Peaknuckle!

I will be launching a series of animated shorts on a YouTube channel called 'Peaknuckle'.

At the moment I'm creating scene 4 out of 7 for the first episode. Peaknuckle is a not quite handsome little guy battling the 21st century.

Stay tuned for more...

'How do I find the time to do it?!?'

This has become a common question whenever I show someone a finished artwork or a draft of a novel I’ve managed to complete. And yes, in a household with 2 pets and 2 kids finding time has become priority.

And sure, I can say lazy things like, ‘I MAKE TIME’, or ‘I TURN THE TV OFF’ or ‘I set an egg timer and JUST WRITE FOR THREE MINUTES’.

But this isn’t really the truth, because I do not own a time travelling DeLorean nor do I turn off the TV nor do I set an egg timer much less HAVE an egg timer.

Sorry kids, but I must shatter some dreams for you here and now. Life as an artist isn’t about waffling around a studio drawing only when the muse strikes you in a fervent passion. It’s about goal setting, personal deadlines, and work.

What I DO do (if that is even proper English) is REMAIN AWARE OF THE TIME I CAN USE IN A GIVEN DAY, WATCH SHOWS ON TV THAT I ONLY REALLY, REALLY, REALLY LIKE  and WRITE WHAT I CAN WHEN I CAN.

I will now share with you a real world break down of the first rule I have, and that is, ‘being aware of the time I can use in a given day.’

The mornings in my household are pretty hectic so I write them off.

On average I come home from work at 5:30PM. I turn the PC on and let it warm up.

I help my kids with their homework and chat to them for a bit, then I’ll transfer some files from an SD card to my external drive. Knowing this will take 15 minutes, I run the bath.

I’ll check the files and alter them in Photoshop or Illustrator and get the kids into the bath. I’ll render and save the files - knowing this will take about 25 minutes I get the kids out and we’ll have dinner.

After dinner, I’ll check some more files, do a little artwork, then make dessert for the kids. We put them to bed at 8PM then I’ll do some more art, working until about 10PM.

If I’ve got a deadline, sometimes I’ll work 9PM to 2AM to get it done.

And VIOLA! I have created some new art and juggled kids in the process. It can be done.

Note that I said the naughty four letter word – ‘WORK’.

Because ladies and gents, boys and girls, sometimes that is what it is.

If a client is waiting for artwork or a story from you, it is WORK.

The other rules are self explanatory – there are a few shows that I am really into at the moment so on Friday nights I’ll sit down and watch a few episodes in a row – this is my REWARD, my SOMETHING TO LOOK FORWARD TO.

In between art jobs I’ll write what I can, when I can. As long as I’m writing, I’m doing something.

Good luck!

Jeffrey Zachmann

I can watch Jeffrey Zachmann's kinetic scultpures all day!

Kimbra

I'm creating some artworks of singers and I thought I would try to capture the Aussie singer, Kimbra. First I created some test sketches and tried something in purple and yellow:

 



Please don't ask where the fish came from, it just popped in and didn't want to go away.

After running these past my partner, it was decided the image that best captured Kimbra was the one below:

The Top 5 Best Superman Moments in Non-Superman Movies

With the upcoming Man of Steel about to be released, I thought it would be fun to look back at the movies that featured amazing Superman moments....that were not actually Superman movies.

To explain myself, let’s start at number 5 on the list.....

5. Li Mu Bai VS Jade Fox

(Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon)

Go to 5:27 in this clip.

The fight itself is a beautiful example of martial arts at its best, however it’s the moment Li Mu Bai (Chow Yun Fat) flies gracefully through the air and fearlessly confronts his opponent, Jade Fox (Pei Pei) with a look of steely resolution on his face, that makes this moment pure Superman. Then a knife is thrown, and without blinking Li Mu Bai deflects it with his sword in one swift movement. Accurate – and cool - to the millisecond.

4. Hancock VS a train

(Hancock)

Go to :36 in this clip.

There are many inspiring moments in this superhero spoof based on a graphic novel, but one of the better executed set pieces is when disgraced real life superhero Hancock (Will Smith) saves Jason Bateman from an oncoming train. Thanks to seamless special effects you will believe a man can stop a speeding locomotive.

 

3. Neo VS Mr. Smith

(The Matrix: Revolutions)

Go to 4:25 in this clip.

In the climactic showdown in this shambolic finale, Neo and Mr. Smith take to the clouds and pummel each other to a pulp. This scene is balletic, effortless, and is what a Superman fight should really look like.

2. Nightcrawler VS The White House

(X Men 2)

Okay, so technically Superman can’t teleport, but he is as fast as a speeding bullet, and this would be how the Big Boy Scout could take on a roomful of baddies.

1.The Space Needle Rescue

(Chronicle) 

During the finale, Matt (Alex Russell) and Casey (Ashley Hinshaw) are driving towards the Space Needle in Seattle. Suddenly the car lifts into the air and is carried over the city and precariously placed on the edge of the tower where it teeters for a heart stopping few seconds. Suddenly the car plummets, Matt pulls Casey from the car and lands her safely back on the ground, only  to turn and fly away. All shown from Casey’s point of view. In one take. The 21^st century’s version of Superman saving Lois Lane from a dangling helicopter in the original Superman film. Only better.

 

 

Roadshow Home Video

Anyone in their late thirties will recall VHS nasties and the horrors of the Roadshow home video 'sneak peek' previews that preceded movies in the mid 1980’s (and a shout out to those die hard movie fans who remained through the credits and saw the trailers AFTER the movie).

The horror that used to be shown during the early years of VHS was astounding. Creepy visuals and sounds mixed to create a sense of dread and horror that is still palpable today.

One example is The Secrets of the Phantom Caverns:

My brother had nightmares from the trailer alone and refused outright to see it. The film is relatively tame - it seems some albinos (people in bad makeup) live underground with hand puppets that stick out of fake rock walls. And stars Timothy Buttons as Major Stevens! (Who?)

The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8^th Dimension was another oddity in terms of trailers:

A disparate group of oddly dressed men (including Jeff Goldblum as a cowboy{!}) assemble in an urban drain, inter cut with bizarre imagery of otherworldly beings mixed with grunting electro pop synths. It produced a disorientating and undeniably disturbing experience for this ten year old!

Andrew Marlton, Walkley Award winning cartoon

Congratulations to Andrew Marlton, cartoonist for 'Crikey' and creator of 'First Dog On The Moon' for his cartoon, 'Drowning'.

Check out Andrew's gallery, he provides some very insightful commentary!

Click here to see 'Drowning' by Andrew

Arnold in Japan

I really love crazy Japanese commercials and felt I had to share this one starring no other than Arnold Schwarzenegger...

Wanted: Book Reviewers

A few months back I 'Liked' a Facebook page called: "Aussie Writers." They recently highlighted a call for book reviewers via 'Social Callouts':

http://beta.socialcallout.com/callouts/wanted-book-reviewers

Submissions

Thanks to the Writers Handbook 2012 (available from the reference section of all good libraries) I compiled a list of publishers who accept unsolicited manuscripts from Australia, the U.K and the U.S.

I have emailed my submission for ‘The Visual Guide to Imaginary Friends’ with a cover letter, some sample art, and the complete text to just under half of the thirty publishers I found.

All praise the internet!

The remaining publishers still only accept submissions via mail. Not to worry, I’ll be sending out a pile of airmail packages next week.

'Do Anythings'

Here is another page from 'The Visual Guide to Imaginary Friends' - the 'Do Anythings':

I'm now researching publishers to see who will accept unsolicited manuscripts, most of them via email as well.

The plan is to submit this within the week and see what sort of response I get.

Mock up Cover

Completed the mock up cover for 'The Visual Guide to Imaginary Friends' whilst listening to The Decemberists

Flying Friends - The Visual Guide to Imaginary Friends

Completed this page last night, all about 'Flying Friends'...

Currently I'm working on a mock up of the cover, the plan is to create 3 pages and then shop it around.



Helicopter

This weekend past was a wet one, and so it was the perfect time to create a dodgy animation.

Here's what 10 photos and a helicopter sound effect can produce (using PowerDirector):

Daniel Craig

Created this image of Daniel Craig for my portfolio:

I'm also creating a new online portfolio to refer to clients - watch this space...

SKYFALL

I am eagerly looking forward to the next Bond film, prior to the teaser trailer being released a nice glossy poster has been unveiled:

Along with the Dark Knight Rises and Prometheus this is on the list to see.

Page One - The Cloud Factory

I'm still tweaking this but here is page one of 'The Cloud Factory'.

I've finally managed to settle on a 'look' for the book, one that matched the imagery I have in my head. If anyone's out there, let me know if this page makes sense. I'm not 100% certain on the colour scheme yet, but bring on page 2!

A little self knowledge...!

I just want to promote a little self knowledge.
When you get an email that refers to Iraq or the ‘truth of 911 in the Koran/Bible/etc’, put the anchors on and think for a teensy, weensy second.

BEFORE FORWARDING just check out www.snopes.com or something similar to see if there is some truth to the email.
Think before forwarding. Why are you forwarding something like this?
Is it funny? Will it enhance anyone’s life?

In most cases, the email will be the result of BLIND IGNORANT FORWARDING.
These emails have been circulating for the best part of a decade.
Anyone else sick of these?

Ignorance is easy. Get up, get out and learn the truth.
Read the Bible. Read the Koran. Learn about other cultures.
It’s fun, it’s interesting, and life is too short to live in a bubble.

The Paperless Office

Prometheus

Ridley returns to sci fi after 25 years with ‘Prometheus’:

I love the cinematic age we are in right now. Blur free CGI means anything can be created on screen and it seems Ridley has gone all out with this one.

Damon Lindelhof (screenwriter) said Ridley had the imagery for this film in his head and together they worked extensively on the script.

Their feeling was to set a film in the ‘Alien’ universe but make it something new, something different.

I look forward to seeing this one, next to The Dark Knight Rises and The Avengers.