Snow

In case you haven't noticed, there's a snowstorm hovering over half of the country. The above photo is from last night. It's my dad in his jeep. We went for an evening drive, partly to see if anyone was stuck, but mostly to exercise the power my dad feels when he climbs any snowy hill he desires. It was fun.

Sufjan Stevens' A Christmas Game

The Sufjan Stevens Christmas Game is finished! Many thanks to Leeni, the chiptune artist that arranged some 8-bit versions of Sufjan's songs. Check out her myspace as well. Also, great thanks to Asthmatic Kitty Records and the Bents! Check out the game and let me know what you think! Oh, and there's a whole bunch of other Christmas stuff to play with/watch at xmas.asthmatickitty.com!

In the past, I've made two other 8-bit style flash games: Daily Danger and Tidal Wave. Check those out if you haven't. They're a little rough around the edges, but likable.

I'm a person who avoids drinking coffee... 1. because I don't like the taste and 2. because I don't want to rely on a drink to feel normal, but I'm succombing to its power through free starbucks peppermint mocha twist coupons! They're so tastey and they make me buzz like woody the woodpecker.

I'd probably feel a lot better if I just got more sleep. Maybe I'll try that.

palendrome

I wrote a palendrome: Emo hot sagas to home.

I'm also really excited about the author Anne Lamott. I'm reading her book "Bird by Bird." She's like a female David Sedaris.

I'm working on another Asthmatic Kitty Records video game. Should be done by next week. It's for one of their artists named Sufjan Stevens.

I'm being sarcastic. Super stoked.

dark early

It has come to my attention that this blog has recently become a look-at-what-i-did blog, instead of a collection of things going on in my life blog. I haven't really shared anything emotional recently or thoughtful. I don't think that's good.

Jess and I recently went to our friend Gala's Warm Blooded show. A lot of the drawings are finely rendered unusual animals. They're really fun to look at.

Gala is also a teacher at SPU and we were privileged to speak to her digital illustration class about our experiences as artists.

Check out Gala and her husband Zack's websites at:
zackandgalabent.com

Sweat

Sweat from Tom DesLongchamp on Vimeo.

Asthmatic Kitty Records is holding a music video competition for their artist Rafter, so I very quickly created this with my friend Tim at his house. It's kind of David Lynch-y, but pretty fun. Hope you enjoy it. Rafter is awesome and you should check his stuff out.

If you want to see some of the other music videos people have entered, check out the youtube group.

Judges for the contest include:
The Liars
Dan Deacon
Sasha Bareese - actress (American Pie, The Ring, Legally Blond, The Hulk, etc.)
Christine Starkman - Curator, Asian art - Museum of Fine Arts, Houston.
the staff of Yo Gabba Gabba
Leslie Hall (of youtube fame)
Adrian Grenier - actor/musician

Tired

Tired from Tom DesLongchamp on Vimeo.

I had a little fun with the new camera today. Hope you enjoy it. I didn't plan to use the song (Tired by LCD Soundsystem). It was actually playing on my stereo when I took the shot of Renton and I liked the feeling of it, so I ripped the song and played it for the rest of the montage.

I forgot the power of a new lens. For the past year I had been taking photographs and video with a fixed lens point-and-shoot camera. With my new camera, I feel like my view of the world has changed just by the new things I can capture.

D90

I purchased a Nikon D90 from Amazon last week. My old camera died over a year ago, so it's been a major relief to have control over photos again. So far this camera has been great and I love that it has a video function.

My lovely wife Jessica has a card line that just appeared in ALL Starbucks, so keep your eyes out for that. It's a 4 card set and each card has a quote and some silhouetted graphics with color and pattern, similar to the Positively Green card line she did last year.

Rain

The biggest raindrops on Earth were recorded over Brazil and the Marshall Islands in 2004 — some of them were as large as 10 mm.

Grampall Jookabox video game

I recently completed a video game for Asthmatic Kitty Records' newly signed artist Grampall Jookabox. I very much enjoyed making it and I'm looking forward to creating more.

Also, did some illustration for lolArts. The cats at the top of the page, and some other cats inside a booklet that was at the event in San Francisco.

I wasn't crazy--I was stupid.

Lee, Jessica, and I went tarping at Gasworks Park last Friday. It had been windy all day, until we arrived at the park. There were a few mild breezes and Lee experienced The Pull, but nothing substantial so it was a little disappointing. Lee said he's up for next time.

It was the 2nd time I had tarped since my accident. Some people think I'm crazy, but my answer to them is: I'm not crazy and never was, BUT... I was stupid and I'm a lot more careful now and I know when it's too windy.

Kid Show on TV

Kid Show aired on the Nicktoons Network this evening. The above photo is from last weekend when Jess and I flew down to Burbank for the awards ceremony/creator's night. That there is a 4 foot LEGO statue of Spongebob Square Pants.

Kid Show didn't win any awards, but is eligible for an Audience Choice award, so go and vote for it if you can at http://nicktoonsnetwork.nick.com/nnaf/viewshorts.jhtml. You can only vote for the next 24 hours, so hurry. Thanks!

Stan Lee was the special guest at the event. He's such a cool guy. If you're not sure who he is, he's the guy that created Spiderman and the X-Men, etc. I'm the kind of person who can never think of a good question during a Q&A, but I managed to squeeze out a decent one: "At what point did you realize you HAD to do what you do?" and his answer lives on in my mind forever.

He said that he was about to quit. He had been doing comics for almost 20 years already, but they weren't his ideas. His wife suggested he make one his own way just to try it out before he quits. So he does, and it's a comic called The Fantastic Four. BANG

mah girl

I got a good lady. Look at how nice she is. I love her so.

The photo was taken with a friend's Nikon D90. It's an unbelievable camera and I can't wait to get myself one. The camera can take HD video clips as well. Sweeet.

Also, something very unfortunate happened the other night. I went to pick up our 4 month old kitten, Rueben and he decided to freak out. Before I knew anything had happened, I had a claw straight through my lower lip, literally. It entered he top of my lip and popped out just below my lip, where normal skin starts. The worst part was that he couldn't get his claw out and I started screaming like an idiot and crying. Jess was in the other room thinking that I was just being a goof, instead of having a traumatic experience.

I clutched Rueben's arm and held it tight, so he couldn't rip my lip open and ran into the other room where Jess was. She saw what was up and started screaming. She held Rueben up for me while I tried unhooking my lip. It felt very similar to unhooking a fish from a hook. Finally I got myself free and ran to the bathroom to see what the damage was.

It bled a bit, but after about 10 minutes there was no blood and no pain really and it hasn't given me any trouble since. It's a great story and I can say that I involuntarily got my lip pierced by a cat. That's something very few people can say.

accipoem

Tom: everything is stopping

Tom: somehow we are still talking

Tom: but all my download/uploads are frozen

yessikaaa: what you wrote could be a poem

Cry Night

I think I already mentioned this in a past blog, but you should see Snow Angels. I cried when I first saw it back in April at AFI Dallas. Jess and I watched it again tonight and man, I cried again. After it was over, we talked about it and I cried again. So did Jess. Cry night. Man.

It is easily one of the most moving films I've ever seen. By moving, I don't mean warm, fuzzy feelings. I mean, beautiful, tragic, delicate, crushing, ugh. Let the fact that I'm typing this way signify what I mean.

David Gordon Green directed the film. If you ever feel hardened like you can't cry, check out some of his films.

Super Punch

This is me super punching at the beach in Gloucester, MA last week.

Hey, Jess and I are going to LA in a few weeks for the Nicktoons Network Animation Festival Creator Night. If Kid Show won anything, they'll announce it that night, so it sounds like a lot of fun. Plus our plane tickets were super cheap, because of Virgin America.

Oh No Spider

I found this huge spider in our stairwell the other day. It scared the crap out of me, but I had to capture it and take photos.

Jess and I just got back from a weeks visit to Boston to visit family and such. It was pleasant, although we both were sick the whole time. I saw No Country For Old Men for the first time. Wow. It was so original... it sucks you in and you want it to keep going forever.

Good news:

- Kid Show will screen on Nickelodeon's "Nicktoons" channel October 12th. I'll give more details later, but it's for the Nicktoons Network Animation Festival, so that's exciting!

- Earl Boone Is Alive is part of Slamdance's Anarchy Short Film Competition for the month of September, so go watch it and vote for it! (requires registration at their site)Click here to see what it's competing against and click here for a direct link to my film.

-Kid Show is also going to screen at the Austin Film Festival in mid October. Not sure if I'm attending yet.

The Cat

I made a quicky animation today. It's called The Cat Part 1. I need to do more of this.

Jess and I are going to Boston on Tuesday for 6 days. That'll be nice.

I'm quite tired.

Upside Down

This is Mr. Josh Wakeman and I upside down at the SAM Sculpture Park. Thanks to Miranda Wakeman for taking this shot. Thanks to Josh's skull for being able to withstand his weight. Thanks to the giant cone for being orange.

Oh, and the grass, sky, buildings, etc.

LCD Sound System makes me want to jump. Check em out--you can listen to every song through the site.

I'm still at work, but I started going insane, so I had to blog. BLOOOG

Wow, you got messed up.

Most people who know me know about my tarping accident. And if you're not sure what I'm talking about, be sure to check out my tarping video. Anyways, I got nailed pretty badly when I tarped during a blizzard back in '06 (in Rhode Island). I fractured my skull, broke my elbow and shattered my kneecap, but compared to the guy in the following video, I think I lucked out alright. I got pretty banged up, but I don't think I was critical condition.



My fall was more like his first hit in the sand, because I landed on my feet, but the icy concrete was less forgiving.

Don't do these things in severe conditions, unless you're using a blanket.

Tricks

It's nice to know that I'm still young enough to do a one handed hand-stand... even though I can only hold it for one second. These photos were taken in the Seattle Art Museum Sculpture Park.

I played Dr. Mario last night for a while and acheived a 359,400 point score (high speed setting), and if I had been recording the game, I would have been in 3rd place for the world record high score.

Polaroid Star

Last Friday I was a Polaroid Star. Work had a lets-go-to-the-beach-for-the-afternoon afternoon and Cody brought the camera. I don't know what it was, but Cody and I were nailing these amazing shots in one take. The top one is of me springing over a badminton net. Cody laid in the sand to get that angle. The other photo is extreme ketchup-ing.

In two weeks, Kid Show will screen at the Frame Damage animation festival in Denver. Check it out if you're near there.

What's Next?

I'm exhausted. I wonder what's next.

The weather has been great. The other day I saw a cypress tree, which is unusual up here. Being a cypress in the northwest probably isn't easy.

I feel like a cypress in California that is trying to escape to Seattle to hide under clouds.

I am here. I'm just not a cypress.

What am I doing? I guess I forgot.

I was always the kid who ran home as soon as school was out.

And always tried to do the alternative assignments.

[I lost a little bit of soul this year. ]--revision: I felt like I lost some soul, but actually hadn't. (8-7-08)

Dooooonnnnooooovvvaaaannnnnn

Some of my coworkers and I got carried away with a panasonic hvx200 camera and it's slow motion feature.... and Donovan.

Animation Show Seattle

Last Friday, Jess and I went to the Animation Show! A lot of great animation, really inspiring, but most inspiring was the community of animators I was able to talk with. I asked Joel Trussell if he'd let me take an ugly picture of us both and he agreed. Joel has animated such music videos as War Photographer and Paris Is On. He's a great guy and I suggest you watch his animations if you haven't.

The other photo is stuffed with Anton Bogaty, Rebecca Moline, Matt from Plexipixel, as well as Robert May--voice talent for Don Hertzfeldt's Rejected, Lily & Jim, etc. I just about crapped by pants when I realized I was in the presence of the voice that spoke "my anus is bleeding!" I mean, Rejected was one of the kickers for me wanting to be an animator. Be sure to check out the Plexipixel blog for Matt's account of the evening, as well as beautiful photographs of the afore mentioned.

In other news, I've had this blog for over a year now and I'm excited that I've been able to keep up with it.

Oh, and I've also been married to Jess for two years. I hope I can keep that up too, sike! We're so happy I have to wear a frown mask at night to rest up for the next day.

ADAA

The above image is a still from a nearly finished short Wexley + Digital Kitchen did for Microsoft. It was my first significant acting experience. I played a computer programmer who gets trapped with his friend in a world they programmed.

Also, the other day I was thinking it might be good to purchase my name .com, so I did. Check it out. As you can see, I haven't figured out what I'm going to do with it yet. Oh well, it's real estate.

Also also, Kid Show is a finalist in the Adobe Design Achievement Awards.

My Woman Fell

As you can see, Jessica took a little tumble off the scooter. She was doing very well, but couldn't slow down fast enough and lost control. I ran toward her, frightened that she was hurt, but all she could do was complain about the grass stain on her jeans and shirt. I've never seen someone so fearfully driven to do laundry.

Good fall, Jess.

High Speed World Champion

Back in December, I achieved an official world record high score for a classic Nintendo game called High Speed. A month later, Nik Meeks topped my score, but now I'm back on top with a score of 23,390,650. Check it out on Twin Galaxies.

I was inspired by the film King of Kong: A Fist Full of Quarters to attempt holding a video game world record, or any record really.

Fink

I was looking through the pages of the latest RISD Views magazine and read an interview with Mike Fink, a liberal arts teacher who's taught at RISD for fifty years. I never took a class with Mr. Fink, but I appreciated his insight. Here's an excerpt:

And I'm a believer.. ...in the fact that the less you control your thinking the better off you are, because if you don't have a sense of the absurd -- if you lose your sense of humor and start using bigger words and fancier references, you're going to lose your soul.

Lady On The Bus

I was on the bus to go home from work. I found a seat next to a woman who was talking on her cell phone. I was a little annoyed, because I try to get off the phone as quick as I can if I get a call while on the bus. A few minutes after she was finished with the call, I noticed she was quietly weeping. I don't talk to people on the bus very often, so I felt awkward, but wanted to say something. It was none of my business, but I knew I couldn't sit there and pretend that she wasn't crying.

"You going to be ok?" I asked.

"Yeah *sniff* ... big news."

"Oh, sorry, I wish I had a tissue to give you."

Still crying, she joked "t's ok, it's what sleeves are for."

She couldn't stop crying and I couldn't do much more. I sat quietly and waited. Then I had a strange epiphany. I heard myself say "There is a veil over my eyes."

The crying woman was upsetting, but the interaction itself brought a peace to my heart. I thought about how fearful I am about speaking to people I don't know. I thought about how hard I try to keep to myself on the bus, or in public.

I wondered how many people on that bus were hurting in worse ways without any outward signs. I thought about how lonely I get on the bus.

It's so much better to reach out to people than to not, but my pride prevents me. I'm glad it was different this time.

Imagine a city known for it's humility.

Mt. Si and ROFLCon

Two weeks ago, Connie, Nathan, Jess and I hiked Mt. Si. There was still a bit of snow on top, so we had to slide down some of the trail. The view at the top was amazing, but hard to capture with a camera, so I captured it with one of my socks instead. If you come over to my house, I'll show you.

In other news, Kid Show screened at ROFLCon this past weekend, along with many other shorts. ROFLCon is a convention in Cambridge, MA focused on internet culture.

Wham

A lot of great things happened at work last week.

The Two Little Ninja Dragons

This is a film that my friend David and I made back in 1993. The title card in the beginning reads "The 2 Little Ninja Dragons." We thought we were the real deal. Maybe we were..

For whatever reason, the sound was all messed up with the video camera, so I put in some music by a musician I recently learned about called Birdie Hilltop. He has all his music available on his site. Check it out.

Daniel Johnston with Kid Show

Last Thursday, I saw Daniel Johnston live for the first time. The show was amazing. If you've never heard of Daniel, be sure to rent The Devil and Daniel Johnston. It's a great documentary (and one of my favorite films) of his life and music.

The photos above are Daniel with a DVD of Kid Show and other animations. Whenever I put together a DVD, I hand-draw the cover. I didn't get to hand it to him personally, but my friend Andy Roulston and his brother Jonathan were photographing Daniel that night, so they were able to bring it to him and take these great pictures. Thanks Andy.

AFI Interview for Kid Show

Director Tom DesLongchamp Presents KID SHOW At AFI DALLAS 08 from AFI DALLAS on Vimeo.

I'm excited that they posted this interview, but then again, it's hard to watch yourself be interviewed. I could write a whole paragraph about how stupid I think I look and sound, but I'll just be quiet.

Also, Kid Show won the Jury Prize at the Columbia University National Undergraduate Film Festival. I'm stoked. Thanks CUNUFF.

AFI Dallas 2008

My animation Kid Show screened at AFI Dallas this past week. The festival was unbelievable. I had my first encounters with red carpets, and Lexus shuttles.

At my first screening, they had to screen from DVDs, but my DVD had multiple films on it, and the projectionist accidentally chose the wrong film! I sat there, anticipating my film and suddenly Earl Boone Is Alive popped up on the screen! I yelled "Wrong one!" but they didn't stop it and the audience laughed the whole way through. Don't worry, Kid Show was screened soon after, so in the end, it was a total blessing. Two films at AFI! During the Q & A, the audience actually had more questions about Earl Boone Is Alive, but I love that animation, so I had a great time talking about it. I would have submitted it if it wasn't two years old.

I ran into Lee Kazimir, who I had also seen at Slamdance, but never met. His documentary, More Shoes, was my favorite film that I saw at AFI. Lee and I hung out for my last two days at the festival, along with Carl, Staci and Deidra. It was a great time. We all took photos, danced, and I drew some portraits of some of them. Staci and Deidra were the main actresses in a great film titled Disfigured. I hope to cross paths with all of them again.

Many thanks to Max Bell, who was my host in Dallas. Max showed me around, made me breakfast and we had some great conversations.

Also, Kid Show is screening at the Columbia University Undergraduate Film Festival in NYC this evening. Earl Boone Is Alive won most original film there last year.

John, Please.

Bryan, John, and I made a short film at work.

A Typical Day At Work

There are times when you're at work, that you must do not-work. It doesn't complete a project, but it helps the human soul some how.

I enjoy doing this not-work.

Bear Wooo

Sometimes I get really antsy and have to make something, however ridiculous it might be. For March 24th, 2008, it's an animation called What I Wanna Do.

Other times you just have to climb a big wooden bear, as the photo illustrates. I wasn't really antsy--tipsy is the better word.

Kid Show Poster

Jessica, my amazing wife, helped me make this great poster for Kid Show when it screens at AFI, and any other festival after. She's such a good designer.

I painted today for the first time in a while. It was a good process. I forgot how good it feels to experience the back and forth of frustration and joy when I paint. When I'm done, I'm exhausted, but I feel peaceful, like I've added a new chunk to the pile of clay in my head. I also appreciated the freedom of how a painting can develop. I wove in and out of meaningful forms and abstract whatever. The painting is about sitting outside and feeling great about the mountains and flowers. I sound so flowery. All this talk about feeling good and great and joyful, and painting.

The ghost of accident past has come upon me and I am experiencing strange pain in my knee. It's unusual, because it hurts below my kneecap and on the side--not anywhere at the actual joint. I think I'm going to go to the doctor soon, as long as I can figure out who my doctor is!

Also, I will be seeing one of my favorite musicians next month, Daniel Johnston. Jess and I are really pumped.

Current Events

This photo is of Jessica and I enjoying beverages at the Wexley Quantum Leap Year Grand Opening Party. How nice.

Kid Show is going to screen March 30th and April 1st at AFI Dallas, which is the American Film Institute Film Festival held in Dallas. If you're in or around Dallas, and you're thinking of coming, give me a shout.

I have to go eat food and wine.

Imagining Feelings

Here is an AIM conversion converted to motion picture film script:

TOM
For two seconds I felt how it would
feel to know there was absolute proof
that aliens existed.

JESSICA
(laughing) Why?

TOM
I was looking at a stupid picture of doctors
and nurses surrounding an alien on a stretcher.
It looked so fake and dumb, but then I
imagined if an alien was actually found,
and how it'd be on major news and out in the open,
and how I'd call my mom and be like "How about that."

TOM (Cont'd)
And I actually knew how it'd be to feel
that fear and excitement,
but it's gone now and I can't
imagine it anymore.

Cowboy Salvation

There was an incident, or nearly and incident last night. Here's what I wrote about it in my sketchbook:

I almost fought a man tonight. He was yelling at a woman. He threw his bike at her. She screamed, and I started to run towards them while screaming "Hey!" I told him to stop. He turned and yelled and came towards me. He was very evil and blind. I backed away a little. I thought to myself, "Wow, I'm about to fight this guy... I don't know if I can beat him." I felt the fear of underwater dreams and slow-motion punches. I spoke softly, waving a verbal white flag and he lost interest in me and started after the girl again.

I looked over and noticed that another man had appeared--a cowboy. He wore a black cowboy hat, boots, and had a cigarette in his mouth. He looked badass, like a guy from a movie. The angry man walked by the cowboy and had an exchange similar to mine, except the cowboy didn't cower. At that point, I felt as if we could handle this situation together. The punk seemed to realize this as well and he retreated to his bicycle. He looked as if he was planning to go around the block and find the girl again, so the cowboy hopped in his truck and said he was going to follow the girl and make sure she gets where she needs to go. I called the police.

I was scared, but I knew I had to do something. I wish I had the sense of authority that the cowboy seemed to possess. I guess it doesn't matter though, because I'll obey God and my instincts and He'll give me what I need. I'm just a skinny kid, but I know I could do anything if God willed it. It's either David and Goliath or getting beat down, but either way, through obedience, God is glorified.

Oh Smack

This video was shot on a bus ride from Centralia to Seattle. We'd just finished the holiday party and had 2 hours to hang out, so I yanked out my camera and started improvising a film. I love spontaneous projects like these... and it helps having a captive group of potential actors.

Loving Support

I love my friends. Jess and I got to visit a lot of them back in Providence. It takes a while to make new friends, so it's a relief to see old friends again.

I just got back from Slamdance. The weekend was phenomenal. I saw some great films, made some friends, and screened Kid Show. The audience was the best I'd ever had. Thank you Slamdance boys and girls.

And I got to high-five Randy Quaid.

Glow Kitty

Kid Show was featured on MtvU this week. Here's a short video about it:



At the moment I am sitting on the edge of a bed in Stow, Massachusetts. Here is a photo of my cat from last month: