YAMASONG DVD available!
The “Yamasong” DVD is now for sale! The DVD includes over 40 minutes of content including the original short film and trailer, interviews with the filmmaker and band and commentary tracks. Contact Sam for more information on ordering the DVD at samkojihale@gmail.com.
Upcoming Screenings:
4/21 Mauvais Genre Film Festival (Tours, France)
5/1 Newport Beach Film Festival (Newport Beach, CA)
6/11 Graphation Seattle Film Festival (Seattle, WA)
About Sam K. Hale and “Yamasong”:
“[Sam K. Hale is] a rising creative force in the field of puppet films.”
-FIRSTWORKS, Rhode Island School of Design
“The future of filmmaking, particularly puppet filmmaking, is YAMASONG. It is the combination of vast and epic storytelling, the highest quality sculpting and artful manipulation of the puppets creating a gripping performance, then taken and polished, tuned, even enhanced digitally allowing for a world that Jim Henson at the time of ‘The Dark Crystal’ could only dream of.”
- Josiah Golojuh, GRAPHATION Festival Co-Founder
“The visuals in Sam Koji Hale’s Yamasong are wondrous, and the American Bunraku puppetry that feeds the film is equally impressive.”
-EDITOR’S PICKS, The Providence Phoenix
“A welcome mythic adventure...much like a Neil Gaiman film.”
-ARTSMASH RI Online Review
Sam K. Hale’s YAMASONG
Artist: Sam Koji Hale
Background: Director, Illustrator, Designer and Sculptor classically trained at Academy of Art University in San Francisco
Awards/Recognition:
2011 Graphation Film Festival, Los Angeles
“Yamasong” short film
Written & Directed by
Sam K. Hale
Nominated for Achievement in Puppetry
2010 Dragon*Con Independent Film Festival
“Yamasong” short film
Winner Best Animated Film & First Place Animated Fantasy Short
2010 World Music and Independent Film Festival
“Yamasong” short film
Nominated Best Screenplay and Best Original Sound
2008 Arlyn Award Society
“The Fox Lantern”
Commendation for Design
in Puppet Theatre
2004 PSW Regional Emmy nominee for Art Direction & Animation “Ahoy, Capt. Sid!”
Some Favorite Links:
“Yamasong” was inspired by the music of L.A. percussion band On Ensemble, and executive produced by Heather Henson’s IBEX Inc. It was co-produced by Chiodo Brothers Productions and Lodger Films, Inc.
“Yamasong” employs Japanese-inspired tabletop puppets shot on greenscreen and composited into real and CG environments. It also has stop-motion animated elements, pixellation and computer animated sequences seamlessly blended for an awe-inspiring visual experience.
Contact Sam with any comments or questions at samkojihale@gmail.com
Peace in 2011!
Sam Koji Hale
About Yamasong:
It has been a successful year of film festivals for “Yamasong”, the short film written and directed by me and executive produced by Heather Henson. It won awards at Dragon*Con Independent Film Festival in Atlanta, garnered nominations in other festivals around the country and travelled abroad to France, Australia, the Czech Republic and Canada.
We will continue to show the film at festivals as well as look for opportunities to expand upon the world introduced in the short film. Visit this website again for updates on where “Yamasong” goes next.
Also, the DVD is now available and includes over 40 minutes of content (the original short film and trailer, interviews with the filmmaker, the band, commentary tracks and behind the scenes footage). Contact me for DVDs at samkojihale@gmail.com.
And watch the trailer below:
