Thomas Unblocked

A Year in the Pacific Northwest...

2012-01-20T16:20:00.000-08:00

...Seattle to be exact.

i tried to reduce my understanding of Seattle (the city I've lived in for the past 19 years...has it really been that long?) into a collection of 16 photographs...not easy.

Many may disagree, or complain that I've missed a "spot"...

...if you have a minute, it will all make sense!

Screen Series: #1 Bear Grylls (Man vs Wild)

2012-01-05T12:25:00.000-08:00

I've always found it cool to have a collection of autographs of my favorite stars from screen and TV...but instead of a stock publicity photo, I asked them to sign their unique caricature which i created for them...

Once I've sent them the images (one for me and one for them to keep) with a prepaid self addressed envelope, I wait...usually no more than a couple months...

Long story short, Bear Grylls was the first to fall victim to my process (the signed version of the image is framed and on a wall at home).

MONDAY

2011-10-17T11:00:00.000-07:00

Inspired by my current state caused by last night's celebrating the premiere of AMC's amazing zombie series: The Walking Dead - the Alphonse Mucha inspire backdrop was an in-the-moment type of inception -nice finishing touch, though.

Troublefish gets a new skin

2011-10-10T14:24:00.000-07:00

A career change, an extensive move, some remodeling and a bit of travel have contributed to my lengthy leave of absence from this blog...

Now, after 2 years of "radio silence", I'm proud to share my re-designed home page - troublefish.com. The site is completely html/css, for everyone to see, even the iPad zombies out there...

promenade

2009-10-11T10:05:00.000-07:00

Even after almost 10 years, I still got it...Presenting: the basic walk-cycle! Granted, the subject may not quite share the common point of view these days (unless off course, you happen to look like the dude on the Monopoly game cover).

Zachary's dad

2009-09-10T21:50:00.000-07:00

I admit, its been quite a while since my last entry...yet, during a major career transition, casual blogging was the last thing on my checklist of survival steps. Finally in state of relative stability, I introduce another member of Zachary's family and secondary character in my story. His father - somewhat aloof, yet rather avidly pursuing the innovations of technology than raising little Zachary.

zachary's mom

2009-04-15T06:54:00.000-07:00

Yes, after strenuous board meetings, some reader feedback and a long night's sleep the nameless child now has an identity - Zachary. Now to begin introducing the rest of his family and other characters in the story. First off, his mother - busy, result driven, hi-tech addict, constantly paying more attention to her iphone than her offspring.

nameless (still) child in full color

2009-03-25T12:18:00.000-07:00

The long-awaited color illustration of my kid's book lead character (who yet remains unnamed - since nobody - other than Julie - is sending me any suggestions - how sad). I decided to run with a watercolor wash - the soft hues just scream kid's book illustration.

Thunderstrike production poster

2009-03-22T14:02:00.000-07:00

Done for now - moving on to the next project (the nameless kid needs some attention anyways).
I'm quite sated with the final composition - blending the classic cartoon appeal with the ever-so-popular motion picture craze. Like it?

a blizzard of a tutorial

2009-03-18T16:47:00.000-07:00

Snow is rather hap-hazard and rare in Seattle - so let it dump on your monitor (plus, its a simple effect to give your artistic creation a little je-ne-sais-quoi).

There are many ways to make it snow in your Flash creations. For those of us who are somewhat code challenged - here is the quick-and-dirty without a line of actionscript (well, maybe one). I've been using this for some time now - works great for rain, flower petals, monkey heads...you got the idea.

STEP1: Create an empty movie clip in your library. Add a snowflake graphic (which you can create to your heart's desire) and attach it to a squiggly guide running from the top of your scene to the bottom and motion-tween it (this emulates Earth's gravitational pull). You can give your snowflake some rotation as it drifts in the wind - do this by highlighting your 1st frame and selecting a rotation direction and number of rotations in your parameters menu. Now, feel free to create your own weather effects - the shallower the guide slope and the closer the gap between the start and end frame the more blizzard-like your snowfall will become - makes sense.
STEP2: Create yet another empty movie clip in your library. Drag and drop a few of your snowflake clips onto the stage. So that they don't all start at once, place each on a different frame on your timeline. Since each is its own movie clip, you may want to insert a "stop" action onto your final frame on the timeline.
STEP3: Back to your original scene. From the library drag and drop as may of your STEP2 movie clips onto the stage (again, have them on different frames). Now save and publish your movie, sit back and enjoy the snow.

As you may guess - the above can also be accomplished relying heavily on actionscript. I've tried this myself, and it works just as well - I just find that there are too many areas to slip-up when coding is not a natural talent. In a nutshell, you start with your snow flake graphic, convert it into a movie clip, add some "math functions", "physical parameters" and "if / else clauses", and plug in your numbers. Now drag and drop just one flake outside your scene and add some more actionscript to its frame - creating a final touch of randomness - resulting in a more realistic weather effect once saved and published!

thunderstrike - ready to go - in full color!

2009-03-12T14:58:00.000-07:00

Somewhat archaic yet apt to join Optimus Prime and the Autobots to challenge the villainous Decepticons in battle! Eventually these Flash illustrations are going to make it into a digital composition for print.

thundestrike - robot concept

2009-03-10T08:56:00.000-07:00

The concept reflects the latest transformer designs - from the 2007 and up-coming 2009 Transformer movies. I tried to incorporate some of the more distinguishing features of my '64 T-bird into the robot's construction - this will be more apparent when color is added.

thunderstrike

2009-02-27T10:21:00.000-08:00

Hmm...classic butt-rock moniker, metallic Hot Wheels finish with purple insides - a worthy tribute to the 1980s Tranformers universe. I am certain that Flash lends itself perfectly towards a great 2D appearance with a hint of dimensionality.

Robot version is already in its concept stage...sit tight!

transformers - 1964

2009-02-21T09:58:00.000-08:00

No schoolbus-yellow Chevy or Super Beetle (for the die-hard Transformer pilgrims) - countless hours of getting my '64 Bird summer ready was the spark for this Autobot. Perfect timing , with the newTransformers: Revenge of the Fallen movie hitting the screens this June.

At this point in time I'm deciding if I should finalize this concept in Flash or 3D MAX - stay tuned!

nameless child

2009-02-17T09:41:00.000-08:00

OK, George isn't the optimal name for this seven-year old(definitely more in tune with that genre director who makes those really great zombie movies). So if you have a couple minutes to spare while waiting for the leftovers to warm up in the microwave - please send some ideas my way. Thanks!

george - first pass (including the name)

2009-02-12T01:37:00.000-08:00

George (name still not fixed) is the leading character from my children's book that has been drifting around the trove of creativity in my head. Designing a viable character of a seven-year-old boy with appeal to an audience of the same proves quite a challenge. The spectrum of cartoon kids ranges from the socially repressed neurotic and his beagle to the hyperactive escapist and his stuffed tiger. Whatever the options, this is still a work-in-progress.

thomas unblocked

2009-02-11T12:27:00.000-08:00

This is my first post...more or less. No great words of wisdom just yet, but no need to despair - the grand opening isn't for another 19 hours according to www.troublefish.com. So to whomever is reading this - get the popcorn ready, drop the chaise-lounge an extra notch and STAY TUNED!