Bishop Animation Classes in 2007

We've batted around the idea of classes for a while, and we're finally ready to get started. We're thinking of doing two Saturday classes a month.

One of the class days would be focused on beginners. Topics covered would include an introduction to computer modelling, and introduction to texturing, an introduction to rigging, an introduction to animation, etc. There would be three classes a day, each two hours a piece. You can take each class individually for $12.00 per class, or take all three for $30.00.

The second type of class day would focus more on people who already know a bit about the process to expert level. Some of those classes would include topics such as how to animate a bit of dialog, hair and fur simulation, fluid simulation, particle effects, etc. There would be three classes a day, each two hours a piece. You can take each class individually for $15.00 per class, or take all three for $40.00.

If you would like to sign up for classes, keep watching our website for the official schedule and topics. http://www.bishopanimation.com

If you have a topic you would really like to see covered, either in the beginner or advanced classes, let us know!

Disneyland's Golden Horseshoe

One of my favorite parts of Disneyland is the Golden Horseshoe. One of the reasons is that it was a part of the park since opening day, but the other reason is Billy Hill and the Hillbillies. If you're ever in Disneyland, do yourself a favor and check out their show. You'll be glad you did.

Death Cab for Cutie "Crooked Teeth" video by Rob Schrab

I thought this was cool. His animatic is fun to watch as well.

Interview with Shane Glines

I usually don't like to double post, but this was a cool one. I'm a blogger for Channel Frederator, and today I posted an interview I did with Shane Glines, a character designer who has worked on shows such as "Superman", "Batman", "Justice League", "Samurai Jack", and many more.

You can download my audio interview with him HERE.

Enjoy!

Bishop Animation reel

We just finished up our latest reel. Have a look and let us know what you think.

Alex Toth and animation

What do "Jonny Quest", "Space Ghost", and "The Herculoids" have in common? Well, if you read my posts over at Channel Frederator, you already know. The answer is Alex Toth.

You can read more about Alex Toth on his official website.

If you are interested in solid design, adventure stories, comics, or animation design in general, he's a great person to study.

Fartbot learns to use an iPod

Fartbot didn't know what an iPod was, then someone told him you put your music in it. I still don't think he understands though.

This image will appear (along with others featuring robots and iPods)in a book given out to attendees of the Channel Frederator awards show next year.

Sparse blog posts... blame the robot

image by Jessica Borutski

You may have noticed that the blog posts here have been few and far between lately. That's because I'm now blogging for Channel Frederator. If you don't know what that is, and you are a fan of animation, you should.

One of the coolest things about blogging for them is the weekly interviews. Recently I got to interview one of my childhood animation idols, Will Vinton. There's a 27 minute interview with him if you follow that link. It's an easy to listen to MP3 file.

Anyway, keep checking out Channel Frederator for the latest in animation, and keep checking this blog for our Bishop Animation posts. I'm going to try and keep posting here once a day as well... wish me luck!

Floyd

Figure Drawing every Wednesday night!

Figure Drawing at Bishop Animation
Every Wednesday night
7PM - 10PM
Bishop Animation

Pro, hobbyist, student...whatever. Everyone is welcome.

$7.00 per person

Please RSVP so we have an idea

of how many people to expect!

floyd@bishopanimation.com

(570) 251-7749

Muppet Design

Jim Henson had a great sense of design. I've been doing some research for a project and was impressed with the range of emotions and character traits his characters posess. While much of this comes from how well the characters are performed by their Muppeteers, the design of the characters has a lot to do with it as well.

While everyone knows the Muppets and what they look like, I'd like to look at an animated segment from Sesame Street:



It's a short piece, so you need to establish your characters pretty quickly. Based on appearance alone, you can tell that the king is a kind fellow. He loves his daughters so much that he'd be happy to tell you all about them in song. He probably carries around a bunch of photos of them as well.

The daughters are hard to see in this clip, but on the close-up you can see that this daughter is beautiful yet humble. The eyes and posing of the head are especially nice.

The knights have a nice design to them. Their bodies make it seem as though they are mainly ceremonial in their duties. I doubt they slay dragons or fight in battles.

My favorite character in the piece is the Messenger that shows up at the end. His eyes show his excitement, and his mouth opens wide to help him deliver the great news.

While one could argue that the song and voice work are the strong suit of this piece, for me the character design choices are what make it memorable. The simple shapes and minimal facial details help sell the characters in a fast yet convincing way. This is one of my favorite bits from Sesame Street. Jim Henson and his creative team have a great way of using design elements to help sell a character by looks alone, before the first MEEP, Wakka-wakka, or Yep yep yep.

"Open Season"

I saw "Open Season" tonight. The animation was nice, but the stand out for me was the FX. Fur and fluids never looked better. Unfortunately, the story and character development was rather weak.

I didn't really care about the characters. The wild animal with an urban sound has been done to death, and this film has it in spades. There are also snippets of backstory that we learn about some of the characters, but it's explained to us rather than shown to us... which isn't very interesting.

This film also suffers from the same thing that plagues many recent CG films (including Pixar films) - WAY too many characters. I understand that there are many animals in the forest, but there is no reason to show each different kind of animal or give them all business in the film. This is time that could have been spent building up the main characters and making their bond seem more realistic rather than forced.

Animation = A
Effects = A+
Character design = B
Story = C-

-Floyd

Fartbot final animation

HERE it is.

We were recently asked to be part of a collaborative film called "FredEx". We had to come up with ten seconds of animation that featured a robot. Each creative crew was given a topic, and ours was "farts".

Credits:
Character design: J Chad Erekson
Modelling: Kevin Wisdom
UVs: Mike Kopa
Textures: Veronica Harper, Kevin Wisdom
Rigging: James Jones Jr
Animation: Kevin Wisdom
Lighting: Kevin Wisdom
Effects: Floyd Bishop, Kevin Wisdom
Audio: J Chad Erekson
Final comp: J Chad Erekson, Kevin Wisdom

Fartbot final

Here's a frame from the final animation.

Fartbot Animation WIP

Enjoy.

Character rig: James Jones.
Animation: Kevin Wisdom

Fartbot textures WIP

So here is what the Fartbot's textures are looking like. Cast iron stomach, rickety joints, and a red hot belly. Textures by Veronica Harper and Kevin Wisdom. Mike Kopa laid out the UVs.

Fartbot

Character design by J Chad Erekson

We were asked to be part of a collaborative project featuring robots. Our segment features a robot that farts. Based on that brief description, this is what we came up with.


Character model by Kevin Wisdom

As always, let us know what you think.

We need more interviews like this one... from all political figures.

No Z depth, but tons of great gameplay.

Midway recently put several of their arcade classics online for people to play. Some of these games were released before some of the people who work at Bishop Animation. Take a trip back to the olden days of videogames to see what gameplay and replay value are all about.

Vladimir (Bill) Peter Tytla - One of the Non-Nine Old Men

There's a lot of talk about the Nine Old Men. I started to blog about them a few posts back. While researching the Nine Old Men, I started to learn more and more about the animators that aren't part of the list.

Bill Tytla is responsible for a lot of great character animation, but perhaps his best work is on Stromboli. Have a look at this sequence from "Pinocchio", and try to count the emotions Stromboli displays. In my opinion, Stromboli's animation outshines Pinocchio's in this sequence, as the burden of acting is on Stromboli. Without such a grand performance, there is nothing for Pinocchio to react to. Take a look and see for yourself:

Even though Bill Tytla was paid well as an animator, he was a part of the Disney strike in 1941. The strike was a dark time for the Disney studios, and many of the artists who did strike were pressured out of the studio in one way or another. Bill Tytla was no different.

Tytla's perception was that he was unwelcome at the Disney studio. Less challenging work, his wife's three-year long illness with tuberculosis, fear of Japanese attack, and a desire to live on his Connecticut farm eventually led him to the decision to leave the studio. He resigned from the Disney studio on February 24, 1943, an action he regretted for the remaining twenty-five years of his life. (source: The Vladimir Tytla Page)

You can bet dollars to doughnuts that this is why Bill Tytla is not on the list of Walt's Nine Old Men, even though he obviously had the talents to be included on such a list.