Zombie Spongebob

Right when I was finishing summer camp back in August, I got a message from a friend about a position opening up in a studio in Rochester. I interviewed, and did a test for them. They requested a zombie Spongebob walk cycle, and so I did my best. I haven't heard from them in a while, and I'm not sure if they'll still hire me, but I was super happy with the way this came out. I had never really drawn someone else's character before, let alone animated it with a little variation. Could use more work, had about two nights to work on it. It reminded me how much fun animating is :) Also, copyrights go to Nickelodeon! Consider this "fanart" :P

Back!

As a sort of, "Hey look I'm back!" I'm deciding to post two pages of my scrapbook that I completed today. I think a lot of people view scrapbooking as an amateur arts and crafts hobby, but I really think it's a great exercise for composition and layout. Plus it's a neat way to display memories creatively and colorfully! And so, I present two pages of memories from over a year ago (yes, I need to catch up).

I haven't posted since last summer, and that's because I was completing an intense one year Master's program for Art Education. After that, I shipped myself off to Braeside Camp to be an arts and crafts instructor/counselor. More on that in upcoming posts.

But anyways, I hope to post a lot more artwork and doodles in the future. Maybe even lesson plan ideas and thoughts on games. Did I mention I conquered the God of War trilogy in my down time this summer? AWESOME series! Great story line, and great puzzles.

Alright, talk to you all again soon! Enjoy these last days of summer :)

The end is near...

For those of you who don't know, one of my true loves in life is cleaning, as show below:

No new news really, but I felt like posting since I haven't in a bit. My FableVision internship ends on Friday (boooooooo) and I leave Boston on Saturday. I've gotten a nice little attic apartment in Rochester with my boyfriend, and we'll be moving in in two weeks. Then, I start training for my Union Services position at the Center for Campus Life, and I start my Art Education MST in September.

As far as goals go after that, I've got a few options. One is to make it back to Boston to work at one of the great Flash studios up here (fingers crossed for FableVision one day). Or to get my MFA while working, perhaps in Georgia, San Francisco, LA, or Vancouver. Heck, I'd even be open to animating in India, since travel is also something I've always wanted to pursue.

Well, I guess that's enough blather about goals :) Hopefully I can get some clearance to post some of the stuff I've been working on for FableVision once the internship ends. We'll see!

Have a good week, everyone!

Banner!

So if you haven't noticed yet, I've created a banner for my blog. I really like the way the illustration came out:

I'm hoping my drawings continue to get looser and more fun like this one in the future. I'd like to work on more illustrations like this one of my friends, but possibly alter the styles a little bit for each one depending on their different personalities. I feel this one represents me pretty well :)

As a little bit of an update, I haven't been able to find a job yet, so in the fall I'm going to return to RIT for a year to get my MST in Art Education. I'm most nervous about working with kids, because I'm not really sure how I'll fare. But I am really excited about getting into the psychology and how to's of art education, because I think it will help me be a better children's artist and animator.

Also, I got a copy of "Ish" yesterday, and had it signed by Peter H. Reynolds! It was a very exciting book signing, there were cupcakes and lots of kids, and he even offered a few encouraging words. I really hope I get to work with him and FableVision one day, his books and words are so inspiring.

11 Second Club - June '10

This was my 11 Second Club entry for June. I was trying to learn Flash, so I animated in Flash frame by frame. I came in 30th out of 158 with a rating of 5.7 Not too shabby for my first time, although I think it was the character designs that got me there, and not the animation.

I'd like to try entering the competition with a traditionally drawn piece and see how I do then.

Summertime!

Well hello there!

It's been a while. The past month has been insanely busy: finishing my thesis, graduation, moving out of Rochester, a week at home, and then moving to Boston. Anyways, I am now a college graduate with a BFA in Film and Animation! I can't post the film just yet because I'd like to submit it to some festivals, but eventually I will.

I moved to Boston on Friday, and I'm sure I'm going to love it here. As a country girl, the public transit system seemed pretty daunting, but I got my Link Pass and I rode the subway so I've got a handle on that now. I'm close to Harvard Square, so that's really nice. And a good portion of my roommates are international, which is awesome because I get to learn about Europe!

Tomorrow I start my internship at FableVision Studios, which I'm really excited about. By the end of the summer, I hope to gain a solid grasp of Flash as well as knowledge of a professional environment. I've been drawing in Flash to help prepare myself for the internship. It's hard, because I'm used to being very loose with my drawings, using circles and gesture lines as a foundation. But I do like the graphic look of Flash, so I think I should at least enjoy learning how to draw in a new way. Here's two drawings I did over the past two days (there were also a lot of doodles which I chose to scrap):

(They both happen to be love-themed because I'm missing my boyfriend a lot right now :P)

I need to do a lot more exploring of the city. I'm pretty sure I'm going to going to the beach this weekend with my housemates, which should be fun. I also really want to see the aquarium, the Freedom Trail, some museums, and of course experience all the shopping and food Boston has to offer! Hopefully after all the visits from my boyfriend, my mother, and my friends (so excited for the 4th of July!!!) I'll have some really great Boston experiences under my belt.

Life is good! Keep loving it!

Gretchen, you colorful thing.

An environment created for my gorgon, Gretchen. It depicts her bedroom and her great big open door looking out on her bright, fantasy flip-flopped world:

And three characters that could appear alongside Gretchen. First, Cerberus the puppy. Second, Gretchen's best friend Harriet, who is a harpy (and whom I have to fix so she doesn't look so much like a girl in a bird costume). And last, the evil mastermind Sparkles the unicorn. He looks rather dashing, but that's the point. He's a very arrogant villain.

Ok, that's all for now.

Oh and did I mention that I was offered an internship at FableVision? WELL I WAS! AND I'M SO TAKING IT! Their studio is fantastic, both in what it creates and why it creates. I'm so glad I'm getting the opportunity to learn from them over the summer. They use a lot of Flash (which I really want to learn). Browse their website when you get a chance! www.fablevision.com

Ok and now I'm done. :D

Cheers everyone, have a good week!