Aug
20
2005
Make sure to stop over and visit my production log (or is it a blog 
) for my fantasy comic book, Beyond the Great Chimney. It’s over in the COMICS section.
I will update the log at least once a week with news on the progress of the next issue of Beyond the Great Chimney.
Don’t forget you can leave a comment on either the blog (here) or the log (there).
Aug
20
2005
Today I went with my firend Dar to the Oakland Zoo. It was her birthday and we went to draw animals.
Here are some photos I took.
And here are the sketches I did:
Aug
17
2005
Storybookers.com is a site that features homes from the 1920′s done in a whimsical fairytale style.
The websites author, John Robert Marlow writes:
…storybook architecture?” Can anything so varied in its manifestations really be defined at all? It seems a precise definition may not be possible, or even desirable—for, as Arrol Gellner wrote in Storybook Style: America’s Whimsical Homes of the Twenties, “attempting to classify them as such based upon this detail or that misses their real essence, which owes more to inventiveness than authenticity.”Nevertheless, a general definition is possible, and several subtype definitions will be proposed and used throughout this site. In this instance at least, a picture is indeed worth a thousand words—and the best way to define storybook style is with photographs and drawings. Since no one here can draw very well, we’ll use photos…
And the author is right, the style in all its variants can only truly be defined by an image. If you are a fan or architecture, of fantasy, or just like history, check out these houses that broke a mold on what a home could be.
Aug
16
2005
Yesterday (9-18-05) I sat down to do a smaller version of 24 Comic Book Day. I didn’t finish, but I got some good work done.
The challenge was to create the art for six page comic story is six hours. Plus I had the goal of experimenting with different materials as well as page sizes for the next issue of BTGC #3. Sadly I got into the process of experimenting and did not finish, but I did get some first had experience with using a brush. One of my favorite drawings is below.
The main result for me was to explore new size and medium variations for my next comic. It should be a manageable size for transport and scanning, but still does not hide the human imperfections that is the hallmark of the watercolor medium.
Another effect I am working on is painting over the blue lines first then inking on top for a looser effect.
The results of this experiment can be seen on www.atomicbearpress.com on next Monday.
Aug
13
2005
I promised myself that I would get started on the final art for issue #3 this weekend, so I did some design work and planning to try to solve some of the problems that might arises.
The first panel will show a great party, including Ducelot’s adopted family and many , many fantasy characters. I am hoping to also have some cameos of family and friends included. Though getting a good likeness is hard for me, and I am not making any promises. Here are some sketches of some of the guests at the party.
Location is also important. It helps tell the story. I am considering doing the opening seen in Ducelot’s sisters “room”. Here are some designs. Note the collections of ceramic pots on the shelf’s, they are just one small detail to the whole story. For those who own issue #1 (buy it today if you do not), there are a few clues that are connected to these ceramic pieces. Any guesses?
Here is some thumbnails of the first 3 pages. My goal was to show the story mostly from Agacon’s point of view, but to also convey Ducelot’s relationship with his adoptive family. The scene is also going to have very dramatic use of dark areas in the final art.
Aug
12
2005
Empress Chung is a new animated feature that was a South and North Korean co-production. This news comes way of Animated-News.com.
From an article at the english version of Digial Chosunilbo:
After eight years of collaboration, the two Koreas will finally screen their first jointly made film later this week. The animated version of one of Korea’s favorite traditional folk tales will be shown at a number of venues across the peninsula.The story is about “Empress Chung,” who dedicates her life to restoring her blind father’s eyesight, an example of a daughter’s traditional duty toward her parents.
…
South and North Korea have been working together for eight years on the cartoon. North Korean animators created the sketches and drawings for the film, with the rest of the production work done in Seoul. It’s the first piece of animated film made in cooperation between the two sides.
The official site has an english version, so maybe we can hope to see an english version of the movie as well.
Isn’t the internet great, we can find out about all these exciting animation projects from around the world.
Aug
11
2005
The Road Less Traveled is a wonderful new blog with a cornucopia of information that you didn’t know you needed to know. The author has brought together a quiet package of interesting links to just about anything you can think of.
Some of the current musings include: Baby Names, Gardening, and Tricks for MS Word.
I recommend a visit today.
Aug
10
2005
There has been a lot of discussion on-line about master Disney animator Glen Keane moving from 2D (cel) animation to 3D CGI animation. To find out more, check out this article at Jim Hill Media.
Back in the 1980′s, Mr. Keane did an early test of 2D animation on top of 3D backgrounds for a purposed short of “Where the Wild Things are” based on the beloved childrens book by Maurice Sendak. Here are some images from that test that appeared on a TV special about Disney Animaiton.
all images in this post are ©Disney
