BACK TO BACK STORYBOARDS AND NO SLEEP

Well now, I’ve had a rather rough patch of it as far as workgoes. As we ALLLLL  know, the “defacto” SAG strike has kicked all of our collective butts.

I haven’t worked on a feature since the demise/hiatus of a bigfilm I was on, but thankfully, I got some commercial work.

Let’s say, a lot, actually. Thank you, God!!!!  I was assigned to do ten commercialsfor a production company that I work with on a semi-regular basis. I won’t namethe project or the company as it could have ended a little better. As we areall human, people got tired on the last day, and there were blow ups.

 It got to thepoint that I just signed my time card and walked out of the office. SEVENTEENhours after I started that morning. It was a very long last day and everythinghad to be completed. Thankfully, two colleagues were able to pitch in with theboards and we got it done.

I was as tired as I ever was. But then, I had to start a newgig on the following day with my friend, Bennett Miller. Thankfully, we metduring the evening where I could recharge my batteries. This job was not asshot specific (there would be improvising upon shooting) but I still had a lotof boards to do.

For all of you single, non parents who complain about neverhaving time to yourselves, please shutup. I love my wife and my son, but when I have a deadline, “family time”can get me a little cranky.

Only because that time away from drawing is time added to atthe end of the day. My wife and son and I made quick trip to the beach to getmy son some fresh air, but I ended up once again finishing a gig well aftermidnight.

No, I don’t chargemy client for this. I bill according to the hours I put in, but let me tellyou, I was wiped at the end of the job. I am wiped as I write this blog, but Iam trying to be on time with it, as I have fallen behind recently.

Storyboarding is something that takes time. Having a HAPPYfamily demands time. The two do not always go hand in hand. One has to occasionallychain them together like Poitier and Curtis in THE DEFIANT ONES. Or, Pam Grierand the blonde in BLACK MAMA, WHITE MAMA.

Your choice.

 

 

A FEW STORYBOARD GIGS

I am very happy to say that I am working with my long time friend, Hank Perlman, one of the founders of the commercial production company giant, HUNGRY MAN. No, not the dinner.

We are doing a number of spots for a client so I am jamming with the storyboards. We met at the LA office yesterday and I have been drawing ever since. Eight to ten spots.

 I have two other director friends putting me on hold (reservation) during the next week, so even though there is still no feature work happening, commercials should hopefully continue to tie my family over for a while. Many of my colleagues are in a tough place. I am blessed!!

My wife and I had to cancel a vacation, but one must take the work while it is coming. Okay, back to the grind. I will not be complaining about too much work in the next blog, I can guarantee that!

LAST MINUTE STORYBOARD GIG

I’m not going to be long winded here, as I don’t have the time and I am already late with this blog (sorry Richard).

Here I was making a trip to see Mom and the family that was all well and planned and I just got a gig to do TEN commercial spots (with another artist) back here in LA.

Like many people, the de facto SAG strike has kicked my ass since the movie I was on had “artistic differences” and went into “hiatus” two and a half months ago. As a family man with a little common sense, I try to put money away, but the time since the hiatus has been very rough financially.

Plenty of my colleagues are not working and many of them have families to support. Of course, with the Peter Pan nature of many cartoonists, many of them are single, which can be easier when it comes to saving.

Anyway, the commercial gig is something I can’t pass up, and so my vacation is being cut in half, as one has to take care of priorities.

The gig is “only” three days or so (pleassssse four??) but that money will come in very handy.

As I tell my wife, money coming in beats none at all.

HELPING OUT MY FELLOW STORYBOARD ARTIST

I am a day late, friends, so please forgive me. My weekend got ahead of me and so the blog is late. No, I was not partying.  Today, I turned yet another year older than forty, and so I do not waste time being Chris Rock’s “old man in the club”.

My friend Todd Harris, is a talented storyboard artist in his own right, who has helped me in the past with jobs that were a little too big with time-frames that were a little too short.

Times have changed, and so my younger friend (he had the nerve to only turn thirty days ago) is quite in demand as a board guy and so I helped him with some overflow.

Unlike other jobs categories, storyboard artists – like comic book artists – can have too much work and get aid in the hopefully equally talented hands of their friends. When a director needs work done, they don’t care how you get it done, only that it get’s done.

What we usually do is to lay out the pages to be done, so that we are secure that the storytelling will remain true to the project and that the style somewhat (hopefully closely) resembles your own.

You don’t want Janet Jackson filling in for Chaka Khan as the styles will not mesh.  Todd is a clear and dynamic storyteller who does not overstuff his frames with needless details and neither do I.

I am reminded of Vince Vaughn is SWINGERS, as he screams with pride, “My little boy’s all growed up!!” 

And so, Todd emails me JPEGS of his sketches. Had he sent PSD’S (Photoshop documents with “un-flattened” layers, the files would be huge. After Todd explains the scene to me, as well as the characters, I get to work. 

I create a duplicate layer of his work in Photoshop (making two layers). Then I erase the contents of the original layer, leaving a white background layer (still two layers). I then decrease opacity of the top layer and then create a new layer that I can draw over his sketches, while seeing my own. That’s three layers.

As Todd’s rough sketches had little detail, my initial layer will be used to flesh out the shapes and figures. After I make sure what is what, I do a “finish” layer which will be comprised of clean lines. Fourth layer.

An added touch is a layer of grays for a little added polish. Fifth layer.  After I erase all of the unwanted layers (leaving the “finish” and “gray” layers, I “Flatten” the art back to one layer.

Seven pages and I was done.  Todd used to come over to my house and draw past midnight sometimes, or take them to his home and crank them out.

It was an interesting bit of a turn-a-bout to help him. Worked out well.

Hopefully now he won’t go all Anakin Skywalker and try to kill his mentor.

“Kids”. Can’t live with ‘im, can’t …