Well maybe it's not that bad, but the clock is ticking and we are getting close to the final deadline, our screening is this Sunday at 6pm at the Globe.
I have been devoting every day of my life, since November, to the Aboriginal Youth Animation Project. Its been an arduous journey of learning and challenges, but we are in the last few meters of the sprint and the finish line is in sight. For the past few weeks, I've been staying up late every night working on piecing together our screening and documentary reel. I also teach my regular load of classes on a few evenings and week-ends. I highly doubt all work and no play has made me dull, but I am looking forward to a mini break after screening the films.
Here is the Fast Forward Article about the program that came out today:
On friday night I bought a ticket to the Landscape demo at Swinton's Art Supply. When I showed up the owner, Doug asked me if I liked Vodka. That was a trick question because before I knew it I had slammed back a few too many screwdrivers and thus was a screwed driver in that I couldn't drive him. lol.
Neil Patterson gave a demo and wisdom session to a full house. It was fun watching him work the crowd while working the paint. He's quick, that's what years of experience can do for a painter and not a drop on his outfit = pro. It was great hanging out with the Swinton's crew and reconnecting with Milo who gave me my first break at the Sugar Estate Gallery back in the day.
Before and after After Effects. lol. Thanks class for being awesome!
We began the advanced animation portion of the class after a brief review of the principles and functions of how after effects with key framing transform properties. I taught the students how to make their work more professional by using the 5 types of motion. In order to do this I demonstrated a variety of ways to adjust the velocity and behaviour of the keyframes using the graph editor as well as keyframe assistant etc.
We also launched the animated music video/novella I have been working at in my "spare" moments. It is done in After effects with scanned watercolour drawings. Take a look. I am on the last week of art production for the Aboriginal Youth Animation Project and we are really behind, which is to be expected. Stress levels are rising as deadlines are quickly approaching but I am really looking forward to a long week-end so I can catch up on household chores where needed.
My past week has been very full. I taught a two day canvas building workshop to aboriginal teens. This is the second installation of a project put together by USAY (Urban Society for Aboriginal Youth).
" Learn from a professional artist how to build your own canvases. This free 2 day workshop gives participants the materials and the opportunity to learn the skills for canvas building and to mingle with some like-minded artists.
Participants receive bus tickets, lunch and snacks both days, and get to walk home at the end of the 2 days with the canvases they build!"
Here is Artist Jesse Gouchey <-- (click here to see his work) stretching some canvases.
What an awesome opportunity, USAY generously provided this course for free and the participants get to take away the primed canvases they've stretched! USAY also brought us lunch and all the tools and equipment necessary to run the workshop. I provided the space and know how. The Calgary Journal's writer Hanah Kosst did a story on us, so keep a look out for it.
As some of you may know, I am a man of many skills and talents, you may also know that I teach animation to put food on the table. I have been teaching animation full-time for the past 20 weeks to Aboriginal Youth at the Quickdraw Animation Society. Tomorrow, Saturday, we will be screening the work at the PLAZA theatre in Kensington. The screening will take place at 5pm and there will be a celebration/reception at Quickdraw to follow. Please come own, it's free!
I started a new contract with the Quickdraw Animation Society teaching animation for the Aboriginal Youth Animation program. I have been swamped. Building the calendar and courses for the next 5 months. Creating posters, advertising and doing outreach. It has been a very positive learning experience and quite the challenges. fortunately, it has given me some insight into budgeting and how to market a program in order to intake participants and the surprising costs related to it. I didn't know a small classified in the Sunday newspapers would be over $70. Plus, I used an entire tank of gas over the four days delivering intake posters to various organizations around town. You don't know it until you have to do it.
Here is one poster I designed, 300 copies were put up.
This is probably only the second time I have use Illustrator, it's an amazing program. The image use on top was by my past student Jesse Gouchey, his works can be seen on his website HERE.
I also got up at 4:30 in the morning to be on Breakfast Television on Tuesday of this week. I don't have cable an I haven't seen it myself yet. I have to get a copy of it to watch. `When I do, I'll probably post it. In the meantime we shot a quick video around the office leading up to the GIRAF Festival.(see below. or click HERE to go to my you tube page.)
GIRAF opened last night and Waking Sleeping Beauty had a packed house. I have never seen in my past 10+ years of working in film festivals, an audience all stay to the very end credit. That spells success.
