Ben10 - A New Animation Platform Created by GoAnimate!

Hi everyone!

We here at GoAnimate are really proud and excited to introduce to you our newest animation platform - the Toon Creator on Cartoon Network's online headquarters! With the Toon Creator, you can animate characters from Ben 10: Alien Force, a popular and fascinating series on Cartoon Network.

Ben10 Cast of Characters:
Ben Tennyson is a fifteen-year-old boy who has the power to morph into ten different kinds of aliens. His cousin, Gwen Tennyson, has the power to manipulate energy to create blasts, shields and grapple holds. Their friend, Kevin Levin, was once their enemy and now drives an amazing sports car, can absorb and take on the qualities of all materials around him (concrete and steel, in particular), and has a small crush on Gwen...

We want to invite you to test out the Toon Creator...but please keep a few things in mind:

• The site is still in beta, so there might still be bugs that need to be sorted out.
• Moderation will take longer than normal.
• Your GoAnimate account will not work on the Cartoon Network Headquarters site - you will have to create a new Cartoon Network account (don't worry, it's free!).

To get crackin' on your own Ben10 animations, simply visit tooncreator.cartoonnetworkhq.com , create an account, and begin animating your own Ben10 adventures!

Check out some of the animations I've made ... the possibilities are endless with this platform :) !

Toon Creator: Meet Ben 10! by laurelcando


Toon Creator: Meeting Gwen Tennyson by laurelcando


Toon Creator: Kevin 11 or Kevin Levin? by laurelcando


As always we appreciate your thoughts and comments. Try out this new site and let us know what you think!

Video Tutorial: The zoom FX power unleashed

After receiving a lot of questions regarding his own animations, Mojochi decided to create a tutorial to share his techniques. The zoom FX in the GoAnimate studio is one of the key tools he is using, and the below animation includes all the tips you need to know about this very powerful feature in the GoAnimate studio.

GoAnimate.com: The Advanced Zoom Tutorial by Mojochi


Like it? Create your own at GoAnimate.com. It's free and fun!

Thanks a lot to Mojochi for preparing this very cool tutorial. More than teaching other users about the zoom FX it also highlights how cool GoAnimate can be to create tutorials for anything.

BACKSTORY CONTEST WINNERS

Hi everyone! Here at GoAnimate we have been busy with lots of projects - including determining the winners of the Backstory Contest! Thanks to everyone who participated.

The four Grand Prize Winners were chosen by a panel of judges from CBS and GoAnimate, and the four First Prize Winners were determined by the most number of shared views. The Grand Prize winners will also be featured on TrekMovie.com !

Please have a look at the winning animations, and please stay tuned for upcoming contests (you too can have a shot at prizes and internet fame!).

GRAND PRIZE WINNERS

Best Nurse Chapel Backstory

GoAnimate.com: Star Trek: "Lady with the lamp" by Walker88



Best Mara Backstory

GoAnimate.com: Mara's Past by Uchiha7



Best Gorn Backstory

GoAnimate.com: Star Trek : Gorn Origins by PaulToon



Best Combination Backstory

GoAnimate.com: Love Federation Style by jdiggs



FIRST PRIZE WINNERS

Nurse Chapel Backstory

GoAnimate.com: Nurse Chapel Testimonial by RoTV



Mara Backstory

GoAnimate.com: Mara, Mara, Mara by RangerRoy



Gorn Backstory

GoAnimate.com: The Gorn Identity by Ludvig II



Combination Backstory

GoAnimate.com: Star Trek-Backstories by IndianOutlaw


Once again, thanks to everyone who participated...this was a really fun contest and we are excited to continue them all summer long! As always if you have any questions or comments, please feel free to get in touch.

Hey GoAnimate ! GoCompose!

Hi Everyone,

GoAnimate was recently introduced to an amazing new website that allows you to easily create your own music.

HOW COOL IS THAT!

The site is called MusicShake, and has a very clever platform where you can easily compose songs from pre-existing samples and loops - plus you can record your own voice and other parts! Then you can pay to download your own songs as mp3's, or share on any number of social networks.

MusicShake is offering GoAnimate users 300 Shake Cash which will give 3 free MP3 downloads!

Simply go to MusicShake's Sign Up Page and use the promotional code "MUSICSHAKEPROMO3" to receive 300 Shake Cash!

Then use the music you compose in the animations you create!

...and if you have any questions or comments let us know!

GoAnimate Labs: New Community Stuff

Update: Check our poll on the right side of the blog and let us know which set of characters you would like to see as an official GoAnimate theme.

This post is to let everyone know about a new user account we have created on GoAnimate. The account is called GoAnimate Labs and we will use it to post characters and content we are working on but are not sure are popular enough to change into a full theme or are a bit experimental. You can watch the animations there to know how to search for these in the community.

Use the characters, play around with them and send us your feedback. If you really like a set of characters, we will work on them further to develop full themes.

Below are the first three sets we have worked on. Each character has only a pretty limited set of actions, just to see if the community likes them. Enjoy!

Bamboo and Luna in Water Valley by GoAnimate Labs


SUSU & GIGI by GoAnimate Labs


Cubic pet by GoAnimate Labs

THE BACKSTORY CONTEST - NOW THROUGH JUNE 17

Today we have announced the addition of three awesome new characters to the Star Trek roster - Nurse Chapel, Mara, and a Gorn. They are all essential to the backstory of the Star Trek saga - and to honor their arrival, in addition to keeping in theme with the film, we have for you...

THE BACKSTORY CONTEST!

Now through June 17 you may participate in another fantastic GoAnimate contest! Check out the dates and rules below!

Dates
The contest dates are 12:01 AM June 3, through 11:59 PM June 17 (EST Time). Any animations made before or after these dates are ineligible. Up until 11:59 AM June 22 users will have the opportunity to continue to share their and other users' animations.

Rules
Each contest submission must tell the backstory of either Nurse Chapel, Gorn, or Mara. How did they first come to interact with the members of the Enterprise? Why did Nurse Chapel choose to work aboard the Enterprise? What is Gorn's home planet like? Why did Mara choose to marry Kang?

1. Entries may feature the backstory of Nurse Chapel, Gorn, Mara, or a combination of the three. These three characters will be made available for the duration of the contest, after which point they will be made premium characters available for GoPoints.
2. Four Grand Prizes will be given for the best Nurse Chapel backstory, the best Gornbackstory, the best Mara backstory, and the best combination backstory.
   1. The Four Grand Prizes will be selected by a panel of judges from the staffs of CBS and GoAnimate.
3. Four First Prizes will be given - one for each of the categories mentioned in (2).
   1. The Four First Prizes will be given to the Most Shared Animations (animations shared on outside networks).
4. Animations must be at least one minute long.
5. Animations without music and/or sound effects will not be considered.
6. Animations may feature characters from all licensed channels.
7. Entries must be tagged with "backstorycontest" in order to be eligible.

Prizes

1. Four (4) Grand Prize Winners will receive copies of Star Trek UNO, Star Trek SceneIt, and a Blu-Ray Star Trek DVD
2. Four (4) First Prize Winners will receive a choice of Star Trek Scrabble OR All About Star Trek Trivia

Winners Announcement
Winners will be announced Tuesday, June 23 on both GoAnimate and TREKMOVIE.COM (yes, that's what I said!).

And for your viewing enjoyment, please check out this animation featuring the new characters and contest!

GoAnimate.com: The Backstory Contest on GoAnimate! by Laurel

What's New: Star Trek & It's Happy Bunny

What a busy week! Another update coming your way...

Star Trek
We had announced it in our newsletter, and the update finally came today! Star Trek reinforcements have arrived. You can now create a full-fledged battle between the USS Enterprise crew and Klingons! And Dr. Mc Coy will certainly complain a lot less now that Nurse Chapel joined in to help him... although... knowing him...



It's Happy Bunny
A skeleton bunny!? Is it already Halloween? Well, no, not really, but we just could not resist adding this really cool looking bunny to our cast of characters. And now we also added two perfect victims for It's Happy Bunny to play tricks on... you may recognize them from our slideshows.


Enjoy the updates and as usual let us know your comments.