Small Details Intimately Observed

“If a writer stops observing he is finished. Experience is communicated by small details intimately observed.” - Ernest Hemingway

I take a ton of photos on my phone. But if you ever scroll through my photo reel, you’ll find an odd assortment of items and locations: screenshots of internet finds, interiors of historic buildings, exteriors of abandoned buildings (for I am afraid to go in), plenty of flowers and leaves, and lots and LOTS of clouds. Most of these pictures were taken with the hope of circling back to draw them someday, or reference in a future project. This rarely happens, as there’s a decent chance the photo will get lost in my unsorted archive and an even better chance that I’ll just be too busy to bother looking. But recently, I did draw one, and it made a world of difference.

this is that photo

This month’s Character Design Challenge prompt was “Mushroom Fighter,” which even if the idea wasn’t already exciting enough (it was), I ALSO had the perfect mushroom to use. I had snapped a picture of it while looking for birds at Radnor Lake, and this mushroom was the best thing I found that day. Something about the shapes, the chunky volumes, the way it softly exploded out from the tree just captivated my attention. This seemed like the perfect raw material to shape a design from. Immediately I saw this beautiful mushroom as the beard of a jovial, Bacchus-like dwarf. The rest of the design wasn’t really that important - I kept it all fairly simple so that I could better deliver on the recreation of the beautiful mushroom I had seen that day.

mushroom man

After posting the piece, I was surprised (pleasantly) by a Facebook comment that congratulated me for “finding a way not to make the mushroom the top of his head.” Yet despite the overwhelming abundance of mushroom-topped fighters in this month’s contest, I never saw this as a problem to be solved. Instead I was just following what experience had given me, and it ended up producing a different result.

A lot of the time, we design for - we have a visual problem to be solved, so we thumbnail, fail a bunch, and find reference to fill this void. Yet my mushroom experiment showed the surprising richness of designing FROM - taking something known and loved and exaggerating it into something new. While this kind of design is inherently more spontaneous, it feels like a quicker way to a successful result. Real Life has already done most of the work, so as artists all we need to do is add perhaps a couple more ingredients and some packaging.

Why does this work? That Hemingway quote from four paragraphs ago has the answers. Art is about communicating experiences, most effectively done by “small details intimately observed.” I think as artists, it’s easy to get so caught up in trying to impress people that we forget that art is about communicating something real. We can also fixate on originality, not realizing that we have troves of unique observations ready to be developed further. The most widely appealing part of any artistic work is the reality at its heart. After years of drawing for a portfolio, I think I’m finally realizing that a successful drawing is that which communicates a specific idea well, no matter whether it’s loose or tight, colored or 2-tone. It’s about making drawings that tell the truth (to borrow from a favorite C.S. Lewis quote). 

Currently I have painted 1 out of the 2,000+ photos in my phone. But I hope that at least some of these “small details intimately observed” will help me plant experience at the heart of my future stories.


One more Hemingway to close us out:

"I never had to choose a subject — my subject rather chose me."

-dh

Music Reccomendation:

While editing a spot for my voice over class this semester (which features my halfway-decent Fox McCloud impression) I found this amazing orchestration of some of the best themes from Star Fox 64. I've never played the game, but the end credits theme that begins around 3:55 is just incredible. ESPECIALLY the motif that's first heard at 4:45 - if my life had a theme, I think I would want that to be it.

Events Concerning a Horse, a Pig, and Near-Total Lack of Self-Confidence

 Hi all! 

I have been putting off this post for much too long, but as I don't want to be talking about January's news in February, I figured it was time to type a little something up. Even if it ends up being on the shorter side. (Edit: It doesn't.)

I want to talk about this sucker of an image.

his name is CheckMate

He's my entry for December's CDC. You may have seen this image on my Instagram, where it actually became one of my more popular posts, and was even featured by the Challenge on their Insta (which hasn't happened since June). For all intents and purposes, this is a good piece of art, and one of my more recognized pieces. 

Yet this piece really did a number on me.

For starters, the theme for December's CDC was "Robot Arena Deathmatch," which was about as far from my usual subject matter as possible. But I resolved to stick it out, combed through a ton of reference, and even came up with a concept that I was excited to draw - a semi-haunted, goofily-proportioned chess knight robot. I also was planning on returning to a more dimensionally rendered style a la Nicholas Kole. It's a style I used to work in a bunch, and one I used in some of my earlier CDC entries. 

Yet when I reached the rendering stage, everything just kind of fell apart. I struggled to figure out where to place shadows. I couldn't figure out how to add tight details without using linework. A technique that I thought I had a handle on now seemed impossible to grasp, and what seemed to be a routine character design now promised to be a battle to the end. So I tried to adjust, adding back in some lineart to clarify the image a bit, but the shadows still felt wrong. After messing with the design a bit, and showing it to my Discord art group, I realized I had a choice. I could struggle to stay the course, ditching the linework and really trying to figure out the shadows, or I could retreat into a comfortable style of stylized, angular shadows. 

As you can see, I decided to go for the easier route. I just couldn't figure out how to make accurate shadows, and I wasn't having any fun with the image trying to do so. It just seemed to make more sense to do something I knew would work, even if it meant abandoning my grander original plans. And although I finished the image and made something satisfactory, I still felt defeated, and even ashamed since I opted for the easy way rather than striving for something tough and new. As a result of making this image I lost a ton of confidence in my ability to draw. I worried if I had hit a wall, or if I could even make a good drawing again.

gross early attempt at less angular shadows

Of course, these negative self-thoughts were not true. But I figured I would share them with you in case you are feeling (or have felt) something similar. I think this kind of self-doubt is something many artists feel, even if we don't talk about it openly. I for one fear that I'm getting worse at art, or that my next project won't be any better than my previous one, or I just can't make anything good in general. And after making this particular character design I felt those fears very acutely. I was almost afraid to see what would come out of my pencil the next time I started drawing. 

If you're feeling this way I've got two tools that often help me out of such a place. First, I'll look back at my library of work. Usually there's something in there I'm proud of. I'll look at that piece(s) as proof that I can make good things, and that I'm not a failure as an artist. I may have made a particular piece that felt like a failure, but the journey that I'm on is not a failure and has been in fact full of breakthroughs and good art. 

Or (as in the case of this particular bout of art-doubt), I'll make a new piece simply to prove to myself that I still got it in me. I had been reading The Chronicles of Prydain over Christmas break and wanted to do my own version of the the pig Hen Wen. I was afraid to start, but I knew I had to make something to remind myself that I was still a good artist, and that my work was not done. So to rid myself of doubt I drew a pig. And unlike the horse, I was really pleased with the result. The shapes felt strong. The lines looked good. And I felt like I could do (and had done) good art again. 

hen wen, pig of the future

This piece did not do as well on Instagram, but it really doesn't matter. Its primary purpose was to be an encouragement and ebenezer (stone of remembrance) for a time when I thought I didn't have it in me anymore. Art is a struggle, but God is faithful. And here on the Roost I want to be candid about that. It's a fact disguised by social media, which perhaps isn't really the best place to discuss it anyways. But as they say, the struggle is real. I've been rewatching this four-part documentary on Miyazaki which is a timely reminder that even geniuses like him can feel despondent, wracked by frustration and doubt. He says "I can feel it every day, the limit of my ability," which is just how I feel while working on my thesis film. Sure, he's talking about the limits of his 70-year-old physical ability, but as a new artist I feel my limits of my artistic ability - particularly in animation, drawing on model, and rendering. Part of the frustration/joy of pursuing an art is that there's always more to learn and improve. Which means that if you're honestly seeking to grow, you may often find yourself bumping up against your limits. I've definitely been encountering my own recently, and I'm hoping for that breakthrough moment when I can move beyond them into something better. But for now, all we can do is show up each day ready to work, and ready to fight. 

Into the breach!

-dh

Music Recommendation: I've been listening to Think About You a bunch recently - it's perfect for biking across campus, thinking about that special someone, or any other time you're feeling really happy.

Break out Even More Root Beer: It's Time for the Best of 2020

Well guys, we did it. 

It's the last day of 2020, and assuming that Chronos will let us move on from this year I'd say it's time for the annual recap! Say what you want about the arbitrariness of calendar years or resolutions, but I always find it nice to remember and recenter around this time, and take a look back on all the things that happened this year in my art and life. So break out the root beer, break out the popcorn, and let's take a precisely 12-month drive down memory lane.

At the beginning of 2020 I chose the word "equipping" to be my theme word for the year. Standing on the precipice of January 2020, what I expected to cultivate this year was a lot of artistic growth and a growing preparedness for my Big Jump into the Real World of Animation in 2021. I hoped to put myself in a great spot to get hired and move out into a life away from dorms and cafeterias and such. Of course, 2020 did not go this way. Despite animation being one of the few industries that has adapted readily to remote work, planning for the future still became more complex. How could I network now? Or stay motivated to put out work for my portfolios? Instead of equipping for the future, the year became more about surviving the present.

So 2020's theme word gradually vanished from my mind, more due to the state of the world rather than my own forgetfulness (which usually is the culprit). However, that's not to say that this year didn't have a theme. As I was forced to stay home and given more time to pursue my own devices, a strong sense of wanderlust grew inside me. It may just have been an equal and opposite reaction to the stay-at-home orders, but it felt timely, giving me the courage to dream big even when plans kept failing. I was now filled with the desire to adventure, and seek new connections and opportunities. I started biking around town. Dreaming about living and working in places even more distant than LA. Although still scary and now more uncertain than ever, the future now held an allure full of potential. Even though I didn't get an internship and feel just barely more equipped than I did last year, I feel like this sense of wanderlust gave me a passion and drive that will help me face the heightened challenges of living and getting hired in a post-2020 world. 

Art-wise, this year was defined by the Character Design Challenge and my two short films. Although I did do some sketches and fanart, most of my non-school artwork this year was concentrated on the eleven entries I made for the CDC. I started in February, when I made a commitment to enter every month for a year. And with only two entries left to finish, I may actually keep that resolution! Although this project hasn't been great for my portfolio (turns out recruiters don't really want to see various unconnected character designs), it's been great for my artistic development and experimentation. With almost every piece I feel like I've been trying something new stylistically, and have developed new techniques, brushes, and insights along the way. While I'm disappointed that these pieces aren't totally portfolio-suitable, I think they've done much in helping me define how I like to draw while adding to a quality body of work. I'm proud of these pieces, and hoping to put them all in a purchase-able book next year.  

Aside from the CDC, most of my time has been focused on the creation of Good Boy Richard in the spring, and now my thesis film in fall. It's required a lot of endurance, as I usually like to dash around to multiple halfway-done projects rather than commit to bringing one to full completion. With each of these films, it's required months of sustained attention to one story and style while ignoring the many fun other ideas that pop up to provide ready ground for my procrastination... I think all this will be good practice for studio work, especially showrunning. I've been thinking a lot about if I'd still like to be a showrunner, especially given my experience on GBR. Even though I really enjoyed directing, it's a lot of pressure and anxiety to bear, even without a network or executives to disappoint! 

My biggest new artistic influence this year was probably Anna Scott. I love the shapes she uses, especially with her human characters. For many of her projects she employs a very organic rendering approach that echos traditional media, since she'll paint over mistakes rather than erase them. It gives the piece an inherently mixed-media feel which I really like, and it can be done using only a few layers. I played around with this approach on my later CDC entries.  I went through a BIG Stasya Sher phase during the summer, and although I haven't referenced her much recently, I wouldn't be surprised if I circle back to her art at some point. And of course, Saira Vargas, Louie Zong, and Nicholas Kole continue to be touchstones that I reference frequently. One thing I'd really like to work on in the new year is drawing inspiration from artists who are not Contemporary Animation Artists, but a little bit farther outside my usual circles. I did a good job balancing my fanart/original art ratio this year (last year's goal), so maybe I'll have some luck finding new (yet chronologically older) influences in 2021!

As to be expected, I can't fit a year's worth of happenings into a few paragraphs, so here's a bullet list that encompasses everything else I forgot to mention! ;) 

• Discovered a core artist community on Discord
• Saw Cory Wong in concert
• Drove to LA on a cross-country roadtrip and
• Saw the Grand Canyon!
• Was able to spend lots of time with family
• Nashville had one of its worst years ever with tornado, covid, tax hike, and a bombing
• The Roost is now two years old
• The Lipscomb Life Drawing Club is still happening and now going into it's third year
• Got hired to storyboard 
• Read more books than usual
• Wore a mask more than usual
• Began work on my thesis film (after a year of light concepting and script-writing)
• Got featured in animation news! (for ASIFA scholarship)
• Won multiple awards at the Five Minute Film Festival
• Got to be a "panel guest" for the first time (at Nashville Film Festival)
• Made it through pretty much an entire semester in person during a pandemic
• REALLY enjoyed autumn this year. Good trees, fine colors *chef's kiss emoji*
• Got to interview with Cartoon Network

And now it's time for my media picks of the year! As usual, these don't have to be released in 2020, but instead are selected for their importance to my life over the course of the year. I heard someone else call this kind of list a "First Watch" list, which seems fitting since this is the year when I "first watched" these things.

Movie of the Year: WolfWalkers

It's no secret that I'm a fan of animal movies, and Cartoon Saloon movies, so it's probably no surprise that this was my favorite movie of the year. It's a bit less melancholy and thoughtful than some of the studio's previous work, but supplemented with a bigger boost of action and adventure. You can read my whole post about it here.

Game of the Year: Night in the Woods

The story and graphics make me feel nostalgic for the 2010s even though I hadn't played it until this year and the 2010s aren't really that far away. This game just has such a nice vibe. For the record, Hades is a close second and has better gameplay, but since it didn't hit me in the feels it's staying in second. Hades also hurts my hands due to its incredibly tense combat, and I don't want to reward that kind of behavior. 

Show of the Year: Taskmaster

Quite possibly the first time a non-animated show has held this position for me! And although I really liked Ducktales (read any post from May 2020 if you don't believe me), inconsistent story quality and soft-soap endings are keeping the ducks from the top spot. Taskmaster deserves the attention for doing the unthinkable: getting me to watch an hour-long, life action show consistently (even avidly!) It's a delight to watch, surprisingly funny, and a defining feature of my television watching this year. I've just made it to season seven and I can confirm that it is the best season. Mainly due to the genius of James Acaster. But season 1 is great too, which is really fortunate since it's a good point to start watching. (You know, being the beginning and all.)

Book of the Year: Lord of the Rings

After a particularly stirring discussion during my regular gathering of pipe-smoking friends, I started reading the Lord of the Rings during fall of 2019. (I was also tired of feeling like a poser while referencing hobbits on this blog.) While this could count as a 2019 book, I wrapped the whole trilogy up just after the first couple weeks of lockdown. And man, I don't think there could have been a better time to pick up this series! It's a lush, masterful tale about endurance in the face of despair. If you've already watched the movies, the books still have so much more to offer. A lot of it are names and histories that I will have no hope of remembering, BUT you get a stronger bromance between Gimili and Legolas, a much more haunting depiction of the Army of the Dead, and more British pastoral goodness than is possible to fit in a two-hour film (or a trilogy of two-hour films). 

* * *

As with anyone, 2020 has been a rough one for me, especially Fall of 2020. So many people who made college special to me either graduated, moved away, or grew more distant. In addition to this lessening of community, I also had my most demanding academic semester between thesis and Philosophy of Religion. And although still being in school has protected me somewhat, Covid has created dozens of lost opportunities and additional challenges, especially when it comes to my career. Yet I'm still grateful for so many things in 2020. I felt like I've had a bunch of wins in my art, from getting features in the CDC and ASIFA to even being contacted by one of my dream studios! And I feel like I grew as a person, now more willing to take risks and live life to the fullest. 

That mindset - a relish for life - was I think the greatest thing I got out of 2020. With so much of the larger world thrown into uncertainty, I found it a lot easier to appreciate the smaller, day-to-day aspects. I gained a greater awareness for the everyday pleasures of good food, good friends, and bike rides. A life-changing Biology and Literature class this spring gave me greater ability to see and enjoy nature. Despite the many frustrations and sadness around, I felt my ability to enjoy life deepen. I don't know, but I guess this year showed just how many good things I take for granted, and so when zoos and movie theaters and tacos with friends returned, I knew just how special they were. And those worthy, little joys of life became the bright spots in an often dark year. I do hope things get better soon, but I don't hope to forget this year. Cause despite it all, God's still been faithful. And we're still here together. 

Wishing all you guys the best in 2021 - Thanks for sticking around :)

-dh

"They say our tree may never grow back, but one day, something will. Yes, these crackles are made of synthetic goose and these giblets come from artificial squab and even these apples look fake - but at least they've got stars on them. I guess my point is, we'll eat tonight, and we'll eat together. And even in this not particularly flattering light, you are without a doubt the five and a half most wonderful wild animals I've ever met in my life. So let's raise our boxes - to our survival."

-Fantastic Mr. Fox

Baby's First Storyboard Meeting - and Other Happenings

that's me in the red circle

Hello hello Bloggerfolk!

I'm back with some exciting news - I've just participated in my first story meeting ever :) After years of dreaming and reading about Cartoon Network story meetings where they pitch boards and hash out story details, it was fun to be in a similar kind of meeting - with my very own boards being screened in front of this handsome crowd! Still not totally sure if I'm allowed to say what I've been working on with this team, but I will say that's it's directed by Mike Nawrocki and based on his children's book series... so feel free to do more research if you just REALLY gotta know. I boarded about a third of it which is probably around 6 minutes of runtime altogether! This was my first time seeing my work alongside Naomi Bethel's and Tim Hodge's amazing boards, all with temp voices and music! And it's the first time many friends and classmates have seen my boards at all, and their kind comments have done much to reduce my imposter syndrome. (Even while the drawings remind me how much I still need to work on my draftsmanship... oh dear). I'm looking forward to seeing what my drawings look like when lovingly animated and paired with production backgrounds. Aside from GBR it will be my first time experiencing that too!

Oh and that character design that I was heavily hinting about in that last post is done! Here she is:

featuring the universal skating rink carpet

I've been listening to '80s music all summer so even though there were a few other concepts I almost chose, this one stuck! It was also a good chance to design a female animal character, which I don't often do. And honestly, I've been a little afraid to. There's such a wealth of offputting, uncanny, and flat-out-bad art of female animal characters and even icons of the genre still manage to mess it up (most notably the Blacksad comics). For this character I looked a lot at Shiyoon Kim's Gazelle designs from Zootopia - one of the few female characters that uses natural animal shapes and can still play the part of a stylish pop star. 

And even I messed up - there's a fully inked drawing of this character (that you will never see :) ) where she basically looked like an animal head on a human body. Gross. Somehow this alternate pose just worked better, and allowed me to show off her animal elements more - namely that long neck and hooves. And I would be remiss not to mention John Loren, who saved the rendering and color of this piece with a crazy good paintover(s). In a period where I've become increasingly frustrated with my rendering ability, I'm thankful for someone like John who can step in and make my life a little easier and my work a lot better. It's a big reason why I, now more than ever, recommend getting into a solid art-community, whether at a school or on Discord! 

In other recent news I've fallen hard for Lackadaisy, and binge-read the entire thing last weekend. Like many of my other tastes and interests I've stumbled upon it perhaps a decade too late, but I'm here for the party (which in this case means bootlegging cats in an alternate 1920s St. Louis). With all the buzz about a recent animated film coming up I figured it was finally time to test out the source material, and it did not disappoint. In particular, the dialogue is so smartly written - I don't know if it's due to jargon of the period or just the writer/artist's impressive command of vocabulary, but these cats talk GOOD. They also have great acting and expressions, especially for animal characters. And did I mention it's a story starring animal characters? So it's probably no surprise that I like it so much ;)

And this weekend I got to go on a little trip to Burgess Falls, actually my second time going there, but I don't think I've talked about it here before. Some friends and I had a lot of fun relaxing in the creek and small waterfalls, all while trying to avoid the rangers who were very much against that idea. We also explored Cookeville, which I've driven past dozens of times yet never bothered to visit. And who knew it contained this amazing neon sign!

so retro in the best way possible

As my friends Parker and Olivia can attest to, I stared at this mesmerizing sign for probably much too long on multiple occasions. And we were even blessed by a nighttime thunderstorm which when combined with this sign made me feel like I was in a noir movie. All that was missing was a trenchcoat, a haunted backstory, and a dozen egg creams... 

What else have I been up to? I went to church in person for the first time since quarantine started. We had a (very small) welcome back party for a friend who got out of quarantine/isolation. And I've been going to the farmer's market every Tuesday night! Lots of nice little things amongst these lingering tides of quarantine. 

I've also been catching little bits of Lightbox Online when they've fallen through the cracks of my otherwise packed schedule - Nicholas Kole's been doing some great talks and I plan on listening to the recordings over the next few weeks as I draw. And speaking of drawing... that's probably what I should be doing right now. I've got a pile of color thumbnails and the ever looming work of thesis still to tackle. But thanks for letting me share my decidedly niche interests in animal character design and tales of feline bootlegger-y with you today! 

Hope you're continuing to weather these times with grace, courage, and creativity!

-dh

Music Reccomendation: Aedan recently showed me Josh Ritter's "Be of Good Heart" and it's so good I cry almost every time I hear it. Vintage, autumnal, with well placed... oboes?? anyways it's real good

More Ducks. Further Tales!!

Did I hear somebody say MORE DUCKTALES??? No? Well this is awkward. Cause I kiiinda already went and made more fanart and whoops!

Now it's on the internet. No undoing it now.

Yes, I've still been watching Ducktales, though less recklessly now. Maybe I'll slow down a bit and try to savor the last few episodes before I launch myself back out into the Show Void (or just rewatch more Ducktales).

I've just come out of a kinda weird week - I had the chance to spend each morning watching my brother and his classmates deliver their senior thesis speeches (online, of course) which was good change of pace but a killer for my productivity. I felt like I was mastering quarantine two weeks ago - making a piece for the Character Design Challenge, exercising, and even taking an online class on perspective drawing (my old enemy). But last week (although I did complete all my major goals, barely) I still felt a little off each day, maybe due to starting work around 2 PM or maybe even burnout from the week before. And it didn't help that my final assignment for the perspective class came up pitifully short of my expectations, despite all the cubes and planes I had been drawing the week before. Comparing these weeks (in addition to watching Ferris Bueller's Day Off) has led me to consider what really is the best way to use all this quarantine time. On one hand, this is an incredibly rare time in American history where productivity isn't a priority. We're encouraged to stay home, dabble in new hobbies, and watch brothers give amazing speeches on astounding topics. What a gift! But the competitive side of me considers how much more I could get ahead if I use this time to better myself and my craft. Get off Twitter, read quality literature. Stay inside, and take online classes. Maybe I can use this time to set myself up better for a career. Maybe I can exit this summer/covid break with a defined and impressive resume of achievements and learning. Surely that's what the people I'll be competing with for jobs are doing? If I don't will I fall behind? Even when life gets put on hold, the worries of someone aiming for an artistic career keep on going :P

And as I wrote a few weeks ago in this post, there are better and worse ways to spend leisure time, but can you leisure so hard that it becomes work? Whether in times of quarantine or no, I strive to use each day wisely. And as in most things, the wise way is probably the intermediate between slothfulness and busy-ness. I've noticed the days are passing by almost as quickly as they do in college (which is a super busy time for me). So maybe it's time to find ways to appreciate the moment. But I also do earnestly think that this is a great time to create, and learn, and (just possibly) draw in accurate perspective. That last one may not happen, but I have HIGH, 3 POINT HOPES. And so I'll keep doing those things too. I've been trying to read good books and watch good movies (which at this point means Return of the King and Kung Fu Panda 2) which feels like a good mix of leisure and learning - filling the mind with good things and experiences that I can draw on once this whole thing comes to a much anticipated end.

Speaking of that glorious moment, I cannot WAIT to go to a zoo. Is this just me? Cause I really miss it. Drawing animals, the earthy and somewhat bad smell, the themed areas and architecture - I am so ready to get back into it all. Who knows when that will happen...

But until then, and hopefully after, I will be here, rambling about things and hoping they're at least somewhat helpful to you :) Oh and before I go here's that Character Design Challenge piece I was talking about earlier:

a big thanks to nurses, past and present!

May you continue to weather these times with grace, courage, and creativity!
-dh