FATKAT IS HIRING AGAIN!

Fatkat is looking for 4-6 more talented folks to join our crew. You MUST have a great handle on basic animation principles and a good design sense either in characters or backgrounds.

Fatkat likes versatile folks. The more programs you know the better; as we are a studio that is commissioned to produce a whole plethora of different projects. From full 3D productions, motion graphics work in after effects, print ads, commercials, traditional pieces and a TON of flash work.

If you're a jack of all trades, even if you're not and a very good aritst. Apply now! We need folks TODAY!

gfowler@fatkatanimation.com

Thanks!!

Gene.

FATKAT JUDGES SKILLS COMPETITION

It's nice to be thought of as an industry pro. I forget sometimes that I'm actually doing the things I do for a living. It's also nice to see that the local schools have woke up after years of telling kids that you'll never make a living in art of music. (This I've personally experienced, as I'm sure some of you have).

But now, man! I hardly recognized my old high school. There are computers everywhere! Gaming, multimedia, programming. They even have courses on compositing and video editing! Amazing! Simply amazing. Kids are animating, modeling creating storyboards and being different and creative is endorsed rather then shunned.

This year I was asked to be a judge for the video editing portion of the 1st annual skills competition at James M. Hill. Very flattering and very fun. Unfortunatley all the kids were forced to use Windows Movie Maker for their video editing program; but man, they made the best of it. Some were down right amazing!

Alot of these kids have a very bright future ahead of them in the digital arts. Bravo!

Here's a photo of me with the winners of the competion. Congrats to Nick and Holly!

FUNNY FROM CURRY

My Dear pal Glenn Curry decided to snag an incriminating photo of his employer and fine toon said cantankerous old scab into the crevices of this studio photo. Look and be amazed at this wonderful depiction of the everyday abuse studio animators and designers absorb on an everyday basis. Witness the...HEY! FOOK YOU! GET BACK TO WORK!

DALLAS MAVERICKS PROJECT

Here's one we did last year with the Fantastic Tony Grillo. These air on a jumbotron at the Dallas Mavericks games in Texas. Fun!

BACK IN BLACK VIDEO PARODY

MORE LINKS TO PAST FATKAT PROJECTS

My Adventures with Cloe, Animated title sequence
Leisure Time RV Spot
Nova Scotia Liquor Commission Spot
Of course, The Soap & Pubey Show
KatBot Animation Test
Marble Mountain Spot
Lonestar Video, Mr. Mom
Fatkat Promo Spot

LINKS TO PAST FATKAT PROJECTS

Since it doesn't seem that we're going to have our new website up anytime soon and since our blog is getting more hits then our website anyway. (Although this month we've gotten 30,000 hits!)

Through the Faktat blog is probably the best and easiest way to showcase some of our recent works. wow, if only our website was this easy to update!

Here we go: (Many more to come, as soon as I can log back into my ftp! GRR)

1. Toyota Echo spot
2. Toyota Camry spot
3. Toyota Corrola spot
4. Animated short for Penny Arcade
5. A clip from an animated promotional video for Heritage Salmon

A NEAT TOUR OF PIXAR

Very cool from the Mutha's at www.aintitcool.com
Check it out here

FATKATS GO SNOWBOARDING!

What a blast, snowboarding! Going again real soon too!

I was too chicken to bring my camera on the hill so all I have is an old picture of me 8 yrs ago!

Here's some fugged up pictures of the ride there and back. There's some funny ones of Mick, as he was still feeling silly from the night before. Good on ya Mick!













FATKATS GET SHITFACED

While I was at the studio all evening slaving away on current and future projects, my no good for nothing crew went and got hornswoggled at the local Irish pub. Fuggers!

Oh well. I'm drinking all day today and answering the phones! Give us a call!















Photos from Mitch Martin's Camera, Happy birfday Mitch! Your my Daddy!

MASCOT FAMILY DESIGN UPDATE

Here's the mom!

THE SOAP & PUBEY SHOW | LAUNCH!!

Ok, here goes, let's get sued and booed. My wife hates it, but we still giggle, if it don't fit then it's time to wiggle.

Ladies and gent's I present to you The Soap & Pubey show.

MASCOT FAMILY UPDATE

Well, now that I've added Fred Moore's rules on drawing (see below) I get to totally disregard them and show you recent designs!

Here's is an update to the mascot family. I cleaned up the kids last night/today. I still have the mother, the dog, the family van and Patrick is cleaning up the travel trailer.

This production will obviously be executed in the good old "Marionette Style" animation, which is perfect for projects such as this.

Man I love flash, you can get some great quality with great efficiency. Still takes a long time to design though. Maybe in 8-ball they'll have a "Make easy" button.

FRED MOORE'S RULES ON DRAWING

Fred's 14 Points of Animation

1. Appeal in drawing
2. Staging
3. Most interesting way? [Would anyone other than your mother like to see it?]
4. Is it the most entertaining way?
5. Are you in character?
6. Are you advancing the character?
7. Is this the simplest statement of the main idea of the scene?
8. Is the story point clear?
9. Are the secondary actions working with the main action?
10. Is the presentation best for the medium?
11. Does it have 2 dimensional clarity?
12. Does it have 3 dimensional solididty?
13. Does it have 4 dimensional drawing? [Drag and follow through]
14. Are you trying to do something that shouldn't be attempted? [Like trying to show the top of Micky's head]

FATKATS GO BOWLING FOR KIDS

Amongst all the silly fun and games we take in here at Fatkat. Once in awhile we actually do something meaningful.

This year Fatkat decided to take part in the annual "Bowl for kids"event.

Beside a grumpy old man from a local real estate company telling us how to play the game, we had a great time and raised some moolah for the kiddies.







OFTEN DUPLICATED BUT NEVER... ... MMM PIZZA

Check it out.

Fatkat's recent business trip to Norwalk Connecticut yielded an interesting find. While Andrew and I were out in about in our Spyder convertible rental we came across this fantastic pizza pie joint downtown. What a great logo.

LAMBEY, WE HAVE YOUR BROTHER.

This is no Joke, we gots him. We'll send pictures and a list of our demands.

-Stank

THE PITCH


Thanks to Mick for the great caricature. I ain't really that bad though, or am I?


MASCOT STYLE CONCEPT - ROUND 02

Right, so today we send off a new style concept to the client who needs a mascot family designed. These designs by Fatkat's James Stewart are really neat, but don't lend themselves to Marionette style flash animation. So I opted to take another route that had some flash strategy behind them.

These had the strategy but were still too cartoony for the client, the requested having the sophistication of the above with the appeal of those below. I figure i hit it pretty well with the following.

Here's the Dad, he took me awhile to finish today but I'm happy with the concept. I kinda skimped out on the hands, using a set from a past production. But they work ok.

THE SOAP & PUBEY SHOW

Here at Fatkat we do alot of fun stuff. I mean c'mon, we sit on our butts and draw or animate for a good 10-12 hours a day. That's better then digging ditches or working at a factory glueing together pieces of particle board that make up mini recliners. (they're lovely aren't they?)

No, we make cartoons. Cartoons of all shapes and sizes, Animated training films, motion graphic commercials, and shows for broadcast and the web.

The web, what a marvel. Anything goes on the web. You could be a novice or a pro, it's the ultimate test stage for your work. It's brought people fame and fortune and has also destroyed careers and families all over the globe. (At the moment it's destroying our network, damn viruses!)

Getting to the point of this post:

All sorts of stuff that we dream up here at Fatkat is quite coarse and offensive. Let's face it, we're very weird and nasty little people. The stuff we'd like to do sometimes would never fly on the air, who would buy it? Doesn't matter. The web is the ultimate conductor for our vicious energy.

Drum roll please.

I introduce to you "The Soap & Pubey Show". What a hoot, what a disastorous waste of time, what fun could you imagine us having on this, a hilarious nonsense concept. Tons!

Weeks ago Mick drew this picture in his sketchbook and it kind of grew from there.


From this simple and cutey sketch birthed a dark and carnivorous theme. Soap was to be a dried up vegas standup. A drunk, a has been or never was. Tired and disturbed this bar of soap would stand with his buddy Pubey at the side of your tub and tell you jokes while you were in the shower. Then the idea took a turn for the worse.

We decided that Saturday, we'd actually make it.


So as I type, Mick and Nevin are animating Soap & Pubey and all their elements. Last night the four of us stayed at Fatkat very late doing voice overwork. We all got together and sang the theme song and told jokes. We rolled with laughter all night. I was quite relieved to come in this morning and find the show still funny. Sometimes a good idea during beers and coffee at 3am isn't so good after your omellette at the diner the next morning. But it was.

We had tons of ideas on just who to include in the episode since Soap has to tell a joke to somebody. Mick, having hatred for many celebrities brought that very suggestion to the table. Every episode was then forth to have rancorous jokes directed to a different celebrity guest star. This weeks episode, Jennifer Aniston was nice enough to visit the set.

The animation will be posted soon. Have a coke and a smile.

-Gene.






GREAT COMPANY - CRUMMY LUNCH

Ok, as I said before, we had what some would call a subpar buffet at a local pizza joint. The company was great. Sitting with the Fatkat crew is like nothing else. The creative conversation and the mass of ideas that get flung around. It's so cool to be surrounded by talent. You should have lunch with us. Whoever you are. We'll do it too, just request it, info@fatkatanimation.com

So here's some pictures of us chowing.



And not to mention our receipt. Check out the slogan, what are the pizza guys trying to tell us?


CUSTOM CHAIRS FOR ANIMATION IDIOTS

Well, after a great lunch with the crew at a terrible restaurant. Mick and I decided to engage and the calculated act of hijacking funiture. At a local furniture clearance house that prefers to remain un-credited, we theived a couple of recliners best suited for little people rather then my 200+bulk, and Mick's 13 stone.

Here we are outside our favorite coffee shop, conviently located across from the studio.


And others inside the studio as Mick and I enjoy a stimulating conversation about dig dug (the video game, not the actor).




dumkid UPDATE

As much as I tried to convince the client that the style I designed dumkid in was the style they wanted for their mascots, they rejected it. They've chosen yet another style which I didn't think was too bad, but the want that and a mixture of another I was very hesitant in showing them in the first place.

Here's a lesson I learned a long time ago but recently, I've obviously forgotten.

If you don't like a design but you think the client will. Don't show it to them, because they will choose that one.

It's not necessarily a bad thing, oh well, as does everyone, I know what I like.

-Gene.

The one that almost got away

After Hyun Mi left, a few hours passed and I got a call from a friend of hers. He spoke pretty good english so it was easier to get a feel for what Hyun Mi was all about and what kind of skillsets she had.

I have come to learn that she's very much a capable Flash animator as well as super hero type background painter. ( I should have guessed, with her skills in painting so strong). Most people who are that highly skilled are multifaceted.

So here it is, I've hired her, I just couldn't let her get away, a talent like that doesn't just walk in the door everyday. We have a rather large webisode series that we're working on at the moment and man, what a way to add some superior quality to the already amazing layouts that Mick has created. She'll be working freelance out of her home studio until a longer term project comes into Fatkat. Which should be relatively soon.

- Gene.

AMAZING BG PAINTER VISITS FATKAT

Just minutes ago Hyun Mi Cho had her portfolio spread upon our lounge coffee table as Dave, Mick and myself had the complete honour of going through it. Page after page of hand painted backgrounds from Spongebob, Martin Mystery, Batman, Clone Wars, Samuari Jack, Power Puff girls and Jackie Chan cartoons.

She's looking for a job as a BG Painter. I would have hired her on the spot if I could afford to and I still might. We have a few jobs that would require some BG work. But it's not a substantial amount. This lady is in need of a work permit to allow her and her son to stay in the country. Her husband still works in Korea as a BG painter wishes to join her as well. If anyone has a long term project that would require an amazing bg artist. Please, give the project to Fatkat so I can hire her.

dumkid

Amongst the many shows that we're developing at Fatkat, here's one that just so happened to drop into my lap today.

Recently we were awarded a rather handsome project, the client had a rather ingenius concept to help market their products. Creating a cartoon family to represent. I've done up a few concepts, amongst them was this guy;


So I was thinking to myself, if the client doesn't choose this style of character or in particular, this design. I'd like to try to make a show around him. dumkid, I believe would be about a kid who moves to the big city and gets a job as an intern at an animation studio. (sound familiar?)

I've opened the idea up to the web for development. You can contribute ideas here on the drawing board. I'd appreciate any ideas or past experiences. Or whatever!

This should be fun to develop, if the client doesn't want him.

Gene.




FATKAT KREW

Here's a picture of the production krew at Fatkat. Missing from the photo is a few of our producers who are located in other cities or provinces. For the saftey of the company and to prevent headhunting, (trust me it does happen) I won't be posting names of the crew members. But I tell ya, there's some fuggin amazing talent within our walls.

OUT OF THE STARTING GATE

Well, here goes. The Fatkat Blog.

I plan on documenting all sorts of stuff on this her blog. Projects in production, ideas in development, sharing of art, ideas and links.

All the stuff that happens within the walls of Fatkat anyway. But this way, you get to check it out too.

Enjoy.