Animation Guild | We are 839 Digital Magazine
Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1378252
D E PA R T M E N T 29 KEYFRAME ROMAN LANEY ART DIRECTOR ANIMANIACS WARNER BROS. ANIMATION WHAT DO YOU THINK MAKES ANIMANIACS UNIQUE? The core structure of Animaniacs is a variety show. This isn't all that common on television … animated or live action. As an art director, it is a dream environment to play in. We're allowed, encouraged, and expected to experiment with all sorts of differ- ent looks, and we keep challenging ourselves to keep up with where our wacky characters go next. It's not often you get to use all the crayons in the box. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE EPISODE FROM THIS PAST SEASON? It's hard to pick a favorite when there are so many. Episode 7 ['Warner She Wrote/France France Revolution/Gift Rapper'] has a special place in my heart. It's just sprawling in the number of things we did in that show. The art department generated over 800 individual art assets to create a French revolution spoof, a murder mystery on a steam engine, and finally a rap battle. Watching it reminds me of the talented crew and all the hard work they put in to bring it to life. WHAT ANIMATED SHOWS INSPIRED YOUR CAREER? Any answer to this question will date me. Let's just say I was a child in the '80s, so there were a lot of shows to watch on Saturday morning that got me interested in television animation. None, though, that would be considered essential viewing for a serious student of animation. I recently went back and showed He-Man and the Masters of the Universe to my 12-year-old son as a lesson about how much television anima- tion has changed since I was a kid. I figured he'd want to turn it off right away, but we actually had a great time watching it. WHAT ANIMATED SHOW HELPED YOU GET THROUGH THE PAST YEAR? This will sound strange, but I just got around to watching Attack on Titan. It's an anime about a medieval world where naked giants are terrorizing tiny humans. Such a bonkers idea, one that I imagined would be one-dimensional at first, but has all these twists and turns and true shocks in the plot. I love it. Obviously, it wouldn't be everyone's favorite during a pandem- ic, but a good reminder it could be worse, maybe? DAYTIME DELIGHTS HOW DO YOU CHOOSE YOUR FAVORITE BABY? LET'S FACE IT, IT'S HARD! WE CHALLENGED THESE TAG MEMBERS TO PICK THEIR FAVORITE EPISODES FROM THEIR PAST SEASON'S WORK. PLUS, WE FOUND OUT WHAT INSPIRES THEM AND WHAT SHOWS HELPED THEM SURVIVE THE PANDEMIC. Animaniacs' first season's Episode 7 features an eclectic medley of rap, murder mystery, and French Revolution. SUMMER 2021 29