PENCIL LINES

AN EVENING WITH THE SEATTLE FLASH USER GROUP

2010-02-24T15:33:00Z

I seem to be talking a lot lately! I much prefer to draw and animate but somehow life seems intent on dragging me to the podium to share my love and passion for the kind of animation that many would suggest is a bygone art - traditional, hand-drawn animation.

However, I don't see it that way at all. I believe that traditional animation (2D) has barely begun to scratch the surface of where it can go and we therefore need to now move ever forward in bringing its inherently unrealized potential into existence. When I sat at the Boeing IMAX Theater recently and saw 'Avatar' through 3D glasses (becoming mesmerized in the process incidentally) it became immediately apparent to me that we (i.e. the traditional animators of this world) have totally dropped the ball. In the wake of Michael Eisner presiding over our alleged 'death' we have stood back and allowed technology to dictate the terms of what constitutes animated entertainment. It is therefore time we work towards our own 'Avatar moment' with audiences once again. I think Walt took traditional animation close to its potential with 'Fantasia' but now it needs to go even further.

It was a great honor for me to be able to share my thoughts and my work with the members of the Seattle Flash User Group last night.

Although I'm an admirer of all the very best work that constitutes 'cartoon films' and I am an equally vehement believer that its time to move traditional animation (specifically theatrically-targeted traditional animation) forward into other areas that must now be newly explored and discovered. It will take time and it will take a huge amount of personal commitment and sacrifice. (Not to mention a fair amount of money!) But I do believe it can happen and I do believe it has to happen - that is, if this great artform we are currently trustees of is to survive and move on. I especially hope that through the auspices of the Animaticus Foundation and its ambitious initiative - Atelier Acedemy Studio - we can begin to made this difference in the animation world once more.

Anyway, thank you Keith Johnson for inviting me to speak to your group again. I know that your tireless dedication and devotion to what the group does and stands for is probably less heralded than it should be. So let me offer a big 'thank you' from me (on behalf of the many members of the group that were present and online during last night's presentation). It was a great pleasure to have a platform to once more show my work and share my thoughts with you all. I wish you well with all your other activities in the future!

Tony. :^{)}=-

THANK YOU SAUL BASS!

2010-02-24T14:41:00Z

The great designer Saul Bass has always been one of my idols. Way back when I was at art school I drooled over the fabulous movie titles he created, among other things. I even met him in person many years later! At that time I was asked to present my work during a media event in Scandinavia and, low and behold, Saul Bass just happened to be in the speaker line-up too! As we talked after his lecture he began to share with me his always forthright (yet entirely pertinent) thoughts about life, the industry and the universe. Needless to say, this was a very profound and memorable moment in my life.

It was therefore a great bonus to my presenting at the Sattle Flash Users Group in Freemont last night that I was sent this fabulous YouTube link by the extremely thoughtful Brad Tollefson. Brad seemed to sense kindred spirits at work here so I duly pass this clip forward to everyone. It reminded me so much of the earlier conversation when I hear Saul saying that it reflects in the heart (and even the bank balance) of all true artists that the great gesture is made. He is talking about those of us who seem to care more about the work they do than the remuneration they receive for doing it.

Anyway, 'thank you' Brad. It makes the world a much more reassuring place when you know that others out there feel the same way about their art as you do!

Tony. :^{)}=-

THANKS TO EVERETT!

2010-02-09T06:04:00Z

Answering a number of questions after the event.

My thanks go out to the folks of Everett Library who made Saturday's presentation event so enjoyable. I have a great affection for the Auditorium there as we used it a number of years before for the Henry Cogswell College senior graduation show with great success.

Aspects of my previous work, the work of DigiPen students and my plans for the future through the Animaticus Foundation seemed to be very well received and (as can be seen by these pictures, kindly shot and donated by Ken Rowe) a good number of the audience stayed on to ask numerous questions and share their support. I will be offering the same presentation to the Seattle Flash Users Group in the near future so I'm hoping that it goes as well as this one did.

Thanks also to all the folks who showed up despite the incredibly sunny, spring-like weather, showing their appreciation for my love of the great art of traditional animation! Thank you too for helping us raise some welcome contributions to our "The Adventures of Uncle Lubin" production fund!

And even more questions... that were of course more than welcome!

Tony. :^{)}=-

THANK YOU ANIMATION MAGAZINE!

2010-01-27T19:23:00Z

Just saw that my new book, "How To Make Animated Films" was listed as one of the "Ten Essential Books for Animation Students and Fans" in the February 2010 edition of "Animation Magazine". If feels good to be rated up there with some of the great classic books that we all know and love, such as "The Animator's Survival Kit", "Illusion of Life" and "Timing For Animation"!

Thank you Animation Magazine!

And if you're tempted to buy it on Amazon, please click HERE.

Tony :^{)}=-

FROM AN ONLINE STORE NEAR YOU!

2010-01-18T00:57:00Z

A 'new & improved' DVD release of "Endangered Species" is now available online! This DVD presentation by Animaticus Foundation also includes the British Academy Award-winning "Hokusai ~ An Animated Sketchbook" as well as an archive collection of favorite animated TV Commercials (many of them award-winners).

All proceeds from this release will be donated to the Animaticus Foundation's first feature film development, "The Adventures of Uncle Lubin". The planned 1-minute teaser will hopefully lead to a fully-funded movie production, together with an 'atelier' style apprenticeship opportunity for talented young post-graduate students who will be able to work side-by-side with incredible, seasoned animation professionals.

So if you want to support us with this much needed initiative please purchase "Endangered Species" online at Amazon. (Although if you're at the Everett Public Library presentation on February 6th you'll get it signed with a 40% discount!)

Tony :^{)}=-

FUN EVENING!

2010-01-16T17:01:00Z

Spent a great evening at the Redmond Arts Festival last night! As part of a panel consisting of ex-Disney artist, Dan Daly, and DigiPen COO, Raymond Yan, we discussed the past, present and future of animation ("Animation Through the Ages") with the 100-plus audience. Showing clips of our work, our student's work and highlights from December's "2D OR NOT 2D Animation Festival" the enthusiasm for this intro event augers well for the rest of this weekend's Redmond City Hall activities. Check out the art of Microsoft and go backstage at Gas Powered Games today, as well as see other great goodies. Also, hands-on activiites are available at the DigiPen Arts Campus and Digital Double mo-cap studio! Well worth a visit!

Tony :^{)}=-

SYMPHONY OF SCIENCE

2010-01-09T08:11:00Z

I just have to share this wonderfully inspired piece with everyone. Further commentary is not necessary, except to say that there are others songs at symphonyofscience.com on YouTube if you want to check it out.

Tony :^{)}=-

PUBLIC APPEARANCES

2010-01-09T00:34:00Z

The poster created by the Everett Library to promote the event.

Just a heads-up that I've agreed to do a special presentation at the Everett Public Library on Saturday, February 6th (as well as appear on a discussion panel at the Redmond Arts festival on Friday, January 15th.)

I've always had an affection for Everett, WA since I was offered my first formal teaching position in the USA at the Henry Cogswell College after receiving my Work Permit and Green Card in 2001. I therefore was very eager to come to the Everett library and show my work while talking about the present and future possibilities for animation (especially traditional, hand-drawn animation) in the future.

Looking forward to meeting you there!

Tony :^{)}=-

GOLDEN OLDIES!

2010-01-07T18:05:00Z

While clearing through some of my old storage files recently I came across this promotional binder cover for the first TV Drama Series I ever directed for British television. "The Ink Thief" was an in-house developed project at my Animus studio in London. The 7 x 26-minute series starred Richard O'Brien ("Rocky Horror Show") and a host of animated characters.

The series was very much a low-budget, no-time effort but it was successful on British Television, making No. 5 in the ratings and getting an honorable mention at the "New York Film & Television Festival" (competing against such series and "Quantum Leap" and "X-Files" - shows having ten-times the budget we had!)

I don't for one moment believe we ever really captured the full potential of this dark but fun-filled concept (simply because of our very limited budget and schedule) but I could see it being a major cult movie classic if it were developed for a star of Johnny Depp's status for example!

Anyway, here's a glimpse of the back cover too...

Other goodies I found while rummaging were very much related to a previous incarnation of my current 'Uncle Lubin' project development. (www.unclelubin.com) For example, here's a sample of a promotional leaflet for the project, when it was in a previous, very-different incarnation, entitled "Screwloose"...

And here's a beautiful earlier design of the main hero in the story, Uncle Lubin, gorgeously crafted by British designer, Alan Kerswell...

I loved Alan's design but felt it was a little too haughty for Lubin... and probably had a little too much pencil mileage for us poor animators to handle!

It was great finding all this memorabilia after so many years!

Tony :^{)}=-

IMPROVING STARBUCKS!

2009-12-31T20:40:00Z

Like most everyone else I know in the Seattle area I am so depressed by the increasingly 'corporate' looks of Starbucks! So I tried to do my bit to make the look of my local Starbucks watering hole a little more fun. I therefore created a monthly framed poster that the sympathetic baristas used to happily display on the wall for me. This succeeded very well for a few months until they were told to take down posters (to make space for the new digital screen that effectively does nothing for the community than sell more product!) One of the central themes to my poster campaigns were my "HAS-BEANS" cartoons... representing the coffee beans that Starbucks have rejected. Here's an example of a topical one I did at the time...

I've since submitted my ideas more formally to the www.mystarbucksidea.com website (entitled 'FUN COFFEE-RELATED CARTOONS ON THE WALLS' in the "ATMOSPHERE & LOCATIONS" section) in the hope that it might be more widely adopted. The "HAS-BEANS" cartoons were particularly popular among the locals, so perhaps if you have a mind for voting for my idea it might spread the word much further. Of course it probably won't get anywhere at all but it might at least provoke the corporate-minded Starbucks folks to think outside the box and make the Starbucks drinking experience more fun and not just a method of customer merchandizing!

Here's another poster I produced, hand-drawn with hundreds of beans making up the image.

(A free coffee for anyone who can say just how many?)

Tony :^{)}=-

OVERLAPPING ACTION

2009-12-28T22:59:00Z

When at the Vancouver aquarium over this Christmas break I was suddenly aware of the incredible demonstration of 'overlapping action' ('follow-through' animation) that the jellyfish were demonstrating. I therefore decided to film a couple of them so I could share it with anyone who is interested.

Tony. :^:{)}=-

FOR ROY!

2009-12-18T02:45:00Z

'Scene 01' layout ~ teaser for "The Adventures of Uncle Lubin".

I feel sad that I'll now never be able to show Roy E. Disney the film I had once discussed with him. However, in actually creating the inked layout for 'Scene 01' of the teaser currently in development, on the day he passed from us, I feel it appropriate to dedicate it to his memory. It is such a small gesture in the greater scheme of things but I like to think that with this first layout, we are initiating a process that will lead to the creation of a film that honors the very best of traditional, hand-drawn animation... something Roy spent his whole life fighting for at his beloved Burbank studio. In starting as we mean to go on I hope the entire film will live up to the love and artisty I intend to put into this scene in Roy's memory.

Tony. :^{)}=-

TODAY'S SAD NEWS...

2009-12-17T00:06:00Z

I just heard the sad news that Roy E. Disney passed away today! He had long ago told me that he was ill but I had not been aware just how serious his condition had been.

Roy was a fabulous friend of the "2D OR NOT 2D Animation Festival". He was our guest of honor at the inaugural event and even gave his name to the annual award that the festival gives to the person or organization that we feel has made a great contribution to animation.

Myself, Roy and Nancy Beiman in happier times at the first ever "2D OR NOT 2D Animation Festival".

He also generously recorded the voice of his uncle Walt for my short animated film homage to the history of traditional animation, "Endangered Species".

As a complete surprise to him at the time, Roy was actually destined to become the first ever recipient of the "Roy E. Disney Award"... presented to him for his victory in ousting Michael Eisner as head of the Disney organization!

Subsequent winners of the Roy E. Disney Award were producer Don Hahn...

Don Hahn at the next "2D OR NOT 2D Animation Festival".

...award-winning director, animator and author Richard Williams...

Richard Williams with his "Roy E. Disney Award" a year ago.

...and new studio on the block, "Cartoon Saloon" (for their magnificent film "Secret of Kells" film).

This year's winners, Tomm Moore and Ross Stewart on behalf of the Cartoon Saloon studio.

We think Roy would have been proud to know that this year's award was an investment in the future (as well as the present) talents of one of the most innovative animation teams around. (Hopefully Roy will approve of our future award-winners too!)

Roy at our first festival, with uncle Walt looking down approvingly!

So rest in peace Roy. I'm sure your dad Roy Snr. and your uncle Walt were there to welcome you and to celebrate your lifetime of great works on behalf of the family name.

For my part I will miss you greatly. You were a light in the lives of so many others and true gentleman of the highest order!

Tony. :^{(}=-

FESTIVAL AFTERMATH

2009-12-12T19:48:00Z

Sorry for the prolonged absence over the past month at this end!

The main culprit is the fact that I've been heavily involved in this year's "2D OR NOT 2D Animation Festival" which occurred last weekend in Seattle. Needless to say, the whole event was a huge success, the climax of which was the screening of the animated masterwork, "Secret of Kells". Director Tomm Moore and art director Ross Stewart were there to introduce the film and to answer questions and answers after the film's long standing ovation at the very end. They were also presented with the "Roy E. Disney Award" for their exceptional contribution to animation. The film will enjoy its US distribution debut on St. Patrick's Day, 2010. Further details of the festival can be found at the dedicated blogsite by clicking HERE.

Part of the joy in running an animation festival is meeting all the fabulous talent that comes to the event and who clearly show their appreciation in being part of it! This year was not exception. At the end of the event, 'Kells" director Tomm Moore presented me with a copy a the graphic novel of the film, published in France.

Most exciting of all was the hand-drawn dedication and signature on the inside page that Tomm generously created himself...

It was a great festival and a great gift. Now I have to live up to it and start work on the film teaser I'm working on with a number of fabulous animators and artists, for the first feature film the Animaticus Foundation would like to make and apprentice talented post-graduate students on... "The Adventures of Uncle Lubin".

But more of that later!

Tony. :^{)}=-

FOR THE 2D FANS AMONG US...

2009-11-13T06:10:00Z

Figures by courtesy of www.boxofficemojo.com

In searching for figures of animated movie sales I came across boxoffice.mojo.com's list of the highest grossing 100 movies of all-time in the USA. The good thing from my point of view is that of these top films there were 14 animated movies. However the really interesting thing about this chart is the fact that the published box-office takings for each film were adjusted so that the value of the dollar in each case matched the value of the dollar today, making it an even playing field for all concerned.

Recognizing this I then extrapolated just the animated movie figures and compiled a USA top-grossing animated movies chart. The really interesting thing with this is the fact that although we popularly assume that the most successful animated movies of all-time are current 3D movies, the chart actually reveals that the top 6 movies among them are all traditionally created 2D movies and 10 of the top 14 are also 2D!

Now I understand the statisticians among us will say the the older movies have had a far longer time to accumulate figures to take them to the top. However I would argue that some... not all, but some... of the top contemporary movies will not ultimately have the staying power of the earlier classics and will therefore never catch-up with those still evergreen contenders. This of course doesn't mean that '2D is best', nor do I even wish to even initiate that line of dialogue. But it does perhaps indicate that new is not necessarily best and that good, classical storytelling will always endure.

Tony. :^{)}=-

COMING SOON… “THE ANIMATOR’S NOTEBOOK” SERIES!

2009-11-08T18:15:00Z

In conjunction with publisher, Focal Press, I've started developing an entirely new approach toteaching animation in this digital environment. “The Animator’s Notebook” series will be 12 advancedand specialized e-tutorials on animation that can be downloaded on a need-to-knowbasis. Each tutorial will provide something like 20-30 pages (sometimes more!) of detailedinformation on the animation subject in general, with profuse illustrations andeven clickable examples of the animation being referred to. Each ‘Notebook’will be written in my own handwriting, as if the pages were torn from the pagesof a genuine notebook. The 12 subjects being covered in the first Notebookseries will include… “Process & Principles”, “Genericwalks”, “Stylized walks”, “Personality walks”, “Quadruped walks”, “Runs”, “Jumps”, “Weight, Arcs & Anticipation”, “Overlapping action”, “Fluidity & flexibility” and “Basic dialogue”.

The embedded animationclips will include examples of my own work from the past, as well asspecifically created animation that shows exactly the principles that are beingtalked about at this point in the tutorial. For example, here is an example ofan ‘eccentric walk’ that is explained as part of the tutorial…

Click HERE to view a sample animation clip at TonyWhiteAnimation on YouTube.

To my knowledge this kind of teachingapproach has never been attempted before but it does effectively mean that you will have all theinformation you want, on the subject you need it for, whenever you want it,wherever you are in the world. Although the animation techniques explained areillustrated using traditional, hand-drawn techniques, the principles involvedwill actually work perfectly for all forms of animation, be they 3D,stop-frame, claymation, cut-out, or whatever.

“The Animator’s Notebook”series will soon be available via this site, or directly via the Focal Press designated site. The first three are already completed, with the entire series being completed by summer 2010.

Note: There will be further updates and ‘sneak peaks’ of forthcoming Notebook material on thisblogsite as time goes by.

Tony. :^{)}=-

LESS THAN A MONTH TO GO!

2009-11-08T07:28:00Z

This year's festival poster by Peter Moehrle.

Exciting times ahead! This year's "2D OR NOT 2D Animation Festival" on December 5th at the Eames Theater in the Pacific Science Center, Seattle is less than a month away now.

With the highest number of "Golden Pencil Award" competition entries (by over 50% up on last year's record!), the Seattle premiere of award-winning movie "Secret of Kells" booked and the film's director, Tomm Moore, and art director, Ross Stewart, ready to fly out and present their film personally this promises to be the best event ever! Full details can be found at the festival website (www.2dornot2d.org), where online tickets may be obtained via the Pacific Science Center online boxoffice. (But do book early to avoid disappointment!)

The event has been made possible as a result of the generous support of DigiPen Institute of Technology and Pacific Science Center and is hosted by non-profit organization, Animaticus Foundation, who will use all revenues received from this event to assist in their mission in preserving, teaching and evolving tradtional 2D animation.

Definitely an event not to miss!

Tony. :^{)}=-

LATEST BOOK SIGNING EVENT!

2009-09-05T01:47:00Z

The book that the fuss is all about... plus last year's festival poster that is currently having an ingenious makeover for this year's event by Peter Moehrle!

Just to let those who are in the area know that I'm attending an invited book signing event... entitled "A Moving Experience"... at the 'Daniel Smith' art store in Bellevue on Sunday (6th) from 2.00 - 4.00 pm.
Apart from talking about and signing copies of my new book, "How To Make Animated Films", I'll be sharing news about the exciting '2D OR NOT 2D Animation Festival' that we'll be holding at the Eames IMAX Theater, Seattle on December 5th.
I'll also be showing some 'work in progress' for my new e-publishing venture with Focal Press, "The Animator's Notebook".

'PENCILS TO PIXELS' ~ THE GERMAN VERSION.

2009-09-01T14:37:00Z

My publisher (Focal Press) never ceases to amaze me. I was aware that my book 'Animation from Pencils to Pixels ~ Classical Techniques for Digital Animators' was doing well in the stores but I was totally surprised yesterday when this German translation of it arrived on my doorstep! Following hot on the heels of the Chinese edition I guess this technically makes me an 'international author' now? (Its quite amazing amazing to me where unfashionably pushing a pencil in this digitally-dominant world can lead to!)

BACK IN THE USA!

2009-08-30T20:09:00Z

(BUT STILL SO MUCH MISSING FAMILY AND FRIENDS IN THE UK!)

Saille and I recently traveled to the UK to see the family and friends I haven't seen for so long. It was a very tiring (but such a wonderful) trip. Indeed, no-one knew we were flying over until we actually arrived there... all except my eldest daughter Sarah who sneakily made it all possible. (Thanks Sarah!) You see, my youngest daughter Anna had recently delivered my third beautiful granddaughter, Isla, and it seemed she was especially sad I wasn't there to see and hold the new baby. So unknown to her or anyone else, Sarah arranged the entire trip for us in secret... even putting Saille and I up (as well as putting up with Saille and I!) for most of the trip. Needless to say, Anna was so shocked and exited when we turned-up on her doorstep on the very first night there! (As you'll see below.) I freely admit too that the whole thing was a very emotional time for me also... as I'd not seen either family or friends (or even England) for several years. Without a doubt, I was missing them all so very much.

Anyway, I thought I'd share some of these precious moments with visitors to this site. I know that 'family/vacation' pictures normally elicit a huge yawn all round in most circumstances. But maybe there's something here for everyone... yes, even those with purely an animation bent?

FYI: I'll probably add more (or at least elaborate on these) when I have more time to do so in the future!

My daughter Anna's reaction when she opened her front door and saw us standing there!

Holding my beautiful granddaughter Isla at long last... with proud (and tearful) mom to the left and seemingly bemused (but great guy) dad Dave to the right.

Catching-up with an old friend, 'Popeye'... the family tortoise I hadn't seen for over a decade now. (And he'll no-doubt outlive me too!)

The next day. A family trip to east coast fun spot, Southend. Featuring daughter Anna and granddaughters Amy and Abbie. (Baby Isla's sleeping quietly in the stroller at this particular point in time!)

Saille on the tiny train that takes visitors to the end of what was once the world's longest pier in Southend.

Granddaughter Amy in reflective mood at the end of Southend pier.

Granddaughter Isla... not quite sure whether to laugh or cry or poop her pants!

Evening time in Southend. Saile is in the process of descending a particularly scary ride. (Definitely not for me... I much prefer to keep my feet firmly on the ground and simply be an 'official photographer'!)

We hit the road the next day and spent a wonderful time with Dave Sproxton at the Aardman Animations studio in Bristol. Its hard to miss the Oscars and other Hollywood stars that litter the place! (Bravo guys!)

Bumped into maestro animator Richard Williams in the Aardman parking lot that that afternoon. We were due to meet him for dinner that night anyway but this impromptu get-together (with my old boss and mentor) was just too good to be true! (Sorry we stopped you working that day Dick!)

Next day in Bristol. Our absolutely 'must not miss' pilgrimage to the sell-out 'Banksy' exhibition! We knew the two-hour wait in line would be well worth it when we saw this hilarious Ronald McDonald statue poised high over the entrance way. Its not apparent in this picture but there was a mostly-empty beer bottle beside him and he was clearly contemplating whether to jump or not!

Banksy's David!

Banksy's Tweetie Pie... as he was never meant to be seen. Clearly old, moth-eaten and forgotten, this particular animatronic model actually brought a tear or two to my eye for some reason. (Perhaps it epitomises only too well the loss of the great 2D animation tradition?)

A delightful Banksy painting. The location's regular painting galleries were littered with these moments of unexpected inspiration... that is, if you looked hard enough to find them!

A slightly tired-looking Sarah who made this whole amazing trip possible. (Thank you Sarah... I adore you!) X

A fun river trip down the Thames in London offered this unique viewpoint of the London Eye.

Granddaugther Amy being goosed by one of the 'Mr. Men'!

Trying to say hello to 'the Doctor' but he seemed to have been in some other part of the galaxy at this particular moment in time!

A delightfully bloodthirsty evening... enjoying the 'Jack the Ripper Tour' in London's east end.

Meeting with writer Robert Endeacott outside Leeds United football ground. We've actually written an entire movie screenplay together but had never met until this particular moment. Long live the internet! (P.S. The script's exceptionally good too Robert!)

Two days later. We briefly caught-up with the rest of the family again on their summer vacation in 'St. Ives', Cornwall. Here Saille peruses the delightful Cornish coastline... a region that is affectionately known as the 'English Riviera'.

'St. Ives' downtown. Everything seems so small it could almost be a set for one of Aardman's fabulous 'Wallace & Gromitt' movies!

Elvis-styled 'Russian Dolls'? (Only in St. Ives apparently!)

I couldn't resist capturing this 'Bucket of Blood' pub sign in Cornwall late one night!

A sad (yet joyful) last cuddle with granddaughter Abbie before Saille and I reluctantly started the long drive back to London and our return flight home to Seattle! (Maybe it won't be too long before we can do it all again, huh family?)

Driven crazy! As the road trip aspect of our visit totaled nearly 3,000 miles you can't blame me for going a little crazy at the wheel!

A last pilgrimage. We couldn't resist a last look at one of my favorite spots in the whole of England... the ancient and majestic stone circle at Avebury. It added hours to our homeward journey but it was worth every second!

HAPPY DAYS... EXTREMELY HAPPY DAYS INDEED!!!