I can breath again

This is my flour sack, Animated fully in flash, without tweening god forbid! I like using flash to mimic classical animation because you can change the spacing without changing the drawing, the onion skin mode alows you to see your arcs very clearly, and focus on the timing without worrying about other stuff.

Well, First year has come to an end, It's been one heck of a ride!

My favorite learning experience this year has been assisting Nick Thornborrow on his wonderful grad film "The Foolish Bet". Mitch and I really benefited from working for someone so talented and knowledgeable, He's a natural born director. It was a thrill to see it with an audience today at the fourth year screening, sensing and hearing the enthusiastic response.

Of all I've seen today, "Key Lime Pie" by Trev Jimemez was Simply incredible!
I'd like to further congratulate Sam Bradley-- The Lighthouse was full of energy! Shaz Lym--the Scooter Goon is a really great cartoon! Casper, Tim, Olga, Johannes... you guys did our school justice.

peace.

Read Between the Frames

My proposal for the 2007 Sheridan animation t-shirt, inspired by Ed "Big Daddy" Roth, creator of the original graphic t-shirt. If you'd like to wear this design make sure to vote, your opinion counts.
Note that my character is using top pegs, I'm an anarchist!

Animation Assignment

This is a three part assignment: head turn, lip sync and expression change--ACTING! I went an extra mile with this one, T'was our first chance to choose a character we loved, make it act and have total freedom with it. This is personification, how I would react if I slipped a "Meoww" instead of properly whistling at little red riding hood.
for those of you who asked, I didn't physically act it out, I did it with thumbnail drawings.

I love Tex Avery's cartoons, but he wasn't an influence for the animation itself.
More direct influence came from my favorite golden age animators: Rod Scribner (for Bob Clampett's Looney Tunes) and Jim Tyer (for Terrytoons), their acting was over the top, and very physical, which made it look believable.
Our animation history teacher, and brilliant cartoon animator, Kaj Pindal, noted Gertie the Dinosaur looks believable when scratching herself. When a well animated character touches itself, we believe its alive.

And for students who inquired, the characters are taken from RED HOT RIDING HOOD.

Copy isn't a four letter word!

Every once in a twice I break away from school work to do some hardcore cartoon copying.
There's no shame in that, vice versa, if you learn from established greatness, you don't need to re-invent the wheel, We have yet to see it invented better than by the first generation of Hollywood cartoonists.
Following the lines of the ol’ masters helps me to look at my construction skills, see what needs work and what’s already working. Trying to emulate my heroes and choosing my favorite drawings also helps me keep my integrity, in case it has been sitting on the bench following instructions for too long.

It's hard to explain the appeal of Coal Black, simply because there's so much of it!
Leave alone it's politically incorrectnesses, it's one of the most explosive and lively short subjects ever made, I love Snow White, but the immense range of emotion and expression Clampett cramps into a seven minute short was never topped by Disney storytelling, even with complete features.

Mitch Kennedy and I keep talking about the what-if of animation history, can you imagine what would happen if the Clampett unit was handed to Rod Scribner instead of Bob McKimson? and if Fleischer had outlasted Disney?

Over the break from school I would copy one cartoon and one anatomy image every day, here's an unfinished page.

This is an Oldie!

Drew this a year ago for my Sheridan portfolio, The pose is taken from Marlon Brando in Streetcar Named Desire. I've posted other drawings of the Frobster character in the August archives.

Caicatures re-scanned

I re-scanned these for better quality

Plus all new Napoleon and Friends!

Characters

I designed these characters for my Sheridan portfolio. I was always inspired by how the Looney Tunes directors used animals for caricature. My favorites are Babbit and Catstello in Bob Clampett's A Tale of Two Kitties, and The HoneyMousers by Bob McKimson. Frobster is based on Alfred Hitchcock, Marlon Brando and Sydney Greenstreet.

Captain Jean-Juc Picard

Baldy went where no one has gone before.

Go ahead, punk...

Make my day!