Windham, Lynette Lobien and Corey Beffert.

“I’m glad we can acknowledge student work,” said Hardin.

Windham, a senior media production and general arts major, is no stranger to showing the student body his work. During his freshman year of college Windham started to “really get into” animation. He entered a Cartoon Network contest with his roommate.

In the spring of 2006 he showed his animated film Fourth Floor at the student film festival. “It was about a guy having a bad day and he wants to off himself,” said Windham.

For the 2007 student film festival, Windham worked for six months on the epic pop up book movie that won him first place.

“I mainly use animation because media production has limited cameras ? With animation all you need is the software, time and drawing ability. Also the possibilities are endless,” he said.

This year Windham has made a music video to the song “Kill Me Faster” by a local band. It is about a guy who sees his ex-girlfriend wherever he looks and starts pulling himself apart.

“A comedy is hard because you want people to think it’s funny. When showing people I always get nervous at the start of the film and worry if they will laugh,” said Windham.

The opening sequence for the festival was animated by Windham and Beffert, an SDSU alum. “It is to get people excited,” Windham said.

Lobien, a senior general arts major, also has a film being shown. “It is called I Like Squirrels and it’s about an evil cat and a tough squirrel,” she said.

The animation mini festival is Oct. 29 at 7 p.m. on the lower floor of the South Dakota Art Museum. The festival will last around two hours and is free to all. The kids animation workshop will be Nov. 1 at 10 a.m. and will also be in the South Dakota Art Museum.