New Year, New Layout!

As the dying roars of 2011 fade away and the great beast succumbs to extinction like its two thousand plus predecessors, it seems time for a facelift on the ol' Translation. Along with the new look will come a slew of new projects I will be updating you on. Stay tuned for a year of lusty sea shanties,  haunting campfire stories, and epic Scottish fairytales. We might even cross paths with a dinosaur or two.

59 days...

The Island Greeting That I Send To You...

Happy Channukah, Jolly Kwanzaa, and Wonderful Wookiee Life Day, too!

0 days...Merry Christmas!

Chades Challenge LXIV: Jolly Dragons

There's no better way to Santa-proof your house than a fire-breathing dragon with a taste for roasted reindeer.

Addendum 12/25/11 My mom's gift to her dog, Leia, just happened to be a dragon that looks exactly like my Chades design! It certainly made Leia a jollier schnauzer.

If you have any winter wyrms, let me know and I'll post them below. Otherwise, you can join in January 6th for:

CHADES CHALLENGE LXV: BANE

Nate "The Wreath Wraith" Wragg

Colleen "Mistletoe" Madden

2 days...

Hobbit Envy

TheThe Hobbit trailer (is that one too many the's?) came out last night. I'm waiting to see it on the big screen, but my DnD character, the pint-sized rogue Ilmare (who you may remember from posts such as these), says if they wanted a real halfling hero, all they had to do was ask.

Which trailer has you more excited: The Hobbit or The Dark Knight Rises? Or is it one of the myriad of films in the poll to the right?

4 days...

Merry Shirtmas!

Along with this year's BluRay exchange (which I walked away from with a brand new copy of Moon--yesss), the Dandies and I also had our first annual Shirtmas. Shirtmas is exactly what it sounds like a Secret Santa exchange limited exclusively to t-shirts. 

I was tasked with finding a shirt for Everett Downing. Ev just had his second kid, so I know he needs a nanny. And the best nanny I know of is the Avengers' personal governess, Squirrel Girl! 

For those of you who don't know, Squirrel Girl is the most powerful character in the Marvel Universe, having defeated Doctor Doom, Magneto, and Galactus. Ev's dream is to direct a SG movie starring none other than Toy Story 3's Kristen Schaal, so I drew this Shirtmas card for him. Kristen, if you're out there: Squirrel Girl--think about it!

I, in turn, got this fantastic H.P. Lovecraft shirt from my teaching partner, Paul Mendoza. I think I'll wear it to church Christmas morning!

Merry Shirtmas to all, and to all a plain white!

5 days...

Milquetoast & Cookies

Today is our 10th Annual DVD Exchange--sorry, 1st Annual BluRay Exchange at work. Can anyone guess what I brought?

6 days...

The Noodles Challenge

Being a toymaker has lost its luster since all any kid wants is an iPhone.

This is my contribution to my former student Fernando Brandi's Noodles Challenge. The idea is to do a drawing in the time it would take to nuke a cup-o-noodles (an animator's main source of nutrition).  This month's theme is "Your Elf Self". Mine is obviously obsolete and bored since I am so technologically inept. 

9 days...

The Joker and the Choker

That smoke in the background is probably laughing gas, which Batman has grown an immunity to over the years (much like Iocaine powder).

Speaking of laughs, I highly recommend a click on today's countdown link (below).

9 days...

Santa, Baby

If you're looking for a drawing challenge, here's a good one: illustrate a Christmas song! Santa, Baby always seemed rife with animation possibilities. Community certainly capitalized on the song's comic potential.

Emma Coats

Guillermo Martinez

Maggie Gevers

10 days...

School's Out II

See School's Out I here.

Paul Mendoza and I teach animation one night a week at the Academy of Art University. Last night was the last class of the semester, as evidenced by my whiteboard drawings:

As you may know from previous posts, I always leave a whiteboard drawing under the projector screen for the next class.

Today was special, because when I got to class, there was finally a whiteboard drawing waiting for me!

Also waiting for me: a delicious batch of cake pops! Thanks, Hannah!

Congrats to our students for a semester of fantastic animation!

11 days...