Hello!
My Name is EJ Cail and I’m a student at Francis Tuttle Technology Center as a 2D Animation Student. I am certified in Adobe Photoshop, After Effects, and Toon Boom Harmony. In addition to art, I love to sing and watch cartoons.
EJ’s Works
If you want to view my background design, view here.
If you want to see my BPA animation PSA, view here.
If you want to see my Scooby Doo Theme song, view here.
If you want to see my Animatic, view here.
If you want to see my Character Turnaround Sheet, view here.
Backgrounds
These are the two backgrounds I have done as class projects. I have really loved this part of my animation course, and I was extremely proud of how these turned out. These pieces have inspired me to consider background art as my profession in the future.
Classmate Environment Project
The piece below was my first time making a background for animation without a tutorial. I was tasked with making an environment for a classmate to put their character in. My classmate Ethan, gave me a character set in Oklahoma that was running from zombies. I wanted the character to be able to have a nice temporary home to keep safe in, so I drew a cozy barn that seems safe but also looks like it has seen better days. This was a super fun project to work on and I’m proud of the level of detail I put in while also keeping things distinct from one another.
Brainstorming
I was really thinking Wild West with this project since the story is set in the 1860s. I wanted to have either a creepy, deserted feeling, or a comforting, familiar feeling. I tried to get both ideas across in my mood-board and brainstorming.
Pre-Production
I chose my fourth brainstorming idea because it felt most accessible to both me, and the viewer.
Despite it being set against a zombie apocalypse, I wanted this environment to have a sense of life. I tried adding as many details pointing to someone living in this barn like the bags on the hook and wall, as well as the fire pit and bucket.
Color-Blocking
Now it was time to start color blocking. As you can see here, I started with simple, desaturated colors for the background that would be added onto later.
Final Product and Thoughts
As I said before, this was my first time really making a background for animation. I am very proud of myself for how this turned out. If I had to change something, it would be to have a clearer line of sight because I don’t really have one element that draws the viewers in. Other than that, I love the color and location I used as well as the perspective being correct.
Viking Landscape
This piece was the first time I really worked with background design. I followed a tutorial on Skillshare, and it really opened my eyes to how great background design can be. While I am ultimately proud of how it turned out, it being my first time, I wish I had added more distinction in the wood because I feel like some of the planks run together. All-in-all, I like the colors I used, and the experience is one I would gladly return to, and definitely will in the future.
BPA Animation Project
This project was different from anything I’ve ever done as it was a group animation project for BPA. Our prompt was: “Create a 2D animation that showcases a diverse group of students or citizens from around the world using Internet of Things (IoT) devices and smart technology to observe, collect, and share environmental data through the NASA GLOBE Program” I was tasked with the role of animator.
Ideas
Me and my group decided we wanted our project to resemble 80s and 90s PSAs because of their cheesy vibe and easy-to-understand language. We planned our story and characters around those ideas.
Our style sheet makes sure that the characters, backgrounds, props, and story stay consistent.
My teammate Ivan designed our two characters which I based my character rigs on.
Animation Tests
After constructing the character rigs, I made animation tests so our director, Loki, could approve of the way I was animating.
Once the tests were approved, I was in the clear to start animating.
Blocking
The first thing I did was blocking out the movement of each character. Here is a blocked out scene:
As you can see, I kept it very simple with basic poses and no faces, backgrounds or props. I added these after the blocking was approved and also fixed minor mistakes.
Final Products and Thoughts
I’m so proud of the work my teammates and I put into this project. I made a lot of mistakes, especially during the rigging process. For example, I only made one section for the entire arm when it is recommended you break it into the upper arm and forearm. Things like that required me to make quick decisions and fixes that I had to learn from so I wouldn’t make the same mistakes in the future. Overall, I am extremely happy with the final product and I feel like I’ve learned a lot from this process.
Scooby Doo Theme
For this project I was tasked with making an animation of my choice from a lengthof 15 seconds or longer, and I had 30 hrs to work on it. The story follows the Scooby gang in a theme song for a little project I’ve been working on on the side.
Ideas
I’ve had a basic story and character design laid out for months for the main story, but the theme song was a bit trickier since I didn’t want to use voice lines.
After knowing what I wanted them to look like, I needed to start storyboarding to get a basic idea of how I wanted the story to go.
Final Products and Thoughts
Like on previous projects, I wish I had spent more time on the actual animating than on the planning. I loved this project so much but I didn’t get to do everything I wanted to do to make it look as good as I envisioned. I’ve definitely learned my lesson and will plan to spend not as much time planning so I can make future projects look even better!
My After Effects Animatic
For this project I was tasked with making a 1 minute animation to a song of my choice, and 30 hrs to work on it. The story follows my character Violet (from my previous project) who has just transferred to Magic School and isn’t quite up to speed on how things work, so Hexana decides to tease her about it.
Ideas
I had an idea of what song I wanted to use and how I wanted them to act, but I needed my actors! Of course Violet’s design was easiest as I just had to give her a new school uniform. Hexana was my favorite to make because she’s based off of popular magician characters, including Trixie Lulamoon, who is singing the song. The extras, or Hexana’s gang, were just some basic designs I had floating around in my head.
After figuring out the basic designs, I started with quick sketches of ideas I had for the animatic. All in all, this took probably longer than it should have, and it ate into the time I had to actually draw the piece.
Final Products and Thoughts
Overall, I wish I hadn’t spent so much time on the storyboard and spent it on the animatic. I am very happy with how it turned out for my first time though. I know I will have time to learn and grow and that this is no different. I gave it my best effort which effectively solves the problem of creating a piece to put in my profile.
My Character Turnaround Sheet
I was tasked with making a turnaround sheet for this lovely character within 30hrs. I wanted to appeal to pre-teens and teens with bright colors and relatable clothes. The problem I had to solve was creating a piece that fit the specifications within the timeframe that could help me get a job/ into college.
Pre-production
First, I started with making a mood-board to lay out what I had imagined in my head, along with name and color ideas.
Then, I sketched out what would become Violet, including all the required poses and expressions. I also added little accessories at the bottom as a treat.
Products and Final Thoughts
Below is my finished product, including my colored character sheet and GIF turnaround.
Overall, I was very pleased with how it turned out, I wish my line width was more consistent but other than that, I was very proud of myself for completing my first project. I think this piece solves the problem as I met all project requirements and it shows my creativity.
Get in Touch
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