Disney Internship: NYC Street MGM Studio

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By October, I was starting to feel rather burnt out form all the inbetweening drawings I had to do to finish each animation scene I was working on.

On lunch breaks I would walk around the MGM theme park to fins a place to sketch. Just having a chance to sketch on location helped ground me.

On one occasion I was sitting on a bench in the New York City like in this sketch and A woman walked past me. She looked over her shoulder at me while she walked away. She came around a second time and stopped in front of me. She leaned forward and asked, “Are you an animatronic?” If I wasn’t so surprised, I could have acted mechanical and messed with her but I simply said, “No, I am very much flesh and blood.” People don’t sit still in theme parks. They are always in a rush to get on the next attraction. Children get cranky since their tiny little legs can’t keep up. Artists function on a much slower pace, to take the time to look.

Disney Internship: It’s a Small World After All

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By the start of October, I was working on animating a run. It was a challenge working with such broad movements so I stayed late. leaving my desk about 11pm. I was the last person in the building.

The following day there was an 8:30Am breakfast meeting with the mentors. My mentor was Bryan M. Sommer whose specialty was clean up and inbetweening. That was helpful since that would be my roll if I started working on the next film. He taught a seminar right after the breakfast. Bryan had some amazing hidden talents. After the Florida studio closed, he effortlessly did some amazing Australian theme park designs that I wish had been built.

 

Disney Internship: The Animation Building

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This is the entrance to what was the animation tour at Disney MGM Studio. Guests would enter here and be introduced to the process of animation. One section of the tour had large floor to ceiling windows that overlooked the animators at work.

When I started working at the studio my desk was right at the base of the tourist overlook. All day long guests would knock n the glass and give me a thumbs up. It was a nightmare. Finally a guard on the other side of the glass started pointing down into my work space. The glass was soundproof so we couldn’t talk. I finally realized he was pointing at a ledge at the base of the glass wall above my eye line. I felt along the ledge and found some tape which I peeled up. On the tape was written, “Hi My name is Tom, If you lie my work please knock on the glass and give me a thumbs up.” I groaned. The animator next to me started laughing his head off.

I caught this jazz band outside the entrance on one of my lunchtime walks through the park. I would get out each day and people watch before sitting back at my animation desk and cranking out drawings all day long.

Ford-iFy the Arts Groundbreaking

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I went to the groundbreaking ceremony at City Arts in Downtown Orlando. I arrive rather early and set up across the street to sketch the courtyard and Kean building. the event was held just days after the Governor of Florida, Ron DeSantis vetoes all funding for the arts.

A new gate had been added to the entry of the courtyard with two swans and surprise and delight written in the clouds. People gradually started to gather at the gate to kibitz and schmooze.

The new yet to be fully constructed courtyard will be named in honor of Ford Kiene, the former owner who donated the historic green of the green Rogers Klein building. He donated the building to the city of Orlando.

Ford-ify the Arts is a fundraising event organized with the intentions of raising capital to construct a courtyard on the north-side space adjacent to the Rogers Kiene Building (home to CityArts). The vision is to create a beautiful public space in the heart of Downtown Orlando, which complements Orlando’s oldest commercial structure, built in 1886. This space will be used for diverse, inclusive, and creative arts engagement, as well as private gallery-related and specialty events. Interstruct, Inc. created the concept and design of the courtyard.

The design seems to consist of a clear arched canopy that looks like it might blow away in a hurricane or high wind. Murals already exist though they might be planning to change them, and there are benches for the homeless to lounge on. In the promotional image a couple walks hand in hand towards the back wall of a parking garage as if strolling on the beach.

As I was sketching a guy walked past me twice with a hand truck stacked with cases of beer. He pointed out to me that the Rogers Kean building was  donated by the guy who stated the beer distribution company he worked for. Its a small world.

Orlando Urban Sketchers: Baldwin Perk

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Orlando Urban Sketchers held a morning sketch outing at Baldwin Perk Caffè, 4833 New Broad Street Baldwin Park Florida. I ordered a iced caramel latte and it was delicious. I was super pleased that Baldwin Perk Caffè has a state of the art HEPA air filter running. I sat next to the filter. I am always pleased find establishments that offer clean air for their patrons. I debated about removing my mask but it was just as easy to leave it on. Masking indoors is my new normal. I have had a cough for the past week and wanted to keep everyone else safe.

I am so pleased with how strong the Orlando Chapter or Urban Sketchers has grown. The coffee hose was full of sketchers. It was like a sketching flash mob.

Gay reminded me of the times I used to host drink and draw events. She was one of the few artists who showed up in the early days and she is still sketching, Well on this day she was on her laptop working remote, but she often sketches at these outings. Noga who did an amazing job of building the group has been able to hand over many of the responsibilities to a new generation of artists.

One of my former students was sketching. I glanced at her several times convinced I must have met her before, but I couldn’t put 2 an 2 together. I don’t math in the morning, especially without caffeine.  Anyway she was one of my former Crealdè School of Art students. She showed me her sketchbook, full of my thumbnail notes. I had done a sketch of her in class, when we were going over sketching people on location. Meeting he absolutely made me glow. I have always said that if I can convince one student that sketching on location is an inspiring way to live life, then I would have done my job as an instructor. She convinced me I had done my job right for once.

I would gladly return to Baldwin Perk. I might stop in when I am teaching a class at Crealde again on Sundays. Urban sketching is my religion.

Disney Internship: Harbor House

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With my jump animation assignment finished I took time off on the weekend to explore Disney MGM Studio. This was essentially where I worked but I was in a trailer inn the back lot parking lot and never saw the park while busy sketching at my desk.

I felt that many of the rids at MGM were rather corny but I guess that is what people want. Some of the attractions were worth the effort of standing in line. MGM can be seen in a single day. The larger theme parks might take more time to explore and sketch.

Columbia Harbor House is in the Magic Kingdom. It is an American seafood counter restaurant which mostly served fish and chips style meals. It is seafood with a serious slathering of breading and oil, along with fries and slaw.

After a while I decided to go back to my desk in the animation studio and do three more inbetweens on my assignment to slow down the ending of the scene. The scene was of a locust jumping and i had him perform on the animation desk which was new to me and therefor worth sketching as a background.

The internship was not a 9 to 5 work situation. Some artists never left their desks but I tried to keep to a set schedule to stay sane. The experience was a pressure cooker to see who thrived and who crumbled under the pressure. I paced myself and one steam valve was the ability to go into the parks and sketch on location. It calmed my nerves.

To this day, I still sit at my Disney Animation desk all day long and then, when I can, I venture out to sketch in the real world.

Disney Internship: The Stocks

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As a Disney Feature Animation intern, I enjoyed having free reign of the Disney Theme parks on the weekend to sketch.

On the week this was done, Barry Cook came to the Disney’s MGM Studios and pitched the idea for the next feature animated film which was called at the time China Doll, or FaMulan.

There was one section of the animation building which had a tall soundproof glass wall behind which tourists could watch the animation artists at work. Barry stood on a desk and told us the story of a daughter who joined the Chinese army as a man to save her father from conscription. Barry had a knack for storytelling and I was fully engrossed and hoped that one day I might work on the film which would later be called Mulan.

I also learned that as an intern I would have a chance to do some production drawings for the film the studio was now working on called The Lion King. The story of Lion King was built around the themes of Shakespeare’s Hamlet.

Disney Internship: Merry-Go-Round

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I spent a solid day exploring Disney World and sketching. This was a merry-go-round at Disney World. Late in the internship I would use a merry-go-round as inspiration for some story boarding I did.

I had already finished the second animation assignment which was a jump. I was feeling guilty that I finished so fast. So I started a second jump but abandoned it since I like the first animation better.

For some reason I had been given a Snow White poster and I wanted to give it to my niece Nikki. I was also given an Aladdin tape and I probably still have that packed away in some box somewhere.

24 at the Renaissance

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24 is set in a 1920s speakeasy. An email arrived that gave the secret password to be given at the door. I met Seth and Genevieve in the line to get in. They didn’t get the email, so I filled them in on the Latin password. Genevieve memorized the password immediately but I forgot it the second I told them.

Security is tight at the Renaissance Theater Company, 415 E Princeton St, Orlando, FL . I didn’t bring my art bag since bags are not allowed. I just brought my iPad. Getting through the metal detector with all my change, pencils, phone, keys, wallet and iPad took some time. We were all issued bright green arm bands.

Once inside I masked up. I was one of two who did. At the foot of a tall staircase we were introduced to the mantra of mother. A woman complained bitterly about the religious fervor of mother and the endless debauchery we were about to experience. Then we entered a laundry. The man behind the counter lamented the recent violence in the city. I was in his line of sight and he called me over. He asked if I wished to place an order. Since I didn’t know what he was talking about I said “no.” He told me to step aside and asked the next guest the same question. That person said “no” and was told to stand beside me. Finally the third person said “yes” and whispered the secret password in the mans ear. They were let into the venue through a beaded curtain. The laundry machines were actually doors to back rooms. I had to scan a code with my phone to get more words of wisdom from mother.

I was allowed in and sat at a table in the corner which was marked with my name. The woman seated beside me looked stunning in her vintage flapper dress. Quite a few woman had taken the trouble to dig out their flapper dresses and bejeweled headbands. A six piece band provided the music though I never caught sight of them. The singing was stellar. The show itself featured some fast paced dancing mixed with dark undertones. The dancers were in constant motion so I only ventures to capture a few fast gestures. Detail had to be lost. I switched my attention to the large vagina scrawled on the wall. Though celebrating sensuality there were was also resistance and counter protest.

Overall it was a mysterious and jubilant evening. A group of people tried to exit the way we came in. It turns out that lead to a backstage maze. The actual exit was at the back of the venue.

Disney Feature Animation Internship: Tiki Room

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I had a full day off from animating in the Disney Feature Animation Internship. Some of the interns pretty much chained themselves to their desks to keep animating. There was so much on the line if the assignments sucked then it was very possible you might not get hired. I had finished my assignment and felt my mental health was just as important as cranking out drawings. so I went to Disney World as an employee.

This is a third sketch done on the same day in Disney World. This is the Tiki Room or, Sunshine Tree Terrace. Years later I would sketch one of the Tiki birds on display at the Orange County Regional History Center. All the birds inner gears and gyros lay open and exposed. I think I was just so excited to get away from the animation desk where I was sketching Mickey and Goofy. Having a solid day to just sketch on location felt like a real vacation. Some of the early animation assignments just felt silly and it was nice to get a dose of sketching from reality back into my blood.

Well I suppose sketching in Disney World as far from reality but it was a fair recreation of an exotic and new location to sketch. All these sketches were done as post cards. I would mail one off each night. The advantage is that they are all post marked which further verifies the dates.