Teapot Robot

This Is My Burrito...

Chowder Storyboarding

All the storyboard artsits are hard at work here on Chowder. I've had some people ask about our board process. Most animated shows have scripts that are roughly 18 pages long for an 11 minute episode. Our storyboard artsits don't recieve a script but instead get a two-page outline. It reads like a summation of the cartoon. There's no dialogue and all the events are laid out, as well as what the characters are feeling and want.

This gives the storyboard artsits tons of freedom to craft the episode. It gives them a lot more responsibilty as well. They have to be writer, director, actor, and editor all in one. But what you gain from doing it this way is a cartoon written by people who tend to think visually. It's how we worked on both Spongebob and Billy & Mandy, and I really like the system. You get comedy that isn't all based on snappy dialogue, but more on funny behavior and sight gags. The hard part is finding storyboard artsitis who can write. They're in very small supply.

The board artists are on a six week schedule. They have three weeks to rough out the board, then they pitch it to me. We spend a day working together to smooth out the kinks, beef up the jokes, and cut extraneous bits. After that they get three more weeks to clean it all up. Then they pitch it to the crew, acting out all the parts as they show the drawings. Done! Then it's on to the next board. We do 26 of these per season.

Well I'm off to write more outlines! I'll be back soon with another update.

Self Portrait

Figuring that I'll need a picture for press at some point in the future, I took this photo of myself. My head is quite ripe.

Beep Beep

Lolli Fighter

Tailor Made

Another Fred Promo

I can spell my name real good.

Chowder Update

I've spent the last few weeks in pre-produciton, assembling the show bible. It's strange trying to condense everything I know about the characters and the world into an easily digestible format. And it's even weirder trying to reverse-engineer the way I draw so others can duplicate it. Thank goodness I had the pilot art to start with. Mouthcharts, incidentals, and various poses were all ready for me to use. I just wanted to tweak the main models a bit. After drawing three boards, I gained a better understanding of how to construct them consistently and what their proportions should be.

Here are a couple of sketches of Chowder. These were drawn directly in the computer. I'm still getting used to the Cintiq. The key to making him look right, I learned, was keeping him fat. Lots of cheek and chin around his features.


Now I'm working on outlines. More to come later!

Mental Powerz!

Another Warcraft Comic

Here's another World of Warcraft comic, this time starring Harl Jr, my Orc hunter. He's contemplating whether or not it was worth spending 20 gold on a pair of Windrunner Leggings. Orcs have feelings too.

Another Page of Scribbles

Here's another page of my boarding thumbnails. Usually, I'll fit more than 4 per page, but the doodles clearly won this fight. If you couldn't tell, my mind was wandering a bit. I got on a Bubble Bobble kick. What's not to love about Bubble Bobble? And yes, I like cross-hatching. I tend to do it while I'm thinking or on the phone.

Done!

I just finished my last Bill & Mandy storyboard. It's been a very enjoyable run, but now it's time to start Chowder.

When I'm writing a board, I work it all out as thumbnail scribbles. Often lots of random doodles appear on the page. Here's a small clump I saved.

Shhhhh....

Sorry, I'm not allowed to make an official announcement about what I'm currently working on. Please ignore any previous posts that mentioned anything. Thank you.

-The Management

Another Fred Commerical

I think this one may be my favorite.

Some Old SpongeBob Doodles

Fred Billboard

Here's a photo of the Fred Fredburger billboard that's part of Cartoon Network's new ad camapign. You can download this and the other billboards as desktops from Cartoon Network's website. Thanks to Phil for the photo.
P.S. Look at the price of gas here!

Leech Vodka

The Worm Who Would Fly

Propeller Helmet

Cracked Planet

The Bladder Dance

New Fred Episode This Monday! And Comic-Con!

Be sure to tune in Monday night, July 24 for a new episode of "The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy." Check your local listings, but I believe it airs at 7:30 pm Pacific. I did the second half of the show. It's called "Be A-Fred. Be Very A-Fred," and it features the return of Fred Fredburger. Just don't expect it to be as epic as his first appearance; there's no singing.

Also, if you happen to be at the San Diego Comic Convention this Friday, July 21, check out the Billy & Mandy panel. It'll be happening from 1:30-2 pm, and you'll see the creator of the show, Mr. Maxwell Atoms. He'll be joined by the storyboard crew: myself, Alex Almaguer, Mike Diedrich, and Ian Wasseluk. Grey DeLisle, the voice of Mandy, will also be there. Then Maxwell and Grey will sign autographs afterwards. Stop by and say "Hi."

I'm Gonna Get That Pac-Man!

This made me think of the old Pac-Man cartoon from the 80's. I liked his raspy voice. And he even got it on with Ms. Pac-man to have a dumb baby. Ahh, 80's cartoons...

Splorch

Mad Bear

Regret

Big Boned

Murray

This one makes me laugh really hard. Yes, I am juvenile.

WOOt!

Yay! My Warcraft comic (see earlier post) got an honorable mention on the official Warcraft site! This was the message I recieved in an email: "The web team really loved this comic. It’s going on the site today! =D" You can also see it here. Horde Rulzoroz111

HeadLog Adventures!

This needs to be a Hollywood movie. So badly.

Fred Commercial

Here's a Fred Fredburger commercial running on Cartoon Network, as part of their whole new network campaign.

Chowder Customer

This is an early sketch of the customer from the Chowder pilot. I was looking through a book of world costumes and came across a hat that made me think of a sack lunch. I had to use it! This guy looks funnier than the final version. I hate when that happens. It's so hard to re-create the oddness of a doodle.

Finger Linger

Warcraft Comic

I submitted this to the World of Warcraft comic contest. Since Warcraft is my current gaming obsession, it only makes sense that my two worlds would eventually collide. I've been planning to do a running comic about one of my characters, but just never seem to have the time. So I plopped this one out the other day afer an evening of killing Furbolgs in Winterspring. Keep your fingers crossed that I can at least get an honorable mention.

Give Blood

Word of Mouth

Good Aim

Front Side Takers

Fistful of Reggae

Guernica

Kasha

This is an unused panel I drew of Kasha, one of the mahjongg ladies from the previous post. For some reason the word "hoary" comes to mind.

Mahjongg Ladies

In the Chowder board I'm currently working on, a group of ladies come over for their weekly mahjongg match with Truffles. This is a pan I drew of them all around the table. Truffles will be in the foreground.

Salivation

I've recently finished my Chowder pilot. Cartoon Network requires me to make two more "development" storyboards before they can decide if it should be a series. "Development" means a full storyboard but at a lower pay rate than my day job. The only people they don't seem to require this from are those who are famous but have no animation experience, which usually means you'd get a series pickup with no pilot or animatic or script or finshed character designs. Makes sense.

So I'm almost finished with board one of two. This is an unused panel where Chowder is drooling over the thought of some food. I chucked it because I liked it better when he's not smiling.

Fred Fredburger T-Shirt

I was asked to design a shirt for this year's Comic-Con featuring Fred Fredburger, a guest character that I voice on Billy & Mandy.

These are the three designs I made.



The winner is the last one, with him repeating his name over and over. Be sure to pick it up in San Diego this July! They'll be giving them away at the Cartoon Network booth.

Goodbye to Geri

This is queen receptionist Geri Kelly's last week at Cartoon Network before she answers the seductive call of retirement in the desert. I was asked to draw a picture of her in clown regalia on a golf course for a goodbye card. I'm not terribly good at flattering caricatures; somehow I always imagine my drawings making people cry. (I did my best, Geri.)

Alan Bodner is painting the final version of this sketch. I hope he keeps the ashes on the boobs. Be sure to say goodbye if you know her: gerikellyca @ aol.com. She'd really appreciate it.

We'll all miss you, Highpockets.

Turdcraft

One of my big obsessions of the past year has been the game World of Warcraft. So Ms. Burgerlog herself drew me this. Check out the rest of her terrific turds at http://burgerlog.blogspot.com.

Born2Rock

Armpit Creatures Part 2

Armpit Creatures

Last year, a friend of mine asked me to do some sketches of an armpit creature for an advertising campaign he was working on. The hard part, he explained, was making something that looked more like an armpit and less like a vagina. After multiple tries, I just started drawing vaginas.

Parasimian Ecto-Trooper

I was toying around with the idea of using this guy as the Nerd Armada mascot. Notice the "N A" on his shirt. In the end, he's just an expendable trooper. Poor fellow.

I.L.Y.