Sketchbook doodles.
My design contract is complete, and this past week I switched departments and started animating. It is really nice to be back into it. The show I am on looks really good, and the puppets are a treat to work with.
Cuppa Coffee is currently hiring, and they have been testing new animators. At one point on monday none of the directors were around, so I was asked to look in on the people being tested. Only one of them had done any sort of stop motion stuff before, and none had any formal training in animation. I found myself suddenly having to analyse their work, identify what could be improved, and give them pointers on how to do that. I was unprepared, and I had difficulty finding the words. In some cases I had to explain some very fundamental concepts, and doing so forced me to put into words some things that I have not thought about particularly deeply for years. At one point I gave a bit of advice that, as I was speaking, caused a bit of an epiphany for me. I must have known the concept on some level, else I would not have communicated it. Yet verbalizing it suddenly solidified the idea, and turned it into a bit of a rule in my own mind. I kept that with me for the rest of the week, and I ended up producing some of the nicest animation I have done to date. Perhaps teaching might be a good path to consider at some point. It might be a good learning experience.
I think this will be a fun contract to work. There are going to be a lot of really difficult shots to tackle, but I have realized that the difficulties I will face no longer frighten me. It looks like there will be a lot of shots with rigs and camera moves, and for once I am actually looking forward to the challenge. I used to dread such things. I have 7 months of animation ahead of me, and I like the idea I might be able to relax and enjoy it.