Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
Monthly Archive for September, 2010
That was quick! Only six months ago I was a storyboard artist on this fun project.
Kelly Asbury (dir), Baker Bloodworth (prod), Stewart Kojima, Amanda McNiece, Sam Banack (co-ordinators), David Stoten, Johnny Rice, Patrick Collins, Dean Roberts, Nelson Yokota, Gary Dunn, Ricardo Curtis, Scott Santoro, Lyndon Ruddy, Charlie Bonifacio (story crew), Catherine Apple, Maurissa Horwitz (editing queens), Pam Coats (studio rep), and everyone else at Starz Animation (there’s hundreds of lovely people there) were GREAT to work with over the 9 months or so they let me jam with them. It was a fantastic experience overall, in spite of the crunches, etc. that are just part of the job.
Hope it does well – as always, there was a lot of hard work and relocation from family just to give normal folks a good time for an hour and a half.
iTunes portal is here.
(A little more about it in this old post)
Dug up some old baddies from a Comic Code-friendly comic book I’m writing about a superhero who has greatness thrust upon him. Set in Toronto. Added them to the ‘COMICS’ gallery, but thought I’d show ‘em here so you can find ‘em easy!
This was from a story jam smook, Quane and I were doing, and I forgot the password to the super secret blog because it’s been ages. But I found this:
I think he sneaks out of the bathroom while she gets ready…and there’s a pesky cat, or something. Anyone remember?
The grand opening of Collingwood’s Tremont Hotel is today – I got in earlier than the other artists as usual (9:00 am – ha) and took some pics. I’ve got to work full days and they don’t – lucky bums.
Anyways, the hotel’s a huge reno job! More about the history of it here: The Tremont Hotel
Other tenants of this awesome place you can find listed HERE.
I was lucky enough to secure a spot to draw cartoons in! Here’s the tour – more pics to follow when it’s crawling with people later today…Actually, you should just check out this gallery for the opening pics. I was caught under a deadline and couldn’t really wander around too much! -> mycollingwood.ca gallery
Lately, I’ve been getting asked about how to go about getting live-action work. I’ve only done a few things, so I won’t be of much help other than to say to be sociable and find production companies and send them your samples. Then cross your fingers!
I do.
Also, there’s advice on it from people who’d know out there – other board artists. Google it. Don’t mean to sound harsh, it’s just what I did.
I’ve never gone to film school and I’m always trying to backfill my film studies – books, DVD extras, DVD sets of how-to’s, talking to PAs who often have live-action set experience.
Editors – live action or animation ones – are an ENORMOUS wealth of insight to any storyboard artist. Make friends with them! Ask them about how your stuff is cutting and how to improve it. If you’re a freelancer, do what it takes to find out who your editor is, offer to buy them lunch and ask some questions. That’s my advice! It works for me.
If nothing else, try sketching out some sequences from movies that pertain to your assignment to deconstruct them. I find sketching movies from different eras reveal a different understanding of style and visual language. Figure out which approach gets what your director’s looking for and which won’t break your wrist.
A ‘Guy Ritchie’ approach (which is actually a ‘James Herbert’ approach – that’s his head editor) is brutal if you have to DRAW every panel, but knuckle down and do it to see how it’s set up. I am! It’s amazingly straight-forward when you realize how things are shot. A lot of it’s three-camera stuff. I never imagined that because the pacing is deceptive.
The main thing is to try to figure out is – WHY that shot now and not later, or earlier.
It all comes back to what the story is doing right then, what’s important in that moment, and how it contributes to the overall story.
So, I don’t know if that’s good advice or not for breaking into live action, but that seems to be helping me. I think the main thing is to be getting your stuff out there and making sure that you’re easy to find.
Good luck out there!
Here’s something I found stashed on the hard drive. An assignment from Joe Kubert’s school. I’m thinking that might be either Joe or Andy’s work on the corrections. Man, those guys really KNOW what they’re doing! Such an honour.
Oh, and here’s a rough I bought from Andy Kubert himself at the Toronto FanExpo this year. (I’m all about the process – I don’t really read comics anymore for some reason) Isn’t it awesome?
Easy situation setup first panel, who dominates the situation second panel, some great composition statements that support the story in the third one, who dominates again in the fourth one, and you want to turn the page to see what happens after seeing the madman with the gun. He’s obviously about to do something horrible, plus it puts you in Batman’s shoes using a subjective POV. ‘What would YOU do?’ it seems to ask. To find out, you gotta turn the page.
Love it!
