Winter Break

I just realized I haven't updated in a week or two. Sorry! Considering how stressed I was at midterms, this quarter actually turned out much better than I was expecting. I still don't have much to post here since my final things are all back on my PC. I'm back in Texas for the break and to be honest, it's been really lazy lately the past two weeks. I'm really hoping to pick it up in a few weeks, and hammer out a decent storyboard portfolio before I get back. I have been working on writing a short adventure time comic. Originally it was supposed to be a single image, but then I kind of got a wild hair and tried to make it a more cinematic single page comic. I got lazy and only posted the color keys, but they kind of work and I might try and finish it.

Stuff Stuff Stuff

finals week! will upload stuff as I finish them~

norris

So I peeked in Norris the other day. The sequential arts kids are mad talented!! Here's some stuff that was tacked on one of the walls in a drawing classroom. It's probably the prof's stuff, but still really cool. There were pages of comics hanging up throughout the building and it was all really really impressive.

Also, on the way back to my car, I noticed some Asian writing on the side of the library. neat

Five more classes in the quarter. I feel like I've learned a lot of things, but mostly I'm grateful because SCAD has kind of snapped me out of this weird funk I've been in since graduating. It's been kinda lonely being out here by myself, but I've been thinking really hard about future junk and doing some really heavy self-examination. Gotta keep drawing~

25 poses

We had to do 25 poses with a model of our choosing in rigging class, so I chose Malcom from Animschool. It was a pretty fun assignment! The model was a little buggy surprisingly... I had to smooth out the eyes because they were so low poly, they'd stick out the skin. This made the pupils change color in some of them for who knows why. Here's a couple that I still have lying on my desktop. I tried to put in a bit of what I learned from my Pixar class, but it's kinda hard to do that and keep to the pose at the same time sometimes

Oh yes, I went and visited Norris Hall the other day, the Sequential Art building. I'll post about that later tonight I think

Coo Coo

Just some WIPs of my coocoo clock i'm building in Modelling class.

It's kind of based off my dad a little bit. Everybody else seemed to be doing something serene like Japanese water garden clocks, but I thought a blue collar/power plant clock would be cool.

commission

Another commission, for a Deviantart member this time. Saving up to get an adventure time wallet i want.

Berp

So next semester it seems like I will be taking a storyboarding class and an animation performance class. I wanted to get into drawing in motion with a friend but that class filled up quick. Hopefully we can still eat lunch together.

Not a whole lot has happened since my last post. Got my rig done though it's still pretty buggy, and I'm working on modelling a coocoo clock for modelling class. My short film is coming along well too, though i cant really figure out how to end it. Here's a color ref for one of my main characters.

Quarter's end keeps getting closer and closer!

RIGGINGG

almost... done... oh wait i still have to do blend shapes

scadanimate!

Oop, I missed last week's update! Not much new actually happened, but I did ride the SCAD bus for the first time. It was a really neat experience. I don't really get to ride around much because I brought my car, but it was fun to visit all the little stops to and from Monty Hall. First class, awww yissss

I also bought this weird soda that I've been seeing adverts for all over town called Cheerwine. The cashier at walmart told me that she used to drink it as a little girl, so it must have been around for awhile. It's not in every store around here, but I kinda wish it was because it taste like coke mixed with a cherry Icee. 

 So last Thursday was the first meeting of the Contemporary Animation Society (animation club basically, one of the oldest clubs on campus). There was about 30-40 of us there for a screening of Pirates! A Band of Misfits! It was a great movie and everyone seems really friendly. They are gonna do some cool stuff this year like a 24hr animation night, movie nights, and they have THIS GAL doing a really awesome character design workshop! I'm really excited to go to the upcoming meetings. I still have to find the Siggraph chapter though, they are highly elusive!

Ok so fast forward to this week. I missed classes on Thursday because I was feeling ill, but I did manage to attend a Disney Internship thing and the SCADanimate show on Saturday.  The Disney meeting was basically the same college program thing they do at every school about working in the parks. It wasn't exactly the internship meeting I was hoping for, but it was still worth listening to for future reference.

The SCADanimate show was really great though! They showed about 15-20 of their best films from the past year, and I sat right up front. The shorts were all really wonderfully done, and I hope I can get into this show in the future.

Back to my studies though. I'm thinking about getting a tutor for rigging. some of the little important details keep slipping my mind and making the process absolutely impossible. 

More Commissions

Two more commissions today. I think it's more interesting to work on two commissions at the same time. It kinda mixes it up a little bit.

09.15.12

Went into town today! I really wanted to check out the Library now that I have my ID. It's cool because the library is right on the big shopping street downtown, so I also got to check out some of the stores in the area.  

 I really loved all the comic books there. I didn't get a chance to check out the special Don Bluth collection, but the 3rd floor had a lot of cool architecture projects on the shelves. I know I'll be back once I finish up a few books I still have to read at home. :)

A co-worker told me about a store that I had to check out called Planet Fun, and I was greeted by this Nintendo Power Glove in the window when I walked past. Really cool store! It had pretty much every nerdy thing from the 80s to present day, including: digimon figures, x-files figures, old games, piles of pokemon cards (and yugioh cards), etc. Definitely the most interesting store I've found so far! I REALLY WANT TO GET THOSE X FILES FIGURES WHEN I HAVE SOME SPARE CASH

Ok so I stopped and had lunch at Panera Bread (I really wanted to eat somewhere unique, but like I said, I'm short on cash) and afterwards I found an art supply store that was going out of business. I stopped by and found some canvases that were going for really cheap, so I bought one. It's about 3' x 5'. Originally I wanted to get a 6x6 but decided against it because it wouldn't fit in my car. It was eating me up inside, so I went back to get it, and wouldn't you know the damn thing had already been sold! Oh well, at least this one is already primed and ready to go. :) Might post progress pictures for this beast as I work on it.

I mentioned earlier that I've been working, and here is an image of the chalkboard up front at Utrecht Art Supplies, my place of employment. My co-workers drew this!! It feels so cool to finally be surrounded by so many talented artists both here and at school. Suddenly everyone is on the same page as I am, they've read the same books that I have and are into the same artists and blogs that I am, and it feels like I'm not the only one who's really serious about this any more. It's a really great feeling, that I now have to work even harder to keep up with everyone.


I'll probably post some art stuff later this week.

Week 1 Semester 1!

First week of classes at SCAD! Here's a picture of Montgomery Hall~

I'm really loving classes. And Savannah. And work. First off, classes are great. I'm taking 3 this semester: Rigging, Modelling, and Animation Aesthetics. Even though rigging was my only 'remedial' course, I'm incredibly glad it was given to me. The Professor (Inamdar) is really fantastic and makes rigging really easy to understand. Modelling I'm still getting a feel for. The prof seems nice but when coming up with ideas for the first project, I couldn't really figure out what he really wanted. Ani Aesthetics is a lot of fun and seems more laid back. Got my first scad animation project: a short 1minute film involving a priest, a flatterer, footwear, and a bridge. I've already gotten a few ideas~

This upcoming week, now that I don't have to work every night, I'm hoping to check out some of the student clubs! I want to join at least 1 social club, but I'd like to maybe join one or two drawing/creative clubs too.

So I've moved to Savannah, and classes begin this week! Graduate orientation in Monty Hall is tomorrow morning.

have some art! commissions:

Starkid!

Hi all! Just FYI, some of my art is gonna be featured in http://www.theweeklystarkid.com/ this tuesday!

More art coming soon~

Summer Reading

After meeting with Richard Horvitz a few weeks ago, I've been thinking about pitching an animated tv show after graduating SCAD. Some really great shows (like The Powerpuff Girls) came from the director's student films, and since I'm going to be doing an animated thesis at SCAD, it would be prudent to maybe put together something I could use in a pitch. I think the actual completion rate of thesis films at SCAD is low, but I'm going to be sure to finish mine. If I can't be a Calarts student, then by God, I'm still going to work as hard as one.

At any rate, I'm taking advantage of my summer free time to read some books I really wanted to, and get them out of the way before I go back to school and am really busy again.

Animation Development
Directing Animation
Animator's Survival Kit (haven't read the expanded edition)
Film Directing Shot by Shot
My Life in Toons
Looking for Calvin and Hobbes (this one for fun)

Accepted

pose of the day

i want to start doing more daily poses in maya. this model isn't very flexible though, haha.

School Stuff

I had a great email exchange with Jocelyn Cofer about SCAD and Animation Mentor, since she did both at the same time. She says SCAD is great for 2d animation and getting the MFA for teaching, but AM is better for 3d animation. Frankly, I'm all for AM at first glance, but I am getting so stir crazy here. I just don't know if just taking AM and improving my reel is enough to get me into the business, and I don't want to waste any more time fiddling around here.

Since AM is -somewhat- accredited as a secondary education school, I'm actually going to see if I can substitute Mentor class credits for my SCAD animation electives. It probably won't work, but we'll see what they say if I ever get in. I figure I can put my 3d efforts into AM classes, and (if the electives thing doesn't work) I can focus more on 2d animation and the technical side of things. Maybe take a few killer life drawing classes.

If I don't get into SCAD, I'll move south, closer to Houston, get another job and do Mentor and that will be the end of it. ... maybe. We'll have to see.

Anyway, I'm just really feeling the wait and anticipation here. I'm going to work really hard on my 3d stuff and send out another batch of reels around the first of June regardless of what happens with schools.

Spring/Winter 2012 Art Dump