BACKSTAGE PASSES
Total Time: 1:18 Overview: I was hosting an event in Nashville and as an icebreaker, I asked everyone to share with the group their favorite concert experience. Mark told this story and I immediately thought to myself, "we need to turn that into an animated short". And so I did.
FISHIN FOR TRUCKS
Total Time: 1:52 Overview: I’m always fishing for a good story and when Mark told me this one about a guy parking his car at the bottom of the lake, I knew we needed to bring it to life.
COW IN THE LAKE
Total Time: 1:36 Overview: This is one of my favorite animation stories ever. I actually captured this story while I was recording an interview with a guy named Mark Sanders for a different project. I loved the story so much that I decided to turn it into an animated film and surprise him with it. He loved it so much that we decided to make an entire series of them.
MAKING AN ANIMATED FILM
FINDING A GREAT STORY I interview a lot of people, and every once and awhile someone will tell me a story and I’ll immediately think; “that would make a great animated story”. Once I find it, I spend a lot of time with my eyes closes, just listening to the story again and visualizing how it will come to life on the screen. I think in terms of scenes and how each drawing will support the story and transition from one to the other.
STORYBOARD This is one of my favorite parts of the processes. I get to break out the paper and sketch the storyboard so that the animator has a point of reference for their drawings. I’ve never been a serious artist, but I absolutely love to draw and doodle and this process allows me to scratch that itch. Seeing what a true artist can breathe to life from my sketches is also a pretty cool moment.
SOUND DESIGN With the storyboard complete, I focus on the sound design. This includes hiring voice actors to play character, selecting the featured music and adding in all of the background noise and sound effects. Its the little touches that really make a film come to life, and its why I spend so much time on the sound design. This film featured here is a great example of some of my best sound design work.
SUBMISSION TO ANIMATOR Let’s be honest, the secret to this entire process is working with a great animator. I have been fortune over the years to work with some super talented artists who have been great partners in bringing my vision to life. In addition to a completed sound design and some reference images, I also provide them with a poorly drawn illustration of the film so they can use it as a reference point. This video is a great example of what I will send the animator.
