Category: Inbetweens

All the other stuff

  • Downtime coming up

    I’m transfering my site to a new host in the next week or so. I can’t say exactly when because it’s out of my control. When that happens, the website will most likely not be available for about a day, and that’s if I get to it right away.

    I’ve decided to hold off on releasing Glen Keane, Part Two until after the switch because I don’t want people to come looking for it and find absolutely nothing. It’ll only be a short while and when everything is squared away, I’ll put out Show 15.

    I host the audio files on a totally different server, so all the previous shows will still be available. The best bet is to access them through iTunes or another podcast directory like Odeo, Yahoo! Podcasts, or Podcast Alley.

    Thanks for your understanding and patience,
    Clay

  • A quick check-in

    Hey everybody,
    I’ve been collecting a couple things in my head so it’s time to dump them here. (My head only holds so much.)

    Comments
    Thanks to everyone who’s commented here on the site and via email. Generally, I’ll respond to the site comments first since the emails I get usually have more detailed questions, but I do try to answer all of them. So if you’ve sent me mail, I’ve got it, I just haven’t had a chance to respond yet.

    Odeo Voicemail
    Thanks for all the Odeo voice messages too! Like I said in the last show, the audio is so much better!

    Survey
    The survey is still active, so click it in the header, or here, if you haven’t taken it. I have a target number of participants and you’re already half way there. It’s giving me some great insight to who you guys are (and who you’d like to hear on upcoming shows).

    Badges (or buttons)
    If you’ve been wanting an image to use on your site to link back to me, want no more. I’ve got a variety of sizes to choose from, so step right up and get your badges here.

    Voting
    I’ve kind of dropped the push for votes at Podcast Alley, but listener Paul’s comment rightly points out that it does help to get more listeners. If you’re so inclined, you can vote from the link on the homepage (under Feedback), or through this link. Thanks Paul.

  • Animation Talk

    All right, one more post before the next show.

    Here’s some more animation related talk to check out.

    I’ll put this one first because the series starts tomorrow. As the Pixar: 20 Years of Animation exhibition travels to The Science Museum in South Kensington, London, they are kicking off a series called Talk Animation. If you’re in London on April 3rd you can catch the first in the series:

    Loren Carpenter, Senior Scientist at Pixar Studios, will talk about his Academy Award winning work in creating new technology that has enabled Pixar productions to be so fantastical, yet believable. Loren will also be talking about his work on the jaw-dropping 21st Century Zoetrope, one of the main features of the Pixar: 20 Years of Animation exhibition.

    There are a bunch of different talks to attend. Go to The Science Musuem’s site for more details. LINK

    —–

    I’ve mentioned Smarter Than the Average radio show before. Their second show airs on April 3rd at 7pm GMT. They say the show will be dowmloadable the following day as an mp3 with ten extra minutes. For all the details go to the Smarter Than the Average site. LINK

    —–

    When I started the podcast, FPS Magazine told me that they had been thinking about podcasting too. Well, they’ve done it! Go to the FPS site to hear their first show, an interview with independent animator Phil Mulloy. LINK

    —–

    If you’ve ever been to any of the previous Marc Davis Lectures hosted by The Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences, you know that they are some of the best produced animation lectures you can attend. This year the featured guests are The Brothers Quay. If you’re not familiar with their work, once you see it, you’ll suddenly recognize how many filmmakers were influenced by their work, not just in animation, but films like The Cell and even that modern masterpiece *cough* Saw. The Marc Davis Lectures sell out every year, so get your tickets early. LINK

    —–

    And of course, you must already know about The Splinecast. They’ll have an interview with Pixar art director Ralph Eggleston coming up. In the meantime, you can read Ralph’s answers to listener submitted questions here. LINK

  • Since you’re just standing around waiting…

    Why don’t you take the listener survey? This isn’t some big marketing strategy. I’m just curious about who listens to the show. It shouldn’t take more than five minutes, unless you have to stop and think about who your favorite character is. Nothing personal either, just a handful of easy questions. I’d really appreciate it. Think of it as your way to give back to the show that keeps on giving.

    Speaking of shows, there WILL be a new show on the site around Sunday night/Monday morning, so be sure to check back for that. I promise, you will not want to miss it. And don’t ask who it is. I won’t give.

    Find the survey in header at the top, or in the sidebar, or just click right here.

  • T.A.P. featured on PodcasterWorld.com

    Well this is nice of them. I’m one of the featured podcasts on PodcasterWorld.com. I wish I could tell you how much this means to me, but I just heard of PodcasterWorld. Only PodcasterWorld knows how long the adulation will last. Nonetheless, with about 17,000 podcasts out there, I’m honored to be plucked from the crowd.

    PodcasterWorld

  • A new way to leave your feedback

    There’s a very nice addition to the feedback options that may be of use to some of you, especially the overseas listeners: It’s the pink balloon link in the sidebar that says ‘Send me a voice message.’ (I may will update that in the future with my own image.) If you’ve got a computer with a mic, you can record right there, no need to call a phone number, AND the audio quality should be much clearer than the phone messages. You also get to review it before sending, so if you sound like a goof (which isn’t a bad thing for the show) you can start over. Good for all of us, aight? I think the only requirements are a mic on your end (duh) and flash installed for your browser. Give it a shot, if for no other reason than for helping me test it out.

    While I’m on the subject of feedback, I’d like to extend a GREAT BIG THANKS to everyone who’s been commenting here on the site, as well as to the handful of people who gave some nice reviews in iTunes. And I can’t forget those of you who still vote on Podcast Alley. That’s is always appreciated since Podcast Alley is a pretty good gauge of what podcasts people like. It’s all appreciated mucho, mucho, and keeps my tank full for the podcast road ahead. By the way, the next stop will be pretty sweet!

  • A fun radio program

    “Smarter Than The Average” is radio program that airs on Resonance 104.4fm in London. They broadcast on the internet, but I missed the original airing of the first show when it played a couple months ago. The good news is, the hosts Julian and Jonathan have reconstructed and posted the audio for all to enjoy. It’s a fun, hour-long show where they play all kinds of animation related audio, some familiar, some not so common. Give it a listen and if you like it, tune in when they broadcast “Smarter Than The Average 2: The New Batch” on April 3rd, repeating on April 10th.

    Here’s the link to audio of the original show.

    Update: fixed the date (I had it wrong). Thanks Chris for pointing that out.

  • Trying out a new look

    I’ve been futzing with a new theme that offers some cool functionality, so check it out. If you don’t see a difference, use the Theme Switcher in the sidebar. And if it totally busts your viewing experience, just switch back. I know it’s very “traditional” in the animation sense of the word, but don’t get all bent, there’s a CG theme coming soon.

  • A slight adjustment

    I love having a site that people enjoy, and I’m flattered when other sites see fit to link back to what I’m doing, but I have seen a couple examples out there of other sites blatantly re-publishing my every post, word for word, images included. I feel that using my work as a source of content without my permission is downright despicable and I certainly wouldn’t consider myself a “Contributor” to any site that takes without asking. Don’t worry if you’ve merely blogged about The Animation Podcast, I like you guys. The real offenders are quite aware of what efforts they make to misappropriate my work for their own profit.

    So, like Jim at Seward Street, who is in the same boat and equally unflattered, I’ve made a slight change that I hope you will tolerate. If you subscribe to the RSS feed, you will see that each post will have a copyright message attached to the end. It not a big deal, but I like it when it shows up on those sites I’m talking about, just to let people know what they are reading when they happen to go there.

    Also, this has caused me to reconsider how I link to good stuff you might like. Now I will point you to the place where I originally hear about something cool, instead of directly to the file. I’m not doing this to cause you more work, but to honor the work that others do on the web.

  • Recent links to animation podcasts and interviews

    The past few weeks have brought quite a bit of animation media to digest:

    PODCASTS/iTUNES

    Channel Frederator – Awesome show. Each video podcast episode has a handful of great little shorts to watch. We were snowed in over the holiday and my video iPod (thanks honey) kept me entertained with shorts like The Naive Man from Lolliland and The Bastard. (iTunes link)

    Happy Tree Friends – Each brief episode features another way of killing off the cuddly stars of the show. Disgustingly amusing. (iTunes link)

    Vintage Tooncast – Distributing a new public domain cartoon in each podcast. It’s nothing you couldn’t find on archive.org, but they do all the heavy lifting for you. (iTunes link)

    CGCast – CG-centric interview podcast. (iTunes link)

    The Wubbcast – “The free weekly video podcast for pre-schoolers.” If you’ve been following their blog like I have, now you can see them in action. (iTunes link)

    INTERVIEWS

    John Kricfalusi interview – An animated version of a John K interview. I don’t know why it’s this way, but I like it! (via Cartoon Brew)

    Mae Questel Interview – Brief audio interview with the voice of Olive Oyl. Hearing her voice brings me back to the Sunday mornings of my childhood. On the local station KTLA, Tom Hatten was the man!(via Cartoon Brew)

    Walt’s People Volume 2 – Volume 1 was part of the inspiration to start my site (along with Seward Street’s Milt Kahl audio files). Great book containing interviews with people who worked with Walt Disney, edited by Didier Ghez.

    John Lasseter Interview – Half hour audio regarding the MOMA Pixar 20th Anniversary retrospective. You can also check out the museum’s audio tour online. (via Cartoon Brew)

    Dominic Sidoli interview – Visual effects producer for Double Negative on Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (via FXGuide)

    UPDATE:

    Of course I should have mentioned Christian Ziebarth’s transcript of his interview with Eric Goldberg. (via Animated-News)

    UPDATE UPDATE:

    The Spline Doctors speak! – Listen to their first podcast where they discuss preferences for animating with splines versus linear keys (or knots).