Time off for some....

If you read today's "Jetpack Jr." at GoComics, then you know "Jetpack" will be on vacation for a month or so--but while he takes it easy on some interstellar beach somewhere in space, I'll be toiling away here at home on another project involving JJ's best pal.

Bella Dilemma comes to life!
Yes, indeedy--I'm working hard on the pitch for an animated TV show built around the babe with the biggest beehive this side of Planet Uterus!( *see my previous post) More to the point--I'm working on an animated teaser/trailer to whet the whistle of potential viewers and TV development execs! Check out this sample:



via GIPHY


 This gif is the result of a character model sheet I was doing for Bella( which means drawing her in the round,for those who don't speak the lingo). I got inspired and took it a little farther than intended--but I couldn't wait to see her move.   This is only a sample test run--the following piece is a slightly more ambitious bit of animation; a "pencil test" for a segment in the middle of the proposed trailer/ show opening:


via GIPHY

 Befitting a geezer of my years, all of this material is old-skool, hand-drawn animation on paper. Exactly the method I learned forty years ago studying animation at PCA (before it was the University of the Arts in Phila.). I'm not entirely a dinosaur, as I work into the project I'm utilizing ToonBoom software to help bring it all together.
If you've read some of my previous posts, you know I've been moving towards animation for over a year now. The gravitational pull has been irresistible-so I stopped fighting.  "The project" at this point is attempting to give the viewer a feel for what the proposed "Bella Dilemma" TV show would be like. The theoretical show opening, or teaser/trailer, will take the viewer through the series scenario in thirty + seconds or so; and if all goes well--excite he or she enough to make them want to tune in.
If it's not as complete a view as a pilot episode can provide; certainly it's as much as I can do on my own within the limits of the time allotted to me to work on it. As this is my first animated project in many years, I felt my best chance for success was to limit the scope of the undertaking--and even at just 30 seconds or so, it's a lot; there's so much to do-aside from just animating the characters!

In the next few weeks I hope to post some images of all that "so much to do" and maybe some more animations, and maybe I'll clue you in to the show scenario; it's quite different from the world of "Jetpack Jr." and the Bella you know there.  
So-- that's why I'm taking some time off "JJ".   
But when this project is done, it's back to the drawing board!