The Nubbins of Progress

The photo above will demonstrate the level to which I have been drawing. The nubbin pencil was once as long as it's brand new counterpart exactly 1 month and 1 week ago when I started this massive endeavor. The odd way in which I work requires 1 very sharp pencil and one very dull. The nubbin you see above is what is left of the sharp one. The dull one is about an inch, maybe inch and a half bigger. (Yes, size does matter)

Now the moment you've all been waiting for; This week's numbers!

4.5 weeks down

137 pages total and counting for Act II

134 scenes boarded

A total of 182 scenes of 308 completed.

And as of today I have one month left to complete the rest of Act II and all of Act III.

Um...holy crap I did 134 scenes in a week and a half! Jesus! Hadn't crunched the numbers till right now! I'm kinda stunned! I mean that's like pre-union, Uncle Walt with a whip, golden age of animation level of output! No wonder my hands hurt! haha

Till next week you can just refer to me as Amazing. Thank you universe.

Tony Clifton, Hospitals, Stress and Adversity

How to describe the last week in so many words. For one, at this point Andy Kaufman is probably dead. None the less his former protege Tony Clifton can still put on a great show. (And do one of the greatest covers of "Rhinestone Cowboy" since Dolly and Sly) Truly a great show with more boobs and vagina than I have ever seen in person in my entire life.

The week rolled on and we get to Wednesday when once again my father lands himself in the hospital. Why you may ask? Oh well when you're diabetic, go figure, blood sugar levels become an issue. When you stop taking your meds and stop checking your blood sugar on a daily basis, things health wise can go south. Harsh tone you say? I make no qualms about the less-than-fantastic relationship he and I have, but the reverse father/son relationship we have always had has gotten old.

And this would be where the adversity comes in. Between the B.S., and everything else that went down this week, I have once again stayed far ahead of my self established schedule. As of tonight the storyboarding process remains 6 days ahead of schedule. From Sunday to Sunday I find myself in another self fulfilling position. I don't think in the last batch of boards I accomplished what I did this week.

And your count for the week: ACT II Storybaords

3 weeks down

74 pages done

48 scenes boarded

137 of 308 scenes completed.

Not bad for what a shitty week it was. Gripe and grief over. Next week will be a better week.

14 Days of Drawing = Results and Ego

14 days is all it's taken me to get 1/3 of the way though this monumental task.

14 days straight in which I woke up, picked up a pencil, and sat my ass in a chair all day doing what I once did best. What I once did best, and what I will once again strive to do better. Feels good to be myself again. I'm trying to keep my ego in check, but it does have a way of sneaking up on me once in a while.

136 pages of pure, unadulterated gold in recycled paper form, my people:

To quote the great Bender Bending Rodriguez: "I'm back, baby!"

The Feel Good Blog Posting of the Year

Oh no lets not let the bottle of Walker Black fool you. The photo above are just the simple tools of the animation trade and I for one am a slave to tradition. So folks, let me tell you about this past week. Page 100 has officially been hit. We're well on our way to double digit scene count, and as of this afternoon, half of Thursday's boards have been done. By Thursday, I mean this coming Thursday. Thursday the 13th...of May. That's right, I am 4; Count them 4 days ahead of schedule. This is a good thing considering next weekend's schedule looks like I've climbed the ranks of the social elite. But alas current status still remains. So without further delay, I present to you this week's count:

2 weeks down

12 weeks to go

70 of 308 scenes done

100 pages completed so far

Not bad considering I was near panic attacks last weekend being half a day behind. My task this week, KEEP THIS TRAIN A' ROLLIN!

More to come. Happy Jasin. Happy, happy Jasin.

Update Quickie!

The above picture is where the magic happens. Although I normally reserve short comments for Facebook and Twitter, I promised to keep up with posting here and dammit that's what I'm gonna do!

The count so far:

1 full week down

13 weeks to go

308 scenes total

30 scenes done as of tonight

2 scenes behind right now of the pace I need to keep but my right thumb is a constant shade of purple and the writing callus on my right middle finger has an odd blister/hardened coating over it. Painful, yes. But I am fighting through the pain.

That is all for now. More to come.

The First of Many Pages

So I know I disappeared again. I promise to get over this insensate believe that without visual work to show, my blog isn't worth updating. Unlike in the past, this time my disappearance meant results. Serious results in the form of an entire short film/pilot script and it's corresponding shot list! This may just be the fastest I've ever turned page around, and I am dedicated to doing so with the storyboards. Boarding deadline set at July 1, I am well on my way. The shot list presently contains 308 scenes. Starting April 26 and going to June 30, that means I must complete 4.5 scenes a day if I am to keep on task. That may sound like a piece of cake, but in some scenes we could be talking up to 15 drawings. I'm already starting to sweat, but I view this as my only way back to the road I want to be on.

I apologize for the crappy phone pic ahead of time, but with that I give you the very first storyboard page!

Yeah I know it's no masterpiece by far, but it's a storyboard. It's not suppose to look finished. Not bad for a guy who hasn't drawn anything in over six months. By the end of today I'll be on page 12 of god knows how many pages.

On the casting front, we've had a bit of a shuffle and change about. Taking over for me as the voice of Professor Waxington, (the fine chap sipping his coffee on the page you most recently saw) is venerable actor of stage and screen, and former Henson Muppetteer, Carlos Larkin! Taking over the role of Jenna Knockersworth is Las Vegas' own 98.5 KLUC Morning Zoo member Lauren Michaels! And in the role switch and change department, actor Curt Clendenin (of former Dirk Malone fame) will be taking the part of brand new character, General Principle; And actor Layton Matthews will be assuming the part of Dirk Malone, allowing filmmaker Tyrell Ventura to assume the role of the legendary Dr. Tikiforaheadwithafez.

So as you can see I presently have my work cut out for me. Feels good to be back to work on a project. Especially one that has finally found it's voice after having taken so many forms over the last few years. I promise I will try to update as I work through the gazillion pages of boards spewing out of me at the moment, but in all likelihood your next update on this particular project will come in video form, with rough audio track.

In other quick update news, Kids Eating Paste is in the midst of a technical upgrade. New camera, new lights, website 2.0, the works. Good stuff from there forthcoming, and Bowie! You'll know more shortly. And in the mean time you need to buy one of these fine KIDS EATING PASTE SHIRTS!

Thanks for reading. And if you're one of those lame Twit kids, you can follow me on Twitter @JasinAmodeo.

The Long Awaited Kids Eating Paste PSA, Starring ME!

On my way to the nut house I've decided to start turning all the random thought in my head that I find funny, (luckily my writing partner Brandon finds them funny too, so at least I know I'm not all crazy. That or Brandon is total bat shit crazy. Either way...) into comedy sketches. Those sketches have turned from fun, into yet another business endeavor of sorts, in the form of www.kidseatingpaste.com. This also means I'll be taking turns in front of and behind the camera as needed. I've found doing wacky shit like this has been a great way to blow off the steam that so often prevents creativity from easing out in animated form.

So with that, I am proud to present not just my newly posted PSA, but also a sketch we shot last August, starring me and the multi-talented NoHo legend Curt Clendenin.