Animation Guild | We are 839 Digital Magazine
Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1475662
12 KEYFRAME DRAWING WITH FEELING By his own admission, Alonso Ramirez Ramos doesn't have the best memory. Names, dates, and life events must be fact- checked online or with friends and family. But his experience with movies? Those he remembers down to the last detail. Growing up in Guanajuato, Mexico, one of Ramirez Ramos' earliest memories is when his father took him to see The Land Before Time. Although he was only four, he can still recall the plot and drawings in the animated dinosaur adventure film. He also remembers the look of the movie house and that the concession stand sold cherry candies that were a promotional tie-in. As he got older and went to movies with friends, everyone would be excited to see the newest release. But after it was over, he was the one who wanted to "stand up and clap and just be really appreciative of the artform," he says. His passion overlapped with school, as well. His homework was riddled with doodles of Disney characters, and some of his favorite assignments were math questions that asked you to draw out the answer. One of his first directing jobs was school murals. Teachers would give him time off from class to sketch elaborate drawings to celebrate various holidays, and he'd employ his friends to help color them. Ramirez Ramos' free time was equally creative, spent with toys like My First Sony Electronic Sketch Pad, a drawing tablet that could connect to the TV. And he was enamored with a VHS recording of Ziggy's Gift, watching it over and over, studying animator Richard Williams' work. NOT ONLY HAS A CAREER IN ANIMATION PROPELLED ALONSO RAMIREZ RAMOS TO THE ROLE OF EXECUTIVE PRODUCER, IT HAS ALSO HELPED HIM OPEN UP AND GROW AS A PERSON. "I put a lot of my thoughts and heart into it, and I really enjoy seeing the passion of everyone around it..." T H E C L I M B