Post production has wrapped on a three-part, animated home video series illustrating stories of the Islamic faith. Burbank, Calif.-based Level 3 Post, a Liberty Livewire Pictures company, put the finishing touches on the three half-hour pieces for RichCrest Animation. Badr International will distribute the works throughout the United States.
Based on Muwaffak Al-Harithy’s animated feature Muhammad: The Last Prophet, the series includes the titles: Before the Light: From Zamzam to the Year of the Elephant, Salman, The Persian: A Companion to the Prophet (Pbuh), and Great Women of Islam: At the Time of the Prophet Muhammad. Muwaffak serves as exec. producer on the video releases, which were created to "teach peace and love to children using animation as a tool," according to producer Terry Noss at RichCrest Animation.
"Muwaffak was unhappy with what was going on in the Islamic countries [prior to Sept.11], and how it lost its vision," Noss adds. "By creating these animated pieces, it allows for more of a family-type feel in revisiting that lost vision of peace and love."
To complete the projects, Level 3 was forced to bring in some heavy artillery. Production hit a snag when a technical problem arose between RichCrest and Korean animation and design house Hanho Studios. Hanho was sending animation back on the AIT (Advanced Intelligence Tape) format, which allows for more storage and quicker download, but was not compatible with RichCrest’s hardware system. Outsourcing the tapes for rendering caused costly delays and led Noss to consult with Level 3 Post Aacount executive Tom Tippets. Level 3 ended up acquiring an AIT machine and greatly streamlining the post production process.
Level 3 Post considers the new AIT unit invaluable and plans to employ it on many upcoming projects.
