Former CalArts student and storyboard artist Derek Evanick’s film “Los Estrandados” is a hysterical take on a crappy situation (being stranded on a desert island - tell me that’s not crap).

Channel Frederator: What was the most important thing you learned at CalArts?

Derek Evanick: I think listening and working with other people. There are so many amazing teachers and students at CalArts. I came into CalArts thinking that I knew more than I actually did. I wouldn’t always take advice or criticism very well. Once I shut my mouth and started listening things went a lot better. I also found a group of friends that had the same style and humor that I did. It was a lot of fun throwing story ideas at each other and finding out what worked.

CF: Most useless?

DE: I think if you ask a lot of CalArts students they would say critical studies… So yeah, I’m going to say critical studies. I think the problem is film making requires so much work and students are throwing everything they have into it, you really don’t want to stop and take a three hour break to learn about the history of interpretive dance. I understand that it is important to learn about things outside of character animation. It’s just time is so precious and you’re trying to do everything you can to make a good film… Sorry CalArts critical studies.

CF: What has influenced your style the most?

DE: I think most of my influence comes from old comics and illustrators. I really like looking at Punch,which has a lot of amazing artists in it like Norman Thelwell, Jean-Jacques Sempe, Ralph Steadman, and Gerald Scarfe. I also really like the classics like Hank Ketcham and Charles Schultz.

CF: What gave you the idea for “Los Estrandados”?

DE: I’ve gotten this question a lot and I really wish I had a better answer. I was basically lying in bed about year ago freaking out because I wanted to have a good senior film. I guess it kind of came to me when I was half asleep and out of it.

CF: Do you have any upcoming projects you can tell us about?

DE: Well right now I’m working as a storyboard artist at Illumination Entertainment which is a part of Universal Studios.
As for my own projects nothing too concrete, but I’d like to keep making shorts and writing.

Thanks, Derek! You can watch “Los Estrandados” right here on Channel Frederator, just click here!

-Bailee DesRocher

Just in time for ComiCon, Javier Lopez Duprey gives Channel Frederator “Trigger Happy” - a short and sweet short about a good guy gone bad.

Channel Frederator: Where did you get the idea for “Trigger Happy”?

Javier Lopez Duprey: I got the idea while I was in the middle of the superhero craze. I was wondering when the next Spiderman or Batman would be coming out and I immediately thought that it would be great to do something related to superheroes. Then I thought about how I could tell a different story than that which I have already seen. So I came up with a world that required heroes to be licensed and a main character that wanted to be good, but could not help being bad.

CF: What was your favorite part of making the film?

JLD: My favorite part had to be animating the film. Coming up with how the gun would move and how the character would express himself.

CF: What has influenced your style the most?

JLD: Well definitely stuff like The Incredibles and the snappiness of Looney Tunes animation. Also, Willem Defoe. He’s a great actor and really good in evil roles. I would imagine my character as a sort of caricature of him.

CF: What are your superpowers?

JLD: I am more flexible than any guy my height and build should ever be. It freaks people out when they see a short stocky dude curl up into a pretzel.

CF: Who is your arch-nemesis?

JLD: The internet, the greatest distraction on earth. But I really do love it. All heroes secretly love their Arch Nemesis right?

Yep! Thanks for the interview, Javier!

You can get your superhero on with “Trigger Happy” right here on Channel Frederator.

-Bailee DesRocher

Self described weird kid Ian Jones-Quartey’s film “Unfair” is as hysterical as it is brutal. He learned early to roll with the (literal) punches, and as a result, has stories and talent to spare.

Channel Frederator: Where do you draw your inspiration from for your films?

Ian Jones-Quartey: I think that real life is probably the best inspiration someone can get! I like to do my commutes to work on the subway without being plugged in to an iPod. It sounds crazy but all of my best ideas have come to me from noticing something about my surroundings that I wouldn’t have if I were distracted. I think the best characters are usually the ones people make based on their friends. The way people interact is a really interesting thing to explore.

CF: What has influenced your style the most?

IJQ: I try to shy away from the term “style” and just say “the things I rip off”. It’s more honest. Doug TenNapel’s artwork is a major influence on me. I really adore the art direction of the first eight seasons of The Simpsons. I’m always sure to keep some Tezuka comics around when I’m hitting a block (Phoenix especially!). Ren & Stimpy and Looney Tunes also help. Early Fleischer cartoons were a huge influence on “Unfair”, what with the rubber-hose arms. Betty Boop M.D. is one of the funniest cartoons I’ve ever seen. I was also really into Masaaki Yuasa’s film MindGame around that time. That film took an autobiographical story and turned it into something weird and amazing.

I fell in love with the film SLC Punk when I was starting “Unfair” and it really influenced how I chose to do the narration. I didn’t see The 400 Blows until after I finished and to this day I still wonder what my film would have been like if I had seen it before. It does an amazing job of describing adolescence in a first person narrative. I would have storyboarded “Unfair” completely differently! Argh! I guess the lesson is to devour and rip off as many different things as you can find and your work will be all the better for it.

CF: What do you do to get past creative blocks?

IJQ: First I agonize over them, and then I try to lose myself in something else completely like a new book. Somewhere along the way I forget that I had a creative block, and then I get some new ideas!

CF: Do you have any upcoming projects you can tell us about?

IJQ: Well right now I am continuing the sometimes-weekly online cartoon nockFORCE! It’s based off of the conversations I have with Jim Gisriel who I met in college. He’s really witty, so whenever we talk it ends up sounding like a comedy bit. After recording our conversations, I put drawings to them and Jim does the lipsync and music. We do each one in about the space of a day or two so they’re not exactly fully animated, but they’re a lot of fun to make and each one is a unique challenge. Plus we put them up on YouTube right when we finish one so there’s instant gratification!

I’m starting to draw comics as well but the completion of those are pretty far off. It’s a totally different mindset than animation. I used to draw comics a long time ago but I’m relearning them with some help from Rebecca Sugar. She’s amazing.

CF: Biggest drawback of being a kid?

IJQ: Adults hate it when the kid’s right and they’re wrong. Even if an adult concedes to being in the wrong the kid gets grounded anyway.

CF: Most craptastic thing about being an adult?

IJQ: Kids telling me I’m wrong. Go to your room!

Tell ‘em, Ian! You can check out Ian’s film “Unfair” right here on Channel Frederator.

-Bailee DesRocher

Animator William Garratt’s quirky cartoon “Le Tuff Talk” is only one of many fun films (in addition to oodles of commercial work) in his repertoire. Let’s talk the talk with him about cartoons, Bo Diddley, and bad mouthing.Channel Frederator: Where did you study animation?William Garratt: I did a three month course in 2D animation at the University of the West of England here in Bristol (in the UK ), which was great fun and very useful. Apart from that, it’s been very much a process of trial and error.CF: What are your favorite films/cartoons?WG: I love “The Big Snit” by Richard Conde – it manages to be both very funny and very humane at the same time. “The Cat Came Back” by Cordell Barker is another favourite, as is “Bob’s Birthday” by Alison Snowden and David Fine. I recently saw “Mary and Max” by Adam Elliot, which was great. Plus of course the Pixar films, Spongebob, and the Simpsons.CF: “Le Tuff Talk” is hilarious. What gave you the idea for the film?WG: I wanted to do something that was open-ended in format - listening to “Say Man” by Bo Diddley gave me the idea for two blokes trading elaborate insults. I also wanted it to be mostly visual in impact, so I decided to have the characters speak in almost-recognisable French. There was an English comedy writer called Miles Kington who did a column called “Let’s Parlez Franglais”, which gave me the idea for that.CF: What are you working on now?WG: I’m currently doing freelance work for a viral company, and working on a pitch for a children’s TV series. Plus I’ve got a load of ideas for more episodes of “Le Tuff Talk”, and for more short films…CF: What is the best insult you’ve ever used?WG: I usually think of a good insult about three hours after the opportunity to use it has passed.We’ll get back to you then. Thanks for the interview, William!You can check out William’s film “Le Tuff Talk” right here on Channel Frederator!

-Bailee DesRocher

Eirik Paye

You know what’s so special about July 8? Well, it was two years ago today Mr Eirik Paye officially joined the Fairly OddParents crew. Although Eirik’s spent most of his time on the series working on props, he’s more recently moved over to become the show’s newest background and layout artist. Let’s bother him with a few questions, shall we?

Frederator: Where did you grow up?

Eirik: I was born in Norway but moved to Santa Barbara, California, while I was still learning to toddle. The neighborhood my family finally settled in looks a lot like Calvin and Hobbes backyard only with actual bears, bobcats, coyotes – basically an assortment of wildlife that can eat your face. As a city, Santa Barbara has a lot to offer for anyone enthusiastic about the arts or raging brush fires. It was certainly an interesting place to grow up, geographically speaking.

Frederator: Dessverre snakker jeg bare litt norsk. When and what made you realize you wanted to go into cartoons?

Eirik: Cartoons? I thought I was making video games! If you ask my father that question, he’d say it was when I was four and saw him bounce several times after falling off a ladder. My mother would say it was Hong Kong Phooey. Honestly, I loved all things Hanna-Barbera, UPA, and Disney, but the Hong Kong Phooey song was some of the first English I learned. Please don’t make me to sing it for you.

Frederator: I won’t, but now it’s stuck in my head, thanks. How did you learn the art of animation?

Eirik: I’m self taught. Originally I wanted to be a scientist, mostly because I thought it sounded cool. Sadly, at the time I also believed that being able to translate The Hobbit into Klingon would get me chicks. SO…. I went to UCSB to major in art history/archeology with an emphasis in classics. As soon as I found out that I’d be trading high adventure in the Amazon for a lab coat, I switched to art studio and film studies. Swiping golden artifacts from pre-Colombian temples and getting chased by perfectly manicured natives would have to be my minor. Three years and a merry bushel of my parents’ money later I graduated with a degree in art. I should also mention that I briefly attended Art Center and San Jose State University for classes in entertainment and industrial design. As luck would have it, I was recruited by SEGA as a concept artist in mid-semester which suited me fine because starving was getting old. That’s pretty much how I got into the entertainment industry.

Frederator: Who’s inspired you over the years?

Eirik: Well let’s see… Butch Hartman, George Goodchild… let’s just say too many to count. Every five years I start a whole new collection of comics, art books, and posters. If I had to name drop, I’d start with the illustrators I discovered in grade school. Frank Frazetta, Bob Peak, Bill Sienkiewicz, Barron Storey, Drew Struzan, Leyendecker (anyone from the Brandywine tradition), McGinnis, Bernie Wrightson, William Kaluta, and Jeff Jones. I was a BIG comics fan too and not just the popular titles. Sure, I looked for artists I liked: John Byrne, Arthur Adams, Tony DeZuniga, Ernie Chan, John Buscema, Steve Ditko, and Moebius, but I learned to find value in everything. I even read the third tier Marvel and DC series: Arak, Son of Thunder, Jonah Hex, Rom, the list goes (embarrassingly) on. Can you imagine what it was like for me when years later, I would land my first real industry gig, and who would turn out to be my mentor but Tony DeZuniga!? I owe Tony a great deal. In terms of animation, Ollie Johnston caught my attention when I saw The Rescuers in 1977. (Yes, I’m old. Leave me alone.) After that I started collecting golden books and anything that looked “Ollie-esque”. Don Bluth was also a big hit with me and I still have my original Betamax copy of Secrets of NIMH. I should also give a shout out to Steve Lambe, Stephen Silver, Marcelo Vignali, John Nevarez, Dave Johnson, Eric Canete, and Dan Panosian – guys, I’ve been shamelessly mooching from you for years. Lastly, I can’t overlook the impact that MAD magazine had on me. Even now, I get hooked when I open a MAD and see the greatness of Mort Drucker, Jack Davis, George Woodbridge, Sergio Aragones, and Al Jaffee. Ok, maybe not so much Al Jaffee, but his fold-overs were still pretty genius.

Frederator: How did you make the move from SEGA to animation?

Eirik: Eric Robles propped the back door open and I walked in. Not long after I left SEGA, I got a call from a friend who’d recently left ILM. He said he was working on a CG animated feature for Disney called The Wild and he needed a character designer. I joined the production generating designs, expressions, turns and mouth charts. It was a real wake up call. Up until this point, I’d had the luxury of playing things fast and loose, but now I was in the NFL. Constant changes were an every day reality, deadlines loomed, and sleep became a commodity. I worked sixteen-hour days and gave up Saturdays for eight months, but it in then end, it paid off. I made a lot of friends, expanded my skill set, and my folks got to see their son’s name on the ‘big screen.’

Paye art from The Wild

Frederator: So congratulations on moving from Fairly OddParents prop guy to handling layouts and backgrounds. Before the switch, how many props were you designing per show?

Eirik: It really depends, but I’d say the average per show has been about 100 or so. I’m a relatively quick study with a fast hand so I count my blessings on the larger shows. I’ve been fortunate enough to work on a show with a really solid production team. The production staff on FOP is top-notch and so are the artists. Some of the old guys – uh, veterans – of the show were extremely helpful getting me up to speed with the style and pace of the production. I owe George Goodchild, Jim Worthy, Gordon Hammond, and Ernie Gilbert a deep debt of gratitude for taking the time with me that they did. They were also instrumental in my promotion to Layouts/Backgrounds. Thanks, guys!

FOP “Wishology” Designs

Frederator: Any outside projects you’re working on?

Eirik: I have worked (on and off) in development for the past ten years. In fact, I was part of the creative team that created Growing Up Creepie for the Discovery Kids Network. I am presently partnered up with some of my former colleagues from the SEGA days. For the better part of two years we’ve been working on video game concepts, kids shows, and a ‘retro’ tabloid concept, but it’s all off the record, on the QT and very hush-hush.

A Growing Up Creepie design

That all sounds pretty cool, and we’ll keep it all on the down-low. Takk så mye, Eirik.

– Eric

Recent UCLA grad Giles Timms‘ film “Manifestations” is a trippy treat for the eyes and ears. Here he chats with us about his work past, present, and future.

Channel Frederator: Where did you study animation?

Giles Timms: I studied animation at UCLA as an MFA grad student at the UCLA Animation Workshop within the Department of Theatre, Film and Television. I just graduated this June.

CF: Congratulations!

What has influenced your style the most?

GT: Stylistically, I really like work that is stylized, textured and painterly and so I strive to include these elements in my own art direction. I think my interest in these elements comes from my background as a painter. I also find inspiration from a lot of comic book artists and illustrators such as Ashley Wood, Mike Mignola and Rhode Montijo. One of my favorite graphic novels in terms of art direction is Mr. Punch, illustrated by Dave McKean.

For animation, I love the beautiful work of Yuriy Norshteyn, Igor Kovalyov, Koji Yamamura and Jamie Caliri.

I was also fortunate to work with Bill Barminski and Chris Louie from Walter Robot, on the Grapevine Fires music video for Death Cab for Cutie. Working with those two guys has had an impact on my working methods and style.

CF: What is your favorite part of the animation process?

GT: I’ve been extremely lucky to work with a very generous and talented composer, Ceri Frost. He gave me the music for Manifestations before I started work on the short and I found it be an amazing experience to animate to the music. So for me, having the music or a beat track to animate to keeps me honest and focused and is my favorite part of the animation process.

CF: Least favorite?

GT: Storyboarding…

CF: Aw, snap. “Manifestations” is pretty trippy - how did you develop the concept for the film?

GT: “Manifestations” actually started out as a single scene exercise/experiment I set for myself to learn After Effects. Once I had that initial scene and then Ceri’s wonderful music I started to develop the story outward from those two pieces. It really helped me to have Ceri’s music at the very beginning of the project as I was able to listen to the music and create the scenes and story in my head. The whole process though was rather experimental for me and certainly an aspect of the film is very much me trying to push myself as an animator and filmmaker. My process was also a bit unconventional in that I ended up with about 8 minutes of animation that I edited down to 4 minutes But I learned a lot.

CF: Do you have any upcoming projects you can tell us about?

GT: Yes, I’m currently finishing up a music video for Ceri for his upcoming album for the song ‘Dead All Along.’

The video tells the story of a young boy Yorick who briefly journeys in the fairy kingdom, but when Yorick returns to his family he discovers that he and his family are already dead. I’m really excited about this project and I’ve had a lot of fun making it – it’s kind of my take on an Edward Gorey inspired world, which is something I’ve always wanted to do.

Thanks for the interview, Giles! Let us know when ‘Dead All Along’ is go!

You can watch “Manifestations” right here on Channel Frederator!

-Bailee DesRocher

Santi Agustí is one talented animator! His retro, poptastic animation “Fco Aragon” combines cool music with colorful animation and we couldn’t be happier to feature it here on Channel Frederator.

Channel Frederator: Where did you study animation?

Santi Agustí: I studied animation at Pompeu Fabra University, in Barcelona, with a masters degree in animation and focus on Maya, (in 2003)

CF: What has influenced your style the most?

SA: Uh… well…I really don’t recognize a clear style in my animations/illustrations… but I like a lot of Eastern European animations (and their dark stop motions!), as well as UPA films, experimental avant garde filmations, old textures, listening to some Avishai Cohen, Soil & “Pimp” Sessions, Krautrock, minimal and drone music…so maybe it’s a mixture of all that (or probably anything that’s reflected in my drawings and animations.. :-p)

CF: What is this film, “Fco Aragón”, for?

SA: Well, it was an animation to show the production process of Francisco Aragón company products, from the very early concept design of their designers to the final product found in supermarkets (they are focused on pest sprays, air fresheners, and so on). So I tried to show it in a funny way… I thought we would have a nice voice-over explaining the process, but they didn’t put it in, so there are some shots in the video that seem a bit longer or shorter..

CF: Do you have any upcoming projects you can tell us about?

SA: Yes, I’m starting a short animated piece (about 40 seconds), made with illustrator and animator Toni Reyna, which I hope will be funny to make and to watch! And some other in-negotiation projects not 100% 2D/3D animation, but mixed media, and real video. (Also seeking some financial backing for a non-animation sci-fi short film - well, not cartoon animation at all, maybe some subtle 2D and 3D animated elements– which will be quite conceptual and poetic.. )

Thank you for the interview, Santi!

You can watch “Fco Aragon” right here on Channel Frederator!

-Bailee DesRocher

Tony Dusko (Mr. Dusko to his students) is an elementary school teacher, former microbiologist, artist, and creator of the animated Notebook Babies shorts. Channel Frederator caught up with him this summer to find out where he got his mad animating skills, how his films are impacting his students, and what he’s working on now.

Channel Frederator: What made you decide to leave the world of microbiology to pursue teaching?

Tony Dusko: Basically I was bored. And I wasn’t having any fun. When you teach kids, every day is different and dull moments are few. It is a very tough job, but a fun job with lots of rewards.

CF: You studied art and have an artistic background, but were there any pros/cons to studying animation later in life?

TD: Well the challenge of studying something later in life is that you often have a full time job, so traditional university courses are usually out of the question. However, if you are motivated, independent study can be an efficient way to learn a craft because you don’t have to take courses that have nothing to do with your goals, such as archery or dinosaurs. I got lucky in my independent study in that I found a mentor, Paul Fierlinger, who was willing to take me on as a sort of private student. Paul has been a huge help. He has been in the business for decades and was one of the original Sesame Street animators, so he is sort of a hero to me as an educational filmmaker. I was also lucky in that he lives only an hour away.

CF: How do you decide which topics to address in your films?

TD: That is an easy question. The topics in my films come out of the needs of my students. For example, we were having issues this past year about spreading rumors and so I made “Rumors Hurt”. My students are also a driving force for me to get the films done because then I can put them into service and see how effective they are. They become my own focus group. I love showing them a new film. It is a great feeling, especially when my gags work. And then of course I enjoy using the internet to share my films with lots of other people. I was sure that there had to be lots of other kids out there being hurt by rumors too.

CF: Which film is your favorite? Which one is the most popular among your students?

TD: I really like “Some Facts about Owls” . I think it is an attractive film to look at and I think there is some really funny dialogue in it. My brother Mark contributed a voice and his silly sense of humor as well. One of my most popular films with my students is “Bio-bunny”. I used it to drive a school-wide campaign to reduce our trash and showed it on morning announcements every day for a week. The kids loved the character so much that I made a costume of Bio-bunny and had a student wear it and go all over the school to visit classrooms.

CF: Has introducing animation to your classes encouraged students to be artists when they grow up?

TD: My work constantly encourages students to try their hand at drawing and even animation. And in fact, they don’t want to wait until they grow up. My style is actually largely inspired by child drawing and I suspect that this allows them to think that they can do it too. And actually, this past year I had so much interest that I set up a simple animation station in my classroom and allowed kids to use it in their free time. They made some great little films.

CF: Any cool plans for this summer?

TD: I will be doing a lot of drawing and writing and hopefully some surfing in Costa Rica if it works out. I also have a film in a New York festival that I would like to attend.

CF: Do you have any upcoming projects you can tell us about?

TD: Due to the success of “What is a Friend”, I am working on a sort of sequel that communicates what a true friend is as compared to a false friend. It will explain to kids that a false friend might not be good for them. So many people of all ages have really connected to “What is a Friend” and I think that friendship is such a connectible topic for all of us.

Thank you for the interview, Mr. Dusko!

You can check out Tony’s films “What is a Friend?” and “Some Facts About Owls” right here on Channel Frederator!

-Bailee DesRocher

Animator Daniel Lundquist’s film “Boris” has be shown at film festivals all over the globe, including Annecy 2009 and the World Wide Short Film Festival. Here he he tells us a little about the boy who would grow up to drum with everything he’s got.

Channel Frederator: Where did you study animation?

Daniel Lundquist: I studied animation at the Minneapolis College of Art and Design from 2003 to 2007.

CF: What has influenced your style the most?

DL: I have been influenced by many animators, probably the most by Max Fleischer. But I also love Disney and Pixar. My favorite feature film of all time is “The Triplets of Belleville“.

CF: What gave you the idea for “Boris”?

DL: “Boris” started as a story that I wanted to tell of a man who drummed with his head because he had no arms. The rest of the story formed around that.

CF: Any projects coming up that you can tell us about?

DL: I am presently working on a 10min animated short called “Filled in Blank”. I hope to have it finished by 2012 if not before. Its the story of one man who looks back on his life to try and understand what his life was all about.

CF: Object you can’t live without or habit you refuse to give up?

DL: I don’t like getting more than 6 hours of sleep in a night.

Thanks for the interview, Daniel!

You can watch “Boris” right here on Channel Frederator!