animation ideals

[palmtree]

hi everyone it's palmtree. Just thought I would start up a thread. I have a question who inspires you all to become an animator or even to draw. I am sure they are people who are close to you like parents, teacxhers, siblings ect. I however have no real animation mentors and most of my ideals are ether dead to old to rember what they did or are aninmator who I will never meet as much as I would like to. Of coarse I am talking about famous animators like chuck jones and friz frelling. I did meet a fomous disney animator at a convention I was at in 2007 but I reallyt couldn't talk to him. you might know him cregg witmen. creator of the disney tv serise gargoyles. anyway other who inspire me and I wish I could meet are butch hartmen, and seth machfarline. I know I will never meet them even though I wish I could. and I wish I could meet cregg witmen again but thats just a pipe dream as well. so in a way don't have any real mentors. Living in the very up most part of mi there isinet even a graphic designer I can ask you Who are all of your mentors and ideals.

[paburrows]

For me it started out with Walt Disney and the Nine Old Men. But over time that has shifted, now its anyone that is successful in their choosen industry. Thats why I buy artbooks of animator to inspire me and to study their style and techniques. I've learned a lot from Charles in his first class and from Stephen Silver when he was offering classes out of his garage area. But also theres others that aren't in animation, like I'm a huge fan of the TV show Lost, I have been able to meet them a few times and their passion for creating characters and stories inspires me.

Last Halloween I went to a store that sells work uniform to make a costume (Lost Dharma Jumpsuit) for Halloween and got to talking to the old guy who works there and makes the works clothes and embrodery. He landed into the business by a fluke out of Hign School but I could tell that he was very passionate about doing it. I also love Robert Sabuda, he engineers most of the extremely elaborate Pop-up books that have come out in the last 7 or 8 years. You can see the passion and love put into his work. Every year at Christmas I study his work and try to replicate it for my Christmas Card.

For me people that inspire me are those who have a strong passion for what they do and have figured out a way to be successful at it.

[Charles]

An artist who inspires you is one thing, a mentor is something quite different. I've been inspired by many artists in my life, and continue to find creative inspiration from other artists I'm discovering.

If you have a mentor, consider yourself fortunate. I never really had a mentor and that made things tough. As an educator, I approach things differently in that I look to interact with my students in a way that I wish it could've been with me when I was looking to break into the biz. Offering encouragement and practical advice as well as artistic direction.