Animation Guild | We are 839 Digital Magazine
Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/1021376
D E PA R T M E N T 27 KEYFRAME Chase Conley, who is an animation director at DreamWorks TV, says even fleshing out these background characters "adds tangibility to the world; it grounds the story." To this point, he says he tries to design characters that go against type such as avoiding making an Asian character meek or "if it has to do with a female character, I won't hyper-sexualize them if that's not in their character." While inclusion and diversity are necessary parts of animation, they only work if they don't feel forced. "I think the creative should do whatever is natural to them," says Mark Davis, who is also a director on Victor & Valentino. "It would be nice to have some representation all across the board, but that's not everyone's experience. I'm always a fan of staying true to whatever you feel is natural to you as a creator." HOW LIFE EXPERIENCE SHAPES ART Animation Guild members Mike Davis, Damil Bryant and Chase Conley often meet up to talk about the industry, their work and to collaborate creatively. "We're kind of like unicorns in our neighborhoods," jokes Conley, who grew up in Charlotte, N.C. while Bryant hails from Atlanta and Davis from Boston. They explain that they defied the odds in their hometowns, in pursuing a field like animation, which seems untouchable for many youth in those areas. And their life experience helps shape their creative artistry. "We come up with who the character is first: their personality and then we circle back to what feels more natural from what we've seen growing up," says Mark Davis, Mike's twin brother and fellow animator. The two operate under the banner Madtwiinz and are known for African-American positive imagery like their Blokhedz graphic novels and their work on series like Black Dynamite. "It's never 'oh we need a black guy to make this story feel well-rounded.' It's kind of a reverse engineering of serving the story first." Mike Davis says they credit their upbringing in the multicultural neighborhood of Cambridge, Mass. for their attention to inclusion. He adds that this is also why they "cautiously make a decision to never have gratuitous violence … we took our authentic experiences and we just channeled them into our creations." Last year, the brothers directed an animated parody of the Schoolhouse Rock! song "I'm Just a Bill" that was featured in the fourth season premiere of ABC's Black-ish and entitled "I Am a Slave." They worked with Bryant and Conley to turn the members of the band The Roots into animated figures who discussed slavery and the emancipation holiday of Juneteenth. This meant that they had to walk the tightrope of creating effective and informative artistry that both paid homage to the educational program's vintage look while nodding to the vaudevillian imagery that solidified the song's message. "...minorities and women on staff need to speak up and not be afraid to push back on stereotypes that others might not see."- Damil Bryant from left: TAG members Damil Bryant, Mark Davis, and Chase Conley often meet up after work to collaborate and laugh. Photo by Tim Sullens FALL 2018 27