TS3 Roundtable Part 2

PART 2

Finally… Sorry it took so long… The summer has been busy… I am currently teaching the 2010 animation interns and they are lots of work… Hopefully I will get back in the game of making some new podcasts. I am going to be doing one with Lee Unkrich, director of Toy Story 3.

Some other cool stuff that has been going on…. There is a cool class that myself and Matt Luhn are teaching in Vancouver on September 24th and 25th.

Also in the current issue of 3d World I did a little article on Walks. Hopefully I will be able to post all the info on the site with permission from the Mag. Stay tuned for that. Thanks for still following the site. I’m trying to keep it alive…

Download the short podcast here ts3roundtable_part2

-Andrew

Toy Story 3 Animator Roundtable – Part1

Finally, a new Spline Cast!!! This is part one of a two part animation Roundtable with:

Doug Sweetland, Andy Schmidt, Jessica Torres, Cat Hicks, Carlos Baena, Kc Royer, Aaron Hartline and Myself, Andrew Gordon. Aaron thought it would be cool to do a Spline Cast talking about Toy Story 3 so we made it happen. Hope you enjoy it and the Film which opens this Friday. Expect it on itunes soon.

-Andrew

ts3_roundtable_part 1

Kids Animation Software

Recently someone at work asked what some good software there is out there for kids for doing animation. Here is a list that someone came up with. Please feel free to add to the list in the comments section.

1) Scratch ( http://scratch.mit.edu )
2) Cosmic Blobs ( http://www.cosmicblobs.com )
3) Kid Pix
4) Pencil animation ( http://www.pencil-animation.org
5) Anime Studio Debut ( http://anime.smithmicro.com
6) Claymation Studio and Istopmotion for claymation
7) Sam Animation ( http://www.samanimation.com

Walk Challenge Deadline Closed

Some of the walk entries

Thank you to all the contestants. They will be judged over the weekend and the winner will be announced this Monday or Tuesday. We have some really great entries and again, thanks for taking part in this. For me, a good walk says everything about the character and a lot of people really nailed it. I will be posting all of the walks on the site for you to see. Good luck.

-Andrew

The Walk Challenge – A contest

This month I thought it would be cool to run another contest. The walk is a difficult thing to animate well in animation. Getting the right attitude, making the character feel like they belong in the world you set them in. Weight, physicality and so on… They are all elements of a good walk. First prize is a signed poster of all the animators on Toy Story 3. Second prize is a set of steak knives, third prize is your fired (I had to make the Glen Gary reference.) Second and third prize are to be determined. There is also a possibility of the 3 walks being used for an article in a popular 3d magazine. Here are the ground rules:

Animate a one of the following walks: (in 2d or 3d)

A character with a physical limitation (ie a man with a ball and chain, or limp, etc… use of props ok)

A period character from the Victorian era (do your homework. Many to choose from)

An 8 year old kid on his way to or from school (think about subtext)

A confident character from the early 1970’s

Ok, there are the choices. Obviously you will need to show the cycle. Please include a rough and final pass. Its best if the character is in an environment. Obviously, no stock rigs.  You will be judged on originality, execution,  and entertainment value. Good Luck!  Contest end May 14th. Email walks to splinedr@gmail.com

-Andrew