Ben McSweeney

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What is your name and your current occupation?
My name is Ben McSweeney, and I’m currently a Senior Artist (Cinematics Director) at Vigil Games (THQ).

 

What are some of the crazier jobs you had before getting into animation?
Used to set up Moon Bounces at parties, that was kinda wacky (part teamster, part carnie). Driving a Range Rover for a live zoo tour would probably be next weirdest.

 

What are some of your favorite projects you’re proud to have been a part of?
Red vs Blue Animated was a high point, I got to draw lots of fun gun-action and aliens, and it was nice to work on an established IP like the Halo series. And of course there’s Darksiders II, which is coming out this August.

 

How did you become interested in animation?
It’s always been something I’ve enjoyed watching, and when I Continue reading

Steven Sievers

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What is your name and your current occupation?
I’m the co-creator, writer, producer, animator, & voice of Daniel the Turtle for the award winning animated series Supa Pirate Booty Hunt. Currently we are working for the charity Music Saves Lives for their national animated PSA campaign to encourage young adults & teenagers to donate blood. Each PSA takes Supa Pirate Booty Hunt characters, Cpt Zack Stevers & Daniel the Turtle paired up with music celebrities such as Nat & Sean from the band 3OH!3 and Dave Mustaine of Megadeth. For more info visit http://www.supapiratebootyhunt.com

 

What are some of the crazier jobs you had before getting into animation?
I worked for a special affects company and out of no where I was in charge of the vomit rig on this movie set. It was crazy!

 

What are some of your favorite projects you’re proud to have been a part of?
I used to co-owner a clothing line called Level 27 Clothing that was sold in Hot Topic and I also worked with Disney about having our new line launch at Disney’s Vault 28 store at Downtown Disney. It was a lot of work and I was very proud of it.

 

How did you become interested in animation?
I’ve always been into animation my whole life. Love watching the Disney classics as a kid and Saturday Morning cartoons. Overall it was my passionate love for Continue reading

Jorden Oliwa

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What is your name and your current occupation?
Jorden Oliwa Aka Johnny Gonzo, Freelance animator/Illustrator/comic artist.

 

What are some of the crazier jobs you had before getting into animation?
Building scaffolds in the ashtrays of coal power plants. Managing a kitchen, cooking fulltime.

What are some of your favorite projects you’re proud to have been a part of?
Massive Swerve/ Ren and Stimpy APC/ Mucha Lucha/ Motorcity/ Roy/ Angry Beavers/ Mission Hill.

 

How did you become interested in animation?
I was into comic books first and a teacher recommended that Continue reading

Pat Giles

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What is your name and your current occupation?
My name is Pat Giles, and I am a Creative Director and co-founder (with Manny Galan) of Pat-Man Studios in New York City. We have several big Agency/Advertising clients. We currently run the creative assignments for several General Mills kids brands like Lucky Charms, TRIX, GoGurt and Honey Nut Cheerios for Saatchi & Saatchi. We partner with animation houses like Calabash and Laika, and cartoon gods like Sergio Aragones and others to make commercials, video games, short films, etc. We are also working on several series projects with Classic Media that aren’t announced yet, and we are in production on a project called “Captain Cornelius Cartoon’s Cartoon Lagoon” that will be out by the end of the year, whether it kills us or not.

 

What are some of the crazier jobs you had before getting into animation?
I worked in children’s clothing for many years (not wearing it to work, but designing it). I designed tons (literally) of licensed products for Disney, Lucasfilm, Marvel, DC and Warner Bros., among others. The oddest was the line of “Hunchback of Notre Dame” pajamas I designed. While I am not knocking the artistry behind that film, Quasimodo made for some very odd pajamas.

 

What are some of your favorite projects you’re proud to have been a part of?
I’ve been extraordinarily lucky to work on a lot of awesome projects. Back in the day, I started out as a designer on “Disney’s Doug,” art directed the Disney Channel series “Stanley,” was the Design Supervisor on MTV’s “Daria,” and worked on several other series in various capacities. I started a comic book company called “Monkeysuit Press” with Chris McCulloch (aka Jackson Publick), Mike Foran, Miguel Martinez-Joffre and Prentis Rollins. That was really fun and liberating. Several years ago everyone thought I left “animation,” but taking an ad agency assignment only got me deeper into it, since all of my assignments were for these beloved American brands with animated characters like Lucky, the Trix Rabbit, Buzz, and Sonny the Cuckoo Bird. The craft applied to these commercials is magnificent. I get to work with animators, directors, CG artists, painters, composers, orchestras, engineers, voice actors, and a lot of live action/animation combos with great directors, actors and cinematographers. It’s been a blast.

 

How did you become interested in animation?
“At Conception,” hahaha…I was just hard wired for animation and Continue reading

Larry MacDougall

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What is your name and your current occupation?
Hello. My name is Larry MacDougall and I am currently illustrating several children’s books although I have also recently been doing some visual development work and character design with Disney designer Harald Siepermann for Zipfelmutzen Film in Germany. They are working on a 3D animated feature.

What are some of the crazier jobs you had before getting into animation?
Well, I’ve certainly had a few odd jobs in my time. I’ve cleaned buses and I’ve worked in a steel mill. The steel mill gig was pretty horrible at the time but the memories of working in that extreme environment and some of the nutty people that worked there have been fueling my imagination ever since. I wouldn’t trade that experience for anything.

 

What are some of your favorite projects you’re proud to have been a part of?
A couple of recent book projects I’m rather proud of are The Secret History of Giants and The Secret History of Hobgoblins, both of which were written by Ari Berk. The Secret History of Hobgoblins is finally due out this fall after a rather long delay.

How did you become interested in animation?
Like most people in the animation business I grew up watching cartoons and always enjoyed drawing. I was a big fan of comic books and Mad Magazine as well – you know, Mort Drucker, Jack Davis etc.. Anyway, one day during my stint at the steel mill, just after I’d finished high school, I was introduced to Continue reading