Highlights for me were:
Jonas Odell's retrospective:
I really enjoyed the diversity of his Animation/Motion graphics techniques and styles.. I thought the film 'Lies' was very successful both in content and look. 'Never like the first time' was good as well. This told four different stories about peoples 'first time'. I think these worked well because they were all based on real peoples stories.
He's also done several music videos and I think it would be fun to work in this area of Animation. His primary software tools he uses is After Effects.
I talked to him at the party and found out that he used to use a sketchbook but not so much anymore and that he hasn't got a degree but just knew the right people which put him onto the right track. He also said he doesn't know anyone who can fund their own work without going into commercials.
Pritt Parn:
Very nice work.. incredibly imaginative and totally his own. It was a lot to absorb. As soon as my attention began to fade something crazy would happen and re-engage me. Loose narratives and a humorous aspect to his work... I found it both funny and upsetting when one of the characters is convinced that 'Life is Nice' - as soon as he shouts this out to someone trying to commit suicide the beak of a bird impales him...Harsh!
I also found some of his character designs very fun like the walking carrot.. completly random but entertaining nonetheless.
The talk
I did a couple of workshops :
Character design workshop:
with Curtis Jobling who drew Bob the Builder.. He mainly told us his life story and how he got to where he is. After completing a HND in Illustration he managed to get unpaid work experience at Aardman this soon led to getting paid work on commercials with them. He was extremely pro-active, always drawing, visiting publishers and broadcasters consistently, keeping ongoing correspondence and making the connections. He was inspired by 'the Sandman' and illustrated a couple of his own childrens books - 'Frankensteins cat' before working on Bob the Builder. After his lecture he asked us to draw a few caricatures of eachother.
I took down the following notes :
Networking - being pro-active
Being at the right place at the right time
If designing a show/book avoid being Brit Centric i.e. using British roadsigns etc... because your work may need to be marketed internationally
Greetings Cards - Good way of networking
Develop different ideas simultaneously
When designing a set of Characters keep something consistent in all of them
Keep characters timeless don't set them in a particular time period as they may get old fashioned... (i.e. Poochie in The Simpsons)
Its your portfolio/showreel that matters
Have 100% belief if your idea
Keep doing life drawing (good for knowledge of anatomy)
Caricatures (good way to approach Character)
Sketchbooks are vital for:
Good practice & Discipline
Stockpiling ideas
Working through different Characters
Get constructive and helpful criticism from a trustworthy friend
Good to bounce ideas off other people and work collaboratively
Curtis saw some of my own work and was impressed with my illustrated book 'How to make an Amblonguss Pie' He said that it was excellent, well designed and that it's unique - he's never seen anything like it before.. I will post my Amblonguss Pie book up soon...
Scriptwriting workshop:
No one actually showed up for the Friday session so I ended up just having a 1:1 chat with him. He gave me a lot of advice on writing and pitching and told me what its like working as a writer. I asked him about 'Pinky and Perky' and he told me that it wasn't so successful due to physical gaps in production - ie. he writes the script in one country, it gets produced in another etc...
Shows must be a lot more cohesive when everyone working on them is in the same building (I'm not sure if this happens so much anymore with the internet.) He also told me that the reasons why The Simpsons is so successful is that they spend 9 months writing each episode. Writing then re-writing then writing again with everyone involved... Crazy!
He instructed that to be successful at pitching you must have energy, enthusiasm and good presentation. If you're presenting a TV series just show a 1/2 minute Pilot.. A lot of films start off with an early complication that the rest of the film has to go on (i.e. UP - Starts off with the tragedy of the Old Character losing his wife.) He also said how making films is a lot like making music.. He said how important characters roles are in films and you can pitch your idea through the characters perspectives - (ie. imagine you are this person.....)
My favourite films:
Professional: The Cat Piano, Liver Good Life
Student: Operatatatata, Bruce, Project: Alpha, Leitmotif
Commercials: Journey to the East, OXFAM: Face the music
Music Videos: Les grands chevaux
Tv series: Masha and the Bear "How they met"
Shorts shorts: Iran: a Nation of Bloggers, At Death's Door, The life of Death
Features: Fantastic Mr Fox, Coraline, UP (didn't see Mary and Max - noooooo!)
Panoramas: Txt island, Sapmi, Wolves, Photograph of Jesus, Little Puppet Boy
Lies, The Cable Car
Focusing on the favourites of my favourites:
Journey to the East:
Love the artwork behind this, the music and the animation. Amazin'!
At Death's door:
Good characterisation ... very short and very funny.
Fantastic Mr Fox:
Didn't see it at Bradford but in Falmouth... Thought it was really good and lived up to the legendary work of Roald Dahl. Good characters. The whole film worked together nicely and was consistantly entertaining. The Animation and sets were imaginatively created and executed. Liked the implicit meaning that 'Meditation is good.'
The Cable Car:
Looked visually appealing and was pretty funny. Admired his ability to cope in a high stress situation..
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