The Mysterious Traveller

It was understandable for Chester to be concerned about his masters optimistic views on transport, especially due to the absolute lack of any. They needed to get to London, and yet without the knowledge of their whereabouts it would prove to be an interesting point to raise. Chester rolled forward inquisitively, 'may I press you for a solution sir?'  The Elkboy turned handsomely around and smiled. 'My dear Chester. I have indeed resolved our little pickle, which was, admittedly, something I should have thought of much earlier. You may want to stand, or erm, roll back a tadge my friend.' Chester bleeped and followed the order. He was used to these elaborate schemes that the Elkboy concocted, becoming continuously intrigued and entertained. And with the Elkboy currently attempting a handstand, it looked like this would be a good one.  Sure enough, in a vertical manoeuvre, the Electric Elkboy had lifted his body up from the ground with his feet in the ...

Freelancing is a funny business. On occasion I feel like I don't particularly belong anywhere, but then again this is precisely what it's all about, so I won't pretend to be dismayed about the matter. I have the writing tendencies of a drama queen sometimes, so ignore me. But don't! Because you need to read my blog. I do actually enjoy the free aspect of this lancing lark, especially when you get a surprise day off to write the next blog chapter.  What I've come to realise in these last few months of my progress as a freelancer, is that there is no room for laziness. And I am so lazy! (this is subjective to the people who are not hiring me). But this is not in the work place; I love what I do and will crack on 100% in the studio environment. My problem is at home. As you may have noticed in previous blog posts, I claim it takes 'x' amount of hours or days for me to write a paragraph or the like. This is because of my homely distractions! Here i...

Soaring above the Andes flew the Electric Elkboy. He looked glorious. Ever would he gracefully swoop in and out of the rocky peaks and weave over and under the peaky rocks. The kite was holding together incredibly well in the windy conditions, but this did not surprise the Elkboy for he was the creator of  The Electro-Kite . To any rambler or yodeller it was simply a flash of awesomeness before their eyes and nothing more.  But the most cunning addition to this contraption was the conductor set upon the pinnacle of the Electro-Kite. When the Electric Elkboy would spy a thunder storm upon the horizon he would not be thwarted, but fly straight in to it. The conductor would then pick up any bolts of lightening that may strike the Electro-Kite, harnessing the thousands of volts and sending them down to the Elkboy and recharging his powers. Yet another little splash of genius that reflects our hero's inventive skill and rugged good looks. Then the winds stopped compl...

This blog post is dedicated to all the brave souls who have succumbed to the tyranny of flu (non- gender specific). For I have become a bed ridden blancmange and therefore missed vital studio time where I have been practicing the art of silicone moulding. But we are not here to wallow in my snotty pit of carcoon, as I have been inspired to divulge into the world of stop motion after recently watching an episode of the 1984 animated series of  The Wind in the Willows.  This was, of course, when Cosgrove Hall was in it's prime. But despite the closure of this legendary studio, the area surrounding this part of Manchester is still teaming with animated life;  a new hope  to young graduates. I have had the privilege of meeting and becoming acquainted with Barry Purves, director of The Wind in the Willows , so it's quite a different experience when watching these animations again because they feel even more personal (due to my career choice). I know about the length...

In the words of Samwise Gamgee, well, I'm back Yes, and a very jovial greetings to all bloggers and bloggees. I have returned from the continent of South America with many tales from afar, all of which shall be generously condensed into a collection of photographs and 'witty' one liners. Please don't think that I am hoodwinking you folks with an abrupt album - I am only showing you a small portion because, after all, this is an animation blog. And boy do I have news on the animation front.  But it has indeed been a long while since my last blog post, and for that I apologize. Even with the surprisingly regular access to WiFi, more so than places in Europe, (not to give South America a stereo-typically third world slap in the face, but, you know) it didn't feel quite right to write a blog when Machu Picchu was over there. So I shall use this post to get back into the swing of writing things. Unfortunately, there were a few floaters. This was actuall...

Good day to you all. I am very rushed to get this blog post out, as I am departing for South America very soon. I have been winding down with work and the studio. I've practically ended my rein at the College, which means, alas, no more animation club for the students. But more importantly, I am free of the catering side of things (although, just wait and see... I'll most likely end up working there again!).  So I think the Yamination Studio and all of its members have pummelled out the new Cravendale advert as much as possible, however, there is more! With Drew filming as much of the production process as possible, it was all compiled together to create a very nice 'making of' video. So take a look see above. Getting some lovely publicity here... For the full article please click  HERE Two new characters I've painted, for some short and rather sarcastic adventures.  I may have mentioned the Coca Cola advert some time ago, bu...

I have managed to do something rather foolish in the past fortnight. Upon one of my cycling adventures I unfortunately, perhaps due to a lapse in concentration, lost control and ended up crumpled on the tarmac before me. Now, I do get distracted on a monumental level, but I managed to instinctively focus enough to land on my left arm. Alas, it is now fractured and it took me a good twenty minutes to write this bloody paragraph!   So I don't really have an awful lot to report. I haven't been able to work and have been advised to keep my [left] arm in this sling for another two weeks at least... and to avoid using it at all for a further month. This is very frustrating.   Throughout my boredom I have managed to watch some movies that I'd not yet seen; including Tangled, Wayne's World 2, After Earth (meh), the Alan Partridge [Alpha Papa] film, Disney's Sleeping Beauty and Mary Poppins (I know, I'm a bad man for not seeing these!), World War Z, Office Space...

  Good evening guys and girls. So this is the new Cravendale advert that the Yamination team helped make, of which I was honoured to be a part of. Our involvement was the construction of the house interior (Barry's room and the kitchen), the house exterior (with the water-wheel attached on the side), the bridge and the post box.   This was our first project as a team that has hit the television, and I think the learning curve has been tremendous. Even though Barry rushes through the house, zipping past our hard work, you can still pause and see the detail (regardless of it not being in focus). We are incredibly proud of this and hopefully is will be a springboard for Yamination Studios and future projects.   A few little facts about this advert; that is real milk in the lake and flowing underneath the bridge. Barry is actually a puppet on strings on the close ups I used to have a hair cut just like Barry's new one at the end my fav...

It's a little strange for the people of my generation to witness the rebooting of our childhood cartoons for a modern time. In a way, much of the nostalgia can be lost because of how our beloved characters are now portrayed (simply to attract a different audience) in not only the animation style, but within the storyline and aesthetics also. I bring this topic up because of the recent, and upcoming, surge of movies that are based on some of the most beloved cartoon shows from the sixties right up through to the nineties. We've already seen the likes of Scooby Doo and Thunderbirds become live-action films, but because of the reoccurring success of many 'fully' CGI animated films over the last decade studios are not afraid to remain within this creative medium (hmmm but Top Cat flopped?!). So one of the favoured trends has been to take the cartoon character and place him or her in a live action film as a CGI protagonist. This has been done with Yogi Bear, the ...