Animation Guild | We are 839 Digital Magazine
Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/1120864
SUMMER 2019 29 A good general rule to effective notes is to note with kindness, compassion and putting yourself in the artist's shoes. This is key, supervisors say, both toward fixing the immediate problem and maintaining good rapport going forward. To this end, a collegial tone ("We need a different beat.") is more easily digested than something that sounds personal ("You need to fix this.") Effective supervisors often try to explain the reasons for their notes in as much detail as possible, and not to ask for a solution if they themselves can't offer one. And, always invoke the endgame: We're trying to make the best show possible. Jason Mayer, Head of Effects at DreamWorks Animation, recommends artists do research on the people who will be regularly giving them notes to help learn their style and preferences. "If you know your director came out of storyboard or 2D and [they] are directing a 3D film, you want to frame you work in such a way that you can be talking about it a little more visually than technically," says Mayer, who has recorded training videos that deal with critique. "Same thing if you have a very technical supervisor who was a computer science major. If you know what their background is, it also helps you interpret through the lens of what they want to see." Artists will invariably encounter a situation in which they receive contradictory notes or "direction" from a supervisor who doesn't seem to know what he wants. Artists say they have taken notes of their own during a project's discussion phase to make sure they are covered. Then what do you do if a comment seems to pull you in two different directions? "It can be confusing and frustrating," Graziano-Humphrey says. "It may be the result of one of two things: either you're getting notes from multiple people who aren't communicating with each other or someone somewhere down the line changed their mind. Either way, I'd suggest asking your direct superior about the issue before making any changes." The longer an artist works on a given series or with a particular supervisor, the more they will learn a supervisor's tastes. At the beginning of her tenure on Regular Show, Color Designer Jessica Yost learned that she would be working with a relatively bland palate. Just make everything look like it came from Walmart was a general instruction. The more detailed notes came as her relationship with the show's creator J.G. Quintel developed over the course of several seasons. "He was picturing everything from his childhood," recalls Yost. "So if I colored a truck red, he would say, 'No, it's supposed to be like my dad's truck. It's supposed to be white.' I'd get lots of notes about things that I could not possibly know, and it became like a joke. He would say, 'That's the wrong color,' I would say, 'what's the one at home? ' " By the time Regular Show was several seasons in, Yost knew Quintel's tendencies well enough that she would start making changes almost before the words were out of his mouth. " We were lucky to have a show that ran that long and we were able to have that shorthand. Sometimes, I would already have a back-up color palette done knowing I'm going to try to get him to go for this, but we'll have a backup ready to go just in case." Having a backup plan or taking extra time to try your own ideas can be a way for artists to flex their creative muscles while still following the directions of the note-giver. Mayer encourages creativity and autonomy among his staff, while also emphasizing the need to get the assigned work done first. "If you have this really great idea, I don't want to discourage you from doing it, but I want to make sure you do the work you were asked to do," Mayer says. "Then go above and beyond what you think can be done, and we'll show both. I know character animators do this all the time." "In getting notes, there's a lot of feeling, 'Oh, man, did I not do this? Did I not do this good enough? Does this person not like my work?'" frustrating," 'That's the wrong color,' I would say, I' know I' know I' know know wh I' wh I' I wh I wh s I s I s s :) rule to effective notes "It be confusing and frustrating," frustrating," 'That's the I' I' know I' wh I' wh I' :) t artistic artistic artistic t artistic t