something was here....

i swear...

i stood there...

and waited...

astronauts love lowriders...

its true...

the decoylab is at it again...

first with her 3 print series and then now these new animal alphabets :) keep up the good work maiko... its always refreshing.

XYZ draws your socks off...

in line with linking to nice reels, XYZ takes a nice slow paced journey trough their recent work. The track selected is very appropriate and rockin' - and the edits are very conscience of the camera within each spot - nicely done :)

sigh.

Umm... bjork wanderlust + 3d + ghetto + hospital?

So first off Bjork's Wanderlust video is up on the interwebs in 3-d. Hosted by wired.com check it out here (now) Secondly, if you were like me and super excited to see it, but don't own a pair of 3d glasses --- well they kindly posted a few ways to view it in 3d, and what you would need. I did go the ghetto route with the cd case, and it actually worked out while looking like a complete fool!
edited.

google + doodle = doogle?

i google searched for 'room', and then selected a large image to draw on top of... it's late and i should be working rather then sketching but -- it seemed like something i wanted to do. w0rd

Testing my mobile future phone blogging

success! now im in ur internets from where ever I happen to be :)

it rained all day..

leci n'est pas une pipe

RJD2 -- was in kansas city tonight and it was sick..

i took lots of video... but I was front row so the bass was just rocking my little camera microphone :P so sick... RJD2

daystartribe ++ dallas texas

painting up in the ghetto of oakcliff with promote, halo, phayth and on the side motion and grasp. wordup. and yes i fell both knees deep in a 5 gallon bucket of paint... this is your one chance to get a nice full belly laughter going... ready set... go..

wow simply wow...

going to be sooo good :) >link<

back from the lone star state...

and here is some better images from the wall that I painted, as long with a full picture, and some progression images. it was tough having not painted in a few years to get back into the swing of things, but having nice paint surely did make it a smooth transition.... i just couldn't nail my character right... i can really get some nice qualities out of sketches, but doing it large and in another medium just threw me off big time... but i'm pretty happy with the character on the right... :) fun fun

the stars at night...are big and bright.....

still away - get back tomorrow night but here is some phone imagery.... to hold you over ;)

Away from keyboard!

im going to be taking a trip back to tejas to visit the family. you all behave. and i'll be back soon :)

whislting while I work

and i found this comment great.... i usually get a few spam comments from time to time, but they usually are one word links to random sites, this one links to cellulite.. lol

History of America Q&A with Wonderland.

"Four years in the making, the film was improbably produced by a skeleton crew of one or two animators (at any given time) working nights and weekends. Still, Mk12, responsible for The Kite Runner’s slick credit sequence and the visual effects in Stranger Than Fiction (along with ads for Budweiser and videos for bands like Hot Hot Heat), managed to give the film a remarkably consistent verve and steady stream of visual jokes, like ten-gallon hats rigged with satellite dishes and astronauts bringing their zero-gravity down to the planet with them. Best is the film’s cheesy “instructional” video opener that features a history professor spouting nonsense and swilling a cold-syrup liquor."
head on over and read for reason, cause, and mischief. [read]

When the fighters all around All the lovers are on the ground Noone will save you anymore So whats happenin Whachu you rappin about Lets see boy Is it cars Is

it girls
Is it money
The world

Or is it somethin they could never believe
Or is it somethin you could never acheive
Is it beyond your means
Is it inside your dreams
Can it
Never come out
Cuz its scared to
Unprepared to
To worry about the words of the people is weird too
You dont want em to hear you
You just wish it was a door that would appear that you can go disappear through
Well im feelin your pain
I was feelin the same
But I said id never feel that again

-Lupe fiasco, The Cool, Fighters.

I was talking to van the other day and I was talking about my love of this song, and how i played it all last friday on repeat pretty much..... tonight when listening to it, i had this image pop into my head and i stopped working and drew it out, then scanned it in... it would be a lot of fun to work on... enjoy!

my cat that doesnt look like my cat...

as I was sitting in my recliner with my shoulder aching from constantly having mouse in hand... i took a nice laid back position with tablet in lap and drew a quick sketch of my cat as she laid in front of me in another chair... it doesn't quite look like her...but it does look like a cat..... so i'm some where in the ballpark! lol.

bjork's wanderlust.

the good ol' boys over at encylopedia pictura have outdone themselves with the newly released bjork music video. just beatuiful and so refreshing amongst everything that is being produced music video wise.... this instantly is now on my favorite music videos of all time... enough jibbering go watch it! michael over at ventilate has posted a high res, how nice of him :)

hi little birdy on my tummy

Helpful hints for making a reel.

i've been meaning to write this up for awhile now but... I think im ready to sit down and write out some thoughts, since I recently talked about this over at the kansas city art institute with fellow work john baker for one of the animation classes.

First and foremost I get asked a lot what are good tips for putting together a good reel. Everyone is going to have their personal take on what makes a reel stand out and what makes a real only watchable for 5 seconds, but nonetheless here are some bullet points that may or may not help you on your way.

Show your voice.
every animator has their voice, whether that be your approach to the creative or unique ways in presenting old ideas. While showcasing your work that may speak to your voice, the reel as a whole is a presentation of YOU. Some people create unique animation bookends for the reel, an introduction animation and ending animation, some people create a theme to weave in and out of the work edited together so that it all feels concise and seamless giving you interest to finish the entire reel. So pick an element to make your presentation unique, its the small things that stand out - it doesn't have to be grand!

Edit yourself.
Just because you animated 500 spots last year doesn't mean every single one has to be included. Show your strong work, and show the strong areas of that work. You don't have to show full pieces, and you don't have to show all 18 camera views of that 3d teapot your modeled. And if you are on the opposite end of the spectrum and don't have that much work because your a student -- make short animations for yourself as experimental creative challenges. Seeing assignments is ok, but people really want to see the work that you took to the next step, and the work that you went out of your way to create, even during a 16 hr semester.

Music...Spice girls are cool and all but....
Music is always a controversial thing, and very hard to even begin to talk about but.. lets try. Try to pick something with enough energy to get you through the piece, someone that has rhythm for edits, but something that isn't overbearing... death metal may be your thing, but it might not be your clients... try to be neutral with your selection and as obscure as possible... the less heard track will often get you a viewing rather then someone who has heard a track 18 times that day while reviewing reels... if you can and have the ability.. create your own track.. making a simple unique track is something else that shows you went out of your way to make a nice package and presentation, again with the small things... they count.

Fonts, the good the bad and the ugly.
If you really cant pick a good font just pick a safe font. Just because you think all of the misprinted types are awesome and all (which they are in their own merit) just don't pick something that is so overused.. back again to the unique take on your reel. If you really want to be safe... go sans-serif or something that is a standard and clean. Make it simple to read, and easy on the eyes.. no one wants to pause your reel because they can't make out your email address, or phone number. But if you pick a bad font, you will be judged accordingly.. i promise.

I think that's a few good rules to go by, and maybe later i'll make a posting with some of my favorite reels... and yes I do keep a folder of just reels... :) and remember, you never know whos looking.. so always give credit for the music your using, especially if you take one of mk12's inhouse created audio tracks, or anyone else's hand crafted fine work... be respectful to every aspect, and most importantly.. be yourself.. let your voice shine... :)

w0rd. hope this helps and isn't too lame.