Fresh, Juicy Reels!

Headed up to Ottawa for the annual International Animation Festival (more about that later). Before hitting the road, I made sure to squander some of my down time at work on cutting together a new reel.



It was time for an upgrade (new website coming shortly as well) and considering there may actually be folks looking me up now, I figured I should post it online in the meantime.

Enjoy! Suggestions are welcome!

Treguna, Makoidees, Trecorum, Sadis Dee

When I was little, my brothers and I use to drag our parents to the armor room.



Now, apart from some hints of nostalgia and fond memories of Bed-knobs and Broomsticks, it's petty dull.


The same goes for Bed-knobs and Broomsticks if you were wondering.

Actually, one of my favorite areas recently got re-done.



I liked it better before - plus some foliage, minus a 'cafe' - but I will admit this lady looks much nicer in the sun.



I suppose two years living abroad ruined the awe of the Japanese 'garden' for me. Now I'm more interested how the ancients were also taking lessons from 'How to Draw' books.




I seem to have also become an admirer of fashion in the classics.




The expressions in this one are almost as extravagant as the costumes.



While he is looking rather chic in his crimson robes and lace gown, this fellow caught me eye as the inspiration for one of my favorite Bacon paintings.





And in case you were curious, the cats here are far superior to the ones found at the MoMA.



And now you know where Walt Disney got the idea...

Back on the Wagon

While my position at LBi technically makes me a full-time with benefits 'Animator', moving images of the Jonas Brothers around in Flash can be a bit draining on the 'soul'.


One reason I've decided to start giving myself little exercises to complete for a shiny new reel. Here's the rough animation for my first outing:

I've since cleaned it and started coloring it in Flash. Next I'll make a fun little background, possibly as a real, three-dimensional diorama (of the 3rd grade book-report variety).

And, yes, my cat really is that fat.

Directed by Michael Bay

Been editing the footage we shot a little under a month ago for the They Might Be Giants puppet-extravaganza!

Here's a snippet of from the shoot:




I don't know if the explosion was a good sign, but I'll take what I can get.

Cupcakes!

Frivolous post about some very classy cupcakes I made last night.


In between editing footage in Premiere (ol' school, bitches!), I whipped up these (hopefully) delicious Sour Cream and Fig cupcakes with Cream Cheese frosting.


They're filled with fig jam, shhhh!

Rosabelle -

Answer —


tell —


pray, answer —


look —


tell —


answer, answer —


tell.

Bang bang, shoot shoot...

Last weekend I got to flex my puppet muscles. Literally. I was sore till Tuesday.

(You may think Richard is hiding from the camera, really it's the imminent shards of glass)

Richard O'Connor at Asterisk Animation was kind, gracious and all around just plain awesome enough to lend us some space for most of the day Sunday. He also single-handedly played the role of cameraman and lighting. Like I said, just plain awesome and I don't think I'll ever be able to fully thank him for it.

(Dear me, Dave! That Opossum's as big as your head!)

Dave Cowles flew in from Rochester, NY for the shoot and managed to snag an award or two at the ASIFA Screenings later that evening. A Sunday well spent, I'd say.

(Johnny's most demanding scene)

It's safe to say the whole day wouldn't have been half as fun without the presence of Johnny(A). Playing the role of gopher/puppeteer/comedian, he kept the pace going and the mood up.

And I guess I should also thank Dunkin' Donuts for the copious amounts sugar we consumed throughout the day. You can buy a lot with 30.00.

(Paint-roller and Mogubgub)

Next comes the tedious task of keying... UGH.