Boxes

September 26, 2014

With the Box Trolls coming out today, I've been seeing a lot of boxes on Twitter. They make me think of this interactive project I did for Lolly's Box, years ago. I drew some variations on what different peoples "boxes" might be. Here are a few of them. Click on the right or left of the image to see different ones. What would your box be?

Valerie's Blog.

Updates on new drawings, works-in-progress and professional work

It was rough going getting back into gesture drawing this week. I haven’t gone in years. Clunky but the best way to loosen up again with sketching. The model also had a great costume and props!

Digital sketch of Bernal Heights from last week. It’s nice to have layers and an undo button, but screens are not ideal for drawing in the sunshine. It clashes with the screen’s brightness and reflectivity. But sometimes its a fun surprise when I look at the drawing later.

I recently saw the @paulmccartney photo exhibit the @deyoungmuseum in San Francisco, and his ‘hat on a hat’ photos made me laugh a little extra. As many wise story sages in my life have said in reference to compounding wild idea on top of wild idea: “Yea, but is it a HAT on a HAT?” 😂 I’m lookin’ at you husband @matthewluhnstory and @mrdanscanlon It was a great exhibit. My phone photos don’t do justice to the colors of that 1960s film stock in the final room and the atmosphere they created in that space. I also bought this little kaleidoscope lens at the exhibit shop, to use in front of a lens.

@jtmonaco at the board while recording music for @toystory Lamp Life. We were at a small tucked away recording studio in Hollywood. Jake had his hands full with this short that had multiple music styles and cues l. He did an incredible job! At this stage of the process I’d given my thoughts and notes. It was full-on Jake Show! So I had a chance to sketch #toystory. #pixar

A sketch of the big house in the Skywalker Ranch in Marin. What an incredible place for creating. The Pixar features do the final sound mix here. Lamp Life and Dream Productions were also mixed here. I absolutely love this place and the experience of putting those final touches on a film. Each step of the process adds to the story, right to the last moment of creation. #skywalkerranch #pixar

#throwbackthurday Back in 2010, Pixar artists were asked to paint giant aliens any way they liked. I of course volunteered. I made a ballerina pig. I added that tutu with Crayola model magic or something. This thing was huge! Like 13” high. It was in an art exhibit in…China? Not really sure, but apparently they were all lost. Is it in a private home? Lost to the bottom of the ocean? In an Indiana Jones style warehouse resting next to the Arc of the Covenant? We may never know. But at least I got some okay photos of it. #toystory. #toystoryaliens #pixar

So many cakes, so many dresses, SO the Hill to Die On! These elements became such a pivotal story point, that I loved. If there’s anything I knew would make the “Best Dream Ever!” for Joy, it’s a cake dress! The Barbie is a cake I made my daughter’s birthday. The Riley’s-Mom’sDress-As-Cake was Animation Lead Paul Mendoza’s 11 year old daughter’s creation (!!!) for Supervising Animator Tim Pixton’s birthday!! It was also delicious. #dreamproductions #insideout #cakedress

#throwbackthursday Lolly’s Box. 2005. Last throwback of the day. I debated sharing student work for a long time, after all, this was made 20 YEARS ago! Gulp! I like to think I’ve made some progress. 😂 But I also think it’s important to share humble beginnings with students… and this one ended up being the top of my humble starts! Everything else was experiments until making a film with character and a beginning-middle-end, because I wanted to work in Story! This little short launched me into the industry, opening doors. It was a Student Academy Award Finalist, screened at Annecy, and put my portfolio on the top of the stack for the first Pixar Story Internship in 2006!

#throwbackthursdays 2005 CSSSA! What an amazing program! I may not have gone to Calarts, but the summer I was a teaching assistant for the animation program, it felt like a small taste and it was a blast! Again- mutually inspiring between instructors-students. The delightful, incredibly talented Corny Cole was a drawing instructor (also in our grad Anim program at USC at the time- we had many crossover instructors). How amazing that CA supports this! It still happens: www.csssa.ca.gov. I went to a similar residential program when I was 16 in Virginia for Theater over the summer, The Governor’s School. It’s life changing, especially at that age. Looking back on these photos, I also have to note how amazing it was to see women as instructors, comfortable with bringing their baby along. He was never disruptive and if anything, ‘the professor’ became another source of inspiration. I’m only realizing now how much Jenny and ‘the professor’ inspired me. Also note: This is before iphones- I was one of those weirdos carrying around a bulky digital SLR, which I had used to make my student stop motion film. #csssa #calarts

Today at work, Jason Katz reminded our story department that Joe Ranft would’ve been 65 today. The current Pixar story internship, envisioned as a mentorship-training program, I’m told, was a dream of Joe Ranft’s. I came to Pixar for it in 2006 with 7 others, after he passed away and the Story Department launched the program in his honor. The year prior, in the summer of 2005 I was teaching assistant at the CSSSA Animation program for high school students held at Calarts. I was so fortunate to meet Joe there. He generously gave his time and energy to do a presentation for the students, showing Nightmare Before Christmas and Pixar storyboards and explaining the job. I was equally inspired and nerdy as the kids! I got the photo with him and them. Only wish my super-nerdom had kicked in enough to ask for a photo with him myself!! I’ll never forget it, he was so talented and even more generous to be so proactive in inspiring others. Giving back to younger people is always a mutual experience of learning and inspiration. Give and grow like Joe. #joeranft #animation #pixar #csssa