Odd Couple: Dinner Party Part 1

*note:  I use this kind of material for my own growth and use it to help others (if I can). I try to constantly look at good acting, staging, and life around me to be a better animator/performer.

-This clip from the Odd Couple starring Jack Lemmon(Felix) and Walter Matthau(Oscar) is a great example of contrasting characters, clear staging, and great acting off of one another.  I like this first scene because it shows basic principles of characters done in a fun manner.  I think it should be used in a lot of schools for Acting in Animation 101..kind of class. Basics of timing, staging, and posing are all here.  Felix (Jack Lemmon) body shows a still aggravated patience.  It is very easy to go towards a cliché state of what we thing aggravation means in acting when we work out a scene.  Obviously if the show dictates you do that kind of acting where the aggravation and anger is explosive than that’s what must take place in your work.  I like showing these clips in a class because this first part gives you a great sense of how we can keep a character almost still, use minimal gestures, and still convey the right emotion.  Movements like adjusting the ladle over and over again in his hand as he waits for the right to moment speak These things don’t feel planned….it feels right because that is something we all probably can relate to.

-Jack Lemmon shows anger in a subtle way at the beginning of the sequence. The audience can feel the tension because of Felix’s eyes, small mouth movements, and minimal body motion compared to Oscars slightly broader gestures.  There are also physical and visual attributes that help with the overall feeling.  If you notice the opposing postures you will see that Felix slouched down with his head pushing forward in some shots(image A).

 


 It feels like he is trying to push himself down in the chair before he pops out of the chair and explodes. Felix is also clean, shirt tucked, tie done and everything pressed.  If you look at Oscar it’s totally opposite.  He is straight up and down, a complete mess (not really a complete mess but in contrast to Felix..yes), and at ease with himself (image B).

 
 (Of course Jamaal, that’s why the film is called the Odd Couple)

-Another thing about how Felix is staged we get some nice expressions based on the directions he has to look.  Being that he has to sit, his gaze up gives us this great feeling of anger without pushing the eyebrows into what we know as “angry brows” (image C).

 

 His brows are completely straight as he looks up Oscar (Walter Matthau). These are hard but not difficult things to achieve in animation and that is one of the reasons I love the level of detail we can get with CG now.  There is a great turning point in the acting once Felix states that Oscar should have called him.  The abrupt pause by Oscar is a slight comedic beat because we are cued into Felix acting like a wife even more than we were expecting me to be.  We read that Oscar is thrown by this just by him stopping an action (putting a tie on) that we would normally never pause in.  This stop creates a fantastic abstract pose that really draws our attention (image D).

 

-I won’t over analyze the sequence because it is pretty self explanatory.   Subtle contrasting against Broad… we see this all the time in our everyday lives as well.  It makes for interesting characters, but it has to be executed correctly and with a certain appeal that can carry through many shots; long or short form.   

Progression of an Animated Shot: Gothel & Rapunzel Disney's Tangled

Progression of an Animated Shot: Gothel & Rapunzel Disney's Tangled from Jamaal Bradley on Vimeo.

...Black Dynamite...

 

My boy Lesean Thomas has been grinding away on the Black Dynamite TV show that is going to air on Adult Swim this summer.  I just felt like drawing the character.  The show should be pretty hilarious... the pilot was.

This is my version of Black Dynamite

...Release the Excess: 2012...

I decided to change my top image on the site.  Release the Excess is still what this blog is about.  Letting out the garbage in my head. Some of the content is fun, some useful, some weird, and some things are just ridiculous.  I am hoping my daughter can one day look at this site and get an idea of some of the extra things that were going on in my head

Anyway, here is the blue rough I am working on.  I blew up the thumbnail to the size I wanted, then started to got to town.

...just keep going...

While I was teaching and after, my students and a few other people asked the same question a lot.

" ...Does it take a long time to break into the business and what are the steps..."?

-There is no one answer to that question.  Obviously hard work and dedication are going to take you a long way, but there is going to be other factors that come in to play. Timing is a big part of the equation and you have to know what jobs to take and how to utilize every minute while you are there.  I knew I wanted to work in features but I never neglected my duties as an animator at the game studios.  I tried to apply the same level of work to the game studios as I do in feature.  Believe me, there are animators that can animate circles around a lot of guys in feature film.  I worked at the office and when I got home, because I wanted to be better.  There are many people still doing this.

The big thing for me is not forgetting that.  If you busted your hump in work and after work, keep doing the same.  Granted the hours you spend working at home may be considerably less, but that is the thing that got you to where you are.  Take some time to continue working on your craft.  Teachers still go to lectures and workshops to improve on their skills, singers still practice so that their voice is always in good condition, and even good mechanics learn how to work on the latest engines so they are always on top of their game.

If you remember to do the things that got you to where you need to be, you will be successful for a while.

Remember to balance it!!

...Focus Forward & Teachng...

..breath..

...Focus Forward...

I have never made a New Years resolution and I won't start now. Each year is an extension of the last for me. I began last year talking about more focus and taking a break from teaching. It has paid off because I am less stressed and I have been highly productive at work. While I was teaching I wanted it to reflect my outlook on animation and the things you can achieve. Teaching was an extension of who I am as an animator. Preparing lessons, prepping material, ensuring I give helpful feedback to EVERY STUDENT, and being available is important to me. How do you work as a full time animator, full time husband, full time dad and part time teacher? Sounds ridiculous to me. In the balance of our lives, something will have to give and something or someone will lose out. I am trying figure out how to return to teaching but it will take a bit to figure out the balance and harmony. A good teacher is invaluable. My wife, Mother, Aunt, and a few cousins ( here is one Sara Ferguson: click the name) are all teachers. How I teach reflects on them so I have to make sure I give future students what they deserve.

Thanks to all the students I have had so far who have given me much positive feedback.

Focus Forward

-Jamaal

Sergio Pablos Part 1: Acting, Entertainment, & Variation

I decided to make another animation video for 2012. I played with the idea of a live webinar series, bit I think there would be more benefit to having a downloadable turorial. I sent out an email asking the people who purchased the first video and I received some great feedback. The name of the video currently is: "Acting, Entertainment, & Variation"...but keep this one as an option ("Acting, Performance, & Entertainment"). My last video focused on workflow and not the thoughts behind the acting. I touched a little on some of the aspects of it but I will dive deep into acting on this installment. Not only will I be talking about it, I will be talking with inspiring veterans. So far I will be talking to James Baxter, Sergio Pablos, & Kristof Serrand. 

-This is very exciting

...drawings on a lazy day...

 ... I am always drawing but its just a matter of scanning and posting.  I wish there was an instant scan or something attached to a drawing pad.  The new Wacom toy looks nice but I will wait for the version that can read a larger drawing surface.  Any way..here are a few that I did on a Saturday at home.  When Croods is over I will post some of my thumbnails and pose studies for my shots.. who knows maybe some will get into "The Art of Croods"   .....that would be cool...

Acting,Entertainment, & Variation: Video Flowchart/ Work in Progress

I decided to create the next video much differently than the first.  I asked for a lot of feedback from the people who picked it up and I got some great ideas.  There were things people liked and other parts that could be enhanced.  I really appreciate all of the great information I have been writing things out and planning accordingly.  This flow chart is apart of the layout of how the video will be created.  The red blocks represent major areas of discussion and the topics/details are underneath.  Its pretty simple in concept but will make a better user experience.  I will continue to refine this as I move forward and the chart will get a little bigger as well

thanks again guys

-jamaal

CTN EXPO: Live Animation

I will be at the CTN EXPO this year animating live at the iAnimate Booth.  If you are there, you can ask me questions of any kind while I work away on a shot.  This should be a fun event as always!  I like getting to see the people I havent worked with in a while as well as seeing all of the goodies the artists have to offer.  I will be animating for a few hours on Saturday and Sunday.  Jason Ryan will be at the booth as well as a few other instructors from the iAnimate school. 

Hope to see you there!

Pressure Anim & New iAnimate Character....new Video Tutorial on the way!!!

This is the animation I created for the "...from Planning to Polish..." video.  There are few things I can do to it but I am not going to touch it.  The purpose was to show how I go from start to end on this kind of shot.  I am going to be working on another video that will talk about the thought process behind going through the two extremes of acting in one shot; subtle and broad.  I am working out the details of how to discuss it as well as figuring out the exact type of animation that will help reinforce the ideas.  We talk about many things in the studio as animators and most of it comes from time and experience.  Thats probably the biggest benefit of working in production...having access to the different experiences of other animators and the things they have discovered through their journeys.  This video wont be as long but I plan on giving a lot of good information...

stay tuned...

This is another great rig created by Victor Vinyals for iAnimate.  I will be using this character for the new video.  I will post more information very soon!

...focusing on your work...

this is an original drawing from Treasure Planet by Sergio and I was geeked to get it.  Its rare to get a hold of any of his stuff so it was nice to add it to my collection.... and I will never tell where I got it from!


Its not surprising to hear that the people you look up to were and are hard workers.  I have heard many stories about different animators.  One story was about Sergio Pablos who painstakingly inbetweened his own work on Treasure Planet.  It was his way of making sure his performances were exactly what he wanted.  I never had the honor of working with him but everyone that has had the pleasure states that he is a very focused animator (as most of the top guys are).  With the way we work today you can find that there are many distractions in the workplace...ESPECIALLY with the damn internet.  You can get pulled away in an instant if you do not  FOCUS.  If you think about the way any great professional in history had to work to get things done some things will become clear.  Imagine being up on a skyscraper during the industrial age, putting in some rivets, and suddenly getting on Facebook to post something real dumb. You probably would have lost your life not to mention doing a half ass job on an 80 story building.  Its an extreme example but you get the idea.

...No More Teaching...(for now)

(maintaining a students perspective) I have taught two terms at iAnimate and I have to say the experience has been very enlightening.  Teaching your process and going through it over and over again, you find out a lot of things especially about yourself as an animator.  This piece of knowledge has led me to the decision of taking a break from teaching for a bit.  I plan on focusing even more on my animation and acting.  Extreme focus on acting which will include reading more books on the subject, workshops, and personal study.  I am not going to pretend I know everything about what I do for a living, so I will continue to learn, refine, and add to the little I do know.  Hopefully the young guys who were in my class benefited from the information I gave them.  There are many goals I have not achieved in this field that I really want to reach....so with that being said, I am off to work on the next project.  "..I feel inspired by the challenge that I stand eye to eye with, to move like a wise warrior and not a coward..."

life long student of this.....

-JB

"..iLLs.." Rough Pencil Test

So...I finally got another animation desk and I vowed not to do any 3D animation at the house for a while.  I have been working on some character designs and I wanted to see if the designs held up.  This is a quick movement test, but I will have to do some more advanced ones before moving forward with the design.  I feel rejuvenated flipping the paper again!

...too many to scan at the moment....

 

...its been a while since I posted but I am always doing something.  I have many drawings I wanted to post on the site but my scanner is not hooked up at the moment.  Here is the wall behind me in my workspace at Dreamworks.  I am trying to fill up the whole wall...I am sure it will be filled but ...not sure if they will move me from this space...

-keep grindin'  

JB

"...from Planning to Polish...": Promotional Teaser

"...from Planning to Polish..." is a 3 hour, 3 part video that takes a shot from planning to final presentation. Using 8 steps, the videos demonstrates one of the workflows I use when I am working. 

Trailer edited by: Larry Vasquez

Maximus from Tangled: Short Idea

...So while I was on Tangled I had the opportunity to pitch 3 short ideas based on parts of the movie. I was spending a few hours at home writing and drawing and came up with some ideas. I sat with directors Nathan Greno, Byron Howard, an the producer Roy Conly. It was a pretty cool and laid back meeting. At the end, the conclusion was if I came up with a good idea using Maximus that would be great. I started posting images on a board outside of my office and asked people to put up drawings that could possibly get some juices going....I guess we got pretty busy on Tangled so not much got posted.... These images were a part of an idea I threw around with fellow animator Patrick Osborne.  Patrick did a few illustrations in Photoshop that looked great! 

Oh well it was a good try. Funny thing... There is a Tangled short in production starring none other than...Maximus.

Curious to see what it's about.

 

 

 

 

keep grinding 

-jamaal

"...from Planning to Polish..." is NOW AVAILABLE

I have been working on this video for a while now.  This slowed up a bit transitioning from Disney to Dreamworks, but I kept pushing forward.  This is a 3hour video demonstration in 3 parts.  I go through one of my workflows with a character animation shot.  You can read more about the video by clicking the image and that will also take you to the store. 

This can be a great resource if you are learning about animation, considering becoming one, or just curious about the process, "...from Planning to Polish..." could be something to interest you!

-jamaal

...rhthym in poses...

 


an image I use in one of my class discussions

...European Twist...

"...draw draw draw.... draw until I leave this place.. hopefully what I draw will put a smile on someones face.."

-jbradley

I saw this cool looking guy and his stance look like a GQ pose.  They style was definitely European but I am not sure of his nationality.  Man I love drawing.  There is something really rewarding about messing around with a pencil and creating anything that comes to your mind.  I usually draw people and faces...as most people who probably draw.  There has to be some deep psychological meaning behind why we create and re-create ourselves in various forms...hmm I think I will go look it up again. 

all the best people

Jamaal