Merry Christmax folks!

Am so looking forward to the Christmax hols! Hope everyone will have a grand time celebrating.

Cheers folks!

Saladin Launch at the ATF last week in Singapore

THE Malaysian/MDEC booth with all participating studios involved.

Anisa greeting the crowd.
On board.
Me at the Taiwan exhibitors booth.

Andrew & Goh having a blast.

Dual-screen provided for curious viewers to check out clips of the series.
The Al-Jazeera Children's Channel area next to Saladin.
Kamal flanked by the boys from Young Jump studio.
A familiar scene. Eugene from Shock3D is forever busy working at his projects even during conventions.
Steve checking out scenes from the eps.
The official Saladin launch later that evening at Suntec Singapore Convention Center.
Hasnul and Mike chillin'.
Kamal handing out these goodie bags to all guests at the launch.
Fooling around at the Saladin display.
Mike having fun simulating Mustafa's character.

Debut Screening of Secret of Kells tomorrow at Kre8tif!!!

Here's whats been happening so far during the Kre8tif event!
John Stevenson from Dreamworks enlightening the audience on the production process of Kung Fu Panda with some rare clips and images.






With the Secret of Kells trailer playing outside the foyer for curious onlookers lounging on the soft bean chairs provided.
The crowd dispersing for a coffee and networking break.


The foyer with exhibition booths prepared for studios to display and recruit.

Sadly,I didn't sit in for the Rhythm & Hues Workshop on The Golden Compass earlier as I was frantically dashing to deliver the Secret of Kells film in time for the event.

This was not announced in the program earlier as I was anxious and fear 'what if' it did not arrive on time for the event. But now that it has finally touched down in KL, I can safely declare that its going to be one spectacular premier and can hardly wait to see it! Hope everyone attending will enjoy the film. Cheers to Tomm Moore and the staff that have worked hard in assisting us to get the film here on time!

Cheers folks!

Dante's Inferno

Another clip was introduced to me 2 nights ago by Min who did contribute to some of the animation scenes. He's really hankering for some comments in his blog about it,folks, so it you'd be so kind...do drop by and give him your 2 cents worth.
http://www.parkmin.pe.kr/

Cheers!

From Darkness

I remember well watching this years ago. One of my alltime favorite shorts of all time. Unbelievably executed by the very own team thats giving us Secret of Kells this year....Cartoon Saloon.
Enjoy folks!

Claude & Chunkie Dutch debut in P@per

This really made my day. My Holland based contact from P@per just sent me an updated pdf of their upcoming mag edition this end of the month. I'm so proud I could burst!!! And its surreal to see the dialogue translated into Dutch as well. Thank you so much,Wallie!!!

New Kre8tif Conference happening in KL Dec 09

Heyas Everyone,

If you aren't aware yet, there will be a creative conference happening here in KL during the first week of December relating to digital media,animation,videogames and perhaps,even comics. So if you're interested, here are the details below :-

Date : 7th -9th December 2009
Venue : The Royal Chulan KL
a) Keynote addresses by Thought-Leaders & Industry Experts.
b) Networking Sessions
c) Business & Technical Tracks
d) Recruitment Drive for Graduating Students
e) Company Portfolio Showcases & Exhibitions
f) Screening of Professional Works
g) MSC Malaysia Creative Industry Awards Night

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Among the guest speakers/talents making their way to the event are :-
1) Alexander L. Fernandez - Streamline Studios’ Chief Executive Officer and is one of the founding members of the company. Serving as the company’s first sales director, Alexander transferred his knowledge of the IT industry to the gaming industry and watched his ideas flourish into a creative environment that employs over fifty people. His role quickly evolved into transforming Streamline Studios into one of the world’s foremost leading co-production and production management studios for interactive entertainment. Alexander has been a key component in Streamline’s success and has several franchises and titles under his belt, including Gears of War, Saints Row, Ghost Recon 2, and James Bond 007: Nightfire. He has an unrivaled enthusiasm when it comes to knowledge sharing about the benefits of external content creation and developing original content.

2) Guillaume de Fondaumière - Co-CEO of Quantic Dream which produced FAHRENHEIT, which was one of 2005’s most critically acclaimed games on multiple platforms is now also the executive producer of HEAVY RAIN, an exclusive PLAYSTATION 3 title developed with Sony Computer Entertainment Worldwide Studios which aims at breaking new grounds in the fields of interactive narration and emotion in games.
Guillaume has been president of France’s video game trade body SNJV between 2005 and 2009, and has been recently appointed Chairman of the EGDF (European Games Developer Federation).
He was recently knighted in France’s National Order of Merit in recognition for his contribution to his country’s digital economy.

3)David Abramovitz - Veteran producer and writer of television and movies, including "21 Jump Street", "V", "Macgyver" "Cagney and Lacey" "Murder She Wrote". He was the creative force behind the Highlander TV series where he served as its Showrunner and is now consulting on the coming Highlander videogame and Summit Features remake of the original Highlander movie.
David's feature film "The No Game" will be in production in New York City and Jerusalem during the fall of 2009. He is the writer/producer of “War of the Worlds: Goliath”, and will continue to be a strategic partner for Tripod Entertainment.
David has previously lectured on the craft writing and storytelling for the screen at the Sorbonne in Paris and has decades of experience shaping IP and creating compelling characters and plots.
4) Anand Gurnani - Co Founder, CEO & Managing Editor, AnimationXpress.com
5) Antti Haikala - Co-Founder at Anima Vitae Studios (Helsinki)
6) John Stevenson - “Kung Fu Panda” Director
7) Eric Rollman - President of Marvel Animation
8) Fred Hasson - CEO Redbedlam Ltd & Chairman of the Online Games Special Interest Group, European Games Developer Federation
9) Henry LaBounta - Chief Visual Officer, EA Sports
10) Dream Tube Entertainment
11) Larry Bafia - VP, Faculty & Business Development,
Vancouver Institute of Media Art
12) Ramin Zahed - Editor-In-Chief,
Animation Magazine
13) Si-Bum Kim - Founder and CEO at Characterline Korea (Seoul)
14) Sue Erokan - Supervisor, Character Animation, Dreamworks (San Francisco)
15) Suresh Seetharaman - Founder and President, Virgin Comics and Virgin Animation (Bangalore, New York)
16) Tony Sealy - Managing Director,Intense Animation

Among many others.....

Site : www.mscmalaysia.my/kre8tif
Facebook : http://www.facebook.com/kre8tif
Twitter : twitter.com/i_am_kre8tif

Please do check out the link below for more details with regards to the event.
Media Coverage about the event : http://star-techcentral.com/tech/story.asp?file=/2009/11/2/technology/20091102101305&sec=technology
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
* For those who wish to attend the conference, please note that there will be an entrance fee of RM300 each or RM100 each for students.*
Note from the article :
"The conference organiser, the Multimedia Development Corporation (MDeC), hopes that by encouraging these acclaimed international experts to mingle with their local counterparts who have raw talent, the country’s digital content industry will go up a notch."

Cheers and have a great day,folks!

80s stuff

Me and Bob (writer) have been chatting about 80s cartoons, Rankin & Bass in particular...and we both agree that the best tv series that still holds grounds today is def hands down, Thundercats. They did a lot of fantastic design and animation for the project and many others back then, many of which has influenced me to draw where I am now.

We also agree (along with many other pals) that their opening sequence is the strongest by far throughout the 80s onslaught of tv cartoons. My twin mentioned something about looking forward to the Thundercats trailer,if the project ever comes through, which prompted me to surf up its progress. I then came upon the Thundercats Lair site for fan and this article....
http://www.thundercatslair.org/forums/showthread.php?p=24809#post24809
From what I can make out of it, Stephen Perry, a contributing writer for many of the Thundercats episodes is in dire need and is askig for help. The help appears genuine enough so if anyone would like to help or look into this further, do check out the article link there. A lot of artist do feel the brunt of the uncertainties these days takes us and many are rallying together to help many see through the lean times. Hope this works out too for Mr. Perry.

Also came across this unique and fun blog on He-Man. Didn't peruse it thoroughly but the chap seems to know his stuff plus its fun to read. http://bustatoons.blogspot.com/

Cheers to 80s cartoons!

Long Overdue

I promised this for a friend of mine a long,long time ago....in a galaxy far,far away. :(

Cheers,folks!

Animation teachers WANTED

Heyas all,

Have a friend looking to fill up 3 openings for animation teaching positions in Kota Kinabalu,Sabah for a 2 year tenure. Accommodations are provided so if you're interested,please call Jeffrey @ 012-3983691. Mmmm, you'll have to make the effort to call him with regards to the monthly payment fee. Though I know it, I won't say it here. But from what he has told me,it sounds very good indeed. So, think fast ppl! Cheers and have a great week!

Stop Mos

Thanks for the links,Ben!

The ever fabulous Herge!

Google's Concept

They got the right idea. That's how I'd like to run my Animation House if it ever comes to pass.

Gabriel's Oboe by Ennio Morricone

Something I like listening to whilst working or feel better when I'm down.

YAY! Another Simon Tofield clip! Thanks for the scoop,Brew!

29 today

...but I don't feel a year wiser. Wise-ass maybe...:P

Just got back from a lovely dinner with palsies and am gonna digest with some more inking jobs,maybe a game on the side with Snoopy on this time. Nostalgia time. Grew up with the brilliant works of Bill Melendez and Lee Mendelson who did such a good job translating Charles Schultz's works into animation paired beautifully with the music by the Sherman Bros.
Among the many I grew up with...
1) Snoopy Come Home

2) Race for Your Life Charlie Brown

3) Bon Voyage Charlie Brown


Cheers,folks!

Quick girl sketch

All of these clips are food for my study refs. Thank God for Youtube as there are literally tons of such references available there. All very beautiful,articulate, demands attention to detail and keen observation.
Cheers folks!

Old Sketches

Slowly killing myself

Hi Everyone,

I'm typing this on auto-pilot right now. I'm not dead yet but I am slowly working my way to it at the rate I've been going this year. My lack of updates both here and in my other sites and blog attests to the very tight schedules I've been keeping lately.
Have been taking on more additional side jobs than I anticipated (several animation and comic projs) along with my new commitment to the new Animation Society here in Malaysia and between keeping in touch with my ex-students,continuing to help nurture their future into the industry and between screenings and sporadic lecture series...I've been putting my health on the line.
But thankfully I am enjoying the ride as I go along and taking things as they come and it also helps that it keeps me focus and acts as a platform for me to better myself as an artist and try to work at it as professionally as I can. Even though many a times it is taxing on me both mentally and physically, and definitely on an emotional level at some point. But I am learning and it's all good.
And also am very very thankful all of my clients have been a brick and more than understanding and supportive to me and my work. They've been very very patient and generous with me even though majority of the time my submissions fall short of the deadline requirements and I owe them a ton for not yelling and threatening me as I'd expected under any other circumstance as you'd expected bosses to react. Some even taking the initiative to wait or adjusting their schedules to work around mine. How many times can you say that about any client? For that I owe them. It's been remarkable and short of miraculous that none of them have plugged me yet.
My only regret is am not giving enough time and 200% of myself as I'd like to in fine tuning all of the works to the level as I'd like for it to be. And due to this, I suspect and know that perhaps I've let some of my clients down who did expect much more from me and my deliveries. My personal studies have been lax but the extra allowances did help to pay for new softwares and equipment in upgrading me home studio so am happy about that.Hope to be able to start on my own personal animation soon if and when I have completed my freelance projects. Zeke,if you're reading this, I haven't forgotten about our game colab. You too,Ian. Grant,I have the sketch I owe you ready. Just need one free day to clean up and color it.


Shoot! A bit of typing and it's morning already and almost time to get ready for work. I've a ton of material to update still.
Thanks for all the wonderful comments and support,folks.Think best bet is to check up on my status updates in Facebook as it's quicker for me to just add in a very quick status update rather than a droning journal entry anywhere else in my sites.
(FYI : this is a cut out entry from my DA journal. Sad pup indeed).

Cheers and hope everyone's been doing good and take cares,folks!
Thanks for dropping by and checking in on me from time to time. Appreciate all of your time and energy in even dropping me a line along the way.

Luv yas!

FIN!

YAY! Babies are on the plane and they're on their way!!! I am so excited!

Final Drive

I've quite forgotten about this project I've worked on due to the fact that it was only a very brief stint requiring me to brush up on each of the main characters already pre-design by its creator, Hamadi Hamdan,who approached my twin to help to get me on board this project. I remember it being called Sarjan Hassan (Was it?) during its earlier satges of production. Well, do check out Hamadi's site here for the scoop on this project....http://blog.max-ady.com/detail/6-month-in-the-making.htm

Cheers,folks!

Awesome Belgium & Japanese animation clips.

Hands down,the most favorite animation clip I've seen thus far this year. Every time I watch it, it brings a big smile to my face. And among the few that actually got me giggling with laughter which is kinda a rarity for me. Hope you folks like it.
And I just can't stop saying it in my head..."Cowboy...Indian....". Lovable characters with lovable voice overs fantastically melded together to make the entire show work! in spite of the fact that they're just toy miniatures with limited animation treatment. I don't care the limitations. Awesome story with awesome plots & characters & voice cast. You're in for a treat!
Le Grand Sommeil

Dir. Pic Pic André / Belgium / 2003
Curious events befall Cowboy, Indian, and Horse as they repeatedly fall into deep sleep.
http://www.paniqueauvillage...
http://www.atowncalledpanic.tv

Cat Shit One Movie Trailer - The Animated Series
And something insanely good introduced by my scriptwriter friend,Chi Ren. The Japs have taken furry kawaii violence to a whole new different level altogether. WOW! I've a feeling we'll be seeing more innovative maneuvers coming from the far east in the near future. Gambatte!



Production: Studio Anima

Director: Kazuya Sasahara
Original Manga (released in the USA as Apocalypse Meow): Motofumi Kobayashi
Format: 23 min. 12 episodes
Target Viewers: Survival game fans and military fans

Anticipated Customers: Clients who are looking to invest in imaging contents that are on a par with those by PIXAR

Chummy & Champ Project

It's finally becoming a reality.





Something I've been working on last year. WIP images of a Kid's tv series aimed at nurturing kids and adults alike towards environmental awareness and to do their bit for nature utilizing local wildlife in Malaysia as character hosts for the program.






















Right now, voice auditions are under way. Anyone interested in participating and submitting their voice for any of these babies?

Note from our director/producer Azlan Pa'Wan :
Voice Casting:
Start 17th Mar till 6th April.
"Submit MP3 or WAV to chummyandchamp@gmail.com. Deadline 6 April. So, what are you waiting folks, bring out the kid in you and start practising! :D"
Folks, we have a script that can guide you. If you are interested, please send your details to chummyandchamp@gmail.com. You can send your own voice sample or opt for the script to read.
Have fun playing with the recorder! And don't forget to spread this message around. The more the merrier eh!
Till then, hug a tree and reduce carbon emission.
Everyday is Earth Day. Do Your Bit for Our Future Generations."
warmest regards
azlan

-Shortlisted candidates will be called for physical voice audition at a place to be determined later.
Chummy & Champ is the first truppet (true puppet) aimed at propagating awareness on the environment and instill love and care for the floras and faunas. It combines elements of CGI and interactivity to provide maximum learning and edutainment experience. Please send your voice sample to chummyandchamp@gmail.com.