Escape of the Gingerbreadman!!!

Sounds of Baking Bread

2010-02-22T19:56:00.000-08:00

I've taken some time away from the short to get married to a wonderful girl, and work on some paying jobs. Now that my schedule is freeing up ... I am planning to devote more time to the film. One thing I have been thinking about recently is the music.

Above: Revisiting some of my old instrument designs for the "Band" of sheep in my short film ".Escape of the Gingerbread Man.!!! ".

The actual music for the film was recorded at Doon Studio, Waterford Ireland. All arranged and played by squeezebox man Benny McCarthy and a few of his friends. I am a huge fan of Bennys traditional Irish bands Danu, and. Rattle the Boards.. Fantastic stuff!!! I hope he's pleased with what I've done with his delightful music.

I've asked my pal Billy "Keys" Benson to help with the film score this summer. Bill is an amazing artist, and has scored several of my personal films, working with Maurice Noble and I in the early days developing our "NobleTales" project. I'll write about Bill in a later post ... but I am very excited to be working with him again.

Until then ... tod.

Sweet goodness from the land of Danes

2009-04-28T19:14:00.000-07:00

I am pleased to share with you the reels of 5 young talented animators. I worked with them over the winter in Viborg... and now they will be joining me this summer in Thailand. -should make for a great animated time. tod

Untitled from angel aguirregomozcorta on Vimeo.

showreel from jan rybka on Vimeo.

Showreel from Henrik Sønniksen on Vimeo.

Showreel-Animation from Thomas Huusmann on Vimeo.

Showreel 2009 from Benjamin Nielsen on Vimeo.

Colorful confection

2009-03-22T22:54:00.000-07:00

Above: Some of the color script for Ginger. The main focus of the color script is really making sure the characters read on the backgrounds... and making sure that there is a artistic progression in the film... making sure each sequence and place feels unique from one another... yet still tie together in some way. For Ginger I have used mostly variations of green and red... for some reason this feels Irish to me.

The color scripts start out as boards... then I fill them in with rough color passes... then eventually more finished backgrounds. This board is a combination of my, and Susanne's bgs... all based on my layout and color sketches. The more 3d looking scenes are keyed by going over frames from maya... and early render tests. For some sequences of the short, I lean the red more towards orange or yellow... and the green to blues depending on the mood. I keep the yellows and whites primarily as accent colors in all the sequences... using them to help focus the eye to specific parts of the screen. Of course I try to keep the orange of the Ginger cookie reading... depending on what's happening in the story -tod

Kanome cookie

2009-03-19T01:50:00.000-07:00

Above: A small handbill made by one of the artists at "The Monk". The studio is helping promote "Escape of the Gingerbread Man!!!" at various events. Showing clips, and artwork... drumming up interest in the project. As we get closer to finishing... we hope to enter the short in the film festival circuit. - tod

Monk-ees

2009-02-10T13:13:00.000-08:00

Above: Animation wrap at "The Monk Studio": Every person here has contributed in some way in the production of Gingerbread man. I owe a great deal to Juck, and the gang. Thank you all! Now on to render and post production!

Fresh baked to your door

2009-02-09T03:39:00.000-08:00

Above: A rough design for Grannies delivery truck. I say rough because this design will be translated to work in 3D... and sometimes certain lines in the design have to change slightly in order to work. The main thing is keeping the "feeling" of the design.

Below: A sketch by Jannick Grool... In the long version of the story I had imagined Granny being a sort of heavy metal momma... dressed in black leather. Heavy Metal versions of traditional Irish folk songs would boom out of her ride. The big plow on front isn't for snow... it's to clear the sheep out of the way. Granny is one of my favorite characters in the film... but unfortunately I had to cut some of her best bits early for time sake. Hopefully someday I can make the complete long version of the story.

Small Bites

2009-02-05T14:46:00.000-08:00

Uploading a few of Aarons test renders from the famous race sequence. The gag being that there wasn't enough of a budget to paint proper backgrounds, or do proper animation in this section of the film. The back story being that school children were employed. The truth is... two school children designed the animals for this sequence... Nate and Ean Moretti... but I never actually paid them. Though I will probably take them out for an ice cream, or a glass of water once I have save enough money to actually go home. Hope they like the end result. -tod

Brune Kager

2009-01-22T01:46:00.000-08:00

Above: A test render of the storyteller by Aaron in Bangkok. We have been using combustion, and after fx for our composites. This part of the production has been put on hold until I return from Denmark, and Aaron returns from his honeymoon. -tod

Brunkage

2009-01-20T00:45:00.000-08:00

Been a while since the last post... things are moving forward however. Our pal Aaron is busy compositing in the land of the free (that's what the name "Thailand" means) . Kaywood Foos is whacking away (whatever that means) on the final shot there in Krunthep... and our man In DK... Nicolai Slothuus is helping on the atlantic side of things. Hope to have a few images from the film up soon! Here I am in my "new" old office in Viborg. The animation workshop allowed me to decorate a bit... lights, chairs... in the color scheme of the old "ship wreck inn" from that delighful short film "Escape of the Gingerbread Man!!!" Now if only I could find a leather wing back chair. -tod

Run Ginger Run away

2008-10-22T11:53:00.000-07:00

Above: Inspirational sketches by my two good pals Nate, and Ean Moretti.

The above animals are for the infamous race/ chase sequence of the film... I wanted a different look for this sequence... something creative and fun... Nate and Ean didn't let me down. We just finished the animation, and it's really fun to watch... Thanks fellahs! -tod

Visitors from far lands

2008-10-20T19:37:00.000-07:00

Above:Poul, Salvador, and Ingo at "The Monk"

Salvador came for a month earlier this year to help with boards and layout. Now he is directing the other project in the studio... a 60 min commercial! He just returned from Spain this week... his paddle pop in hand. All three of these fine gentleman have added so much to the Gingerbread Man. It's been a fun time. -tod

Background Sprinkles

2008-10-20T03:52:00.000-07:00

Above: The matchmaking festival poster by Chanya "Pu"

Both Chanya and Susanne finished up the BGs this last weekend... it was great to have them both involved... and they added so much to the production. Susanne finished up around 70 or so backgrounds... giving a nice graphic artsy look to my keys... and Chanya focused on logos, prop textures... and all the other bits and bobs that needed designing. Thanks to both of you! - Tod

Title wave

2008-10-15T22:50:00.001-07:00

-Susanne and I are working on the title sequence of the film... trying to get a more "water-colory" style... above are two "tests" ... basically not finished art... just taking stabs trying to get the right feel... mixing her painting, my painting... and borrowing examples of things for inspiration. Still a ways to go... but getting there... tod

Shaw This

2008-10-12T22:46:00.000-07:00

Above: George Bernard Shaw

-GBS was a huge inspiration for the storyteller character in GBM. He was such a character himself... and had such charisma, confidence, and was such a great storyteller. Below are some more development sketches by the fantastic Maahir Pandie. The storyteller uses his hands a lot in the film... so it was important that they have character as well. - Tod

Picture this

2008-08-11T23:17:00.000-07:00

Above: More sketches for the pub... things to be hung on the wall to warm up the overall atmosphere. I imagine the pub to have been built around 1850 or so... the story takes place in 1950... so various artifacts from different periods littler the room. The old part of the pub is mostly stone and timber. The newer section of the pub ... made during the Victorian era... reflects a slightly different more ornate style. tod

Brewing Away in GingerLand

2008-08-07T07:03:00.000-07:00

Above: A color key for one of the portraits hanging in the old Pub. Arthur is reacting to Paul and his silly ways.

In Production! Animation has started and looking good ... models are being textured... the pub is coming along well. In Ireland... a band is cooking up some "New pub songs" for the film... in a traditional style.

Putting the Ingredients Together

2008-06-27T09:28:00.000-07:00

It's been a long while since I posted here... mostly it's because the whole team has been busy finishing up the pre-production on the film. A lot of final art... keys... character models and designs... tightening the timing on the animatic... working on 3D layout... But it's all coming together and looking good... I will be posting more frequently now that I am through the hardest part of pre-production... tod

NobleTales Re- Re Post

2008-03-10T12:47:00.000-07:00

Above: Only a few of the stories that have been in development for the NobleTales series... there are many more at various stages... and a lot more blanks on the map to fill in.

Above: Part of the NobleTales TV series pitch... But originally designed to be a series of theatrical shorts... inspired by the classic shorts that Maurice himself helped create. The Pumpkinlove website is not working at the time of this post... but I am hoping to get it back up and running soon.

This post has a lot less to do with Gingerbread, and more to do with the series Gingerbread is a part of... Noble Tales. I posted some of the presentation material from the series a while back... but for some reason the images were too small. So I have been asked to re-post the images at a larger size. You can see a few more examples of art from the series here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/todpolson/ and can read more about the project, and Maurice Noble himself here: http://www.nobletales.com/ Enjoy! tod

Kenny in the Can

2008-03-05T20:30:00.000-08:00

We haven't posted here in a while... but January and February have been busy months... working on design, script, boards... and most importantly recording Jon Kenny. The animation workshop brought Jon all the way to Denmark for a 3 hour recording session... and he did a fantastic job... bringing new ideas, along with his talent. The night before the recording session, Jon, Michelle Nardone, and Tod stayed up until 6am... sharing song, stories, and Irish whiskey... just to "get to know each other a bit better". Seemed fitting. Tired during the recording session... but a much better vision of what we were actually doing.

Congratulations as well to Susanne, Jannick, Jeppe, and Maahir on graduating, and getting your bachelors degrees. Thank you for sharing your talents, and humor... I hope we cal all work together again soon. tod

A little Pandie- monium

2008-01-17T10:45:00.000-08:00

The internship is over, but a few of the students are still helping out with the short... Including Mr. Maahir Pandie. He has spent the last week or so trying to come up with a final design for the "story teller" character. We've all taken a crack at him... but nothing has been quite right. He's difficult... because he is the main character in the film... and he has a fairly deep and complex personality. Getting closer though... and I expect Maahir will nail the thing down this week. tod

Santa Bros. Storm Bangkok

2008-01-03T10:33:00.001-08:00

(photos by Aaron)

Every tuesday night, animators from around Bangkok get together and eat "shwarmas". However, this night it was just Ingo, Aaron (shy behind the lens) and I with the rest of the gang on vacation... or busy back in Europe, South Africa... or wherever they happened to land. My santa suit is in storage... so thanks to Da... Ingo and I were able to continue the Santa Brother tradition another year. Bringing smiles to children of all ages here in the Kingdom of Thai.

Grande Finale at The MONK STUDIO

2007-12-16T19:32:00.000-08:00

It's over.. the internship at the Monk Studio has come to an end and tonight Jannick, Jeppe and I will go back home to Denmark. Maahir left already Saturday - uh it was so sad! But WOW it's been a crazy time!! We have made this poster for the studio - picturing ourselves off course - it's the greatest gift we could think of :o) It was made last night and its kinda corny, Jannick made the beautiful title while I struggled with the maincharacters and grafics.We thank the Monk Studio for having taken so well care of us and for the whole crew for being so fantastic and generous!! We definately want to come back some day!!!

(by Sus)

2007-11-22T23:39:00.001-08:00

So, it took me a long time to post this thingy. It's not done yet, I will probably finish it in january when I get back to good old DK.. I'm coming up with the kitchen for Granny, where the Gingerbread Man comes to life. Meanwhile I have also played around with character designs, storyboard and color keys for the film - so this kitchen has been put on hold. Working with the over all color concept is really interesting and very important, It is some of the first things you want to deside, otherwise you may have to go back and change your artwork later on. And by "you" I mean "I". Take this kitchen; I cant tell you too much, but it aint gonna be yellow!! (by Sus)

In the story there is a story book which I am working on Pt. Quite interesting! Here I am trying to find a good color for this illustration/forest and the cottage of the old man and the old woman. I like the happy nice feeling that the green forest has and should be. But otherwise my favorite is the 1st thumbnail. I'm trying to have the house stand out from the forest, using contrast in warm/cold colors and saturation. The characters need adjusting in color to fit in now... This is work in progress.. (by sus)

Jon Kenny

2007-11-03T11:37:00.000-07:00

Above: Irish funnyman, writer, actor Jon Kenny has agreed to do a voice for "Gingerbread Man". It's exciting to bring his talent and brain onto the project.

http://flickr.com/photos/docaoimh/ photo by Donal O' Caoimh

Monsters of Kerry revisited

2007-11-01T01:35:00.000-07:00

Jeppe has been working on the little boy monster design... and Maahir the little girl monster design. Finally getting them to a place where we can start building the models in the computer. Above is a little sketch by Maahir based on the designs of both fellows.

Trial by collage

2007-10-26T04:30:00.001-07:00

Above: Mark did some rough concept sketches of the "narrator". Loosely based on Eddie Lenihan. I am trying out a "Collage" style for the beginning sequences. Here I used photos from hair ads... and different cloth textures... still not completely working... but getting there. Tod

Sheep In The Deep

2007-10-18T07:56:00.000-07:00

Above: A rough concept from the "storybook sequence" borrowing heavily from Mary Blair, and Kay Nielsen. We are still developing the look of that section... but have some good leads. Right now its sort of a mis-mash of stuff... just seeing what works... and what doesn't... trying to get a direction.

tod

Coming Soon..

2007-10-17T08:28:00.000-07:00

Soo... Maahir and Susie are doing their own 2D animation project in their sparetime. This will be a fully animated 4½ hour feature! It is very good! Here is the first shot. Animation and character design by Maahir, background by Sus.

Proven Inspiration

2007-10-16T21:03:00.000-07:00

Above: Alice and Martin Provensen have had a huge influence on animated film design... both worked in animation until the early 1950s where they began illustrating and writing children's books. They married texture and graphic shapes in such a fun way.

tod

Visual Structure

2007-10-16T10:16:00.000-07:00

Above: Working with a visual structure... Having a road map to help guide a project is really helpful. Here I have plotted the intensity of each sequence of
"Gingerbread". If you use the same lighting, color, and contrast in each sequence of your film... your film will feel flat. But you can really push a story by pushing things visually. This method of working is described in Bruce Blocks book "Visual Storytelling". Dave Thomas, and Jorge Gutierrez, Roman Laney and I used this method on the TV show "El Tigre" for Nickelodeon with a lot of success. Just thought it might be interesting to show the Visual Structure for "Gingerbread" here.

tod

Inspiration from the land of the Danes

2007-10-15T03:24:00.000-07:00

Just wanted to show a few of the images that are influencing the look of "Gingerbread". Kay Nielsen (1886-1957) was a Danish illustrator who was popular in the early 20th century. He illustrated many children's books, and did a stint at Disney in the 1930s. I really like his use of shape and pattern. tod

to see more of his work go to:

http://www.artsycraftsy.com/nielsen_prints.html#nielsen

Bandy Characters

2007-10-10T22:02:00.001-07:00

Playing more with "the band" ... this group will provide a musical backdrop throughout the film. I imagined music being one element that ties all classes of Irish society together. Rich or poor... all can enjoy a pint... and the songs of a good band. Above is a sketch I did trying to show this concept. Not entirely happy with it... but there are some good ideas developing.

Tomm Moore of Cartoon Saloon has once again taken time out of his busy schedule, and put pen to paper helping develop the feel and look of "Ginger". Thanks Tomm!

tod

More sketches

2007-10-09T00:07:00.000-07:00

fun with characters

2007-10-08T09:01:00.001-07:00

YES... I know I should be doing my storyboard sequence for tomorrow but.... characters are FUUUUNNNNNN!!!!

(Posted by Sus)

Secondary Characters

2007-10-05T10:06:00.000-07:00

An early sketch of the fox... still exploring shape and color.

Another frequent pub patron... though an Irishman would never drink out of a mug like this I was later told. Old Scratch must 'ave brought it over with him from wherever he came from.

The "Monsters of Clare"... all children are terrifying ... from a cookies perspective.

I decided to upload some more early sketches from the film. All the characters have continued to develop from these designs. But you have to start somewhere... right? The process of taking something flat like this into 3-D has been interesting... Its been great working with "The Monk", Ingo, and Mark Oftedal on developing the designs for computer animation. Been a fun adventure... for me at least.

tod

Pub Patrons Kilkenny style

2007-10-05T04:59:00.001-07:00

Above: Cartoon Salooner Tomm Moore, took a crack at some of the pub characters. Tomm, Nora, and Paul all did voice work for "Gingerbread"... and it was great of Tomm to take a bit of time for these sketches... as he is directing the feature film "Brendan, and the Book of Kells" with Nora in Kilkenny. There are more sketches on the way says he!

A day out in Ayutthaya

2007-10-04T05:40:00.000-07:00

Ingo... excited about the rice he is about to receive... I think he got excited at least 3 times throughout the day.

Jannick... looking directly into the sun... and liking it.

Jeppe... new 40D camera in hand... ready for photo action. He did a flying backflip after this photo was taken.

Maahir... scouting video locations for "MacGyver Knife". http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=118922155 to take a listen.

Susanne... getting brownie points for wearing the kings colors... wearing her cleats, ready to kick some b**ty.

P'To ... managing director of "the Monk" ... and our guide for the day. Looking relaxed and in control. (actually he was looking for the restroom) Many thanks to him for showing us a great weekend.

"The Monk" took us out to see the old capital of Ayutthaya... a complex made of elephants and ancient temples all along the river. 2 hours on a boat... eating, drinking, and listening to live music. A few history lessons... a few new Thai words... Not a bad way to spend a Saturday afternoon.

tod

more sketches

2007-09-30T20:31:00.000-07:00

A Couple of sketches for the irish catholic folk preacher band and the pub crowd

Monsters Of Kerry

2007-09-30T11:28:00.001-07:00

Above: Some early inspirational sketches of "The Monsters of Kerry"... by the ever versitile Barry Reynolds. Barry is originally from Dublin, and has a great graphic style... and has really helped influence the look of "The Escape of the Gingerbread Man".

tod

ZOO photos

2007-09-27T20:52:00.000-07:00

Another research trip was made, this time to Bangkok zoo, in order to...ehrm...gather information about wildlife that could appear in the film, and such...and eat icecream.
These strange birds appeared out of nowhere. Fear struck the expedition members, but luckily, the creatures seemed to be of friendly nature.

Jannick, Yee and Ingo chilling in the jungle

Classic Inspiration

2007-09-27T10:11:00.000-07:00

Above: "Escape!!! of the Gingerbread Man" sketches from nearly 10 yrs ago!

I wanted to share a little more "Gingerbread" inspiration. I realized just today that I have been kicking this idea around for almost a decade! ... and am only getting to it now. Maurice Noble was involved early on this a few other projects we were cooking up called "Noble Tales"... he, and his group of trainees used to sit around his pool, drink cokes, eat cookies, and talk gags and story.

Above: A few of the "Noble Tales" short ideas that were in development by Maurice, and his trainees... the "Noble Boys".

Maurice is best known for his work at Warner Bros. and he explained why people loved the "Golden Oldie" cartoons of the 1940s & 50's. He also explained why after over 50 years... people still love them. He wanted to infuse the same elements into the cartoons we were trying to make. Here are just a few of those elements:

1. The shorts should be well designed and entertaining.
2. Don't make "children's films"... Explore mature themes... but with class.
3. The films should give an "impression" of a place, rather than a realistic view.
4. Don't forget the "craft" of film making... a small budget film doesn't have to look or feel low budget... make them look great ... and stand out from tv fare. It will pay off in the long run when people want to watch them again and again.

Maurice talked about a lot of other things as well... some of which I will share here at a later time... but really don't have time for now.

Here are two films that have made a huge impression on me over the years... and have had a big influence on "Escape!!! of the Gingerbread Man".

"Little Rural Riding Hood" -Tex Avery
The characters are great! Watch how each character has a specific movement style that matches their personalities. And even though there is a lot happening... and a lot of fast paced stuff... there really isn't all that much cutting. Tex really sets a stage, and lets the characters act on it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UoQ0YD3N5f8

"Together in the Weather" -George Pal
Just great writing, and a great delivery. Part of the Noble Tales series was meant to be a mix between whats best about animation, and whats best about traditional "oral storytelling". The only negative thing I have to say about this cartoon is that sometimes its difficult to understand what the narrator is saying. But for 90% of the film... its just great voice acting and delivery.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-8FTn9Xp2y8

Just wee lads

2007-09-26T10:36:00.000-07:00

Above: I thought I would talk a bit more about some of my inspiration for "Gingerbread". I found this photo somewhere on the net a while back. ( sorry I can't remember where exactly ) But it has inspired a lot of ideas... a whole sequence in fact!

Above: More photos ... if only for inspiration.

While these photos are funny in a peculiar way ... and while yes... there is a lot of beer in the film... no one actually gets drunk. After all... its only a cartoon. Sadly, I did come across more than one angry drunk schoolboy while working in Ireland.... and I dont mean to make light of this problem at all. It's not as funny when there are 10, 8 year olds standing around you with big wooden clubs.

tod

Chlong Hippos are very rare!

2007-09-24T20:41:00.000-07:00

Yes it was an amazing tour through the Chlongs in Bangkok. Very beautiful in a way, with it's dirty water, old broken houses, happy people and look... a hippo!!!

(Sus)

IIR (Intensive Irish Research)

2007-09-24T10:22:00.001-07:00

Above: Tod doing some very important "Pub Research" in Dublin... scouting potential locations, less than a stones throw from the Guinness factory. (photo by Da)

Da was very helpful in this phase of the research. Helping relieve some of the stress that creative thinking can bring. Tough work... but somebody has to do it.

Above: Another important phase of the "Pub Research" in Dublin... tasting the stout... seeing how it might inspire story and gag ideas. (photo by Da)

Above:A sketch by Tod... inspired by his intensive, deep, research in Ireland.

I thought it would be nice to upload some research photos from Ireland... where I met actual Irish people in their native habitat (to be shown in upcoming posts). I thought it was important to show how much thought and care has gone into the making of "Gingerbread Man". The "Gingerbread Man" team continues its research in Thailand... there are several pubs in Bangkok that pour a "proper pint".

PS:

2007-09-24T00:17:00.000-07:00

I recommend to click and enlarge the photos to really see what's going on in them:-)

Pics from THE CHLONG.

2007-09-23T23:27:00.000-07:00

One sunday afternoon, invited by Mark & Yee, we set out to visit the Chlongs - the venice of Bangkok. On the way I caught these worker dudes hanging out in the back of their truck. They didn't mind a white guy like me photographing them.
Bangkok has appearantly grown like crazy during the last decade - which means they had to throw up some infrastructure FAST and efficient. These Concrete rails carry the Skytrain around - and give the whole place a bit of a Blade Runner feeling. Especially when it rains.

Finally we reached the Chlongs which is a word for these canals - basically a recidential area on the west river bank whose houses rest on wooden pillars on the water.

We rode on these huge canoe boats with some kind of truck engine with a propella attached to push it forwardIf that isn't cool, nothing is cool. Right out of a lo tech movie.
Holy catfish that come up to the boat to eat toast bread near the temples (it's illegal to fish them near holy grounds) There are Thousands and they are quite big...

This guy is pretty cool too. In the background you see the temple. A little to the right of him, three monks in orange clothes were hanging out and drinking pepsi. The photo of them isn't as good as this one, so I left it out.

The river and the river houses...pretty basic stuff

Our beloved captain in complete control
Nice to see these cool kids having fun on the banks
The crew: The dudes in the FG (not Maahir) are Tou and Mark, and in the back you see Yee and Oi, Marks wife and a friend of hers.
Last one, waiting for the gate to go up...

That's all! All in all a nice little boat trip.

Work start

2007-09-23T08:48:00.000-07:00

So I finally got my first scenes to animate...allthough it's not on the gingerbread man, Im still adding it up in here...Three short scenes with the main character getting ready to fight his own shadow...Jannick

A place at "The Monk"

2007-09-20T11:59:00.000-07:00

Above (L 2 R): Ingo (waiting for a beard stroking), Jeppe (excitable curls), Jannick (monkey boy in front), Tod (passing gas), Juck (wondering if he has made a mistake), Susanna (a girl), and Maahir (a quiet bomb ready to explode) all jet lagged on the first real day of production.

A HUGE THANKS goes out to Juck, who was kind enough to invite Tod to make "Gingerbread" at his studio "The Monk" in Bangkok. Another HUGE THANKS for inviting this crazy group from the "Animation Workshop" , Denmark to join in for a few months. The rest of the studio is looking forward to joining in as well... some of the very top talent in Thailand... but they are busy finishing up a few projects first. Look for more about this talented bunch in the future.

The site isn't finished at the date of this posting... but you can read more about "The Monk" at http://www.themonkstudio.com

Making a kitchen

2007-09-20T05:05:00.001-07:00

Above: An early sketch from the "kitchen sequence" where there is much love... and where the GBM is born.

Character Designs

2007-09-20T04:53:00.000-07:00

A few of Sus's sketches for the crowd of handsome men in the Irish pub
- and one of Grandma.

The Irish talk like that

2007-09-18T22:31:00.000-07:00

Above: Eddie Lenihan scratching his beard at "the animation workshop" in Viborg, Denmark.

No, he's not a leprechaun... this is Eddie Lenihan. Eddies passion in life is to preserve as many of the old stories of Ireland as possible before they disappears forever. He was a big inspiration when writing the Gingerbread man script... and was kind of enough to go over it ... and add his own dash of Ireland to it. He works in the pub every night... writing over a pint or two of Guinness. His website is... http://www.eddielenihan.com/

A GINGER START

2007-09-18T21:44:00.001-07:00

Above: Tod's first Gingerbread man sketch... to be reworked and refined... and eventually eaten.

We have just started the short film this week... working on pre-production... script... background designs... character designs... and boards. The Thai crew, and the gang from Denmark are already shifting into high gear... and have brought a lot of energy to the studio, and the production.

tod

Pics from everyday life

2007-09-18T21:33:00.000-07:00

Yep, here's a couple of photos from the first week and ½. Later there will hopefully be sketches and fun stuff from the production too, so that you guys can see that we're actually working...

Our fantastic and incredibly intelligent and handsome director

The tech department hanging out in the yard and smoking guns... Oo to the left and May to the right

The directors kicking eachother's butts in Wii Boxing

This cat, whose name is MAXIMUM, is very cool

Yes, he is smiling, but don't be tricked; this guy will kill for a shawarma. Which, by the way, were delicious.

FG: One happy south african BG: Tou, focused on shuffling for another round of UNO.

The view from the back of yet another Thai cab in yet another traffic jam.

One night in Bangkok..

2007-09-18T21:26:00.000-07:00

Tuesday night we went to have dinner at a muslim place in Sukumvit. Animators usually meet here once a week . We got Shawarma and it was niiiiice! Afterwards we hung out at this turkish place and enjoied some thick coffee and a pipe. Mmmhh....