writing exercise #2

so, our next assignment was to write another page of script, this time using a lot of new stuff that we learned in class: how to describe panel layout and format, verbally describing art direction and mood/tone, different visual cues, etc. and thusly, its a lot less dialog heavy than the first one. but a good step, i think.

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[As continued after assignment 1, a few days later.]

1) [Establishing shot. A wide shot on a mostly deserted city street, made up of rows of dingy looking brownstone apartments and bodega style stores. Its early fall, heavily raining and cold. This top panel should be unframed and run the full width of the page, right to the edge. The background while they're out on the street should be fairly drab colors: blues, grays and browns. The few colors on the page should come from street lights, traffic lights, and neon store lights.]
[XX and XY are walking down the street, on the far right of the panel. XX is wearing a fully-buttoned jacket with the hood over her head. Her hands are held in her pockets with her shoulders shrugged tightly around her neck. She has a satchel style bag slung around her neck and shoulder. XY is wearing a scarf and jacket with the collar pulled up around his neck. He has a black umbrella held low in front of him with one hand obstructing his head and upper face from the reader and any prospective observers on the street.]

2) [They're both now walking towards the camera. XX is looking surly. The top of XY's face is still covered; you can see he's holding a small slip of paper with an address on it in his free hand.]
XX: I'm really glad you made me come to the far side of town in the freezing rain...
XX: ...AND you take my umbrella.
XY: Look. I really can't help that I have this extremely conspicuous branch sticking out of my forehead.

3) [From the side again. The door a few steps in front of him has the address that he's looking for scraped into the paint.]
XX: And I don't have any hats that could cover it. An umbrella was the only... (He stops himself when realizes he's right in front of the door he's looking for.)
XX: We're here...

4) [They're standing in front of the door next to each other; their backs to the reader.]
XY: I can't believe you're actually doing this.
XY: You scoffed when I told you to go to a doctor...
XY: ...but jumped at the opportunity to go to a some gypsy voodoo priestess.
XX: She's not a voodoo priestess...

[montage of small panels overlaying the main panel; all are views from inside the shop. The color palette should be much warmer, but still slightly dark.]
5a) [small square in upper left: Several small, irregularly shaped and sized bells jingle as the opening door hits them.]
5) [main panel: XX opening the door and walking in; pseudo-bird's eye view, as if looking down from the rafters.]
XX: (continued from last panel) ...She's a psychic.
5b) [small square along the bottom right: Jars of different shapes and sizes are up on a shelf on the wall; a series of cut jewels hangs from the shelf on strings.]
5c) [small square along the bottom right: Several brass scientific-looking instruments are on top of a console-style table with lots of tiny drawers on the front; a cat is asleep and partially hanging off the edge.]
5d) [small square along the bottom right: open books, news papers, and cards are strewn on top of an old wooden table; a cup of tea is sitting on the table near a chair, still steaming; there is a doorway behind the table with a fabric panel/curtain covering the opening.]

6) [Wide-angle panel, XX and XY (only shown from the shoulder up) are facing away from the reader, with their heads quickly spinning around to look the other way; both have expressions of apprehensive surprise.]
Voice (from off panel): Have a seat. Don't touch anything.
Voice (from off panel): ...damn kids...

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ambur had some really good input that i need to name them... which i know is completely true. i have trouble writing and and keeping track of the xx/xy, let alone someone who is just reading it. but i think this is really a story that i want to continue writing (and drawing at some point), and i don't want to just slap names on them. i'd be afraid that they would get stuck in my head and wouldn't be able to see them as anything else. maybe i'll do some character studies (which i think we're learning about in class tonight) to flesh them out a bit more. maybe then some names will come to me. anyone have any suggestions?

next project

i've been sort of inspired by the elliotts' determination and stick-to-it-a-tiveness with their month-long art-a-thon. i had an idea for a little portrait series. sort of inspired by scott-c and nathan stapley (more based on subject matter than style, but i guess we'll have to see how they turn out when they're done). i started the backgrounds of 7 6"x6" canvases this past weekend (i'll post pics to those later this week), and honestyly, i wasn't totally sure what i was going to actually paint the portraits of until this week. famous stereotyped villains. i did some sketches at work...


















(sorry for the poor quality scan)

more cool design work

so we're doing a whole suite of print collateral for an accounting firm. each of the three designers in the office is doing a distinctly different direction to present to the client to choose from. mine has been deemed "most edgy". which means everyone in the office really likes it, but the client probably won't choose it...

cover:






















inner spreads (which for some reason, came out a different color when i saved it):
























edit: took out references to the company name... i guess you never know who looks at this stuff.

funnest day at work ever? possibly.

we expanded on the characters i came up with last week. we've got a new lady in the office who is a creative writer, AND she's hilarious. she came up with some bank-themed pick-up lines that each of them will be saying, as well as names and a personality profile. it was really a lot of fun and we had total creative freedom. it was a good day.


















if you're wondering what a bank-themed pick-up line could possibly be, think about complimenting someone's "bottom line" and ask to see their "portfolio".

must... learn... Illustrator...

here's my second real try at using Illustrator. the cool thing is, this is actually for work!

adventures in stock photography #2

search: pen (the writing utensil)
result:











it reminds me of how i wanted a pet goat growing up, and my dad wouldn't let me get one. not as ridiculous as it sounds when you grow up on a farm.

adventures in stock photography #1

1) who would buy this?
2) what would they buy it for?
3) what is she doing the splits on? can anyone tell?
4) this was the first photo that came up when i searched for "magnifying glass"... if this is #1, i hate to think was #300 is... never going to photos.com again.

from the brain of marketing genius, brendan ash...

brendan has been helping me to color-correct and resize images for a website we're doing for a brazilian steakhouse. needless to say, there are lots of pictures of meat. well, on the history page of the site, theres an image of brazil on an old globe. and thus, brendan says...

"thats boring. you know what would be way better? if you had a picture of a hot, topless brazilian woman with, like, a thong! a thong made out of meat! a bacon thong! with meat hanging off of it! and you could have a dog chasing after her!"

well, brendan, this is for you...


















*note: those may not have been brendan's exact words, but you get the gist...

perfectionist pattern

so my boss had me take a personality profile today at work. he's talked about it a lot in the past and how it helped him realize how he needs to deal with people and what not.

it was interesting. specifically, i took the DiSC profile which rates you in four different areas:

Dominance: People who score high in the intensity of the 'D' styles factor are very active in dealing with problems and challenges, while low D scores are people who want to do more research before committing to a decision.

Influence: People with High I scores influence others through talking and activity and tend to be emotional. Those with Low I scores influence more by data and facts, and not with feelings.

Steadiness: People with High S styles scores want a steady pace, security, and don't like sudden change. Low S intensity scores are those who like change and variety.

Conscientiousness: Persons with High C styles adhere to rules, regulations, and structure. They like to do quality work and do it right the first time. Those with Low C scores challenge the rules and want independence.

i wasn't a huge fan of the question format. they give you four statements about how you act/feel at work and are asked to select one that describes you the most and one that describes you the least. there were 28 total questions which lead to a rating between 0 and 28 for each category. my breakdown was:
Dominance: 2
Influence: 13
Steadiness: 25
Conscientiousness: 22

that ranking puts me in the "perfectionist pattern" and then supposedly gives me insight on my motivations, my work habits, my and ideal work environment. basically, i consistently produce high-quality, detail oriented work at the cost increased creative restraint and cautious deliberation.

good adjectives: dependent, charming, patient, loyal, courteous, logical
bad adjectives: predictable, mild, unsure, conventional, restrained, passive

i suppose thats fairly accurate.

**update**
so i just got done meeting with my boss, and found something very interesting. for your reference, here's the graph that i got with my assessment:


















it turns out my boss and i are complete opposites... my extremes (low D and high S) and are exactly flipped (he has a hight D and low S). i guess that puts a nice set of checks and balances in place in a business... food for thought.

holy shit

so we have a client at work who is a non-profit group who takes under-privileged kids out on a boat and teaches them how to sail. well, we're updating their homepage, and i've been going back and forth with their project managers (pm's) trying to get approval on what images to use in the flash piece. the following i pulled directly from our client extranet:

client pm #1, 25 feb at 11:34 am
"if only two images are best, please use the sextant image we like. if you can do four more effectively, please do so. thanks - client pm #1"

me, 25 feb at 11:49 am
"you're talking to someone without sea-legs here... what is a sextant?"

client pm #1, 25 feb at 11:58 am
"it's the image of the tent, in which, two teenages are having sex."

client pm #2, 25 feb at 11:59 am
" A sextant is an instrument generally used to measure the altitude of a celestial object above the horizon. Making this measurement is known as sighting the object, shooting the object, or taking a sight. The angle, and the time when it was measured, can be used to calculate a position line on a nautical or aeronautical chart.

The picture that has the man and the girl holding a funny looking object, that is the sextant and the above is what they are doing with it.

It’s the old fashion way of navigating."

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WOW. i think it makes it way funnier if you know the guy, because thats not something i would ever expect him to say. and i like how pm#2 responded back right away with the real answer. trying to cover up some embarrassment, me thinks.

totally made my day.