Chades Challenge XV: Nightmarish Construction Workers

More nightmares:
Leo Matsuda
Rob Thompson

OPENING DAY

As most of you know from the trailer, this film has been over ten years in the making. I'm sorry I could only have worked on the last year of production, because as some of you may know I'm a bit of a sci-fi nut, and early in production Wall-E was already one of my favorites. The entire crew was phenomenal, but the man whose work really shines is Ben Burtt, the sound designer and voice of Wall-E. As animators, we didn't get very many dialogue tracks, but Ben's sympathetic motors and humorous metallic whirs gave each robot a voice of their own, and made animating on this film a truly unique experience.
My hometown morning show, Good Day Sacramento, stopped by the studio yesterday and their jocose entertainment reporter, Mark S. Allen, interviewed Ben and myself. Talking with Mark was a blast because I pretty much grew up on that show and his movie reviews, so being on the other side of the camera with him was a real trip. You can catch Ben's interview here and mine here.
Anyway, hope you all enjoy Wall-E as much as I enjoyed working on it! In summary, go see Wall-E!

You'll believe a robot can fly.

ROCK'N' POLL CHAMPIONSHIP

It's been seven weeks since the genesis of the Rock'n'Poll tournament. Songs from twenty rock genres have contended, and at last the finalists have emerged from the smoke and wreckage of rock-combat. Which song will become the champion? Which tune will rock the choruses off of the other contenders? Which ballad is truly worthy to be deemed Greatest Rock'n'Roll Song of All Time? As Captain Planet once said, "The power is yours!" Now rock that flippin' vote.


In other news, the new Chades Challenge is NIGHTMARISH CONSTRUCTION WORKERS. Sketch greatly!

Arny vs. Sly
I saw this on Aintitcool and just had to share. Color correction works wonders.

Dungeons and Shenanigans, Part I
Story sketches from the latest DnD campaign. The first two of the halfling and kobold were drawn by Ms. Coats. Check for weekly updates at Dungeons and Shenanigans. Let the mocking begin.

Stan Winston (April 7, 1946-June 15, 2008)

In much sadder Jurassic Park-related news, Oscar award-winning makeup and special effects wizard Stan Winston passed away yesterday from complications due to multiple myeloma. Stan was one of my earliest artistic influences whether I realized it or not. Whether his work was as mind-blowing as Terminator and Predator, or as melancholy as Edward Scissorhands and Batman Returns, he never failed to transport me to another world populated by bizarre characters. His work lended as much atmosphere as the music or the cinematography, and was often more iconic. This is a tragic loss for the filmmaking community, but we will always have his characters, his art, and his inspiration.

On the heels of a scientific breakthrough!

The good John Dusenberry shared this article with me. It basically explains how we are a few decades away from reverse-engineering birds into dinosaurs using dormant genetic coding that exists from the days back when birds were dinosaurs, thus paving the way for a real-life Jurassic Park and possible dino-pets; no big deal, really.

In other news: Atlantis Discovered?