Revised Character:

I had to revise my character because "Edna Lovejoy" is too homely and jolly. She doesn't fit the annoying gossipy profile of the lady in my observational study. "Edna" will definitely be missed; here is "Evelyn" instead.

Edna Lovejoy

This is our first project for concept development I:

Make three observational drawings of random people and note what makes them interesting.

Choose one of the three and modify the design so the character is better suited for animation.

After deciding on a design create a model sheet with the front, side, 3/4, back, and action views of the character.

We also had to write up a character profile describing things like how does the character see themself, how do other people see the character, etc...

Now I gotta go rig balls and create stages for my computer animation class.

TaTa!

First Day of Classes

..well technically the third day.

I had all of my animation classes in a roll yesterday from 8:30am to 6:15 pm. All I can say right now is that I can't believe I am actually studying animation. After dreaming about it for so long it's kind of a shock to be actually doing it.

Drawing tables donated by the Disney Orlando studio:

Yesterday was like a whirlwind of information. Two of my teachers are from Disney and one from Dreamworks. I have Gary Schumer for traditional animation, Sean McLaughlin for computer animation, and Dominic Avant for concept design. Each of them went over the course syllabus and gave a brief introduction of themselves. Gary Schumer worked in the Disney training department for years (teaching interns) before becoming an effects animator. Sean Mclaughlin taught on animationmentor.com and had been working for Dreamworks until two weeks ago. Dominic Avant worked for Disney until the Orlando studio was shut down. They are an exciting bunch and I can't wait to learn more from them.

A few posters of movies Ringling grads worked on:


It was made very clear in the past two days that Ringling takes its academics very seriously. Attendance is crucial; in the CA department students are allowed only one excused absence. More than that and your grades start dropping by the letter. A tardy of more than 10 minutes counts as an unexcused absence. If you miss more than four classes then it automatically results in failure of the course. Lets hope I don't get sick!

The restrooms on the computer animation floor:


People in my class are so talented! Some of them really makes me nervous. We did some preliminary character designs and their drawings showed either solid understanding of anatomy or were very imaginative. There is so much I need to improve on! I really have to bust my butt here at Ringling!

This is it for now, there's work to be done.
PS: here's my new toy loaded with CS3, MS Office, and Corel Painter courtesy of Ringling College of Art and Design.

Sarasota and Ringling Pictures

On our way back from the all school beach party:

The Florida backyard:

Lido beach:

The Ringling campus:

Painting studios on the bayou:

Sudden storm:

Another view of the studios:

Part of the new student center:


For more pictures go to my facebook album

Ringling!

I'm finally on campus and how busy the last few days have been!

Here at Ringling the new student orientation lasts almost a week long. The days are almost always packed from 8am to 10pm with social activities and information sessions. I am very impressed with how organized the school is. The orientation is very effective and it seems like all the new students have integrated themselves comfortably. Everyone on campus, be it new students or staff, seems very passionate about what they do and are generally excited to be at Ringling. The campus is very cozy and it's filled with a vitality that is very motivating.

I added a fifth class to my class schedule. The good thing about being a transfer student is that I have more freedom to take electives that interest me. There's no pressure tofulfill extra requirements while maintaining the computer animation curriculum. From what I have heard, the CA department will work their students very hard. The sophomore year is a shock to some students because of the work overload. We'll see how that works out. I added intermediate figure drawing for CA majors to my schedule. I was worried about not having a drawing/painting course, but now my semester is complete.

Schedule:
Traditional Animation
Computer Animation
Concept Design
Development of Western Art
Intermediate Figure

I still haven't gotten my mac book pro yet. The sophomore transfer students are having issues with IT so I wouldn't get mine until later this week. Once I do I'll make sure to post pictures!

It's been great so far. I don't know what CalArts would have been like but from what I've seen so far I am very happy with my choice of school.

Bye Bye Reelworks (Complete with a Visual Tour!):

From the outside:

The guy that greets everyone at the door:

The ancient-looking paper puncher:

Stairs that leads up to Reelworks (downstairs is rented to a live action studio):

Displayed cells from past jobs:

The lobby/dinning area:

The kitchen:

Downstairs:

A full studio upstairs:

A workstation:

An animation station (with Bret tweening):

Action figures on monitors:

The crew including producers, animators, assistants, and interns (with me in black):

When you work at Reelworks, superheroes deliver your pizzas.
This guy came for my going away, I look way too happy and the delivery man looks so into it!

It's been an amazing half a year at Reelworks. I learned a lot and had tons of fun. I'm so lucky to have had the chance to get hands-on experience and work with so many different amazing and inspiring animators. I'll never forget how exciting it was to know that the studio saw potential in me and how the staff took the time to guide and teach me. What I miss most about the studio will definitely be its people :'(

But cheers to the future!

Mathieu Lauffray

Illustrator of the original Star Wars Posters, check out his site at http://www.lauffray.com/

Giants for Samsung