1. Explain me me about an accomplishment you are most proud of?
I struggled in school, but with my return, I excelled in places I thought weak. My accomplishment was a matter of going through a very important learning experience early on.
2. Tell me when do you wake up and what do you on average everyday at the studio?
I usually wake up around 7am, and because I walk to work, I'm usually there between 8 and 8:30. It's uncommon to walk to work in LA County, but in Burbank it's quite a good setup.
3. Tell me where do you find inspiration for your artwork?
All around. There's always some new funny youtube clip or inspirational animation circulating around the studio. We at work and my friends are always sending each other new animation shorts and talking about ideas all the time. I guess I constantly find inspiration in those things.
4. Tell me what three words would you use to describe yourself?
Adaptable, quick learner, aproachable and open to critique.
5. Tell me what was it like to have a film that you worked on nominated for an Oscar?
That is always exciting. 3 of my films have been nominated and one, Golden Compass actually won for Best Visual Effects.
6. Tell me what are your career goals as an animator?
My career goals are to work on a production team an a character designer or storyboard artist.
7. Explain what animation methods are you most familiar with?
I am most familiar with Photoshop animation. It is a unwieldly, and unopopular animation style, but it I have found it very useful for practicing animated illustrations. It also gave me patience when working in other mediums such as with Maya. I prefer a key frame/pose by pose style, where I draw/pose the key frames first, and try to get the timing and acting right first. Then I work on arcs and so forth.
8. Tell me who's work do you admire?
Good question. There's a lot of animators where I just admire how they can get so much life into their shots. Here's a list of just a few. David Stodolny because his animation is so sincere, fluid and natural. Jason Ryan and Dave Burgess for their whimsical and cartoony yet emotional style. Victor Navone for his technical skills and knowledge of motion, spacing and timing. Dave Hardin and Glen Keane for the realistic and organic approach they deliver in their work. All these animators have a real sense of believability and sincerity in their work that I admire and try to put into my own.
9. Tell me what part of your job do you like best and why? What makes it so awesome?
The best part of my job is the amazing artists I work with. Everyone is so talented and so passionate, and sometimes you get so used to it that you forget that the rest of human civilization doesn't exist in the 'animation bubble' that we live in at Disney.
Sometimes you get so used to being surrounded by amazing artists that you forget that the rest of human civilization doesn't exist in the 'animation bubble' that we live in at Disney
Being a part of the Disney Animation legacy that began with Walt and the "Nine Old Men" is a rare privilege, and I am thankful for it every day.
10. Tell me how do you stay focused while working long hours?
I stay focused by giving myself 5 minute breaks every hour. I do not listen to music besides whatever audio I am animating or compositing with. I wear headphones regardless of whether or not I am listening to something, because it helps desensitize towards outside distractions. I try not to think about how much needs to get done, but rather what I can do to get it done. I focus on utilizing my strengths, because I know this will get done in the quickest way. I try not to do anything new unless it is fairly simple to do because it will interfere with the workflow. I like to stick to my guns. If I have enough time at the end, that's where I would utilize a new skill to improve the work since I have time to practice it and implement it.
11. Explain me what is a typical day looks like for you at Walt Disney Studios?
I grab a coffee from the common area on the second floor, which they call the 'Caffeine Patch' (a reference to Meet the Robinsons .) I go to my office, check my email and calendar for the day, and I also like to look at the latest updates on the server.
We have a program that catalogs all new submissions for every department and every project. It's inspiring to see the animation that people submit on a daily basis. It's great for staying up to date on a project and being influenced by the best work that other artists are creating.
12. Tell me are you formally trained as an artist or are you self-taught?
I am formally trained. I first went to Ringling School of Art and Design where I received a BFA in Animation and a Minor in Photography. And then later on decided my animation skills just weren't where they needed to be to work in film so I enrolled in Animation Mentor.
13. Tell me what steps should an aspiring Animator take to break into the business?
First thing is get the skills you need. Either go to a college and focus on getting a strong reel or attend online workshops like ianimate or classes like animationmentor Any one of these options should lead you to work on your animation skills and develop a strong demoreel. That's step one! The next thing would be submitting your work to the different studios and start gathering production experience.
14. Explain 2D animation vs. 3D animation what are your thoughts on this endless battle?
It's funny that people see it as a battle. That's a bit dramatic for my taste. They are just two different things, and they both are better at certain types of things.
2D is more personal, more direct, and I would dare say (when it's done by really skilled craftsmen) more "artful". It requires a higher level of sensitive hand-craftsmanship, and fewer people can do it at the level that is necessary to make a truly breathtaking piece of animated art like “Pinocchio”, “101 Dalmatians" or “Sleeping Beauty”.
CG is slicker, more detailed, more modern, but much less personal. It takes a hell of a lot more work to make CG feel even as remotely as organic as hand-drawn animation.
CG is a lot more conducive to having visual consistency in a mass-produced feature film, and you can have grander set pieces because of the technology. Directors can also stage it more like a live action film because it's easier to adjust elements that have already been created.
In that way, CG makes more sense as a business model to a large corporation. You can control more things, and businesses thrive on their ability to control their elements. This is probably a blessing and a curse to CG filmmakers.
15. Tell me of all the Characters you've worked on over the years which is your favorite and why?
Po- because I was such a HUGE fan of the first film. It was a real treat to get to make him come to life!
16. Tell me have you ever had a character/scene that was too difficult for you to animate?
I think every scene is hard. There's always something I don't know how to do and have to figure out. Animating Princess Anna was the hardest challenge I've had to date.
17. Tell me of all the projects that you've worked on which one are you most proud of and why?
I think I'm most proud of KFP2 because I was such a big fan of the first film that it was a dream come true to work on the second. I never thought that would be possible.
18. Tell me did you go to Art School when you decided to learn animation? Which one was it?
I found out about the Minneapolis College of Art and Design (MCAD) at a portfolio fair in downtown Chicago, when I was a senior in high school. I was looking for a school in the Midwest that was relatively close to home and less expensive than Cal Arts.
I got a letter from Cal Arts and I knew it was the "Disney school", but at the time I was intimidated by their cost of tuition. I visited the MCAD campus with my dad and I really liked the feel of it. The idiosyncratic fine art aspect of the school combined with the animation curriculum was a really fun experience.
I have lifelong friends as a result of my four years learning there, and also formed the relationships that led to my first studio job at Make.
19. Explain a little about the tools that you are using, what's your preferences? Plugins? Methods?
We use Maya, so at times we are at the mercy of Autodesk's latest release. But because of this, we also benefit from the amazing history of that dense software package.
CG animators coming in generally don't have to re-learn the interface they were accustomed to from school. And because of ease of scripting for Maya, Disney has some absolutely incredibly tools of their own for selecting and keying the characters.
The most difficult situation was my entry into this industry, then my parents were not allowing me to do animation & told them no matter what happens I will do it & by the help of my friends initially & later I managed to convince my parents.
I just decided to grin and bear it because they had more experience than me. My animation and layout leads were 3rd year students a year or so prior, and they decided to take their respective years off for personal reasons. I will fully admit that those individuals had more experience than me and I am mich better off learning from them and not them from me.
I saw “Wreck-It Ralph” four times in the theaters, and since then I haven't watched it once all the way through. I own the Blu-ray and have flipped through some scenes, but it's only been a year since it came out. I'm sure I'll watch it again in the not too distant future.
It's a little strange when my shots come up. However, I'm getting more used to accepting them as just part of the film. The film moves along and is so entertaining it just washes over you. “Get a Horse!” and “Frozen” come out together in just a couple of weeks, so I'll be at the cinemas again very soon.
The biggest challenge was coming in at the end of the project and having to ramp up to the speed of production. In order to overcome it I just needed to do the time and really sink my teeth into the work along with being flexible and produce my work quickly!
I think drawing came naturally, even though I wasn't that great at solid construction. I could render things pretty well, and see something in my head and put it on the page. I remember my classmates in elementary school frequently asked me to draw them.
A lot of animators were "that kid" in school - the one who could draw. I had other friends who could draw well, and we would hang out after school and just draw characters and stories all over sheets of Xerox paper.
I don't think I could draw 'classically' well until I got to college. At MCAD my fine art instructors really taught me how to build a drawing, to loosen up, construct it properly, and hone the skill of observing life. I still push myself to stay in that mindset. They also corrected my clumsy and awkward design skills. I'm very grateful for the education.
I absolutely loved my experience working on KFP2. I had an incredible lead Marek Kochout and Animation Director Dan Wagner and amazing Director Jen Yuh Nelson. She was very supportive and encouraging. I was brought on at the end of the project when the film was coming to an end so I didn't get to work on it as much as I had hoped but the time I got to spend one I felt like I produced my best work.
We eat, we drink, and we're merry. Getting creative people together can sometimes be like herding cats, but one of the amazing things about Disney is how they blend communal solidarity with individual expression.
Everyone brings their own point of view to the table, and it's fun to see artists complement each other's work with their own unique talents.
Variety is the spice of life. I love all kinds of animation styles and mediums.
I think a lot of generic anime is too uptight and stilted for my taste, but the richer works from entities like Studio Ghibli, Studio 4C, Satoshi Kon, the “Cowboy Bebop” franchise, and Production I.G are just amazing to me.
I love how different the flavor of the work is compared to conventional American animation.
I also enjoy that they tell dynamic, mature stories. I would love to see the firepower of an American studio tackle material like that. How amazing would that be? Brad Bird gave us a taste of that in his films.
Brad Bird, easily. When I was in college, “The Incredibles” came out in theaters, and I connected the dots that he was also responsible for “ The Iron Giant” .
I couldn't believe the same person was responsible for two of my favorite animated films. He made me believe animation could be jaw dropping at telling good stories.
His films set the bar so high, almost no one can reach it. Kind of like how Milt Kahl set the bar so high with his animation, it seemed like only he could reach it.
In my early years, Tom Schroeder was my most supportive mentor. He is a very successful and distinct independent animation filmmaker, and he also taught my first animation class at MCAD.
I freelanced for him on his projects while I was in school, and to this day we remain closely in touch.
29. Explain an example of a time when you encouraged enthusiasm and engagement in the workplace?
I tend to walk by other animators desks throughout the day, see what theyre working on, and then ill give them some suggestions, tell them what I like, and try to pump them up.
Honestly I don't know he would say I always trying to improve myself as an animator...... last time I think he told me that work more on facial animation.
I don't think I have the stamina to be a businessman! The creative side is too much fun. I have taught in the past and enjoy it very much, though. And I always like to have some kind of personal project going on.
All of my professional directing gigs were at Make, a studio in Minneapolis that I worked at from 2006-2011.
The first thing I ever directed professionally was a public service announcement called “Spilled Oil”. It was actually four years before the devastating Gulf incident in 2011.
It was all on Xerox paper with pencil and sharpie, and it was just Aaron Quist and me (both 22 years old at the time) working on it over a five-week period.
That same summer of 2007 I directed a 5-minute western-themed animation to showcase the commercial sponsors for the AICP chapter in Minneapolis. It was a pretty fun project with incredibly bizarre character designs and cartoon situations. I love the music in it. Steve Horner does fantastic work.
I usually decide after I'm issued a shot if I'm going to film reference for it, or if I'm just going to act it out at my desk and "feel" it out. If a shot involves a lot of mechanics or realistic behavior, then reference is generally a must.
Whether I approach a shot from reference or come up with a graphic solution, I always like to work in stepped key-frames. This really allows me to focus on the poses that communicate the story beat in the most entertaining and clear way.
I like the challenge of making each scene as simple as it can possibly be, while also milking the part that's most compelling about it.
34. Tell me is there anything that you would like to do as an Animator that you haven't done yet?
I would really like to start on a film at it's early stages and help develop the characters from the ground up. That would be a truly great experience.
My very first job was as a "3D Technical Artist" at Lucasarts. I had just graduated from Ringling and to be quite honest, I just wanted to get my foot in the door. To just get the smallest opportunity at a studio where I could grow. Luckily I had a friend who was already working there and she gave my name to another production who was looking for an Entry Level Artist. I basically took the animations created by animators and putting them into the game engine. That's the short of it. It was a great beginner job and helped me learn about every aspect in the game industry. It helped me connect with other animators and gave me production experience that I needed.
