Gentleman Scholar

Upgraded from a quickie, we felt that Santa Monica based design studio, Gentleman Scholar, needed a closer look and a proper introduction.

Scholar is a collaboration between veteran Executive Producer, Rob Sanborn and Director/ Designer Duo, William Campbell and Will Johnson. Campbell and Johnson, have known each other since their days at the Savannah College of Art and Design. They first collaborated professionally at Superfad, where they met and worked with Sanborn.

Their work showcases a wide range of design from live action to fully animated CG. Their newest include a live action Chevron campaign,  an in-house short film called “Ike’s Kream,” and a haunting collaboration with director Sandro Miller and John Malkovich with “Butterflies.” Keep these guys on your radar!

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SALESMEN BUCK DROPS AND THE CROWD GOES WILD

Two new shorts, “Meet Buck” and “Salesmen Pete,” have emerged from France by a group of extremely talented filmmakers coupled together on the same site.

“Meet Buck,” directed by Denis Bouyer, Yann De Preval, Vincent E Sousa, Laurent Monneron, takes us on an exquisitely designed and perfectly paced piece of storytelling featuring an antler-laden hero in search of some quality time with his girlfriend.  Just when you thought things were cool, enter: her dad, the hunter—and the real fun begins.

“Salesmen Pete” directed by Marc Bouyer, Max Loubaresse, Anthony Vivien, takes us on an equally intense ride as we follow a government enhanced super-agent out to stop thieving bad guys who now control an extraordinary magic stone. This ride is chocked full of fun characters, fast-paced action and spot-on design and animation. You gotta love it.

Be sure to check the Salesmen Buck site, under gallery, to find some cool process work on “Meet Buck,” and also check out this entire blog dedicated to Salesmen Pete and its process.

Credits

Superfad : Preguntas Hermosas

Superfad Seattle has just released a new short film called Preguntas Hermosas, a beautiful tale of a time shared between two people told through a combination of “Poema X” by Pablo Neruda and “Under the Harvest Moon” by Carl Sandburg. As explained by Director David Viau, “The story unfolds in three parts; a fond remembrance, loss, and then finally acceptance.”

With cinematic transitions and methodical pacing, Preguntas Hermosas casts dark characters in epic worlds for its arresting narrative. The film’s narrator, Gabriel Puerto, complements the score and adds depth to the amazing visual journey. The camera work shows great restraint, leaning more toward a practical approach to cinematography in the CG environment.

David was kind enough to share some of his thoughts and a bit of the process, after the jump:

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Jeremy Abel : The Conductor

Jeremy Abel, currently a senior at R.I.T, creates this fun piece of stop motion about a robot conductor and his analog ensemble.

The solid editorial, subtle in camera lighting and awesome production design, manage not to overwhelm the narrative, as we follow the robot and his interesting interactions with bringing his friends to life.  Also a noteworthy dynamic in sound composing here that helps bring in some extra energy at the key moments.

Be sure to check out the process/breakdown on Jeremy’s site.

WeWereMonkeys : Coheed and Cambria: The Broken

WeWereMonkeys were so struck by the energy of the new Coheed and Cambria song, “The Broken,” that it inspired them to create an epic sci-fi saga of vast proportions.

Death-match between cyborg titans? Check. Spaceships and mechanical beasts fighting to fulfill an ancient prophecy? Got it.

But the best part of all, you ask? They built all of this from remote-controlled vehicles, kitchen utensils, electrical components, and 50 scale-model kits.  From these parts, they managed to custom-create a total of 15 models over two days, followed by an airbrushing and weathering technique, giving the models the battle-scarred look you see in the final piece. They then shot stills and video of the models in their green screen studio, before assembling the post-apocalyptic world in Photoshop and After Effects.

In a word, awesome! It’s always inspiring to see a tactile approach when so many before have chosen the CG path. For the full wow factor, be sure to look at these amazing process stills after the jump, ranging from the creation of the models to the composting and finishing of the final.

Process images and credits…