Comic-con is now past and Toy Fair is looming. We have the Dallas show in Oct. and then the New York Toy fair.
A great way to stay creative is to get involved. When you get involved you seem to accumulate deadlines. Nothing spur's activity and creativity like a deadline. It will keep you young.
Saturday, September 4, 2010
Sunday, April 11, 2010
COMIC-CON PORTFOLIO REVIEW
Comic-con is coming up and once again I am scheduled to review portfolios. It’s a strange ritual. I see the same type of people year after year. Some portfolios are good, some are far from it.
When your showing your portfolio you should really have some idea of what your trying to accomplish. Where your going with it. What is your dream? But realize that you may end up somewhere completely different and just as fun.
At comic-con most of the people want to do comics. No surprise. What is a surprise is how unprepared most everyone is. How little research most everyone has done. They all read comics but don’t actually think about them. Who makes them, how they are made and how they will fit into process.
What are you really trying to achieve and have you really looked at the big picture? Is it really your dream? I reviewed a portfolio of a young gentleman whose work was mostly pencil layouts for comics. He copied the standard characters but what stood out were his backgrounds and layouts. His characters were ok. He was more interested in designing worlds. We ended up talking about game design and movies instead of comics and what game companies he could apply too
Do you really want to write comics or do you want to write movies. Do you want to draw comics or storyboards for movies and animation? Do you want to design characters, animation, 3D or graphics. Do you want to do all of it? Open your options and don’t close doors before you even see them. There are very few real openings in the comic industry so you need to have some other options and realize that they may actually be better
When I look at portfolios I’m looking for someone who shows thought and originality behind their work. Your book should show me all that you can do. I don’ t want to see six variations of the same thing. Show me a rough and then the final peice. Where you started and where you ended up.
It never hurts to have more in your portfolio than you want to show. Have some life drawing in the back that you can show a client if they are really interested. You can even have more than one portfolio. I had four portfolios, an illustration book, a cartooning book, a graphics book and an amusement park design book.
Learn to present your work. Buy a real portfolio to show your work. If you want to be a professional, then present your self as a professional.
Ok, that's enough for now but I’ll have more on portfolios later
When your showing your portfolio you should really have some idea of what your trying to accomplish. Where your going with it. What is your dream? But realize that you may end up somewhere completely different and just as fun.
At comic-con most of the people want to do comics. No surprise. What is a surprise is how unprepared most everyone is. How little research most everyone has done. They all read comics but don’t actually think about them. Who makes them, how they are made and how they will fit into process.
What are you really trying to achieve and have you really looked at the big picture? Is it really your dream? I reviewed a portfolio of a young gentleman whose work was mostly pencil layouts for comics. He copied the standard characters but what stood out were his backgrounds and layouts. His characters were ok. He was more interested in designing worlds. We ended up talking about game design and movies instead of comics and what game companies he could apply too
Do you really want to write comics or do you want to write movies. Do you want to draw comics or storyboards for movies and animation? Do you want to design characters, animation, 3D or graphics. Do you want to do all of it? Open your options and don’t close doors before you even see them. There are very few real openings in the comic industry so you need to have some other options and realize that they may actually be better
When I look at portfolios I’m looking for someone who shows thought and originality behind their work. Your book should show me all that you can do. I don’ t want to see six variations of the same thing. Show me a rough and then the final peice. Where you started and where you ended up.
It never hurts to have more in your portfolio than you want to show. Have some life drawing in the back that you can show a client if they are really interested. You can even have more than one portfolio. I had four portfolios, an illustration book, a cartooning book, a graphics book and an amusement park design book.
Learn to present your work. Buy a real portfolio to show your work. If you want to be a professional, then present your self as a professional.
Ok, that's enough for now but I’ll have more on portfolios later
A PROPER PORTFOLIO
All right, lets get back to portfolios. This is what you are using to represent you to prospective clients or employers.
Your portfolio should always be professional and clean. Purchase a standard portfolio or if you are inclined you can make your own. It should contain only your best work. It should start off strong and should end strong. I always like to see a section in the back of a portfolio with life drawing or concept roughs.
What you put in the body of your portfolio is up to you. But do not put in unfinished work. If you like a piece enough to present it then you can finish it. I like to see the work presented in a format. Meaning a consistent border or layout. I would recommend that you have titles and explanations if necessary on each piece. There will be times when you can not present your work in person and the work will have to speak for itself. Have your name and number easily found and consistent in the layout.
Always have a leave behind for clients. They may not have work for you at the moment but maybe later. A handout will keep you in there thought process.
Also as a tip I recommend that you always ask for a recommendation of an associate to show your portfolio to. Even if the showing didn’t go as well as you would like it to they may know someone who could use your work.
I have been speaking of the old school physical portfolios. Now days a professional also has an online portfolio too. But again the same rules apply. Create a format. Keep it clean and easy to use. A mistake of online portfolios is that they do not create a print page. A single sample page that can be printed with a couple of samples and your contact info to go into hard files.
Remember that your portfolio will never be finished and you can always change your portfolio. So get to it!
Your portfolio should always be professional and clean. Purchase a standard portfolio or if you are inclined you can make your own. It should contain only your best work. It should start off strong and should end strong. I always like to see a section in the back of a portfolio with life drawing or concept roughs.
What you put in the body of your portfolio is up to you. But do not put in unfinished work. If you like a piece enough to present it then you can finish it. I like to see the work presented in a format. Meaning a consistent border or layout. I would recommend that you have titles and explanations if necessary on each piece. There will be times when you can not present your work in person and the work will have to speak for itself. Have your name and number easily found and consistent in the layout.
Always have a leave behind for clients. They may not have work for you at the moment but maybe later. A handout will keep you in there thought process.
Also as a tip I recommend that you always ask for a recommendation of an associate to show your portfolio to. Even if the showing didn’t go as well as you would like it to they may know someone who could use your work.
I have been speaking of the old school physical portfolios. Now days a professional also has an online portfolio too. But again the same rules apply. Create a format. Keep it clean and easy to use. A mistake of online portfolios is that they do not create a print page. A single sample page that can be printed with a couple of samples and your contact info to go into hard files.
Remember that your portfolio will never be finished and you can always change your portfolio. So get to it!
Sunday, March 7, 2010
OBSERVATIONS FROM TOY FAIR
It's been a while since I've posted, I've been busy. Always good to keep going. We've had the Dallas Toy fair and I just got back from the New York Toy Fair.
New York is always an amazing eye opening trip. It's exhausting but always fun. Of course we got caught in the snow storms and ate to much at the wonderful restaurants. We stayed up to late and spent to much money. You know, a normal trip to New York.
NY is a shock to the system, an overload to the senses and a kick start to creativity. If you can't feel alive and creative in NY I really don't know what to tell you.
So anyway I have some observations from Toy Fair. In between meetings and toy pitches I walked the Javits floor to see what's new and what's coming. I think that because of the economy most of the toy companies are running scared. They didn't invest in new product design and all went with the tried and true product. Buyers were there and spending but no one had anything really new and amazing to offer. A lot of the same thing repackaged and re-themed.
Because of that the companies where looking for something new which made it very easy for my company to sell. They jumped at new creative ideas. A bad economy creates lots of openings for someone with new ideas and vision. You have to realistic and create something that they can actually use or do. But the opportunities are there.
Another observation was the number of new start up companies that were offering what they took to be the best and greatest new concept. Yes I'm pushing you to be creative and to put yourself out there. But be smart! I saw far to many people out there who obviously have put their life savings on the line for their idea. A sign of the economy. What is sad is that so many of these ideas were bad. Some were horribly bad, some had just not been thought out and some were so old that they could never make a dime at them.
If your going to put your savings on the line folks, do some research first and always keep going. Don't ever just stop at one idea. A simple patent search would save some of these people to find out what had been done before and why it failed. Also if your idea has been done before and patents have expired that means that you have no rights and anyone can turn around and do the same toy. So if the buyer from a large company walked thru and looked at your design. He can return to his company and start manufacturing the same design, beat you to market and you can't do anything about it.
Life is long and even if that one idea does go you had better have a second act. Companies are not looking for a single toy. They are looking for a line of toys. They may like your design but dealing with buying one toy from you may be more trouble than its worth after all the shipping, stocking and the blow back from the larger companies.
This doesn't mean by any means that you shouldn't be doing this. It means "BE SMART". Do your homework and don't put all your eggs in one basket. Plan ahead.
New York is always an amazing eye opening trip. It's exhausting but always fun. Of course we got caught in the snow storms and ate to much at the wonderful restaurants. We stayed up to late and spent to much money. You know, a normal trip to New York.
NY is a shock to the system, an overload to the senses and a kick start to creativity. If you can't feel alive and creative in NY I really don't know what to tell you.
So anyway I have some observations from Toy Fair. In between meetings and toy pitches I walked the Javits floor to see what's new and what's coming. I think that because of the economy most of the toy companies are running scared. They didn't invest in new product design and all went with the tried and true product. Buyers were there and spending but no one had anything really new and amazing to offer. A lot of the same thing repackaged and re-themed.
Because of that the companies where looking for something new which made it very easy for my company to sell. They jumped at new creative ideas. A bad economy creates lots of openings for someone with new ideas and vision. You have to realistic and create something that they can actually use or do. But the opportunities are there.
Another observation was the number of new start up companies that were offering what they took to be the best and greatest new concept. Yes I'm pushing you to be creative and to put yourself out there. But be smart! I saw far to many people out there who obviously have put their life savings on the line for their idea. A sign of the economy. What is sad is that so many of these ideas were bad. Some were horribly bad, some had just not been thought out and some were so old that they could never make a dime at them.
If your going to put your savings on the line folks, do some research first and always keep going. Don't ever just stop at one idea. A simple patent search would save some of these people to find out what had been done before and why it failed. Also if your idea has been done before and patents have expired that means that you have no rights and anyone can turn around and do the same toy. So if the buyer from a large company walked thru and looked at your design. He can return to his company and start manufacturing the same design, beat you to market and you can't do anything about it.
Life is long and even if that one idea does go you had better have a second act. Companies are not looking for a single toy. They are looking for a line of toys. They may like your design but dealing with buying one toy from you may be more trouble than its worth after all the shipping, stocking and the blow back from the larger companies.
This doesn't mean by any means that you shouldn't be doing this. It means "BE SMART". Do your homework and don't put all your eggs in one basket. Plan ahead.
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Sunday, June 7, 2009
A CREATIVE LIFE
There are few rules of creativity. In most case’s it’s whatever works for you. But one of the real rules is that experience expands creativity. Experience and an open mind. The more you know, the larger your world.
You will always need to know the basics and you will always need to keep improving on them. If you can find somewhere to continue practice the better. Life drawing classes, design classes, what ever is available. If your further along in your abilities then a great way to learn is to teach. That will really help sharpen your abilities.
My own specialty is illustration, design and creative thought. But at times I find myself doing sculpting or building bread board prototypes for presentations. Experimenting with lighting design and sound concepts or even stage magic. At times I find myself designing food concepts or candy concepts and end up cooking in the kitchen.
All of this has been made possible by experiencing as much as you can. In my younger days I worked construction, worked as a chef and a pastry chef’s assistant. I taught skiing, was a maintenance man, a plumbers assistant, a volunteer fireman, a bartender and even a wild animal trainer for movie’s.
All of this while attempting to get established as an artist. But All of that contributed to becoming a creative. Being creative just means that you are using all of your experience. The more experience the more that you could draw on.
Work experience is not the only way either. Traveling expands your horizons. Really what I’m saying is that you need to really live life and be open to all of life's lessons.
You will always need to know the basics and you will always need to keep improving on them. If you can find somewhere to continue practice the better. Life drawing classes, design classes, what ever is available. If your further along in your abilities then a great way to learn is to teach. That will really help sharpen your abilities.
My own specialty is illustration, design and creative thought. But at times I find myself doing sculpting or building bread board prototypes for presentations. Experimenting with lighting design and sound concepts or even stage magic. At times I find myself designing food concepts or candy concepts and end up cooking in the kitchen.
All of this has been made possible by experiencing as much as you can. In my younger days I worked construction, worked as a chef and a pastry chef’s assistant. I taught skiing, was a maintenance man, a plumbers assistant, a volunteer fireman, a bartender and even a wild animal trainer for movie’s.
All of this while attempting to get established as an artist. But All of that contributed to becoming a creative. Being creative just means that you are using all of your experience. The more experience the more that you could draw on.
Work experience is not the only way either. Traveling expands your horizons. Really what I’m saying is that you need to really live life and be open to all of life's lessons.
Sunday, May 24, 2009
BRAINSTORMING METHODS
There are so many ways to brainstorm and all of them work. Some work better for certain jobs. But brainstorming even the smallest projects leads to better results. Don't just jump into a project and start on the first idea. The first idea may turn out to be the best even after brainstorming. But you will probably improve it by a little brainstorming.
Some methods of brainstorming are the Descriptive, the Associative, The Smash Up, The Random, Mind Mapping. The list is endless and all are interconnected. All work if you use them and all lead to better concepts. By the way, they're FUN.
Often when you are dealing with clients you will come across the classic person who knows what they want but can't articulate it. Maybe you have an idea but can't quite get a handle on it. Here is a form of Descriptive and Associative Brainstorming to help define projects. Clearly define the end goal whether its a character design, logo, product etc. and what will it be used for and how. Now for the fun part. You play a game with yourself or the client. Begin to ask and write down the answers to a series of questions. What color is is? How big is it? Obvious questions but take it so much further. What kind of mineral is it? What kind of animal is it? Who would it be if it was a current movie star? Who would it be if it was an old time movie star? What book or character in a book would it be?
Seems silly to ask what kind of animal or movie star a logo would be but people already have a mental picture of these things. By having them associate and describe there choices you define the object. If they describe their logo as a crane then you can assume they are looking for a graceful, flowing look. If they describe the logo as a bear or elephant then you can push your designs toward the solid and powerful look. If they describe their logo as Jim Carrey then you know that they want an energetic and fun look. The questions are silly and appear to have no relation to your project but will actually tell you a great deal about their expectations.
Keep going and asking questions until you really have a mental picture of what your client is looking for. What kind of tree would it be?What kind of food? What kind of car? A fast sports car or a solid work truck.
As you do this you will see the clients light up because it defines the concept for them. They will feel as if they were part of the process and it will define the job for you. The more focused you are when you start, the better to do the job. This will also save time and time is money. I assume you are in this for the love and fun of being creative but you also need to make money.
More later, Have Fun! The Director of Nonsense
Some methods of brainstorming are the Descriptive, the Associative, The Smash Up, The Random, Mind Mapping. The list is endless and all are interconnected. All work if you use them and all lead to better concepts. By the way, they're FUN.
Often when you are dealing with clients you will come across the classic person who knows what they want but can't articulate it. Maybe you have an idea but can't quite get a handle on it. Here is a form of Descriptive and Associative Brainstorming to help define projects. Clearly define the end goal whether its a character design, logo, product etc. and what will it be used for and how. Now for the fun part. You play a game with yourself or the client. Begin to ask and write down the answers to a series of questions. What color is is? How big is it? Obvious questions but take it so much further. What kind of mineral is it? What kind of animal is it? Who would it be if it was a current movie star? Who would it be if it was an old time movie star? What book or character in a book would it be?
Seems silly to ask what kind of animal or movie star a logo would be but people already have a mental picture of these things. By having them associate and describe there choices you define the object. If they describe their logo as a crane then you can assume they are looking for a graceful, flowing look. If they describe the logo as a bear or elephant then you can push your designs toward the solid and powerful look. If they describe their logo as Jim Carrey then you know that they want an energetic and fun look. The questions are silly and appear to have no relation to your project but will actually tell you a great deal about their expectations.
Keep going and asking questions until you really have a mental picture of what your client is looking for. What kind of tree would it be?What kind of food? What kind of car? A fast sports car or a solid work truck.
As you do this you will see the clients light up because it defines the concept for them. They will feel as if they were part of the process and it will define the job for you. The more focused you are when you start, the better to do the job. This will also save time and time is money. I assume you are in this for the love and fun of being creative but you also need to make money.
More later, Have Fun! The Director of Nonsense
GOT THE TOOLS?
Every skilled occupation has its tools. The dentist has his special tools, as does a plumber or chef. Why would you think that the creative fields don't need tools? The writer and the artist need tools too. I'm not just talking about the pen or computer for a writer and a pencil or brush for the artist. I'm talking about the real support tools that make doing the jobs simple.
Lets start with a basic, a reference library. Whether a writer or artist a wide ranging library is a must. You will need text and visual, the more the better. The book store is your friend, as is Google text and Google image. Start to compile personnel files on your fields and anything to inspire. I have a large personal library at home and as well as six large file cabinets filled with visual reference on everything. Also learn how to be a good researcher. You never know what kind of projects can come toward you. A secret of life is not how much you know.... but whether you can find the answers you need.
One amazing resource is the Library of Congress. When I was doing educational products everything had to be accurate all the way down to the eye color of the Presidential portraits I was doing. I discovered that the Library has a full time staff to answer any and all questions.
Compile lists! Create word lists or visual lists to use in brainstorming or to inspire. When we design toys I have lists that are pages and pages of toys that can be used as inspiration. Lists of random words can inspire new direction for your projects. Create a list of random questions for your projects.
Get as many creative tools as possible. There are many creativity products out in the market place. One of my favorite programs is called Ideafisher. An exceptional associative brainstorming tool. Another product that I recommend is Roger von Oech's, Creative Whack Pack. The simple card version can stimulate creativity and his computer version is fantastic.
Get a notebook. Far to many good ideas and thoughts are lost because we didn't write them down.
Get a calendar. Nothing motivates like deadlines. Set deadlines for yourself if you don't already have deadlines.
Lets start with a basic, a reference library. Whether a writer or artist a wide ranging library is a must. You will need text and visual, the more the better. The book store is your friend, as is Google text and Google image. Start to compile personnel files on your fields and anything to inspire. I have a large personal library at home and as well as six large file cabinets filled with visual reference on everything. Also learn how to be a good researcher. You never know what kind of projects can come toward you. A secret of life is not how much you know.... but whether you can find the answers you need.
One amazing resource is the Library of Congress. When I was doing educational products everything had to be accurate all the way down to the eye color of the Presidential portraits I was doing. I discovered that the Library has a full time staff to answer any and all questions.
Compile lists! Create word lists or visual lists to use in brainstorming or to inspire. When we design toys I have lists that are pages and pages of toys that can be used as inspiration. Lists of random words can inspire new direction for your projects. Create a list of random questions for your projects.
Get as many creative tools as possible. There are many creativity products out in the market place. One of my favorite programs is called Ideafisher. An exceptional associative brainstorming tool. Another product that I recommend is Roger von Oech's, Creative Whack Pack. The simple card version can stimulate creativity and his computer version is fantastic.
Get a notebook. Far to many good ideas and thoughts are lost because we didn't write them down.
Get a calendar. Nothing motivates like deadlines. Set deadlines for yourself if you don't already have deadlines.
Saturday, May 9, 2009
brainstorming!
I'm surprised at how many people think that brainstorming is just sitting down and coming up with an idea. Brainstorming is an art in itself.
When you think about things your brain makes connections. These electrical connections form paths that then become like little roadways in the brain. People tend to get lazy. The mind tends to get lazy, so it will run along these same pathways. This leads to the same old ideas.
Think of it like the brain is a jello mold and your pouring water down on it. It begins to form channels in the jello. The more hot water, the deeper the channels get. You need to jump your brain out of those channels and into new sections, new pathways and new ideas.
There are lots of excellent techniques for brainstorming and I'll address those later but for now lets talk about how to get started. People ignore some of the basics. Research what your going to brainstorm. Do a quick google search, word and image search. First really identify what it is and what your trying to accomplish before you start. What is your end goal? A new concept? A new product? A new art piece? Whatever!
Also do not edit yourself. In early brainstorming there are NO bad ideas. As my boss says, "These are babies, allow them to grow. You never know what they could grow into."
Now that you have a goal then do a "brain dump!" With a blank piece of paper write down everything you can as quick as you can about your subject. What this does is get all the obvious things out so you can really get a fresh look at your project. This works whether you're trying to create a new slogan or a new image to paint. You may hit something, some "gold" in your brain dump which another reason to write it all down so that it doesn't get lost.
Now you can examen your list to try to make new connections to lead you to new creative concepts. Look at your list to see if there are stand outs. After you identify some of those stand outs ask why do they stand out?
Just the act of doing a brain dump, of describing and quantifying will lead you to new directions and creative concepts. This doesn't need to take a long time but will go a long way to expanding your creativity.
Now you can really begin your Brainstorming. I'll post later with brainstorming techniques to help your expand your creativity.
When you think about things your brain makes connections. These electrical connections form paths that then become like little roadways in the brain. People tend to get lazy. The mind tends to get lazy, so it will run along these same pathways. This leads to the same old ideas.
Think of it like the brain is a jello mold and your pouring water down on it. It begins to form channels in the jello. The more hot water, the deeper the channels get. You need to jump your brain out of those channels and into new sections, new pathways and new ideas.
There are lots of excellent techniques for brainstorming and I'll address those later but for now lets talk about how to get started. People ignore some of the basics. Research what your going to brainstorm. Do a quick google search, word and image search. First really identify what it is and what your trying to accomplish before you start. What is your end goal? A new concept? A new product? A new art piece? Whatever!
Also do not edit yourself. In early brainstorming there are NO bad ideas. As my boss says, "These are babies, allow them to grow. You never know what they could grow into."
Now that you have a goal then do a "brain dump!" With a blank piece of paper write down everything you can as quick as you can about your subject. What this does is get all the obvious things out so you can really get a fresh look at your project. This works whether you're trying to create a new slogan or a new image to paint. You may hit something, some "gold" in your brain dump which another reason to write it all down so that it doesn't get lost.
Now you can examen your list to try to make new connections to lead you to new creative concepts. Look at your list to see if there are stand outs. After you identify some of those stand outs ask why do they stand out?
Just the act of doing a brain dump, of describing and quantifying will lead you to new directions and creative concepts. This doesn't need to take a long time but will go a long way to expanding your creativity.
Now you can really begin your Brainstorming. I'll post later with brainstorming techniques to help your expand your creativity.
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