#thoughtstronauts

I put together some fan art in support of this glorious union!

STARR MAZER x THOUGHTSTRONAUTS

Lane Garrison is a background painter on Bee and PuppyCat. Originally from Tucson, Arizona, Lane went to college with Natasha, and with Rafi Diaz created a comic called Thoughtstronauts, which was successfully funded on Kickstarter. Lane also freelances on other animated series, including Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, as a painter. Below, Lane tells a bit about how he makes the Bee and PuppyCat backgrounds “beautiful and amaaaaaaaaaazing.”

Frederator Times: Did drawing and being creative come easily for you?

Lane Garrison: I started drawing for fun at a fairly young age, which helped at least get me familiar with art, taking a few classes here and there, but it wasn’t until college that I really started learning to draw. At the time, I didn’t really know what I wanted to do with art, I just knew I liked it, so I emulated as many styles as I could.

What artists inspire you and your work?

I think I’m still in that process of learning to draw and I constantly look to other artists to help find a path for myself. Amazing artists like Glen Keane, Chris Sanders, Toby Shelton, John Nevarez, Carter Goodrich, Peter de Sève and so many others are the best teachers and studying their work and trying to understand what makes their art so appealing has been paramount in figuring out the whole drawing thing for myself!

When did you decide you wanted to work in animation? Was it what you always wanted to do?

Nope. I had no idea that animation/television was even a possible job until after I graduated from college. While in college I thought I was going to get a Masters in Fine Art and then become an editorial illustrator in New York.

Luckily, I managed to land a job working for Walt Disney Imagineering through the Imaginations contest and found myself whisked away to Southern California. During a tour of Disney Animation, it hit me that the art that really called out to me was the art of animation. From there I basically went back to school, thanks to the internet and a really open and amazing community of artists, in order to find my way to animation. 

You’ve known Natasha since college - is that how you found your way to be part of the Bee and PuppyCat team?

Back in college, Natasha happened to be one of the people I was most impressed with in my classes. At the time, she was already creating powerful, cleverly designed artwork and over the course of our classes we became friends…then she ran off and joined the Adventure Time circus.

After I had moved to LA and figured out my artistic path I started working on a comic in 2013 called Thoughtstronauts [Ed note: above is an image from his comic] with my writing partner, Rafi Diaz. He and I had successfully Kickstarted the project (which I am still furiously trying to finish!) when Natasha and I ended up grabbing drinks with another of our friends. During the course of the night Natasha told me she really liked Thoughtstronauts and invited me to work on the project she had in the works, Bee and PuppyCat.

What do you do as a background painter? What do your responsibilities include?

As a background painter I work together with our art director, Efrain Farias, and designer, Hans Tseng, in creating color keys for each episode and am then responsible for applying those to the final background files. It’s been great working with both of them as they are both super talented.

When you started work on the backgrounds for the series did Natasha give you any specific rules or animation/anime, art or comic book references to keep in mind?

I remember when she was first briefing me on the style she wanted for the show she had an “Inspiration Folder” which had a number of collected backgrounds from various anime, and said “make the backgrounds beautiful and amaaaaaaaaaazing.”

It was a bit terrifying because anime backgrounds are really detailed and beautiful, so I felt a lot of pressure to really deliver!

Natasha has made no secret that Bee and PuppyCat is a "love letter to Sailor Moon.” How is Sailor Moon influencing your work on PuppyCat?

More than anything I think the soft, watercolor backgrounds and color palettes of the show [Sailor Moon] tend to find themselves into the backgrounds of Bee and PuppyCat.

When I started painting, Efrain, and Hans had already begun incorporating these into the style sheets for the backgrounds so I’m just doing my best to really bring that out! 

When you’re working on PuppyCat, are there any comic books or animated series/characters that influence you?

I’ve been watching a lot of Miyazaki films for their beautiful and soft light as well as classics like Sailor Moon. There’s also an anime called No Game No Life, which has some stunning color palettes.

Did you have a favorite comic book series as a kid?

Can I choose Saturday morning comics? Calvin and Hobbes!

Are there any special things you need to have or do in order to sit down and get to work? 

I like to do some sort of physical activity before I start drawing to help clear my mind: a run, swim, or just some jumping jacks. I also try to keep super dark chocolate on hand (80% or higher!) for when I feel a bit of a slump!

Thanks Lane!

Don’t forget to join us for the Bee and PuppyCat 24-hour Livestream Countdown-to-Launch event, which begins on Cartoon Hangover on Wednesday, November 5 at 8 p.m. EST. Featuring Bee and PuppyCat creator Natasha Allegri, along with lots of other special guests, the Livestream leads right into the debut of Bee and PuppyCat: The Series on Thursday, November 6 at 8 p.m. EST!