Seeing that our project is beginning to take some big steps, I reckon I’ll start writing sporadic updates on the progress of writing the Brackenwood feature film. Without giving too much away this is probably a decent starting point for a full-fledged production blog from which it’ll be fun to retrace the film’s progress in years to come.

OK, for several months now, Ryan and I have been having regular story meetings over Skype. We’re using free scriptwriting software called Celtx (which I’ve featured here in the past) to organise the project. The file - which we send back and forth as we add our ideas - is packed with reference images, concept sketches, character, animal and world descriptions and many pages of randomly typed ideas. It also contains test scenes in script form, basic structural notes and broad act strokes.

Co-writer

I’ve known Ryan O’Loughlin now for about 15 years. We worked together at Disney and he was always an insanely talented artist and animator. He progressed through the ranks of animation and eventually came to be a character lead on several well-known Disney movies. Almost inevitably he became an Animation Director (notably on the Lion King and Peter Pan sequels). He’s been living in L.A now for a number of years, working as a story artist for Disney and now Dreamworks.

Typical Brackenwood Story meeting

Ryan is in Los Angeles and I’m in Sydney, Australia. At the start of each call we recap our last meeting and swap whatever notes, solutions and ideas we have come up with during the week. Generally, we both type our fast-flowing ideas throughout the conversation which can be anywhere up to 3 or 4 hours. It’s always an intensely focused, creative process where we identify structural problems and work out ways to overcome them. Invariably (so far), once a given problem goes back and forth a bit, we’ll figure out a workable solution and occasionally, something even clicks into place.

I decided to start documenting this journey because today, for the first time ever, I actually saw a proper structure beginning to emerge. Brackenwood is starting to smell like a film and I’m really really happy with how it’s growing. I’ve always been the first to admit I’m not too hot with storytelling structure so I feel privileged to have Ryan working with me on this.

 Further updates

Like I said, these updates will probably be sporadic to start with.  I’ve just filled you in on our process of working out structure and writing the outline, so there won’t be much to say for a few weeks, or at least until we start actually blocking in the acts. I’d like to get Ryan to contribute a few words here at some point too.. as I mentioned before, he’s a wicked artist so I’d like to post one or two of his Brackenwood concept paintings, sooner or later :)

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Unrelated update: For those people waiting for Chapter 2 of “The Animator’s Flash”, sit tight. I’ve just finished the 4th D&D so I’ll have some time to upload the new chapter in a few days.

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My work on the Rice Krispies “Box of Fun” project has won the Silver Telly Award. Wee! Press release:

Rice Krispies’ “Box of Fun,” a Sing-a-long Video Animated and Produced by Adam Phillips, Wins 2008 Silver Telly Award

18th June, 2008 - Top former Disney talent Adams Phillips, working with Kalamazoo, Mich.-based interactive agency Biggs|Gilmore, has won the 2008 Silver Telly Award for Animation, the highest honor bestowed at the Tellys.

The “Box of Fun” sing-a-long, which is available online at www.RiceKrispies.com, was created to encourage moms and kids to sing and make music together to the catchy lyrics of children’s favorite, Ralph’s World.

“Working with Adam was outstanding. A truly talented individual who does great work on his own AND when you hire him. He has no double-standards and that shows. We worked across time zones and against deadlines and it all came together without a glitch. Congrats, Mate.,” said Biggs|Gilmore’s Wolfgang Hofmann (Associate Creative Director).

Thanks Wolfgang! :D

-Phillips

(ps. it looks like this)

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BCA is finally launched with a free chapter from an upcoming eBook, which I’ll soon be selling from the new BiteyCastle Academy page. Whether or not you have animation experience, this introductory chapter will introduce you to the Flash CS3 environment and start you off with a simple frame-by-frame animation exercise.

Huh? Where did this come from?

I left Disney Australia in 2004 but when the studio was closing down in mid-2006, I was called back to run a series of Flash animation workshop for all the animators who were about to find themselves on the front steps. Over the space of a couple months, I ran about 6 separate classes, each a week long with 6-8 people at a time. In that short time, they thoroughly enjoyed the course and quickly learned how to apply their animation skills to Flash. Lots of new short film, character and series ideas were flying around the rooms and all were excited about the future.

So not too long ago I caught up with a few of them and they told me that due to other commitments, new dog, whatever.. they had forgotten everything they’d learned and wanted to do the course again. I had been toying with the idea of writing a Flash book but now I’ve decided to make this an eBook, not just for the animators who I know personally, but for everyone who’s ever asked me a Flash question, wanted some animation tips or emailed asking me to be their mentor.

There are many more chapters to come but you may just find the free chapter is all you need to get started. If you are one of those from the course, this chapter will bring you back up to speed pretty quick.

I know you’re wondering what the sale price will be for the remainder of the book, but so am I. I’m still undecided but let’s say I want it to be less expensive than a standard Flash Animation book in bookstores, but I also won’t sell it short. I guess it’ll be between  $20 and $40 so if you’re interested, stick around.

gnight from Phillips!!

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Big post.. lots of news. Sorry I haven’t posted in a while. Been busy on BCA DVDs, a freelance assignment and writing the Brackenwood movie. If it wasn’t for the news in my inbox today, it might have been another couple of weeks before I posted a new article.

Newgrounds.com has honoured Waterlollies with their first annual Tank Award for Best Flash Animation of 2007. I’m still smiling 2 hours after reading the news, but it’ll be impossible to wipe the smile off my face when I receive the trophy. It’s an amazing cast bronze(?) NG tank and apparently very heavy. I’ll post photos when I get my hands on it, but here’s the image from the newgrounds site. Click the image to see the other entries and judging info and panel.

As I said in my ‘thanks’ post on newgrounds:

 

 

“Thanks so much NG for this huge honour. I couldn’t keep doing these movies without the continued support from Newgrounds and the Brackenwood fans.

I’ve said it before and I’ll always say it: if it weren’t for Newgrounds, my site would still be a relative unknown on a shared server and I’d probably still be working in a studio as ‘talent-on-tap’ churning out terrible sequels, like so many extremely talented people who deserve better.

Now I’m working from home, and while the money isn’t as good as a full-time job, I make enough in AdSense to pay for a dedicated host, which makes my site almost self-sufficient. This gives me time to work on my personal projects including a Brackenwood feature film which I’m no co-writing with a close ex-Disney colleague in Los Angeles. Quite simply, none of this would be happening if it weren’t for Newgrounds. I’ve got NG to thank for it all.

I’m completely gob-smacked.
Thank you,
A. Phillips”

Of course, there are others who have been supportive of my work, so here let me just add a big thanks to Aaron over at ColdHardFlash.com. for his support over the years. I’m really grateful to him for helping me get the word out about each new Brackenwood and it’s guys like him that makes it all worthwhile for independent artists like me. Cheers mate, *raises glass*

In Other News

I briefly mentioned at the start of this post that I’m working on the BCA DVDs. Yes they’re finally well under way.. well under way. I went and deleted several days of work a few weeks back, because I was watching it back and it was incredibly boring, listening to me drone on about stuff. So the format has changed slightly and I’m now working from a script, rather than trying to wing it (which just results in me stammering, uhming and ah-ing).

Anyway, the lighting section will be free and I’ll post them here on the WoodenBlog and/or on their own dedicated BCA page. Freelance work does get in the way a bit, but it shouldn’t be long now before you start seeing regular chapters. Once again, it’s lighting effects that will be free for now, but I’m still not sure how or whether to sell the other FX DVDs.

Home made airgun

Yes, I do occasionally move away from this computer. The other day I made a how-to video which was my second to be featured on instructables.com. It’s all about how I built my powered blowgun and demonstrates how you can do the same. If you have an instructables account, log in, rate and comment! You don’t need an account to view it though. Click the image below to see the instructable:

D&D shorts

The third of my shorts for Dungeons and Dragons 4th Edition is up on YouTube, but it’s not on the Wizards channel. It’s on Bart Carroll’s.. he’s one of the producers credited on the short. Here it is:

Until next update, gnight!

Adam

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I wasn’t going to do this, but I had the idea and I had a little time, so I thought what they hey. My entry for Aniboom’s Radiohead comp is called “One of us”. You’ll see how the story is influenced heavily by my love of Celtic folk myth, mixed with the lyrics of ‘Jigsaw Falling Into Place’. Even if it doesn’t pass judgement, I would love to finish this story.

Watch and rate: “One of us”

I used Storyboard Pro for the board.

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