Why I want to do this

I'm still 'new' to this whole world of cartoons. I mean, I've lived and breathed cartoons ever since I came outta the womb... but it wasn't until a little over 2 years ago that I decided to FULLY pursue a career in cartoons and animation.

I went to art school from 2000-01 in Minneapolis (majoring in animation), then later moved and transferred into one of their online program (studying interactive media design), which I attended 2003-04. I took the media design courses because they didn't offer any animation degrees as part of their online studies, and I really felt out of place. I probably have a little under 2 years left if I want to finish earning my degree. But do I want to go back? Not really.

When I was still at school in Minneapolis, I found that I was surrounded by a bunch of - how do I put this lightly - talentless people? Don't get me wrong - I encountered a good share of VERY creative people who really intimidated me by their amazing artwork. But for the rest of 'em, you almost felt bad for how much money they ended up spending for tuition. And when (or, if) they ended up graduating, they still weren't, really, good artists at all.

Anyway, I've learned more about animation SINCE art school. I always knew the basics, yeah, but until I started doing my own research in libraries, bookstores, online, etc.,
I couldn't believe how much there was to know!

One site that's been of great help is Animation Meat. Go there and check out some of the PDFs in the 'notes' section. Seriously, you can find more information on animation there than you could ever learn in an animation class. OK, obviously, if you're in a classroom of a great art school with a legendary animator, that's different - and there's no substitute. However, in my case, the school I went to would never involve a master of animation speaking to the pupils, let alone as a guest speaker!

If you haven't figured it out yet, I want to animate cartoons. My best friend/business partner have had completed storyboards of a short sitting at our studio workspace for a little over 2 years now. Top secret! We did some limited animations of its intro sequence immediately after the storyboards were finished, but haven't done anything else since then. It's just the two of us, and I'm the one who draws all the pictures. Our equipment is minimal and there's a dozen+ number of animation-related items we could still use in our studio. EXPENSIVE items.

So stuff's been on a loooonnng hold with that cartoon, but all is not lost. I began working as a caricaturist at a local shopping mall last summer, and it's really helped me improve on my skills. In addition to that, we're developing a comic book right now that is drawn off a major concept in the universe of cartoon animation. Characters haven't been developed yet, but we're targeting on getting the majority of the first issue done through March. We thought we'd have story and characters ready to go by the end of February, but it's already the 27th and it's been tough getting something put together. In any case, when this comic is done I will definitely post more information about it here.

We worked on a totally different comic book this past year, but it was going very slowly and the frustration set in on a regular basis. I was unhappy with the style and the way it was put together, BUT... it's been one big fat invaluable learning experience. So lemme take the good and the bad of that old comic, and apply that knowledge to the NEW one!!! I look at this current comic book as a stepping stone. When it's completed, I hope it can bring us to the point where we can begin working on our animated short again.

This business is tough, and I know I'm still a tiny guppy in this vast ocean of sharks, whales, and mermaids. But I dream of the day when I can start releasing funny cartoons to the world, so that they can entertain audiences in the same way that cartoons have always entertained me.