Francis Glebas

What is your name and your current occupation?
I’m Francis Glebas and I am a storyboard artist and author. I’ve also been a director, vis dev artist and teacher.
What are some of the crazier jobs you had before getting into animation?
Newspaper delivery. It got crazy with the dogs. I taught cut-out animation at a summer camp. I built models for a model building company, like architectural models and airplanes. It gets old when you’re on your 100th airplane. I also designed and painted
stage sets. I’ve probably painted more square footage than most background artists. After getting into the business I once ran a brainstorming session at Los Alamos Laboratories that was surreal.
What are some of your favorite projects you’re proud to have been a part of?
Aladdin was a magical time, the studio was buzzing with excitement but we were still under the radar of the money people. I remember seeing the Whole New World that I storyboarded with crude drawings at the premiere and every department took it and
made it better. It was incredible. I also poured my heart into the ending of Pocahontas. Lion King and Ice Age 4 were also really great to work on. Space Chimps was really fun too. Sometimes it’s more about the people you work with. In pre-Pixar days, getting Ed Catmull’s TWEEN system to work at NYIT was exciting. It created automatic inbetweens and we used it on hundreds of commercials. Well, maybe we reached 100.
How did you become interested in animation?
To work out traumas from watching Continue reading

Ed Bell

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

What is your name and your current occupation?
Ed Bell. I’m an animation artist and currently an affiliate director with Special Agent Animation, in the Bay Area. I’m building a short film at the moment. I also teach character design and mentor aspiring animation artists at CCA. Recently, I’ve started painting, and developing a gallery show.

What are some of the crazier jobs you had before getting into animation?
None. My first real job was in animation.
What are some of your favorite projects you’re proud to have been a part of?
“ Bring Me The Head Of Charlie Brown” was a short my classmate Jim Reardon made, that we took around to festivals with Spike & Mike. Awesome experience. Then there was the “Ed” trilogy by Richard Moore, also made at Cal Arts. I think of “Roger Rabbit” and “The New Adventures of Mighty Mouse” from the 80’s. But at Collosal Pictures, “The Big City” for Liquid Television because it was my first short as a director, and “King Tut,” with the great John Stevenson and Jerry Juehl with Quincy Jones helping us pitch, those are cherished memories, (even if Tut never made it to the screen). As a Warner Cartoons fan I’m amazed I got to contribute to some Warner Brothers cartoon shorts with animators I learned a great from.

How did you become interested in animation?
I’m a child of the “golden age” of T.V. or whatever, and grew up glued to the TV set, or glued to movie screens whenever and wherever I could. Every aspect of entertainment seemed to mesmerize me, nearly as much as it entertained me! Animation’s hand-crafted nature, and animation’s rich sense of Continue reading