The Rembrandz blog for art, animation and creatives

Science Fiction Novel & Book Cover Illustration

2012-02-29T14:44:00.013+04:00

It is my pleasure to take you to the online release of a must-read novel "Planeshifters" by an author I admire very much, Gunnar C Garrison for whose books I have had the privilege to design.

Do enjoy an intense read of the Novel as an e-book from:
http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/136124
It is due for a Print release in a few weeks.

Before I take off may I mention that my experiences of designing for Gunnar's books have been most enriching for I couldn't have painted any pixel of it without getting into details of scenes in the story to visualize every detail.

I look forward to releasing an article very soon on the "making of a Sci Fi Book Cover" featuring the Planeshifter's book design. So do visit back or lookup: rembrandz.hubpages.com and you may just about stumble upon it one of these days.

Look forward to seeing you again!

Creatively yours

Intrigued by today's Google Doodle

2012-02-22T19:35:00.004+04:00

Google has long led the web community in Simplistic Branding.

Today's Doodle from Google commemorating Hertz's Birthday is the ultimate in showcasing further their emphasis on white space and non-clutter.

After a whole busy month on-sight with my blog staying dormant, I am inspired yet again by none other than "Google" to make a post commending their daily doodle, speaking it all in a simple sine wave with just their brand colors.

Just placing these dots with Google's brand colors as below and anyone would relate to it as being Google's brand.

Just Brilliant !!

UAE's 1st Google Bloggers Meet

2012-01-20T19:36:00.009+04:00

It was great to attend the First Google Bloggers Meet on the 18 January 2012 and to be a part of a new generation of bloggers in a happening community.

Thank you Feras Salah, Ketchum RAAD and Google for recognising my blogspot and inviting me to the Luncheon Hangout with other bloggers to sit alongside and chat with Google’s Managing Director for Middle East North Africa about things that mattered in the digital world.
Kudos! for the Great location!
...at the foot of the World's Tallest building - "The Pavillion" Downtown Dubai

some Great Discussions!...Sumptuous Food! and the Keepsake Google Goodie Bag!

Here is a Google Doodle I made, in gratitude! :o)

Look forward to more meetings of this sort!!

The 8th Dubai International Film Festival visit

2011-12-16T15:44:00.002+04:00

I managed to make it to a blockbuster screening on the last day of the Festival at MoE and I am glad I was part of it. Thanks to a TECOM official who remembered to hand me a couple of tickets just in the nick of time.

The 8th Dubai International Film Festival (7th-14th Dec 2011), held under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE Vice President & Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, concluded with a glittering award ceremony, where outstanding talent from the UAE and the Arab world, Asia and Africa were presented DIFF’s prestigious Muhr Awards.

The festival has so far screened (over the past 8 years) a vivid showcase of 171 films from 56 nations, hosted live music performances that attracted thousands of spectators, and celebrated the spirit of cultural solidarity through its central credo of ‘Bridging Cultures. Meeting Minds.’

UAE National Day and a Study on a Graphic Design historic initiative

2011-12-02T08:10:00.006+04:00

A very Happy UAE National Day 40th year!

I created this design a couple of years ago approved by a New York City Creative Director of Flatiron Industries, New York City based upon a popular movement "Constructivism in the early 1900s" which plays an important influence on New Graphic Design today.
I am proud to release it this year on this special day for this young and gleaming nation of the United Arab Emirates.

The message behind this image is that it is indicative of the nation's direction of building new urban development as the more the country becomes competitive and the more it becomes significant in the world map.

Constructivism was an artistic and architectural movement in Russia from 1914 onward, and a term often used in modern art today, which dismissed "pure" art in favour of art used as an instrument for social purposes, namely, the construction of the socialist system. The term Construction Art was first used as a derisive term by Kazimir Malevich to describe the work of Alexander Rodchenko in 1917. Constructivism first appears as a positive term in Naum Gabo's Realistic Manifesto of 1920. Kazimir Malevich also worked in the constructivist style, though he is better known for his earlier suprematism and ran his own competing group in Vitebsk. The movement was an important influence on new graphic design techniques championed by El Lissitzky.
source: http://citrinitas.com

Here are more discussions about this very important movement which has made such an important mark in todays Graphic Design Principles.

Constructivism on Wikipedia
An essay related to Graphic Design
Design in History

Here are the Google Doodle finalist designs for the National Day Doodle featured today.

Congrats to all 14 of them!!

Winner: Andrew Osama

Thank you for developing Art and Artists UAE and of course respects to Google for the facilitation as displayed above.

Daily Life Color Theory for an Artist

2011-11-29T16:35:00.004+04:00

Hey everybody?

You see these beautiful birds here? Wait till I tell you who they are! Indeed they played a big part in my colorful life, just a few weeks ago.

Color Theory is an important subject for any creative designer or a person leading a group of creatives to live in.

To give a brief run-down on Color Theory, Color is the strongest design quotient if one learns to use it effectively. One can use it therapeutically in a visual life's landscape to either energize or relax, to make a statement or just as an attention grabber to play on bettering ones moods.

My most enterprising tool in my day-to-day work habits is none other than the "color wheel". Now isn't it difficult to believe that the color wheel was first designed by "not an artist" but one of our favorite innovators "Sir Isaac Newton" in 1666?

Do check out the various color wheels I have sourced out for the benefit of you readers.

Source: tigercolor.com

Source: aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu

Source: realcolorwheel.com

Source: colors-4life.com

Source: nhsdesigns.com

Source: designfestival.com

Source: colourlovers.com

Source: worqx.com

As this post is basically to address inspirations in an artists mind, I am only touching upon the most basic of the color theory.

So, getting on to the main crux of my message here,....
A few weeks ago as I was preparing for one of my travels, I was outdoors doing my chores when I realized that the household was missing some "chromatic pets" which went missing last summer. I decided to get a few more of them to throw some cool and warm colors to our back yard which was fast approaching a steele grey winter just before the advent of Christmas.

These lovely birds threw a nice splash of colors to complement our garden with the oh so natural color wheel they carried on them with their adorable singing & swinging displays.

I will be addressing other elements in this vast subject of "Color Theory in future posts, to complement my various creative discussions here.

I'll be back soon with the wackiest thing I ever did with the Color Wheel in real life! :o)

Wildlife Artist of the Year Competition 2012

2011-11-27T15:36:00.004+04:00

Excited about the up-coming Wildlife Artist of the Year Competition 2012 to create some traditional paintings on a subject I have always loved pursuing "Wildlife"....makes me reminisce on a few of my own paintings made in the past:

If you are keen to join the Wildlife competition, do read on.

http://www.discoverwildlife.com/webform/wildlife-artist-year-competition-2012-call-entries

10 Everyday Advertising Terms

2011-11-19T17:41:00.004+04:00

Every moment is part of a learning curve in our existence. Isn't it? These words could be very new to some of you, second nature to many others in advertising and something to keep in mind as part of general awareness because of the co-existing nature of today's work culture. Whether you are in HR, or in Finance or in Operations or an intelligent Techie, it is still good to be aware of what jargons your advertising department speaks for you don't want to get lost in translation at a cooler chat or coffee break or more importantly at an office general meeting.

So here are a few words as part of my first in the series of new words in advertising:

1. A “WILD SPOT” is for UNLIMITED use in as many cities, on as many stations for any number of airings. When your “WILD SPOT” airs you are paid the USE RATE based on the number and size of those cities. Source: http://www.voiceoverresourceguide.com

2. A "TIE-IN" is an authorized product based on a media property a company is releasing, such as a movie or video/DVD, computer game, video game, television program/television series, board game, web site, role-playing game or literary property. Tie-ins are a form of cross-promotion used primarily to generate additional income from that property and promote its visibility. Source: wikipedia.org

3. "SUBLIMINAL ADVERTISING" sub.lim.i.nal is a concealed appeal to consumers’ unconscious awareness to buy a product. Source: motto.com
Note: Promotional messages the recipient is not aware of, such as those played at very low volume or flashed on a screen for less than a second. Its effectiveness is not supported by scientific evidence, and its use is considered a deceptive business practice in some jurisdictions. Source: http://www.businessdictionary.com

4. "SOFT SELL" is an advertising and sales practice denoting subtle language and a non-aggressive technique. Source: www.investopedia.com

5. "SNIPING" is the act of pasting up outdoor posters over billboards or on empty structures, walls, and traffic poles, often without permission. Source: motto.com

6. "DRIVE TIME" are the hours covered when the most listeners are commuting. During "drive time," radio advertising costs more because of increased number of listeners.
In radio broadcasting, the morning and evening hours are when listeners commute the most, from 6 to 10 a.m. and 3 to 7 p.m., Mondays through Fridays everywhere in the world except in the middle-east where it is Sundays through Thursdays.

7. "REMNANT SPACE" is unsold space in a print publication or unsold banner impressions on a Web site. Remnant space is typically sold at a discount to the publication or site's rate card. Source: MarcommWise.com

8. "ADVERTORIAL" ad.ver.to.ri.al An advertisement that has the appearance of a news article or editorial, in a print publication. Source: about.com; An advertisement promoting the interests or opinions of a corporate sponsor, often presented in such a way as to resemble an editorial.

9. "MAGALOG" is a multi-page direct mail piece that resembles a magazine and includes samples of typical issue content, as well as promotional copy and an order device.
Source: magazine.org

10. "DOG AND PONY SHOW" (colloquial) is an elaborate pitch or presentation of an advertising campaign. Source: motto.com; These days, your meaning of the phrase is the usual one: an elaborate briefing or visual presentation, usually for promotional purposes. Writers in recent decades have applied dog and pony show pejoratively to military briefings, political speeches and photo opportunities as well as to sales pitches. Source: worldwidewords.org

Children's Day was "artists day" my whole childhood life

2011-11-14T15:55:00.010+04:00

Hello there folks!

It has been a long one month away from my dear blog here. Thanks to a busy October! Though I have been on my official twitter every other day micro-blogging.

Just as my twitteroids rolled out today, I realised the urgent need to send out this very important message to all of you.

Today, the date 14th of November will never fade away for the life of me! Ask me why!!

My family instilled in me the concept of healthy competition on this day every year for my first 15 years, growing up. Today I realise how important that learning experience was. On the realisation that art became my daily bread, they understood that there is no life I would choose outside of it, so they went along with my madness should I say? ;o) (starting off as a toddler scribbling on the walls and floors of our home. In modern days that could easily pass off as murals eh?) My folks packed me off on every 14th November to child art contests. Though I have heard critical comments about children getting used to contests, I find there is a useful side to it important for a 6-10 year old. It is not the thought of getting ahead of someone else but to get a handle to analyse where we stand within our competition. Today I am able to gauge myself as a professional, to see where I stand in the competition. I am able to see my strengths and weaknesses, and have adopted the ability to constantly brand myself to be an expert of a field. I don't think I would have been able to aggressively continue among wins and failures typical of such a competitive world and so the relevance of such a grounding holds good. A marketing degree with real-life experiences even as a young-un does matter immensely.

Anyway... the 14th of November! oh how I pay you my respects!
This is the day which gave me the pride of growing up in my country. This day was commemorated as Children's Day in India whereas the International Children's Day was on the 20th November.

14th was a special day because it was the birthday of a "child of India" during India's Independence freedom struggle, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru" who grew up to become the first Prime Minister of the free India in 1947. Nehru was a person who showed so much devotion and affection towards children that marked the day for India to remember the rights of the child.

Though India has gone a long way in fighting for privileges to be given to their children, there are a lot of them who stay under-privileged and are born to poverty with the child mortality rate still being a problem.

With this mentioned, may I join others to a cause for down-trodden children not only in India but the rest of the globe, as an artist to register my intentions to give back in yet another way to a community of the needy.

Several years ago I made an agenda to help children growing up in slums and unfortunate families who cannot send their children to schools, to bring to them a fun-learning environment....to help them learn about the world just around their homes...to give them a real life history lesson where they participate along with other children and learn how it is to work together as a team. I hope to start working side-by-side with my core work duties, on this cause with non-profits at the beginning of 2012.

What is your agenda for today and the International Childrens' Day?

Unseen 3D Coca Cola Ad ( Animation )

2011-10-17T21:37:00.001+04:00

Whenever CREATIVE BREEZE blows 3D, Art or Design ideas

2011-09-13T21:23:00.000+04:00

I just go ahead...
Like I did when I took this city from looking like this...

To this!

And when I made this 3D...

Out of This ... when I stared at the ceiling one night.

Am sure it is the same with you! :o)

The untiring Art of Animation still lives afresh (Read my article below)

2011-09-01T14:57:00.001+04:00

Animation has been an evergreen subject for decades and decades now and the crave to see more animated films is only growing due to the sheer pleasure of living in that world while watching a movie.

It is such a moment of escapade from the rough toils of this world too.
The out-of-the world experience in Avatar still remains afresh in my mind even after a year.

And so I was not the least let down when I published this latest animation article just a few days ago. It was a generic guide to get anyone started in their animation dream irrespective of any age groups, 20 or 80, a teenager or a stay-at-home mom. I was exhilarated from the reviews I received from my readers, when I sighed a relief to learn that there is still an undeniable urge to learn more about the art and how it was made. And a realisation that we are here to stay in animation for a long time ;o)

With this said I am pleased to invite you to a read of my guide:

Let me hope that this one-pager could take you too to that sure-fire exciting goal. Thank you for stopping by.

Disneyesque Style Children's Book Illustration

2011-08-26T00:44:00.000+04:00

Read the on-the-job making

Succeeding under pressure at work 1: Example: Animation jobs

2011-08-25T16:01:00.000+04:00

Succeeding under pressure at work 1: Example: Animation jobs

Dust away Corruption in India

2011-08-25T10:55:00.000+04:00

Re-posting Photoshop Design with an anti-corruption message.
There is a need to dust away the rubble accumulated in the spokes of the wheel (the Gandhi's Chakra) of non-corruption in India.
FYI: The Indian flag was originally designed by a freedom fighter called Pingali Venkayya

A Stop-motion Animation you don't want to miss!

2011-08-23T19:22:00.001+04:00

BBC Knowledge - Honk If You're Human from Sean Pecknold on Vimeo.

Happy Feet 2 (Trailer No 1) [FULL HD] Video - Happy Feet Videos

2011-08-21T12:40:00.000+04:00

Watch Happy Feet 2 Trailer 2011
I am looking forward to having an interview with an exceptional veteran currently working on the film soon. 101....Watch this space :o)

International Homeless Animals' Day® August 20th: Artist Activist Observation

2011-08-20T19:18:00.000+04:00

Hey there folks

Today is observed as a special day for some of those helpless beings "Homeless Animals".

The following piece was made in tribute to a couple of those homeless animals, which I had an opportunity to adopt one middle-eastern summer.

As an inspiration from those nostalgic days with my pets, I have been working on a Children's story book series that should get published the following year.

This pet portrait you see below belongs to one of my dachshunds back in the 1990s, while she too demonstrated great tolerance when I gave temporary shelters to homeless pups at home (from time to time) until we could find them a home.

Today I decided that the proceeds from the print-on-demand sale of this art piece must always go to better this "homeless animals" issue back in my country.

With this said, I am pleased to call out to all you well-wishers who empathize with animals left outside unattended, with nobody to care for but is put through all kinds of brutality and abuse in certain parts of the world, to just spare a moment to make a difference for them for the better.

I did stop by to do this today if it meant making their existence a little better on earth:
http://www.thepetitionsite.com/3/stop-dog-abuse-in-india/

What is your agenda towards this cause for today?

You are also welcome to read my newly released article on the subject:

India Independence Day

2011-08-15T23:15:00.000+04:00

As a global Indian I felt it a pride to take the opportunity to release this icon with a message that comes along with it.

It is my pleasure to gift this image as royalty free for all of you to use because it holds a very special message of integrity and secularism and India going through a global revolution with its knowledge based educated young. And a different kind of democracy which may not be particularly similar to the rest of the world.

Hence this brief article is a foreword to a series of articles I intend publishing in the near future about India, especially to help the world understand the diversity of India and why Indians though integrated in many ways are diverse from one to another. I have observed during my world travels that Indians have amused, amazed and in some instances even confused certain others. My articles I hope will throw some clarity about the versatility in an Indians behavior so that our friends in the rest of the world get amused for the right reasons. :o) and assume many issues surrounding an Indian in the right judgement.

While I leave the inauguration of such articles for another time, I am pleased to state that this 15 August of 2011 was one of the greatest Independence days India has ever had nurturing the Gandhian spirit because it has fallen at a perfect time when most of the beliefs of the world and that of India celebrate a season of "Giving and of Peace".

This 15 August falls during the Holy Month of Ramadhan when Muslims in India and in the rest of the world are celebrating a season of giving, non-violence and peace.

The 15th of August also coincides with the day when Christians celebrate a day of Giving and Peace in the Mother (called the Ascension Day).

At the end of this season when Muslims celebrate Eid, the Hindus in certain parts of India celebrate a harvest season which is also culturally intertwined when they celebrate together as one community irrespective of cast, creed or religion. Hence another perfect season for giving and for togetherness.

So the India Independence Day of 2011 was indeed a day to remember as I am sure that it was a peaceful charity-filled day for many yet frolicking and pleasant.

I hope you too had a good one with the National flags fluttering and the National Anthem humming in the landscape!!

Happy International Friendship Day 2011

2011-07-30T12:03:00.000+04:00

As part of International Friendship Day, I launched my very own youtube channel called Remoteremz starting with showcasing one of my animations - a line test performed for half of the story, but it pretty much establishes "the friendship without borders theme".

This is a story I created at least 10 years ago and actually made it in 3D in a hurry to take it to my first Siggraph. But I wanted to make it a 2D animation and hence got as far as making it on cels and shooting it into the computer frame by frame... which i did at the New York University back in 2007. It has only reached the cleanup stage.... hopefully I can make it ready by the end of 2011 for public viewing of the finished movie.

This is copyright material and any idea or depiction from this will be considered infringement of copyright.

While doing the cleanup for this I will be releasing an exhaustive article explaining the process of traditional animation called cleanup for you to understand how important the job of a cleanup artist is. Where I will also feature all time legendary cleanup artists who were instrumental in making animation sketches look pleasing to the audience over the golden years of traditional Disney and Looney Toons animation.

Happy International Friendship day 2011 everybody!

Kate (Prince William's Bride) Wedding Gown Fashion Illustrations

2011-07-11T21:02:00.000+04:00

Count-down to predicting the actual dress design as below.
My closest Prediction to Kate's dress Copyright 2011 Remy Francis

Photograph of Kate with the Mcqueen's Royal Wedding Gown

A high-street copy of Kate's dress

Although it was revealed ahead of the marriage that the tiara handed over to Kate by the queen is a Cartier “halo” tiara, which was made in 1936 and purchased by the Duke of York (later King George VI) for his wife, Elizabeth's mother (also Elizabeth). Queen Elizabeth received it as an 18th-birthday present, at which time she was Princess Elizabeth. The delicate headpiece, which is as understated as a headband of diamonds can be, was lent to Kate by the Queen.

Doodles to Drawing Board Adventures

2011-07-11T20:56:00.000+04:00

Read my article

Wanted Series - Posters

2011-07-09T00:14:00.000+04:00

A special Announcement

2011-06-23T16:45:00.000+04:00

It's a pleasure to make a very special announcement to all of you who are interested in Cartoons.

My Cartoons are up for sale at toonpool.com
I just uploaded my first piece yesterday titled "The Obama Balancing Act"

Copyright © 2011 Remy Francis

All my cartoons in my gallery will be up for sale eventually after I have replaced them with the conducive image sizes. Please contact the toonpool moderator for special prices.

Doodle-time on Adobe Illustrator

2011-06-11T17:49:00.000+04:00