Notes
Hey you guuuys!
Season two of The Electric Company begins airing today. Below is the spot we directed and animated for the new season.
Writer Adam Peltzman, voice actor Sean Crespo, and producers Karen Fowler, Claire Curley, and Eliza Hart.
Tim and I are both big fans of Conan O’Brien, and with all the hoopla about him lately, I [...]
Color!
We’re working on color and background design for our latest project. Our goal is to suggest a lot with only a little.
The stage will consist of abstract backgrounds that have a feeling of depth and light like the one above, and others that incorporate elements that are more specific to a particular environment.
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6 Audience Principles
I’m working to map out some core beliefs about entertainment and animation. Starting by thinking about the audience seemed most logical because without them our work has no purpose. The six principles below are just a start. They’re not the only principles, or the best principles. What principles would you add, delete, or change? Would [...]
Planning Animation at 6 fps
I’ve experimented with a lot of different frame rates over the years, but my favorite has become 6 fps. It allows me to focus more on the design of each drawing, the acting of the sequence, and proper balance with the audio. The key to making it work is planning the timing and spacing of [...]
5 Secrets to Recording a Documentary Interview For Animation
Documentary audio has been used to powerful effect in all types of animation. John Hubley used improvised recordings of his children as the soundtrack to his Academy Award-winning “Moonbird”. Man-on-the-street recordings gave Ralph Bakshi the realism he was looking for in films like Fritz the Cat. Nick Park’s inventive reinterpretations of conversations with everyday people [...]
Pencil Test
Today, we’d like to share a pencil test from a work-in-progress. We recently sold our Cintiq, a digital drawing tool, and re-upped our commitment to drawing on paper. Other animators have encouraged us to go the digital route, but I never felt I had the same control I get with well-sharpened pencils on animation bond. [...]
Ray Lei
We met Ray Lei in Ottawa this year, and loved his work. He has a wonderful design sense, an infectious exuberance, and is totally inventive. He’s also a blast to talk with because of his great sense of humor. Once he starts talking, you just want to listen to everything he has to say. You’re [...]
Q&A Wins Documentary Short Award at Austin Film Festival
When we received word that “Q&A” had been accepted to the Austin Film Festival, the invitation came with a request attached. “Would you be willing to have your film programmed in the documentary category instead of the animation category?,” asked the festival representative who contacted us. I hesitated momentarily. That would take us out of [...]
