tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-68233180822208416462024-03-12T17:14:33.499-07:00The Amazing Colossal Movie Art BlogClassic films with an animated edge.venkman71http://www.blogger.com/profile/04749627549908660392noreply@blogger.comBlogger28125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6823318082220841646.post-66192727375352151642013-06-18T07:46:00.000-07:002013-06-18T07:46:14.582-07:00My OTHER "art" blogHello, dear blog followers.<br />
I just wanted to post a quick update to let you 57 folks know about my new blog. While this one will still remain VERY active, albeit sporadic,...I've finally launched my comic strip, (which I've been working on in some form or another since I was twelve), and I just wanted to give it a little shout.<br />
Since comic strips and nerdy fan art are a little bit like apples and oranges, I thought the strip needed it's own platform.<br />
Say hello to Liam the Corgi,...one of the many inhabitants of the fictional little New England town called Autumn Falls.<br />
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I hope you'll go over and say hello. You can find the "new" strip here.<br />
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<a href="http://seanbishopcomix.blogspot.com/">http://seanbishopcomix.blogspot.com/</a><br />
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Thanks for looking! venkman71http://www.blogger.com/profile/04749627549908660392noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6823318082220841646.post-54079348276927693572012-10-17T11:38:00.002-07:002012-10-17T11:38:50.388-07:00HALLOWEEN JANINE!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Kn_w8kdftTc/UH75x0uXGhI/AAAAAAAAAM8/OEPR2g4jX68/s1600/Halloween+Janine_FINAL.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="257" nea="true" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Kn_w8kdftTc/UH75x0uXGhI/AAAAAAAAAM8/OEPR2g4jX68/s400/Halloween+Janine_FINAL.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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As luck would have it this year, I am having some success with completing my annual "Fun Halloween" illustrations! This year's subject,...<strong><em>The Real Ghostbusters</em></strong> because it's badass.<br />
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<u>The End</u>.<br />
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I was surprised, (well kinda but not <strong>really</strong>), at the reaction so many of the lads, (and a few ladies, to be fair), had to sexy Janine in her witch costume.<br />
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I long suspected I wasn't the only one out there with an affinity for <em>Miss Melnitz</em> so I decided she needed her own stand-alone, (Well except for Slimer).<br />
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So I hope you enjoy <strong>Halloween Janine</strong>!<br />
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Off to work up another,....methinks pumpkin carving,....<strong>RGB</strong> style,...perhaps with a <strong>particle thrower</strong>. :-P<br />
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And again,....<strong>HAPPY HALLOWEEN</strong>! Now everyone go work on your costumes! venkman71http://www.blogger.com/profile/04749627549908660392noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6823318082220841646.post-83651758993568729942012-10-14T09:33:00.000-07:002012-10-14T09:34:48.751-07:00Well hey there, Janine Melnitz!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--pAkf9O4Xj0/UHrenmjRyeI/AAAAAAAAALc/VeR8ZENvi3Q/s1600/Janine+sneak+peek.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="198" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--pAkf9O4Xj0/UHrenmjRyeI/AAAAAAAAALc/VeR8ZENvi3Q/s320/Janine+sneak+peek.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
Because sometimes things flow easier than others,...I sat down the other night to try and thumbnail a few more concepts for some more RGB Halloween illustrations, (because there's no better way to celebrate the greatest season of the year than by drawing all sorts of Halloweeny stuff), and as sometimes happens,....a new Janine illustration literally dropped out of the stylus.<br />
Now might be a good time to mention that odd phenomenon that occurs with all artists on a pretty regular basis and that phenomenon is occasionally,....you draw something as easily as you always dreamed you could and it comes about as easily as you think it does for all the other artists you admire. <br />
When that happens, you simply ride that wave out and when you finish you whisper very quietly to no one in particular, (or perhaps God or the Universe), "Holy crap, how did I do that?"<br />
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This Janine illo' was like that. <br />
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It's not easy for me as an artist to admit that I struggle but I really I do. I'm a huge fan of pinup art. Bloggers like Shane Glines, Bruce Timm and the like revolutionized design, form and color. I could stare at their stuff all day and still think, "I'll never be able to do that!"<br />
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As much as I love it, it doesn't come easily or naturally to me. I was trained on Mice, cats, rabbits, anything Tex Avery as well as a pretty hefty diet of Anime back in the day.<br />
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But this is what this blog is about. The eternal struggle for artistic growth,.....demonstrated here, for all to see, warts and all. Because failing in front of people is scary,....but I think that kind of fear provides a motivated push to let go and just do it.<br />
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Or maybe it's just a thinly veiled excuse to do a hot drawing of Janine Melnitz in a sexy witch costume for Halloween!<br />
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More to come! venkman71http://www.blogger.com/profile/04749627549908660392noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6823318082220841646.post-26608631731567176702012-10-12T18:58:00.000-07:002012-10-12T18:58:41.365-07:00HAPPY HALLOWEEN! <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Nl-FfH24J8s/UHjCfr1rUII/AAAAAAAAAKo/mz_GsbEr-OY/s1600/realgb_final_color.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="350" nea="true" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Nl-FfH24J8s/UHjCfr1rUII/AAAAAAAAAKo/mz_GsbEr-OY/s640/realgb_final_color.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Welcome, blog readers to this holiest of holy months,...October and in this hallowed, (pun intended), month sits the greatest of holidays,...Halloween. Now initially,...this <em><strong>Amazing Colossal Movie Art Blog</strong></em> was started with the original intent to explore the concept of turning my favorite live action films into their animated counterparts but sometimes,....a thing simply cannot be improved upon.<br />
Case in point,...one of the smartest written and most clever shows to grace the after-school television screens of my early adolescence.<br />
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<strong><em>The Real Ghostbusters</em></strong>.<br />
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While the various episodes, (upwards of 130 and change, all said and done and once in syndication), varied in quality, a casualty of the early days of outsourcing to multiple studios, the writing was nothing short of cannon when it came to the look, feel and spirit of the original film.<br />
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Before it lost it's way and became <strong><em>Slimer and The Real Ghostbusters</em></strong>, I went back day after day for my daily dose of Peter, Ray, Egon, Winston, Janine and yes,...even Slimer. The <em>Snarf</em> of the series but he still had some very Belushi moments in the first two seasons.<br />
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So Above you see my tribute, (perhaps one of several this month if I can sneak the time), to one of the greatest shows of my toon-addicted generation and because I love <strong>seeing</strong> process,....I also love <strong>sharing</strong> process. <br />
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The image started as the loosest of loose thumbnail sketches that looked like I'd put the stylus in my left hand, closed my eyes and went for it.<br />
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I had a rough idea of where I wanted everybody and what I wanted them to be doing. Next up, came the tie-down.<br />
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The poses and proportions are tweaked and refined, Slimer is added and I begin to get fussy about the models. Next up, final cleanup line. I am a sucker for the kind of self-colored ink lines commonly practiced by Disney, Warners and Bluth so I always end up putting it in.<br />
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And here we see the final line before the final color pass. The "Happy Halloween" is added on the pumpkins and I throw a glow effect in once it's gone. I used a similar process for Slimer's ambient glow as well. <br />
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Hope you all enjoy! Perhaps I'll try another one soon! Now get to work on your costumes! venkman71http://www.blogger.com/profile/04749627549908660392noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6823318082220841646.post-13542748337546376522012-09-25T10:42:00.000-07:002012-09-25T10:42:01.740-07:00Doing the first thing last! In the continuing saga of the <strong><em>Cheers</em></strong> office,....ironically, the last thing I ended up doing was the first thing I had conceived of and honestly was the entire scope of the project when I first considered doing it,....<br />
The <strong>door</strong>.<br />
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That Iconic door was just about the apex of my grand plan. I thought,...."I'll just do up my door like the Cheers door!" and as the project blossomed into madness from there, the door fell by the wayside.<br />
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But as the project neared completion, the door turned into the cherry on the sundae, so to speak.<br />
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I got to work by digitally re-mastering the Cheers logo in Photoshop and having a local sign shop print it onto a sheet of acrylic. I then designed the framing insert to slip the acrylic into.<br />
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I then set about finding the proper boards to skin the door with. In dealing with the height and width restrictions of the door I found that six inch wide boards gave the door just about the right shape.<br />
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The Cheers door is considerably shorter and a tad wider but I had to work with what I had.<br />
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Now while leaving a hole in the wood to accommodate the deadbolt was easy, (though I still screwed it up), It was gonna be quite a different story to make puzzle pieces to account for the awkward industrial door handle and while I considered it, I took the lazy man's way out and simply left a gap in the wood. Because measuring something in one place, and crafting something for it in another can often be a tricky proposition. <br />
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It's amazing what a coat of Walnut stain can do.<br />
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And after three coats of polyurethane gloss, it was ready for a test-fit!</div>
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Here we see the skinning of the door in progress,....and the one board I screwed up. The hole I drilled was 1/2 in too low. :-(<br />
Can you imagine if I'd tried to muddle my way around that handle? I never said I was a carpenter. I'm an artist who builds stuff! Occasionally I even use TOOLS! <br />
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OH! And in case you were wondering how I stuck the boards to the door? It's a magic little invention called industrial strength <strong>Velcro</strong>!<br />
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More to come! <br />
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venkman71http://www.blogger.com/profile/04749627549908660392noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6823318082220841646.post-63673146025724044332012-09-19T15:19:00.004-07:002012-09-19T15:21:09.890-07:00Building the Cheers office: Part Two!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-2Fnxpc183io/UFo9CxzYSdI/AAAAAAAAAI4/l-o3NAwT_3c/s1600/photo_005.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" hea="true" height="297" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-2Fnxpc183io/UFo9CxzYSdI/AAAAAAAAAI4/l-o3NAwT_3c/s400/photo_005.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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Test fitting the bar was a hoot! On a VERY warm Southern California day, I set aside the normal build day I might do for a "couple's hang out day" and a leisurely test fit of the bar on my VERY uneven backyard asphalt. <br />
Now as I said in the first installment of this silly saga, the bar was designed to be modular and fit snugly around a raised, two-piece platform which would also serve to lock the post beams in place. The beams support the lightweight glass rail above and feature six beautiful track lighting fixtures that after an exhaustive search, are the closest, present-day equivalent to the ones they had in the show!<br />
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<a href="http://www.lightinguniverse.com/products/view.aspx?sku=270949&cid=t885">http://www.lightinguniverse.com/products/view.aspx?sku=270949&cid=t885</a><br />
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Here's a shot of it at night! Using low-key forty watt bulbs!<br />
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After a successful proof of concept, I was ready to move everything into the office! There was just one thing holding me up! The floor! Now with the floor, it took me even longer to find a close match than the lighting fixtures did but I was finally able to find a very close match in some <em><strong>Armstrong</strong> cushion step</em>, (who's stock number escapes me at the moment), and as luck would have it, my 12x14 foot piece came in right before a long weekend. Leaving me the perfect window to come in and set up the space like it was Christmas! </div>
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Here we see, (after trimming two feet off of the twelve), the floor in all it's reddish-tinged glory as I fine tune the fit over the carpet!</div>
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And the platform is in! With my Swain's desk in place and all my computer stuff back up and in place! I know it look like I don't have a lot of room but I really don't go far. Besides, I have the drop-down to keep me from sliding too far back, (in theory. Assuming I don't go for a tumble one day).</div>
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Reverse shot. You can see the fake paneling next to the door that will lock in the partition to come later.<br />
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With the platform in place, the bar goes around it like legos. The bar bodies sliding into the bases and the bar-tops sliding into the bodies and all working together to hold the posts in place. At the end of the day, the bar is all dialed in, posts in place and glass rails waiting to be mounted.<br />
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But MAN, was I tired! So off home I went, working over in my brain what I could get done the next day! <br />
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More to come!<br />
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venkman71http://www.blogger.com/profile/04749627549908660392noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6823318082220841646.post-30948731053127777322012-09-11T12:32:00.001-07:002012-09-11T12:33:14.876-07:00Building the Cheers office: Part one! <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-tYkSEauu1FA/UE-K7iW2ibI/AAAAAAAAAIA/F-ms2DkU9-o/s1600/cbs-111-b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" hea="true" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-tYkSEauu1FA/UE-K7iW2ibI/AAAAAAAAAIA/F-ms2DkU9-o/s1600/cbs-111-b.jpg" /></a></div>
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It was a show about a "nice little neighborhood bar" that SET the bar for ensemble character comedy and has has every show that came after it trying to beat it at it's own game.<br />
For me it was a point of pride that I was from the town where Cheers took place and when I first moved out here to LA it was my go-to show for an instant remedy for homesickness. <br />
So last year when I found myself, for the first time in ten years, at a new job, in a new place, where I didn't know a lot of people, I was feeling a little,...well, a little unsure.<br />
Like doing a tightrope walk without a net. But fortunately, the people I work for are all about embracing creativity and love to nurture the crazy creative streak.so when we were told, (inspired by some of the elaborate environments the creatives at Pixar transformed for their workspaces), that we were free to transform our offices in a similar fashion I thought,...."AH! Now THERE'S something that'll make me feel at home! I'll create a nest!" <br />
I immediately thought a mini-pub would be a hoot of an idea To transform the office into a convivial outpost of warm conversation and laughs simply for the sake of creating an extraordinary environment. A second later I thought,..."NO! Wait!......Cheers."<br />
Now for those that know, I love replicas and movie props of every kind and I've always pipe-dreamed about having a big ol' cellar someday that I could transform into a brick-by-brick perfect replica of the Cheers set because,....well, because why wouldn't I? :-)<br />
So I thought,....that's it,....it'll be a little proof of concept! So I asked "Can I turn my office into Cheers?" Which turned several heads and raised several eyebrows and smirks. But good on em' for entertaining my crazy. So I went away and started researching. I dug out my old research photos and started researching things like flooring and light fixtures and bar stools and photographs.<br />
In fact I spent SO much time on research I think people forgot I ever said i was gonna do this but as the pieces came together, the test builds began!<br />
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Here we see a rough test fit of the initial bar. The office was roughly 10x14 feet with a 9ft.ceiling so I designed the bar to sit in the rear left corner of the room.<br />
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My desk would sit on a raised platform, (so those on the stools and I would all roughly be at eye level), behind the bar and the posts would support a small lightweight glass rail above. <br />
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Here we see the gorgeous brass I ordered. Here in So-Cal we're lucky enough to have enough of the movie industry that you can get just about anything, especially for set design so when I found out that one of the metal places I go to out here has "bar parts" I made a beeline for it.<br />
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And finally, after a year of planning, I was able to test-fit the bar on one very hot summer night! </div>
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More to come in part two! </div>
venkman71http://www.blogger.com/profile/04749627549908660392noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6823318082220841646.post-31583676486057533542011-05-09T23:30:00.001-07:002011-05-09T23:51:18.860-07:00Huge-Ass cartoon crowd shot! Engagement photo take TWO!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-tYzFu7J9WdI/TcjeZtz5FPI/AAAAAAAAAHQ/ox4gkvX_31g/s1600/shot_002_test_1.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 213px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-tYzFu7J9WdI/TcjeZtz5FPI/AAAAAAAAAHQ/ox4gkvX_31g/s320/shot_002_test_1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5604974269637924082" border="0" /></a><br />Well,.....THIS one took me a while! :p<br /><br />And I still don't think I'm quite done tweaking it but I think if I don't abandon this piece right now so my poor fiance' can finish getting our "save-the-date" cards printed up she may end up a widow before we even reach the altar. ;)<br /><br />In other words,....she'll wring my neck.<br /><br />But I figured we're only doing this once so why not do it with some style,......and style takes time. One cannot rush style,.....one must obey it. ;)<br /><br />So in the continuing trend of our <span style="font-style: italic;">Who Framed Roger Rabbit</span> inspired engagement photos comes,.....THE BIG ONE.<br /><br />The Grand Central Station, (if you'll pardon the pun), of cartoon crowds for this series.<br /><br />There's a whole frame load of about thirty or so characters who at any given point in time, occupy a special place in my heart. It's late so I'm not gonna enumerate the crowd just yet but while I may not have a prize to give, you will have my eternal respect if you can pick out some of the more obscure-er ones.<br />There's a few of them,.....and I still ran out of room for the penguin who cries ice cubes. ;)<br /><br />Oh well,....we'll get him in the next one. ;)venkman71http://www.blogger.com/profile/04749627549908660392noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6823318082220841646.post-83048085175388421752011-03-30T01:21:00.000-07:002011-03-30T10:50:08.782-07:00The Engagement Photo! 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10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin-top:0in; mso-para-margin-right:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt; mso-para-margin-left:0in; line-height:115%; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;} </style> <![endif]--> <p class="MsoNormal">I fell in love with my fiancé at <span style="font-weight: bold;">Disneyland</span>. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">No joke. It was completely and totally unexpected but for two animation nerds, there couldn’t have been a more perfect first date.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">It was in line for the<span style="font-style: italic;"> Finding Nemo</span> ride. <span style=""> </span>By the time the ride was over, I realized she was the one.<span style=""> </span>My heart knew before my head and my poor head’s been racing to catch up ever since. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">You see, I must make a confession that perhaps only the closest to me may have ever suspected but no one ever really knew and that’s that I had given up. I’d given up on things like fairy tales and true love and magic,….all the things , ironically enough, that led me into my career of choice,…..animation.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">As I hit thirty-seven with Forty rearing it’s ugly head,<span style=""> </span>a kind of fateful pragmatism settled upon me. A sort of reverse midlife crisis where instead of breaking away from life, I was convinced that I’d missed it somehow. True love wasn’t always true and wasn’t always love.<span style=""> </span>The type of happiness so lavishly rendered in the animated movies I loved was just "Hollywood Magic"and as I was getting ready to settle into, as <span style="font-weight: bold;">Henry Higgins</span> may have put it, “Confirmed old bachelorhood!” and trying to figure out<span style=""></span> exactly how I was feeling about my dubious new role, I turned around,….and there she was.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">When I realized Kelly was the one I wanted to first shout “YAY!” and then ask, “Where the Hell have you been and couldn’t you have stopped to ask directions?” Truthfully, I could have been the one who was late but it’s funnier the other way ;)</p> <p class="MsoNormal">So there we were, at the Magic Kingdom, with a jaded former dreamer who didn’t believe in wishing on stars contradicting himself by saying…”we’re both animation nerds so I guess we SHOULD go.” </p> <p class="MsoNormal">So we went.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">And it was the most perfect date ever.<span style=""> </span>The weather was perfect, the crowds were thin, the lines were short! It was easy, it was effortless, I was more myself than I’d ever felt with anyone. It was just so,….different.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">It just fit.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">While waiting for <span style="font-style: italic;">Space Mountain</span> to open up, we wandered into <span style="font-style: italic;">The House of Tomorrow</span>, and shortly after that into the living room of tomorrow where a gigantic widescreen TV was playing the restored print of our favorite Disney film of all time,…<span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">Sleeping Beauty</span><span style="font-weight: bold;">.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal">I’d never seen the film so big and beautiful! Every frame a work of art! Kelly and I had the place to ourselves. We settled in on the big leather couch and began to try to one up each other on the films trivia and animation knowledge in general. By the time we were done, we had drawn a crowd, including a few cast members who left there that day a little better informed about the medium that built the park they work in.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Continuing our tour of cloud nine “Disney-style”, we walked right into the <span style="font-style: italic;">Blue Bayou </span>restaurant, without a reservation mind you, for a late dinner,…watching fireflies dance over the heads of the people in the boats,…sailing off to rougher waters and perhaps a glimpse of a pirate or two, (“dead men tell no tales!”).</p> <p class="MsoNormal">We ended the night holding hands roaming the back alleys of<span style="font-style: italic;"> Roger Rabbit’s Toontown</span> wishing the real world was a lot more Toony and a lot less gloomy. After the lazy train ride back, we caught the fireworks from the parking lot before driving home as I realized that the Magic Kingdom had given me back my magic.<br /></p><p class="MsoNormal">I couldn't have been more surprised,...or delighted.<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">When Kelly suggested we have our engagement photos taken in LA’s Union Station and in forties period costume, I knew I was marrying the right girl. We arrived with antique suitcases in hand and once we got a good look at ourselves I said, “My God, we look like we stepped out of <span style="font-style: italic;">Who Framed Roger Rabbit</span>!” </p> <p class="MsoNormal">We both smiled,….both thinking the same thing at the same time. So there were a few photos we selected for,…alterations.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Not sure how many I’m gonna do but this first one was our proof of concept and it’s a doozie.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">When I proposed to Kelly, I told her I wanted to build her a fairy tale one dream at a time. I’m starting with these photos, because I am sensible of how rare it is. What we have together. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">As rare as true magic, or fairy dust,….or wishing upon a star. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">If you sat through this whole story,…I appreciate you taking the time, and I wish the happiness I’ve been blessed enough to experience upon you a thousand fold, and if you just came to look at the picture,…well , same to you lazy bastards. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">I kid because I love.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">But seriously, you are a little lazy. ;)</p> <p class="MsoNormal">MORE LOONINESS TO COME!</p><p class="MsoNormal">Note: The amazing photography you see in these pics is courtesy of the killer husband and wife team at Callaway/Gable.</p><p class="MsoNormal">Check their stuff out here!<a href="http://www.callawaygable.com/"> http://www.callawaygable.com/</a></p>venkman71http://www.blogger.com/profile/04749627549908660392noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6823318082220841646.post-87274933369719492362011-02-11T18:02:00.000-08:002011-02-11T18:14:35.310-08:00Engagement Photo Progress!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-naqRl0Lgrl4/TVXsX2hbV8I/AAAAAAAAAGo/fhKDDrIysWg/s1600/jessica_001.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 206px; height: 400px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-naqRl0Lgrl4/TVXsX2hbV8I/AAAAAAAAAGo/fhKDDrIysWg/s400/jessica_001.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5572620008457721794" border="0" /></a><br />Like anyone but a handful of people even care! LOL!<br /><br />But SOME do so,.....on I go! ;)<br /><br />To tell you the truth,....this engagement photo retouching is the only thing Amazing, Colossal, movie or art related I have right now! Busy year and it's not even mid-February yet!<br /><br />Besides, the whole purpose of this blog is to keep the artistic gears lubed by drawing animation style stuff from my favorite cartoons and films, right?<br /><br />No better candidate for that than good ol' <span style="font-style: italic;">Roger Rabbit</span>! Besides,....I love drawing these characters. It's good for my tiny fun-starved soul! :p<br /><br />Now originally it was just supposed to be Roger, Kelly and I in <span style="font-weight: bold;">one</span> or <span style="font-weight: bold;">two</span> shots,.....but now, as most projects I seem to take on, it is growing beyond my control.<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Jessica</span>,(seen above in this test shot), is now appearing in some of the shots as well as <span style="font-style: italic;">Baby Herman</span>,......later on you may see the likes of <span style="font-style: italic;">Benny the Cab</span>, certain Bunnies and Mice,.....a few penguins perhaps and possibly a rogue flying elephant,.....<br /><br />Can't help it! Sometimes our art grows beyond even the confines of our minds.<br /><br />Stay tuned for more "loony selections for a bunch of drunken reprobates", as ol' Judge Doom would say.venkman71http://www.blogger.com/profile/04749627549908660392noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6823318082220841646.post-40280849236837488722011-01-20T10:16:00.001-08:002011-01-20T10:44:02.904-08:00The Engagement photo shoot story!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_arkTHmLwulA/TTh8M2PJqhI/AAAAAAAAAGc/4-aiidAolbA/s1600/photo.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_arkTHmLwulA/TTh8M2PJqhI/AAAAAAAAAGc/4-aiidAolbA/s400/photo.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5564333899775584786" border="0" /></a><br />So,...<br /><br />As I understand it,....once a male, (surprisingly even this one), is able to secure a mate, (or in my case stumble accidentally into one), you get married, build a life and, God willing, live happily ever after.<br />But before one gets married, one must get engaged and apparently along with said engagement, (along with the notoriously expensive ring that's supposed to cost you three months salary according to retailers), comes PHOTOS!<br />Well, fortunately for me, I'm marrying a woman who is, (and even I cannot believe this), even more of a cartoon and animation nerd than me. She also loves vintage, and she loves to play dress up so when she suggested we get our engagement photos done in downtown LA at the beautiful and historic, (built in 1939), Union Station, I was like,...."Uh,.....okay." ;)<br />Union station looks like something out of a 1930's Superman serial. It's like walking into another time. Everything Deco and streamline and just astonishing to the eye. One of the few remaining examples of the old Los Angeles. The LA I mourn never having known.<br />So when we walked into the joint dressed like something out of <span style="font-style: italic;">LA Confidential</span> and dragging vintage luggage and steamer trunk, you can imagine the looks we got.<br />Now, because I'M a nerd as well, I start to notice, over the course of the shoot, that we bear a striking resemblance to one of our favorite films and I may or may not look like a young, (youngER?), Eddie Valliant.<br />So every so often, I notice that both Kelly and I are leaving "space" between us in some of the shots. Perhaps an empty chair here,.....some room between us there,..."Space for what?" we may have thought, (as if we weren't onto eachother's game already), while the photographers clicked away. ;)<br />So with my crappy cell-phone camera photos as a base plate, I did a few "test-shots" just as a proof of concept.<br />I showed em' to Kelly who immediately authorized me to do more.<br /><br />...........I think I'm marrying the right girl! LOL!<br /><br />Now, just so you know,....we're not complete morons. The album and the majority of the photos we have will NOT have animated cartoon characters cavorting through them. They're gonna be straight, (albeit thematic), photos,.....<br /><br />But there's a few shots,......just a few that scream for,....."additional material". :p<br /><br />Judge our nerdiness not too harshly, my friends. You know this madness is somewhere in you! I say embrace it.<br /><br />I shall lead by example,....<br /><br />Here we see a behind the scenes shot as Kelly "strikes a pose in vintage clothes", just after an enthusiastic friend wandered into the shot.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_arkTHmLwulA/TTh8IIEtnkI/AAAAAAAAAGU/NllNAaP0rf4/s1600/poc_003.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 309px; height: 400px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_arkTHmLwulA/TTh8IIEtnkI/AAAAAAAAAGU/NllNAaP0rf4/s400/poc_003.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5564333818664296002" border="0" /></a><br />That is, most definitely NOT all, folks,....<br /><br />Stay tooned for more,......Looniness.<br /><br />And that about uses up my bad pun quota for 2011. ;)<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_arkTHmLwulA/TTh8DUruMJI/AAAAAAAAAGM/hIrggHM-6M8/s1600/poc_002.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 301px; height: 400px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_arkTHmLwulA/TTh8DUruMJI/AAAAAAAAAGM/hIrggHM-6M8/s400/poc_002.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5564333736149790866" border="0" /></a>......The train to Toontown is boarding! God forgive me,.....Hop on! ;)venkman71http://www.blogger.com/profile/04749627549908660392noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6823318082220841646.post-42334109248630817182010-10-18T13:42:00.001-07:002010-10-18T13:52:39.677-07:00The only TRULY scary thing about this Halloween......Is my schedule.<br /><br />It seems to happen <span style="font-weight: bold;">every year</span> now that I'm older! There just aren't enough hours in the day and when it comes to my favorite month containing my favorite-est holiday of all time I'm especially bummed because I've got no time to draw and decorate! :(<br />Now I had a whole slew of illustrations planned for this month. I even briefly entertained the notion of doing a "drawing a day" for the month.<br />Then I thought I'd do one per week,....showcasing my favorite Halloween movies like <span style="font-style: italic;">Ghostbusters, Nightmare on Elm street, Gremlins, The Addams Family, etc.</span><br />But now I'll be lucky to get ONE done so here's a sneak peek at <span style="font-weight: bold;">Bette Midler</span> as <span style="font-weight: bold;">Winifred "Winnie" Sanderson</span> from the<span style="font-weight: bold;"> VERY</span> under-rated popcorn Halloween flick <span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">Hocus Pocus.</span><br /><br />More to come. Maybe I'll even get this thing finished by NEXT Halloween. ;)<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_arkTHmLwulA/TLyzVft7C5I/AAAAAAAAAFw/AmXB8LnsqJ8/s1600/winnie_001.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 337px; height: 196px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_arkTHmLwulA/TLyzVft7C5I/AAAAAAAAAFw/AmXB8LnsqJ8/s400/winnie_001.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5529491624376863634" border="0" /></a><br />Venky.venkman71http://www.blogger.com/profile/04749627549908660392noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6823318082220841646.post-42273819063876606212010-09-20T14:19:00.001-07:002010-09-20T14:24:30.050-07:00Tis' the season,...<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_arkTHmLwulA/TJfQDMwz-qI/AAAAAAAAAFI/Q4fpXV4zXbI/s1600/venkman_001+copy.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5519108621749975714" border="0" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_arkTHmLwulA/TJfQDMwz-qI/AAAAAAAAAFI/Q4fpXV4zXbI/s400/venkman_001+copy.jpg" /></a><br />Well if the department stores can get into the Halloween spirit early, (Hell, I saw Christmas trees up at Lowes yesterday!), so can I!<br />My favorite religious holiday is fast approaching so to kick off the Halloween 10' season, I revert back to my "go-to" source material,....Ghostbusters!<br />Here's a little family portrait featuring an uncharacteristically tolerant Peter Venkman and "Slimer", (known to we purists as "Onionhead").<br />More to come as the 31st races toward us!<br /><br />:)venkman71http://www.blogger.com/profile/04749627549908660392noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6823318082220841646.post-39997228155603190212010-09-17T06:57:00.000-07:002010-09-17T07:15:52.798-07:00It's a jungle out there!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_arkTHmLwulA/TJN2JuGk24I/AAAAAAAAAFA/mLlVwopgB9I/s1600/book_pages_011_alt_2.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 330px; height: 400px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_arkTHmLwulA/TJN2JuGk24I/AAAAAAAAAFA/mLlVwopgB9I/s400/book_pages_011_alt_2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5517883877825502082" border="0" /></a><br />So as promised, (like I really believe any of you were running to the computer saying, "Oh God! When will the next blog post be up? He promised!"), here are some storyboard selects from <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Disney's The Legend of Tarzan</span>!<br />I think,...and don't quote me on this,...I think this was from the pilot episode as the camera pulls back from Kala to reveal the rest of the apes. As the family watches, you eventually see Tarzan tree-surf his butt past the group doing his Tarzan thing.<br />I really, really enjoyed drawing the apes. I loved their varying designs but I still lament that they killed off <span style="font-weight: bold;">Kerchack</span> in the film. I mean, it makes sense and it's a great story beat but <span style="font-weight: bold;">MAN</span> would I loved to have drawn him! :)<br />Click on the pic for a bigger image!<br />More to come later!venkman71http://www.blogger.com/profile/04749627549908660392noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6823318082220841646.post-33394104427438758502010-09-14T08:41:00.000-07:002010-09-14T09:34:39.784-07:00A blast from the past,....or perhaps from BEYOND.<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_arkTHmLwulA/TI-YQjtsfMI/AAAAAAAAAE4/IT803QMtEH4/s1600/final_page_021.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 330px; height: 400px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_arkTHmLwulA/TI-YQjtsfMI/AAAAAAAAAE4/IT803QMtEH4/s400/final_page_021.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5516795478784376002" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_arkTHmLwulA/TI-YQjtsfMI/AAAAAAAAAE4/IT803QMtEH4/s1600/final_page_021.jpg"><br /></a><br />Like that joke? See what I did there? That's called being ironic. Now I am in my late thirties, (ugh), and I am of the classification of human male and that means I will exhibit a few behavioral constants while functioning as said male unit.<br />A few of these include an unhealthy obsession with <span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">The Godfather</span>, secretly wanting to be as insane as the cast of Jackass, uncontrolled childish giggles at certain trigger words, (like "poop" and "boobs"), and last but not least, a deep appreciation for <span style="font-weight: bold;">Batman</span>.<br />Nuff' said!<br />Now I know it's fashionable for others of my kind, (ie: animation/storyboard artists), to participate in the backlash against this Warner House style but I have no problem admitting my absolute adoration of the original <span style="font-weight: bold;">Batman: The animated series, </span>( as well as Superman that came later, and was, to ME a continuation of Donner's characters from the 1978 film).<br />I don't think there's many of my gender that would disagree that Bruce Timm and his crew, both in look and content, elevated that show to the pinnacle of those characters in their finest form, and hit the industry with a stylistic equivalent of an Atom bomb that, even today, is still spawning imitators and wannabes.<br />Show's like <span style="font-weight: bold;">On leather wings, Clayface: part 2 and Two Face: part 2</span> and a host of others, blew my mind, ( and Hamill,...GOD Hamill as the <span style="font-weight: bold;">Joker</span>!), so much so that if someone came along and told me that if I bludgeoned a kitten by hitting it with a puppy that I would be able to board on the show I would have had to stop and think about it for a second.<br />Now eventually I DID make it out here and through the simple ebb and flow of the industry I became friends with a LOT of the amazing artists that worked on the original show. So when I got the opportunity to do a freelance board on <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Batman Beyond</span> I dove at the chance.<br />Honestly, I wasn't that into <span style="font-weight: bold;">Beyond</span>. I watched it peripherally because I loved the original but it was kinda like watching <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Bewitched</span> with "the other Darren",....it was <span style="font-weight: bold;">kinda</span> the same,...but not, (although their <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Return of the Joker</span> special is an absolute masterpiece).<br />I wanna say I did this board for Dan Riba, who I remember being a sweetheart of a guy, and I must admit, (somewhat shamefully), that don't remember the name of the episode but I sure as Hell remember the FUN I had DOING it.<br />I was honored to have been afforded the ever so tiniest of places in the mountain of talent that birthed this whole craze and I think it shows in the work.<br />Interesting post script to this little story. A short while after I finished this freelance, I was in the comic store with my buddy who recommended me for the gig and Bruce Timm came in. My buddy introduced me as the guy who did the board and to my complete surprise, he commented on having really liked it and that I had done a good job. He left and my buddy turned to me and said, "He hardly ever does that."<br />I dunno if he was pulling my leg or not but I certainly appreciated the kind words. It was a little cherry on top of the sundae. A nod from the Godfather of Gotham. See that? It always comes back to <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">The Godfather</span> and y'know why?<br /><br />Cuz I'm a guy. ;)<br /><br />Thanks fer' lookin'.<br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_arkTHmLwulA/TI-YQjtsfMI/AAAAAAAAAE4/IT803QMtEH4/s1600/final_page_021.jpg"><br /></a>venkman71http://www.blogger.com/profile/04749627549908660392noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6823318082220841646.post-31780910292080893742010-09-11T07:25:00.000-07:002010-09-11T07:49:16.521-07:00Oh he's the king of the swingers! The jungle VIP!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_arkTHmLwulA/TIuRmyoq_GI/AAAAAAAAAEw/KYxN8x2jNO4/s1600/tarzan_color_final.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 181px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_arkTHmLwulA/TIuRmyoq_GI/AAAAAAAAAEw/KYxN8x2jNO4/s400/tarzan_color_final.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5515662264258722914" border="0" /></a>As much as King Louie would love to claim that title I think it has to go to his Disney cousin, Tarzan here.<br />The feature had, in my opinion, the greatest animation seen in a Disney film since the jungle book, (Kerchack, oh how your performance haunts me), and the most awesome Disney heroine, (Jane, not Terk), I think ever, ("And Daddy! he took my BOOT!").<br />So when I had the good fortune to end up working on <span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">The Legend of Tarzan</span> at Disney television, I dove at the chance.<br />Now as a crew, we knew we were gonna be limited to what we could do but we still pushed the envelope as much as a television budget would allow, up to and including some innovative digital techniques for casting a variety of canopy shadows on the characters.<br />There were a lot of tiny cheats afforded us by digital technology that would not have been possible ten years ago and for this reason, I think Tarzan stands out in the Disney stable as far as it's most ambitious feature-based series.<br />The image above, while not from the series itself, was done while I was on it. I loved drawing the characters and I think Jane and Tantor were my stand out favorites.<br />I was also fortunate enough to direct, (sort of), two episodes of the series.<br /><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">Tarzan and One-punch Mullargan</span> and <span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">Tarzan and the Rogue Elephant.</span><br />I never saw either of them when they aired and I think I went onto <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">House of Mouse</span> before the shows even came back for post but thanks to the magic of the internets,.....<br /><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kPvvEqo3MCs">www.youtube.com/watch?v=kPvvEqo3MCs</a><br />Though I must admit, when I saw my name as directed by I shrieked like a tiny child.<br />I was a small part, but I got to be a part! :)<br />Storyboards from Tarzan and the Rogue Elephant to come,........for no other reason than I went to the trouble to scan em' in so they're gonna go up somewhere! :)<br /><br />Have a great weekend everybody!venkman71http://www.blogger.com/profile/04749627549908660392noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6823318082220841646.post-212054834343938612010-09-09T13:12:00.000-07:002010-09-09T13:25:53.207-07:00Son of man look to the sky!<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_arkTHmLwulA/TIk_vJZ4qlI/AAAAAAAAAEo/QuI6lHFg3CQ/s1600/sketch+copy.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 250px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5515009297902774866" border="0" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_arkTHmLwulA/TIk_vJZ4qlI/AAAAAAAAAEo/QuI6lHFg3CQ/s400/sketch+copy.jpg" /></a><br /><div>My last post said something akin to "where did the time go?" and all I can do is echo that times a thousand. My original intent with this blog was an exploration of my favorite films through the medium of what can only be described as "animation art".</div><div></div><div>So while this may be the ever-so-slightest of deviations from that theme,...I recently found, (in the great reorganization of 2010), a LOT,...and when I say a LOT I mean a <strong>LOT</strong>,...of storyboards from my approximately six years of employment at <strong><em>Disney television animation and direct to video.</em></strong></div><div>Now while I was there, I worked on damn near everything that came through there at one point or another. From <em>The Mighty Ducks</em>, to <em>101 Dalmatians: the Series, Mouseworks, House of mouse, Mulan II, The legend of Tarzan,</em> and on, and on, and on,....so in cataloging everything, (and for the sake of putting <strong>something</strong> up till I can find a spare second to do some new material), I'll be putting up some selects you fellow animation nerds may find interesting.</div><div>Starting with Tarzan, because he's the man and while the show itself had hit and miss for animation., the pre-production and storyboards were the bee's knees, (as they say).</div><div></div><div>Stay tuned for more!</div>venkman71http://www.blogger.com/profile/04749627549908660392noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6823318082220841646.post-80706435833089233552010-03-08T17:56:00.001-08:002010-03-08T18:05:12.381-08:00Where does the time go?Well where oh where have the first few months of 2010 gone? Incidentally, for you <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">anime</span> fans out there, this is supposed to be the year the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Macross</span> lands if you believe in <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Robotech</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">mythos</span>, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">LOL</span>!<br />I, myself, will be sitting somewhere in the South Pacific on a yacht watching intently through my binoculars with baited breath, but I digress.<br />I finally checked back with this dusty blog and was surprised to see some comments on the good Doctor Jones piece as well as a few requests for color.<br />I thought, "well, it's not anywhere NEAR to being done but why not oblige and show the process, "warts and all".<br />This is a color sketch and nothing more. The background color is a tonal placeholder so the other colors have something to play off of, albeit temporarily.<br />It's only a portion of the bigger piece but here it is in lieu of a finished illustration!<br />Back at work after a long, "at home" vacation so now I will be able to work back in on this Indy piece and finish it before the next film comes out,....which should rightly be titled <em>Indiana Jones 5,...the apology</em>. ;)<br />Happy 2010 everybody! More drawings to do!<br /><br />And without further adieu,...<br /><br />Step two!<br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_arkTHmLwulA/S5Wq9qX3qyI/AAAAAAAAAEY/z3NsIrHOk8Q/s1600-h/indy+test_002.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5446447300697631522" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 226px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_arkTHmLwulA/S5Wq9qX3qyI/AAAAAAAAAEY/z3NsIrHOk8Q/s400/indy+test_002.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div></div>venkman71http://www.blogger.com/profile/04749627549908660392noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6823318082220841646.post-27964320385730501192010-01-11T17:31:00.001-08:002010-01-11T17:41:02.568-08:00Dare I?<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_arkTHmLwulA/S0vRIWFcDdI/AAAAAAAAADs/IeFt-RSshPY/s1600-h/indy+test.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5425660117395443154" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 292px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_arkTHmLwulA/S0vRIWFcDdI/AAAAAAAAADs/IeFt-RSshPY/s400/indy+test.jpg" border="0" /></a>This one's giving me the shakes a little bit. <div> </div><div>I mean,....there are few movies in the world of geek-<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">dom</span> that inspire such reverence as the original <em>Raiders of the Lost Ark</em>. Something tells me there's no middle ground on this one. You either capture it or you don't.</div><div> </div><div>But if I put it up HERE then I HAVE to finish it because the sketch bears witness to the drawing to come and so I guess I'm gonna do Indy,...scars and all,....and perhaps I won't make too poor a showing for the old boy.</div><div> </div><div>I was pleased enough with the initial sketch that I didn't throw myself off of a cliff like a screaming Nazi in a jeep but this one's got me on edge.</div><div> </div><div>If I'm able to pull this one off then I'll HAVE to do one with Marion,....("I always knew one day you'd come walking back through my door", springs immediately to mind),...and trying to translate Karen Allen to an animation design and still retain her Karen Allen-<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">ness</span> is gonna rob me of sleep! <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">LOL</span>!</div><div> </div><div>Wish me luck, readers! Some Indy-style, not-dying-in-a-hail-of-angry-Bible-ghosts kind of luck!</div><div> </div><div>I think I'm gonna need it. :p</div><div> </div><div><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Venky</span></div>venkman71http://www.blogger.com/profile/04749627549908660392noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6823318082220841646.post-45624902103675536492010-01-07T17:23:00.000-08:002010-01-07T17:37:14.261-08:00A very,(belated),Christmas Story!<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_arkTHmLwulA/S0aJWipzWBI/AAAAAAAAADk/5JOLOHKW4UA/s1600-h/momma%27s+little+piggy_for+web.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5424173821566605330" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 292px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_arkTHmLwulA/S0aJWipzWBI/AAAAAAAAADk/5JOLOHKW4UA/s400/momma%27s+little+piggy_for+web.jpg" border="0" /></a> <strong><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Awright</span>, so I'm late!....</strong><br /><p>I feel bad. I really do, (not that any of you are gonna fall down crying because I didn't make the Christmas Illustration on time), but it's year-one of this silly experiment known as my art blog so I'm still working out the kinks!</p><p>Merry Christmas everybody! Several weeks late but now that I am back in town and finally have access to all <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">mah</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">drawin</span>' things, I was able to finish this little tribute to one of my favorite Christmas films of all time!</p><p><em>A Christmas Story. </em>Based off of Jean Shepherd's charming little story <em>In God we trust, all others must pay cash</em> and directed by the saintly, (rest his soul), Bob Clark.</p><p>You know the scene! Randy jams his little face into his food with Melinda Dillon coaxing him on with her infectious laughter as the rest of the family looks on in horror.</p><p>It took forever to get the feel of the Parker's kitchen right and while I cannot say I am 100% pleased with it, (though I think my learning curve is getting shallower), I felt okay with abandoning, (works of art are never finished), it at this point.</p><p>So here is <em>"Mommy's little Piggy!"</em> until next Christmas when, I assure you my dear blog readers, I WILL have an <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">illo</span> done on time. ;)</p><p>Stay tuned for a peek at a certain whip-cracking archaeologist as well as a new bunch of studies that I think I will call, <em>The Amity Series. </em></p><p>No,....not the house in Long Island but rather an <strong>island </strong>that is <strong>long</strong>.</p><p>"Amity, as you know,...means friendship."</p><p><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Venky</span></p>venkman71http://www.blogger.com/profile/04749627549908660392noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6823318082220841646.post-82360617613068747702009-12-16T12:45:00.000-08:002009-12-16T12:51:32.586-08:00...Tis' the season!<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_arkTHmLwulA/SylHCa4fAWI/AAAAAAAAADc/YNWHVYZu1YE/s1600-h/piggypeek.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5415938133791277410" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 297px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_arkTHmLwulA/SylHCa4fAWI/AAAAAAAAADc/YNWHVYZu1YE/s400/piggypeek.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>Greetings fellow blog-lookers!</div><div> </div><div>A few things,....</div><div> </div><div>First, a big thank you to all who participated in the <em>Hey You Guys</em> charity auction. Those of you that showed interest helped make it, from what I understand, the most successful one they've ever done and I am personally speechless at the response to the <em><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Ghostbusters</span></em> piece. I cannot thank you folks enough. </div><div> </div><div>Second,... It's been a busy end of the year but I am working feverishly before my <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">sabbatical</span> to do my first annual Christmas illustration! </div><div> </div><div>It's entitled, "<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Momma's</span> Little Piggy" and for all you fellow nerds out there,.....I'm sure that's clue enough. If not,.....perhaps I will go sketch the rest of this piece by the light of my leg lamp,...which, as we all know,...is a major award!</div>venkman71http://www.blogger.com/profile/04749627549908660392noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6823318082220841646.post-23809237176033475672009-11-20T16:02:00.001-08:002009-11-20T16:11:40.992-08:00Ghostbusters!<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_arkTHmLwulA/SwcuNB3o5AI/AAAAAAAAADU/vg9IbMTaIKg/s1600/Sedgewick_final.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5406340679056548866" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 292px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_arkTHmLwulA/SwcuNB3o5AI/AAAAAAAAADU/vg9IbMTaIKg/s400/Sedgewick_final.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>That's right, Movie lovers!</div><div> </div><div></div><div>Took me a while but I finished the illustration for the <em>Hey You Guys</em> charity event my buddy Josh is participating in! </div><div> </div><div></div><div><a href="http://www.heyyouguyscharity.com/">http://www.heyyouguyscharity.com/</a></div><div></div><div>I believe the piece will go up into an art auction and while I dunno if this image will actually get sold off, it was a blast to participate in the process and a great reason to dip my feet into the GB pool, get the old motor revved up and do a bunch more illustrations of the boys in grey cause God knows, there are enough moments in that film worth drawing to keep me going till kingdom come! ;)</div><div> </div><div></div><div>This series is still "evolving" stylistically and I'll be working out the kinks as I go along. </div><div> </div><div></div><div>Hope you all enjoy! Thanks for looking!</div><div> </div><div></div><div><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Venky</span></div>venkman71http://www.blogger.com/profile/04749627549908660392noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6823318082220841646.post-51271528368776906402009-11-10T21:03:00.000-08:002009-11-10T21:09:18.742-08:00More sneak peeks!<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_arkTHmLwulA/SvpF8OPieqI/AAAAAAAAADM/Y1q4apS1oBU/s1600-h/teaseer_002.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5402707603902069410" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 172px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_arkTHmLwulA/SvpF8OPieqI/AAAAAAAAADM/Y1q4apS1oBU/s400/teaseer_002.jpg" border="0" /></a><br />Did a little more work on the illustration today. It's actually for my buddy Josh's charity art auction in December! I dunno if the piece will sell but I'm gonna do my level best to produce a nice piece of movie-related nostalgia, which, as luck would have it,...happens to be the theme of the auction this year.<br /><br />They're also gonna have a screening of a little film called <em>Ghostbusters</em>, which I've heard of,...<br /><br />I think I'm in the ballpark with this one. ;)<br /><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_arkTHmLwulA/SvpF3q8BCiI/AAAAAAAAADE/dBBERMqtf8U/s1600-h/teaseer_003.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5402707525705468450" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 172px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_arkTHmLwulA/SvpF3q8BCiI/AAAAAAAAADE/dBBERMqtf8U/s400/teaseer_003.jpg" border="0" /></a><br />More to come as I slowly progress on this!<br /><br />Lunch times and late-nights! ;)<br /><br />Venky.venkman71http://www.blogger.com/profile/04749627549908660392noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6823318082220841646.post-54043604631877544492009-11-09T19:12:00.001-08:002009-11-09T19:21:38.075-08:00A little tease,...<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_arkTHmLwulA/SvjaNYLcwNI/AAAAAAAAAC8/xm5SEhg9ikQ/s1600-h/teaser.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5402307676394537170" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 165px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_arkTHmLwulA/SvjaNYLcwNI/AAAAAAAAAC8/xm5SEhg9ikQ/s400/teaser.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>I was happy enough at a first pass of this scene to put up a little WIP,...(that's <em>work in progress</em>, for the uninitiated).</div><div> </div><div>Now, I'm <strong>sure</strong> it aint' gonna take a rocket scientist to guess what I'm working on but for those who may not be as rabid film-geeks as the miscreants in the circle I travel in, I'll give you a little hint,...</div><div> </div><div><em>"Well,..Most of the original staff knows about the twelfth floor,...the disturbances, I mean!"</em></div><div><em></em> </div><div>That's all you're gonna get but most of the folks I know who'll be seeing this guessed it before they read a single word! LOL! </div><div> </div><div>I've been meaning to do these drawings for <strong>years</strong>.</div><div> </div><div>I'm completely psyched that I'm finally starting! LOL! </div><div> </div><div>This one may take a while but I <strong>promise</strong>, it'll be worth the wait! ;)</div><div> </div><div>Venky</div>venkman71http://www.blogger.com/profile/04749627549908660392noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6823318082220841646.post-72440754796451885652009-11-08T07:34:00.000-08:002009-11-08T07:53:17.948-08:00For my fellow finheads!<a href="http://fototime.com/9CE237A9DCF3AAB/standard.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 438px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 480px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="http://fototime.com/9CE237A9DCF3AAB/standard.jpg" /></a><br />I apologize to those of you who may have seen this image a kajillion times but now that I have an "official" place for my movie/toon related junk this is where it's gonna live!<br /><br />Besides, though this image has made an appearance on a few boards nobody has seen the high-res version of it, (click-a-the-pic!)<br /><br />I waffled on posting this one for a few reasons,...first, it's old! LOL! Old as dirt. I did this thing a thousand years ago when I still drew on paper! (been all-digital for six years now).<br /><br />Second,...it's not a great drawing but I think it's a case of the whole being bigger than the sum of it's parts kind of thing.<br /><br />This of course, is the movie version of the Rocketeer with the graphic novel version of "Jenny" aka "Betty" which was NOT supposed to be Jennifer Connelly but rather, (and to you finheads I know you already know this one), cult pinup queen Bettie Page.<br /><br />Stay tuned for more scenes from this amazing, brilliant film inspired by the work of the late, (rip, sir), VERY great Dave Stevens.<br /><br />I know Disney dicked you over on the film and wouldn't release the rights back to you but screw em, man. You'll still get the last laugh.<br /><br />Oh! And incidentally,.....finhead is the term Rocketeer aficionados refer to themselves as.<br /><br />Take a peep at the helmet and it all makes sense! ;)<br /><br />Hood ornaments,....they all look like hood ornaments. Fear not, fellas! The new illustrations will put this here lil' fella to shame! ;)<br /><br />More to come!<br /><br />Venkyvenkman71http://www.blogger.com/profile/04749627549908660392noreply@blogger.com3