VH1's 100 Sexiest Artists!

... mmm-MMMM!  Just in time for Thanksgiving we as a people can finally come together to celebrate not just the gifted or "talented" artists, but the 100 SEXIEST ARTISTS.  Check out the short animation above (credits) that I worked on & for more of Malika Favre's excellent work go here!  I haven't seen the show on TV but I can make a few guesses as to who they may have picked for their top 100:

1.  Shirtless Picasso ... obviously.

2.  Ann Romney

3.  Billy Zane as The Phantom

4.  James Quall 

5.  Courtney Stodden

6.  Mama Berenstain Bear

7.  Young Tim Meadows

8.  Robocop Action Figure w/ Battle Damage

9 - 100.  Grace Kelly, because my goodness!

I Hope You Voted Today!

.... or pole-dancing Newt Gingrich will find you.

NEW TED-Ed Animation - Electoral College

I just finished up my latest project with TED-Ed about everyone's favorite least-controversial subject of The Electoral College.  It's free, buddy!

Special thanks to my lovely producer Bridgette Spalding and the handsome sound designer Eric Hoffman.

Are You Like Most People?

... find out soon!  

More TED-Ed in the Works

... this time with more topical!

*bonus

Philip De Guard x "Bewitched Bunny"

Can anyone ever get tired of Looney Tunes?

I was doing a bit of traveling this weekend and managed to watch a few episodes before my laptop crapped out on me.  These screenshots were taken from the Bugs Bunny episode "Bewitched Bunny"[YouTube]:

Bugs Bunny is as dapper as his framing.

Everything about the witch's house is so crooked.

The backgrounds by Philip de Guard are frustratingly good.

Amazing wall-art for any child eater.

I think more posts about Philip de Guard are in order... 

TED-Ed: The Powers of Ten

I'm a bit busy at the moment to write too much more about it at this time, but check out TED-Ed and my website for more information!  Unfortunately at the moment the great sound people over at Henry Boy went uncredited, but that should be amended shortly.

Stay tuned for more!

TED-Ed: Storyboards VS. Final Product

Here's a side-by-side of some shots from my upcoming animation for TED-Ed.  On the left is the original storyboard accompanied with their final composition.

This scene originally called for more complicated movements by the piano tuner, but in order to meet the deadline I simplified the overall animation in the final.

This character was originally supposed to be a young boy, but given what happens to him I didn't want to have to redo anything... that's why I ended up going with "non-descriptive creepy guy"

There's a lot of text animation in this piece, and I saved laying that out until I was in production mode.

This one turned out pretty similar to the boards.

This scene was modified a bit to take advantage of the screen space... keeping the magnifying glass small on screen for 15 seconds would've looked too awkward. 

I kept his teeth clenched together to save some time... the sacrifices one must make in order to beat the clock!

Coming Soon: TED-Ed

I've been busy with more fun freelance projects lately, the most recent to have wrapped is a short I directed, designed & animated for TED Talks' sister site, TED Ed.  A few months ago my friend Jeremy pointed me to this page on their site saying that I should put my name in the hat for animator nominations.  A few weeks later I was contacted about doing some work and was assigned a four minute lesson.  I was granted a lot of creative control and it was such a pleasure to have the opportunity to work on a project for TED.  Before it's official release, I'll be posting a few bits from the production like storyboards, sound work, design ideas, and other random info.  

In the meantime, here are a few screenshots of what to expect: 

Awww yeah there will be pianos!

... this is where creative control is fun to exercise.

There will also be pianos in pants.

Everyone's fourth-favorite 20th Century physicist!

TIME TO WAKE UP.

I've got an exciting new project coming up, more to follow...