Cartoon Toolbox Dallas Morning News Review

D A L L A S M O R N I N G N E W S

GET THE KIDS TO SHOW SOME ANIMATION: FELINE FUN
Insiders say the head honcho has a fascination with Felix the Cat, inspiring the firm's Cartoon Toolbox Starring Felix the Cat. At any rate, Big Top Productions is so taken with the release, it started a Web site that describes the product and includes a homemade-cartoon contest.
To re-coin the cat's often-used phrase, "Felix's Cartoon Toolbox is on the job." The program is easy to use - even the family's littlest animator can achieve autonomy. And, while early Felix features contained some violence, Big Top made sure that the toolbox does not.
Graphics are strong in quality and variety. There are 30 backgrounds, 200 props (animated and static) and 270 sound effects, including character voices, movement noises and several styles of music. Consider the possibilities for sophisticated sound tracks.
Felix himself comes in a variety of feline poses ready for movement, and supporting characters include familiar figures such as The Professor, Poindexter and Rock Bottom.
In the world of moviemaking, editing is probably the most tedious and least appreciated task, but for older children, the Felix editing functions tickle the creativity bone. For example: Characters and props can be sized for spatial perspective, fine-tuning organizational skills.
A projection feature allows picture makers to save their masterpieces on a floppy disk, to display for grandparents and friends on any computer, even those without the cartoon software.
Cartoon Toolbox Starring Felix the Cat, Big Top Productions, 1-800-900-7529, $40. For children ages 5 (five) and older using Macintosh or IBM-compatible PC.

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D A L L A S M O R N I N G N E W S
	`GET THE KIDS TO SHOW SOME ANIMATION: FELINE FUN` Insiders say the head honcho has a fascination with Felix the Cat, inspiring the firm's Cartoon Toolbox Starring Felix the Cat. At any rate, Big Top Productions is so taken with the release, it started a Web site that describes the product and includes a homemade-cartoon contest. To re-coin the cat's often-used phrase, "Felix's Cartoon Toolbox is on the job." The program is easy to use - even the family's littlest animator can achieve autonomy. And, while early Felix features contained some violence, Big Top made sure that the toolbox does not. Graphics are strong in quality and variety. There are 30 backgrounds, 200 props (animated and static) and 270 sound effects, including character voices, movement noises and several styles of music. Consider the possibilities for sophisticated sound tracks. Felix himself comes in a variety of feline poses ready for movement, and supporting characters include familiar figures such as The Professor, Poindexter and Rock Bottom. In the world of moviemaking, editing is probably the most tedious and least appreciated task, but for older children, the Felix editing functions tickle the creativity bone. For example: Characters and props can be sized for spatial perspective, fine-tuning organizational skills. A projection feature allows picture makers to save their masterpieces on a floppy disk, to display for grandparents and friends on any computer, even those without the cartoon software. Cartoon Toolbox Starring Felix the Cat, Big Top Productions, 1-800-900-7529, $40. For children ages 5 (five) and older using Macintosh or IBM-compatible PC.