Mohr Bloggin' About Animation

See "Small Fry" in front of The Muppets this week!

2011-11-22T03:58:00.001-05:00

In case you haven't heard, our second short, "Small Fry", will be debuting this week in front of The Muppets! We're all really proud of this short, it's really funny, and was our first venture into the Toy Story world! You'll enjoy it, and from the looks of Rotten Tomatoes The Muppets is getting very positive early reviews. Go check it out! There's a bunch of press on it out there, check out this interview from IGN, with director Angus McClane, as well as a 30 second clip...that is, if you don't mind spoiling some of the gags ;)

Also, in case you missed it, you can check out Pixar Canada's first short, "Air Mater", already available on the Cars 2 DVD and Blu-Ray!

Side note, you may notice some significant changes around this blog...more to come! With patience ;)

Announcements, Announcements, Announcements!

2011-08-22T23:58:00.001-05:00

I like this guy

Good news everybody! They've FINALLY announced what we've been workin on over the past year! "Air Mater" is a new Cars Toon that will be on the Cars 2 dvd/blu-ray release this fall, and "Small Fry", a Toy Story toon that will be released in front of "The Muppets" in November! That's a ways off still, but so great to finally have these projects publicly announced! There's a short clip from "Air Mater" online, just a teaser really, but it's something!

Air Mater teaser:

Bulletpoints

2011-04-13T03:06:00.005-05:00

Hey all, just thought I'd post a few interesting things and combine new post ideas into ONE ULTIMATE NEW POST. Ok that may be overstating it, but here we go:

David B. Levy's blog "Animondays" is a great source of advice for animation students, industry newcomers, and I assume, anyone else too. He's a well known New York animator in the 2D-preschool tv-indie animation circles, and is (I think) currently president of ASIFA-East. He recently posted a couple great articles (for lack of a better term) about tips to finding work and networking in animation, in the genuine, natural, non-brown nosing way. They're directly related to being freelance, but obviously in the state of the industry today, good advice for anyone who finds themselves looking for the next job. When I get asked about how to live the freelance life, these are generally the types of things I usually say, and guided by a similar philosophy. Check out these two posts:

Checkin' In: One of the Secrets to Getting Work in Animation

Make mine MoCCA

Check out his book "Your Career in Animation: How to Survive and Thrive" for more great advice.

Next up, check out who's on the install screen of Maya 2012! (Not my image)

Nathan Love is all over Maya 2012 promotional materials and apparently the installation screen as well! So far I've seen images from one of the Pop Secret ads from last year, as well as Polly the Porcupine and Barry the Sheep from the Baskin Robbins spots. Of course I now work somewhere that doesn't use Maya for animation, but perhaps I should download the free trial, haha.

As far as me and my life now, I'm still settling into Vancouver and slowly seeing the rainy winter season turn to spring! Pixar Canada is off to a great start, and for anyone who's curious, I can say with confidence that they have the same expectations for us and follow the same philosophies as they do in Emeryville. While I don't have personal experience at the main studio, I can tell it is extremely important to them to maintain the same values up here. It's been quite a life-change for me moving here, adjusting to this new position, company, and phase of life, and I'm thankful that I get the opportunity to do it in a close personal environment. I can't really say exactly what we've been working on, other than the announcement video for Pixar Canada basically tells what we are doing up here. The team is super talented, the studio is beautiful and being renovated to be even more so, and I'm excited to see how we grow and what sort of identity we develop up here in the Great White North...(wait...I'm not sure those words fit Vancouver!)

Frank Naranjo's Rigging Reels

2011-03-23T00:40:00.001-05:00

Check out my buddy Frank Naranjo's new reels and rig demos he uploaded to Vimeo! I had the good fortune of working with Frank on various projects at Nathan Love over the course of 8 or 9 months, where his awesomely fast and animator friendly rigs made animating exciting and freeing. Check out the cool rig demos of a couple of the characters from the Baskins campaign, as well as his full showreel! Metal Approved, Frank, Metal Approved. :)

Baskin Robbins - Harry - Rig Demo from Francisco Naranjo on Vimeo.

Baskin Robbins - Polly - Rig Demo from Francisco Naranjo on Vimeo.

Francisco Naranjo - 2011 Rigging Reel from Francisco Naranjo on Vimeo.

Cedar Rapids

2011-03-10T03:49:00.000-05:00

So obviously I don't post often anymore. Honestly right now I'm not sure what to blog about, as my life has changed from the freelance world of New York, the original intent of this blog, to full time staff in Vancouver. But when I do post, I'll have a reason. I don't want to turn this blog into an opinion shouting place, or one of those bloggers who just loves to hear the sound of their own booming voice while they hide safely behind their computer screens. If you know me, (which if you read this blog you probably do), I'm not one who usually stands on a soap box. But forgive me for this one time, where I really feel like there's something important to be said.

"Cedar Rapids" is awesome. Go see it.

(If you're unfamiliar with the movie, watch the trailer here.) Now at first glance it just seems like a quirky comedy, with a bunch of raunchy humor, and to be fair it has a lot of it (not, ahem, a "family" movie). You've been warned. But if you get passed that (and realize that it all supports the story) you'll see a gem of a movie, you'll see what I see...a rare film that tells the story of a small town midwestern guy, in midwestern culture. It's personal to me because it's also my story, growing up in rural Iowa, living in New York and now Vancouver, I've come to realize it's one that a lot of people who aren't from there just don't understand. Despite our internet connected world, very few people on the coasts understand midwest culture, and more specifically small town culture, unless they originated from it. The reverse can also be said, though I'd argue that mass media and entertainment provide a wider and more frequent view of city life on the coasts. Of course even that is usually from the perspective of a small demographic. And even for people who've relocated from other states to the coasts, many of them may have negative views of their home, as they've found a new place to call home in which for whatever reason they may feel more comfortable. Movies, television shows, and political pundits all play a role in creating modern stereotypes that while may contain truth, also hide it. This movie is different.

This is a movie that neither condemns nor glorifies small town life, small town "folk". It doesn't make fun of those "backwards rednecks", it doesn't succumb to modern stereotypes (mostly) because it was made by people who know, and more importantly have affection for, their roots. This kind of truth comes partly from the fact that many of the actors are from the midwest, the writer is, the director isn't, but he obviously still related to the story. They did this on purpose. (See interview with the director.)

If that was all the movie did I might still like it. But it does even more than that. It's a counterpoint to our jaded, Great Recession (as I've heard it called), cynical selves. The message we get today, I feel, is more often one of bitterness, cynicism. The idea is that in our modern world, there is no room for childish things as hope, faith, and kindness. Who can believe in good, when there is so much bad surrounding us? When monetary greed on wall street leads to people without jobs, when dictators oppress their people, when politicians seek power, when wars are waged on the world and personal level, when the planet is in need of caretaking. To think of any hope, one must be naiive, and naiivety is something to be hammered out in favor of a more "realistic" (read: jaded) view. These things wear on us, they've worn on me, and feed into a greater, emotional, depression. Is it any wonder that the largest previous economic downfall was called The Great Depression? "Cedar Rapids" is a counterpoint to this negativity, because it is a modern story, a believable story, of a guy finding out the world isn't so great or perfect as he thought, not even his own small town, yet finds out that decency and hope isn't lost.

"Hollywood doesn't make movies about these kinds of people. It doesn't tell their stories. Usually, it tells stories about other people, the ones who tried to get away from these people, because movies are most often written by people who transplant themselves to either coast. So "Cedar Rapids" is especially welcome. It's fair and refreshing and almost makes you want to visit Iowa."--SF Gate review

I don't know what you will bring to this movie if you see it, I don't know if you will react to it the same way I did, (and oddly enough we all seem to think that art is objective when it isn't). But at the very least, I felt a deep need to post for anyone who genuinely thinks that if they show up anywhere in the country, a guy in a pickup WILL hold a gun to them and say "We don't like your kind here", for anyone who sees people only by their color...red and blue..., and for any of you who just want a reason to hope again. As well as for those of you who feel alone in your hope. Maybe you can return the favor for me one day.

Cedar Rapids, Iowa. From Wikipedia article on the town. Only exterior shots in the movie were filmed there, but the setting is still present. This isn't my hometown, but I spent a lot of time there.

"When Harry Met Sally" gets nominated for an Annie!!!!!

2010-12-07T02:59:00.000-05:00

Holy crap! I'm not even sure what to say about this right now, except...holy crap!! :)) The third Pop Secret spot I worked on at Nathan Love has been nominated for an Annie Award for Best Animated Television Commercial! (Check out the full list of nominees here.) Wow, it's so awesome to have this recognized by our own industry. Congrats team! So very proud.

Pop Secret "When Harry Met Sally" from Nathan Love on Vimeo.

Nathan Love: Pop Secret "When Harry Met Sally"

2010-10-24T20:21:00.000-05:00

At long last! The third and final Pop Secret commercial we worked on at Nathan Love has been released and will be airing later this month and during some big tv programs! While we were proud of the entire campaign, and certainly we all loved Dark Knight, we saw each subsequent spot improve in quality (Dark Knight to Caddyshack to When Harry Met Sally), so I'm really happy this third one will finally air! It was a huge treat to work with largely the same team on each one of these, and watch our work progress from spot to spot. Luckily not long after this we moved on to the Baskin Robbins campaign that aired during the summer, where we continued to hone our skills and build upon the trust we'd established as a team throughout the past few months, starting with Pop Secret. I don't want to over-state anything, but I can't help but compare it to the stories I've heard of other productions, where the right team was there at the right time, people were inspired, and proud of the work being done. There weren't any egos getting in the way, just the right people, inspired to make something great...and having a ton of fun in the process.

Keep it up Nathan Lovers!

Oh hi Vancouver!

2010-10-11T02:20:00.002-05:00

Just wanted to make the official announcement...I've been hired as an animator at Pixar Canada! I started 3 weeks ago, and am very excited about what lies ahead! If you didn't see the announcement video earlier this year, you can still view it at their website, http://www.pixarcanada.com/. Needless to say, it's a bit surreal to be working there now. They have big goals, we'll be working on stuff with their franchise characters. Plus Vancouver IS that awesome. Even if I'm mourning the loss of a good pizza or burrito, and the convenience of "the city that never sleeps". Still, it's great to be working at Pixar on a small team, and in the downtown of a great city...not all that different from my experience in New York, which I loved! Anyway, watch the video if you haven't, and I'll keep posting when I can!

P.S. I also updated the blog with a new template, as mine was severely out of date and couldn't utilize some of the fancy new blogger features. It's pretty similar to before, but nice to have a refreshed look!

Thinking Animation blog: Nathan Love, Baskin Robbins full campaign

2010-08-31T17:28:00.000-05:00

Hey everyone! "Thinking Animation" has featured the Baskin Robbins spots from Nathan Love, as well as some comments by Ryan Moran (lead animator), and yours truly! Congrats on a job well done everyone!

BR-"Sheep/Pink Bubblegum". (First two shots animated by Tony Travieso, last two by Kyle Mohr)

Baskin Robbins "Pink Bubblegum" from Nathan Love on Vimeo.

Nathan Love: Baskin Robbins-- Birthday Cake

2010-07-07T00:14:00.000-05:00

Here's the next Baskin Robbins ad I worked on at Nathan Love! (1st shot)

Baskin-Robbins "America's Birthday Cake" from Nathan Love on Vimeo.

Here's another new one too, entirely animated by Tony "Ryu" Travieso!

Baskin-Robbins "Baseball Helmet" from Nathan Love on Vimeo.

Hope you like them!

Nathan Love: Baskin Robbins--Baseball Nut

2010-06-01T21:27:00.003-05:00

Check out the Baskin Robbins spot that we recently finished at Nathan Love! We're really happy with how it turned out! It's not often you get a fun little project like this to work on, and we all worked hard in hopes of living up to its potential. Personally, I'm proud of everyone involved for creating what I consider to be feature quality animation in a very short time, and in a format where unfortunately some people don't expect it. My teammates Ryan Moran and David Han kicked butt in animation. Kudos to Frank Naranjo, our rigger extraordinaire, for providing us with a fantastic rig for a complicated character! He stuck to his strong work ethic in a part of production that is often overlooked, but is extremely important to getting animation notes addressed and approved to everyone's satisfaction.

(click through to the YouTube page to see the full picture...this blog apparently isn't wide enough for widescreen!)

On a side note, I recently met a young animator, who knew I'd spent some time at Blue Sky, and who had recently been hired for a feature animation job. However, instead of asking something like "How long have you been working in animation?" or "How long have you been in New York?", their first question was "How many feature films have you worked on?" How unfortunate is it that so many animators view features as the ultimate ranking system. Quality work is achieved when the right circumstances (and people--not just artists) are in place for it to be created and recognized, no matter what the format. I am proud of Baskin Robbins-Baseball Nut because I feel it shows how widely dispersed the animation talent is in our industry.

Glen Keane lectures

2010-04-25T20:47:00.000-05:00

You Tube actually has some pretty cool animation reference, pencil tests, and the like that I came across earlier this weekend. One of those things that I'm sure many have come across before, but still worth checkin out now. This is part 1 of a video of a lecture he gave at CalArts. He's just making quick sketches, but it amazed me how much of animation is just second nature to him now. I specificially noticed how he easily kept track of the force and changing shape of the arm, elbow and back, as well as general physicality, and at the same time adding bits of the subjective character and entertainment on the fly. Pretty cool!

With my freeze ray gun...

2010-03-17T11:48:00.002-05:00

So, I know I'm about 2 years late on this...which in the online world is centuries ago. But who cares?

Once upon a time in a land known as 2008, there was a web series phenomenon by Joss Whedon (and team) known as "Dr. Horrible's Sing-a-long Blog". I remember seeing poster images of it at random places, but didn't know what it was and didn't know I should watch it. One of my friends showed me the first act of it late last summer, and I loved it, but never got around to seeing the rest. Netflix changed that!

Dr. Horrible (Neil Patrick Harris) who's crush on a neighborhood girl (Felicia Day) forces him to balance trying to get the girl and fulfilling his career dreams of villainy. Oh, and in song! Look I know there are a lot of people who hate anything called a musical, but I think they've probably only seen bad ones. :P These songs are varied, and the lyrics are used to tell the story, not to repeat a refrain over and over because "we need a song here". The web series got a lot of buzz in the press, won an Emmy, and apparently placed 4th for the top 10 TV Series of 2008 in Time Magazine. It also got me to post about it even though it's two years old! There must be other people who haven't seen it, so my advice is to change that. If you have seen it, get someone else to see it who hasn't! Netflix instant streaming win!

I find this production to be inspirational in so many ways! First off, the obvious--it's really good! Fantastic story, acting, and music. Second, it's independent without being "indie". This was just a bunch of people getting together, wanting to make something good on their own terms, while trying to show that anyone can create and distribute their own content on the web these days. I mean really, is there no better time to be an artist if you want to try to get your personal work seen in public? I enjoyed it so much and wanted to support this type of independent work that I immediately bought the DVD on Amazon. It makes me want to create something of my own and get it out there! Or draw more of my comic ;) I have ideas, for the first time I actually have ideas--gotta do it!

So yeah, if you haven't seen it, watch it. If you have, keep telling people about it!

Freelancer's Guide: Goodbye 1099

2010-02-13T23:56:00.001-05:00

So, if you're a freelancer chances are you've been talking with your friends, coworkers, and clients about the IRS crackdown on "misclassification" of freelancers. Since I started this blog, one of my main reasons for posting was to create a sort of freelance guide for animators, since it's somewhat of a mysterious lifestyle to anyone who's not a part of it. Therefore I've been meaning to post about this, since these recent changes pretty much leave a lot of my old posts about paying your taxes, dealing with 1099 forms, etc, outdated. However, since I'm still learning about this myself, I thought it might be better to just present some links to recent articles and discussions on the matter. My point in posting about this is just to spread the word to people who may be looking for freelance work about what is going on these days so they can further educate themselves, not to tell people what to do. Like I said, I'm guessing if you're freelance you know about this already, but there are many people either just getting out of school, or who are in staff positions, that may not be aware.

DISCLAIMER: I'm linking to outside sources purely for informational purposes, not as legal advice.

AWN article:
http://www.awn.com/articles/motion-graphics/irs-and-freelance-dilemma/page/1,1

Motionographer article (includes good resource links at the end):
http://motionographer.com/2010/02/10/questioning-the-freelance-dilemma/

The IRS rules of classification for independent contracter vs employee.
http://www.irs.gov/businesses/small/article/0,,id=99921,00.html

Keep in mind, many of the discussions in the comments of these articles are heated, and sometimes not always written with accurate knowledge. Your best bet is to do your own research. That's my only advice ;)

Maya Cheats

2010-02-08T19:31:00.000-05:00

Check out the book that my good friend Eric Luhta wrote! "How to Cheat in Maya 2010". Behold the first Maya book that actually focuses on the animation tools and techniques in Maya. 3D software development and its documentation seems to rarely get any time spent on the animation tools themselves, at least not as much as the fancy new things. There are plenty of awesome animation books to be sure (Survival Kit, Illusion of Life, etc), but when it comes to learning how to animate in Maya, not so much. This is where Eric's book comes in handy, and if you're trying to jump into animating in Maya as many academic programs do, this book will undoubtedly come in handy. He covers a lot of the technical aspects of the graph editor, splines, as well as workflow for animating in 3D. Don't worry if you don't have 2010...we all know the animation tools in Maya pretty much stay the same ;) The only thing that is new is the animation layers that he talks describes, and I *believe* that is in Maya 2009.

Eric asked me to help him with a few of the character poses for the images, and I had fun doing the little flipbook animation in the corner. As a kid, I remember flipping through the pages of this book at the local library where my mom worked, and watching this ladybug in the corner jump and dance around. It was kinda fun to get to do one of my own. Even though I do that all the time now, it's a specific format. The animator in me says it's cool to show that, at its core, 3D essentially functions the same as 2D. I think the kid in me just likes flipping pages :)

Anyway, you can find it at Barnes and Noble, or at Amazon. Check it out!

More Pop Secret

2010-01-13T00:57:00.000-05:00

In the grand tradition of shameless plugs, the second Pop Secret ad by Nathan Love, "Caddyshack", is also airing now! Also, over at Motionographer there's a very nice article about "Dark Knight", that includes a link to concept art, character designs, and breakdowns of the spot in progress. Currently we're workin on the third spot, featuring "When Harry Met Sally". It's looking great, I'm looking forward to sharing it soon! Here are the YouTube versions:

Caddyshack

And just in case you haven't seen it, here's Dark Knight

Nathan Love: PopSecret "Dark Knight"

2009-12-17T11:03:00.001-05:00

And now, the first of the Pop Secret spots I've been working on at Nathan Love! (click image below)

I animated most of the shots of Grandma, except the first one and the wide shot when she jumps off the chair. I have to say I've had a ton of fun working with these characters and the ones on the next spot. Added to that, the rigs were great (and fast!), making our job as animators that much more enjoyable!

Psyop: UPS Holiday

2009-12-16T00:13:00.003-05:00

Check out the spot I worked on for a few weeks this fall at Psyop! I animated the characters in the clock scene as well as the dad, mom, and daughter in the Christmas scene at the end.

For the past couple of months I've been animating some characters on a commercial at Nathan Love, hopefully I can post those before too long as well!

Speaking of Animation

2009-12-13T00:30:00.000-05:00

My buddy and fellow SCAD alumni Ben Willis has started a new animation podcast blog with some of his DreamWorks co-workers. Among them is Stephen Melagrano, whom I had the pleasure of working with on Horton. Their first interview is with veteran animator Ted Ty. Great stuff, check it out!

Speaking of Animation

And "speaking of animation"...(har har), if you haven't caught Disney's new Christmas special, "Prep and Landing", you owe it to yourself to check it out on that glorious website known as Hulu. Great animation and story!

Charlie Brown on Antiques Roadshow

2009-08-24T20:00:00.003-05:00

Stories like this are great! Here's this regular Joe who was a fan of Charles Schultz, convinced his employer (Hallmark) to test using Peanuts on greeting cards, and got to work directly with Charles Schultz for 12 years. Now Hallmark has a huge line of Peanuts licensed merchendise, and he's the owner of a fan's dream collection.

Inspiration

2009-07-26T14:28:00.021-05:00

Back during the Ice Age crunch, Pete Paquette wrote a cool blog post on what inspired him as a kid to become an animator, and how it's important to him to revisit those things in order to keep his energy up during crunch.

I've found the same to be true during downtime. As a freelancer you kinda know that downtime comes with the territory, and I've argued that it comes with the territory for animators in general. But even if you're used to it, the days pass and can have a psychological effect. What can you do to stay motivated? Revisit your inspiration. Because even if you have personal projects to do, if you're not inspired, they're not really that much fun.

I mean your personal inspiration. There's a lot of things that are inspiring, very well done, but really don't hit the core of why you do what you do, and what it is that you do. After feeling a little "blah" last week, I spent some time at Barnes and Noble, frankly, just for something to do. At the bargain shelf, I found two of the Calvin and Hobbes books that I've noticed seem to find their way to that shelf. For some reason I was never as big of a Calvin and Hobbes fan as other animators I know, but looking through those books I saw such great drawings, and some insanely creative writing. I went back the next day to look at them again, and of course then had to check out work from my ultimate inspiration, Charles Schultz. All of this got me started thinking about my "Geeks" comic, and pretty soon I was scribbling down ideas and character stories again. Not to animate. To draw! As I've done since I was a kid. Drawing is so freeing to me! The entire thing can be my creation, if I animate something I will probably either be ripping a line from someone else's movie, and applying it to someone else's character rig. Modeling and rigging a character and sets, takes an insane amount of time, and when I finally do come up with an idea that I like, it would take me forever to do in CG, and require things that I would not be able to complete on my own.

Anyway. Revisiting childhood inspiration helps to quiet the critical voices in my head, and open myself up to new creativity. Here are some things that when I see, cause my gut to drop, my knees to shake, and my lungs to exhale in a large satisfying *sigh*.

Peanuts
While finding my favorite examples among 50 years of daily strips at Comics.com is a feat unnecessary to this post, here's a few examples that I feel show *some* of what I admire so much about Schultz' talents. At the bookstore I saw a retrospective book that showed a single panel cartoon of the peanuts gang at an art museum, and I wish I could find it to post it. They were all looking at a masterpiece European painting, except for Rerun, who was off by himself, looking at a picture of Snoopy. It's such a simple picture that says so much, all of the older kids are looking at the "masterpiece", but the youngest one is captivated by a picture of a cartoon dog, who's back is facing the viewer in a sad way. Both are in the art museum, and while Snoopy is not drawn with the technical mastery of the European painting, the lonely image of both Snoopy and Rerun is more moving. I may buy that book just to have that image to look at anytime.

This one happens to be one of my favorites. Schultz' way of taking simple dialogue and expressing deep truths is something that I adore, and strive for in my own work. He liked funny things, but understood that entertainment did not always have to be funny. There's something to be said for work that reaches wide audiences, and relates to many people, without overtly trying to do so.

Garfield
Garfield was my absolute favorite as a kid. Around high school that changed to Charles Schultz and Peanuts, but I spent so many days at home and on the school bus, drawing this cat. Until I started studying animation, Jim Davis was probably the biggest influence on how I drew, and I would still say that it influences how I draw today. I remember this strip from one of the Garfield books I continuously flipped through at home.

Aladdin
The other things I drew all the time as a kid (besides Ninja Turtles) were Disney characters. Aladdin was my favorite Disney movie as a kid, but of course loved all the Disney movies growing up. I imagine that the influx of young animators such as myself today, is partly due to my generation growing up with the second "golden age" of Disney animation.
Looney Tunes
My favorite cartoon next to Ghostbusters and Ninja Turtles was probably the Looney Tunes. Thank goodness ABC aired those every Saturday morning when I was growing up, and another station had Merrie Melodies in the afternoon after school. I loved these so much, and still do.

More "recent" inspirations (aka, things I didn't necessarily obsess over as a kid, but are huge inspirations to me now):

Calvin and Hobbes
While I noticed that I occasionally don't agree with Watterson's philosophies, his creativity in both ideas and drawing, even writing rhyming poetry is ridiculously inspiring. Just look at these poses. A perfect blend of attitude and shape, with no words necessary.

Wall-E
Okay, I know that everyone was waiting for some Pixar thing to be listed. But for me, Wall-E captures a similar profound innocence that's in Peanuts, and those Calvin and Hobbes drawings above. It's quiet, and lets the character's innocence speak for itself, without many words at all. When words are used, they are repeated with different inflections and different contexts. Every effort was made to tell the story visually. But moreso than that, is Wall-E's way of changing the world through love, while having no concious agenda to do so. I love it.

Battlestar Galactica (new series)
Wait, where the heck did that come from? All of these comics and animation, and now this? Yes. Most definitely yes. It takes a lot to make my all time favorite top-lists and nearly beat out Star Trek in my all time favorite science fiction stories, but Ron Moore's BSG did it. (Star Trek hangs onto first by a nostalgic thread.) This series showed so many areas of grey in war, romance, and faith, and did so many times in heartbreaking and shocking ways..but always truthful...and not the sort of truth that thumbs its nose at you. It's profound, musical. It has something to say. If you haven't watched it, you owe it to yourself to Netflix the dvds now. Great character storytelling at its best.

Maybe I have an underdog obsession. I think I love great stories told in mediums that often don't get the credit they deserve. Looking at this list, I see comic strips, animation, and science fiction. While it's hardly a complete list of my inspirations, it's a safe bet most of these things are at the top.

I write too much. ;)

Geeks #2

2009-06-21T12:35:00.004-05:00

Here's the 2nd! I know this is quite the trekkie joke, so don't worry if you don't get it. It made me laugh though, and since this comic is the outlet for my purely selfish artistic desires, what the heck? Actually that might be the theme of this strip in particular. I did a lot of experimenting with the color because I wasn't happy with my choices in the last one. I also said "what the heck" to slightly redesigning the characters to be (hopefully) better, more appealing, and easier to draw. Last year I had a lot of fun drawing a Christmas card and rediscovering how to draw like a kid. Kids experiment a lot and just draw what they like to see. This is sometimes the opposite of what we're asked to do at work every day as animators, and it sure feels good to just make something for the fun of it.

BUCK!

2009-06-15T10:28:00.005-05:00

As it gets closer to the release date, I'm seeing more clips and trailers online and on TV. Somehow a few of my shots managed to make it into some of them! Here's a clip of the scene that introduces Buck, and has some great animation and character gags in it. A bit of my work is in there as well, Manny, Ellie, and Diego in the first shot are mine (when they stand up and Diego has the leaf collar around his neck). Nathan Engelhardt animated the main (and awesome) Crash and Eddie stuff in that shot.

"Geeks" worldwide premiere!

2009-05-19T11:19:00.004-05:00

Not to over-hype it or anything ;) Recently on my search for a personal project I came up with an idea for a comic strip. I find it's a really nice change of pace, and a great outlet for personal creativity because I'm not constrained by the CG process...just my own drawing ability! Lately I've been sketching in Union Square again and getting back into drawing, so I think a comic is a good way to keep practicing my drawing. I also hope to apply as much of what I've learned from animation since the last time I drew a strip. More than anything, it's really fun to finally have something of my own that I'm excited to do again.

So join me for strip 1, and let's see how this goes! "Geeks" follows 3 roommates in New York, who confront the sometimes humorous divide between the 'geek' and 'non-geek' personality.

Mark Behm, "Nightwork"

2009-04-25T00:10:00.004-05:00

To start off on what might be a few more posts revolving around inspiration, here's an interview of Mark Behm on Strut Your Reel, about his new art book. Since one of my main goals is to keep drawing and keep improving on what is ultimately my first passion, this stuff just blows me away.

We all need inspiration to keep the creative juices flowing, especially during or after times of extreme hours and work. It's so easy to lose yourself at work, and not nurture your personal art in some way or another (especially when you have no time to do anything but go to work and sleep), but it's even easier to just be too lazy to do something. Hence, I plan on posting some more on inspiration, which is so critical to being motivated. Maybe these posts will not only lend some inspiration to anyone reading this, but also to myself when I need a kick in the pants!