Lee Sheppard

Working on an idea that I’ve been wanting to do for a long...

Sun, 02 Dec 2012 17:47:39 +1100

Working on an idea that I’ve been wanting to do for a long time. It’ll make things much easier for artists to know what to do to make a great and engaging story.

Film Synopsis

Tue, 21 Aug 2012 16:07:48 +1000

I get asked about how to write a story synopsis or what one looks like, most people jump to writing a script out in full before doing any foundation work like this. I’d like to share a synopsis I made for a feature film that I hope one day makes it to light. The original thought was to have it a live action film with either puppeteering or combined 3D animation for the Bunyip character. Here it is for your interest, I hope it helps you create your own synopsis for pitching your next big idea!

Bunyowie Synopsis

ACA Conference presentation from 2010

Thu, 26 Jul 2012 14:46:45 +1000

It’s been some time, but I got around to uploading it. I presented at the Australian Cartoonists Association’s national conference where I spoke alongside Peter Viska (Viskatoons) and Michael Jantze (the Norm). My talk was about pitching an idea to the larger networks and how to go about it, as well as how to create and prepare for pitching and some of the feedback I had received during my pitches.

They start early these days!

Mon, 26 Mar 2012 18:15:04 +1100

They start early these days!

Currently reading The Making of Prince of Persia on the iPad.

Tue, 07 Feb 2012 16:45:00 +1100

Currently reading The Making of Prince of Persia on the iPad.

australiancartoonistsassociation: Presenting: Anton Emdin’s...

Thu, 17 Nov 2011 16:15:23 +1100

australiancartoonistsassociation:

Presenting: Anton Emdin’s inking tutorial, from the 2011 Stanleys Conference.

"Inspiration is perishable We all have ideas. Ideas are immortal. They last forever. What..."

Tue, 08 Nov 2011 17:00:53 +1100

“

Inspiration is perishable

We all have ideas. Ideas are immortal. They last forever.

What doesn’t last forever is inspiration. Inspiration is like fresh fruit or milk:It has an expiration date.

If you want to do something, you’ve got to do it now. You cant put it on a shelf and wait two months to get around to it. You can’t just say you’ll do it later. Later you won’t be pumped up about it anymore.

If you’re inspired on a Friday, swear off the weekend and dive in to the project. When you’re high on inspiration, you can get two weeks of work done in twenty four hours. Inspiration is a time machine in that way

Inspiration is a magical thing, a productivity multiplier, a motivator. But it won’t wait for you. If it grabs you, grab it right back and put it to work.

”

- Rework, by Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson (37 Signals).

Currently reading…

Fri, 07 Oct 2011 16:35:56 +1100

Currently reading…

Dreamworks artist publication - Moonshine : Artists after...

Fri, 30 Sep 2011 17:24:30 +1000

Dreamworks artist publication - Moonshine : Artists after dark - is a wonderful piece showcasing the talent of the team working at the studio.

Random moments in a meeting…

Wed, 20 Jul 2011 18:20:33 +1000

Random moments in a meeting…

Some meetings go faster with a doodle or two.

Wed, 20 Jul 2011 17:36:50 +1000

Some meetings go faster with a doodle or two.

Rotating your iPhone videos

Mon, 18 Apr 2011 20:57:53 +1000

For those weird tall skyscraper videos we manage to film on our iphones, you can get them to rotate. You just need to know this: Snow Leopard users - use Quicktime Player 7 which you can download and install without affecting your installed Quicktime 10.

Open movie
Go to the Window > Show Movie Properties menu and a new window appears
Select Video Track on the left side
Select ‘size’ on the right hand side of the Video Track. You can rotate, adjust size and more with the buttons at the bottom of this menu.
Save! go to File > Export and choose the file format you want.

Good luck!

Work in progress art. The top is a sketch I simply took a photo...

Wed, 23 Mar 2011 14:16:36 +1100

Work in progress art. The top is a sketch I simply took a photo of using my iPhone camera and imported the image in to Illustrator. The second image indicates the wireframe of the bezier lines. The third or bottom image shows the colours added and strokes to identify more clearly some of the characters features against similar colours.

"ON SUNDAY, while leading a discussion on the future of web design and publishing, I noticed a..."

Mon, 21 Mar 2011 16:29:45 +1100

“ON SUNDAY, while leading a discussion on the future of web design and publishing, I noticed a slightly confused look appearing on some faces in the audience. The discussion had been billed as “Jeffrey Zeldman’s Awesome Internet Design Panel,” and”

- You are all in publishing!

These dinosaur illustrations/sketches were to represent...

Thu, 30 Dec 2010 22:17:27 +1100

These dinosaur illustrations/sketches were to represent categories for restaurant reviews. This one was to represent fine dining restaurants.

Digging through the files, wondering what if with some...

Thu, 30 Dec 2010 22:15:08 +1100

Digging through the files, wondering what if with some illustrations.

Mixed media animation, nicely done. Vimeo Award Finalist in...

Thu, 30 Dec 2010 22:09:39 +1100

Mixed media animation, nicely done. Vimeo Award Finalist in Animation category.

“An animated dark comedy about a vacationing couple’s encounter with a man they believe to be the Zodiac Killer. “

This cartoon mixes old Warner Bros Looney Tune styles with...

Thu, 30 Dec 2010 21:58:08 +1100

This cartoon mixes old Warner Bros Looney Tune styles with Spumco design. Quite a good visual and animation. Job well done.

SQL Master Class

Thu, 30 Dec 2010 21:12:15 +1100

My review for O’Reilly:

C.J. Date’s SQL and Relational Theory Master Class

If you are using Wordpress, then learning SQL is a must if you are coding your own templates.

This video masterclass is quite an impressive resource for those interested in further developing their knowledge in SQL. It better suits if you have prior knowledge of SQL and how to design or structure databases otherwise it may not be worth your investment at this time as some topics can come across confusingly. CJ is an excellent instructor and you should find comfort in these videos. Just be mindful that this really is for those wanting to master the art of SQL and not simply starting out to learn it.

The advantage to these videos is that it takes the level of learning further than if you were to teach yourself from the book (also a great addition). The masterclass has been produced during in/an actual class environment and is interspersed with shots of CJ at the head of the room talking to students but more importantly the majority of learning is visual presentations/images with a voice over of the presentation.

Be prepared for a little bandwidth to be consumed if you take the plunge. The total size of the collection is over 4GB to download, enough video to fill a DVD full and a whopping 16 hours in length. The price at first glance is quite high for a video tutorial but given the expense of attending a 3 day class or conference, it is quite a reasonable purchase at a substantial savings in comparison.

Had dinner and a drink with visiting US cartoonist Stan Sakai...

Wed, 01 Dec 2010 15:57:18 +1100

Had dinner and a drink with visiting US cartoonist Stan Sakai down at the James Squire Brewery in Darling Harbour. Stan and his wife Sharon are the loveliest people to chat with, had a great time albeit a brief one. Next time Stan, I will make sure you meet Ron Cobb!