Category Archives: Artists Interviews

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Eddy Houchins

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What is your name?
Eddy Houchins

What are some of your favorite projects you’re proud to have been a part of?
My favorite project of all was the 2nd season CBS “Timon and Pumbaa” series that I directed for Disney Television Animation back in the mid-90’s.  At that time Judy Price still helmed CBS’s children’s programming division, and she called me in at the start of the season to “meet the new director.”
I got the word straight from her mouth tho take that show to the absolute limit, to the line of cartoon violence, innuendo, bad taste, potty humor, and sarcasm.
She said if I stepped over that line, however, she’d come down on me like a ton of bricks, but I’d better lean as far as I could over it because she was competing with a lot of
pretty “out there” stuff in those days from the competition.  Well, I knew what she wanted, I knew what Disney would accept, and I set about making those cartoons with an
energy and relish I had never felt before.  I remember calling a meeting of the entire crew after that meeting and telling them what she had ordered.  As far as we were concerned,
we now had carte-blanche from our client to make the absolute funniest, whacked-out cartoons we  could make.  I remember telling everyone, “Enjoy this, we will most likely never pass this way again.”  Prophetic words, because never again did I have the control or “hands-off” attitude from the Disney (or any other) execs and the network when creating or working on a show.
The closest thing was at Continue reading

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Scott Heming

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What is your name?
Scott Heming

What would you say has been your primary job in animation?
For most of my Computer Graphics career (Since the early 90’s) I have been a 3D artist. I have done my share of animation, video, short corporate films,  and web media. The smaller the company I work for, the more animation I seem to do.  I often have to wear an Animators hat when its called for. So, I would say I primarily do 3D Pre-Visaliaztion Animated films, well at lest I did for many years before I started working in the game industry.
What are some of your favorite projects you’re proud to have been a part of?
Sherlock Holmes in the 22nd Century (DIC-1999?) – mostly because it was early 2D/3D mixing on a project that was supposed to be another cheap DIC p.o.s. The show was typically short handed but everyone involved really got into it and I think it shows. It was Emmy nominated and still gets airplay 10 years later.

Curious George (TV series Universal 2006-2010) Kids and adults like it despite PBS’s educational mandate. Fun crew to work with. It’s a character I remember fondly from my childhood, so it’s been a privilege to ‘play’ in the world.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (Fred Wolf Films – early 90’s) It was my second job in animation. A real trial by fire because of the insane schedule that first year. I had to learn a lot fast to survive, so I guess the pride comes from that…survival. We did something like 95 1/2 hours of animation in one year – Turtles, James Bond Jr., Toxic Crusaders… it wasn’t all pretty – but it got done.
How did you become interested in animation?
I was assisting doing comic books – which meant spotting blacks, doing backgrounds…doing grunt work. It didn’t pay shit but it got me out of the vacuum I’d been drawing in. One of the guys at the little studio we worked at was doing freelance props for DIC. I asked him how well it paid. He drew a quick ellipse  inside of an ellipse and said, ʺ See that? That’s a plate. That’s $35.ʺ Continue reading

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Roger Eschbacher

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 What is your name?
Roger Eschbacher
What would you say has been your primary job in animation?
I’ve primarily worked as a writer.
An outrageously fun side job I had was doing a voice on a cartoon (“Detention”). Unfortunately, with so many incredibly skilled voice actors and celebrities in the mix, that work is wicked difficult for an average Joe comedic actor (like me) to get.
What are some of the crazier jobs you had before getting into animation?
Before coming out to Hollywood, I worked in the paint shop at a company that made those open refrigeration units you see at supermarkets. My job was to rub down sheet metal with solvent, hang it on racks, then wheel the racks into walk in ovens (which were always running) after the metal had been were painted. To say that job was a motivating factor in my move would be an understatement.
Since moving to Hollywood, most of my crazier jobs have been as an actor.

What are some of your favorite projects you’re proud to have been a part of?
I presume you mean animation projects. Let’s see…Currently, I’m very much enjoying writing for “Scooby Doo, Mystery Incorporated”. The people there are great and they’re really putting a lot of thought into the series-wide arc and the whole re-invention of a classic series. Come on, it’s Scooby! What’s not to like?! In the past, I’ve enjoyed writing for “Histeria!” and Continue reading

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Colter Avara

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What is your name and your current occupation?
My name is Colter Avara. I am currently a freelance illustrator, animator and designer. Most of my clients are mobile game and app developers!

 

What are some of the crazier jobs you had before getting into animation?
Oh man, I think I am pretty fortunate on that front. I spent several years working various IT jobs, unfortunately that isn’t crazy. Just boring. The craziest job I ever had was given to me by my dad. When I was a kid, I really wanted a video game. I think it was Sonic The Hedgehog 2 but I’m not 100% sure, I wanted pretty much every game.  In an attempt to teach me about working for things in life, he told me that he would buy the game for me if I plucked every clover flower in our yard. Our yard was over an acre and full of mostly clover, just to give you an idea of what I was dealing with. It was crazy! I spent almost an entire week filling up drywall buckets with flowers. I don’t think either of my parents predicted that I would be so diligent, but the buckets of clover flowers and the swarm of pissed off honey bees told them otherwise. They had me stop at around 4-5 buckets.  I earned the video game and possibly destroyed an ecosystem in the process. Sorry, to any honey bees out there. I’m probably going to get trolled by honey bees now.

 

What are some of your favorite projects you’re proud to have been a part of?
I enjoyed working on all of my projects, but I had the most fun on the projects where I had a little more creative freedom, particularly on a social game that I worked on called, Rock Riot. It was a guitar hero style facebook game. The team really let me take the reigns creatively and the player community was really into it! That was the best part, seeing the players enjoy the items I had created. I’ll never forget the first time I saw players using the turkey guitar I made for Thanksgiving. That was hilarious.

 

Where are you from and how did you get into the animation business?
I am originally from Maryland and I am now living in Pennsylvania. My professional career started in 2008 when I worked with John Kricfalusi on The George Liquor Program. After that, Continue reading

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Frank Detrano

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What is your name and occupation?
Frank Detrano. Storyboard Artist & Character Designer for Finetoon Animation

What have been some of the crazier jobs you’ve had before getting into animation?
I think I’ve had a more interesting and varied past than most artists in the field, having been a professional opera singer, a teacher of ancient history and a personal trainer.

What are some of your favorite projects you’re proud to have been a part of?
Mostly all of the shows have found a personal niche in me. However, if I had to choose one it would be Clifford Puppy Days. It was educational and entertaining at the same time. Plus I would draw dogs frolicking and playing all day and always came home in a great mood.

How did you become interested in animation?
I could always draw, even from an early age and did Continue reading

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Darren Kiner

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What is your name and your current occupation?
Darren Kiner – CGI Lighter / Compositor / Supervisor.

 

What are some of the crazier jobs you had before getting into animation?
Optical Effects for a surf film, before moving to LA. I also worked my way through college as a busboy. Sorry, not very crazy.

 

What are some of your favorite projects you’re proud to have been a part of?
Aladdin, Iron Giant, Fantasia 2000, Thirteen Days, Charlie Wilson’s War (the last two being somewhat historically relevant).

 

Where are you from and how did you get into the animation business?
Escondido, CA – UCSD Film School – Lucky to Continue reading