Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas and a prosperous New Year from the Sliced Bread team. Download your own PDF of the marker here, then try out the augmented reality Christmas message for yourself using the instructions below!

1. Make sure your webcam is connected and ready for use and go to www.thebestthingsince.com/crimbo_ar

2. Make sure your webcam is allowed access to Flash content by right-clicking on the Flash window and selecting the webcam icon tab in the settings, and selecting your webcam from the drop-down list.

3. When asked, using the front-side of this card, point the Christmas tree symbol at your webcam and your Sliced Bread Augmented Reality Christmas animation will appear!

Note: You may also need right-click and go to Flash Global Settings then authorise this domain.

Another one fresh from the toaster – a new showcase sequence relating to our client and in-house projects on character animation. The piece highlights the capacity in which we work with agencies and direct brands.

Fresh from the toaster – we have just put together two, one and a half minute showcase sequences relating to our client projects on online games and brand communications. The pieces highlight the capacity in which we work with agencies and direct brands. We have some more sequences coming up in the future – so watch this space.

Sliced Bread are very proud to be partnering with The Green Marine (TGM) team on their new venture. The project is a proposed animation series for digital broadcast. We worked with the TGM team on character development/ design and an animatic trailer. We were drawn into the project by its original concept idea and existing interest by leading industry figures. Visit the site to get a full understanding of the properties fantastic potential.

David Pye is an award winning Transport Planner, campaign Director and CSR specialist. Continually striving for success he is recognised for his creativity, innovation and CSR project impact.

Committed to providing solutions to some of the most challenging economic, ethical, social, health, transportation and environmental issues individuals and organisations face – he is a man on a mission. That’s what motivates him. Combining passion with business aptitude he is an effective influencer at all levels. Advising organisations how to become more sustainable, socially and environmentally responsible, applying common sense and without any flannel!

At a time when there is genuine concern about the future of children in our society, he believes that we should be demonstrating the positive role that media can play: the impact it can have on culture, social values and learning as well as providing relaxation and entertainment.

He has developed a new children’s sci fi action adventure animation series…A BROTHER AND SISTER, AFRO CARIBBEAN JUDO MASTER, A FROG FROM OUTER SPACE AND A HANDFULL OF ECO VILLIANS. The series follows The Green Marine and the team as they act locally and battle globally to protect Planet Earth not only from its inhabitants but also from a succession of evil alien eco-villains.

New technologies and new patterns of use provide us with opportunities to re-invent our relationship and connections with our kids. Using a clearly defined set of environmental, health and social values The Green Marine animation series and accompanying applications will entertain, empower and help keep children on track. As The Green Marine says ‘The time is always right to do what is right.’ Nothing is impossible!

They are currently looking for commercial investment to bring the property forward and fulfil its objectives. If you are interested please contact David Pye direct via the TGM website, LinkedIn or Twitter.

After last years triumphant effort we agreed to offer another helping hand to this years global event – Twestival Local. Given that ‘local’ has connotations of collaboration, we decided that 30-second stop-frame animation sting would be the perfect medium. Stop-frame is my first passion, as some of you will know, as I spent the first 5 years of my professional career animating on children’s series for TV.

Working with Amanda, Crystal and Leynete is always such a joy, this year we had the added spin of having to find someone who could make us an original origami ‘Twestival’ bird and Sam Tsang kindly stepped in to help us, (his website is here). First of all he went off and fine tuned the type of bird we were looking for and then he helped us understand the process on how it is made.

Because of our client commitments at Sliced Bread, it was very hard for us to give as much time as stop-frame needs. We provided the equipment/ materials and enlisted the help of some current students and graduates, to get the production done. Georgie, Charlie, Hannah and David all kindly gave up a week of their time to come to our studio and animate. Georgie and Charlie have provided an insight into the experience below. Special thanks to those who gave a ‘hand(s)’ during the weekend shoot too – Adam (@wrongcrowd), Jo (@joellybaby), Carmen, Natalie and Christina.

This year Twestival is going ‘Local’ in cities around the world on Thursday 24 March 2011. Events for Twestival Local will raise funds and awareness for local nonprofits that organizers identify for having an incredible impact within their own community.

The events can be as big or small as the city wants to make it. We have had Twestivals in a local pub, a bowling alley, a trapeze studio, and even a giant yacht, all thanks to the generosity of local donors and sponsors who come forward to support the volunteer efforts. It is about using your time, talent and resources to come together on one night to make a difference. Think global, act local.

Georgie Cobbs

Working on this Twestival project for Sliced Bread throughout the past 7 days has been exhausting yet definitely exciting. The prospect of a creating a stop-frame animation from start to finish in just a week definitely had its problems but putting together all of our resources and creative minds (and some sweets) everything got resolved calmly. It was incredibly inspiring to be spending the week in a place, bursting with creativity, like Shoreditch is. Animating paper and origami birds definitely had its hurdles and restrictions due to how fragile they are but we found a way to simply rig them and animate their movements convincingly.

Big thanks to Jamie Denham for giving four students/graduates the opportunity to be involved in such a wide-spread project and giving us the freedom to be creatively responsible and also to all the participants who were kind enough to give up their Saturday afternoon to volunteer their hands for the project.

Charlie

Oh my goodness! Where do I start?! I’d sum up the total experience as something like concept to animation in 6 days,fighting with blue tack, making and fixing mistakes we didn’t have time to make, pecking at grapes and MAMOM sweets while waiting for camera batteries to charge. For myself, the beginning started with high levels of excitement to be involved in a live project within the creative industry. The icing on the cake was that I’d be spending a week in the amazingly creative Shoreditch area. Nerves were normal as usual, as I was curious about how animating with 3 other individuals was going to turn out! It ended with a well deserved 30minute break on Sliced Breads amazing roof garden terrace, laughing joyously & hysterically (probably a result of sleep deprivation) at ourselves & the whole entire week with the amazing David Steed & Georgie Wright (Hannah you were there in spirit).

Awesome shout out to Sliced Bread’s head honcho, Jamie Denham, for giving students/ recent graduates the opportunity to get involved!

We are looking for a student (Degree/ Masters level) with an interest in stop-frame animation to work on a fully paid 3-week commercial online project starting mid-January. If you know anyone who might be interested, please send them our way and we will let them know more!

This week saw the launch of our production blog for our upcoming iPad storybook app ‘Balloon Days’. ‘Milo Saves The Circus’ is the first in a series of original tales. It is being developed by us in-house and is a charming interactive story (aimed at 4-7 year olds) which will be available early in 2011. We have already completed all the backgrounds and secondary characters, we are now working through the primary ones and how all the functionality will work. Finally, we’d love you to become a fan on Facebook.

Trafalgar Origins – Channel 4 from Preloaded on Vimeo.

We have just completed a 2nd Flash game installment for the Fire & Rescue Service (client: Meteorite) called ‘Hotel Havoc‘, the game comprises of 3 games in 1 and includes a PaperVision (3D) element.

Usually a haven, this hotel is now reeking havoc upon its guests. A fire is raging. The building unstable. And five people’s lives hang by a cable, in a broken lift. It’s up to you to save the day. But you’ll have to be quick, think on your feet, and smart to get the job done. The call is in…

Game 1 – The fire is spreading fast. You’ve got 60 seconds to get it under control and extinguish the flames. But be careful not to run out of water, and watch out for the wind!

Game 2 – You’re about to see how to support a building by using wooden poles. Memorize the picture. You’re going to have to replicate the structure in 2-minutes. Good luck!

Game 3 – There are five people trapped in the lift. You need to navigate the corridors and get to them ASAP. The only problem is, the lights are broken and the hallways are clog with smoke. So mind your step.

Here’s an animation we have just completed for Twestival Global (2010)... see twestival.com for more details. There’s a blog post coming up shortly, which details more about the collaboration process (which was a fantastic experience), but for now we wanted to get it out there and promote the cause.

Creative: Crystal English, Leynete Cariapa, Animation: Sliced Bread, Music: EliasArts, Audio: Green-Shoot, Recorded at Dammit Ltd., Voice: Lawrence Sheldon, Twestival Bird: 383 Project, Video Footage: charity: water, Thanks to What Talent Ltd., Produced by Connect the Dots Foundation, Photography Courtesy of National Geographic (c) James P. Blair/ National Geographic, Gabriele Gaspardis, Justin Sangani, Brooks Walker/ National Geographic, Johannes Ehrhardt, James P. Blair/ National Geographic images

What is Twestival™?

On Thursday 25 March 2010, people in hundreds of cities around the world will come together offline to rally around the important cause of Education by hosting local events to have fun and create awareness.  Twestival™ (or Twitter Festival) uses social media for social good.  All of the local events are organized 100% by volunteers and 100% of all ticket sales and donations go direct to projects.  If you would like to get involved, please Register your City, Register your School, or Volunteer and we will get in touch.  Organizers will be given a handbook and invitation to our collaboration workspace.  Follow @twestival for updates.