The Lesser Unknown Blog

Industrial Light and Magic Documentary

2012-01-29T17:01:00.000-08:00

People that push the boundaries!

Daydreaming for a Living

2012-01-18T19:02:00.000-08:00

Sage, Wizard, Rip Van Winkle. These names came to mind from seeing a picture of George Clayton Johnson.

Twilight Zone has been and forever will be one of the all time greatest shows. Each episode is different from the next. Fantastic short stories, Incredible cinematography and sound. All masterpieces and memorable.
So I leaped at the rare chance to meet this legend in a lecture held by The Creative League. Bam! as soon as George arrives, you can sense this energy and sharp vitality from him. He hit the ground running with his insights on life.

6 years old was when he discovered his art form. It was a poem of a frog, he recited to us word for word. He said, it's the delight of the story you just don't forget. Carefully crafted words flowed from a master, from this creative genius.
Magnetic words, alarming, and the vocal delivery, George explained the editing of useless weak words gave strength.

A great example he pointed out was the connection to the audience of " Getting away" with anything is universally powerful. From my observation he loved and is really passionate about story. He constantly pitched a lot of different work in progress from his head, if it would hold your attention. He lives in the future and spoke about his plans, totally having a blast. Pushing the peak of his ability and engrossed in the effort. Super focused concentration he has for one thing. I asked him about his workflow, he said sometimes he can see it happening and be there. To set yourself a high minded challenge, a lot of writing is discovering and picking out cliches. Plenty of critical thinking and arguing to himself of the topics to break off to other outta the box ideas and insights.

He said it wasn't difficult to write, mostly what to write was. To set a standard and stay on top of your craft. The expansion of consciousness, thinking sideways is an art form. Take notes and pile them up to a dozen projects. George would munch on ideas from the past. I would imagine like a sculptor, piecing and shaping together wads of clay to have a whole masterpiece. Stories should be better than reality of the ideal world. And that truth is boring, the play in words.

Here was the best advice I got from him, is to match the voice in your head with the outside voice. To really hone your skill, the writings as a writer. This was truly a great event for me and definitely validated from what I've read, heard, and noticed, the theories for long life and mental sharpness. By being challenged by your passion projects, etc. and having really something to live for, to push, climb, progress new levels on your lives with.

His credits in the Twilight Zone series include :Kick the Can, Nothing in the Dark, Four of Us are Dying, The Game of Pool, Execution, Penny for Your Thoughts, Ninety Year's Without Slumbering. He also wrote the original "Oceans Eleven" .

Cool footage of George.

Letters of Note

2011-12-25T19:35:00.000-08:00

Incredible find.. An archive of fun and encouraging letters from various real famous people. Here is an example from Walt Disney himself urging Ube Iwerks to move out across country to Los Angeles from NY and work with him.. And as you know the rest is cartoon history. Check it out @ http://www.lettersofnote.com/

Puppets with CG Backgrounds

2011-12-24T00:34:00.000-08:00

Wow, I love how they really pulled this off. It looks seamless on certain parts. I see this further in the future. The first clip is the movie and the behind the scenes. The instant gratification of animated movement and character life is really fun in puppetry. The best is doing karaoke to your favorite songs too.

For a bonus a clip of the Henson muppeteers in action. When workin' on their own projects, surprisingly for the older crowd. Wanting to dabble with this in the future no doubt. Stay Tuned..

Happy Holidays 2012

2011-12-17T21:02:00.000-08:00

Happy Holidays to Everyone! This year's been the ultimate. I'm so lookin' forward to what the next year brings to all effort again. To great Family and Friends..

Growth

2011-12-15T20:27:00.000-08:00

*Warning : Explicit Adult Language

Ran into this very real powerful info from Joe Rogan. If your into "Life Progression" as me you'll appreciate this. Understand "Truth" be awakened, evolve, and reach your dreams..

Interesting concept : to do it for the skill mastery and enjoyment, not for the cash. Cause when you get cash you get lazy and wacked. This is what happens to dope bands when they start.. they rock, and when they blow up.. they get lame. ****But,,Since your doing it for progression and the money comes, you will just keep progressing because money had nothing to do with it, and you won't get stuck and be a one hit wonder.. Check it!

This is about staying clear from losers and negative folks:

To deal with Hater's. When you have life direction, others will try to get in your way conscious and or unconsciously.

Evolve

This makes sense

Behind the Scenes @ Aardman Studios "Pirates"

2011-12-03T21:26:00.000-08:00

Wow what an exclusive, such an inspiring place. They're having a blast over there.

Masters of the Universe "Fan Art"

2011-11-29T18:54:00.000-08:00

This is like incredible mad skills. Dave Rapoza is on some crazy level painting.

More on his site @ http://daverapoza.blogspot.com

And to top it off, I got lucky and found the link of him Painting it too! Unreal!
-------> Clik on this link to see the vid

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The Perfect Bait

2011-11-29T18:41:00.000-08:00

Wow! Awesome new book from Bobby Chui. This will make you more "Unstoppable". Great Pro info to make it big. Check it out!!!

http://theperfectbait.com/store.php

Devine Disatisfaction

2011-11-25T19:43:00.000-08:00

"I come from a type of artist that isn't satisfied with their own work. Because I know what I wanna see on paper and what I settle for is substantially less. And you always think, its not as good as it could've been, and in fact that's a good sign, help me. Because if you think you've gone as far as you can go then you might as well hang it up."
*A mastery goodie from "John Romita Sr" a Spiderman artist:

Work Ethics From A Pro

2011-11-16T19:10:00.000-08:00

No More Excuses,,Forward on!

Don't get ripped off!!!

2011-11-13T00:47:00.000-08:00

Sad to say there are people out there that are dishonest. Willing to take advantage and hold on to their money and make you work for free (spec work) or super cheap. Tell em' "NO WAY!" A good way of looking at it, is pretend your a plumber. This client calls in with a clogged toilet, and he tells the plumber to do this for free and he will get credit and have a great portfolio. He will tell the client to "go to hell." simple..
All these years we put in our craft. Don't be a victim, I ran into this great podcast. check it out. And know where you stand. Man vs. Art

Realize Your Dream

2011-11-06T15:39:00.000-08:00

There is a great Indy Film rolling out of Kevin Clash. A great example of pursuing a dream and making it no matter what. He is such an inspiration to us climbers to persevere.

The Gawper

2011-10-23T13:30:00.000-07:00

Gawper from A Large Evil Corporation on Vimeo.

found this from Cartoon Brew. I love it, it has something that struck me, really pushing the craft along in their style and mixes.

Cool Book and Trailer

2011-10-01T10:23:00.000-07:00

Started to read this great book, I'm intrigued with information straight from the sources. To reach, get close, or maybe even passed their level. And get into the mindset and not re-invent the wheel, to use as a jump-off point. To " See further from the shoulders of Giants". This Trailer is so uplifting, I loaded it in my Ipod to watch when I get stuck in the mud of mediocrity. ha ha

Steven Spielberg Advice

2011-09-26T20:15:00.000-07:00

Wow.. That's all I can say!

George Lucas Advice

2011-09-26T20:05:00.000-07:00

Some "Gold" here, from the source. Nothing like learning from someone that's up there, where you wanna reach. Not some regular folk that's just guessing.

Practice Makes Perfect

2011-09-17T16:48:00.000-07:00

Like the old saying goes! Here is a killer clip to shed some light on this.

Ira Glass on Storytelling from David Shiyang Liu on Vimeo.

Immortal Work

2011-09-17T16:24:00.000-07:00

It is normal not to be satisfied with your work, that is a mark of someone pushing to be the best they can. From what I've ran into just doing the work and earning that 10 thousand hours and getting those thousands of ugly drawings (animations) you should be in a better controllable state. Here is a great quote to the Dream chasers/ Craft pushers out there from Orison Swett Marden: *Regard your work as Stradivari regarded his violins, which he made for "eternity". And not one of which, was ever known to come to pieces or break. When a piece of work leaves your hand it should bear your "recommendation". Below is a great shot breakdown I found, to a great poem piece from a inspirational movie Dead Poets Society.

From a Painting background, I've seen people get good but just do that same template piece and are just satisfied with that alone, not pushing to the next level, challenging themselves, exploring new possibilities, just getting by with mediocrity. In my opinion how you feel( i.e bored, angry) when you paint a painting ( I think this may happen too in animation or any other art form) is transferred to your work and is reflected back to the audience/ viewer. Just an observation of mine, you can definitely tell/ feel the innovators and pioneer trail blazers.

Urgent Skit- w/ Breakdowns and Rough Lipsync

2011-09-11T22:24:00.000-07:00

Got to smash hard this weekend. Rocked this all day: Added Breakdowns and Rough Lipsync. Toned down the big shapes to go with the dialogue better and dived in the lipsync, hit the biggies and closed. All in all just a fun weekend, carved out shot 19 of wrestling and tomorrow in the crack of dawn. I will drill the cores and finally polish it out, since I spent Saturday, re-blocking a character to be more believable. Dig it!

Urgent Skit- Keys Stepped Timed

2011-09-05T21:01:00.000-07:00

Yeah!!! Super productive "3-Day" Labor day weekend ( sacrifice to get better at the craft). Got this out to share, Blocked it out with a Andreas Deja Tip of Poses with "Feeling". I copied my Thumbnails and molded it with a reference Video I taped of myself hitting the beats. And just cranked up the exaggeration. I emailed great friends for Crits, will await that and adjust, then Break it down. Having a Blast!

The Great Art Babbit

2011-09-05T14:45:00.000-07:00

Another awesome find in the net. I don't have any recording from Art, but to find a documentary of him with him is "Treasure" indeed. Enjoy!

Bill Tytla

2011-09-05T14:41:00.000-07:00

Wow, ran into this voice recording of Bill Tytla. Also some example of his work.

Mental Gold !!!

2011-09-05T12:22:00.000-07:00

Through the choices and decisions you make, you can determine what your environment will be. Let’s look now at what we can do, to make your future environment pay off in both satisfaction and prosperity. The first step is to recondition yourself for success. The number one obstacle on the road to high level success is the feeling that major accomplishments are beyond reach. This attitude stems from many, many suppressive forces that direct our thinking toward mediocre levels.

To understand these suppressive forces, let’s go back to the time we where children. As children all of us set high goals, at a very young age most of us wanted to conquer the unknown, be leaders, jet pilots, doctors, presidents, and great artists. To do exciting and stimulating things, become famous, and wealthy, in short.. to be successful. And in our blessed ignorance, we saw our way out clear to accomplishing these goals. But what happened? Long before we reached the age when we can begin to work toward our great objectives, a multitude of suppressive influences went to work. From all sides, we heard “It’s foolish to be a dreamer” and that “Our ideas are impractical, naïve, or foolish, we had to get our feet on the ground and our head out of the clouds”. We heard that to get ahead we had to have money to begin with, or that we had to have important friends, or just plain luck.

As a result of being bombarded with this, “You can’t get ahead so don’t bother to try”, PROPAGANDA. Most people you know can be classified into 3 groups. The 1st group are the people who surrendered completely, the majority of people who are convinced, deep down inside that they haven’t got what it takes, that real success, real accomplishments, is for others who are lucky, or fortunate in some special respect. Now you can spot these people because they go to great lengths to rationalize their status and explain how happy they really are.

The 2nd basic group are those who surrender partially. Now this is a much smaller group than the first one. This group enters adult life with a lot of hope for success, the people prepare themselves, they work hard, they plan. But after a decade or so, resistance begins to build up. Competition for top level jobs look pretty rugged, and this group decides greater success, just isn’t worth the effort. They rationalize “We’re earning more than the average, We live better than the average, why knock ourselves out.”

The 3rd group is quite small, perhaps 2 or 3 percent of the population. This group never surrendered their dreams. They never did and they still don’t let pessimism dictate their limitations. They don’t believe in surrendering to suppressive forces. Instead these people live and breathe success. This group of people is the happiest, because it accomplishes the most. These people become top salesmen, top executives, top leaders, top artists in their respective fields. These people find life stimulating, rewarding, worthwhile. These people look forward to each new day, each new accomplishment, each new challenge, each new encounter with other people, as adventures to be lived fully.

Now let’s be honest, all of us would like to be in that third group. The one that finds continually greater success. But to get into and to stay in that group, we have to fight off the suppressive influence of our environment. To understand how people on the first two groups will unwittingly try to hold you back.

Try this experiment: Tell several of your, average friends or your fellow workers with the greatest sincerity that someday you intend to be Vice-President of your company. What will happen? Your friends will probably think your joking, and if they do believe you mean it, they’ll say something like, “You poor sap, you got a lot to learn”. But assume that you repeat that same statement with equal sincerity to the President of the company. How will he or she react? One thing is certain the President of your company will not laugh. He might look at you intently and say to himself “Does this person really mean this?” But he won’t laugh, because BIG people do not laugh at BIG ideas.

By the same token, when you tell somebody that owns a Million-dollar home, you plan to own your own Million-dollar home one day, that person won’t laugh either. And they won’t think you’re crazy, that person knows it’s perfectly possible because that person has already done it. But if you tell your neighbors that they’re liable to tell you that it’s impossible. Remember people who tell you something can’t be done, almost always are unsuccessful people. Strictly mediocre in terms of accomplishment, the opinions of these people are poison. Develop a defense against people who want to convince you, that you can’t do something. Accept negative advice only as a challenge to prove that you can do it. Be extra, extra conscious about this. Don’t let negative thinking people destroy your plan, to think yourself to success.

I call these people Negators, Negators are everywhere and they seem to take delight in sabotaging the positive progress of others. Some of them do it out of jealousy. They’re not moving ahead themselves, so they want to see you stumble too. Others may be sincere and well meaning, but they’ve been brainwashed. They’ve surrendered, they’re convinced that success is impossible for them, and that people who strive for success are risking everything and are liable to end up with nothing. So be careful, study Negators. Don’t let them destroy your plans for success.

*Excerpts from the book “The Magic of Thinking Big” – David Schwartz Ph.D.

Check out the rest of the book it clears the path, this continues the earlier post on who to believe sometimes.

Learning from People

2011-09-04T06:55:00.000-07:00

Knowledge from experience is very valuable. I treasure it always, it might not be understood at the moment of hearing it. But the illumination that strikes later or at the time, saves energy and time to progress faster. My favorite one was when I was like in my 20's and this man spoke to me and told me, "Wow your wheels are spinning". I guess he meant I'm doing big things, because I've started being productive and trying to be great in Art.

He passed along this great advice, "Don't trip too much on yourself on how you look right now (negatively), because years later you'll know it was bullshit and you'd waste all this time. And you've already been cool all along" something in this realm I tried to recreate. But this was, something very profound, and helpful to get me light years beyond my peers.

To that, collecting wisdom, advice, comparing notes with others has always been fun for me. The feeling is captured here, gonna check out these books soon. But the vids are pushers. But just filter out, the "Stay in comfort zone ones" and there is a BIG difference where the advice is from.

E.g. I shared my dream and the extra hours I put in after work to be a great pro Animator to a owner of this accounting firm next door to my present non art job and his reply was "Working two jobs, huh.. that's how I did it too. You can do it".
Compared to someone in a crap job venting on you, will bring you down or make you feel guilty to make them not question themselves on why they don't have the guts to do what your doing . On the hours you spend trying to get closer to your dream.

I heard this in some interview about a guy up on a podium winning an Oscar or Academy award upon his speech he say's " This is for all of you people, that spend that one hour a day trying to reach you dreams". -----> Let's Go!

Glen Keane Advice

2011-09-02T13:57:00.000-07:00

The example above is just so, alive and appealing the fluid shape transitions.

It seems when you run up against a problem (while pushing your Craft), you always think it's just because " I'm not good enough" but it's not that. It's just that you've kinda hit the limit of you knowledge, and you gotta go out and observe, find, get, and discover something more. "Those are really great" the best times, when you feel like you stink and you can't get it, any better, your stuck, and your in a rut. That's like "man", the world is open and your ready to learn something new. You gotta go, you gotta take advantage of it. Sometimes you wallow in that for like a week and that's crazy.

*this is a great example of hitting the zone, the flow, zen, when your rocking.

Once I really hit my "Key Poses" (Animating), it's more of the joy of it. You know it's like I've practiced it enough and you can now just go ahead and play that piece on the piano. And its a joy, the expression, and I'm living it completely, lost in the moment animating it.

-Following are excerpts from an interview by Clay Kaytis

Key Analysis

2011-08-27T07:33:00.000-07:00

Wow what a treat, In Andreas Deja's blog he happened to post a cool sequence of Jafar in Aladdin. I noticed he had the frame numbers and just couldn't resist, and had to see it in motion. Loaded it to a pencil shooter and here ya go. So fluid, and the lag on the pointing finger when he and the horse exit. The raw beautiful drawings and his post is at this link: http://andreasdeja.blogspot.com/2011/08/follow-trail.html

Back to Dialouge

2011-08-23T19:50:00.000-07:00

I love Acting shots, got this great line I ran into. Just need to film a reference shot hittin the beats loosely. The set is ready to rock,, check it!. General Maya work is one of my guilty pleasures.

Lit it the best I could and hooked up some free rigs . Trucking along with my wrestling shots, need to go alot slower in polishing, and fight the urge to rush it and look crappy being hap-hazard.

This will be the intro to my new reel so it has to blow some minds and really sell.

"Rough Cut with Breakdowns"

2011-08-15T21:20:00.000-07:00

Yippee! Its time for Spline Plus to Final Polish. Edited the shots together to see the flow in the transitions and I'm quite happy with them, also to get motivated to finish. They're mostly in Breakdowns and in Stepped mode still. Just taking a breather and I'm gonna dive right back in the deep end.. See what you think. I got another little dialogue scene I'm cookin' up at the moment to throw in the mix. Stay tuned

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Great Ani Theory Vids

2011-07-23T08:22:00.000-07:00

Powerful stuff to learn here. Awesome work "Ugur Yetisen"

29 Ways to Stay Creative

2011-06-18T10:31:00.000-07:00

I enjoy collecting info to get better and not re-invent the wheel. Here is a great vid to help for the struggle up (re: if your not struggling, your not learning anything)

New Reel Update

2011-06-16T20:46:00.000-07:00

Rockin.. More than Halfway point with Breakdown pass on my new reel pieces. Just checkin in, that I'm still Animating. Ha Ha. So much Fun, Stay Tuned..

Puppetschool Grad show ( Behind the scenes)

2011-06-01T05:33:00.000-07:00

Wow.. Unbelievable talent in one place, teaming up to Entertain as if their life depended on it. That's what it felt like and made this a sold out "Smash hit". So Lucky to be able to perform with everyone here. So much fun

Traditional Master Art School in Florence

2011-05-24T18:37:00.000-07:00

This is just Insane! Wow.. you would hear people talking about going to Europe and learning how to paint and stuff. From the Lineage of the Renaissance Masters no doubt. And we are so lucky in this tech age to catch peek at these, super specialized schools and what its all about. Just a jaw dropper for me.

Stan Lee Interviews

2011-04-24T10:49:00.000-07:00

Comic books will always have a special place in my heart, the coolest composition, design and style. To me it's like a portable fantasy movie. And who doesn't know who this guy is. To see this man with so much zest and passion for life, its just very contagious. Peep the hidden gold in his words and learn this mindset. Enjoy..

And an extra.. His heroes

2nd Teaser "WIP"

2011-04-21T23:12:00.001-07:00

Here's a sneak peek at the PSA I'm cranking out too, its some old rigs I'm using. I equate it to molding with clay the worst rigs ever, but their original and mine, its a start working with what I got and embracing a good challenge. By Monday I'll put a good dent at the two shorts.

Teaser " Work in Progress"

2011-04-19T22:12:00.000-07:00

Just checkin in with what I'm up to. Having an awesome time blocking two shorts simultaneously. Logging in a notebook, all progress, ideas, the next step ,and thumbnails so you can step out, then come back to them when ever, and not lose track . I have a week vacation left, and this is total bliss. Will do the most to have this next reel out by November for the CTNexpo.

Chute #20 100' s Trick Challenge

2011-03-22T06:20:00.000-07:00

Yep.. ALL DAY! Carving light and shadow is so fun, got to a happy point in the animation. It looks like time for the two toon shorts to attack. Standby

Archer #19 100' s Trick Challenge

2011-03-15T23:58:00.000-07:00

Another one in the bag. Mid-week, Ik elbow was hell trying to smooth out. I just put in the time, and drilled this until it felt right.

It's A Climb To The Top

2011-03-11T21:10:00.000-08:00

I was thinking, why do people use this analogy of climbing to the top. Yes its tough, a struggle, and not everyone gets there. So it dawned on me, why not use literally the mountain climbers info and mindset.
I'm getting so much out of it, my passion for animation has its challenges and obstacles, I collect a lot of info and ask the experienced achievers, to solve issues and receive advice and feedback.

Check out Eric Horsts Blog Here and Here

see the mental training part just use for any endeavor up.. Rock it

Breaking New Ground

2011-03-11T20:58:00.000-08:00

Innovators! Here is a great team that created this piece of " Amazing Mastery" a whole set in one, a synergy of greatness. I have the short and the making of as well.. Yahooo! This is what I strive for, pushing past boundaries in your craft, with today's world wide connectivity of knowledge, there is no excuse. So challenge yourself and enjoy

Elk Hair Caddis from peter smith on Vimeo.

Making Of Elk Hair Caddis from peter smith on Vimeo.

Making of Elk Hair Caddis by Alice Holme from Alice Holme on Vimeo.

"Making of Elkhair Caddis" by Anders from Anders Brogaard on Vimeo.

Farmer John # 18

2011-03-10T22:31:00.000-08:00

Okay.. Startin to build up momentum again, this is done. 2 more exercises to go and I can start on the 2 shorts I have ready to animate.

Aardman Commercial

2011-03-05T09:57:00.000-08:00

I'm such a big fan of this studios work, always quality and character driven. Here is a commercial spot they made and a behind the scenes.

Character Animation DVD's

2011-02-28T21:13:00.000-08:00

If classes are pricey, you can rock out with DVD's or both? From "Chris Kirshbaum" who is currently animating for Dreamworks, credits include Over the Hedge, Flushed Away, and Kung Fu Panda. Chris is an amazing Teacher, pick these up, they are the best.

http://www.thegnomonworkshop.com/store/category/150/Chris-Kirshbaum

Also, GNOMON has tons of Tutorial DVD's from the Greatest teachers on Earth. Rock on!

Chute 1st Pass

2011-02-19T20:21:00.000-08:00

Just truckin along with this fun shot, making the action really fluid. Added more inbetweens fleshed it out, pretty happy with it. Time for the next step, clean up the spline, face and emotion of thrill.

What It Takes

2011-02-18T19:58:00.000-08:00

This is the ignition to launch info here.. Any one can be what they set out to be, you just gotta earn it.

Keep On Going

2011-02-18T19:54:00.000-08:00

Challenge yourself everyday. This the follow up of Richard St. John 1st Lecture.

The Journey

2011-02-18T19:07:00.000-08:00

This craft takes a lot out of you, but it so worth it on what it gives back. I wanted to share what keeps me going, great people, people that inspire and bring you up. I constantly collect and absorb great info on how to keep going in life and in your passion. These are rocket fuel for the cause.. This one is ZEN right here, Srkumar Rao drives home the concept of what might be sound familiar? "Its not about the destination its all about the Journey." Have Fun..

Chute Breakdowns

2011-02-14T01:02:00.000-08:00

Filling in favors and snap.

The Practice Continues..

2011-02-05T16:18:00.000-08:00

A bit held up on Pre-Production assembling 2 shorts for a new reel, was my excuse for not animating.. Well back in effect 3 are rollin and this is one the others will follow. This is Blocking stage, trying to get the extreme fun in it with good fluid flow.

Redemption

2011-01-21T19:19:00.000-08:00

Yes,, its the same reel but can you spot the difference? The 1st one was in the dreaded underwater syndrome..Totally lost track and gotten tunnel vision( this gets worse on the last part when your starting to wrap up and finish) , it's very important to get in mind that animation is a team sport and getting feed back from other people is KEY! and give more time at the end to plus and finesse cause its really the make it or break it part.

So I fixed this up as far as I could, thanks to a corner turning crit, that I'm happy with it, that I can leave it for another Reel to start up again... HA HA. gonna keep the old one as a reminder how easy it is to think the shots on point when its not. HAPPY NEW YEAR! Lets all make it happen and out do, last years MASTERPIECE!

December 2010 Demo Reel

2010-12-06T21:50:00.000-08:00

WooHoooo!,, Got another one chalked up on the board. So much skits lined up, The next reel is already on the way, and exercises as well. Enjoy..

The Hiest " Breakdowns

2010-08-24T00:36:00.000-07:00

Chopp'in it up the "life" of the animation. Or where the animator live's Richard Williams says. Got a good feel of the sequence, time to plus more and jump into spline.

"Time Travel "- Final Contest Entry

2010-08-16T23:54:00.000-07:00

Tadahhh! This was as far that I went with this shot. Cleaned the crap out of it. See what you think.

Time Travel - w/ Breakdowns

2010-08-14T21:10:00.000-07:00

Break it down, Hammer time! On to Spline, Polish and Plus! Tommorow Im going to make a muppet style puppet at Puppet school, its all day. So I gotta burn the midnight oil for this due on Monday. Not really that far, and I'm really feelin it. Had to edit time to make it close to full animation, and make the realization poses( am i buck ?,I am buck..oh shit !) readable. 100 frame limits, dig it. The wrap is next.

Time Travel - Keys Timed

2010-08-12T21:20:00.001-07:00

Spungella has this cool 100 frame contest. A topic is given and you have 1 week to wrap it up. This is my second wack at it. It is very tough to keep it simple and readable for this short time frame which makes a very intriguing challenge. Having a blast cause it can be polished quickly.

Rap Skit " Breakdowns

2010-08-09T23:56:00.000-07:00

Okay, Trying to keep the feeling, essence, and vitality. Roughed out the Breakdowns as well as Lipsync. A bit stuck, but I need to sit down and just plow through and get the core to snap with great shapes and arms overlapping and leading well. On to 2nd Pass..in sections of movement.

Whip Action* Master copy #16 - 100's Challenge

2010-08-06T00:01:00.000-07:00

Moving along, this is a cycle copied from Jason Ryan's Ramp-up Tutorials. Just polished and cleaned in 3d. The whip was keyed out on every frame. Have to jump on the Demoreel now, but next week a 100 frame contest with Spungella begins.. Oh! what fun. I'm not letting the shot go and call it done till it hits a nerve of quality, other wise I drill hours on it, or take a break and get struck on how to solve an issue.

Saw Cycle* Master copy # 15 - 100's Challenge

2010-07-28T00:59:00.000-07:00

The page in the book " Timing for Animation" just describes what to do and the picture you kinda decipher, I copied that and the time. And did the body pushing the arm, then added the nice slow into and snap to ease in of the elbow looping arc. The all around feel of the piece I was happy with. I love this book, really pushed poses and time that is what entertains and is totally see-able, and over powers mo-cap, what animation is all about, a pushed reality.

and on to the next

The Hiest " Blocking

2010-07-27T00:10:00.000-07:00

Here is a cool sequence I'm trying to hook up, very clean. This is how far I got, still awaiting crit to add and move forward. The rap one has been broken down, needs some rough Lip-Sync to get critiqued and push on..

No Excuses

2010-07-18T21:23:00.000-07:00

Wow.. I ran into this today, really cool clip. There is no excuse to not making it big, its all on you and on what you do. These guys have no background in business and little art knowledge, but worked hard on what they liked to do, and makes a point on learning from failure along the way.

Door Test *Master copy #14 -100's Challenge

2010-07-10T23:22:00.000-07:00

This was copied from Tom and Jerry's " Millionaire Cat". It was alot fun to study from, I was so surprised on how wacky and outlandish creative the poses they came up with in these shows, I will be collecting some more. This was like 50 frames and to comic precision, this was a real honor and a treat. More to come, also checking in with the goal strivers out there half a year already, hope you have made a dent and have done plenty to get you further in life, Let's end this year with a bang on the second half. Yippee!

Rap Skit " Blocking

2010-07-05T23:55:00.000-07:00

Okay, 450 frames the marathon of shots. Thought I'd test my stamina on this, gonna break it up in sections and jump around to have fluid transitions. Really, just dove in and let this evolve, made my reference vid and really got in the moment. This is the checkpoint for crits, then onto more Breakdowns, Extremes, Plussing and Revisions called out on.

What it takes, to reach your dreams?

2010-07-04T11:55:00.000-07:00

This is one of the best interviews I've seen. That clearly points out how to get from point A to point Z of hardwork, determination, dedication on what it takes how to reach your dreams. Breaking it down from levels, His working 9am - 5pm and to 5pm - 2am( self mastery). I have to give it a shot. Mine is a bit different 8am - 5pm regular job and self mastery 6pm to 10pm plus early 4 am to 6 am ( still not steady but now it will be) and weekends are tentative for socializing to add to my animation( the lived life).

But It's total actual animation hands on practice time is what counts. We shall see where this can lead us. Make the time to practice, it could be an hour a day but if you look back in a later time it does accumulate. Keep Smashin.. And Happy FREEDOM DAY!

Sneak *Master copy #13 -100's Challenge

2010-06-30T05:35:00.000-07:00

Right steady moving forward, cleaner spacing and arcs. Was thrilled this was the speed Ken Harris intended to move, very zippy not what I expected. Holding the mirror and looking at the reflection like a painting to see it with new eyes. Called it done, for this one.

Soccer Bop # 12 - 100's Challenge

2010-06-20T19:01:00.000-07:00

Back in Effect! This was really a struggle on the arms, had to really think of opposing actions, lead and follow. Because it looked so mechanical, and had to be loosened out, making everything whip out.

This a great one on Agility for Body-Mechanics mastery. You must constantly push to the next level through purposeful practice in order to get better, be challenged to grow and evolve. And try to be conscious and not in auto-pilot when doing the whole thing.

88 more to go, very excited to see how the animation will be after, learned tons as always.

Persistence

2010-06-08T18:46:00.000-07:00

Do you have it? This is a crucial asset on your journey to Animation. Here my old school 1st Short movie " The Haunted House" a thesis you might say, this took 4 years to put together and animate. I was told it was ambitious, it just made me work harder to finishing it. I love all aspects of filmmaking from acting to set design, being your own studio, which was only a dream for animators a few years before me.

I knew my lucky break, and was not going to take it for granted. All can be done when you put your mind into it, take risks to fail, because at least you know you have a chance than, choosing not to do anything and for sure not having any. My mantra is I'd rather die trying to reach my goals, than die regretting that I never tried. Sincere effort. A quote from the documentary movie Dogtown and the Z-Boys, what's started it all.

" You only have one chance in this and thats it." - Stacy Peralta

Keep Rockin <----------

Its all about planning, this is the Animatic that foreshadowed the finished product

Fancy Pre-Viz Animatic

2010-06-06T22:19:00.000-07:00

This was an old Storyboarded out clip from a Narration of the Shogun Assassin movie. Luckily I did not see before this was conceived. Feels so good to finish something that was started on 2006 from a class. It's all Anime/ prince Achmed style marionette 2d puppets with limited key drawings. And the 4 value limited Technique of color for total readability. Two crazy 3d shorts in production, coming soon.

* The almighty "Story"

Improvement and Plussing

2010-05-22T11:01:00.000-07:00

Geez, there was a one week extension for the Spline Doctors Walk Cycle Challenge. And I heard somewhere to always keep your old work to compare and see progress( this is proof). I received some push crits to attack and hit back with this. Looking back on the old one was a big difference, it looked dead.
You have to push beyond and exaggerate to see it on the screen, because you get so micro-managed seeing it. You don't see it all as a whole, Fresh eyes( other animators) Is a true gift for animators.

The contest is now being Judged..@ SplineDoctors

Mindset

2010-05-22T09:22:00.000-07:00

Great words to live by, working with others and achieving greatness. Strong information here enjoy.

Spline Doctors Contest Entry

2010-05-12T18:25:00.000-07:00

Super Cool contest with Andrew Gordon, another fun challenge in their blog and I wanted to see if I got the chops.

Drilled this out in 3 weeks, went really far as I could on the animation. And then only then, I roughed out and set up the background and renders. Gave it 10% extra time cushion for maybe some crits or unforeseen issues that can occur. Wish me luck, The interview with 3d world magazine, if you win sounds so exciting.

Spungella 100 frame contest Entry!

2010-05-02T23:34:00.000-07:00

Fun Contest I entered for any "Art of" Book if you win. What an incentive. This was cranked out in a week, a bunch of ideas, and this was what stuck out that amused me the most, and really wanted to do.

Here is JD's site: Spungella "lots of knowledge here"

Stairs Up *Master copy #11 -100's Challenge

2010-04-15T15:17:00.000-07:00

Had to put some acting into this exercise. The feet pushing off to land before the weight of the body hits. That's was what took longer and had to really go in frame by frame to shape the motion smoothly. Happy with the outcome " The Detective"

# 10 - Hurdle Jump

2010-04-09T21:55:00.000-07:00

Ok, to close off the week. 9 Glorious days of Vacation from my regular job, and now I will crank out at least 10 pieces, is the goal.. No Mercy!

# 9 - 180 Degree turn around - " About Face"

2010-04-03T13:29:00.000-07:00

Slowly but surely, 1st type in a line of turn around's I will animating with this simple rig. So simple and fun to cleanup, really learned to go into detail with frame to frame easing and snaps. Check it..

2 Earlier peices *Hundreds trick challenge

2010-03-31T23:28:00.000-07:00

This was in another site, blip tv. but their embedding sucks and it moves to the next clip automatically. So I loaded up on Youtube to post it here to show.. Enjoy

Do your thing.. "Persistence"

2010-03-31T10:12:00.000-07:00

One of the biggest obstacles to overcome for me on my path to being an Animator was the "Hater's" and "Jealous" folk.
Sound familiar? " People can't make living or money from art" or " You will make money from your paintings, only when you have died". What kind of stuff is that to tell someone that found something they are good at and have fun doing.

Since they see you happy, focused, and dedicated pursuing your dreams in life and working to make it a reality..
They must sense that super energy (You get when finding what you love to do " Direction") and positive vibe. And they will try to crush it, because it challenges, and questions their life, future, and being a loser. Their existence basically, so they might see you consciously or un-consciously as a threat to their superiority, or what not..it's twisted. So I set out on proving these "Jerk's" were wrong. It's all about "Going above and beyond anything you set out to do" and " Sincere effort". Never worry, when practicing this.. it leaves them all behind..

A great proof I've received was getting to work in an Art School with these Teachers that were Industry Pros. This was revealed to me by going up to Mike Butkus's studio, on the school premises. His work was a who's who in the business and movies. The man was an Art machine, seeing his family, gadgets and stuff. And he showed me Storyboard revision crits from Robert Zumeckis on his work.
So it "Clicked" you can make money, support a family, afford expensive things and have fun with art, it is all totally possible and real. I learned so much from him, a good one was preparation, he would set up his desk project for speed and efficiency. He would tape his pencil sharpener next to his drawing and in an angle in the best place to stab, and get back to drawing, to rock his deadlines.

Armed with this knowledge, now I was determined to be a great Animator. What to do? Simplify your focus, write down 1 or 2 small (too many will not be as effective) goals toward the big goals and make a strict deadline. Ignore those who don't approve on what your doing, a good one I heard was " It's gonna take that long?" well.. that time is going to pass anyway, after that time you will have that knowledge, and the other person is still in the same place just complaining, rotting, useless.

Fill your head with great ideas, projects, list them, and line them up to do. Never allow negative thoughts of naysayers in your mind or they will win. These mindset skills was shared in Bobby Beck's blog .
I thought this was just me, but it happens to a lot of goal achievers. I wanted to give back, to the community, and to help the true.. annoyed by this.

Keep that all or nothing mindset " If your gonna do it, do it right, or don't do it at all" No half-ass work, your just cheating yourself. Trust me it shows, when you don't push yourself, the time you put in especially. Stay strong, motivated and always encourage people to do their best and *keep doing your thing. See what happens when you don't give up.

Here are posts to keep you on point and effective.
-How to deal with Dream Zappers part 1 and part 2
-How to get past "where do I start" *this is really good for goal reaching

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Character Animation Demoreel 2010

2010-03-30T22:27:00.000-07:00

Yahoo! Another wrap on this ticket to the industry. I learned to really polished this one out, and now I'm much relaxed to drop this off and send out to the studios. Wish me luck, the next reel is already shaping up its been roughly storyboarded out. It's gonna be a Smasher..

Hammer Blow #8 of the 100's Challenge

2010-03-30T22:18:00.000-07:00

Woah.. Kinda under estimating these copies I would think I'd be quick but, it kinda took forever. I'm glad though cause, where others give up I persevere. I gave it more acting what I thought he would feel taking a whomp at it. Really tweaked out on it, polishing it nicely. On to more....

Basic Walk # 7 of the 100's Challenge

2010-03-28T10:45:00.000-07:00

From the words of Eric Goldberg " You gotta crack the walk". So in my little Bootcamp 100's Challenge I've set for myself. Ive prepared simple rigs like this and another with no face, to really condition my mechanics. This was really deceptively simple, took a bit to make it look right (I gave it a good push off, straight leg kickout, and an appealing weight with squash and stretch). So this was the end result I was happy with.

p.s It' may look like I'm slow but actually working on my DSI with 2d exercises as well since I have more time in my non art job at the moment. This will be speeding up now, just the preparation is key too.

Learn from the Masters

2010-03-25T19:16:00.000-07:00

Take advantage of "Knowledge from Experience" and don't re-invent the wheel but add to it and use as a jumping off point.
Here is a Priceless clip from the late great Last of the " Nine Old Men" Ollie Johnston sharing his words of wisdom.. You can see and feel the passion he has for this craft it is so invigorating. This is what happens when you tap into that unlimited energy when you find what you love to do, and make a living out of it.

100's Trick Challenge for Talent #6

2010-02-13T17:34:00.000-08:00

This Idea is from Richard Williams as he spoke of the "100's Trick for Talent". So for Fun, Mastery and Greater Understanding. I've set out to copy from books, tutorials, self- exercises.
Not for reel purposes, but when I do start on new reel pieces " watch out".

And as added feature from my Teacher Chris Kirshbaum add story to give it life as well as " Super Polish". Trying to keep the frames to a minimum of 200 or less for effectiveness. I will post as soon as I finish one and on. This is #6 " Faint" From Eric Goldbergs book, this is the gap for punch, overlapping action, with no antic. Have a blast.

Happy 2010

2010-01-23T19:14:00.000-08:00

Wow a great year in the making I have to say. Today a great advise to never forget is " Know when to take breaks" Constant focus on heavy fun on Projects and Ideas require a time to reboot the brain to perform better.

And what would be a cool thing do? , I was so lucky to be invited to a good friends 1st solo show opening. His name is Andrew Hem and I've been following his blog, he has very inspiring posts http://www.idrewhim.blogspot.com/ This is the footage I took for fun to document his moment of glory. And yes That is me congratulating him/ interview.. Enjoy.

Just being out and social really helps with the art/ animation work to " Live " and have these to use to give connection, I think and not living as a social outcast, Makes us stronger mentally and physically.

Pathos

2009-12-25T08:56:00.000-08:00

Definition: That quality or property of anything which touches the feelings or excites emotions and passions.

Ahhhhh, to be moved ( feel ). The goal I always strive for is to strike emotion to the audience and myself with the character I'm animating in the shot, to empathize with the situation. If you can pull this off, It is very rewarding.

This can be achieved with practice, translating simple ones in front of mirror act out sad, mad, happy, etc. Make note, sketch thumbnails, copy poses to 3d and see, push the pose and check if you feel affected by it.
Posture, attitudes, acting it out and coming up with subtle to broad ideas, be on the look out in public on tv for examples too .. Just have a go at it and have fun..

A great example of this in action check out a cool Demoreel, I stumbled upon from " Jennifer Hager" . Some wonderful heartfelt Pencil test form pieces that are in sequences connecting. Indeed very inspiring to strive for, this quality and momentum she has. See for yourself..

Bear in mind, these are only "Line drawings" so why and how does this make you feel this way?
When you forget about the animation itself and believe , that is truly gold..

"Get ahead while others waste time"

2009-09-23T19:52:00.000-07:00

Okay, back to business. Today I'd like to share a clip from a great inspiring artist, Stephen Silver. He is truly an example of a dedicated person that has reached his dreams and still pushing forward. Self -Motivation is definitely the key on any project. I got a couple of questions in, on how to get motivated and another that got answered, thanks Stephen.. Let the work and the man speak for himself..and you be the judge.

His blog as well of rockin work no doubt.- http://stephensilver.blogspot.com/

Inflection

2009-06-27T09:10:00.000-07:00

A good concept for dialogue in animation is " Inflection". The back & forth, forward-side, swivel-swivel, or side to side, Emphasis or comfortable speaking we all do most of the time. The best example for this, of a broad effective type is in "Jim Henson's Muppets". Here is a fantastic skit of this idea in action from the masters, w/ Fozzie (Frank Oz), & Rolf (Jim Henson).
They get in their character so much, that the acting, fun of discovery, it's 2nd nature( done w/o thought) and just looks natural. There is no actual piano there in front of them, yet pretending to hit the keys, in sync as if it was them. Them same applies to them speaking to the very simplified, to just the mouth opening and closing, head tilts to get the point across. Very entertaining.

- Also side note: I was fortunate to see, that all though the muppets franchise has been sold to Disney. The tradition of real puppetry lives on with Hensons actual Troupe still staying strong on stage, doing shows( too bad they cant use Kermit and others) but what I noticed was the skill and quality that definitely shows through. Here is more info http://www.henson.com/alternative.php?content=puppetup

Milt Kahl Tribute

2009-03-29T19:55:00.000-07:00

Found @ Carlos Baena blog, Pretty cool event happening in Los Angeles Area At April 27 , for just $5 bucks for those who dont know he rocks , and worked on these 2 characters to name a few. Also Living legends( not the band) are at attendance, Just to Trip you out.. I wont miss it. Check it.
http://www.oscars.org/events-exhibitions/events/2009/kahl.html

Drama

2009-03-28T22:17:00.000-07:00

Ok, Hello all. Welcome! We are gonna have a blast learning about new and great things. I hope to inspire and be also from others. So for the 1st is a good one on " what not to marry" , Nah just kidding Seriously, watch out for these.

Check out the pauses she gives and tension it creates kinda overacting or serious still entertaining. And the Family reaction, it seems they are in this bubble of religiousness of hell out there, it looks like it too late for the older kids and the youngest one is horrified, not even cool.

The Big lady Hits these Beats in a strange way medium to hard in the middle, I like how she creates an air of horrible Tension a soon as she gets in and involves everybody by playing the Victim but still running the show. And my favorite part is "She Tampered in dark sided stuff" or " She's not a Christianah- hah - "