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Making Them Live With A Pencil

DID you know that one of the worlds most famous film celebrities is not even human? Yet he is the star of over a hundred Hollywood movies and countless TV shows. Who is this film star? In Italian hes called Topolino; in Chinese Mi Lao Shu; in Spanish El Ratn Miguelito; in English he is simply Mickey Mouse.

How did he come to life? He started his career in Walt Disneys film Steamboat Willie in 1928 and has gone on to become the most famous cartoon character of all time. Of course many other animated cartoon characters have achieved world fame Tom and Jerry Yogi Bear and the Pink Panther to name just a few. The artists who draw these cartoon films and characters are called animators. To find out how they work animator Bill Kroyer in Hollywood California tell a us..

Why are cartoons called animated films?

Because the word animate means to give life to. And thats what we do. We can make anything move and hopefully appear to come to life. When I worked at the Disney Studio I animated mostly people and talking animals. But Ive also animated dancing automobile engines for TV commercials and singing fruits and vegetables for health films. You name it we can make it move.

What makes an animated cartoon character appear to move?

The illusion of movement is made possible by the same phenomenon that makes live action movies appear to move. When you watch a movie youre really seeing 24 still pictures flash before your eyes each second. The light sensors in your eye retain each picture for a brief moment so all the pictures appear to blend together in a smooth continuous image. In animation we draw each one of those 24 still pictures.

Thats a lot of drawings!

Yes 1440 just to make one minute of film.

But at that rate a feature film like Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs would require more than a million drawings!

No the figure is closer to two million.

Why so many?

You never see most of the drawings because theyre done in the planning stages and only a fraction are used in the final version. In an animated film the story isnt written its drawn. A team of artists does hundreds of small sketches that are pinned to large cork boards called storyboards. Underneath are small notes describing the action or dialogue in each scene. The artists keep drawing and rearranging these sketches until the story is complete. When the artists have finished the storyboard tells the whole story of the film in pictures just like a giant comic book.

And then you start to animate the characters?

Not yet. First another team of artists designs the look of the film according to a particular design style. Sometimes we want the film to look like old Europe as in Disneys Pinocchio. At other times well go for a modern look. So the designers research and define the characters costumes buildings and so forth that will be in the film. Next our director divides the storyboard into scenes. Each scene is given a layout drawing one that shows the setting in which the scene takes place and where the characters will be in the scene. And thats where I come in.

Whats the first thing you do when you start a scene?

I study the scenes exposure sheet. Thats a chart that shows me how long the scene lasts and where all the sound effects music and words occur.

You mean the sound track for the film has already been recorded before you start to draw?

Of course. That way I know ahead of time what sound occurs on each and every frame of film. If the character says ouch on the 15th frame of my scene I draw him with a wide open mouth on that frame. Thats how characters are made to talk.

What do you draw with? Pen pencil brush?

I use a soft pencil because its easy to change and erase things. And I draw on a special kind of paper animation paper. It has holes punched along the bottom edge and these fit onto pegs on my drawing board. The pegs hold the paper in register consecutively from one drawing to the next. Another unusual thing about my drawing table it has a hole in it! The hole is covered by a piece of glass with a light beneath it. As I draw I can stack several transparent paper drawings on top of one another and see through them to make sure they are working together properly. When I start to draw I do very rough sketches just the basic shapes of the character. That way I can work quickly without detail and still visualize the movement I want.

Do you draw all your drawings rough?

Well I must tell you I hardly ever draw all the drawings in a scene. It would take me too long. The animator usually draws only the main drawings in a scene. These are called the extremes. They show the main poses or positions of the character throughout the scene. By flipping these main drawings between my fingers I can visualize how the movement will look. Then my assistant will do the in between drawings.

The speed with which the character moves will depend on how many drawings are put in between the extremes. For example I may draw a head facing to the left and another head facing to the right. If I put ten drawings between them the character will slowly turn his head from left to right as if hes watching someone walk by. If I only put one drawing between the two extremes he will snap his head quickly from left to right as if hes watching a car whiz by.

But how do you know how many intermediate drawings to use?

It takes practice and study. Animators are always watching the world around them observing how things move. Do you know how many frames it takes to make an eye blink? Or did you know that a normal walk is one of the toughest things to animate? If you study it youll see its a cycle of falling forward and catching your balance. And no two people walk exactly alike. Theres also a big difference between the way a dog walks a cat walks and an elephant walks.

What happens when youve finished the pencil drawings?

I film them. This black and white film is called a pencil test. I watch this film over and over looking for ways to improve the action and timing. Then Ill correct my drawings and shoot another pencil test. Ill do this as many times as necessary to get the scene as perfect as possible. We have a saying in the trade: Your scenes are on film forever so make them good now. By the last pencil test my assistant and I will have cleaned up our roughs into beautiful clean detailed pencil drawings. But its a shame youll never see them.

Never see them? Why not?

Because they go through a process we call Ink amp; Paint. Each drawing is traced in ink onto a clear piece of acetate called a cel then painted with a special paint that sticks to acetate. Remember the layout drawing we had for each scene? That drawing is made into a color painting. We then lay each cel over the background painting and photograph it. Because we use cels we dont have to redraw and paint the entire scene for each frame of film only the part that moves.

Are all animated films made this way?

Oh no there are many different techniques. At the Canadian Film Board artists have made films by making tiny drawings right on the film itself! Several of the best studios in London England prefer to draw right on cels instead of paper. That way the original drawings will be photographed. And there are many animated films that have no drawing at all.

No drawing at all?

Thats right. Its called stop motion animation. Artists can manipulate puppets clay figures even sand sculptures and photograph these objects one frame at a time. When the film is run at normal speed the objects appear to move and come alive! I recently worked on a Walt Disney film in which we did all the animation by computer. We didnt do any drawing; we simply described the pictures to the computer and the computer did the rest!

What does the future hold for animation?

There will be more technological advancements like computer aided Ink amp; Paint. But there will always be animators doing real drawings in the Disney style. Only the human hand has the ability to create a delicate drawing with the subtle expressions to make you believe that the character is real. If I do my job right you never see a drawing; you see a character a personality that laughs and cries and that you care about. When Bambis mother dies in the film Bambi the audience doesnt cry for a drawing but for a real character.

Theres a time when every animator looks at his pencil test for the first time and he sees this little cartoon character on the screen looking toward him a character that just a few days before was scribbles on paper. Then when that little character opens his mouth and talks I tell you thats a special moment! That makes all the hard work worth while. Youve given him life with a pencil.

However we are still left with the questions raised in our first article. Is the happiness that is induced by fantasy and entertainment the real thing? Or is there a more lasting happiness? Will it ever be a reality for all mankind? Roy Brewer a Disney technician learned a satisfying answer to those questions. His story follows.

About the writer:nbsp;nbsp;a insurance agentdoing business articles more

Directing The Voice-over Actor: Tips For Better Communication

Directing the Voiceover Actor Tips for Better Communication

By Vicki Amorose

Advice for directors and producers written from the perspective of the voiceover actor. Intended to improve the recording session experience. Use this article as a crash course or to tune up your directing skills. These tips apply to voice acting of all types. The terms voiceover actor/voiceover talent/talent/actor are used here interchangeably.

When you are in the director’s chair at a voiceover session the process can sometimes become a struggle for both you and the talent. You have a vision you need to share with the voice actor a person who knows far less than you do about the product message or concept. At the same time you hired that actor to bring his or her own unique skills to the project. Unlike the making of a film or a stage production you do not have weeks to rehearse and analyze the script. The studio clock is ticking and that alone adds an element of anxiety to the recording session.

The following tips apply well to both inperson and long distance sessions. Because I want to bring you more than just my own opinion as a voice actor I have enlisted the help of some of my talented voiceover friends. The opinions of Diane Havens JS Gilbert Bill Painter and Kevin Cooke are included here. As artists we may not reach consensus but I am including the areas where we find agreement.

THREE QUESTIONS YOU MUST ANSWER FOR THE ACTOR

For the actor’s sake always supply this information: Who is speaking? To whom are they speaking? How are they speaking? When you answer these three simple questions for the talent communication is well underway and confusion is reduced drastically.

1 Who is Speaking? Diane Havens: “The first thing I expect to hear from a director is the role the voice will have in achieving the intended impact. Make everything into a role because that’s what it is who is speaking? Neutral bystander? Impassioned preacher? Wry humorist? Helpful teacher? Caring nurse? Smiling enthusiast?

If you are not getting the performance you want it is sometimes helpful to imagine and suggest an alternate idea. For example the script may call for the role of the fairy queen attempting to calm her warriors. If that’s not working suggest the actor play a life coach teaching mediation to stressedout execs. Any number of roles may produce the voice you need.

2 To Whom are they Speaking? The age gender geographic region and socioeconomic group of your intended audience all factor into an effective performance. I would be a very poor voice actor if I used the same voice delivery for an arthritis medication and the National Football League. Communication is everyone’s goal so help the talent develop an accurate mental picture of the audience.

3 How are they Speaking? Provide clear descriptive words like “excited surprised reluctant certain exasperated.” The greater variety of words you can provide the better you will be able to communicate the ideal you are hearing in your head.

Bill Painter: “I’d recommend hitting the books. Keep a good dictionary or thesaurus at hand and use it. The more accurate your description the more likely an actor will be able to understand and deliver exactly the tone you’re after. Use colorful terse meaningful adjectives.

Descriptive words will tell the actor how they feel but not WHY they feel that way. This is important because actors like to dig up their own emotions to apply to the scene. “Backstory” is an acting term referring to who the character is how they feel and why they feel that way. Backstory provided by the director in voice acting can sometimes serve to confuse rather than to clarify.

JS Gilbert: “Often the director will provide way too much backstory to the actor. Backstory doesn’t often work because I have analyzed the copy on my own and determined my own set of ‘who and why and what and where’ which may not process well with the backstory a director may give. For example I may have determined that I am an avid user of a frozen enchilada dinner and the commercial calls for me to extol the virtues of the product. I create a backstory that has me speaking to my friend Charlie who occasionally has to fend for himself at dinner time. The director starts giving me direction like ‘Pretend that you work in the supermarket and you’re telling a shopper about the great things you’ve heard.’ This breaks up my organic process but more importantly it does little to relate what in fact the director is hoping to get from my read. This often can happen when recording video games and animation to the point where instead of direction the talent is simply getting fed the entire storyline and plot.

So allow the voice actor to arrive at his or her own authentic emotion. It does not really matter what excites him or why. What matters is that genuine excitement is expressed in the voice.

THREE THINGS THE VOICE ACTOR HATES

1 Line Reads: A ‘line read’ is when the director says the line and instructs the actor to repeat it exactly as a parrot would. “No no no instead of I LOVE the way YOU smell baby say it like this I love the WAY you SMELL baby.” You may have a very legitimate reason to phrase something precisely. In that case explain this to the talent before they start recording. You are the boss and we will gladly give you what you ask for. But you could ask for a line read and then ask for a different interpretation. You might be pleasantly surprised by a new twist. The problem arises when you feed a voice actor your delivery line by line and we can’t help but wonder why we were hired in the first place.

2 Vague and overused phrases: As the best example the word “conversational” is overused to the point where it has lost meaning. Instead of saying “Make it more conversational” it would be helpful to say something like “Toss off that last phrase like it’s something you’ve discussed a million times” or “I don’t feel like you are speaking directly to me.

3 Too many cooks in the kitchen: Directorial input from several people is confusing and very hard to follow. A strain is added when we must interpret the meaning and weigh the reactions of different personalities. We appreciate the director who remains the spokesperson for the group summing up the input from the agency and the clients and whoever else might be involved. We prefer to take direction from just one person.

THREE THINGS THE VOICE ACTOR LOVES

1 Specificity: We love it when you are specific. Kevin Cooke: “Things I love? Producers who tell me why they want another read. I’ll read all day to get it right but if they don’t provide even a nugget of information as to what they want different from the last read we’re stuck. Like saying “That was good let’s do it a couple more times.” I’m going to pretty much do it the same way thinking they liked it but want a few more similar reads in order to hit gold. I find myself rereading it more than 3 or 4 times and then I realize the “That was good” comment really wasn’t true! Flattery will get you nowhere quite literally! What specifically do you want to hear that you’re not hearing?” The voice actor will also appreciate specific audio references like a voice clip you might provide. A reference to the talent’s demo or to their audition is always very helpful.

2 Context before we record: If you are able to provide any context to the project before we begin the recording session please do. A draft of the script a character description an answer to any of “The Three Questions”all of this is useful nerve calming and welcomed by the actor.

3 Receptivity: Actors are trained to be open receptive and present in the moment. Remaining “open” means you might surprise yourself and everyone else with something unplanned and perfect. We adore the director who is also open and receptive who lets us play and allows the unexpected to enhance the process. Bill Painter: referencing a favorite director “His genius was his absolute lack of what I call pride of authorship. He didn’t care if the words weren’t exactly what he’d written; he was committed to the best possible message and if it was the result of an actor’s input so be it.” Remember that creative gems are forged in an environment of receptivity so keep an open mind!

And of course mutual respect will result in the best communication between those striving to do their jobs well. Best of luck on your audio projects. Find me at www.voiceofvicki.com

My thanks to JS Gilbert Kevin Cooke Diane Havens and Bill Painter. Find these voice actors with a quick Google search.

Copyright 2009

About the writer:  Vicki Amorose is an award winning voiceover talent and copywriter. Listen to her demos or ask questions at www.voiceofvicki.com

5 Low Costno Cost Ways For Aesthetic Physicians To Prosper

5 Low Cost/No Cost Ways for

Aesthetic Physicians to Prosper During a Down Economy

You may be feeling the pinch of the downturn in the economy. Thanks to the medias frenzied reporting on higher gas prices foreclosures and unemployment the public is more apprehensive about spending their disposable income as freely as they were in the past. That means your aesthetic patients may need a bit more prodding from you to continue to look as good they feel.

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The secret in succeeding during this shaky time is to concentrate on those aesthetic patients you already know. They are your lowhanging fruit. You have already spent the time money and effort to attract them to your practice so with minimal effort you can keep them loyal to you and coming back for more while bringing their friends with them.

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Here are five strategies that will work for you:

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Strategy 1: Incentivize; Your Staff to be Rock Stars

Dont look at this idea as losing money. You are losing money now or getting 100 of nothing when your staff doesnt do their best. Its human nature to perform better when there is a carrot; at the end of the stick. The easiest way to get your staff to be at their best when they are on the job is to reward them for a job well done and then reward them even more for going the extra mile.

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Incentives keep your staff motivated and on top of their game. They also help to self police; when you are not there because now they are not just working for you ndash; they have skin in the game and are working for themselves.

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Your staff will perform better when they have quantifiable numbers to strive for. Its important these be individual goals with numbers and time lines attached to them so the staff person knows what is expected of them and when. The more specific the goal the better able they are to obtain it. Examples of Goals:

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Book 10 aesthetic appointments per week

Covert 80 of all new callers to a consultation

Sell 3000 of aesthetic services per day

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Since each staff person plays a different role in your practice meet with each of them individually to discuss their particular role in promoting you and your aesthetic services. Tell them the minimum you expect from them for the salary you pay them and then give them an incentive for going above and beyond. By the way the incentive may be money or time off or a shopping spree etc. Let them tell you what works for them. Take the above examples and add incentives:

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Book 10 aesthetic appointments per week by Friday and get

a 50 gift card to spent that weekend

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Receive 510 for every new caller converted to a consultation

paid out every Friday

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10 commission on all retail products sold to be paid out weekly

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The reason you are paying them so often is so they stay motivated. If they see the quick payoff they will understand the connection between a good job and the payoff so they will keep up the good work.

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And be sure your staff knows you appreciate them. Thank them often. Hold regular staff meetings. Discuss whats going on and whats new.

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Get your staffs input on whats working and what needs to change so they feel they are part of the team. They will be more receptive to helping you reach your goals when the feel respected and valued by you.

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Also give them the scripting http://www.cosmeticimagemarketing.com/scripting.php they need to succeed and close appointments and procedures.

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Strategy 2: VIP Very Important Patient Promotion

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We all know your best patient is the referred patient. They are not as price conscious and are already presold on you. You do not want to take these referrals lightly. Every practice has their group of cheerleaders and you do too.

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Go through your database and pick out any patient who referred someone to you in the past year. Now send them a personal letter telling them how much you appreciate them and how much you would like more patients just like them. Handwrite your signature and add a personal note such as Thanks for all your support Patty. These cards are for you and a friend;. Include 2 VIP cards. One for them that gives them 50 Off their next visit when they refer a friend and the other goes to the friend with the same offer. You can even give them multiple cards for multiple referrals since the value of the referral is far greater than 50. see your own bylaws for rules on referrals.

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While youre at it be sure to include Bring a Friend; on your invitations Send this to a friend; on your website announce on your onhold messaging and mention in your newsletter. Spread the word to your patients so they will spread the word to their friends family and colleagues.

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Strategy 3: Email Marketing Campaign

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Email marketing is by far the cheapest and fastest way to communicate with your patients today. Thanks to advanced technology and streamlined processes you can literally send out a message and within minutes get your telephone ringing with eager patients.

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Email marketing is not a nice; thing to offer your patients. Its becoming mandatory if you want your patients to remember you when they are ready for aesthetic enhancement. In todays competitive environment its vital to keep in touch with patients on a regular basis. This will help ensure their loyalty to you and keep them coming back throughout the year. You also want to market through education; since a true aesthetic patient wants to know whats new in the world of cosmetic enhancement.

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Be sure you are asking your patients for their email address so they can receive your very exclusive web offers and event announcements. And your email messages must be brief eyecatching and include very special promotions so they continue to want to receive communications from you.

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Strategy 4: Promotions at the Right Time of Year

There are certain times of the year that are more emotional than others for the aesthetic patient and you want to capitalize on that. Since aesthetic medicine is based on emotion and perceived need develop a marketing plan around holidays. You will get a much better response when you promote your services around these themes:

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New Year ndash; New You

Valentines Day Love Your Looks

Spring is Coming Rejuvenate

Mothers Day ndash; Do Something Special Just for You

Summer is Coming ndash; Are You Ready?

Holidays ndash; Sparkle This Season

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Either through your inhouse signage your newsletter postcard http://www.cosmeticimagemarketing.com/onlinestore/patientpostcards.php special invitation or email marketing campaign educate your patients on how you can help them during these special times of the year. And you can have a special themed; offer for a very limited time so they understand why you are offering a special discount as opposed to always having offers any day of the year.

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Strategy 5: Birthday Cards

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There is something about a looming birthday that will send the aesthetic patient into a tales spin. And that makes sense. The aesthetic patient who cares about their looks will really care when their birthday is approaching.

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To take advantage of this special time in the year for them send them a fun birthday card that says Come Celebrate with Us; and offer 50 Off any rejuvenation procedure listed. This is important ndash; handwrite your signature and the address on the outside envelope. Use a stamp on a plain white envelope with no return address. You want this to look like very personal mail so it is well received and opened.

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And be sure to send the upcoming birthday month on the 15th of the previous month and have it expire two weeks after their birthday to add a sense of urgency so they pick up the telephone the minute they receive it.

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Conclusion

My above strategies are geared to setting up a winning team and bonding with your patients so they think of only you when they think of aesthetic enhancement. I promise you success if you implement these proven strategies.

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For more free aesthetic marketing tips and strategies call Catherine Maley MBA Author Your Aesthetic Practice/What Your Patients Are Saying; at 877 3398833 or visit her online at www.CosmeticImageMarketing.com.

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About the writer:  nbsp;