Wednesday, December 27, 2006

Lazy Days


Merry Christmas! Not much happening on the job front with most people being off this week. I did "meet and greet" quicky interviews last week with a whole bunch of companies including Pixar, Sony, ILM, EA, Orphanage and Laika. Some of the better companies sounded promising so hopefully I'll hear something back in the coming weeks.

This week I've been going to Christmas parties and sleeping in late. Lazy days for sure. Once again, I didn't get home for Christmas. My family sent a gift basket of goodies that I'm still going through. It's storming out right now, which is super rare for Southern California and I have a dinner to go to tonight in Santa Monica. It's still a bit early so maybe it will clear up before long. Hope the holiday season finds everyone well.

Saturday, December 16, 2006

Naughty Dog Party


Quickly on the hunt for a new gig, last night I was invited to the renowned game company, Naughty Dog. I was a little thrown off by the amazing building they were in. It didn't look like the home of a small game house but there it was, on the sixth floor with a giant Jak and Daxter statue in the lobby. They were having their Christmas party. It was really nice and the people who work there are super friendly. I'm signing up with Digital Artist Management to see some other studios but I have to say, thumbs up for Naughty Dog!

Wednesday, December 13, 2006

I'm Out!


Got word yesterday that I will be laid off from Disney after Meet the Robinsons. I certainly was not alone. All my friends including my boss and his boss were also laid off. They stated 20% of Feature Animation but that was very misleading. They meant 20% of the studio which from what I understand, includes some 300 "other" people. It was more like 60% of the artists but it felt like 80% here in Lighting. They did say we would get a call when American Dog ramps back up but I really would like to leave feature films for a while and work in video games. I know I've been saying that for years now but maybe it's finally time to take myself seriously.

Sunday, December 10, 2006

Who Gets the Axe?


The topic on everyone's mind here at the studio is who goes and who stays. The answer will come with a phone call just one day away. They are calling it "Black Tuesday". The day 20% of Disney Feature Animation gets laid off. What I have going in my favor? I'm fast, I'm good and I'm fun to work with. What I have going against me? I'm new! I just celebrated my one year mark at Disney last week. There are people in shot finaling with 10+ years in. I'm not saying it's definite but there is a fair chance I will be one of the unfortunate come Tuesday. I'm not bitter. Quite the opposite. I'm looking forward to some fantastic opportunities coming my way in the near future. More on that to come... first thing's first. What will happen on Tuesday?

Friday, December 01, 2006

Ant Bully on DVD, HD-DVD!


Originally, I had said something smart-arse about working on this so I'm here to edit my original post. I loved working at DNA on Jimmy Neutron. It still remains the funnest studio I have worked for. Ant Bully was a difficult time for the studio and it became "not-so-fun" to work at DNA. We as a studio put a lot into this film and I am proud of it. Most of all, I'm proud of the opportunity to work with such great people. I made a ton of friends and have fond memories of our Jimmy Neutron days. I hope they get back on there feet soon with a cool Jimmy-like tv show. Give that crazy 3-eyed monkey another chance!