Animation Guild

SPRING/SUMMER 2018 19 D I A L O G U E My dad was always introducing me to new movies and TV shows. I remember being so enchanted when he showed me Who Framed Roger Rabbit because of how it incorporated animation and live-action. It gave a whole new life to these cartoon characters in the real world that was so fascinating to me. After that, I was begging to eventually be one of those people involved in giving cartoon characters that kind of life and energy. —Tara Hurley I know the tired and typical answer is Star Wars and although it's not animated, its impact on my creativity, imagination, career and ambition is undeniable. As for animation, Heavy Metal was my gateway to realizing cartoons didn't have to be just for kids and it opened my eyes to other visual and artistic styles that I aspired to mimic in my own drawing. It didn't hurt that I was too young to be watching it so the forbidden nature made it all the more appealing and inspiring. —Paolo deGuzman The first cartoons that inspired me to pursue animation were Hey Arnold! and The Simpsons. Growing up I loved drawing, music, and comedy and both of these classics combined all of my favorite things seamlessly. [They] differ in style but I think that is what I liked about them, the overall versatility in animation. The fact that your voice can be shown in such a visual and artistic manner is what inspired me to pursue animation. —Grace Babineau I was all about comics—Neal Adams and John Byrne were gods. I went to the Joe Kubert School for comic book illustration, and ended up becoming a penciller for Marvel comics. I fell into animation after moving to California, and working for Epoch Ink first as a storyboard revisionist, and later, a board artist. I fell in love with the medium, and ended up working on Batman Beyond, still one of the highlights of my career. As for inspiration, Iron Giant, Toy Story, The Incredibles, Batman: The Animated Series have all been hugely influential on me and what I have strived to achieve as a storyteller. —David Chlystek The show that inspired me the most to draw was the original Gumby series from the 1950s. Sure the characters weren't actually drawn, but that show, more than any other, made me want to draw cartoons for a living. The wonderful sense of whimsy and surrealism that Art Clokey conveyed with stop motion still influences my work to this day! —Douglas Gauthier WHAT WAS THE FIRST CARTOON OR FILM THAT INSPIRED YOU TO PURSUE ANIMATION AND WHY?

• Cover
• PRESIDENT'S LETTER
• EDITOR'S NOTE
• ART & CRAFTAko Castuera's dynamic ceramics
• AFTER HOURS DWA's Abarcaon the sweet sideof animation
• IN PRODUCTION How Paradise, P.D.runs its show
• ON THE JOB Character Designers at different studios
• SPACE INVADERS Get lost in Ben Balistreri's home studio
• PERSPECTIVE Surviving pixel vision
• DIALOGUE Artists onthe show that inspired them
• THE LOCAL Color Stylists ask for your support, our convention delegates
• SOCIAL HOURT oasting our members around town
• MUSIC IN MOTION For Cosmo Segurson, his Nickelodeon short, The Prince and Mr. Whiskers, brings together influences from hispast. Inspired by hot jazz, 1930'scartoons and his father, he creates amusical battle in a stop-motion world.
• AND THE WINNER IS…We look back at eight Primetime Emmy winners over the last five decades, highlighting shows that impacted the industry. From The Flintstones to SpongeBob SquarePants, these unforgettable characters continue to live on.
• INTO THE NIGHT How do you design a summer vacation film without sunlight? That was one big challenge for the production of Hotel Transylvania 3.Learn how the artists behind the filmcreated a bright destination for Dracand his family.