ALICE AND THE INVADERS FROM WONDERLAND 19X27 print art

Paul Loudon and myself have decided to launch a mini fundraiser prior to launching a proper Kickstarter to fund a pilot episode for ALICE AND THE INVADERS FROM WONDERLAND. 

AVAILABLE NOW!! Order a special 19x27 print of Paul's amazing promotional work for ALICE. As a special thank you for taking part in funding the pilot, not only will you receive a thank you in the credits for the pilot, YOU WILL BE GIVEN THE OPTION OF US USING YOUR LIKENESS AS AN EXTRA IN THE PILOT EPISODE!!

Once you have purchased the print please sent us a photograph of yourself to swashbucklingalice@gmail.com

You will also receive a character sheet of the way you will appear in the series!!

The cost is $75 per print and limited to 25 only. Click on the button below to preorder today.

Check out the new ALICE AND THE INVADERS FROM WONDERLAND Blog

 

Just set up a brand new blog for ALICE AND THE INVADERS FROM WONDERLAND. All upcoming news and announcements concerning the project can be found there!!

Cartoon Art

 

Some characters I'm in the process of developing for a potential Animated Series I'm in currently developing.

The cat-like character was actually from a design I did waaaay back in 1998 for an article my college newspaper was running for a Cartoon Film Festival taking place in Savannah, Georgia.

 

My editor Alexander Fox wanted characters who vaguely looked like they could be famous cartoon characters... And what you see above is what I came up with.

I shall keep you posted on how the series progresses.

 

Who Censored Roger Rabbit? by Gary Wolf

Apart from character names and the fact that cartoons interact with humans, the novel that would ultimately become the basis for the 1988 hit film WHO FRAMED ROGER RABBIT could be two entirely different stories. And neither of them are bad. Just different.

I don't blame the filmmakers for going in a different direction than what Gary Wolf originally set up. In the original story comic strip and comic book characters interact with human beings. The 'toons dialogue would appear as "speech balloons" over the characters heads. Also the novel takes place in contemporary times (1980 around the time the novel was written) whereas the film takes place during the golden age of animation of the 1940s.

Given the medium the filmmakers were working with, it seems understandable to me that they would prefer to have the story centered around animated cartoons rather than comic strips. Given the rich history of film animation and the fact that animation creates the illusion of movement, it just seems like the logical choice.

That and it was just the right time for something like that. By 1988 animation had really hit rock bottom. Most of the classic characters had almost been forgotten and replaced by cheap television animation with the only purpose of selling toys. There was a big controversy over that at the time, but that's a conversation for another day.

When Roger Rabbit hit the theatres it caused a stir. But in a good way. Suddenly people saw animation. Really good animation!! And suddenly all these great characters that were long since forgotten were suddenly being remembered again.

It kind of sparked the whole animation revival of the early 1990s.

So naturally when Roger Rabbit was finally released on DVD, I had to get a copy. I first saw it in the theatres. The thing is, not only was it really well made, but the story and the acting was really good too.

Sometimes that's the problem with a blockbuster. Its like a sandwich made on really nice bread. But there's nothing but mustard in between. And as Chico Marx once said, "Mustard's no good without roast beef."

And this movie had roast beef to spare.

But with all that said, I finally got around to reading the novel. Which I am actually enjoying. I wasn't sure how I would take to it. But its interesting. To be honest, I wouldn't mind seeing a film of this version of Roger Rabbit.

However, I'm not sure if it would have had the lasting effect that the movie version had. Another example of just at the right place at the right time. And I'll be the first to say I hope they don't make a sequel. It'll never capture the magic quite like the original.

Test Animation

I was playing around with Flash a little bit today to see how a scene from my upcoming Sherlock Holmes graphic novel would translate to animation.

I may try this again using drawn animation next time. But I'm starting to understand Flash a little better now.

"Peanuts" animator Bill Melendez dies

I will always have a soft spot for the Peanuts Specials. And the Snoopy voice. Seeing the spinning CBS Special Presentation intro is what made a school night worth living. So, I was very sorry to hear about the passing of Bill Melendez. He seemed like a rather salty and amusing character from the special PBS had on Charles Schulz about a year or so ago.

By Mike Barnes 37 minutes ago
LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Bill Melendez, best known for bringing the Peanuts characters to life with such classics as "A Charlie Brown Christmas" and "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown," died Tuesday at St. John's Hospital in Santa Monica. He was 91.

Melendez, the only animator permitted by Charles M. Schulz to work with the Peanuts characters, earned eight Emmy Awards, 17 Emmy nominations, one Oscar nomination and two Peabody Awards. He began his career at Disney and Warner Bros., working on classic characters at those studios, and spent more than 70 years in the entertainment industry.

In 1948, the Mexican native left Warner Bros. and for more than a decade served as a director and producer on more than 1,000 commercials and films for United Productions of America, Playhouse Pictures and John Sutherland Prods.
It was at UPA that Melendez started doing work for the New York-based J. Walter Thompson ad agency, whose clients included Ford. The carmaker expressed interest in using the Peanuts characters to sell its cars on TV, and in 1959 Melendez prepared his animation work and showed it to Peanuts creator Schulz.
Melendez went on to bring Charlie Brown and his pals to the screen in more than 63 half-hour specials, five one-hour specials, four feature films and more than 372 commercials. In addition to perennial favorites "A Charlie Brown Christmas" (1965) and "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown" (1966), Melendez produced the Oscar-nominated "A Boy Named Charlie Brown" (1971), "A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving" (1973), "She's a Good Skate, Charlie Brown" (1980) and "You're a Good Sport, Charlie Brown" (1975). He also provided the voices for Snoopy and Woodstock through the years.

Melendez also animated TV specials "Garfield on the Town," "Cathy," "Babar Comes to America" and "The Lion, the Witch & the Wardrobe," among others. He shared an Emmy in 1987 for outstanding animated program with three others for "Cathy."
His last credit was as a producer for the 2006 TV special "He's A Bully, Charlie Brown."

Melendez, who sported a handle bar mustache for decades, began his career at Walt Disney Studios and worked on "Pinocchio," "Fantasia," "Bambi," "Dumbo" and classic Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck cartoons. He then moved to Warners to animate Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Porky Pig and others. He worked under the monikers C. Melendez and J.C. Melendez.

Bill Melendez Prods., its sister studio Melendez Films in London and Sopwith Prods. (Melendez's art distribution unit) will continue to animate, direct and produce features and commercials.

Melendez is survived by his wife of 68 years, Helen; two sons, Steven Melendez and (Ret.) Navy Rear Admiral Rodrigo Melendez; six grandchildren; and 11 great grandchildren. A memorial service will take place for family only.
Donations can be made in Melendez's name to Children's Hospital Los Angeles.