Sheridan College Open House 2010 (Part 1)

A week after classes have officially ended, there's still two events that wrap up the school year at Sheridan College. There is the annual Industry Day, where representatives from various animation studios, both local and from the U.S. come to view the films created by the graduating 4th Year students. I'll defer to my colleague, Mark Mayerson to describe that event in greater detail on his blog.

The other event is the Open House, where the general public is invited to visit Sheridan College and see what students in all of the artistic venues are capable of producing. Once again I agreed to participate alongside several of our very talented animation students in sketching caricatures of the visitors to the college, and here are a bunch of samples of those folks that I drew. I'll post the rest of the photos in a second part in a couple days, as there's too many to upload in one shot:

Sheridan Animation Year End

Yes, as April draws to a close, so too does this year of the Sheridan College Animation program. The last few weeks are always pretty crazy, with students trying to stay on top of last assignment deadlines and we in the faculty going bug-eyed from all of the final grading! But now it's done and everybody can breathe a collective sigh of relief and start enjoying the spring and summer weather to come.

Here are a few photos I took this week and some caricatures of my 2nd Year students:

The selection process behind which student caricatures made it into this particular montage was determined by the following group shot photo at Monaghan's Pub across the street from Sheridan, taken after my classes wrapped up on Thursday April 22. The students in the caricature are Laurel Dalgleish, Evee Fex-Chriszt, Drew Petursson, Justin Hartley, Keely Turple and Caroline Hung. Hopefully you can match them all up with their real faces pictured below. The wise old sage in the photo is none other than my friend and Sheridan Animation colleague, Mark Mayerson, whose terrific blog is probably well known to many of my readers.


This pretty young lady is Lisa Kathofer, another one of my 2nd Year Character Design students who finally had her caricature drawn on the last day. Watch those deadlines, Lisa!

The fellow pictured above is Josh Heisie, a student in the Film and Television program at Sheridan, who is a friend of my former student, Amir Avni.

For the entire series of Sheridan 2009/2010 2nd Year mugshots, you can find them all posted here on my Facebook page.

Incidentally, for those in the vicinity, I'll be drawing caricatures along with several animation students for visitors to Sheridan's Open House, coming up this Saturday, May 1st. Here are some pics from last year's event. I hope some of you can stop by to say hello!

Some Cute (And Not So Cute) Doodles!

I make no bones about the fact that I love to draw cute characters. Cartoons that are cute and appealing are what I grew up with, and I still far prefer that over the ugly schlock of today, therefore that is what I gravitate towards in my own cartooning. Here are some more examples of recent doodles that explore that theme.


In the one above, I decided to scribble out several animated poses of the same little guy bouncing his basketball. Though I have never animated per se, I have always enjoyed bringing a character to life through continuity poses and expressions. Of course, this is the essence of what I have done for many years in illustrating children's books for Disney. Ideally I would love to start illustrating books with my own characters, but I'm not sure that children's book publishers even like cartoons anymore. Regrettably, they seem to have forgotten that the most famous kids' illustrator of all time, Dr. Seuss, was in fact a cartoonist.


These were a couple of quick impressions I scribbled of other diners at the restaurant I was at several weeks ago. The old guy reminded me a bit of Ed McMahon and the young girl had similar features to Drew Barrymore. The cat was not actually in the restaurant, but snuck into my doodling just the same.


Okay, I guess these ugly rascals can't be called "cute", but they were fun to draw. After finishing up a Suduko, I started aimlessly doodling a couple of ugly mugs, which then led to a whole series of unsavory mobster types appearing around the edge of the puzzle. I particularly like the psychotic looking fellow in the lower right corner and the wall-eyed rascal in the top middle. The whole exercise was really meant to explore facial features of varying shape, size and relative placement on various head shapes, which is something I stress constantly in my Sheridan College Character Design class.

Happy Birthday, James Garner!

Yes, I've celebrated his birthday for the last couple of years on this blog and I aim to keep on doing it. Jim Garner remains my all-time favourite actor and I never get tired of watching his many great film roles and sketching my impressions of him. For this year's caricature, I watched The Great Escape, the classic WWII film from 1963, which was based on the true story of a POW prison breakout. Jim Garner plays Lt. Hendley, also known as "The Scrounger", for his ability to scrounge all manner of raw materials from within the camp that can then be jerry-rigged into usable tools to be utilized in the digging of not one, but three tunnels to the woods outside the fence!

The Great Escape is a hugely thrilling epic that I've watched a number of times over the years, though I try to limit my viewings so that it still feels fresh every time I watch it. There's a lot of humanity in the film, most notably in the friendship that develops between Garner's Lt. Hendley and Blythe, "The Forger" played by British character actor, Donald Pleasence. Just prior to the planned breakout, it's decided that poor Blythe is to be left behind in the camp due to the risk he presents to the mission, having suffered a deterioration of his eyesight to the point of near blindness. Hendley insists that Blythe still be included, offering to take full responsibility for getting him out and away under his protection. That act of kindness and human decency is a trait I like to attribute to Jim Garner in real life, too. Jim has always been outspoken on various issues on which he takes a principled stand, often being honest to the point of bluntness in his opinions. Many of his film roles have portrayed him as, if not the typical "hero", then certainly the "reluctant hero" who may wish to avoid trouble if he can, but will rise to the occasion when necessary.

As I've mentioned in a past entry, I got to meet Jim Garner back in 1982 when he was starring in NBC's Bret Maverick, a sequel series to his classic original Maverick from about 20 years before. Here is a photo that was taken on that occasion showing me and my friend Bryan Stoller with Jim, actress Darleen Carr and singer/actor Ed Bruce on the set at Warner Brothers. I wish that I'd had a better camera - where was digital when I needed it? Also, I'm kicking myself for having blinked when the pic was taken! Still, I'm happy to report that Jim Garner was as charismatic and nice in person as he often appears in his film and TV roles, and it was such a thrill to meet him. Happy Birthday, Jim!

More Doodles!

Here's a bunch more of my recent newspaper doodles drawn in blank areas of my daily Globe and Mail over a succession of leisurely lunches at my favourite local eateries. The oddly dyslexic Bell Canada ad pictured above seemed to offer up an interesting layout in which to fit a bevy of cute showgirls. It started out with just the one in the lower right, then led to one after another as my pen meandered clockwise around the page.


Uh oh, I think the guy in the above photo may be in trouble now that the gal's cartoon hubby has unexpectedly walked in the door! The family pets apparently never liked the rascal anyhow.

As for the following images, I believe that any product will sell better if the corporation hires cute cartoon gals to hawk its wares:




Aloha!

Remember The Alamo, And Fess Parker Too

Sadly, early today we lost Fess Parker, the actor who brought the character of Davy Crockett to life for Walt Disney. The role originated on Disney's Sunday night show and became a huge overnight hit, leading to Fess Parker becoming a major cult hero to the generation of kids who first watched the made-for-TV movie that was shown in 3 weekly installments. The film also led to an unexpected demand for spin-off merchandise, including the famous coonskin cap that made Disney's Davy Crockett such an iconic pop culture figure of the 1950s.

Fess only made a handful of movies for Disney after that, and a few films along the way for other studios, before he decided to pretty much retire from acting in the 1970s and devote all of his time and effort to operating his own vineyard and winery in California. Standing 6' 6'', Fess Parker was a gentle giant of a man, soft spoken and amiable to all who met him. I'm glad to know that he lived a long and happy life, passing away peacefully today at age 85. I know he has left behind a legion of longtime fans who will always remember him fondly. In fact, I'm going to dedicate this post to my good friend and former colleague in the Walt Disney world Art Department, Jim Story, one of Davy's biggest fans!

Here's a fun clip from a Disney TV special where Fess Parker reminisces with Buddy Ebsen, who played Davy's trusty sidekick, George Russel:

Happy Birthday, Judd Hirsch!

I haven't had time to take this to a more finished version, so here is a pencil sketch of Judd Hirsch, perhaps most famous for his role in TV's Taxi. This was primarily drawn for the ISCA (formerly NCN), the International Society of Caricature Artists, for the ongoing daily celebrity birthday forum, where all the members can draw their version of a celebrity who is chosen for each day. Admittedly, I had a tougher time drawing Judd than I reckoned I would. He's got a face that's ripe for caricature, but I wasn't able to find as much good video reference as I like to work from, so I had to use a combo of online video clips and a few good photos, all courtesy of Google, the artist's best friend!

While researching his likeness, I came upon this wonderful scene from the short-lived TV series, Studio 60 On The Sunset Strip. Judd Hirsch's character sums up my own sentiments regarding contemporary TV:


Studio 60 On The Sunset Strip - Funny video clips are a click away

Happy Birthday, David Niven!

Were David Niven still with us today, he'd be celebrating his 100th birthday! This debonair actor has long been one of my favourites, perhaps because I've always had a soft spot for the Brits, due to my own British parentage. I think he was also one of a handful of actors whom I was familiar with at a fairly early age. Although I would have been too young to have seen him in 1963's The Pink Panther when it first premiered on the big screen, it seems that movie was one of my favourite comedies once it started turning up regularly on TV just a few years later. It was from viewing this film again that I have created this caricature of David Niven.

In The Pink Panther, David Niven was cast as Charles Lytton, who is also secretly "The Phantom", a notorious jewel thief who has his sights set on the "Pink Panther" diamond owned by Princess Dala, played by beautiful Claudia Cardinale. Totally unaware of Lytton being "The Phantom" is the klutzy Inspector Clouseau, brilliantly brought to life by Peter Sellers. This is a film I can watch over and over again, not only for the rich comedy and sophisticated cast, but also that wonderful music score by Henry Mancini. Interestingly, though David Niven was meant to be the main star of The Pink Panther, he was upstaged by Peter Sellers in what was his first major Hollywood film role. Still, Niven holds his own and is a very engaging character throughout.

He also famously portrayed the extremely punctual Phileas Fogg in the all-star movie adaptation of Around the World in 80 Days, from 1956. Just recently, I caught a showing of The Guns From Navarone on TCM, which is another one of his best films. I hadn't seen it in years and had forgotten just how good it is. Tragically, David Niven was diagnosed with Lou Gehrig's Disease, which left him severely debilitated in his last few years before he passed away in 1983 at the age of 73. In tribute on his 100th birthday, let's all raise a glass to this charismatic gentleman of the movies!

Happy Birthday, Wendy Liebman!

Some time back I wrote a post in reference to a documentary called The Boys: The Sherman Brothers' Story, which was all about the longtime Disney songwriting team, Bob and Dick Sherman. The documentary was created by cousins, Jeff and Greg Sherman, the sons respectively of Bob and Dick. While the doc covered much of their wonderful songwriting legacy, it was also notable for its rather shocking revelation that these two talented brothers were estranged from each other outside of their professional career, and avoided each other in their personal lives. I'd had no idea of this before seeing the film, nor did the majority of their fans I'd reckon, so it was rather sad to find this out.

However, there was also another revelation that I discovered while watching the film, but this was a very happy one. It so happens that Jeff Sherman is married to Wendy Liebman, the very cute and funny comedienne! Sometime after I'd posted my thoughts on the film, Jeff Sherman actually took the time to set some points straight in the comments section of my blog regarding my impressions from viewing the documentary. In my response, I mentioned how I was pleasantly surprised to find out his wife was Wendy Liebman, as I've long admired her comedy routines. I love her unique style of humour, where she continues a sentence past the point you assume it's ending, allowing the punchline to trail off under her breath. Her timing and delivery are impeccable. (In fact, I even have a clip of her from a routine she performed some years ago at Montreal's Just For Laughs comedy fest that I include in a montage of video clips that I have my Sheridan animation students sketch from, as Wendy has such a wonderfully expressive face.)

Not long afterward, I received a very nice email from Wendy herself saying how much she enjoyed the caricature of The Sherman Brothers and thanking me for my kind words regarding her comedy act. I was thrilled to hear from her and wanted to do a caricature of her someday. Though it's been awhile since that time, I have purposely waited until now to post this recent caricature of Wendy Liebman, so that I may honor this very sweet and talented lady on her birthday. So, Happy Birthday, Wendy, and keep on making us laugh!

Here is a clip from YouTube that shows Wendy at her best:

It's Doodle Time!

Usually I reserve this blog to just show my finished art, or maybe something in progress for a tutorial. Perhaps once in awhile though, I might post some of my doodles just for fun. Here are some recent doodles, mostly sketched while having lunch and reading my daily Globe and Mail at a favourite restaurant. After reading all the news I'm interested in, I'll start sketching aimlessly in whatever patches of bare space I can find among the pages of the newspaper.


My favourite subject matter is cartooning the human face, as I love to explore the myriad shapes, sizes, and relative placement of facial features on various head shapes. Admittedly, most of my doodles end up being of cute cartoon girls, as that is a subject I can never tire of drawing! The great thing about doodling on newspaper is that it is so completely inviting and tempting. Unlike doodling on clean white fresh pages in a sketchbook, which can be rather intimidating due to the commitment of the act, sketching on newspaper is just like getting more use out of something that was destined for the recycling bin anyway. Also, there is nothing quite so pleasing as the feel of a ballpoint pen on soft, padded newsprint.


I especially like to doodle because I feel I can draw completely in my own natural style, as loose, spontaneous and free of the constraints I might place on myself when drawing for a paid commission, particularly when the client is expecting something to look a certain way. When one doodles, there is the distinct pleasure of knowing that you are doing it just for yourself, not subject to anybody else's approval nor what they would be willing to pay for it. No, you yourself are the only one to satisfy and, heck, even if you don't like it, you haven't invested much time or effort in creating it. If it's good, maybe you'll file it away for future reference, and if not, it joins the rest of the newspaper in the aforementioned recycling bin.


More cute girls. (Hey, how did that one funny looking guy get in there?)


Often, these cute cartoon girls make an appearance right after I've solved my Sudoku puzzle. Could somebody please check to make sure I put all the numbers in the right place? Thanks...