Here is the launch trailer for the Sony Online Entertainment game Free Realms. I have had a blast working on this game as a Senior Artist over the past year. I’ve worked on several games in the past, but this was my first MMO. Being able to help create a world, complete with entertaining characters, fun quests, and interesting stories has been a blast.
You can sign up for free at the official Free Realms website.
-Floyd Bishop
Drawing by friend, officemate, and fellow animator Brad Constantine
So what’s up with your posts? How come you’re not posting so often? Well, I’ve been sick.
I’ve been sick off and on since the beginning of 2009, but after several visits to the emergency room, the doctors finally figured out what my problem was and yanked my gall bladder. The surgery was nothing like the whiteboard drawing you see above.
Anyway, the point is, I’m feeling much better, and I’m getting back into posting more frequently. Posting on the blog is something I really enjoy, and as I get better, I hope to get back into daily posts again.
-Floyd Bishop
This is a piece I did to test out interactivity using YouTube’s new annotations feature. Send this to someone you like to see if they like you back.
This is a short film I made yesterday. My kids are the ones singing the soundtrack. The idea was to do a really quick little short, in the same vein as what you might see on Sesame Street or similar program.
This doesn’t count toward my goal of 12 films for the year. It was just made for fun. I hope you like it!
I’m working on finishing up my syllabi for my upcoming classes at the Art Institute. I’ll be teaching both Character Animation and Advanced Character Animation. This has got me thinking about all kinds of things I want to convey to the students about not just animation, but the animation industry in general.
What are some things you wish you knew when you were getting started in the industry? What should they do first? Is there anything the newly minted animator should avoid?
Well, 2008 has come and gone (I had hoped to have a flying car by now). It’s the time of year where people make resolutions to map out their year ahead in the hopes of bettering themselves, and improving their lives overall.
For some people, that includes getting a hobby that gives them something to have fun with, something unrelated to their day job. While it may not be as high profile as the Firehouse Five Plus Two, it should be something that you have fun with. Others may set small goals which will improve their skill sets overall. When was the last time you went to a figure drawing session? Is there an aspect of cartoon making that you have been interested in but have never tried? Here are some of my animation related resolutions for the new year:
I have four kids. There are six people in my family. We were all sick over the last three days (but are feeling much better now). This Family Guy clip is kind of what it was like in the Bishop house recently, only we also had a tailess racoon show up and harass our dog.
You might remember “The Happy Pumpkin” from last year. He’s still going strong, scaring thousands of people each month.
Have a great time out there tonight, take a flashlight, and don’t eat candy from the creepy houses.
This animated gif (click for larger version) shows the voting results for Presidential elections from 1960 - 2004. The results are color coded, county by county, for the entire continental United States. It was interesting to see the color shifts that happened from year to year, and how voting results seemed to pool together in sections. The graph comes from a Princeton study. It will be interesting to see what this year’s map looks like.
…but not for long. On Sunday, I took a drive (along with Lisa Illowsky) to go visit with Avi Tuchman before he leaves the west coast. We pretty much just bummed around Burbank and the surrounding area. Avi told us all about the joys of his time at Nickelodeon and Film Roman. Avi is leaving for Israel soon, so I wanted to make sure I saw him before he headed off later this summer.
Good luck in your travels, Avi!
