tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-73489994838621786212024-02-02T00:28:54.259-05:00For the Birds (Art n' Stuff)(Various doodles, sketches, drawings & cartoons by Michael J. Ruocco)Michael J. Ruoccohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07192649886075807499noreply@blogger.comBlogger372125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7348999483862178621.post-62879873074733856032013-01-25T15:13:00.002-05:002013-01-25T15:13:35.683-05:00Some rough animation .gifs...Michael J. Ruoccohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07192649886075807499noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7348999483862178621.post-6866264926596695322013-01-22T12:00:00.000-05:002013-01-22T12:00:06.355-05:00Disney Character Challenge #2Here's five more Disney characters from my Tumblr challenge:
Jose Carioca from Saludos Amigos (1942)
Panchito Pistoles from The Three Caballeros (1944)
Sasha from the "Peter and the Wolf" sequence of Make Mine Music (1946)
Brer Fox from Song of the South (1946)
Bongo from Fun and Fancy Free (1947)
Michael J. Ruoccohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07192649886075807499noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7348999483862178621.post-50677566380703086702013-01-16T12:30:00.000-05:002013-01-16T13:36:40.445-05:00Disney Character ChallengeI started a fun little project for myself over on my Tumblr (which I pretty much use instead of this blog now, so if you haven't already, move your butt over there). I'm gonna draw my single favorite character from each Disney animated film in chronological order, staring with Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs all the way up to Wreck-It Ralph. Why? Because I can, I will and I'm bored.
As you can Michael J. Ruoccohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07192649886075807499noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7348999483862178621.post-3659914925284555972012-12-21T05:20:00.001-05:002012-12-21T05:21:13.311-05:00The Life and Death of a Novelty Christmas Wreath
I made a little Christmas short/greeting for 2012. A tad dark n' sad... but look at it this way; it'll make your holiday that much more merry!
With voices by myself and:
Apatheria: http://www.youtube.com/user/Apatheria
Josh Palmer: http://www.youtube.com/user/Zeurel
Michael J. Ruoccohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07192649886075807499noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7348999483862178621.post-87559634689703663782012-09-05T16:38:00.000-04:002012-09-09T11:20:16.099-04:00Film Completion is For the BirdsIn other words... I FINALLY FINISHED MY THESIS FILM!
Destiny is For the Birds from Michael J. Ruocco on Vimeo.
Yeah, I know... it's a little late... 1 year, 4 months and 22 days late, to be exact. But hey, who could blame me? A lot has happened in the last year that needed my attention, while poor ol' thesis-y here sat on the back burner, like a half-baked piece of humble pie. I guess Michael J. Ruoccohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07192649886075807499noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7348999483862178621.post-37410189505669254532012-08-31T00:01:00.000-04:002012-08-31T00:01:03.354-04:00Let's Sing a Lullaby with the Brave Cowboy!Apparently it's "Trailer Week" on here, because here's another trailer for something I had a part of:
This is a book trailer for an interactive children's book by Jan Thomas. After NEST was put up and shared all over the web, Jan contacted me and asked if I could help create a trailer for her. And it was a heck lot of fun to do!
The animation was puppeted (with a few hand-drawn bits) in FlashMichael J. Ruoccohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07192649886075807499noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7348999483862178621.post-58962272472296838672012-08-26T01:21:00.000-04:002012-08-26T01:21:13.154-04:00Adventure Babies is COMING!
Here's the sneak peek trailer for something I did a little animation on (Everything in the trailer and about 95% of the final short was animated by Josh Palmer, who is an insanely incredible animator). It's sure to be the beginning of something really fantastic, and I hope we have the chance to make more of 'em!
I'll post more about it when Episode #1 comes out, which should be really soon!Michael J. Ruoccohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07192649886075807499noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7348999483862178621.post-5632893314800396062012-07-11T20:13:00.001-04:002012-07-11T20:17:37.595-04:00Teeny Tiny TigerLike many appreciative and supportive (albeit naggy) parents/guardians of someone who dabbles in the visual arts, I have been pressured to nearly wit's end about writing a children's book since I barely picked up a pencil. It's not that I don't WANT to make a children's book, it's just that having somebody constantly telling you that you should because it would A) be cute, B) make a lot of money,Michael J. Ruoccohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07192649886075807499noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7348999483862178621.post-31357360131832319392012-06-27T18:13:00.002-04:002012-06-27T18:13:58.491-04:00NESTHey Blogger... long time no see.
Here's a REALLY short film I just finished, NEST.
Of course, birds... 'cause apparently according to some people, that's all I draw.Michael J. Ruoccohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07192649886075807499noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7348999483862178621.post-85505917600918103132012-05-10T21:54:00.003-04:002012-05-11T01:13:21.240-04:00Interview with Giorgio Renna
Like my friend Shelley Low (who I interviewed last September), I met Giorgio during my freshman year at SVA in 2007. Over the following four years, I got to know Giorgio and see his work progress and grow exponentially, culminating to his 2010 thesis film, Short Winded (a short excerpt appears below). His film was a highlight of that year's animation screening for me. Great animation, Michael J. Ruoccohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07192649886075807499noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7348999483862178621.post-8292609443653999022011-10-04T07:23:00.012-04:002011-10-04T08:00:52.397-04:00Oh Yeah, I started a Webcomic...and Work TooI started my webcomic a few weeks ago. "Why didn't I post about it here sooner?", you ask? I wanted to leave my friend Shelley's interview up on the front page for as long as possible so people could see it. Anyway, I started posting it a few weeks back, and it's been a lot of fun! Shannon's doing the coloring and it's looking better than I expected it would! I'm learning something new with each Michael J. Ruoccohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07192649886075807499noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7348999483862178621.post-44861524654275207292011-09-17T10:22:00.008-04:002011-09-17T12:12:33.272-04:00Interview with Shelley LowWhen I met Shelley Low at SVA as a freshman in 2007, she was already a junior. At the time, she was working diligently on a scene for a class project in Howard Beckerman's third year class, of a horse trotting in a circle. There was so much involved in that one scene; perspective, believable horse locomotion and solidity of the drawings, and of course I was pretty blown away by it all. Over time,Michael J. Ruoccohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07192649886075807499noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7348999483862178621.post-75399366830811467062011-08-29T06:47:00.008-04:002011-09-02T23:55:43.334-04:00Guest Strip Time!A while back, Ricky Garduno over at Dumm Comics asked if I wanted to do a guest strip for his comic, 1930's Nightmare Theater. Because I was on vacation, I didn't get around to it until only a week or so ago. Nonetheless, it was a lot of fun and it gave me good practice for my own strip (the site will hopefully be up and running very very soon.) Click on the horrifically painful yet insightful Michael J. Ruoccohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07192649886075807499noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7348999483862178621.post-11353398980750692492011-08-10T12:00:00.001-04:002011-08-10T12:00:04.211-04:00Digital DoodlesFiddling with Manga Studio...
Michael J. Ruoccohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07192649886075807499noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7348999483862178621.post-32620083227092079562011-08-03T13:05:00.008-04:002011-08-03T13:37:01.725-04:00Manga Studio 4 is AWESOME (also Shannon's been here)My girlfriend Shannon and I have been spending the last month or so together. We've had a really great time; taking drives, going out to eat, even spending a week in Disney World! It's been a blast!During that time, we've also been drawing together. We've done a few jam comics and a couple little doodles back and forth. The other day, she asked me to draw a picture of my dodo, Randy, that she canMichael J. Ruoccohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07192649886075807499noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7348999483862178621.post-8171411457230071252011-07-21T19:15:00.006-04:002011-07-21T19:41:26.466-04:00More Yearbook Scans!Here's the rest of my Yearbook:17) Nigel Clark18) Berdian Torres, Daryn Wolfson and Robert Hom19) Kaukab Basheer20) Jimmy Harrigan21) Mike Zecca (3rd Year)22) Mark Minnig (our floor manager/superhero) and Jillann Hertel (our animation advisor/super-heroine)23) Eric Eiser (professor)24) Brody Klotzman and Alyssa Alecci25) Calin Fernandez26) Greg Yagolnitzer27) Jes Sang Lee and John Lee28) Justin Michael J. Ruoccohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07192649886075807499noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7348999483862178621.post-11701341923734212092011-07-02T18:25:00.003-04:002011-07-02T20:36:57.577-04:00My "Yearbook"While at SVA, a lot of us were disappointed with the yearbooks that were given out to seniors over the past few years. They were very artsy looking, with unique layouts and over-the-top patterns, but they were always a jumbled, unorganized mess of images and fonts. And you'd think an art school yearbook would have places to DRAW in them, right? Nope. Packed to the covers. I guess it's because theMichael J. Ruoccohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07192649886075807499noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7348999483862178621.post-62843833881073681372011-06-07T20:08:00.004-04:002011-06-07T20:22:12.438-04:00What's in store for me this summer...Well, besides that....I just need to clean up and color those last couple of shots and it'll be all over. I want to start sending the film out to festivals and see if it has the legs for it. Sadly, I've been pretty preoccupied with stuff at home, so I haven't really had the time to put any more work into it. I just gotta bite the big bazooka and get it out of the way so I can move on to some of Michael J. Ruoccohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07192649886075807499noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7348999483862178621.post-56351958678736186162011-05-11T17:56:00.004-04:002011-05-13T19:28:08.940-04:00SVA Aftermath, or "What have I learned from all this?"Yesterday, I received my diploma and was pronounced a college graduate with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree, along with the nearly 50 fellow animators who I lived and worked alongside for the past four years. And after packing up my dorm room and leaving the city one last time, I reflected on what I've been through here. Sure, there were plenty of bumps in the road and politics to deal with, but Michael J. Ruoccohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07192649886075807499noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7348999483862178621.post-26827514438614988422011-05-06T20:06:00.005-04:002012-09-05T12:58:41.326-04:00Storyboard to Film Comparison
I made a side-by-side comparison chart for my film. The images on the left are panels from my preliminary storyboard from last July, and the images on the right are from the finished film, 10 months later.
These few examples are special because they pretty much stayed the same from my first pass (albeit a few minor changes here and there). Not every shot in the film was copied verbatim fromMichael J. Ruoccohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07192649886075807499noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7348999483862178621.post-53867918895789503542011-05-03T15:28:00.007-04:002012-09-05T12:59:02.250-04:00CONTACT!
Here's a few selected images from my film.
I'll eventually post it up online, but I'm going to try to submit to a few festivals to see if it has the legs for it.
Or wings.
God, I hate bird puns.
Michael J. Ruoccohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07192649886075807499noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7348999483862178621.post-71116196326455629032011-04-29T23:05:00.008-04:002012-09-05T12:58:06.820-04:00Thesis Backgrounds
Hey, my thesis is done. Now I can sleep!
Here's all the backgrounds from my SVA thesis film! While I drew all of them, my girlfriend Shannon did all the color, so most of the credit should go to her for making it look so pretty and stuff.
Michael J. Ruoccohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07192649886075807499noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7348999483862178621.post-36697905934762844342011-04-08T00:46:00.002-04:002011-04-08T00:51:36.394-04:00More Bored in Class SketchesI also tried to draw Zach's Voodoo Croc character. He's really hard to draw right. Michael J. Ruoccohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07192649886075807499noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7348999483862178621.post-62622178516015574402011-04-03T00:14:00.001-04:002011-04-03T00:15:47.584-04:00The Angry CommuterThere's one on every train.Michael J. Ruoccohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07192649886075807499noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7348999483862178621.post-70877193766854254342011-03-21T11:05:00.004-04:002012-09-05T12:59:28.477-04:00Another Preview (and it's more than just one second this time)
Here's another little sneak peek at my short. It's Shot 17 (out of about 65) all roughed out and ready for cleanup.
It's a dialogue shot. One of many. The dialogue shots are usually the ones I hold off on, but nonetheless, this was one I really was looking forward to doing because of how juicy the dialogue was. Maybe I went a bit over the top with the physical acting, but I enjoyed doing Michael J. Ruoccohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07192649886075807499noreply@blogger.com2