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The "Pixar: 25 Years of Animation", the latest exhibition by Pixar Animation Studios, officially opened today (March 27) at the Hong Kong Heritage Museum on the first stop of its new global tour.
Officiating at the ceremony were the Financial Secretary, Mr John C Tsang; the Director of Pixar University and Curator of Archives and Exhibitions, Ms Elyse Klaidman; the Director of Artist Management of Pixar Animation Studios, Ms Susan Tatsuno; General Manager and Executive Director of Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Hong Kong, Mr John Hsu; Dean of School of Creative Media of City University of Hong Kong, Professor Jeffrey Shaw; Director of Leisure and Cultural Services, Mrs Betty Fung; and the Chief Curator of the Hong Kong Heritage Museum, Ms Belinda Wong Sau-lan.
Running from March 28 to July 11 at the Hong Kong Heritage Museum, the exhibition is presented by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department (LCSD) and organised by the Hong Kong Heritage Museum, and is fully supported by the Walt Disney Company (Asia Pacific). It is also an affiliated event of Hong Kong Entertainment Expo 2011.
The "Pixar: 25 Years of Animation" exhibition, building on the success of its last international tour, offers the most comprehensive review of Pixar's work to date. The exhibition features more than 400 pieces/sets of artifacts, some of which have never previously been seen outside of the studio's archives, including traditional artwork in various mediums, maquettes, early animated short films, and one-of-a-kind media installations created by Pixar Technical Artists, as well as artwork from Cars 2, which has yet even been released.
The exhibition illustrates the three key elements that make an animated film. These are "character", which moves the story forward and gives the viewer something or someone to identify with; "story", which starts with a concept and scripts, then visually represents the film with storyboards; and "world", which depicts the special environments for each film envisioned by the Pixar artists. These elements offer visitors an artistic insight into the studio's hugely successful and most beloved films.
The exhibition also includes two major media experiences 䤰 "Toy Story Zoetrope" and "Artscape". "Toy Story Zoetrope" uses characters from Toy Story and Toy Story 2 to build an eighteen-frame cycle. The figurines are mounted at precise points on the disk, which spins at the speed of one revolution per second so as to create the illusion of fluid motion. "Artscape" reveals what the Pixar artists see when they create the works on display, and giving a sense of what it is like to be a filmmaker at Pixar.
To enhance public knowledge of animation production, a series of educational programmes will be held by the Heritage Museum during the exhibition period. Programmes include: "Animated Imaginary: Global Pioneers of Contemporary Art Animation: USA, Europe and Asia" Symposium; and a talk series including "3D Film-making in Hong Kong", "The Pixar Factor: Artistic Creation from Directing to Screenwriting", and "A New Era of 3D Animation". There will also be two special programmes 䤰 "Social Harmony Project ﷿ To Clay and Beyond: Craft Inspired by Toy Story" and "Between Virtuality and Reality: Behind the Scenes @ AliVE", and free group and school tours which take visitors to the boundless world of Pixar Animation Studios and a behind-the-scenes journey on the artistic development of its global blockbusters.
The "Pixar: 25 Years of Animation" exhibition, along with the exhibitions "Centenary of China's 1911 Revolution" by the Hong Kong Museum of History and "Albert Einstein (1879-1955)" by the Hong Kong Science Museum, together form the exhibition series entitled "A Century of Changes" organised by the LCSD's museums this year. The series builds on the success of the "Creativity x Science x Art = 嚅" exhibition series launched by the museums last year. To encourage the public to grasp the opportunity to see these spectacular exhibitions, the LCSD museums will continue to offer the Visitor Reward Scheme. Visitors who visit this exhibition series will get a specially designed souvenir umbrella by presenting a total of three standard full-price admission tickets for the three exhibitions. The offer is on a first-come, first-served basis while stocks last.
Meanwhile, those who purchase standard full-price admission tickets for this exhibition will be offered a specially designed memo pad with Disney coupons worth $1,000. The offer is on first-come, first-served basis while stocks last. For details, please visit the Heritage Museum's website at hk.heritage.museum.
The standard admission tickets of this exhibition are priced at $20 (Thursday to Monday) and $10 (Wednesdays only). Full-time students, senior citizens and people with disabilities can enjoy concession fees, which are $10 (Thursday to Monday) and $5 (Wednesdays only).
The Hong Kong Heritage Museum is located at 1 Man Lam Road, Sha Tin. It opens from 10am to 6pm from Wednesday to Saturday and Monday, and from 10am to 7pm on Sundays and public holidays. It is closed on Tuesdays (except public holidays).
For details of the exhibition, please visit the Heritage Museum's website or call 2180 8188.
Ends/Sunday, March 27, 2011
Issued at HKT 17:43
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