Happy Birthday, Ethan Karson!

Ethan is a co-worker and fellow member of the Pixar improv troupe, The Improvibles.

It's signed from "Evil" because we have two Austins in The Improvibles, and I happen to be the more nefarious of the two.

34 days...

A Very Miserables Musical

The latest poster for Pixar's improv troupe, The Improvibles.

 

I originally had Russell Crowe belting out a shattering melody note to the tagline, "Even worse than Russell Crowe." My wiser colleagues mentioned that RC might supply a voice for Pixar some day and that the more prudent path would be leaving the note intact.

I still think it's funnier the other way.

3 days...

Opening Weekend of "The Scotland Company"

In traditional British style, we celebrated with tea and cake! And by tea, I mean shots.

We do like to stay well-stocked with actual tea in the dressing room, though.

When people say, "Break a leg!" my co-star JTop hears, "Bust a shoe!" He's really putting his soul into this role.

Our show had what might be my favorite teaser poster of all time.

So, when it came time to put up an actual poster, I wanted to make sure it was done right!

And, in typical narcissistic actor style, I made sure my character was the only one on the poster. Take that, ensemble!

If you're in San Francisco between now and October 27th, come check us out at the Exit Theatre! 

15 days...

The Scotland Company

Have you ever wondered about the ancient beginnings of Scotland and how the first highlanders came to tame such a rugged land of myth and legend? Neither have we! But we decided to make up our own version of Scotland's origin anyway. 

In Thunderbird Theatre's The Scotland Company, I play Henry G. I. Scot, Official Royal Secretary of the Interior of the Common Wealth of Great Britain, Steward of the Interests of the etc, etc....

Together with his cadre of comical cohorts, Henry endeavors to uncover the great mystery that lies under all that plaid... 

Thunderbird is also running an indiegogo page for The Scotland Company. If you're a supporter of the arts, or just wanna be a producer, please donate here.

9 days...

Thunderbird Theatre presents...

This October, writer Jake Rosenberg is making his stage debut with The Scotland Company, and I will be fortunate enough to play the lead, Mr. Henry G.I. Scot. I'm used to developing characters through pencil and paper, so I thought I'd do my first explorations of Henry as sketches.

I didn't want to limit myself to my physical appearance, I was more interested in the impression I got from the man on the script page. It made me curious. What sort of tea does he like?

Is he a pipe man...

 ...or a cigar man?

How athletic/competitive is he?

What is his ideal Sunday afternoon?

Sketching Henry made me a bit more acquainted with the fellow, and I can't wait to learn more about him!

4 days...

Happy Birthday, Rebecca Stockley!

The first thing you learn in Rebecca's improvised acting class is to say "Yes, and..." instead of "No, but..." It's the general practice of plussing someone else's idea instead of shutting it down. An idea may seem mediocre, but that's the challenge: using what works, and making it great.

YES it's Rebecca's birthday AND we wish her an amazing one!

If you're in San Francisco, you can see Rebecca perform at BATS (Bay Area Theatre Sports) in Fort Mason.

14 days...

Nerd of the Rings

Pixar's improv team, The Improvibles, is delving into the land of trolls, hobbits, and level eight gelatinous cubes tonight with our first Dungeons & Dragons show (the first of many, this bard hopes). What makes this show particularly special is our guest star, Brave director Mark Andrews!

One show to rule them all!

7 days...

And the Surfer goes to...

The Oscars are so competitive these days, there really ought to be an award for runner-up. Silver usually denotes second place, so how about a Silver Surfer in lieu of a Golden Oscar?

 Why Meryl Streep would ever get second place, I have no idea.


o days....Oscar night! Viva La Luna!

Earl Grey

My doppleganger, Zack Keller (co-creator of Dick Figures), informed me that my Dick Figures character, Earl Grey, has his own wikipage. I noticed the trivia section on this character is a little sparse, so let me shed some light on this monochromatic mastermind:

-He spells "grey" with an "E" for the same reason he spells "colour" with a "U": because he's not a knuckle-dragging commoner.

-Earl Grey is the mixed-race sire of two royal families, Black and White.

-This supervillain does not move objects through telekinesis. Rather, he "elevates" objects from their working class to a higher station in space/time.

-Aside from high concentrations of colour, Earl Grey's one other vulnerability is a weakness for Twiglets and Pickle.

-Earl Grey has a similar affliction as his cousin and fellow land-holding title-bearer, Lord Tourettes. He suffers from narcolepsy, and must constantly imbibe tea or else pass into a deep REM state.

-And finally: in Season Four, Earl Grey may or may not make an appearance in a Christmas episode entitled "Dickens Figures."

I hope that slakes the wiki admins' thirst for Earl Grey.

27 days...

The Monster Squad

My friends and fellow improvisers, Christian Roman and Don Schmidt, joined me for this year's costume contest. We went as younger versions of the Universal Monsters applying for a transfer to Monsters University. No word yet on the status of our application.

 

Yet another improviser, Kitt Hirasaki, about to get a nasty hickey from Drac. Someone should have told the count that "Nein" means "Nein!"

Super villains unite! Dark Helmet and Magneto were both entirely hand-made. Magneto may be able to move metal, but Drac can move Halloween merchandise!

If you have any pics of your Halloween brilliance and/or atrocities, please leave a comment below! If not, enjoy those raisins and smarties!

0 days...Happy Halloween!

The Emeryville Horror

At Pixar, no one can hear you scream...unfortunately, everyone can hear you sing. 

Our theatre troupe, The Improvibles, is doing a horror musical this Friday. I know it's supposed to be an entirely improvized performance, but I'm already planning to launch into this song as our show closer. 

19 days...

The Adventures of Batman and the Bloser

As promised, here is the season three premiere of Dick Figures, complete with their new nemesis, the maniacally monochromatic mastermind, Earl Grey (voiced by yours truly).

 

Thanks to my pals Zack Keller and Ed Skudder for letting me contribute a character to their sick little world. I'd love to make this guy a reoccurring villain, so be sure to leave plenty of YouTube comments demanding more Earl Grey. Hot.

39 days...

Micro Rex Zoetrope

In case you missed my zoetrope at the Oakland Airport's Pixar Exhibit last Autumn, Trip Park was kind enough to assemble the images for a youtube clip.

Micro Rex is a character I created for the Super Big Micro Show and, despite being an installation for the Pixar exhibit, is not a Pixar-affiliated character.

It's not the greatest walk-cycle in the world, but not bad for being animated in photoshop without a pencil tester.

And now for something completely different:

Today is the last round of theatre sports for Pixar's improv troupe, The Improvibles. Our Improv-Dome tournament has been going on for quite a while. Rivalries have fostered, friendships torn asunder. Who will stand triumphant? The audience shall decide!!!

I always tell animation students that drawing (particularly observational drawing from life) is the key to growing as an animator. I'd say acting is the second most essential tool in the animator's survival kit. Improv is a great way to hone performance skills, delve into character motivations and scene structure, and gain on-the-spot brainstorming skills all while making a complete ass out of one's self.

Poster by Zombiesmith game designer and fellow dandy Jason Topolski.

37 days...

A Very Pixar Christmas
and
The Super Big Micro Show

Hello readers, it's been quite a weekend! Events kicked off Friday evening with Pixar's improv group, the Improvibles and our "A Very Pixar Christmas" show.

Poster by esteemed storyman Chris Roman (the youngest one in curls).

The show included everything from a Rankin Bass animated skit (a moving people game where Don and I were "animated" by an audience member) to an original carol about the Christmas tree catching fire and the warm glow of "Christmas cheer" (flames) spreading to the neighbors' houses.

The Improvibles gather for their annual Christmas Card photo

After the show, it was a straight drive down to LA for the Super Big Micro Show, organized in part by my pal and fellow Sacramentan Jeremy Spears (seen here with my favorite piece in the gallery).

Jeremy can bearly contain himself.

I also had the pleasure of meeting long-time Chades Challenger, Zane Yarbrough, who is interning two doors down from Gallery Nucleus at Bolt City Productions.

Chades Challengers unite.

I'm happy to report that all of my pieces sold, so even though Micro Rex met an untimely end, he will always be remembered. Here is the final Micro Rex series, in all of its framed glory.

A Visit from Mr. Odonata

Shoo, Fly!

Dino Soars

First Kill

Rex on the Beach

The Ill-Fated King

12 days...

The 2011 Film Project
Part I: Shoot on the Butte

I joined a group of friends in some filmmaking hijinks over the weekend. The indefatigable Emma Coats (director of the upcoming Hitchhiker) led us to the top of a mountain, and we returned at the end of the day with shots worthy of a David Lean picture.

Against all of my animation training, I venture outside to make a film.


After an hour of hiking, we reach our location: the summit of a butte. And let me tell you, the view was a real beaut indeed.


I may only be an extra in the film, but the props make the job worthwhile.


Erick watches over the camera. Witness protection asked us to keep his face concealed in all images.

At the end of her film's first weekend of shooting, Emma takes a well-deserved breather. Okay, so she may not be completely indefatigable, but she she's pretty hardcore.

As for me, I prefer the comfort of animation. Hell, this was animated on an iPad in a bar; you'd never guess it by the grace and sophistication if the linework.

Staff Meeting
I just completed a quarter staff class at Pixar.

Now I can finally track down and duel Star Wars kid.

WHAT I'M DOING THIS SUMMER...

Still from The Hitchhiker, short film by Emma Coats

Wow, I feel really blessed to be having such a fun, inspiring, and very busy summer so far. First off, thanks so much for everyone who has gone out and supported Up. Of the three Pixar films I've worked on so far, it's certainly my favorite. Russell is one of my favorite characters I've ever animated and I couldn't have asked for a funnier, taller boss than Pete Docter. A lot of nay-sayers *cough*Wallstreet Journal*cough* said that the film wasn't marketable and that no one would turn up to watch a film about a seventy-eight year-old man, but Up's numbers have been Pixar's highest since Finding Nemo. Turns out folks do respect their elders!

I also have two childhood dreams in the works this summer: animating on a Toy Story movie, and preparing for a dinosaur dig. I've started brushing up on my dino-lore recently. I've been keeping up with my paleontology news, but I haven't seriously studies the subject since I was ten years old. Something tells me I'll need more than a 4th grade-level knowledge of prehistoric life out on the dig.

On top of that, my good pal Emma asked me to be in her latest short film, The Hitchhiker (I play Mike, the guy who picks up said hitchhiker). I'm not the kind of guy to turn down an auteur like Emma, so I gladly signed up and we've been having a blast shooting in gas stations, cemeteries, and bunny-laden houses. Here are a few stills from the film, coming soon to a film festival near you! (Cinematography by Dani Strijleva)

Having a word with my co-star, improviser extraordinaire Rebecca Stockley.

Here's some production art Emma did for the film, with a background plate she shot for the scene.