Many cartoon animations in our childhood were made in the West or the nearby Japan. They depicted a life elsewhere. Local animation and illustration creative team, Postgal, would like to tell our own stories. They created a number of animation works rich in Hong Kong elements, which have made them the most representative creative team in Hong Kong in recent years. Their works strike a chord with Hong Kong people and has impressed overseas audience. Sino Group, Olympian City and ‘Art in Hong Kong’ invited the creative duo Postgal to bring their signature characters Din-Dong and Hidden Elder to Olympian City. The two creators, John Chan and Pam Hung, transform the shopping mall into an anime gallery, where Postgal’s characters glide, swing and whirl to display their cheeky side and bring you a playful Christmas.
Ten Years’ Dedication: Home-grown Anime that Touches the Heart and Wows International Audience
Animation creations with a local spin and strong iconic features are few and far between over the years in Hong Kong. In 2008, Postgal’s creation ‘Hidden Elder’ was awarded the Grand Prize at DIGICON6 by Japanese TV station TBS - an award hailed as ‘the Asia Animation Oscar’. The short animation is a parody of local familiar news documentary programme Hong Kong Connection. Set in Hong Kong, ‘Hidden Elder’ tells the story of an old man living alone and abandoned by society. His true identity is actually a Santa Claus suffering from amnesia. Their ‘Din-Dong’ anime series brings along a lot of everyday wisdom and environmental concepts. It was also broadcast in Japan through Yomiuri Telecasting Corporation to give overseas audience a taste of made-in-Hong-Kong animation.
Having completed his Multi-media Design degree in Australia, John Chan returned to Hong Kong to take up a job in website design. He later resigned from his job and became a full-time animation creator. After a decade of animation creation, in 2010, Chan’s dedication and achievements were recognised by Hong Kong’s arts field. He received ‘Hong Kong Arts Development Awards 2010 - Award for Best Artist (Film)’ from Hong Kong Arts Development Council. What make Postgal’s animation successful are not only the ebullient and witty characters, but also its local touch. Animation by Postgal is 100-percent made in Hong Kong - everything from story ideas, characters’ voice-over to soundtracks. Without high-tech CG, Postgal’s creations display a sense of sincerity and compassion. They often strike a chord with the audience, who are moved by the creative team’s simplistic and unadulterated drawing style that is rich in local flavours. In addition to the cityscape of Hong Kong, their animation’s ‘raw materials’, from backdrop, characterisation to plot, are invariably taken from the everyday life to give audience a warm sense of familiarity.
A Stroll around the Anime Gallery A Crash Course on Animation Making
This debut large-scale exhibition of Postgal is led by ‘Ding-Dong’ and ‘Hidden Elder’, along with other Postgal’s characters, to transform the mall into a local anime gallery. Make it bigger and bigger still! Inside the 8.3m (W) x 6m (H) giant fluffy Ding-Dong mini cinema, audience can enjoy for free Postgal’s award-winning animation and the ‘Din-Dong’ animation series. Audience can also get a limited edition ‘Din-Dong Magical DIY Animation Movie Ticket’, which can be made into an animation flipbook. What’s more? ‘Postgal Animation Mini Encyclopaedia’ short film and a drawing exhibition are specially made to share with you Postgal’s sources of inspiration and creative process. The skidding Ice Cream Van, the jumbo colour pencils on the lawn and other Postgal 3D characters will demonstrate the animation basics - blowing up, shrinking and breaking down of actions, in a humorous way. 200 Din-Dongs will be transformed into sunflowers, layering on each other to become an adorable 20-meter giant Christmas tree. Familiar local landmark icons, from Star Ferry, Tram to Tsim Sha Tsui Clock Tower, will become Christmas gift boxes that come with a Hong Kong flavour to remind us to cherish the city’s treasures. And don’t miss the gigantic outdoor pop-up Christmas card gallery to experience being a dwarf for a day.
DIY Animation Tools and Green Christmas Ornaments
Accompanying the exhibition is a range of animation workshops specially arranged by the organiser. In the ‘Collaging and Building Storyboards’ workshop, participants can make use of newspaper and magazine, together with hand-drawn illustration, to produce a storyboard for a short animated story. The ‘Zoetrope Workshop - Simple Animation Device Making’ workshop allows participants to understand the principles of zoetrope and make an animation box of their own. In celebration of Christmas, artists will teach children to make environmentally-friendly Christmas decorations and reindeer sleighs to promote Din-Dong’s green spirit.
‘Din-Dong Photo Booth’ Charity Sale and Life-size ‘Din Dong’ on Patrol!
At ‘Din-Dong Photo Booth’, the playful Din Dong will try to ‘steal your spotlight’. Your photo with Din- Dong will be made into a funny Christmas e-card as a witty season’s greeting for family and friends. Meanwhile, ‘Snap for Care Charity Sale’ takes place between 23 December 2011 and 1 January 2012. With just HKD$20, you can bring your photo with Din-Dong in a cute photo frame home. All proceeds will go to ‘Operation Santa Claus 2011’, organised by RTHK and the South China Morning Post, to share your happiness with those in need! On all weekends and public holidays in December, a life-size Din Dong will patrol the shopping mall to take pictures with fans!
For details of the above activities and workshops, please go to www.artinhk.com and www.facebook.com/artinhk.
‘Din-Dong Christmas Anime Gallery’ Exhibition
Date： 16 / 11 / 2011 – 1 / 1 / 2012
Time： 10am to 10 pm
Venue： Olympian City — 18 Hoi Ting Road, West Kowloon, Hong Kong
(MTR Olympian Station Exit A & D / Mongkok Station Exit C)
Organisers： Sino Group, Olympian City, ‘Art in Hong Kong’
Enquiries： 2132 8700 / 2199 2031
Websites： www.artinhk.com / www.facebook.com/artinhk
Free admission
‘Din-Dong Christmas Anime Gallery’ Exhibition Opening
Date： 15 / 11 / 2011 (Tuesday)
Time： 12 noon
Venue： Central Atrium, G/F, Olympian City 2
Officiating Guests
Mr. Jerry Liu – Head, Create Hong Kong
Mrs. Vicki Kwok, JP – District Officer (Yau Tsim Mong)
Ms. Connie Lam – Executive Director of Hong Kong Arts Centre
Mr. Patrick Wong - Deputy General Manager (Retail Marketing & Promotions), Sino Group
Mr. John Chan – ‘Din-Dong Creator, Postgal
Ms. Pam Hung – ‘Din-Dong’ Creator, Postgal
‘Din-Dong Tuck Shop’ Din-Dong hot items waiting for you on shelves
Date ： 16 / 11 / 2011 – 1 / 1 / 2012
Time ： 1 to 8 pm
Venue： Central Atrium, G/F, Olympian City 2
‘Din-Dong Photo Booth’ Your photos with Din-Dong will be made into funny X’mas e-cards
Date ： 16 / 11 / 2011 – 1 / 1 / 2012
Time ： 10am to 10 pm
Venue： Central Atrium, G/F, Olympian City 2
‘Snap for Care Charity Sale’
With just HKD$20, you can bring home your photo with Din-Dong in a cute photo frame. All proceeds will go to ‘Operation Santa Claus 2011’ organised by RTHK and the South China Morning Post to share your happiness with those in need!
Date ： 23 / 12 / 2011 – 1 / 1 / 2012
Time ： 10am to 10 pm
Venue： Central Atrium, G/F, Olympian City 2
Beware of life-size ‘Din-Dong’! Din-Dong on Patrol in Olympian City!
Date ： All Saturdays. Sundays and public holidays in December
(3,4,10,11, 17, 18, 24-27, 31/ 12 / 2011)
Time： 2 to 3 pm, 4 to 5 pm
