Lightbox 2022

I'm back from Lightbox! 

And I only had three hours of sleep last night! (early flight) 

But at the risk of embarrassing myself, I thought I'd type something up before I get out of Pacific Time and back into Cozy Fall Tennessee time. Where to begin... 

Well, on this trip I called my first Lyft (surprisingly easier than I would have thought), had the best bubble tea in my life, and approached a particular art director with the careful grace of a crazed street urchin (should have probably warmed up my social skills first). I was able to talk to Cartoon Network when there wasn't a massive line (trust me, not easy), hear everyone's opinions on the Mario movie and Mario characters (@Marynia), and catch the Pasadena City Hall at golden hour. It was, by any summation, a good time.

Yet despite that, I've felt conflicted about writing this post for you. For one, Lightbox is the ultimate FOMO monger for animation people and that's the last thing I want to encourage. I also knew that to fully talk about my Lightbox experience, I'd have to venture into a potentially very braggy and privileged topic: that as of this month, I've been in "the industry" for a whole year. 

Wow. 

Not an artist in "the industry," but working in animation nonetheless. Through God's grace, my foot is bashing its way through the door. But since it's been a whole year, and since there's plenty of negatives to go with the positives, I think it's ok to talk about my experience so far. Reading over my old post from the first time I went to Lightbox (while a student), I'm struck by how nervous I was, but also how excited. I had made lists of the people who I wanted to talk to. I was desperate, but optimistic, getting tons of portfolio reviews that thrilled and discouraged and motivated me to do better. 

In contrast, I found Lightbox 2022 to be about as relaxing as a convention could be. I wasn't there to get a job, but just to talk with people. There wasn't a checklist or agenda, aside from cruising the convention floor and giving out Wingfeather merch. I ended up having so many warm and encouraging conversations that filled up my heart and made me much more excited to keep making art. Which was sorely needed, since it seems like the biggest curse that comes with actually working in animation is cynicism. 

After years of anticipation and rejection, a coveted studio position becomes just... your 9-to-5 (and frequently longer!) job. Especially in this current climate of surprise cancellations, quicker paces, and growing workloads, it's easy to forget how special it is to be there in the first place. Although I might have idolized the idea of an animation career as a student, I did have a certain amount of wonder, gratitude, and hunger that I'd like to recapture. If I'm already feeling this one year in... well, I better make some changes if I hope to stick around. 

That's where Lightbox comes in. Lightbox invites you to get excited. To see faces, not profiles. To walk through the hallowed halls of studio booths and wonder what they'll be making next. To become that fan again, sitting with your friend AJ in a Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur panel, both of you getting chills while watching an animatic because the theme song is Just. That. Good. 

Ultimately, you realize that despite how terribly hard it is to get a job in animation, we're actually a pretty small community of weirdos who like a lot of the same stuff. 

And job or no, it's our responsibility to be kind, to make good works, and say what's true. THAT'S the way I want to approach Lightbox. And, like, life. Maybe things don't have to be so complicated, or conventions so stressful. Maybe we can just make stuff. And make friends. I'm grateful to have at least one Lightbox where I got to try this idea out. 

I'm also thankful for Wingfeather for sending me to Lightbox, and for giving me a job. I'm thankful for all the artists I got to meet, and for those who remembered me from the last LBX. I'm especially thankful for conversations with Bill and AJ, who encouraged me greatly in my design work. I feel closer than ever to doing something big. And I'm thankful for the cornerstone of the trip, all my Nashville friends who provided a friendly face in the crowd and who made every evening into a fun adventure. I was sad to leave Lightbox this year, but glad to know I won't have to leave you behind. 

And thanks to you, bloggerfolk, for going with me on this verbal journey and letting me sort all these feelings out in a rather public way :P I appreciate your readership, and I hope to see you in the next post.

peace!

-dh

I Done Been Interviewed! (and made some unrelated fanart)

Hey everyone! 

Long time no blog! I can't say this year has been an especially prolific one for the Roost (although my main resolution for this year was to "be prolific," I've applied that more to my drawing than my writing.) But to fill the gap between this and the next post, I am happy to share that I did a recent interview for the Nashville Voyager which you can read here! - https://nashvillevoyager.com/interview/check-out-daniel-haycoxs-story/

It's a fun little summary of my journey in animation (familiar territory for this blog) but now that I'm almost a year out of college (wowie) I'm able to look back with some perspective on my time there and how it shaped me as an artist. The main thing I wanted to convey is that as long as you have a genuine love for the product AND the process I think it's really just a matter of time spent practicing before you gain proficiency, and maybe even a career making what you love. Talking about that did make me a little homesick for the days when my primary work was drawing - I now have to cram art in around the edges between working my job and sleeping. But I'm still trying to make it work, building momentum back on Bearpuncher (only 12 shots left to animate!) and even doing some fanart yesterday!

say cheese, 4townies!

I've been looking forward to Pixar's new movie, Turning Red, for a while - can't say I was initially wowed by the first announcement, but once I saw more trailers and learned that Domee Shi was directing I was totally on board. It also just happened to coincide VERY NICELY with a 2000s nostalgia phase I've been experiencing for the past couple months. Not that I actually remember a lot of the 2000s, but I do enjoy the music of the time and an era where the internet wasn't so invasive... In the movie the kids were taking pictures with the panda and I thought "how is that not going to end up on social media???" Then I realized they didn't HAVE social media. What a concept. 

Anyways, I think the movie nailed a lot of very specific niche interests of mine - animal movies, 2000s jams, hip-hop/asian fusion music, cartoony expressions in feature films, movies set in uncommon locales - and so I was never not gonna like it. And I haven't seen a movie really tackle puberty the way they did (usually movies stick to portraying "coming of age" as only a mental and emotional transition, something much more marketable...) But I'm glad they risked it here, as it reminded me of how confusing and even panic-inducing that age was for me, which I've never seen represented in a movie before. 

Turning Red is one of my first reviews on my new Letterboxd account - anybody else using that site? I was a begrudging convert at first, but my reviews have steadily been getting longer and longer... If you read this blog you probably can guess I like sharing my opinions, so it's no surprise that I have become an avid user of a site that lets you pretend to be a movie critic. Hah! 

Anyways, I hope all y'all are well. We got a freak snow here in Nashville a couple days ago but the cherry blossoms have been blooming nonetheless. I'm looking forward to watching some Ghibli movies and dreaming about summer! (Trying not to do that too much until Lent is over, but still...) 

You guys have any spring plans? Or thoughts on Turning Red? I've found people have a wide range of opinions on that movie so I'd be interested to hear 'em.

Your fellow wayfarer,

dh

Goodbye, Lipscomb (Or, Into the Interim)

So this past weekend I graduated from college.

Wow.

It's still taking a while to sink in completely, especially since the transition has been so gradual (and is in fact, still continuing!) There was the last in-person class, last online class, last exam. A goodbye to these friends, those friends, visiting family, and a muted goodbye to those who will be staying in Tennessee with me for the next little while. And throughout it all, there was way too much excellent food, many excuses to dress nice and wear suspenders, and enough beautiful weather for the first in-person graduation since Covid. As the bagpipes processed down the arena floor during commencement, I thought back on unlikely friendships, nights in my oddly nostalgic 1990's era dorm, laughter and struggle and tacos every Monday. 

What an incredible four years. 

It's no understatement to say that Lipscomb built me as an artist. Unless we're counting the influence of Steven Universe or the precious few principles I was able to remember from my single high school art class, I learned everything right there on campus. It's where I discovered (and sometimes met!) my art heroes. It's where I first learned about gesture and design. And most importantly, it's where I found a community of people who care about cartoons (and each other) in a real, inspiring way. I still remember the moment when I knew I was among my people - stepping into the (now repurposed) animation lab in Hughes and seeing Bill Cipher on the whiteboard as Sam and Naomi showed me their work. Grown adults, talking intelligently about cartoons they liked! That was something I never experienced in high school, and a blessing I've been able to share for the past four years. 

lu animation seniors class of 2021

the one and only tom bancroft

My Lipscomb experience has been about more than just animation (insert liberal arts joke here). At Lipscomb I rediscovered a love for nature during an Aaron Blaise talk, Biology & Literature, and Ornithology classes. I learned what empathy really means as an RA. I went to Hutchmoot (two times! snuck in!) and Lightbox Expo. I've been a victim of the overflowing hospitality of the Warren, the Bothy, and Toad Hall (this is why you should name your houses, people). The people I met at Lipscomb number as my dearest friends, closest collaborators, and nearest confidants. 

And now that the fanfare is over, the feasts have been supped, and the celebration subsides, I find myself thinking - what now? In one way, I have a clear answer. My first order of business is to finish Bearpuncher. It's a monster of a project, but it's gotta be done, and be done well. And in a generous display of grace I'll be able to focus on it full time. Because until it's done, it will be hard to feel like I can really move on to the next step (and technically, I'm not graduated until I get summer credit for working on it.) So I'll be doing that.

Yet despite this, I still feel very much un-settled. I don't have a normal job to work at. I'm not in an apartment, or even back home in NC. My Disney mugs are boxed away in a storage unit. And my friends are off in their own homes, miles away. I don't have classes to ground me, a cafeteria to feed me, and a consistent place to stay. It's all those usual summertime feelings except I won't be heading back to campus in the fall. Although it was perhaps unrealistic to think that I would hop straight from college into a new studio, home, and rhythm of life... I still expected it anyways.  It's the end of the era, but the beginning of the next one is murky and uncomfortably gradual. Never have I felt the title of this blog to be more apt - I have entered the Wayfaring Years.

Lipscomb has been such a blessing, and it's hard to think that the future could be just as full of friendship, growth, and good times as the past four years have been. But I know I couldn't have imagined these four years while in high school, so I'm hoping my expectations for post-grad will be delightfully shattered as well. I don't know where my home will be, or what the future is like, but I'm excited to find out.

And while this is a goodbye to my time at Lipscomb, it's not a goodbye to the people I met there, especially my junior friends who are watching all of us old dudes leave. Still trying to figure out how to reconcile that paradox, but you will be the first to know when I do, because we will still be hanging out.

Onward!

your wayfarer-in-chief,

dh

day 1

fin

How to Use Your Last Moments of Freedom Before Submitting to the Animation Overlords: Preparing for Art School

Hey Roost-ers,

I was talking with a group of prospective students at Lipscomb today and someone asked what they should be doing during the summer to prepare to study animation in the fall. In the moment, I stumbled something out about making sure to practice your drawing so that you can focus on caricature more once you come to school, but my inadequate answer has been haunting me for the rest of the day and I felt like I needed to tell someone a more complete answer to this query. And if you're reading this, I guess it happens to be you. I hope it's applicable, or if you know someone who's preparing to go to art school, feel free to send this post to them. Of course, I'm perhaps not the best person to ask, but this is the Internet and I can SAY THINGS I'M NOT QUALIFIED TO TALK ABOUT GERSH DERN IT! This is also directed primarily at people who have already been accepted to a college or are applying to a school like Lipscomb which doesn't require portfolio reviews (though that may be changing soon). You're probably already doing most of these if you have a portfolio good enough for major art schools, and portfolio building is a whole 'nother topic, which I can discuss if you're interested.

Things that I Think Are Good Things to Do During the Summer Before Your Freshman Year at College if You're Pretty Sure You Will Be Studying Animation During Your Freshman Year

or 

Preparing for Animation School

• Work on your drawing and draftsmanship. Richard Williams recounts in The Animator's Survival Kit being told by Richard Kelsey: "First of all, kid, learn to draw. You can always do the animation stuff later." I live by this, and both Winsor McCay and Milt Kahl agree - you can only go so far in any kind of 2D production without having a solid grasp of drawing skills.  Unless you're planning on working mostly in CG, the most important thing I can tell you is draw all the stuff. As I've spent the past year animating, I've been more crippled by my inability to draw the figure from strange perspectives than my ignorance of animation techniques/principles. Even if you think you're good at drawing already (and if you got into CalArts, Sheridan, or Ringling you probably are), there's bound to be something you're not so great at drawing. Work on that. My first assignment at Lipscomb was to do several concepts of a 6 year old girl character, not at all my comfort zone. 
  

Why I did I decide to draw a sick girl? I do not know.

If you draw amazing girl characters, do some angular muscle men. What? You can draw humans of any age, physique, and gender perfectly? Then draw cars. Drawing cars humbles a man. Draw from life. Copy the masters. I started my drawing career only a year or two before coming to college, and if you're in that spot too, then pick up that pencil and get going!
• Give digital art a shot. On a related note, if you have access to a tablet or another way to draw digitally, give it a try. The animation world is heavily digital nowadays and there's a bit of a learning curve to the medium. If you're good with traditional media, this curve will be a little less. Digital art can be overwhelming, but at least get familiar with the idea of layers, clipping masks, and free textured brushes. There's so many different ways to do digital art, but chances are each tutorial will use 2 out of those 3. If you don't have access to digital, look those things up but don't buy a tablet - you'll be given access to one pretty soon when you get to school.
• Listen to animation podcasts. Hearing how other animators got their start will help inspire your own journey and show you that even the best industry artists still had to work hard and deal with rejection in order to get where they are today! It's easy to forget that. I recommend the Jorge Guitierrez or Glen Keane episodes of the Bancroft Brothers Animation Podcast or the first episode of the Three Point Perspective Podcast. And Three Point just released an episode specifically about being an art student! I haven't listened to it yet, but I'm pretty sure it's good.
• Buy at least one "art of" book and cherish it. If you want to study animation, chances are you like at least one animated movie. And if that movie was good and/or made within the past 30 years, there's a pretty good chance that the movie was accompanied by a whole book filled with the concept art that helped to make that movie possible. That is an "art of" book, and you should buy it. Art of books are awesome. They're basically my textbooks/bibles when it comes to designs. Need some storyboard reference? I look at Coco. Working on a fur.. I mean anthropomorphic project? I pull out my Zootopia and Madagascar books. Art of books show what is industry standard and what you should try to meet or exceed when it comes to your own work (but don't expect that kind of quality to appear freshman year or perhaps even in college - these guys are pros and they are old) If you need recommendations based on my highly refined personal taste, Zootopia and Over the Garden Wall have nice books. Look for volume of art, artists being credited next to their works, and text describing how they made the thing. 
• See if the school/animation department (or individual animators/artists) have a social media presence. It's a good way to get a vibe of the program and to start those friendships before you even get to school! For Lipscomb it's @lipscombanim. In my experience, most students will follow back if they know you will be coming to campus soon! Don't be a stalker, but you don't have to be a stranger either...
• Don't forget about Daniel Haycox when you're famous and working on cool projects in the animation industry. This step is a good idea! Probably. Just like I'll still be looking for jobs at that point. Probably. "cries"
• Go somewhere or do something new. You can't spend your whole summer doing animation stuff. That's what freshman year is for! If you have the budget to travel, go! I frequently reference specific places I've visited when researching new projects. It doesn't have to be a big or expensive trip, I referenced a neighborhood in my hometown for a recent project. Just something out of your normal path. Meet up with a teacher or mentor and get advice for college. College goes by fast, and you can expect to have only three more summers after this before you don't have summer break anymore!

On that happy note, enjoy graduation and summer. Freshman year can seem scary, but once you get to campus you'll get to meet a bunch of new people (potential friends??) and have a lot of fun. Hold on to that youthful optimism! And feel free to come to the Roost if you need some help. Good luck, and if this helped you, let me know!

-dh