The Demo Reel section has been updated with 3 reels dating back to 2007. I’ll get a vimeo version up for Rio once I work out the audio issue.
Rich
I know I have been neglecting my blog for a long time. We’ve been in pre production on Ice Age 4, so things have been rather slow, but I finally have something new to put out here! I just enrolled in Character Design with Stephen Silver, through Schoolism. Stephen Silver is the character designer of Kim Possible, Danny Phantom and Clerks the animated series, among other things, and is ridiculously talented.
I love learning online. It grants you access to some of the best talent out there from the comfort of your own home. Animation Mentor is a perfect example of this, and allowed me to make the jump from Games to Film. Being an advocate of constantly learning new skillsets, I am glad Schoolism offers some exciting classes in Character design, Digital painting and many more. Here are a few examples of Stephen Silver’s work. I’ll update when I can if it’s looking better then what a 3rd grader would do!
Thanks to everyone who looked, spread the word, or bid on the poster! It was a huge success and I was able to raise a few hundred dollars from the auction. Woo hoo!
Recently I learned that an old friend from High school was diagnosed with Acute Myelogenous Leukemia or AML. Having family members who have gone through similar struggles, I know how much of a toll it can take emotionally, physically and financially. In an attempt to help Chris and his family, I am posting an auction for the international poster for “Rio”, Blue Sky Studios’ next feature film, which has been signed by the Animation staff & Director Carlos Saldanha.
Link to Auction HERE: http://tinyurl.com/6g3dptg
Bidding is open to: North America, South & Central America, Europe & Oceania. I will cover the insurance & shipping costs.
Here is a little more on Chris:
Chris O’Connell is a husband, father, son, brother and friend, and always has been one of the most sincere and kind people you could ever hope to know.
In late August 2010, Chris went to the doctor to have a sore throat checked out, and what followed was the shock of a lifetime. As he put it “One day, you go to the doctor’s office with a sore throat and think you just need some medicine to fix it, and the next thing you know they’re admitting you to the hospital for the foreseeable future. Life’s crazy, but we fight through it.”
Chris was diagnosed with Acute Myelogenous Leukemia or AML, and began intensive chemotherapy immediately after diagnosis to kill off the leukemia cells. Following chemotherapy, Chris’ medical team began the search for a bone marrow donor. It was determined that there were no matches within his family.
Thankfully, due to the National Bone Marrow registry (www.bonemarrow.org) Chris found a match within the 17 million registrants, and successfully received his bone marrow transplant in early December.
Following the transplant Chris was quarantined in his hospital room for a period of 3 and half weeks… a difficult task, not only for him but his wife and two young daughters, as well. Nothing like having to Skype into your living room to be a part of Christmas morning!
As of January 2011, Chris is recovering at home with his family while his body tries to adjust its new cells and he deals with side effects of the transplants. Chris is still within the 100 day window post-transplant, so his major challenge is to avoid catching any illnesses from his kids and extended family, while trying to gain strength.
As you can imagine, cancer takes a toll on a person’s whole life, including their financial life. The O’Connell’s have set up a special account in order to receive donations that will be used to pay for medical expenses and day-to-day expenses that have impacted their household due to Chris’ treatment (ie. transportation to and from hospital, parking, childcare, etc). Let’s help Chris with his fight against leukemia and support his family by contributing to their fund.
More information can be found at http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/chrisoconnell
If you have any questions, you can email me at auctionforchris@gmail.com .
Lastly, if you don’t want to bid on the auction but are willing to make a donation, go through the web address above, or contact me via email provided.
The latest film from Blu Sky.
So the story goes something like this….
During one of my Q&A sessions, I was explaining how to approach a particular assignment, and covered things I did NOT want to see. Since I had warned them of this potential pitfall, I told them that if I saw it in their week’s assignment I would cry “Animation Tears”. One of my students (Jason Dozois) who is also a talented musician composed this little number for the class. I love it!
Just as funny, one of the responses from a student read: “I’m sure it will be in my head all day tomorrow like a worm in my ears.”
I can just hear the next song now, lovingly called “A worm in my ears (Your lecturing)”. Beautiful.
I finished up my work on “Rio” this week, and with that, I would like to wish everyone a happy Thanksgiving!!!
We started our season last night, and with a lot of new faces on our indoor team it’ll take a couple games to get in a groove and shake the rust off. (for me especially) Unfortunately we dropped the first match 3-1, but the level of talent on the team has gone up in my opinion! Thanks to Michael Richard for the pic!
And there you have it! Out April 8th!
