To Infinity And Beyond: The Story of Pixar Animation Studios

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Upcoming
On Thursday and Friday I’ll be posting a two-part series with tips for beginning freelancers on how to bid out a project. Keep an eye out.

Now, on to today’s post….

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A new book has just been released: To Infinity and Beyond!: The Story of Pixar Animation Studios. It’s a deluxe 320-page book laying out the definitive history of Pixar, the studio that gave us such blockbusters as Toy Story 1 & 2, A Bug’s Life, Monsters Inc., Finding Nemo, The Incredibles, Cars, and Ratatouille. To date Pixar has yet to deliver a box office flop, a feat which few (if any) Hollywood studios have ever been able to achieve.

From the publisher:

In 1986, gifted animator John Lasseter, technology guru Ed Catmull, and visionary Steve Jobs founded Pixar Animation Studios. Their goal: create a computer animated feature, despite predictions that it could never be done. An unprecedented catalog of blockbuster films later, the studio is honoring its history in this deluxe volume. From its fledgling days under George Lucas to ten demanding years creating Toy Story to the merger with Disney, each milestone is vibrantly detailed. Interviews with Pixar directors, producers, animators, voice talent, and industry insiders, as well as concept art, storyboards, and snapshots illuminate a history that is both definitive and enthralling.

You can order copies from Amazon.com here.

Happy Thanksgiving!

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(NOTE: There will be not blog post tomorrow. I’ll be spending the holiday with family and trying to catch up on some much needed sleep.)

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This sketch was done a year or two ago when my friends at DrawerGeeks decided we should each do an emergency turkey drawing. Draw a turkey–fast! Quick sketches only, no more than a few minutes. No masterpieces allowed. This was my submission, conceived, sketched, colored and posted in less than ten minutes.

I’m not sure if it reads well. “Carl” is supposed to be doing that thing where you pull your shirt over your head and act like somebody chopped it off.

Kind of appropriate, since the holiday season means that, like many Americans, I’ll spend a lot of time these next few weeks running around like a chicken with my head cut off.

But not tomorrow. I’ll be sleeping, hanging with my relatives, and helping my Dad with a few relaxing projects. And of course, we’ll pause for a few moments and give thanks to God for all the blessings he’s given us. (That’s kinda what the holiday is supposed to be for, right?)

Actually, when I look back over my life and think about my sins…all the times I’ve ever lied, or stolen, or lusted, or hated someone, or used God’s name as a filth word—I’m amazed that God has given me so many blessings to be thankful for. I certainly don’t deserve it. Even more amazing is that God is willing to forgive me for it all, because his son Jesus took my punishment and paid my fine. “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:8). No matter how much we’ve sinned, Jesus offers forgiveness and new life to anyone who will come to him in repentance and faith. Talk about something to be thankful for!

Sorry if that sounds “preachy”, but I think it’s an important message and Thanksgiving seems like an appropriate time to try and share it.

To all of my readers, have a *very* happy Thanksgiving.

Sour Apples

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I’m a huge Apple fan. I love their products. I drink the Kool-Aid. I sometimes wander in to the Apple store just so I can drool.

But lately the effects of the Kool-Aid are starting to wear off.

My biggest beef is with Leopard, Apple’s new operating system. Leopard’s new features promised to bring a new level of productivity and flexibility to my computer experience. I’m a sucker for anything that saves time or makes me more productive, so I upgraded to Leopard almost immediately. I should have known better. Apple has a nasty habit of releasing operating systems before they are truly ready. I knew the upgrade would be klunky at first and I was prepared to encounter a few annoying bugs. I never expected this much disappointment.Read More

Sketchbook Update

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To warm up each morning I’ve been trying to fill a page a day in my sketchbook. However, I’ve been so swamped with freelance work that I’ve only been averaging about a page a week. Better than nothing, I guess. Here’s a few heads I drew the other day from some old photos.

Oops!

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Looks like I’ve made my mistake for the month. Feels good to have that out of the way.

A couple of weeks ago I started writing a blog post comparing the costs and benefits of various online advertising methods available to freelance artists. The article is still a rough draft, very much in progress. Unfortunately, due to my clumsy thumbs the rough draft was accidentally posted this morning on my blog. I removed it as soon as I realized my mistake, but those of you who subscribe to my blog via RSS or email still had a copy of the rough draft sent to you. Being an early draft it was mostly long-winded gibberish, and it probably left you scratching your head. My apologies. The real post will be coming soon.

As part of my research, I’m planning to make phone calls to various portfolio websites (i.e. workbook.com, theispot.com, portfolios.com, etc.), inform them I’m writing an article, and ask them, “Why should an artist advertise with you instead of the other guys?” I’m also putting together a chart comparing the costs and benefits of various sites, followed by some thoughts about the pros and cons of various advertising methods. It’s going to take some work, and I may break it up into a series of posts. Since I’m currently swamped with projects, it will be at least a week or two before I can put it all together. Keep checking the blog for more info.

Deadline Crunch

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Another busy week of freelancing. I’ve fallen a bit behind on my character design work for 3-2-1 Penguins, and since we are wrapping up pre-production it’s crunch time, the worst time to fall behind. Besides Penguins I’m also working on an advertising mascot, an illustration for a software company, an illustration for a Spanish curriculum textbook, and a series of Bible flashcards. Lots of late nights chained to my computer desk.

When push comes to shove I would rather try to do a good job at a few things than do a mediocre job at a lot of things. Besides, my clients don’t really care what else I have on my plate (nor should they). They are paying me to do my best work for their project, and it would be unfair to give them any less. So, since no one pays me to do this blog I’m going to have to slow down on my posting a bit.

I don’t want the lull to last too long; my goal is to post something every weekday so that readers will keep coming back. But in the near future there may be a temporary drop in the frequency of my posts until I can catch my breath. I beg your indulgence.

In the mean time, as always you are encouraged to visit the Art Blogs listed over on the left-hand column of my blog. You’ll see some amazing and inspiring work, as well as a few good resources.