Monsters are people too.....

Hey guys!

I'm back from a very successful Son of Monsterpalooza show and it was a blast to say the least. We met famous people and talked to a lot of well know industry professionals from Stan Winston Studios to the Chioto Brothers form "Killer Klowns from Outer Space".  People there are so nice and we made friends with a lot of people like Vincent Price's daughter, Victoria Price, Charlie Chioto and with Tim Gore who has been working in the movie industry for many many years. he is the nicest guy you ever meet and we exchanged information and he gave me some of his new brand of paint. Check him out at The Extreme art of Tim Gore at Facebook....

The great thing about it was that Len Simon and I had a booth and we did very well. People just loved our products and the art work. We made many connections and we hope to see everyone again in April for another Monsterpalooza....

In the meantime, enjoy some of the photos...

Monsterpalooza time......

Hey guys and ghouls.....

Son of Monsterpalooza Horror Show is coming up this Friday to Sunday at Burbank Marriott Hotel in CA and Len and I will be there. Come over and check out our booth. It is a great show with a lot of strange and cool people, celebrities and even a Monster Makeup Scholarship Competition.....

I hope to see you there........

Animation Classes....

Hello young apprentices.....

I'm glad to report that the first Animation Class this past Saturday was a success. The interest is growing so here is some information about the classes. They are being held at Scottsdale Civic Center Library every Saturday from 11 am to 12 pm. I will be covering Introduction to Animation, Animation Principles, Character design, workshops and assignments for skill development.

Please contact me for more information at Edisontoons@hotmail.com

Hope to see you there

Around the World in 13 years.....

Hey guys!

Some of the characters for Fox Animation Studios "Around the World in 80 Days". Of course with the shutdown of the studio in 2000, this was never made but we were left with a lot of creative stuff including some of the designs I did for the so called Phileas Fogg's friends of The Reform Club. 

A lot has happened since then and although my designs are somewhat old, I still like them. It was fun to work on it and see all those creative minds come together. We had so many great ideas for scenarios and character designs.....

Many great memories.......I wished it had been made.......

We all live by our own principles...

Book "Animation" by Preston Blair

I've started Animation and Drawing classes this past week and it went really well. The amount of students is growing and I feel I'm doing my part to keep this medium alive and well, although I have to say that most of the principles I teach apply as much to 3D as to 2D. From Phone Apps to Computer Animation to Graphic Design, everything is an expression of the artist that tries to create something that speaks out to oneself or the client and these classes will help develop your skills and approach to whatever you want to do...

After all, it is not called Illusion of Life for nothing.... :)

Cheers

Award Winning Short....

RINDIN THE PUFFER

This short won several awards including Family International Film Festival in California, 2D or not 2D Animation Festival in Washington, Hampton International Film Festival in New York and two Gold Telly awards in 2007. I had fun working on it and I hope to be able to do lots of shorts like this one.

Enjoy it!

Chuck Jones and Me....

Hi!

This photo was taken I think in 1991 when Chuck Jones came over his wife to visit  Don Bluth Studios in Ireland. It was a dream come true and a honor to be able to talk to him and hear the stories about his studio and the early days. He was so nice and even gave me his card under his hat and asked me if I wanted to work at his studio in California. I was shocked and so overwhelmed but a month later, I wrote him a letter to thank him for coming over and offering me a job but I really want to work with Don at the time and that I had still a lot to learn. A couple of months later he responded with a thank you and a drawing signed, which I treasure to this day.

Only a few people know about this story and I wonder how my life would have been like if I had accepted his offer and moved to California in 1991....

Oh well.....

Cheers

Under the Sea.....

Hi guys!

For some reason I have been fortunate to be able to work with underwater related themes from Illustration to a award winning short to restaurant kids place mats or just my own stuff. Here is some the stuff I've done....

Very inspirational

There are many people that I admire. But there are few great character designers out there and one of them was Harald Siepermann. I know he past away almost 9 months ago but his work is always going to be remembered for I consider him one of the greatest character designers ever. One of the great things about being an artist is that you leave so much behind for others to enjoy.

Thank you, man!!!

I met Sandro in 1987 at Briquet Studios in Sao Paulo, Brazil where he was their only animator. The first day I was there he took one of the scenes he animated for a chocolate commercial and took all the inbetweens out and gave me the scene to inbetween. I was very raw at the time but I did it anyway. We became friends and I used to go to his house once in a while which was a couple of hours away by bus. He showed me his drawings and said that one day he wanted to work at Disney Studios. I believed that he would for I thought he was that good and I really looked up to him. We went through a lot of stuff together, including a car accident with his uncle and aunt, and in 1990 he invited me to go to Ireland with him to work with Don Bluth Studios. After a "No way" I changed my mind and decided to go.... On May 25th, 1990 we left Brazil under our parents tearful eyes to pursue our dreams.

After working in Ireland for 4 years and moving to the US to work for Fox Animation for the next 2 years, we finally parted when he got his dream job at Disney as an animator. I was so happy for him because I knew it was going to happen. He turned out to be one of Disney biggest assets and he became very successful not only professionally but in his personal life. He ended marring my oldest friend and it seems that we are all a big family.

Our lives went in different directions and we don't talk to each other as often as we should, but I have a lot to thank him for what he taught me, for all the support we gave each other when we were so far away from home, for helping me develop and grow as an animator when I started and for just being the nice guy he is.

So I want to start this new blog by thank you Sandro,  because after 26 years since we met the first time, I still look up to you today as much as I did then.

Cheers