Animation Mentor and Denmark Announcement

I have to say that Animation Mentor has turned out to be a lot better then I expected. And I was expecting it to be really good. The variety of students and their work is inspiring. There's a bunch of stop motion students, some traditional sstudents as the computer students. I really like the way the classes focus on the basics. I look forward to logging in each day.

Also teaching has given me such a buzz. I've made a few comments to students work. And to my surprise it actually made the students work look better!

Also, unrelated to Animation Mentor, I was invited to teach a class on lipsink at: The Animation Workshop at the University College of Western Denmark. So it looks like I'll be going to Viborg, Denmark in May. I'll post some of my lipsink notes here as soon. Hopefully I'll be able to post some video examples. I'll also be posting pictures of my class and the whole Denmark trip. I'm looking forward to it. To find out more about the school go here:

www.animwork.dk

25 Greatest Moments in Sesame Street

This is a bit of fun. I'm a huge muppets fan. I think Jim Henson and his crew were some of the greatest character designers ever. Here's a website that lists 25 of the greatest moments in Sesame Street. I have to say I agree with most of this list. Near-Far still cracks me up. And I re-enact the yep-yep-yep-nope-nope-nope scene with my daughter all the time. Check it out for a bit of fun:

http://www.progressiveboink.com/archive/sesamestreet.html

5 Stages of Learning Software

I know, I know, for someone who says that software doesn't matter I sure seem to bring up the topic of software a lot. But this has been rattling around in my brain and I thought I should let it out.

Sense coming to Sony I've had to learn Sony's new software. They use Maya here at Sony. I've used Maya in the past, but I haven't used it in a long time, so it's almost completely new to me. Most of my career has been on Proprietary software. And as I've said in the past proprietary software can be very, very, very different then other software. You'd be surprised. So Maya, with all of it's user friendly interface, and buttons, handles, etc, seems really foreign to me.

This is something I've noticed that happens with myself and other people I've worked with. There are five stages to learning new software:

1. Denial "The software can't work like this, this is not happening"
2. Anger "How dare they use software , I've used much better stuff"
3. Bargaining "Maybe I can convince them to switch, or change what they have. Once they see my way, they'll have to change"
4. Depression "I can't believe I'm going to have to use this crap"
5. Acceptance "I don't want to struggle any more. I guess I can use this."

Some of you might recognize this list from the 1969 book by Elizabeth Kubler-Ross called On Death and Dying. I have to say it's all true:)

Inspiring Artwork from Ben Balistreri and Stephen Silver

Wow, if you're looking for some inspiring animation art work then you should run over to Ben Balistreri and Stephen Silver's websites. They're a couple of amazing character designers. I'll let the artwork peek for itself:

http://www.saltysugar.com/

http://www.silvertoons.com/silvertoons/default.asp

(Thanks to the Wubblog)

Escrow

I'm finally in Escrow. It's amazing how much the process of finding a new home can sucks the life out of you. Another thing I learned by moving back to Los Angles. There are three things you do not bring up in polite conversation while in Los Angeles:

1. Religion
2. Politics
3. Housing

The market here is so tight, even for renters, that everyone has an opinion and everyone is passionate about their opinion! But I think I can finally put that behind me and go back to focusing on animation and my family.

Sony:

Everyone has been asking me about Sony. I have to say I'm very impressed with the arrangement here. They're really dedicated to doing great animation, so far they seem to be doing everything right. The film I'm working on, Open Season, looks like it'll be a lot of fun. It looks like it'll be genuinely good and funny. I can't say much about it other then it looks great, and I'm very lucky to be a part of it. I can't wait to show it to you.

Development Work

widgetdevelop
Originally uploaded by ejhdigdug.

There are a lot of animation studios don't like show their development work. They'd like the general public (or is it the stock holders) to believe that their creations springs fully formed from their brow. It's alwayse refreshing when someone is open enough to show how a design can evolve. The Wubblog has a great post showing how a character design can evolve. I love simple characters like these. Every tilt of the line can add great life to a character. Check it out:

http://wubby.typepad.com/wubby/2005/03/evolution_of_a__1.html

AnimationMentor

AnimationMentor
Originally uploaded by ejhdigdug.

The classes at Animation Mentor start today. I can't wait to see how this thing turns out. I've read over the course notes and I have to say they've really put together a great school. It's really well thought out. I don't know if I could have done better myself!