#animation #film #storyboard #directing #ScreenwritingTwitter #art #drawing #cartoon #cartoons #CartoonArt #storytelling #storyteller #Animations #animation2d #animation3d #tutorial #Students #filmstudent #animationstudent STORYBOARDING 101 with John "F" Fountain cont.
First... This tutorial is being sponsored by MY PRECIOUS TIME. I want to keep creating free stuff, so I'm not using paywalls, but if you'd like to support me - LIKE, SHARE, SPREAD THE WORD & SUBSCRIBE TO MY YOUTUBE CHANNEL! on to the tutorial... https://t.co/oSTPhAPamH
INTRODUCTION Storyboarding is hard. Really, really, REALLY hard. Twenty-Five years ago I went in for a job interview at Klasky Csupo for a character design gig and met with Mitch Watson - a producer for their new show, “The Wild Thornberrys”. cont.
Mitch and I had become acquainted earlier at an animation convention where he reviewed my work and was (to my shock) impressed with my portfolio. cont.
I had moved to Los Angeles only a couple of months prior to this, and was working as a ‘general artist’ at a small CD-Rom production company, but I was eager to break into “real cartoons” - consequently, this interview was extremely important to me. cont.
After an almost surrealistically upbeat interview, Mitch hit me with the bad news: They didn’t need any character designers. They needed storyboard artists. “Can you do storyboards?” he asked. cont.
This was one of those “crossroads” moments where I considered just owning up to the truth and saying, “Not really” - which would have meant returning to CD-Roms (an industry that was already on borrowed time)... cont.
...and staying in my very safe, slow, comfortable lane of seeking jobs that were completely unchallenging and unrewarding. But, for whatever reason - in that moment - I decided to swerve abruptly into the fast lane. cont.
“Absolutely,” I said, lying through my teeth. If someone had told me that this lie would lead to a life of almost unbroken marathon storyboarding, I might have just walked away.. cont.
But then I’d never have known how gratifying it can be to hold a story in the palm of my hand and bend it to my selfish will. So… why did I stick with it? What IS “storyboarding”? cont.
It would almost be easier for me to write an introduction explaining what storyboarding ISN’T than to try summing up what storyboarding IS. But what it “is” is HARD. Really, really, REALLY HARD! cont.
The closest possible comparison I can make is to that of an architect. Storyboard artists are to animation what architects are to skyscrapers. cont.
A designer may very well say “I’ve designed a building that looks like a giant cowboy boot!” and, subsequently, a financier may well say “I wish to fund the construction of this building shaped like a cowboy boot!”… cont.
...an architect is then tasked with figuring out how to make a building look like a cowboy boot. Sounds simple - right? Wrong. What about plumbing? Electricity? Materials? Where will this building be erected? What are the weather conditions like in that area? cont.
And that’s just scratching the surface. But you get the idea. Storyboards began as a way of simply blocking out staging - back when productions were handled entirely “in-house” and everyone worked with everyone on making “the cartoon.” Things have changed dramatically. cont.
Ideally, a qualified storyboard artist should be proficient in virtually ALL of the disciplines that go into creating an animated film. You’re often expected to work without reference material or even designs. Oftentimes, you are expected to “punch up” the humor or drama. cont.
So, as a storyboard artist in today’s world, you’re expected to be a writer, director, character designer, background designer, timing director, choreographer and actor (as you are responsible for every part of a character’s acting except the voice). cont.
You are generally expected to work at breakneck speeds under oppressively unrealistic deadlines. Whether you are storyboarding an episode, a sequence, or an entire film, you ARE the “thing” you create. You LIVE in it. cont.
Every line, every pose, every camera tilt, every detail is a sheer act of will on your part. It’s draining. So why do it? Why subject yourself to this kind of torture? cont.
I can only speak for myself… but when I saw my first episode of “The Wild Thornberrys” in its animated form and I witnessed the symphony of motion and action I had composed, it was utterly intoxicating and highly addictive. cont.
I was no longer satisfied to simply draw a character and hand it off. I NEEDED to manipulate characters and make them perform for me - echoing tiny fragments of my own deepest personality traits and observations on life. That’s why I stuck with it. cont.
If you are interested in storyboarding as a career, I hope you have a similar mindset - because you won’t always enjoy the project you’re storyboarding for. Many times you’ll hate it. And oftentimes you won’t get paid a fraction of what you should. cont.
In my experience, you NEED to love it. You need to NEED that storyboard as a vessel of your own artistic expression - regardless of what the project calls for. cont.
There is a little bit of “me” in every storyboard I’ve ever done… and I’ve done a LOT of storyboards. So - out there in the world - my “voice” can be “heard” in a thousand different cartoons… you may not notice it, but it’s there. cont.
And I find that immensely satisfying. So… to summarize: Storyboarding CAN be immensely satisfying. But it’s really, really, REALLY hard. Zig-a-Zig-AH, Party People! TOMORROW: 'The Preface' (insert groans of disappointment)
P.S. If you're asking yourself, "Who's this guy think he is?" you can check out my IMDB page... it's mostly accurate although I truly don't recall ever working on SpongeBob in any capacity or I'd never shut up about it. https://t.co/6aAvSN3asD
#animation #film #storyboard #directing #cartoon #cartoons #CartoonArt #storytelling #tutorial STORYBOARDING 101 with John "F" Fountain PREFACE or "It's not you - it's ME!" Don’t ya hate it when something has both an Introduction AND a Preface? Well, TOO BAD! cont.
First... This tutorial is being sponsored by MY PRECIOUS TIME. I want to keep creating free stuff, so I'm not using paywalls, but if you'd like to support me - LIKE, SHARE, SPREAD THE WORD & SUBSCRIBE TO MY YOUTUBE CHANNEL! https://t.co/oSTPhAPamH
It must be noted right here and now that all of the instruction, advice and opinion that emerges from this tutorial are ENTIRELY based on MY experience and observation. Those are my ONLY sources. cont.
To be sure, I will reference other materials, but I could have just as easily titled this tutorial, “How to storyboard the John Fountain way!” But who the hell is ‘John Fountain’ and why would I put his name in the title? cont.
My point is, if you read something you disagree with, I would encourage you to first imagine that every single sentence of this tutorial begins with “It has been MY experience…” That is to say... cont.
