Jorgen's Blog

I was very confused during my first animatic job at advertising agency DDB. My producer kept telling me we would use "storyboards" to create the animatics. On a certain level it made sense to me; animatics are basically animated storyboard frames. But I wanted to know WHO was making the boards. It finally made sense when I visited the website my producer gave me. The animatic house we were to use was named 'Storieboards' after its founder, James Storie. 

  InvescoTrimark - Greatest Goal [640x360] from storieboards on Vimeo.

The story of Storieboards

James started Storieboards in 2004 with a very select team, 75% of whom are still part of the fun ten years on. Storieboards describe themselves as manoeverable, responsive and cost-effective.

"We pride ourselves on a decade free of a serious sense-of-humour failure! Lead by Trae Bregg, the Storieboards team produce consistently awesome work for our clients, on-time, on-budget and with a certain ‘somethin-somethin’ that keeps our clients returning year after year." - James Storie

Storieboards certainly know how to keep clients. Their roster include everyone from Anderson DDB to Zulu Alpha Kilo. See a larger client list on their profile on Jorgen's List. Though know this; it is far from complete. Ten years in the business means they've worked on every client and brand imaginable. 

  The Storieboards Team: Claire, James, Trae, Geoff, Kun-Sung, Bryce

  So what does this mean for the list?

Thanks to Storieboards support, we now have the ability to showcase animatics on the site! As a sign of gratitude, Storieboards will be the exclusive member of the section they funded until May 17th, 2015. On that date the section opens up for other animatic creators. So if you're an animatic house or a single freelancer; Thanks to Storieboards you'll have a new way to showcase your work! 

Shoot me an email at jorgenslist at gmail dot com if you'd like to be featured there. 

Normally I'd include a large host of videos here, but instead I recommend you go to Storieboards profile on Jorgen's List and watch their latest videos! Enjoy!

And if you were unsure: Storieboards is repped by Hestyreps. I'm not a rep or an agent; just an Art Director and client who find it too hard to screen through rep sites for the right talent. So like any talent on my list; if you wish to work with them; just send them an email or make a call. No need to involve me.

Keep an eye on Storieboards online:

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The Book of Life hit theatres last weekend to great reviews! One of the artists on the list, Myke Bakich (Epic, The Nut Job, Escape from Planet Earth), was part of the team behind the movie and was kind enough to send a few frames our way! 

Myke did thousands of frames for the movie and picked a few of his favorites to show us. Two of them (The Bullfight, The Cantina) aren't even in the movie. 

The Book of Life (2014) - Trailer

What to look for in the Book of Life

If you go in to watch the movie this weekend; look for these scenes which Myke had a major hand in:

- "Growing up" montage of the two main character Manolo and Joaquin - Intro to the villain, the badass leader of the Banditos ; Chakal. - Awakening in the land of the remembered (this ones in the trailer with Skeleton Manolo discovering the very colorful world of the dead) - Manolo meeting his ancestors - Climbing the mountain of souls/Meeting the skeleton giant 

Myke worked on The Book of Life between 2012-2013 and says the awakening was his favorite scene to do as he got to do quite a few versions of it. 

The Bullfight

How animation storyboards work

For those not familiar with the process of animation, Myke gave me an excellent explanation for how the frames come about: "We [the storyboard artists] draw beyond the single frame that's more common in live action film/commercial work. We board the performances of each character, their thoughts and emotions, the camera moves, and also the beginning of editorial as we're creating the "footage " for them to use., We start choosing what to show and when/how you could cut from one shot to the next. A sequence or scene can be a hundred to almost (but rarely) a thousand panels. I usually hit 250-500 each one. That's why animation boards typically look simpler compared to live action ones, as you can't spend as much time on details and refinement because of the large number of panels." 

"When you've completed a full pass of a sequence, you pitch it to the director by "performing" it as if they are watching the film in real time. Acting and sound fx talents come quite handy at this stage. The director gives you notes and then you revise and repeat until they are satisfied. Sometimes you have to completely redo the sequence as its been rewritten or once the director has seen it, they want to approach it differently."

"Once a sequence is approved it goes into editorial to be cut into an animatic, a video of the boards timed with sound fx and voice actors playing the roles. We watch the animatic to get an idea of whats working and whats not. Then we use that information to take another crack at finding the film and the story we're trying to tell. As animation is a medium that can cost millions of dollars for a minute of footage, you can save alot of time and money by finding the story you're trying to tell with rough, quick drawings (storyboards/ animatic). Marvel is one studio that uses this approach to their live action films before they shoot them. Its seems to be working quite well for them."

To see more of Myke's work; visit his website.

To see if Myke's available; find his availability here at Jorgen's List.  Remember; you can contact any artist directly at Jorgen's List, for free!

The Book of Life is a 2014 American 3D computer-animated adventure musical comedy film produced by Reel FX Creative Studios and distributed by 20th Century Fox. Co-written and directed by Jorge Gutierrez, the film stars the voices of Diego Luna, Zoe Saldana, and Channing Tatum with supporting roles by Christina Applegate, Ice Cube, Ron Perlman, and Kate del Castillo. The film was theatrically released on October 17, 2014

Jorgen's List is a free service. It always will be. I do not take commission on any of the jobs that are facilitated through my list, not even the full-time jobs. I'm not a rep and do not wish to be one. 

But I couldn't run the list without the support of the artists themselves. That's actually what lead me to create the list in the first place; I couldn't do my job as an Art Director without the incredible storyboard artists, retouchers and photographers I met.

Making the list wasn't just about making it easier to find talent; it was also about appreciating it. To help guide other Art Directors through the muddy waters of freelance talent and help them find talent they will appreciate throughout their entire career. 

Keep the list running

And now there's a way to appreciate those artists and help keep the list running too! As of today you can support the list by subscribing to it as a premium supporter.  Premium supporters receive:

Four additional categories to display work in

Ability to feature a client list

Ability to add testimonials to client list

Editable background info and avatar

Ability to add your social networks to your profile

Alex Antoniou's background info as a premium supporter

Founder and premium supporter Leo Lingas testimonials and client list

Storyboard artist Tim Shinn displays his work in 5 categories

You can subscribe for just a week or up to a year! The money goes to paying for our servers and adding new features to the site. Because more is to come! There are still two additional features of the premium benefits that haven't been added:

Ability to upload more than four images to a category

Additional room to add contact information

Anyone that subscribes now for a month or more will receive all the current Premium Benefits for free until the final two benefits are in place. Several artists have done so already, but it's only been available to artists that asked. Now it's possible for anyone to support the list! 

Still not pay-to-display

As before you cannot pay to be on Jorgen's List. You can only support the list through artists that have been recommended and approved for the list That is the quality guarantee that I hope to (with your help) continue to provide. 

But you CAN support artists other than yourself once they are on the list! Enjoyed Stuart Godfrey's work last month on those crazy deadlines? Give him a months subscription! Or a years! You can leave him a note with your appreciation too! You can support any artist on any list, whether it be a storyboard artist, a creative retoucher or an award-hungry photographer. They'll appreciate it!

Support the list.

Very special shout out to Trevor Gustafson, Leo Lingas, Greg Banning and Ryan Keith Harris for supporting the list before it was even a line of code. Without their financial support (and the goodwill of programmer Moe Jame), the list would never have been a possibility! Thank you guys!

The dreamlike treehouse was done for 'The Vanity' a Toronto VFX studio that then put it together for BBDO Toronto and director Matt Eastman. 

Mars "Treehouse" from Matt Eastman Archive on Vimeo.

Agency: BBDO Toronto Copywriter: Johnny Pavacic Art Director: Craig Brandon Producer: Aimee DeParolis

"What started as pencil sketches quickly developed in to a detailed photorealistic treehouse created entirely in cg. Careful attention was paid to ensure realistic structural integrity, authentic woodgrain, and material qualities were all true to life." - Full post at The Vanity's blog

Below you can see concept artist Jonathan Davis contributions as he helped The Vanity take the treehouse from a concept to complete commercial.  See more of Jonathan's work and is availability.

Also note that Jonathan is about to join our list of Director Boards artists. Below is a sneak peek of his great storyboards! 

Daniel Lim's TOP 5 TIPS

1. Don't do what is hot, cause chances are, its only a fad and will be gone, along with your portfolio/career. Do what is tested through and through…skills like storyboarding, sketching have been around for a very very long time and will always be a part of the production pipeline. 

2. Be a generalist. Its very difficult for artists to stick to one thing but I found that it can be an incredible asset to any team because you can do multiple jobs. Multiple jobs also means more paychecks! Many agencies I work for, I do storyboarding, sketching and concepting. Its also a great idea to tell your AD or CD that you can do these things. 

3. Get an agent! I won't name who but this person told me not to get an agent because I can save 20-25% of what they will be taking. WRONG! First of all, when you graduate, you have 0 connections. These agents have hundreds to thousands of connections. You are essentially getting your foot in the door with their help. 20-25% is a very very small price to pay.  4. Be a professional, theres no reason why your website shouldn't be as slick as any designers website. Blogs are great but if you want something more personal and professional just take 5 minutes to look over sites like wordpress or weekly.com its insane how easy it is to put together a professional portfolio. Deviantart and Facebook are not professional websites. 

5. Theres a going rate for every job. Whether it be storyboarding, character designing, figure out what the industry rates are for those jobs. Talk to the best AND worst in the industry and you'll see how off peoples rates are. Theres no easy answer to this, you just need to ask fellow artists and figure this one out. Ask and ye shall receive. 

Check out Daniel's own website with more artwork here!

See Daniel's availability on Jorgen's List here.

For previous tips from Veteran Artists; check out Kai Simon's tips.

For marketing tips for freelance artists, go here.

More of Daniel Lim's work

Regardless, it was a perfect example of the 'Concept to Complete' posts I've been running, so I'm putting it up here today! 

The summer months of July and August are high season for weddings.  As I’ve already spent a couple weekends this summer as a wedding guest, I started to reminisce about a shoot I did for AstraZeneca pharmaceuticals earlier this year.  Dare I say, this is by far the cutest photo shoot I’ve done to date.  I was really excited when John St. contacted me to partake in this fun idea.  I loved the concept and the idea of making an unexpected pharmaceutical ad.  This is the kind of wedding photography that is up my alley!

So what is “Vimovo” you might ask?  Vimovo is the latest osteoarthritis drug that offers pain relief and also protection from stomach ulcers.  To illustrate the union of these two elements, we were in search of some unique cake toppers.

After seeing their layout I knew this wasn’t something I could easily find, and knew that only model maker, Franc Madden would be perfect for this job. I get so excited when models are made for photo shoots and love seeing the process of a vision coming to life. Here are some in-progress shots of our little couple as they were carefully hand crafted for our special shoot day.

Getting cake toppers made was the first step, but it soon started to feel like we really were planning a wedding party. We tracked down some drapery and an oversized cake, and we were set to go!

And after some finishing touches on set, the two were styled and camera-ready for this:

Here’s a closer look at the happy couple:

Many thanks to the great folks at John St for having me work on such a fun and sweet concept! And many thanks to the talented Franc Madden for all of his meticulous work on bringing our characters to life.

Client: AstraZeneca, Vimovo Agency: John St. Associate Creative Director: Stephanie Ferrari Agency Producer: Alisa Pellizzari Model Maker: Franc Madden Photography Producer: Phaedra Kennedy Photography Assistant: Rebecca Leach Studio Intern: Dan Berger

Let’s end this week off with a sweet portrait of the two and a glimpse of their first dance:

All Images © Vicky Lam

Remember that the status is just a guideline! An artist in the red might easily be available and an artist set to green might have received a job just minutes ago.

The Availability Status allows artists to manage their own work flow by highlighting how likely they are to be available for projects. Setting your status to "Very Likely to be Available'  (Green) rockets you to the top of the list, making you the first person clients see. 

Switching your status is super easy and can be done when logged in. You can also tweet your status to Jorgen and he will change it for you. Switching it back to 'Unlikely to be Available' (Red) later gives you peace of mind to work. This is optional as some artists see every call as a networking opportunity. Do consider the power of setting yourself to Red once in a while as it makes you appear busy (ie; more desirable.) 

Erik Almas, Los Angeles

http://www.erikalmas.com/

Philip Rostron, Toronto

http://www.instilproductions.com/

Matt Barnes, Toronto 

http://thatsthespot.com

Dean West, New York

http://www.deanwest.com/

Tyler Gray, Toronto

http://www.tylergray.com/

To start off the series I've asked veteran advertising storyboard artist Kai Simons (Germany) for his top 5 tips to young artists. 

Kai's been in the industry since 1990, which means his 25th anniversary is coming up next year! He's worked through the entire shift in the industry from old fashioned pencil sketches to the digital age and is more than willing to share stories when he's got a minute. Which is rare as he's usually busy making boards or concept sketches for agencies like BBDO, Ogily & Mather, Saatchi & Saatchi, DDB, McCann, Leo Burnett.. in short; all the big ones. And no wonder; his artwork is impeccable. 

Here are his 5 top tips for upcoming storyboard artists: 

1. Stay calm, be patient. Art directors cannot answer your mails immediately ( being chased by meetings and deadlines ) - but they appreciate it very much when YOU answer THEIR mails immediately. It can be nervy to wait for hours until you get comments on your work, yes, but that´s the job.

2. Try to improve the storyboard by making proposals. Sometimes you may have an idea that helps telling the story better. And accept, when this is rejected- there will be reasons ( for example: somebody higher ranked already approved the scribbles, so the perspectives are "carved in marble"- even if not helpful).

3. Never give something away, that is "half-finished". Never. Never. Your clients will be disappointed, that´s all. They won´t see what you have in mind to improve.

4. Be motivated. You should be in anything you do, but in this very special service industry it´s absolutely necessary.

5. Sometimes art directors have nothing but a script. Help them, do their homework and don´t think about it. It´s the perfect start when you go from your own scribbles.

Kai's fifth tip is gold: If you want a client to stick with you; go above and beyond. Hold their hand. Suggest improvements where they are needed. I remember my first calls as an Art Director to artists such as Trevor Gustafson and John Castro. When they sensed I was brand new they held my hand and made my work look much better than I deserved. In return the Art Director will treat you nicely in return.

Kai also shared one of his latest boards done with Art Director Christian Leuffert from Heye Hamburg (a part of DDB Worldwide). The boards are actually a combination of Kai's drawings as well as Kai's 3D rendered environments. Kai says it actually saves him time to do the surroundings in 3D. Proves that after 25 years as an artist he's still on the cutting edge. 

Bear in mind that the way I've dealt with storyboard artists was always by phone and email. I never had the luxury of having someone come in and work in house since every project was always last minute. That's advertising for you, I guess. Thanks to the amazing Kai Simons for the cover background.

Marketing tips from an agency Art Director:  Be nice!  AD's usually have plenty of artists to choose from, but very little time. If you sound friendly and capable, you're likely to be picked over someone grumpy. This might sound obvious, but I've heard plenty of stories of artists that have lost major jobs due to making the AD feeling uncomfortable.  Be confident!  But know your limits. If you don't think you can deliver on time, or draw 'the siamese elephants playing chess while sharing a beer together'; don't accept the job. If you DO believe you can do the job your next goal is to make the client feel at ease throughout the process. Keep the communication going and make sure the AD believes you can meet the crazy deadline. If you do, he'll come back for the next crazy deadline. What you're really selling other than your skills as an artist is reassurance and peace of mind.

Always ask yourself; Can I really do it? If you can't draw cars from more than one angle, don't take that project on. Storyboard artist Erik de Jong, however, executed this frame perfectly. 

Be on target!  If you send out a post card or an email blast; don't muddy your message. Show exactly what you do and nothing more. Many artists cram a ton of their images together and make it impossible to evaluate the artwork. Or they show off their finest oil painting to show how diverse they are. Don't! Be proud of your concept work and keep it simple!  Keep it simple!  This bears repeating. And it goes to your website as well! Make your website EASY to navigate and only feature the work you want to be hired for. Check out Dan Milligan's or Stuart Godfrey's sites for some great examples.  Be specific about sharing your clients. If you're featuring a list of clients on your website; list your actual clients. Not just your clients clients. Get it? If you worked on a FedEx campaign, that's nice, but who did you REALLY work for? FedEx employs over 300 000 people, BBDO NY employs less than 700. As a creative it means more to me to see that you worked with a major ad agency because it means other creatives (that I might admire!) think you're awesome to work with. I can tell you worked for FedEx based on your artwork, anyhow.

Storyboard artist Tim Shinn does not need to tell me what candy brand he's worked on, but I'm really curious on what agency it was for.

Ally yourself with other artists!  I keep hearing how artists here in Toronto shares the work when one's overloaded. What a great way of working together! If you are a new artist; find a mentor and hope for some work to trickle your way. Keeping a list of other freelance artists on your site is also a welcome sight! Jim Woo did it perfectly and became a staple of the industry. But it can be as simple as the list on Leo Lingas site.  Keep current!  Delete work older than 15 years as it looks dated. Very dated! Keep an eye on your clients websites for commercials you worked on that got produced. That allows you to share the commercial and show how your storyboard had an impact, making you even more relevant to clients. Nothing attracts clients like updated work. In other words; have a website that allows you to update your artwork. Like Jorgen's List. (Shameless plug.) If you ever want some insights or have questions, you're also free to send me a message and I'll do my best to help! 

Jorgen

For advertising (and film's) best storyboard artists; check out Jorgen's List. It's a free to use resource and only features brilliant (Art) Director recommended talent like Dan Milligan and Jim Cornish

The concept came from the minds of Guilherme Bermejo and Nicholas Doerr over at TBWA in Toronto.

Original concept sketch by Greg Boychuk. This is the perfect example of a concept that's just easier to sell with a sketch. You can't photocomp it in a good way and a rougher sketch wouldn't get across the lips frozen to the trophy. 

The final is a testament to the craft of Robert Popkin. He's takent he original sketch and given it more energy, atmosphere and a great choice of talent. It wasn't easy though as he describes himself: 

It was mid October, and there we were trying to make our shot look like a chilly scene from the Grey Cup game day – not an easy endeavour given the shoot day temperature was above 10°C. To make matters slightly more interesting, our hero prop for the shot was the one and only Grey Cup – not an item to be trifled with. Thankfully we had a few tricks up our sleeve get the shot. - Robert Popkin

You can view the entire making of post on Robert Popkin's 'making of' post here. 

Trevor Gustafson

I once had a client that wanted to use Trevor's mock up instead of hiring a photographer for the final job. 

Jason Stewart

Jason's able to do both delicious close-ups as well as make all sorts of foodstuffs come to life. That's just part of the job as a concept artist in the advertising industry. 

Greg Banning

Apologies to Greg for the two low resolution samples below. Though even in low resolution his talent is obvious.

Erik De Jong

I usually don't approve of tracing, but Erik uses a combination of photo references and normal illustration that is so flawless your mouth starts watering.

Richard Row

Richard's great at food, but I wanted to bring special attention to the ambience of his illustrations. That's just as important as the food.

Todd Murrison

There's something really inviting about Todd's effortless illustrations. The melted cheese feels warm and the coffee looks piping hot! 

Leo Lingas

The below illustrations were done as concepts for a photo shoot. The use of texture and detail really helps sell the final product and serves as an example of why you'd use an illustration over a photomockup for the presentation.

Did I miss anyone? Let me know who you use for your food concepts and nominate them for display on Jorgen's List.

Alex will be fully operational during this time, even if his site is down. So go right ahead and reach out to him directly if you'd like to hire him on. Alex does both advertising boards and director boards.

Wishing you a speedy recovery, Alex!

1. Contact them directly!

Artists in Canada do have reps and agents in the US, but unlikely most of their US counterparts you can contact them directly without going through a costly middleman. The best place to do so is Jorgen's List and Jim Woo's Rendering List. 

2. They're incredible!

if you think these artists are accustomed to simply drawing frames for maple syrup and weak beer ads; you're very wrong. Canada's home to some of the best agencies in the world and the artists have to be equally good at bringing to life the crazy visions of the creatives there. This also means they're great at communicating directly with you as the client and can quickly translate your vision to a concept you can present to your client.

3. More bang for your buck

The Canadian dollar is usually a bit below the American dollar and thus you get more mileage out of your budget. Not to mention that by ignoring the agent fees you'll have even more money to spend on colored frames and client revisions. 

4. Centuries of experience

The community in Canada is tight. The artists all know each other and can thus draw upon (pardon the pun) each others experience and support. If the artist you call is busy he's sure to have at least a handful additional artists to call. This also helps fresh artists to learn, as the experienced ones will include them on projects and help improve their skills. Most veteran artists on Jorgen's List have 20 years of experience. 

5. They're nice

Even if you're not aware of ice hockey, beavers and Rob Ford you know this about Canadians; they're the nicest people you'll ever deal with. 

Here are a few veterans to get you started:

> Dan Milligan > Stuart Godfrey > Terry Brown > Trevor Gustafson > Todd Murrison > John Castro

> Jim Woo

> Greg Banning

> Mark Harris

> Richard Row

> Jason Stewart

Jaeson worked with directors Michelle MacLaren (the White Walker, Meereen sequences) and Alik Sakharov (Lysa’s demise, Yara's rescue, Jon’s return from Craster’s Keep, Stannis at Braavos) this season to bring their episodes to life. how do you become a storyboard artist on the hottest show on TV these days? Jaeson explains director Neil Marshal (who directed the two major battle episodes of the series) was the one mentioning his name. They'd worked together on Doomsday (2008) and that was how Jaeson's name was dropped into the hat. 

Today Jaeson joined our list of the industry's greatest storyboard artists (Jim Cornish, Dan Milligan, Darrin Denlinger, Tim Burgard, Rob McCallum etc) and to celebrate he sent us a batch of his excellent boards from season four. To see Jaeson's other work and availability; click here.

Disclaimer: Jorgen's List is a free resource that shows you the availability of storyboard artists and how to contact them directly.

The above frames are from an animatic Jaeson put together to help visualize the scene with the White Walker and baby.