Halloween may be long gone, but I thought this week's SweetIM animation was relevant because some days I just feel like a zombie. Mostly on Monday mornings. :) It was fun coming up with an interesting walk for this guy, taking into account his limp. The swaying of his upper body worked out nicely too. Check it out!
Yes, here it is... another SweetIM video for your viewing pleasure! This week I bring you the witch from our batch of Halloween animations. What can I say about the witch? She was fun to animate and I really like her design. I especially enjoyed posing her slide down the screen at the end of the animation. Hope you enjoy it and keep checking back for more videos! I've got plenty more where that came from.
This week's SweetIM video was one of my favorite ideas from the Halloween batch. We were trying to hit upon each of the main types of monsters, so of course there had to be one involving a werewolf. Surprisingly, I was never really a big fan of werewolves, but I do remember being freaked out by the one in the beginning of the "Thriller" video. It was fun to put my own twist on the notion of a werewolf. Check out the video above and stills below... if you dare.
With this week's post, I'm bringing you another installment of SweetIM animation show and tell.
I think we all know the drill by now, but above and below you'll find a video and stills showing a SweetIM animation from animatic to final animation. This week's animation is of Doctor Frankenstein and his monster. When coming up with ideas for the Halloween SweetIM animations, I really wanted to push interactivity with the user. I thought it was a really fun idea to have the Doc steal the user's brain. It was tricky to pull it off, but I think it works well. What do you think?
We're quickly approaching the big day, so to continue this week's theme of Halloween related posts I decided to share one of the animations we did for the second batch of SweetIM animations. This one is of a little Grim Reaper who has some heavy news for you. This animation was extra fun to do because it adds more interactivity between users than any of the previous ones we've done. Check out the video above to see what I mean! Then check out the stills below.
Following up on Mark's post from last week, where he showed off his Halloween character sketches, here are my versions of those same characters. These are the approved designs that you will see in 2A!'s newest batch of SweetIM animations!
When I received Mark’s sketches with the notes to make the characters “cuter” I felt conflicted since I really liked his designs the way they were. They were a lovely mix of spooky and quirky, both things that I feel are very in the spirit of Halloween. So I did my best to keep as much of Mark's original design sense while redrawing the characters in my style. All in all, I think they turned out pretty nice!
Check out my approved Halloween character sketches below and let us know what you think! :)
2A!’s Happy Halloween short rises from the depths to gain new life on YouTube!
We created this promotional short a few years ago and sent it out as a Halloween greeting to our clients and colleagues, and to help spread the word about the studio. At the time it was featured on Cold Hard Flash and has since rested comfortably on our YouTube channel. But over the past week the video has been resurrected, jumping from around 900 views to over 31,000 and climbing! Needless to say, we figured it definitely deserved another look. ;)
I’m still really happy with how this piece (which pokes fun at the nightmare of working with a low production budget) turned out. Especially given that it was a very spontaneous idea that I came up with and the team quickly cranked out. Not to mention Joe and I got to do the voices of Igor and Dracula! :P
So be sure to check out the video above and let us know what you think. I’ve also included the original character sheets for Dracula and Igor below. The whole 2A! gang loves Halloween and had a blast working on this, so we hope you like it too!
Since Halloween is our all-time favorite holiday, Tom and I are always doodling Halloween characters and decided one year that it would be fun to turn them into a series of animated GIFS. So, here are some of the designs we created for that batch of FREE Halloween GIFS released back in 2005.
First up are my designs, including a witch, a zombie, two ghosts, Frankenstein, Dracula, and a cranky demon.
Next up are Tom's designs, which include a goofy bat, a creepy snake living in a skull, a howling wolf, and a scarecrow with a pumpkin’s head.
If you like these designs, then be sure to check out the animated versions on our Fun & Games page. Just click on the "Freebies" game in the Flash movie at the top of the page. Or you can just download them HERE. Did we mention they're FREE! ;)
Instead of posting a SweetIM video this week, I've decided to share the original designs I created for the batch of Halloween animations that just launched.
It's no secret that I enjoy all things creepy and evil when it comes to my taste in art. So, after the scripts were finalized for the Halloween animations, I was asked to sketch up some designs for the characters. I played with different shapes and went for stylized, sleek designs. Ultimately, although everyone liked them, they didn't jive with the client's target audience. So, I handed them off to Sarah to give them a cute makeover to match her designs from the first batch. My designs have been tucked away ever since, just waiting to be used for future projects. I'm sure you'll see them again someday.
Two Animators! LLP (2A!) is a full-service animation production and development studio.
Founded in 2001 by brothers Tom and Joe Costantini, 2A! creates content for animated series, shorts, music and explainer videos, commercial spots, games, apps and more. We’ve had the opportunity to work on a wide variety of projects during our 14+ years in business, from full-blown television series to online virtual worlds (MMOs) and mobile apps. Our team works in many different styles and can adapt to your specific production needs, and of course we’re always excited to design a unique look for a brand new property. We love creating new characters, worlds and storylines, and can help transform your ideas into fully developed IPs (Intellectual Properties) ready for pitching, producing or selling.
Posts
