Like Mambo no.5, only different.
Wednesday, 30 June 2010
Sunday, 27 June 2010
Saturday, 26 June 2010
Annecy Squiggles!
Found these in my sketchbook, from a night at the pub in Annecy!
[clockwise from top left: Gemma, James, me, Adam]
Friday, 25 June 2010
England vs. Slovenia
Thankfully, England won, otherwise I think Adam would have had a brain haemorrhage.
Thursday, 24 June 2010
New stuff!
Ahhh don'tcha just love new stuff? I trundled into town today for a wander, and treated myself to some new markers and pencils! Can't wait to be using them on something other than paper :3
Uni Posca chalk markers
Papermate Chinagraph pencils
Wednesday, 23 June 2010
Les Squiggles
Since hearing Teddy Newton talk about his squiggles, and having watched him draw one, it got me thinking that it's such a simple creative thing to do, just to keep the creative juices flowing. So I challenged myself to do a squiggle a day! Here are my efforts so far!
I kept it up for a week, and then missed a couple days, so I'm now doing one whenever I can (or when I remember). It's great though; they take, like, 10 minutes and are superfun!! Draw a squiggle, ask someone else for two random elements -- an object and something like a character -- (or choose them yourself) and start drawing! They're also fun in groups -- one person draws the squiggle, two other people names two random things, and another person draws it. Do one now. Right now.
I kept it up for a week, and then missed a couple days, so I'm now doing one whenever I can (or when I remember). It's great though; they take, like, 10 minutes and are superfun!! Draw a squiggle, ask someone else for two random elements -- an object and something like a character -- (or choose them yourself) and start drawing! They're also fun in groups -- one person draws the squiggle, two other people names two random things, and another person draws it. Do one now. Right now.
Teddy Newton
Well well well... As I mentioned in the previous post, there were several big names at Annecy this year, one of whom was... Teddy Newton! YAYER.
While at Annecy, he gave a presentation on his new short, Day and Night. The short is brilliant; short and sweet, to be precise. Without giving too much away, it deals with two characters, Day and Night, who encounter each other and explore their differences. Watching it in 3D is awesome too. The short made really good use of depth of field, and the black, thick like velvet, acts like a curtain with a cut out through which to view to different states of Day and Night, putting the situations, the colours and the extra depth centre stage; Teddy described it as "looking through a keyhole" and seeing one world represented in two states simultaneously.
While talking about his concept work for the short, Teddy mentioned how he would draw a squiggle on a page and then make something out of it. The examples he showed us of some of his squiggles were just fantastic; proper little illustrations in themselves, but from very humble beginnnings. Simple, but totally rewarding. This got me thinking.
A little later that week, a friend told me Teddy was signing in the Bonlieu, so I went down and joined the queue. When I got to the front of the line, Teddy was signing Day and Night posters, each with a little Day and Night shaking hands or smiling, or whatever. I also asked him if he wouldn't mind making something from my squiggle I'd drawn while in the queue? His face lit up and he was like, "sure, yeah!" He asked for two different elements, so I said ice cream (there's a lot of that in Annecy) and... a bus driver. Random. And he set about making a little drawing out of this totally random squiggle. It was awesome, just watching him work out where he'd draw the different elements, what kind of a story was forming as he drew, and just his excitement over something so simple, even after having been signing for over an hour! So Teddy, if you're reading this, thank you so much! It's so awesome.
While at Annecy, he gave a presentation on his new short, Day and Night. The short is brilliant; short and sweet, to be precise. Without giving too much away, it deals with two characters, Day and Night, who encounter each other and explore their differences. Watching it in 3D is awesome too. The short made really good use of depth of field, and the black, thick like velvet, acts like a curtain with a cut out through which to view to different states of Day and Night, putting the situations, the colours and the extra depth centre stage; Teddy described it as "looking through a keyhole" and seeing one world represented in two states simultaneously.
While talking about his concept work for the short, Teddy mentioned how he would draw a squiggle on a page and then make something out of it. The examples he showed us of some of his squiggles were just fantastic; proper little illustrations in themselves, but from very humble beginnnings. Simple, but totally rewarding. This got me thinking.
A little later that week, a friend told me Teddy was signing in the Bonlieu, so I went down and joined the queue. When I got to the front of the line, Teddy was signing Day and Night posters, each with a little Day and Night shaking hands or smiling, or whatever. I also asked him if he wouldn't mind making something from my squiggle I'd drawn while in the queue? His face lit up and he was like, "sure, yeah!" He asked for two different elements, so I said ice cream (there's a lot of that in Annecy) and... a bus driver. Random. And he set about making a little drawing out of this totally random squiggle. It was awesome, just watching him work out where he'd draw the different elements, what kind of a story was forming as he drew, and just his excitement over something so simple, even after having been signing for over an hour! So Teddy, if you're reading this, thank you so much! It's so awesome.
"He's trying to balance the ice cream and eat it while driving his bus!"
Friday, 18 June 2010
Annecy Animation Festival
It's been nearly a week since I got back from Annecy's Animation Festival, and, OH MY GOSH, it was awesome!! The hotel we stayed in was great, right in the middle of town and so close to the Bonlieu, where they have the majority of the screenings, and they had some big names there this year. The town itself is gorgeous, so to be watching some pretty superb animation and being surrounded by Annecy's beauty, while hanging out with a bunch of mates... a tough combination to beat!
Trying to decide what we were going to watch each day was a bit of a mission to begin with. It being my first time at Annecy, opening up the agenda and seeing a bajillion films, all of which I wanted to see, was pretty overwhelming. But by the end of the week, after the queuing and the sunshine and the surroundings, the food and the company, you slip into the way of things, and figure that, anything you get to see is one thing more than you would have seen (and you can probably find the stuff on youtube, anyways). You kind of go with the flow, and see where the mood takes you. It's a nice way to go.
Next time I go though, I'd like to spend more time at the Imperial Palace. There were more workshops and presentations over there, whereas the agenda for the Bonlieu was all screenings. While it's good to be watching new things, 'filling the well' as they say, I find listening to people talking more in depth about a project they've worked on, their methods and processes, learning from the pros, is more interesting and beneficial to me than only watching films. When you watch a film, be it long or short, you're only left with the finished article, you don't get to see and explore the path it took to get there.
Also, I'm thinking we need to open a Chez Barnabe over here. One of the best ideas on the planet - a whole shop full of different dishes, and you help yourself, and pay for the tub you fill up, then go sit out in le parc, next to le lac d'annecy, with some friends, and eat and chat and laugh til dusk. Followed by a screening of a feature film on the massive screen (also in the park). Nice.
Over the next few days, I'll post up some of my notes and photos, and the doodles I got from a few pros while we were there. Ahhh yeeeahh.
When's the next one???
Trying to decide what we were going to watch each day was a bit of a mission to begin with. It being my first time at Annecy, opening up the agenda and seeing a bajillion films, all of which I wanted to see, was pretty overwhelming. But by the end of the week, after the queuing and the sunshine and the surroundings, the food and the company, you slip into the way of things, and figure that, anything you get to see is one thing more than you would have seen (and you can probably find the stuff on youtube, anyways). You kind of go with the flow, and see where the mood takes you. It's a nice way to go.
Next time I go though, I'd like to spend more time at the Imperial Palace. There were more workshops and presentations over there, whereas the agenda for the Bonlieu was all screenings. While it's good to be watching new things, 'filling the well' as they say, I find listening to people talking more in depth about a project they've worked on, their methods and processes, learning from the pros, is more interesting and beneficial to me than only watching films. When you watch a film, be it long or short, you're only left with the finished article, you don't get to see and explore the path it took to get there.
Also, I'm thinking we need to open a Chez Barnabe over here. One of the best ideas on the planet - a whole shop full of different dishes, and you help yourself, and pay for the tub you fill up, then go sit out in le parc, next to le lac d'annecy, with some friends, and eat and chat and laugh til dusk. Followed by a screening of a feature film on the massive screen (also in the park). Nice.Over the next few days, I'll post up some of my notes and photos, and the doodles I got from a few pros while we were there. Ahhh yeeeahh.
When's the next one???
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