IF YOU LOVE PIXAR ANIMATION, GET THIS BOOK

Last week I turned 29. Sort of a scary thought considering how close that number is to 30. Anyway, I received birthday money from my family (which I gladly accepted) and with it one of the things I bought was this book "To Infinity and Beyond! The Story of Pixar Animation Studios."

If you are pursuing a career in animation or maybe you are just a fan of Pixar, I highly recommend you buy this book. I'm in the middle of reading it but what I've read so far has been inspiring. It's an encouraging thought to know even Pixar never gets it right the first time. They never settle for a good idea. They keep pressing on for the best idea and a common theme you'll notice in this book is "The best idea wins."

Most of the time your first idea isn't your best. In actuality it's probably the most familiar. So take on the challenge; if you don't get it right the first time don't give up. Keep at it! See James 1:12.

Go get this book!

BEST MONTH EVER!

What a month! Winning the 11 Second Club contest for February has been one of the most exciting things that's ever happened to me. On top of that I won an eCritque with Dave Burgess!!!

If you don't know who Dave Burgess is you probably know his work. He's been around quite awhile. Some of the films he's worked on are Aladdin, The Lion King, Tarzan, Shrek 2, Madagascar, Over the Hedge, Bee Movie and he is currently working at DreamWorks on Monsters vs. Aliens due out next year. With that kind of experience you can understand why I was thrilled to be critiqued by him. He was thorough in his assessment of my entry and I am so appreciative of the time he spent examining nearly ever frame. It was amazing and his words of encouragement meant everything.

And if that weren't enough, I was given the opportunity to voice my thoughts and techniques on animation with the first ever 11 Second Club winner interview! What an honor!

You can go check out the eCritique with Dave Burgess here and if you get a chance, you can read my interview here.