I took a break from this blog last year. I even wrote the post for October, but I never posted it. Between work, family, and art, there was too much going on.
This year, because I have to slow down on my animations, this blog will focus on animated shorts and artist spotlights. My sporadic animation updates will be on my YouTube Shorts and Instagram Reels. Larger project updates will be documented here.
Back in October, I wanted to share that I rediscovered a print company that can produce my art prints and bookmarks. I think I’ve mentioned before that I’m also a web developer, and I built the Sleepy Gallows website from scratch. I’ve been building an art shop on it throughout the year. It should be ready around March or April. I plan to make more collages this year. It’s fun, and I think they are beautiful.
With all that said, here is the spotlight section!
Animated Short of the Month: The Legend of Pipi
I saw this short within days of its release on YouTube. It flips all the tropes of a traditional dragon-takes-princess story and keeps you guessing. It was very fun and unexpected. The short was directed by Julia Schoel as her student thesis film at SCAD.
Here is an interview about the project: https://www.toonboom.com/julia-schoel-turns-heroic-fantasy-on-its-head-in-the-legend-of-pipi
Artist of the Month: Candy Fluffs
Candy Fluffs is a mangaka and fanartist from the Chicagoland area. She’s working on many projects. Her comic Necahual is about Mesoamerican girls who are blessed by the gods to defend their people.
She also paints Chinese-style ink paintings for Danmei and Love and Deepspace.
Her website: https://www.candyfluffs.com/
Helpful Tutorial: Aaron Blaise TVPaint Overview
Aaron Blaise is a Disney legend from the 90s golden age. He currently teaches art on his own platform, creatureartteacher.com. Aaron is a natural teacher; it’s clear he just likes to empower others to create.
He commonly uses TVPaint to animate, and here is a tutorial!