Animation Guild | We are 839 Digital Magazine
Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1313527
D E PA R T M E N T 35 KEYFRAME WINTER 2020 35 left: Concept art by Leighton Hickman showing Guy making a discovery. above: A new shade of turquoise dubbed "Betterman Blue" contributed to the vibrant landscapes, seen here in concept art by visual development artist Luca Pisanu. awareness of where every sequence was in process at any given time. For the effects department, being on separate computers at home during the review process—rather than all in a room with a single person at a screen— meant a lot more access to assets and interactivity, a benefit they may build into the process moving forward. Jensen says it's conceivable they could also bring back to the studio a good collaborative media reviewing platform like SyncSketch, which they used to watch video during lockdown. And now that remote work has proven viable, it opens up the talent pool to animators and designers who don't live in Los Angeles. "I imagine in the future there will be more situations open to artists working all over the globe," says Swift. "We're lucky we're imaginative creatures that can work anywhere," says Jensen, who used his children to act out potential scenes in his backyard since reference shoots were no longer available. Partners and kids also became substitute preview audiences for artists, who got to share their work with their families in a new way. "My daughter would ask me every day, 'When are lighting dailies today?'" says Wragg. "Usually we review in a dark, color-accurate room in the basement at DreamWorks. Here at home, your family, pets, everyone can take a little peek." Lee's eight-year-old daughter, Abigail, would occasionally peek over his shoulder and break out in laughter. "That's always a good sign," he says, "when your target audience says, 'Hey, that's funny!'" So, the world didn't end. It just got a little harder, a little weirder. But it also opened everyone up to new ways of thinking, working, and living. Curiosity, ingenuity, and a willingness to stay connected despite the hardships won the day both within the production team and onscreen. A new age, indeed. Images courtesy of DreamWorks Animation.