This is an excellent film. I saw it last night for the first time, and it’s truly a well crafted story. I bookmarked this review to read after I’d seen the film and collected my own thoughts on the story, and I couldn’t have said it better myself. Check out the film, and the review if you want to learn about good storytelling.

These guys are pretty funny. I already posted their latest video the other day. This one in particular appealed to me as an animator because of the use of simple gestures (pose) to create completely contrasting characters. I’m not saying you’d want to be this obvious in all your posing, but it’s good for illustrative purposes to show how quickly you can get character across. You can also tell these guys are just having fun working on these videos, and it reminds me that if I’m not having fun animating, there’s really no point. Stop by their site for more off the wall humor and fun. Great work guys!

Here’s an Edweard Muybridge tribute I found on YouTube today. I’ve often wondered if this sort of thing was out there, and I finally searched for it today. If you’re lucky enough to own the complete three volume set, good for you. But in this day and age I wouldn’t be surprised to see the complete plates converted to Quicktime files. I wonder if the bottom will fall out of the value of the books then? Animators today are so spoiled for resources. We really have no excuses. Thanks to Meredith Schwartz for putting this together.

The success of any comic idea depends not just on the skill with which it is executed, but more importantly on the attitude with which it is performed.

Download here.

Click the image to be taken to a great article by Vanity Fair on the ink and paint girls at Disney Animation in the early 30s, 40s, and 50s.

Great motion reference. I especially love the rabbit stuff. There’s so much subtle movement going on there that an animator can feed off of.

From Spungella.

I just discovered a new show on AMC called Storymakers. I don’t watch much TV, but when I do, I usually try to find something related to film making and the arts. A&E, TCM, and AMC are my first stops. Last night I stumbled upon an episode featuring Cameron Diaz, Judd Apatow, and Tom Cruise. I love everything about this show from the casual conversation, to the way it’s shot, to the title sequences (shown below). You really feel like a fly on the wall eavesdropping on great conversations about film making. Nothing beats spending down time watching shows like this one, Inside the Actor’s Studio, or an old classic film.

AMC Storymakers from Michael Wasilewski on Vimeo.

With the success of Avatar, it didn’t take long for a slew of articles and making of videos to pop up around the internet. This movie really is revolutionary as far as technology goes, so anyone in the industry should read the articles, and watch the videos. Isn’t it amazing that a former truck driver from Canada now owns the #1 and #2 spot on the all time sales list for movies?

Anyway, aside from the video, there’s some great info in this CG Society article. Here’s an excerpt:

The Virtual Art Department (VAD) would come up with an environment for a certain scene, then Cameron would use the Steering Wheel to walk around the environment with his art department crew and point out needed adjustments, like moving a particular tree so he could shoot from a preferred angle. The VAD artists sat on stage with him so they could immediately move the assets on Cameron’s request. It allowed him to scout the location of the digital set with the camera using similar methodologies as if it were a live-action shoot, and the equivalent of telling a Greens Department how he wanted to dress out the scene. It was like a live action movie with all the benefits of a CG movie.

Amazing eh? Moving along, Z Brush Central gives you a look at the modeling of the Avatar world with a ton of meshes.

And if you really want to find out how the movie was made in depth, I suggest you pick up the latest issue of Cinefex.

These guys are so charismatic, and their voices…WOW. It’s too bad not all of them got to voice animated characters. In the last Walt’s People interview I transcribed, the interviewee described how the best voice talent for the Disney films often came from radio. Some of these men have such a background, and it makes me think about today’s radio talent, and who would be a good fit for an animated character in this era. Perhaps an unknown yet established voice talent from radio could do a better job for less money than a big name Hollywood star. I could listen to these guys for hours, especially Orson Welles.

A slight pause from the glorious production art I’ve been feeding you lately to share with you all another great blog full of acting reference. Boy, I love acting reference! Kyle Kenworthy is a pretty good animator, and his blog is full of acting reference, movie stills, and other good stuff too. I suggest you stop by and check it out. Thanks for all the goods Kyle!