Brainmelt

Heya Blog,

So I mentioned in a previous post that Im not sure where my sketch book drawings are going at the moment. They seem so radically different to what I was drawing a year ago, and its really hard to tell if Im regressing.

Ive been thinking about it for the last couple of days, and I guess the more I work professionally the more my sketches move away my norm. I'm thinking that a lot of my drawings in recent years have been geared towards getting me work in the animation industry, so maybe as a become more confident in my professional work my drawings are more focused on things I like, rather than things I think employers might like... I dunno...if you are a potential employer I still care what you think!



And some actual sketchbook pages-



I was inspired by my good friend Benjamin Drake head down to the museum on Sunday and do a study or two. This was about 20 minutes i guess, its a life size bronze statue, but it was so poorly signed that all I can tell you is that it was made in 1935. I need to do more stuff like this!

Cafe Sketches-

on a side note, I would like to share with you my two favourite Animation Artist Blogs. I've had them on my side bar for a while, but they are a regular read and constant inspiration for me so I thought I'd give them a mention-
Tekkoman- Amazingly talented Animation Designer and probably a complete pervert.
Nick Sung- Story artist at Pixar. I love his drawings, but I am in awe of his perspective of the world.
Hope you are all well :)
Love
Alex

The Nature of our Industry

I am currently employed in a large animation studio with over 100 colleagues. Mid last week a large majority of the studio I work at was stood down without notice, myself included, for a yet to be defined amount of time. It was explained by the owner to us in a brief meeting. I think that it is ok for me to mention this here as it seems like it was a story that was spread quite quickly amongst people in the Australian animation industry (i received messages from 2 friends in other states half an hour after the meeting saying that they heard about it.)

I dont think it appropriate to talk about the specifics of how this came to be or to blame any specific cause, but I would like to talk briefly about a phrase that was uttered during the meeting. "The nature of our industry".

It seems to be accepted that people in our industry can be treated differently than those in others. Perhaps its the perception that we are "lucky" to work in our profession. Perhaps it is a lack of a unified body or union. Im not really sure, but I very much doubt that if you stood down dozens of people without notice in other office that it would considered par for the course.

I dont think that the industry can thrive while the people working in it are mistreated. Seniors will retire early into different fields, juniors will be disillusioned, and with the creative quality compromised as a result the demand from clients will decline. I do not accept that the industry has to be this way, and hope that I never facilitate it doing so.


I am hopeful that I will be able to work with talented people on bay st again soon.

If you are involved in the situation and feel that this post in inappropriate please email at afgrigg@gmail.com

Love Alex.

Storyboard Studies. And a note on talent.

I have no innate talent for storyboarding, but it something I enjoy greatly. These are are some studies done this morning to take my mind off things.Theres no way for me to explain how excited the Where the Wild Things Are trailer made me. It brings together so many things that resonate with me. An amazing director who inspires me beyond words, a fantastic story, and genius music. the cynic in me would suggest that all of this is to much of a coincidence, that some genius marketing department has cooked all this up in their pot- a magic potion that will effortlessly achieve cult film status. but the truth is that i dont care, because i am not a cynic at heart. I am excited that so many talented people were given the chance to make the film.
if you are interested in film stills, for study or otherwise, check out Framefilter. A great collection, regularly updated by cal arts graduate and dreamworks storyboard artist.

To expand on my mention of innate talent (a very controversial topic in creative circles)-
I don't have innate talent for anything i do in creative fields. This is not a designed self-deprecating statement, it is a realisation that i came across years ago and has so far helped me immensely in my development. There are people that have innate talent, ideas and concepts come to them, lines flow effortlessly from their pencil. I have worked and studied with these people, and they are truly inspirational. In contrast to them everything I do is a battle. From start to finish. Despite this, I have so much energy for what I do, and I think this goes a long way to compensate for what I lack.
I would be interested in how you feel about talent, Im sure there are some strong opinions out there.