Website Announcement: On Temporary Hiatus...

Things have been quiet lately and there's a really good reason for it.

I pitched a J-Term class to a University down in Indiana where a friend of mine teaches and it was accepted!

Next January, I'll be teaching a nine day, three-credit hour class on the History of Women Animators.

So, the reason why it's been quiet, and why it'll be quiet for a short while longer is that I'm writing the course material and tracking down films to show the class.

Thank you for your patience during this time. I'll be back later on in the year for the Fall Animation Festival Season.

See you all then. :)

Women in Animation: Samantha Inoue-Harte, Part 2

Cat Shit One 1

CW: After a successful short film, 'Cat Shit One' didn't make it into full series production. How do you deal with the disappointment of putting that much energy into a project and not seeing it come to fruition?

SIH: I was brought in on 'Cat Shit One' after the first episode was finished.  I was given DVDs and action figures for the main characters.  Our studio then developed a presentation deck that could then be presented to American distribution companies to pitch as an animated series.  We partnered with a talented live-action actor for voice work and we spoke with several networks and outlets but unfortunately, though many 3D animated series at the time had budgets of over $1 million per episode with very geometric or Lego looking characters.  We were asked to keep our high quality/furry animation the same as the short but asked to meet budgets far lower than many less complicated 3D animated series on television. We were also asked to change the story from a serious action packed series to a comedy.  In the end, we could not make the numbers work enough to make American audiences interested in buying the show.

And when that happens, you just keep moving forward.  You NEVER put all of your eggs in a single basket.  Many of your projects fail, you just have to keep coming up with new projects until one sticks.

CW: When you produce animated films/series, do you focus on one or do you usually have a couple that you're working on at the same time?

SIH: I am always working on multiple projects at any given point in time.  If I kept all of my eggs in a single basket then I would not be as productive as I am.

Tailchaser's Song 2

CW: How did you get involved in producing Tailchaser's Song?

SIH: A sweet voice actress colleague of mine, Carrie Savage, introduced me to another voice actress/writer who had a project that was being developed into a feature.  I met with Bethany Rhoades for coffee as a favour to Carrie.  The meeting....was pretty painful.  Everything that you could do to mess up a pitch, she did.  But then, she pulled out some artwork that an artist had done for characters and settings of the project.  And I was sold.  I joked with her saying that she should have just started off the meeting by showing me the artwork.  It was like lightning struck.  I called my producing partner, Paul Alvarado-dykstra and convinced him to look at the artwork.  The artwork spoke to me.

CW: Tailchaser's Song was announced back in 2011, can you talk about how production is coming along?

SIH: Big things are happening. I would need to discuss with my team about what I can say at this point.  Things are happening. I'm really excited.  There's a name I want to drop. But I don't want to jinx things.  Can we come back and discuss things about Tailchaser at a later point?  :)

CW: In the context of your production work, how do you think that crowdfunding (Kickstarter, Indiegogo, Patreon, etc.) has changed the game of animation production (if at all)?

SIH: We have spoken at length about crowdfunding and have seen how popular it has been to help create some amazing work.  We have not moved towards doing any crowdfunding at this moment, but I do have to say that animation production, especially of shorts, have definitely benefited from the funding created by crowdfunding sites.

Fritti Tailchaser concept art by Matt Rhodes  2

CW: How have opportunities changed for women pursuing a career in animation today as opposed to when you started your career?

SIH: When I first began work as an animator, there were less than five women.  Now, there are a few women in every animation studio that I have walked into.  It's definitely become more accepting.  I'm glad I never have to be the lone female in an animation studio anymore.  Things are definitely a lot better for women now in America.  Japan, has always had more women in the animation studios than in America. 

CW: What do you think is the biggest obstacle to women who want to pursue a career in animation?

SIH: I do believe that one of the biggest obstacles that women have to face in the animation industry is fairness in pay.  Though things have definitely gotten better for women since I first began, you still run into the random moments when you find out that a woman is being paid less for doing the same, if not more, work than a male animator counterpart. 

Pouncequick & Rikchikchik concept art by Matt Rhodes  2

CW: If you had a daughter said that she wanted to work in animation, what advice would you give her?

SIH: I would make her take business classes.  Teach her how to read and negotiate contracts and teach her how to take care of her money.  Most problems I see in studios in the US is many animators/artists are not well versed in basic Business skills so I have seen many people run into problems with money and with taxes.  My daughter will definitely need to focus on Business classes before I EVER let her get into any animation work.

CW: What is the most important thing that authority figures (parents/teachers/professors) can do to encourage girls who are considering a career in animation?

SIH: My parents desperately wanted me to work in Math or Science.  I was terrible at both subjects.  I was pressed to go into fields that I had little to no interest.  I was an artist from the get go and unfortunately, it wasn't until halfway through high school when my parents conceded that I would just never be good at science or math.  I had tutors, I had study guides, I took extra courses in science and math just so I could get better.  I just could not wrap my brain around any of it.  I was frustrated. My parents were frustrated.  It took YEARS for my parents to come to terms that I needed to study something else.  But before that ever happened, it was like my parents were in denial.  They pushed and pushed.  It wasn't for lack of me studying.  I had a periodic table poster plastered on my ceiling for years as well as math time tables on my bedroom door for years.  I have to say that to authority figures, encourage all kids to do what they enjoy.  Listen to your kids. And if they want to consider a career in animation, then get them into life drawing classes as early on as possible.  Sign your kids up for after school art classes. Buy some art programs for their computers and buy a Wacom tablet.  If they want to consider animation, then the earlier you can expose them to it, the better.  But keep them focused on perspective drawing and life drawing. 

It's been a real pleasure being able to spend time with you.  If you have any further questions in the future, please do not hesitate to ask.

CW: Thank you very much for the interview. :)

Sami and I at AlmaCon 2016  3

*  *  *

Samantha’s larger body of work is listed on her IMDB page, where you can find her animation and anime projects as well as her voice acting and live action work. And keep an eye out for the upcoming Tailchaser’s Song, currently in development. Press releases for Tailchaser’s Song can be found at Animetropolis’ website and an archive of info can be found on their Facebook page.





1. “Cat Shit One” available on Blu-Ray at Amazon.com at the following link. Image used with permission.
2. Image copyright Animetropolis and used with permission.
3. Image copyright Charles Wilson.


Copyright 2016 Smudge Animation LLC, all rights reserved

Women in Animation: Samantha Inoue-Harte, Part 1

Samantha Inoue-Harte 1

There are a lot of smaller animation conventions and anime festivals around the country, one such being "Alma Con" up in Alma, Michigan. Smaller cons and fests can be places where you find those rare little gems that'll keep you coming back year after year. And every now and then, you'll hit the jackpot! In February 2015, the organizers of Alma Con released their finalized schedule shortly before the convention. When I saw a listing for a woman who would be running a couple panels on animation, my curiosity was piqued. Since Alma is less than an hour's drive from my home, I made the trek up North with a friend. That's where I had my first encounter with Samantha Inoue-Harte. Only once before in my travels have I encountered such an exciting bundle of positive energy in the animation community (that being Haitian-Canadian animator Martine Chartrand). In mere minutes, Sami had the entire crowd eating out of her hand as she told us stories of working on animation projects for Disney and several Japanese anime studios, acting in movies like Grindhouse and Idiocracy, and doing voice acting for anime shows like Trinity Blood, Dai-Guard, and Final Fantasy Unlimited (she's the "Chocobo"). After her hour presentation was over, the entire crowd followed her out into the hall where she continued to regale us with more stories of working on-site with Troublemaker Studios (Robert Rodriguez's studio) and trying to get networks like Adult Swim interested in the 3d animated adaptation of Motofumi Kobayashi's Cat Sh*t One. After the crowd thinned out somewhat, Sami readily agreed to being interviewed for my blog. Unfortunately life, as it often does, got in the way. But, we stayed in touch, talked back and forth a bit over the year, and met back up again at Alma Con 2016. This time, everything worked out and we were able to complete our interview just in time. Thank you again for the interview, Sami, it was well worth the wait.

* * *

SIH: Hello Charles! This is Samantha Inoue-harte but feel free to call me, Sami or Samu.  Most of my family is Japanese and due to the fact that the "th" sound really doesn't exist in Japanese I really don't get called "Samantha" a lot and will probably not respond to it...however, if you say, "Samansa" I will.  lol.

CW: What is your current job description?

SIH: My main job title is Animation producer and as for description....well, I develop animated content for transmedia platforms for Western and Eastern audiences.  By that, I mean that I come up with ideas for new anime or feature projects, pitch them, develop the ideas that interest my partners, navigate through multicultural business practices, create presentation decks, budgeting, story development, overviewing scripts, making sure script translations are done correctly, etc.....in other words, a lot.

Sami and grumpy cat 1

CW: You've worked in the animation industry for 19 years. What roles have you performed during your career in animation?

SIH: I was lucky enough to be the assistant to a fantastic animation director by the name of Sam Fleming when I was a freshman in college.  I was a receptionist, cleanup artist, colorist, inbetweener, animator, character designer, layout artist, background artist, scriptwriter, storyboard artist....and eventually I worked my way into various animation studios and by 2005 I started Saiko Studios where I finally became the animation director for Spike TV's Fresh Baked Videogames under Justin Roiland (Rick and Morty).  I rarely draw anything anymore, my role now is more of a story developer.

CW: What made you choose animation as a major course of study?

SIH: I graduated high school in Illinois and originally thought I would attend Northwestern or some other college in the Illinois area.  Had a full scholarship offer at the Rhode Island Institute of Art and looked at Sheridan.  But my mother had cancer so my family decided that the best thing for us was to move to Texas to be close to MD. Anderson in Houston so that she could get the best care possible.  I knew nothing about Texas and called A&M and the University of Texas at Austin to see if there was an animation program.  The advisor at UT@Austin informed me that their college had the state's leading Animation program and I immediately filled out an application.  Found out upon arrival to Texas that there was no animation program at the University of Texas and so I had to make changes to my plans.  I was LIVID.  I had already been accepted and my family had already spent a lot of money to move to the Austin area from Illinois.  I was stuck.  So I ended up choosing to pursue a double major for a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Studio art and a Bachelor of Arts in Art History focusing on the Italian renaissance.  I became an avid art historian.  But the lack of animation programming at the University of Texas at Austin in 1997 was the reason why I began pursuing a position at an animation studio.  I worked throughout my college career at an animation studio while doing my double degree at the University.  I still get a little angry sometimes, but at the same time, if I had not been mislead by the advisor, I would not have pursued my animation career so early in my life.

Sami teaching 'grumpy animator' what a "Glomp" is. 2

CW: You have worked for American studios and with Japanese studios, what are some of the differences, difficulties and challenges to working in a Japanese Animation studio vs. an American studio (or vice versa)?

SIH: Wow....hmmmm.... good question.  As for the differences between American and Japanese animation studios....the first thing that comes to mind is the studio space size.  Every American animation studio I have ever been in is larger compared to Japanese studios.  Ceilings are higher, hallways are wider, offices are bigger, there is more cartoony decorations, brighter colors on the walls, there is always some sort of videogame console somewhere in an American studio.  Japanese studios....are compact by comparison.  The environment at a Japanese animation studio is also a little more serious.  You don't see a lot of cartoony looking characters decorating the walls and I have never witnessed any animator in a Japanese animation studio playing videogames from their desks, there are no action figurines decorating artist's workspaces like they do in America either.

Now, my main challenge and difficulty that I have faced in American studios and Japanese studios?  Well, let me make one thing clear, I do not work in a Japanese animation studio, I have never been an animator in a Japanese animation studio.  I work WITH Japanese anime studios and partner WITH them to develop new animated content.  So I can never really say that I work IN a Japanese animation studio. 

Dai-Guard 3

But back to the question....the one challenge and difficulty that I have faced in both American and Japanese studios is the fact that I'm a woman.  I have, unfortunately, been paid less as a female artist at American studios when doing the same jobs as men.  I have been treated with less respect for being a woman and have been laughed at when I have previously tried pitching ideas.  There have been times when, as a woman, I have been excluded from Animation studio functions like lunches or getting company items.  For example, there was one studio where all the employees were given matching company jackets.  All the female employees were excluded from this perk.  When asked if the female staff could get a jacket, we were told that we could if we really wanted them but that we would have to pay $150 for a jacket.  Needless to say, I don't believe any of the female employees received one. It's the opposite in Japan.  I may be a woman, and though that has posed some unique situations in Japan, I am a producer, therefore I am presented with more respect and am treated like a guest whenever I go to Japan.  It is awkward in business meetings because as a woman, I would traditionally be the person responsible for pouring tea to the rest of the people in a meeting. But as a producer, I do not have to do that, so the lowest man on the totem pole has to do this.  No one is rude enough to mention anything about it, but it does cause some awkward moments.  I am a woman, but am treated as a man.  And I am fine with that.  :)

CW: What do think is the most important skill set animators should work on to prepare themselves for the industry?

SIH: I cannot stress enough....animators need to work on life drawing.  I get a lot of new aspiring animators who come to me with sketchbooks full of "Anime" styled artwork, but unfortunately, many aspiring artists are not able to draw the human figure realistically.  In order to create a new style or your own personal style of artwork, you have to be able to draw a human figure realistically.  Bones lay a particular way, muscles sit on bone, skin covers the muscles....and if you don't know how each layer works with each other or how they lay on each other when a human is posed in a dramatic pose, then how can you be expected to understand how to animate a character? 

CW: Throughout your career, you have done live action acting and voice acting. How does your live-action work influence your animation work?

SIH: My live-action work has actually helped me with my composition and staging in my animation work.  Using myself as a character in a film, I am able to see where the director sits, how the camera is angled, and I am then able to see the set from the director's perspective.  I have recreated camera shots that I acted in and transposed those shots into my storyboards to create more of a live-action feel in some of my projects.  Voice acting....it has helped me with my mouthflap animations.

CW: Now that you've made the shift to producing films, do you prefer animating or producing?

SIH: I do miss animation and may do it from time to time on some personal stuff, but producing has become my passion.  It's amazing to see a story get developed from inside of my head and then be transformed into something that everyone can see.  You are working closely with talented animators and creating characters from your mind. You layout whole worlds and create maps, create costumes, layout a whole plot, etc.  I feel I am able to create more as a producer than I ever could as an animator where my supervisor would hand me a stack of papers or computer files where I have to animate characters that I had nothing to do with the creation of.

* * *

Be sure to come back next week for part two of Sami's Interview where we continue discussing her shift from animator to producer, talk about her work on the animated feature adaptation of "Tailchaser's Song", and hear her advice for young ladies who want to work in the field of animation.






1. Image copyright Samantha Inoue-Harte and used with permission.
2. Image copyright Charles Wilson.
3. Image copyright ADVFilms.

Copyright 2016 Smudge Animation LLC, all rights reserved.



Women in Animation: Joan C. Gratz, Part 2

Puffer Girl  1

CW: Now with ‘Puffer Girl’ you recently got into digital tools like After Effects. Do you find that it enhances your claypainting style, or is it more of just trying to use the digital tools to find ways to save time?

JCG: ‘Puffer Girl’ took me several years as I was learning After Effects in the process. An early realization was that I needed a far more powerful computer. The content of Puffer Girl was based on what I wanted to learn and what the program was able to do. The actual claypainting was my traditional hand method, but the editing, Photoshop filters, masks, distortions, etc. were the result of After Effects.

CW: How did you get involved with Joanna Priestly's "CandyJam" project?

JCG: Joanna and I were at the first animation festival in Hiroshima in 1985. We were fascinated by many things including the beautiful and strange candies. Inspired by Marv Newland’s film ‘Anijam’, we decided to co-produce one with multiple directors from around the world. The only stipulation was that the pieces use candy and be one minute long.

Candyjam  1

CW: Were there any concerns about the legality of using other people's products?

JCG: Oh, it never even occurred to us. It wasn't a commercial project. I can't imagine that anyone would have any objections.

CW: You were nominated for an Oscar in 1980 and again in 1992 which you won for "Mona Lisa Descending a Staircase", how did winning the Oscar affect your career?

JCG: Creation was nominated for 1981, and Mona Lisa won for 1992. Both short films inspired advertising agencies to approach me about doing a commercial in a similar style and in the case of United Airlines, similar images. The commercial I did for Coke may have been the result of the Oscar win or increased visibility.

The Creation  1

I left Will Vinton Studios in 1987 to direct a commercial in Bristol. This commercial won a prize at Cannes. Since I had done a lot of work before receiving the Oscar, it is hard to know exactly what the effect of winning was. But it did mean that I could join the Academy, get all the free screeners, and vote.

CW: How did you get involved in working on Khalil Gibran's 'the Prophet'?

JCG: I was approached about five years ago by Ron Senkowski, one of the producers. My style has a certain ethereal quality which fit Gibran’s poetry. It went through a long period of development during which they approached many animators. I was never sure if the project would materialize and if I would be included.

CW: Did Salma Hayek Pinault give you artistic freedom to interpret Gibran's poetry as you saw fit, or did she come to you with an idea in mind?

Kahlil Gibran's The Prophet  2

JCG: Salma was a producer and Roger Allers was the director of the framing story and our contact person for the producers. The Chapter directors developed their own storyboards and animatics. Roger and the producers gave us feedback on the animatics. Since I work directly under the camera and the last image is covered by the following image, it is almost impossible to make any changes. Most other forms of animation can accommodate revisions.

Before we went to Cannes, I had a conversation with Salma about what to wear on the red carpet. She said “you will come dressed in your own talent." Over the course of premieres in Cannes, Toronto, Doha and Los Angeles, I learned how articulate Salma was and how dedicated she and Roger were to this film and to Gibran’s ‘The Prophet.’

CW: How have opportunities changed for women pursuing a career in animation today as opposed to when you started your career?

JCG: I don’t know because I have primarily been an independent. I think it depends on your level of talent, drive and luck.

Puffer Girl   1

CW: What do you think is the biggest obstacle to women who want to pursue a career in animation?

JCG: I also have no idea about that either. I don't know if you can really differentiate on the basis of gender. It is difficult for anyone who wants to be an independent animator. Often people with great student films are snapped up by ad agencies or do children’s television. They are successful in those genres but never make another personal film. For the truly independent animator with their own vision, gender doesn’t mater, it will be difficult.

CW: If your daughter said that she wanted to work in animation, what advice would you give her?

JCG: I don't have a daughter, so I guess I would just say to whomever, do whatever you want.

CW: What is the most important thing that authority figures (parents/teachers/professors) can do to encourage girls who are considering a career in animation?

JCG: If a person wants to do something, they do it. Why should you need to encourage them? Animation can be dull and slow, so unless you have a drive for it, there's no way that you could really encourage them.

Candyjam  1

CW: Tell us about your new book: “My Tesla - A love story of a mouse and her car.”

JCG: With the profit from ‘the Prophet’, I bought a Tesla. It is a picture book about a mouse and her electric car. It is for adults but in the guise of a children’s book.

CW: Did you do all the writing and the illustrations?

JCG: I did the writing and illustrations. It is truly an autobiography. My animation tends to be less personal and often abstract. This book is based on my impulse purchase of the Tesla and the succeeding pleasures, concerns and consequences of electric-car ownership. Last year I purchased the smarter Tesla which is capable of driving itself, parking, and coming when called. So far I haven’t let it do any of these things. My obsession with the car pales in comparison to my obsession with book sales on Amazon. No one on a plane or at an animation festival is immune from my advances. My Oscar is of less concern to me than my ratings on Amazon.

'My Tesla - A love story of a mouse and her car’ is available on Amazon.com.

My Tesla - A love story of a mouse and her car  1

Joan’s is currently sending her latest film ‘Night Weaver’ out to the film festivals. Look for it at an upcoming festival near you!

Night Weaver  1

* * *
For further viewing of Joan’s greater body of work, ‘the Joan Gratz Retrospective’ is available for digital download on iTunes as well as streaming on Amazon. The video includes the films Mona Lisa Descending the Staircase, Puffer Girl, Pro and Con, Lost and Found, Kubla Khan, Dowager’s Feast, and Dowager’s Idyll intercut with discussions of her work by Joan.

‘Mona Lisa Descending the Staircase’ is also available on DVD from Amazon.

Joan’s website is located at www.gratzfilm.com along with excerpts and images from both her independent and commercial work as well as links to her books and DVDs.

Distributed by GKIDS, 'Kahlil Gibran's The Prophet' is currently available for digital download and on DVD and Blu-Ray at Amazon.com.

A small selection of Van Aken clay at Hobby Lobby  3

Students interested in exploring Joan's claypainting style can find Van Aken clay at a Hobby Lobby near you as well as online at their website: www.vanaken.com/clay.htm or on Amazon.com.

Always be sure to observe proper safety procedures whenever preparing the clay and mineral oil.





1. Image copyright Joan C. Gratz and used with permission.
2. Image copyright GKIDS and used with permission.
3. Image copyright Charles Wilson.

Copyright 2016 Smudge Animation LLC, all rights reserved.

Women in Animation: Joan C. Gratz, Part 1

My Tesla - A love story of a mouse and her car  1

During the 2014 Ottawa International Animation Festival, I heard a rumor that Academy Award winning animator Joan C. Gratz was at the festival. As she was at the top of my list of women animators that I’ve wanted to meet for quite some time, I kept my ear to the ground in the hopes that I'd figure out where she would be. Well, during the Women in Animation mixer, I asked Gary Schwartz if Joan was there—thinking that if she'd be anywhere at the fest, it would be at the mixer (and if anyone would know if she was there, he would). Gary said that he thought she had been there but had left. Fair enough. So I went to the evening screening and sat down in the Bytowne theater with a friend from Grad School. Not five minutes later, a woman with the nametag "Joan C. Gratz" sat down in the seat in front of us. Serendipity at Ottawa strikes again! Having first seen Joan’s work back in 1988, this was an interview worth waiting for and it’s my pleasure to share it with you.

CW: Your website said that you started working with Will Vinton back in '77, was that your first entry into the animation industry?

JCG: Working with Will Vinton was my first job with regular hours and a small salary. I developed my animated paintings while in architecture school. My work in film predates my job at WVP by about 12 years.

Mona Lisa Descending a Staircase  1

CW: Did you show him examples of your clay-painting and he immediately saw a place where you could use that in his films?

JCG: No, two of my unemployed architecture classmates met Will Vinton at a party. They had no particular interest or experience with animation, but ended up working with Will for many years. They were finishing up on Rip Van Winkle and just needed someone for a couple months.

CW: What made you choose animation as a major course of study? You mentioned that you went to school for architecture.

Lost and Found  1

JCG: I do not have a background in animation. After I received a degree in art from UCLA and not wanting a job, I enrolled in Architecture school at the University of Oregon. While there I began painting again. Rather than having stacks of paintings, I started filming my progress on a single canvas. I was using a regular eight camera which didn’t even take single frames. It didn’t initially occur to me that I was making an animated film since I had always associated animation with working on cels in factory-like situations.

CW: Now is that pretty much the key to your process: it's more of a stream-of-consciousness or do you plan out like the cel animators do?

JCG: It depends on the job. If I have a client, I will do a complete storyboard with claypaintings of the key images. With ‘The Prophet’ and an earlier film ‘The Creation’, I was working with a script so the timing and images were worked out in advance. For personal projects, my method is much looser and more surprising to me.

CW: Now just a quick technical question. The only reference I found to your claypainting process is that you use plasticine clay that's heated up and mixed with mineral oil, is this correct?

JCG: Yeah.

Kubla Khan  1

CW: Just any mineral oil, anything special?

JCG: No, I get it at the drugstore because I think it's generally used as a laxative or something. And then when I'm checking out I always feel like I should say " Oh, it's not for constipation it's for my art."

CW: The plasticine, any particular brand you like working with?

JCG: It goes by different names but it's basically kids plasticine modeling clay. I think maybe now it's called "Van Aken" or something like that. Just any meltable clay.

CW: When you say meltable, you just heat it up on the stove?

JCG: The desired hardness or softness of the clay depends on if I am sculpting or painting with it.

Mona Lisa Descending A Staircase  1

CW: It's been reported that Mona Lisa took you ten years to complete. On average how long does it take you to produce one of your films?

JCG: Well, it really depends. 'Mona Lisa' was a ten year process. The first seven doing research and limiting the scope of the project. I received a 20K grant from the American Film Institute which has a two year time limit, so that was a great incentive to finish the animation. The actual animation time was about two - three years. Now because I do all the post myself and there is no lab work or optical printing, the process has become so much cheaper and faster. The actual animation time is the same.

CW: Martine Chartrand said a very similar statement about that, but she made the point that because she's working directly under the camera it's almost impossible to take on interns to help with the work.

JCG: I have never used an intern or had someone work on my claypainted films. The impossibility of this makes the technique so appealing. I have directed others in clay puppet commercials and did mentor a back-lite claypainter for Vinton’s Christmas special. The back-lite technique was developed by Ishu Patel at the NFB.

CW: Since you're doing both independent work and commercial work, which one do you prefer?

Mona Lisa Descending A Staircase  1

JCG: I don't know if you can really make that comparison because for one you get a whole lot of money and for the other you have complete freedom. Now, the budgets for commercials have gone way down and most animated commercials are CG so I haven't been doing much commercial work lately.

CW: Are you finding that the demand for claypainting commercials has been influenced by computer animation?

JCG: There have never been many painterly commercials at any time. Possibly even fewer commercials shot directly under the camera.

CW: So it's not something that you could track--whether it waxed or waned based on introduction of technology or individual tastes.

JCG: I'm just not that interested in commercials to follow what the trends are. It's something that you do and then it's done and then you're rich and you move on. I've done a couple commercials that I really liked--one was for United and one was for Coke. And then a couple were for Wishbone salad dressing. But then there's many others that I'd just as soon forget about. Not that they were terrible but they were of no particular interest to me.
* * *
Tune in next week for part two of Joan's Interview where we discuss more of her independent films and talk about her work on the recent animated feature: "Kahlil Gibran's the Prophet".





1. Image copyright Joan C. Gratz and used with permission.

Copyright 2016 Smudge Animation LLC, all rights reserved.

Animated Events: International Women's Day (or month here on this blog)...

Greetings all,

It's March. And in honor of March 8th being "International Women's Day", I'll be publishing interviews with a pair of trailblazing women who work in the animation industry.

The first interviewee is Academy Award winner Joan C. Gratz. It's not very often that you get to meet one of the legends of animation much less get to talk to them about their craft. But for years, Joan has been on my short-list of women animators to interview and our meeting at the Ottawa International Animation Festival was the textbook definition of serendipity (more on that later). During editing, I had to cut sections from her interview as we would find ourselves drifting away from the discussion and over into topics like the current state of the art of animation and the festival scene. After Joan approved the final draft and I was transferring it over into this blog, I found myself hoping against hope that Joan comes back to Ottawa soon as I'd love to spend more time just sitting there and listening to her talk about animation.

The second is Samantha Inoue-Harte: actress, voice actress, animator, and producer. One of the (many) things that makes Sami so special is that she has roles in both the American and the Japanese animation industries. As I travel to anime festivals, I meet a lot of kids who are enamored with anime and love the idea of working in Japan. During her lectures at festivals (and in her interview for this blog), Sami brings a fresh dose of realism to the discussion that covers both the hard realities of working in the animation industry and provides a lot of concrete steps for budding animators. When I read the first draft of her interview, I was almost in tears when she stated how all artists/animators should study business principles as I've been beating on that particular drum for many years!

So check back on Tuesday, March 8th for part one of my interview with Joan Gratz, and Happy International Women's Day Month!

Women in Animation: 'Canadian Animation' Resources

Well, I'm sorry to say that my last interview for this month isn't finished yet. So, I'll be posting my final interview for the month a bit later and will cross-post it on my social media sites. Apologies for missing the mark, sometimes life just gets too busy. But I promise you, it'll be worth the wait!

However, as I just got back from Schoolism.com's workshop weekend in Toronto, this seems like an appropriate time to talk about another valuable resource for researchers looking for that elusive bit of information on woman animators: the Canadian Animation website and blog.

Operated by my friend and fellow Toronto Animated Image Society member, Grayden Laing, the Canadian Animation website and Canadian Animation Blog have a plethora of interviews with animators from the Great White North. His blog includes many prominent woman animators like:

- Sam Decoste,
- Torill Kove,
- Jodi Sandler, and
- Moira Marguin.

Additionally, his Canadian Animation website has "Artist of the Day" posts for animators like:

- Katie Shanahan,
- Lynn Dana Wilton,
- Nicole Hewat,
- Marie Valade,
- Rachel Moore,
- Kathy Macdonald,
- Carla Veldman,
- Janice Schulman,
- Gwyneth Mitchell,
- Jessika von Innerebner,
- Hilary Moses,
- Lillian Chan, and
- Samantha Youssef.

If you keep an eye out for them, you're sure to run across people like Grayden who are working hard to bring recognition to animators, both women and men, and both well-known as well as those not-so-well-known. But rather than just relying on interviewers and bloggers, those interested in this facet of the animation world should not be afraid to get out there and find their own opportunities to meet these women of animation.

Case in point: this past weekend, I made a nine-hour round-trip drive to Toronto.

Schoolism.com held a two-day, live workshop with artists and animators discussing their careers and lavishing advice on people who want to improve their skills. I went there to hear Brave director Brenda Chapman's presentation with her husband Kevin Lima. After meeting Ms. Chapman on Saturday night, the next day we were all treated to a three-hour presentation where power-couple Kevin and Brenda talked about their personal history, the ups-and-downs of the animation industry, how the industry has changed across the span of their careers, and much, much more! As a special treat, they even showed their CalArts student films. Was it worth the time and money to make the drive? You bet it was! Even if I wasn't working on a project detailing the history of women in animation, the information that Brenda and Kevin provided was the kind of first hand data that students who want to work in the Hollywood animation industry need to hear.

Visiting with Brenda Chapman

Yes. Sometimes those opportunities may appear a little too far to visit. Yes. Sometimes it's going to cost you a pretty penny to attend events like this. But if you look carefully, you can find opportunities closer to home.

Case in point: Alma, Michigan is a 45-minute drive from my house. Back in February, I attended a small student-run anime convention at Alma College and got to meet animator, studio owner, producer, voice actress, and stunt-woman Samantha Inoue-Harte (talk about a modern-day "Renaissance woman"!).

Samantha teaching me what a 'glomp' is.

Filled with boundless energy and an enthusiasm that I have only seen matched by Martine Chartrand, Samantha turned AlmaCon into a four-hour tornado of funny stories, a realistic vision of what it's like to work in the animation (and film) industry, and tips on improving our skills as she showed us first hand how she animated characters for Disney's Lilo and Stitch television show. It's not often that you get the chance to watch an animator at work but Samantha turned it into a spectator sport where you're laughing while you're learning. I started animating over twenty years ago and her two-hour animation workshop hammered home the fact that there's always something more that I can learn about our craft.

Need another example? No problem. In a little over a week, Natasha Allegri, the creator of "Bee and Puppycat" will be speaking in Detroit at the Midwest Media Expo. Will I be braving the throngs of cosplayers to hear her speak? After hearing her presentation at last year's TAAFI festival, you bet I will! And I hope to see many of you up-and-coming animators there too.

So keep an eye out for opportunities (both local and distant) to connect with your favorite animators, as well as those that you haven't heard of before. I guarantee that you'll be glad that you took the time to listen to their wisdom and experience. Whether it's our history or our craft, I'm always learning something new from animators who are kind enough to share their experiences in this roller-coaster ride we call 'animated film'.

Women in Animation: Blue Sky "Crew Stories"

Sorry I'm a couple days late with this post, I was at the local Anime convention this weekend, marveling at the fact that among the plethora of cosplayers with characters that I didn't recognize, I saw a guy dressed as Dr. Venture from the Venture Bros., two girls dressed as 'Bee' from Natasha Allegri's Bee and Puppycat and no less than three 'CatBugs' from Pendleton Ward's Bravest Warriors. Always nice to see some American animation slip into the fandom at the Cons and even more so to see a woman show creator get a little recognition from her fans.

Back to the interviews.

I'm going to do something a little different this year. Several times a year, I am contacted by young ladies who have seen these interviews, or the posts on my sister site: 'the Women of Animated Film', or have sat through one of my history of women in animation lectures. They usually ask me for information regarding a specific woman animator for a report they're writing for school or are working on their own historical 'women in animation' sites and ask where I get my info. So, I'd like to expand this year's interviews by providing a little insight into where I get some of my information as well as show what other studios are doing to archive their corner of the industry and encourage the next generation of animators.

Two years ago, I was interviewing a professional acquaintance of mine, who happens to work at Blue Sky Studios, about his history in the animation industry. When the subject turned to my interviews with women animators, he turned me onto a little side-project that they do at Blue Sky called "Crew Stories".

Blue Sky does not limit their interviews to just women animators but expands their coverage to include both men and women who work on their films in various roles. Additionally, they produce both short video clips and more long form written interviews for this project. The written interviews of women working on their films are linked below:

• Animator Theresa Adolph
• Lead Materials Technical Director Diana Diriwaechter
• Lighting Supervisor Jeeyun Sung Chisholm

Followed by links for their video series on Vimeo called "21 seconds with..."

• Production Manager Denise Rottina
• Lead Materials Technical Director/Character Artist Nikki Tomaino

With a longer form video interview with their Lead Sculptor Vicki Saulls.

Personally, I migrate towards the written interviews because they get a little more in depth with regards to professional history and advice that they'd give people who want to work in their particular segment of the field of animation. But all the interviews that Blue Sky have done are invaluable tools for learning more about the industry and provide us with a look behind the curtain at the roles where women are working.

Women in Animation: Monica Brujenes

In the Fall of 2013, I met this vibrant young lady from Wisconsin through an e-mail that she sent to ASIFA/Central--inquiring about membership in our organization. With the core group of our members living in Michigan, she quickly became another one of our far-flung members. But Monica hasn't let distance separate her from being a part of the animation community. One of those rare individuals who immediately asks 'what can I do to help', Monica pounced on the chance to help make ASIFA a better organization--notably by volunteering to work on the recently relaunched ASIFA Magazine. During her interview, my expectations were immediately exceeded as I encountered someone with a wealth of experiences that you wouldn't expect to hear from someone so young. The interview only took thirty minutes, but before it was over, I was left wishing for more time to hear just one more story. Hopefully, sometime in the future, we'll see her make the trek across Lake Michigan and show up at a future Animator's Retreat so everyone at ASIFA/Central can experience her enthusiasm for animation first hand.

Kicking off 2015's interviews, it's a pleasure to introduce Monica Brujenes.

* * *

Monica Brujenes

Q: What is your current job description?

A: Freelance artist and owner of my own company (Subarashii Studio).

Q: How long have you worked in the animation industry?

A: Not very long. Only since about 2012, that's when I graduated with my Masters Degree. And that's when I started freelancing as an animator. Before that, I was already freelancing, but just for graphic design and illustration work. I studied in Japan in 2006 as an exchange student and I worked on my first short film when I was there doing that. So yeah, I've been animating throughout college, that's when I started animating. But, I didn't start taking on paid work until after I graduated.

Q: Did you know that you wanted to be an animator when you were in Japan?

A: Yeah. Like ever since High School. That's when I decided I wanted to be an animator and I started looking into the different jobs in animation and trying to find out how I could learn animation. So yeah, I of course grew up watching cartoons and never stopped watching cartoons. Growing up I was surrounded by American cartoons but I always kind of was interested, if I ever found out about cartoons in different countries I'd get really excited about that. I didn't learn about anime until High School and it was through friends--they told me about Sailor Moon, a starting anime for a lot of us.

Q: What roles have you performed during your career in animation?

A: I've done everything. Mostly I've been working on small projects where I get to be the one woman show, essentially. I've done a couple commercials. For the one, I did for the small business 'Event Stagers'. She was a wedding and special event stager (providing the design, set up and decorating of special events), she had a rough idea what she wanted the commercial to communicate. But I essentially wrote up a little storyboard and then went through the whole process of boarding it and animating it for her.  I even added the sound too and I realized that I really don't like doing that at all! I realized how difficult it is adding the sound and trying to get professional quality, so I think that, moving forward, I'm going to try to get more help in that aspect of it. I've read a couple books on sound design, but it's just one of those things, when you're doing everything yourself it gets to be a bit much. And after doing that for a few projects, I'm thinking "yeah, next time it'd be nice to have some help with that aspect cause it's one of my weaker areas." I'm better at the pre-production and animating definitely.

Q: What made you choose animation as a major course of study?

A: It was a slow build up. I can't remember a defining moment other than I remember at one point I started asking my mom questions about how animation is made, like all of a sudden I got really curious, like 'I know that they draw it but how? How do they get that many drawings and how do they make it look smooth?' And so, yeah, there was a point where I was just... 'I really wanted to know how it was done' and I made up my mind that I was going to figure it out. So, yeah, I would say It's just a passion, I just love cartoons and always have.

When I studied in Japan, I met a lot of Japanese artists there who didn't like the Japanese art but were fascinated with Disney and Pixar. So they were really interested in what I was doing, which was pretty cool. They would say that my style is very American and looks like Disney and then I'd come back home and my friends back here in America would say "oh your style looks very Japanese." I always thought that was kind of funny.

Q: Have you worked for studios or as an independent?

A: For animation it's always been independent so far. I would like to work for a studio at some point, but it just hasn't happened yet. I did have an internship with Wildstorm comics when I was doing my undergrad. It wasn't animation it was with comics, but that was a really good experience. I was in the production department so they were responsible for all the prepress production, everything that goes into putting the books together, like compiling the artwork with the lettering files, sometimes putting together the inks and colors, eventually you get all the elements and put it into a book. And then, at the time, they also had their CMX Comics which was their Manga division. And so I helped do some of the work for that--kind of converting the books from Japanese to American. We had to scan in the Japanese pages, clean them up, delete the Japanese text so the English text could be put in, and in a few rare cases, edit the artwork to make it age-appropriate for the target audience 'cause you know values are different in Japan. I remember there was this one that I worked on that I think was called 'King of Cards' and one of the characters was topless, so I had to draw a bra on her and make it look like it fit in with the Manga style, stuff like that.

Q: Are you doing more personal work right now?

A: Yeah, at the moment actually I have been working on some ideas for animated TV shows and I'm just getting ready this weekend--I'm leaving to go to Kidscreen in Miami. There's this big industry conference so I'm going to take my ideas and pitch them and get some feedback. One is the preschool show called 'Penguin and Peep' and the other one I've been working on is called 'Moosebear' and that one is for ages six to eight. So I'm just excited for that.

Subarashii Studio

Q: So Subarishii is what you're going down there with?

A: Yeah, it's just the name of my company. I've been in the process of figuring out where I want to go with it and definitely at the moment, I'm using it for pre-production work and content development.  Or, how to attain my goals because I've always had in the back of my head: "oh it would be great to have my own animation studio/production studio." Subarishii means 'wonderful' or 'splendid' in Japanese so I though it fit with my art style which is very cute and happy.

Q: Can you talk about your reasons for starting Subarashii? As a content developer, are you trying to work outside of the established studio system to bring your creations to life? Or did you have the side idea of 'if this doesn't work out I can go to alternate funding sources like KickStarter or IndieGogo"?

A: It's been a process of me trying to figure out how to do... what exactly I want to do.

Penguin & Peep!

The ideas I'm working on now, like Penguin and Peep, I originally had thought about just going ahead and animating it doing shorts and putting them up on YouTube and getting it out there and seeing what would happen.

If you go to the conventions you can talk to them and share your ideas, so I decided before I just jump the gun and spend the time animating--'cause animating obviously takes a long time to do it well--that I would get some feelers out there and see what kind of response I get from the ideas and go from there to see what the next step is; whether or not someone is interested in helping me with funding or distribution or helping co-produce my shows or if not, then maybe I take a step back and do think about KickStarter or, you know, plugging away on something on my own.

Q: You're currently doing magazine editing work for ASIFA International, you're a member of ASIFA/Central, and you've started your own local life drawing club. How important do you think it is for animators to participate in organizations or start their own if none locally are available?

A: I was trying it out [Eau Claire Artist's Drawing Night], I haven't been doing it so far yet this year because I didn't get quite the response I was hoping for. I suppose it has to be done on an individual basis if you're into that thing, I personally think it's important for me because I've always felt that anytime I could get connected with other artists and be encouraged to practice more and have opportunities to practice drawing and talking more about animation has just made me a better and better artist. So I see the value in it definitely.

My Moosebear

Q: Given that the industry is now so heavily integrated with computer technology, how important do you think it is (if at all) for students of animation to learn classical techniques and non-computer animation styles: stop-motion, drawing, sand animation, painting, etc.?

A: I think it's really important actually to at least start out having a foundation in some kind of more tactile medium because it's just going to make you that much better when you go into the computer and work digitally. One of my instructors at the Academy of Art University said "do everything as if by hand." Meaning that even when you are working in the computer, put that same care and attention to detail and thought into what you're doing in the computer as you would if you were working in another medium by hand. So I think that using the computer does affect your thought process  a little bit differently, it's kind of hard to explain.

Q: Do you think there's sort of a detachment?

A: I'm not even sure what it is, I just know that when you work by hand, sometimes--at least for me--that's the best way to learn. Even just drawing by hand on real paper is different for me than when I draw with the stylus in the computer. Sometimes it's just quicker to get the idea out on paper than through that screen. But yeah, I definitely think it makes you a better artist. Anytime you can work with real media, it gives you that foundation so that you know how the real materials work and then when you go into the computer and you try to simulate a more hand-drawn look, you're able to do that.

Q: What do you think is the biggest obstacle to women who want to pursue a career in animation?

A: I'm not sure if there's a really big obstacle for women more so than men at the moment. I feel like we have pretty good opportunities and I don't know of anybody at least in my classes or from my generation that's really come up with any strong opposition. I would say the biggest obstacle is the same obstacle that anybody has getting into animation--it's just a hard field to get in to. The hard part is developing your talent and breaking in.

Q: If your daughter said that she wanted to work in animation, what advice would you give her?

A: I would say "practice, practice, practice!" "Don't give up" and "find a good mentor"--which of course if it was my daughter, it would be "me" (just kidding!). I would say the most important thing is practice... and never forget to keep it fun too, because animation is a fun business.


Q: What is the most important thing that authority figures (parents/teachers/professors) can do to encourage girls who are considering a career in animation?

A: Again, I would say the most important thing is to develop their talent. Take classes in drawing or sculpture. Another thing would be to introduce them to other artists. My dad, when I was a little girl, he took me to the San Diego Comic Con cause we lived in San Diego at the time. And I remember going to Don Bluth's booth and getting to meet him in person and he was really nice to me and encouraged me and said something like 'oh you're into animation, oh that's so great.' I was kind of like awestruck as a little girl going to Comic Con and seeing how there are real artists, they make cartoons! And that kept me going, so I would say encourage them go to the conventions and meet professionals who are doing what you want to do and just keep working on improving your art.

* * *
Monica's work can be viewed on her company website "Subarashii Studio" at www.subarashiistudio.com and her professional website at www.artistmonica.com. She has uploaded her demo reel onto Vimeo.

The images and animations used in this blog entry are copyright Monica Brujenes and used with her permission.

Women in Animation 2015

Well, it's Sunday, March 8th and that means "International Women's Day" is today. But, why limit it to just one day?

2014 ended on a strong note for women in animation and 2015 is off to a good start. Some of the highlights were (and are):

The web series 'Bee and PuppyCat' was launched in November 2014. 'Bee and PuppyCat' is the brainchild of animator Natasha Allegri and produced by Frederator Studios. At the time of it's campaign, it held the record for the largest amount of money raised for an animated film in Kickstarter history (source: Wikipedia).

Also in November, across the ocean, veteran animator Joanna Quinn was awarded the ASIFA Laureate at the Bradford Animation Festival for her contributions to the art of animation over an extended period of time (source: ASIFA website).

Moving into 2015, in January, we saw a corporate shake-up in the animation world when producers Bonnie Arnold and Mireille Soria were promoted to co-Presidents of DreamWorks Animation (source: CartoonBrew website).

Also in January, Norwegian-born Canadian director and animator Torill Kove was nominated for an Academy Award for her animated film 'Me and My Moulton', marking the 73rd Oscar nomination for the NFB and the third nomination for Ms. Kove (source: NFB website).

Then in February, Signe Baumane released her feature-length animated film "Rocks in my Pockets" on DVD and also for streaming over the internet via a new distribution model/program created by movie studio: Yekra. This program allows people to join Signe's community of affiliates by enrolling with Yekra then embedding her film on their websites. At that point, the affiliates receive a small portion of the viewing fee when the film is viewed through the affiliate's actions (source: Rocks in my Pockets website).

Also in February, at Toronto's Radical Sheep Productions, the driving force behind Toronto getting it's own branch of Women in Animation, Michelle Melanson Cuperus was promoted from development Vice President to "executive producer for its entire slate of kids and family series" (source: Kidscreen website).

Staying in Canada, for the past two months, the National Film Board of Canada has been highlighting animated films produced by Canadian women animators. The first article, titled '3 keys for understanding and appreciating pinscreen animation' was written by Carolyne Weldon and was announced in the February 13th NFB newsletter. While more about the pinscreen itself, her article does discuss the work of animators Alexander Alexeïeff and Claire Parker. At the end of the article, you'll also learn about illustrator Michèle Lemieux who has picked up the torch with this oft misunderstood device.

The second article, titled 'Evelyn Lambart - Watch 6 Stunning Shorts by the First Lady of Canadian Animation' was posted on March 5th (and found in the NFB's March 7th newsletter). This one covers the woman who worked tirelessly behind the scenes of the NFB: Evelyn Lambart. Also written by Carolyne Weldon, this article briefly touches on Evelyn's history with the NFB's founder Norman McLaren before diving right into her solo films. On the linked webpage, you can read the article and watch six of Evelyn Lambart's short animated films for free. I don't know how long these films will be available for free viewing, so definitely watch them sooner rather than later.

And lastly, this year at the Annecy Animation Festival in France, they will be "placing women in the spotlight." From the November 2014 newsletter:

"In 2015, Annecy would like to acknowledge the contribution of women in the history of animation by paying tribute to the pioneers and highlighting the growing role of women producers and directors. This spotlight will take various forms and include:
- an all-female jury
- an Honorary Cristal award given to a major female animation personality
- the Annecy 2015 poster will also be created by a well-known artist from the world of animation. Her name will be revealed shortly!
- programmes devoted to films made by women."

These are just a small sample of the goings on in the world of women working in the field of animation and hopefully we'll see far more over 2015 than we did in 2014. But, as my regular readers know, in honor of International Women's Day, over the month, I post interviews of women animators from across the wide spectrum of animated film. So, next Friday, March 13th, please check back as I bring you the first interview: freelance animator (and ASIFA/Central member) Monica Bruenjes.