Animation Guild | We are 839 Digital Magazine
Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1546404
this page: (from top) Cash says the younger Finn was more fun to write, and in Side Quests "we got to reset him to be that same kid in every episode."; Peppermint Butler (right) is one of many side characters that had to be approached as if their storylines in the original did not yet exist. opposite page: The Sofia team used advancements in technology to create a fresh look while maintaining the tone of the original. "I wasn't sure if I could write in Finn and Jake's voice after many years off, but it was like getting back on a bike and going for a whimsical ride around a deep blue lake." – WRITER AND STORYBOARD ARTIST JESSE MOYNIHAN early in development Cash talked with Cross about taking the original black- and-white layouts and "rendering them in a very painterly, Frank Frazzetta oil painting, fantasy style and doing a lineless, almost Samurai Jack treatment to the characters." At times, though, once final animation came back from the partner studio, "there would be issues that we couldn't foresee in the pre-production phase with characters blending into certain backgrounds," says Cross. To address this, they used a software called DaVinci to help with final color and resolve any issues with readability of characters as well as adding extra lighting effects. Cross calls it a powerful tool for its ability to quickly isolate areas of color to help shift the tint or tone and adjust the final picture. For Cash another goal was being open to new voices, which was a hallmark of the original series. It helped that many of the new people working on the show either grew up watching Adventure Time, or it was a formative experience in their creative growth. With Side Quests, he says, they don't want to disappoint fans who already know the series, while also trying to appeal to new audiences. "I feel so honored to be a small part of Adventure Time for the new generation of kids," says Background Painter Carissa Nakata, who recalls how special it felt when she first watched the series 16 years ago as a fan. "I hope [new fans] experience the same kind of joy!" F E AT U R E 30 KEYFRAME