Riding Scooters on the island of Spetses, Greece.

I took a trip to Greece a few weeks back and this is what it was like almost every day. Wake up, eat a light breakfast, pack up your scooter, and find a beach. I took a spill one day while trying to use my camera and make a right turn. I ended up having to pay 50 euros ( or about $68 dollars) to fix the light and some scratches on the side. I thought it would cost a lot more so I'm happy with what they charged. I think I want to buy a scooter now....they are soooo much fun. Enjoy! Oh yeah, the music I added is from a band called Ratatat.

Mickey Mouse and Audie

My friend Audie Harrison sent this to me today and I had to share it with everyone.
Some of the best Computer Animation ever seen by mankind.

The above screen capture is what you'll find 3 mins and 15 seconds into it. Just beautiful.



By the way, check out Audie's Cal Art's films, they're amazing! Hand drawn baby!! Pencil and paper!

Ringed Planet!
( This one played in Cannes! "Official Selection. Kodak Emerging Filmmakers Showcase".)



The Golden Age of Wrestling
"Been training day and night, the golden belt...strapped on tight."




Where's Texas?
( I saw this my first year at Cal Arts. It blew me away. The weight of that cowboy walking down that sand dune feels amazing. I'm still trying to get a scene like that at work. It would be so much fun to animate. Add a mixture of drama and absurdity to your story and you've got brilliance.)

The Vest Gang

Keep one eye around,
or you're headed for trouble.
The Vest Gang cometh,
and they have 13 year old stuble.



Weird creatures from the deep.
At night they come and rub my feet.
It's strange I know, but they are so sweet,
Rubbing and massaging my stinky feet.

European stuff...

At the Musee de Orse, Paris.


Having dinner in Rome.


Pigeons in Murono, Italy.


Drawing in a clothing store. Rome.

A little sneak peak...

A little sneak peak of Kung Fu Panda today. Thank you You Tube member DCass99.

These maquettes were shown at the Mattel booth at the San Diego Comic Con. Nicolas Marlet designed all these characters and I'm currently animating Tai Lung and Po. Don't worry, the trailer will be out very soon. Enjoy.

FREDERATOR BLOG

Go here to see a little advertisement for my book, Say Havarti!

http://newtoons.frederator.com/post/4326

My pal Jeaux was kind enough to help me get the word out there in internet land. Thanks Jeaux!

I will also have a link on my blog soon where you can CLICK and purchase through Paypal.


So I'm back at work and still thinking about the con. Wow! What an experience. I bought books, I traded books, I sold books, we tried different strategies to sell the books, and we tried different ways of displaying the books.
Here's the first day of the Con. Look how messy the table looks! We had no clue! We figured out a neater system as the days went by.
Gabriele is scolding me once again. See the finger wag? Scott took this photo. Thanks Scott.



And here's a group shot. My head looks funny because I'm wearing a black top hat. Thanks for the photo Jenny Lerew.

The book is coming....Booth #831

More sneaks for your pleasure. It will arrive at the Comic Con this week.
Remember, autograph and doodle with every purchase!

Sneak Peak of the book....

We Blog!

I am proud to announce that me and my cohorts at Dreamworks will be selling our books at the San Diego Comic Con July 25th through the 29th! Can you believe it? My first self published book!

Here is the talented line-up!

Morgan Kelly, Scott Wright, Donnachada Daly, Gabriele Pennacchioli, and Jakob Jensen

Above is our banner! Look for it and you shall find us underneath it eagerly awaiting your presence. If you want, I will draw and sign my limited, and rare, one of a kind book for you!
Oh, so you'd like a caricature? Done! Or perhaps an owl? Done! Oh, you're getting tricky now aren't you? A bear in a tea-cup car riding down the highway? Tsk! Tsk! Done!!

Here's a map to help you on your way. Booth #831

old sea lady...

Old sea lady, of the deep,
Rises to the surface
Right out of her sleep.

Cha-cha to the left,
And cha-cha to the right.
This ol' bag is quite a delight.

Greece

Hi to all two of you that read this blog! Thought I'd update it and tell you where I've been.Well, actually, I'll just show ya. The photo below is of Santorini, Greece. It's also called by its ancient name "Thira".
I was actually there this morning!




Crazy huh? To say it was awe inspiring is an understatement. This portion of the city is actually on the edge of a cliff created by an active underwater volcano. But don't worry, the next eruption is scheduled to take place in
20, 000 years. I took a ferry out of the port of Santorini to the island of Mikanos and that's where I am right now. I've rented a scooter for two days and am just going to ride around looking for nice beaches. I've got my trusty snorkel gear and am ready for some fish and sea shell hunting. I've been eating loads of greek salads, octopus , calamari, souvlaki (pork or chicken on a stick), and my favorite drink of the moment: Orange Fanta soda. I need like 3 of these to get me through the heat here.



I'll post more photos when I return, which is sat. The ones above are from google searches.

Oh, and I also rode one of these.....up 300 flights of stairs. And for some reason my donkey realllly liked walking near the edge of the steps. A part of me thinks he really hates his job and scaring the crap out of me just made his day go by easier. And he did scare the crap out of me. You should have seen my face. It looked sort of like donkey's face below.

Need I say more?

Indiana Jones 4......coming May 22nd 2008.
Does this not make you happy or what??
Please, Mr. Spielberg, give us a great story.

Wow!! I can't wait!!!

Wild Things

Introducing Dan Deacon

I saw Dan Deacon perform last night. It was so much fun. Here's a taste of him.
Different? yes. Weird? yes. Energetic? Yes. Fun? yes. Sweaty? yes. Colorful? yes. Enjoy.....





"Dan! Can I get a photo of us??...It's me, Captainyolk!"





A side note about the banana ipod.
He hates using the Ipod. When pausing and then playing, the music slowly fades into the song....instead of just playing instantly and loud. This pisses him off....but the show must go on.

Corky

Here we have our family dog. Corky is a 15 year old Cocker Spaniel who has arthritis in his joints. He was attacked yesteday by a dog the size of a bear. Seriously, have any of you ever seen an Akita? My sister was walking him (on the opposite side of the street)when the bear attacked (crossing the street). I had to pull the beast off of him by the scruff of his neck while my sister sat in the grass screaming. I could barely budge him. The owner came quickly and we both got him off. Sad thing is, the Akita had no collar or leash on, he had broken out of it as he lunged after his next meal. Corky now has 2 deep bites on either side of his neck. A little note to all of you Akita owners: Use some common sense next time your 7 year old kid wants to walk a dog that weighs 3 times their weight. People are insane and idiots.

Corky is doing all right now. He's on some meds and is finally wagging his tail.
Here's a page I drew up while waiting at the Vet's office.

Oh Captain my Captain.

Surf's up is fantastic!

I really didn't think this movie was going to be anything special. Boy did they prove me wrong.
Wow!
Go see it! It has heart! Yes it's true it really does! Great characters, great writing, and the main character is likeable. It has caricatured animation. Stretch and squash! The characters have weight! You feel like they could really be injured! Funny gags that aren't cliche. Great designs! And most importantly, each character is well thought out and HAS A BACK STORY! Which in turn makes the acting outstanding!

My hats off to you Sony animation crew.....and to Jeff Ranjo, head of story. Damn Jeff, you got me choked up in some scenes. You are my hero. I will see this again in the theatres....no doubt.





Well this is interesting. This is from an interview with Jeff Bridges and Shia LaBeouf...the 2 main voices in the film .

"This film was different than other animated movies in that you were given the opportunity to actually be with the other actors while recording your voice. How did that process work?

Jeff Bridges: “It was in a room about the quarter the size of the stage and they had video cameras set up. We’d all play together and they’d video us. There was lots of improvisation.”

Shia LaBeouf: “They’d set up mics at different locations. We’d move across the room and there’d be a mic set up over there and Jeff would be in the middle of something. I’d be walking from there to here and there’d be a mic set up here and we’d block it just like a play.”
Click here for the whole interview.

This guys goooood!!

Monsters Need Love Too

A night out in Los Angeles