Jabberwocky and Lewis Carroll

As I mentioned in a previous post, I have been doing a series of illustrations for an upcoming biography on Lewis Carroll by Sadi Ranson-Polizzotti. I have been commissioned to create a series of characters from Carroll's texts. Here's my interpretation of the Jabberwocky.

Me at TED?

For the last year or so I have been obsessed with TED . I go there for inspiration, enlightenment, and pure entertainment. I recently got an email from a friend who told me I made it to TED. It turns out Al Gore regularly uses my PSA as a part of his global warming talk and showed it this year at TED. It's funny because two days earlier I thought to myself, "if I can make it to TED before I'm 80, then I'll be happy." In a way, I made it there sooner. Check out Al Gore's talk at TED.

Workin' for a Livin'

So I have been directing/producing an animated short for a Boston entrepreneur. We're well into production, so here's an animation still. More to come!

Philippe and Pierre Interview

Frederator Studios Blog recently interviewed Philippe and Pierre behind my back. You can check out their interview here.

PnP NEW TOON!

That's right folks, a new episode of Philippe and Pierre is upon us. As winter keeps chugging along...at least here in New England...this animated short is sure to warm up your soul.

Check it out at www.IDIOTICADVENTURES.com

Pass it on from YouTube

XOXOXOXO
Dave, Philippe, and Pierre

The Hatter

I've been working on some illustrations for a Lewis Carroll biography and this weekend, I managed to work on some more tests. Here are a couple different styles directions for The Mad Hatter...I liked the manic qualities of these.

Journal Entry from July 15th, 1997

I was reading through some of my old journals from the last ten years. Up until the last year, I wrote consistently since I was in high school. It's amazing to think of your life as over 500 pages of words. Weird. I came across one entry that stood out to me. It took place the summer before I entered my senior year of high school...not having too much direction. I didn't change anything about this entry except for some spelling mistakes (before I owned my first MAC).

TUESDAY, JULY 15, 1997
Today I saw the Disney movie, Hercules. It was such a fun movie! My jaw was nearly hanging during the entire film...and the animation was completely over-the-top. It was just amazing. This movie helped me understand the value of artwork, but specifically animation. I'm now thinking about art school. I think I have the talent and the ideas, but now I have to put them to use. My brother put it a good way. He said, "Working for Disney or Nick is like going pro in sports". He's so right and that's the route I want to take. My dream is now to work for an top-notch entertainment company making cartoons.

It's funny reading that now. It's especially funny because the following year I went to the University of Massachusetts to study political science. It took me another two years to realize what I was meant to do. I'm glad I came to that decision, even if took me a little longer.

Thanks Frederator!

A big thanks to Jeaux Janovsky, Eric Homan, and the crew at Frederator. The first episode of Philippe and Pierre was featured this week on Channel Frederator. In addition, I was interviewed by The Frederator Studio Blog about the conception and production of Philippe and Pierre. You can check out the interview here.

Once again a big thanks to Frederator Studios!

Lewis Carroll and Serendipity

So a couple weeks ago, I was doodling away at Starbucks. A lady saw that I was drawing and asked if she could take a peek. I agreed and she began to tell me that she was also an artist (a writer). Sadi went on to mention that she was close to finishing a biography of Lewis Carroll, which will be published in NYC and London this summer. Make a long story short, she contacted me last week and wants me to do some quirky illustrations for the book. I whipped up this test sketch of the Caterpillar in my sketchbook yesterday, and I did the coloring this afternoon. I don't think I'm going to with this style, but I thought it was a fun experiment. I'll upload more tests in the coming weeks.

Big Loser

I haven't posted anything in a couple weeks because...well...I don't have a good reason. I've been working on an animated demo for a local studio and other than that, I've been developing new content for my own future projects. All is well in Schlafmanland. In the meantime, here's a little test I whipped up last night...

Let the Idiotic Adventures BEGIN!

It's been many months since my first post about Philippe and Pierre. The team has put down their Wacom pens and the result is finally up for everyone to enjoy. Pileated Pictures and myself present to you The Idiotic Adventures of Philippe and Pierre.



Stay tuned every other Monday as we will release a new toon on the Philippe and Pierre website. Check out all the action at
www.IDIOTICADVENTURES.com

I want to give a HUGE thanks to the folks who made this happen:
1. Mike Levine at Pileated Pictures.
2. Dan Flynn (Animation)
3. Evan Sussman (compositing and effects)
4. Joe Pleiman (Sound design)
5. Fletcher Beasley (Theme Music)
6. Matt Moore (Website)

Although the project was my vision, it couldn't have happened without these folks. I'm truly lucky to have worked with all of them and it shows. Sign up for the newsletter as more toons and goodies are on the way!

Uh-Ohs...It's a Wrap!

For the last three months, I have been working on a series of fun educational safety shorts with SNAP Studios for the National Fire Prevention Association. Scott Nash and his team came up with the look while I co-wrote/directed the shorts. It was the first
time I directed animation using someone else's style, and I had a ton of fun working on them. The talented crew was made up of folks from sea to shining sea. Here's a few stills from the Bike Safety PSA. The video will be up on YouTube in a day or two.