What's this
illustration for?
This is concept art for a 10
second animation that I did for a music documentary. It's meant to introduce the
band Aleks and the Ramps, and it's inspired by the black and white cartoons of
the Golden Age of Animation.
Do you have to
wait for a flash of inspiration - how do you
start?
I generally start by focusing on
one element of an illustration and developing that - drawing different designs
and concepts for that element, and that forms the basis for the rest of the
illustration. In particular, I spend a lot of time designing and working on a
character, and the rest of the illustration - background, surroundings,
linework, color etc, is based around how it fits that one
character.
How did you
get your start as an illustrator?
I used to be a stop-motion
animator at the Victorian
College of the Arts under the Animation
course, and it was there that I discovered the joys of 2D animation. I was
intrigued by it and keen to discover more, so I decided to develop my drawing
skills, studying anatomy and developing a distinctive style so I could create a
2D animated short film. Eventually I liked drawing well enough that I decided to
pursue illustration as part of my career as well as
animation.
Who or what
has influenced your work?
My work has been mainly influenced
by comics from the 1930s, 40s and 50s, for their simplicity, emphasis on telling
a clear, distinct story and their ability to capture a character's personality
by how they're designed. They also utilise a thick-and-thin linework which I try
to embody in my own style. My favourite artists from that period are Dick
Sprang, CC Beck, Jack Cole, Chester Gould, Will Eisner, Carmine Infantino,
Milton Caniff, Winsor McCay, among many others. I also like the simple,
geometric designs that were used in the Fleischer and Disney cartoons of the
30s.
What's your
favourite media for creating pictures?
My work is
mostly digital, using Adobe Illustrator. My main joy comes from drawing the
initial pencil drawings, as I'm able to fully flesh out and sketch the main
concept of an illustration and see how it works, but I also like being able to
control the linework in Adobe Illustrator, adjusting the vector points to
achieve the perfect, thick-and-thin line for any
illustration.
Do you
experience illustrator's block - if so, what do you do about
it?
Not a huge
amount, but sometimes it helps to just start drawing something, anything, even
if you're unsure of what you want. Eventually, you find something which you can
use, and the rest of the illustration results from
that.
What's the
worst thing about being a freelancer?
Sometimes it
can be hard to find the motivation to complete a job on certain days, depending
on one's mood and state of being. It takes a lot of organisation and
self-discipline to get things done.
And the
best?
Being your own
boss, able to work in comfortable surroundings, amongst people and things that
continually inspire and motivate you to work. Being able to devote yourself to
create unique and interesting characters and situations is a big
plus.
What are you
working on at the moment?
At the moment
I'm doing animation for a music video for Melbourne rock band Hail Hemi, and I'm
also working on a bi-weekly web comic "The Adventures of White Wolf!", which is
a tribute to the comic strips of the 40s and 50s that I've mentioned above, as
well as a thoughtful analysis on living with mental illness. I also plan to make
a new animated 2D film in the next couple of
months.
Where can we
see more of your work?
You can check
out my art, animations and everything else at my website: http://www.frankcandiloro.com . You can also see The Adventures of White Wolf every two weeks
at this address:
No comments:
Post a Comment