FOUR ON THE FLOOR

Crazy as it sounds, I have not had occasion to animate more than 3 characters in one shot in over 10 years. For very practical reasons I tend to shy away from numbers. First because it’s time consuming, second, because it means building a lot of puppets and third, quite honestly, it’s hard work. Having said that, this scene doesn’t require a whole lot of complicated animation and it is nice to have a full screen of characters up there. If you’ve done this for as long as I have you quickly find yourself falling into a rhythm once you start animating.

DON’T LOOK UP

I hit something of a milestone this week. I completed my 50th shot for FROM HELL HE RIDES which leaves 330 to go. 330 by coincidence just happens to be the total number of shots in FILTH. Looks like I will be animating for at least 11 more months. I reach this point in every film, where I start to consider what’s ahead and even though I still maintain a healthy enthusiasm I’m always struck by the challenge I’ve set for myself. It’s at times like this that it can seem like an insurmountable task.

THE HILLS HAVE EYES

The cabin is gone and I’m building again. This set will not take me long to create but it comes with a whole new set of obstacles; mainly trying to come up with a way of using my limited amount of space to create an expansive landscape. Forced perspectives and creative lighting will once again rule the day and while there will be some digital additions I haven’t reached the point of just hanging a green screen and keying it all in later. The old school part of me still feels the need to keep it real.

FILTH WILL NOT DIE

FILTH has been nominated for a Rondo Hatton Classic Horror Award in the Best Short Film of 2019 category. This is an open vote award so I’m looking for your help. Simply copy the ballot below and send it to the provided email address. That’s it. Most votes wins. There are some pretty established names in the list (seems insane that my shot in a basement short is up against shows from NETFLIX) but FILTH is the only animated film in the category. Those big names are very imposing but let’s at least give it a shot. Your support is greatly appreciated.

Subject line: Rondo Ballot
Your name:
BEST SHORT FILM
X – FILTH, directed by Adam Ciolfi
Send to: taraco@aol.com