Tag Archives: Glen Keane

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Trevor Wall

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What is your name and your current occupation?
My name is Trevor Wall and currently I am the Director of “Sabrina- Secrects of a Teenage Witch” A CGI series Which will air on The Hub and Disney International in the fall.

What are some of the crazier jobs you had before getting into animation?
Unfortunately my jobs previous to animation were pretty tame compared to working in the industry. I worked as a dishwasher and waiter when I was a teenager and I was driving a forklift and delivering warehouse supplies right before I started in the animation business. Pretty boring stuff compared to the insane, wacky world of cartoons.

What are some of your favorite projects you’re proud to have been a part of?
It’s usually the one I’m working on at the time, but from the past I’d have to say “Jakers! The Adventures of Piggley Winks”.  I worked on the last season of the series as a Storyboard Director. I loved this project so much because I had Continue reading

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Hector Lopez

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What is your name and your current occupation?
My name is Hector Lopez and I’m a character animator/game developer.

What are some of the crazier jobs you had before getting into animation?
I did quite a few jobs in my days before getting into animation. The craziest I would have to say when I worked for a food dristribution company. My job was a material handler working inside a freezer stacking pallets with frozen meats. We walked in there looking like eskimos since the temperature inside was 0 degress. I worked there for several months while I was in school. After a couple months I got used to it. Being inside a room at 0 degress doesn’t bother me anymore. Unfortunately, since I was in school full time I could not keep up working there since it was a graveyard shift. School came first.

What are some of your favorite projects you’re proud to have been a part of?
I’ve worked with several animation studios on loads of projects. The projects I had most fun on was doing facial animation for “Red Dead Redemption” and “GTA IV Ballad of Gay Tony” for xbox 360 and PS3. I always enjoyed playing games like Grand Theft Auto and all Rockstar games for that matter.

How did you become interested in animation?
My interest in animation came at the age of 17 when I was still in high school. I was always drawing and I remember Continue reading

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Aliki Theofilopoulos Grafft

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What is your name and current occupation?
Aliki Theofilopoulos Grafft

What are some of your favorite projects you’re proud to have been a part of?
Well I suppose I will go in order and explain why…The first would be my first job in animation…the movie “Hercules” at Walt Disney Feature Animation. I had completed a 3 month training internship, and was hired on to this film to work with Supervising Animator, Brian Ferguson, on the character “Panic”. He was the one who gave me my break, and taught me so much. His love for animation was infectious and I felt so lucky to be mentored by someone with such talent.  Next would be the movie “Tarzan” also at Disney. On this film I mentored with Supervising Animator John Ripa on the character “Young Tarzan”. I had seen an animation test John had done and just knew I had to work with him. I went to his office and asked if I could assist him, and he told me yes, but under one condition… when a student of animation, or anyone seeing knowledge asked for help, that I would pass on what he had taught me. He said James Baxter had made him give that same promise and he had tried to keep it. I learned so much from John and will be forever grateful for the teaching, the time and the kindness he gave me. He was completely generous with his knowledge, and never let an opportunity for teaching pass by. This made working on the film so exhilarating for me. I will never forget it. And yes, I have tried to keep my promise.  Later I would move into television and was honored to be a part of Fred Seibert’s shorts program at Nickelodeon, “Random Cartoons”. I created two shorts..the first was “Yaki and Yumi” and the second was “Girls on the GO!”. It was an incredible experience making my own films. This is where I believe I went from being a draughtsman to a filmmaker. I completely fell in love with telling stories and the whole process of making a film. I also discovered a love for television type storytelling, and cartooning rather than animating.  And of course the show I am currently on, Phineas and Ferb. I am writing and storyboarding on the show and am also an Emmy nominated song writer too(still shocked about that)! I am really proud of the work that we are all doing on the show. I have really grown as a storyteller from watching my peers and working with some insanely talented people. I laugh every day at my job! I am surrounded by some of the funniest people I have ever met and I love the challenge of keeping up! It’s never a dull moment, and I think the fun we have with each other has a big impact on the way the show is turning out. It is fun to be on a show that is loved by so many people and I am honored to be a part of it.

How did you become interested in animation?  
My grandfather loved cartoons and drawing. He would sit down with me and draw. He always encouraged me and would patiently sit by my side and teach me little things he knew. But I feel like I was Continue reading

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Matt Novak

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What is your name and your current occupation?
Matt Novak. Children’s Book Author and Illustrator. (Occasional animator)

What are some of the crazier jobs you had before getting into animation?
Can’t really say I’ve had any “crazy” jobs. In high school and college I was a puppeteer and an actor. Our puppet troupe was called “Pegasus Players” and we performed at amusement parks, birthday parties, flea markets, farmers markets and anywhere else that would pay us a few bucks to make kids laugh. Also, acted on stage and in a nationally syndicated radio show called “Willow Crossing.” I played the part of a freckle faced kid named Billy, which was very convenient since I was a freckle faced kid at the time.

What are some of your favorite projects you’re proud to have been a part of?
I think my favorite animation project to have been a part of would hands down have to be “Beauty and the Beast.” To be part of the team that created the first animated film to ever be nominated for “Best Picture” That’s pretty cool. Of course, I’m proud of ALL the books I’ve created as well.

Where are you from and how did you get into the animation business?
I grew up in the small coal mining town of Sheppton, Pennsylvania. (Population at the time, about 700) I was always interested in animation. Even before kindergarten. It was the closest thing to magic that existed in my world. As I grew up I watched a lot of cartoons and devoured any books about Walt Disney and the animation process. Tried making some Continue reading

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Pablo Leon

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What is your name and your current occupation?
Pablo Leon; I am a freelance illustrator, visual development artist and I also do motion graphics animation for educational digital media.

 

What are some of the crazier jobs you had before getting into animation? 
I have had a few. Stock supervisor for Levi’s, Sign Artist for Trader Joe’s, but one that stands out the most was the early morning shift I had as a loader for UPS. Almost everyone in my vicinity was rude, cranky, and sleep-deprived. Loading a truck for a very racist driver wasn’t my cup of tea either, so it didn’t last very long.

What are some of your favorite projects you’re proud to have been a part of? 
I worked on an animated info-graphic for the “Story of M-Pesa”. M-Pesa is kind of like the Western Union of Africa, but their business was conducted through the use of cell phones. It made it’s way through the World Bank, who liked it a lot, and that project has gotten me a lot more work as a result.
Where are you from and how did you get into the animation business?
I am originally from Guatemala and currently live in Washington DC. My last year of college I was hired by a start-up company to be a graphic designer (I had no real GD knowledge). However, Continue reading

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Patrick Stannard

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What is your name and your current occupation?
My name is Patrick Stannard, though most people refer to me as “the Kilted Animator” or “that guy in the Kilt”. I currently work at Powerhouse Animation as an Animator.

 

What are some of the crazier jobs you had before getting into animation?
Ho boy, I’ve worked some pretty nasty jobs before getting into my art career. My favorite one to tell people about is when I worked as a raisin dumper. To your quirked eyebrow and inquisitive expression I say, a raisin dumper is exactly that, someone who dumps raisins, frozen blocks of raisins, eight hours a day. I performed this simple task at a grain factory in Michigan that supplied grain and fruits for cereal companies to box and ship. Extra Extra Raisin Bran was the worst, the conveyor belt never stopped moving, and you’d come home smelling like boxes, and boxes, of raisins. The smell never really washes out.

 

What are some of your favorite projects you’re proud to have been a part of?
There’s so many. I’ve been lucky enough to have a career of varied experiences. Epic Mickey 2 and Stoic Studios: The Banner Saga are my two biggest go to projects currently. Both have taught me a lot about how to animate well and efficiently, as well as allowed me to really explore and have fun. There is of course my internship at Disney when I was a Junior in college, I can say that I learned more in that year than I have any other in my life, and I’ll always cherish that summer as one of my best. The job I’ve been proudest to work on however has got to be a little video game project titled, Downfall Aftermath.  If you’ll permit me to reminisce, Downfall Aftermath was a glorious experiment. At a community college in Kalamazoo, we put together a 6 man team to pitch an idea for a new video game production class. To prove it’s worth we were tasked with producing a working video game in 13 weeks, from scratch. The final product wasn’t what you would call a AAA title, nor even a B or C game, but it had functioning levels, a multiplayer server, working character models, animations, items, and above all we finished it on time. It made the local papers and was played at the school for a couple years beyond that. It helped spur the animation and game courses in my home town. It was a risk when I hopped onto the project, and it required more sleepless nights than I prefer to remember, but it was a rewarding adventure and opportunity to explore my passion.

 

Where are you from and how did you get into the animation business?
I’m from Kalamazoo Michigan, and ever since I was reprimanded at a parent teacher conference for drawing on my homework, I’ve known that art was the career for me. Animation specifically Continue reading