Oct 5th is my dads birthday, he passed away in 2021 and ever since I started a ritual on this day and on his death anniversary- get a bagel with lox in the morning, and in the evening watch one of the many movies he always had on in the background- usually a mob movie. This year, we went with the Godfather II. Last year I didn’t get to do the ritual, I ended up in the ER (which felt like some sort of sick twisted joke) and after 8 hours of waiting and tests, I got treated for diverticulitis. The doc seemed shook, “I just didn’t think it was because you’re SO young” not what you wanna hear, but I appreciated her care in the midst of the chaos that is the ER. An experience in listening to your body, and saying hmm “something seems off”- trusting that feeling to the hospital, however terrified or inconvenienced you may feel. I now remember to drink a ton of water.
Album of the month
Norma Tanega
Walkin’ My Cat Named Dog, 1966.
I’ve been catching up on What We Do In the Shadows, took me long enough to look into the artist responsible for their theme song- Norma Tanega- wowee this album is so lovely and I’m so glad it exists. Some folksy songs, some more 60s pop-zombies-esque tracks. Tanega was not only a musician but also a painter. She became part of the Greenwich village folk scene in the early 60s where she worked at a mental hospital, performing songs to patients. When on the Walkin’ My Cat Named Dog tour in England she met Dusty Springfield, the two hit it off and Tanega moved to London to be with Springfield. Tanega’s second release in 1971 I Don’t Think It Will Hurt If You Smile, which is believed to be much about Springfield and their relationship, also solid record, more classic rock leaning but still with folksy elements. Tanega and Springfield split in the early 70s and Tanega moved back to California where she taught music, art, and english as a second language while also being apart of other musical projects up until her passing in 2019.
On the topic of music…. Juan Carlos, Nancy, Cody, and I went to see Death Cab and Postal Service in Seattle for the 20 year release of Transatlanticism and Give Up. it was exactly 20 years to the day of the release of Transatlanticism and the band got very emotional after the set. Gibbard gave us a show- hamming up the emo parts of both sets, we were there for it! Nancy and I screamed along to Clark Gable at the top of our lungs, pretending the echos belonged to someone ;) still can’t get over it’s been 20 years, howwww
Movie of the month
Gaslight, 1944.
Seemed fitting to watch this movie during the spooky season and damn, disturbing! Wild to watch knowing the term comes from THIS very movie and difficult not to watch without yelling “nooooo” every time Charles Boyer came on to tell Ingrid Bergman how “forgetful” she was. The psychological thriller is set in a Victorian era where Ingrid Bergman plays an opera singer, calculatedly being driven insane by her husband (Charles Boyer). The ominous cuts of the slow zoom in of the gaslights felt timed perfectly as well as Bergmans emotional range.
In the studio…….
I changed things up a bit in week 3- adding in more paper/fabric textures, slowed the frame rate to 12FPS, to give it a more film/lofi look. I get a particular type of satisfaction looking at the contrast between super sleek styles vs more hand made looking ones side by side and having the skills and knowledge of how to create both. I’ve always had a “sloppy”/figure it out as I go aesthetic when it comes to art making and still very much do. Working on week 3 somtember challenge I spent a good chunk of time muttering to myself “you can do hard things” and in those peak moments of wanting to pull my hair out, I stepped away and took a walk and felt a lot better to get back to it-often times we see the final product and don’t see the teeth clenching moments, the self doubt, the tears… and I’m 100% Virgo freak, addicted to this rollercoaster of a process cycle.
Adobe MAX conference is this week, lots of rad looking (virtual + free) sessions I’ll be catching including: Break Through: Amplify Your Creative Voice in Motion Design, Storytelling Through Character Design, Glitch, Distress, Distort: Creating Grungy Motion Graphics, Behind the Scenes with the Editor of FX/Hulu’s “The Bear”, and this Creativity Super Session. I’m intrigued and also terrified of the AI stuff- stoked about making process easier and more achievable in a quicker amount of time but wondering what that means in terms of labor as we saw this summer with the writers and (continuing) actors strike in Hollywood.
Reading wise……
Some of my favorite animation style comes from the 1950s- when animators were gathering inspiration from modernist painters. Reading Cartoon Modern and peeping work by Stuart Davis, Saul Steinberg, Dolores Cannata, Ed Benedict. How fascinating it is to read this book, discover so many animations from that time, and learn how many of them were propaganda- funded by oil companies such as Destination Earth . Reading the description
“This animated cartoon follows the adventures of "Colonel Cosmic," a Martian, as he learns that Oil and Competition are the two things that make America great… In the film, a Martian undercover agent flies from Mars to Earth to learn about the oil industry, and finds that the lack of government regimentation and control is what makes our system flourish.”
The artwork is undeniable gorgeous but phew that storyline, just made me think about the subliminal messaging via cartoons my parents generation were being fed (boomers) vs my generation (millenials- lots of nickelodeon that highlighted the woes of capitalism), I dunno man, I think it’s all in the cartoons!
happy halloween!!! hope you are able to get all the treats! thanks for reading <3