We’re back with the second half of the Cold, Hard Flash interview with Campbell MacKinlay, the Director/Writer of ‘Doodlez,’ the short-form series currently airing on TeleTOON in Canada and Nicktoons in the States. Let’s see what Campbell has to say about alternatives to Flash, his work with Harry Knowles and which artists make him want to start doodling.

AARON: Beyond Flash, what other software does your team use to create ‘Doodlez’?
We compile our shows in Final Cut Pro, and run the final product through After Effects where we add a very slight blur in order to take a little bit of the digital edge off of everything. We try to do anything we can in order to avoid the dreaded “Flashy-ness.”

But truly, the entire production would grind to a halt were it not for one piece of software: Tetris.

AARON: Do you and your team use Flash to create the ‘Doodlez’ animatics?
CAMPBELL: Yes. Our pipeline runs almost exclusively through Flash. We have created interconnected template files for storyboards, animatics and layouts, so that each can be automatically populated by copy-pasting common symbols (and accepting the replacement) from the previous step.

As one might imagine, timing is a really important issue for the show, and it is one that is revisited throughout the process. As we timed out the animatics, we would often add antics and settles, by squashing and stretching the storyboard poses, which would result in a further defined blueprint to follow.

Also on the issue of timing, during the first season we found that the animators had a tendency to overrun the 2-minute episode limit, so that we had to create a final step in which we would need to cut the show to time.

As a result, in the second season, I would time the shorts out to 1 minute 45 seconds, leaving the animators a bank of 10 seconds to withdraw from as they needed, and myself 5 seconds more to fill out the show when it was complete. Adding time is a pleasure, while cutting is a nightmare, especially when the pacing of the show has such a tendency to add congestion.

AARON: Have you considered using any other vector-based software to animate ‘Doodlez?’
CAMPBELL: I think that any animation studio that hopes to survive needs to constantly keep their eyes and ears open. At Trapeze, we try to consider every viable option for getting our work onscreen. We don’t want to be left behind the curve, because of an allegiance to specific software, if something else appears that is superior to it. To this end, we’ve had a few conversations with Toon Boom at various stages about what their software can accomplish.

Until recently, Toon Boom’s product has not been compelling enough for us to consider making the change from Flash. However, we’ve recently had a demonstration of the capabilities of its newest iteration, Harmony, and were VERY impressed. Some of the features of this software quite simply blew us away.

But currently, its cost per seat is absurdly prohibitive, so it seems that we’ll have to be pinning all our hopes on the long-anticipated release of 8-ball for the time being. Hopefully, Flash has been paying attention to what its competitors and other vector-based programs such as Moho and Expression3 have been doing, and do their best to integrate similar features into this new release. Flash artists have waited a long time for an upgrade that focuses on our needs, so I certainly hope it’s worth it.

AARON: What’s the story behind those animated GIFs you did for Ain’t It Cool News?
CAMPBELL: The story is that I liked the site, and thought I saw an opportunity to contribute something. So I cooked up a quick animation of Harry with the little secondary Alien mouth (from Alien) popping out of his mouth and snapping.

He dug it, so I kept doing them and he kept posting them. When I stopped doing them I had completed 182 of them, a bunch of random illustrations, bumpers for the aintitcooltv pilot, and two animated shorts that opened the Butt-Numb-A-Thon 2 and 3 film festivals. Since I stopped, he’s just been cycling through the existing ones (though 3 or 4 were submitted by other guys).

AARON: What animators and artists do you draw inspiration from?
CAMPBELL: Most closely connected to inspiring ‘Doodlez’ are the folks behind the ‘Looney Tunes,’ (especially Clampett and Avery) and the DePatie-Freleng ‘Pink Panther,’ Antonio Prohias for ‘Spy Vs. Spy,’ and ‘La Linea,’ aka the line-guy featured on ‘The Great Space Coaster’ which was created by Osvaldo Cavandoli.

AARON: What animated programs are on your watch list?
CAMPBELL: ‘PEEP and the Big Wide World!’ Man, that’s a good show. My one year-old daughter hipped me to this show, but don’t discount it based on its preschool credentials. It’s sweet and simple, but very funny, with characters that are super-appealing and somehow manage to seem immediately familiar without ripping off anybody. Also, unless I am VERY mistaken, it’s Flash. (Editor: It is.)

AARON: Do you follow any Flash-animated web-series?
CAMPBELL: Sadly, I don’t. But around the time Icebox went down, I became too busy to keep track of much and tuned out. But, as I am not above this sort of thing, I will take this as an opportunity to plug the webisodes at jinglebelle.com and the corner animation I did for aintitcoolnews.com both of which were created exclusively in Flash, and mostly before I had the even the most remote idea of how to use the thing.

AARON: What animated DVDs are you currently playing?
CAMPBELL: Tom & Jerry, Ren & Stimpy, Samurai Jack, and Porco Rosso.

Beyond DVD, I recently traded for a 16th generation-VHS-copy of the John K. run on Mighty Mouse, which I am digging in a big, bad way.

AARON: Thanks, Campbell. I really appreciate your thoughtful answers and your inspirational work on ‘Doodlez.’ Best of luck with the upcoming episodes!

Last month I posted news of MTV Networks’ purchase of ‘Kappa Mikey,’ a Flash-animated anime spoof, for global distribution. The intention is to roll out the show on Nicktoons in the US and Nickelodeon Interenational (both under the MTV Networks umbrella) next year. The show, which was created by Animation Collective’s Larry Schwarz, focuses on “once-struggling American actor Mikey Simon as he adjusts to his new role as the biggest anime star Japan has even seen. But fame doesn’t come without a price.” On the heels of this news is the announcement that 4Kids Entertainment, the New York-based provider of children’s entertainment and merchandising, just picked up the the worldwide licensing, marketing and promotional rights for the show, which bodes well for Kappa Mikey’s future. Along with this recent press release comes some new show art, which feels reminicent of Comedy Central’s ‘Drawn Together,’ a show that marries various animation styles into one show. But now that I see the art, I’m starting to think that this show won’t be produced in Flash. The models, especially the anime-inspired characters, are fairly intricate, and might not be very Flash-friendly. Guess we’ll have to wait and see.

Nicktoons Film Festival has come to a close, and two of the eight finalists produced their work using Macromedia’s Flash software.

Robot Family: The Slick Salesman by Chris Harding

Just this morning, I posted my thoughts on this short. I completely agree with this short being included as a finalist – it’s a standout, and I’d love to see this series extend to a DVD compilation or a primetime show. Good luck, guys!

Kenya by Jonti Picking

Over a dozen shorts in the competition were animated in Flash. This comes as no surprise, as Flash has become one of the most commonly used production methods, especially for animated pilots. The program’s ease of use, flexibility and relatively low price tag (approx. $500) makes it a no-brainer for teams all around the world.

Congratulations to the creators of the festival winner, ‘Timmy’s Lessons in Nature,’ and the Producer’s Choice Award, ‘Welcome to My Life.’

Frederator’s Fred Seibert and Animation Magazine’s Rita Street have teamed up with Nicktoons, the forward-looking cable channel, to deliver armfuls of animated shorts – it’s the Nicktoons Film Festival. The project is already underway, and has been airing on Sundays as a block. Amongst the shorts in competition are at least 14 shorts produced using Macromedia’s Flash software. The majority of these shorts eminate from Canada, in particular from Corus Entertainment’s Nelvana Studios. And if you’re currently in the Canada, you may have seen several of these shorts on the YTV ‘Funpak’ block.

Over the next few weeks, I’ll be watching and reviewing these shorts, but, in the meantime, here’s a sampling of what’s in store over at Nicktoons:

Manbird
by Mark Marek
It’s like it says – he’s a man that’s also a bird. But this ain’t no Condorman, my dear, and it’s not Mark’s first foray into the land of TV. He’s one of the main go-to animators over the New York-based Funny Garbage studio, and he’s been actively involved in all sorts of good stuff for Comedy Central’s Crank Yankers. After watching the short, snoop around his site for some more eye candy.

The Manly Bee
by Steve Daye
Produced by Nelvana, this short seems to take a twist on a fairly popular current storyline – the retired superhero. This time around, our hero, The Manly Bee, has no recollection of his previous life as a superhero.

Rotting Hills: Clark’s New Home
by Glen Wyand
The hills are alive – with Zombies! An industry friend just offered up that the TV animation’s 2005 is The Year of the Zombie, so strap on your goo-goggles, because this one looks great. Another short from the gang up north at Nelvana.

Six Snails Snoring
by Charles Danziger, composed by Drew Hemenger and Philip Carroll
A whimsical counting-themed short aimed at the wee-little ones. Charles cleverly builds characters out of letters, hoping to lull kids to bed. I could see this short fitting quite easily into an episode of Sesame Street. Have a look at the short on the Crunchymail website.

The 9th Life of Sherman Phelps: Serenity Now
Mark Thornton and Todd Kauffman
Hard to tell what this show is about from the description on the Nicktoons site, but I did read that they’re compositing Flash against photos of miniature backgrounds. Way to push the medium, guys. Man cannot live on Flash alone – compositing and the use of photoshop’d elements tend to kick a project’s look and feel away from the dreaded moniker ‘flashy.’ This short also originated from Nelvana Studios.

Miracle Koala: Belt for Punishment
by Mark Capello
This short is pulled from a like-titled series, and seems to center on, you guessed it – a koala. From the brief amount I’ve seen, it looks like Mark and his gang at Helix Animation sure have been drawing their aching hands off. Very detailed models for a Flash production, and it seems as if they’ve taken the extra step to add shading. Lo and behold – this series of shorts was picked up by Nelvana!

Fool Throttle
by Todd Hemker and Morgan Williams
Some funky, cut-out style visuals on this one. The Minneapolis duo have really piqued my appetite for some throw-back styles – ala Jim Flora’s beautiful album cover art. View a teaser of this short here at the ReelWorks site, and dig on one of my favorite songs – Mohammed Rafi’s “Jann Pehechaan Ho.”

The Not So Heroic Adventures of Sidekick: Dooms Day Dog
Todd Kauffman and Joey So
This one sounds like a wild ride indeed. Something about an evil hotdog, and a science project, and a bowl full of bran. That’s a promising combo if I’ve ever heard one. Can’t wait to see this, the second festival offering from Todd Kaufman (see ’9th Life’ above).

Martini and Meatballs: Avery’s Game
by Mike Csunyoscka
Mmmmm…. martinis and meatballs. This Nelvana-produced piece teams up a pair of pooches who, in this short, aim to save their city from a giant gorilla robot of their own creation. A real unique look for the show. They went with no-outlines, which can be a massive time-saver in Flash, and allows the animators to skew, shapeshift and break apart any and all character elements. I’d recommend this design style to anyone looking to get the most bang for their Flash buck.

Kenya
by J. Picking
At first glance, this might seem like a short aimed at the pre-school market, but you’ll soon notice the subversive humor seeping through. It’s no wonder the web-based version of this short circled the globe a few times viral-style. Mr. Picking’s work can be seen here at the weebls-stuff website.

Gruesomenstein’s Monsters: Freddie and the Yeti
by Mark Ackland and Riccardo Durante
Not sure what this one’s about, but the look and feel is possibly the best in the festival. Would you be shocked to learn where this short came from? I’ll give you a hint – it starts with a ‘Nelvana’ and ends with a ‘Studios.’

Coolman: Deep Sea Blues
by Arna Selznick and John Van Bruggen
A husband-and-wife created project from Nelvana that seems to follow the adventures of the hippest person alive – Coolman. From the small snippet I watched on the YTV website, the production design looks lavish and, dare I say, trippy! Is it me, or is Coolman driving Elton John’s submarine?