Goremaster Interviews animator, author and instructor Kevin Hedgpeth:
The Animator’s Point of View from Harryhausen to WETA
By J.M. Jeffrey
Kevin Hedgpeth
Kevin Hedgpeth is a freelance character designer, animator and illustrator; Assistant Academic Director/instructor at The Art Institute of Phoenix and an Animation Consultant for The Puppeteers of America, Inc. He designed the official logo for National Day of Puppetry 2001.
GM: When did you make your decision to enter the field of Animation?
I became interested in the field of animation from watching the work of Ray Harryhausen. As a kid watching those films and knowing that it was puppets being manipulated and brought to life, made me want to learn animation.
But I also had many different things I was considering doing for a living in high school. I even looked into joining NASA's Shuttle program. There were issues with the requirements and even if I had been accepted there was a chance I would not be able to go on a mission. I wasn’t going to just sit on the bench. So I decided to pursue my other love of art and realized that it was just something I had to do.
GM: Who inspired you to start? Who was your influence?
These three men come to mind right away, 1) Ray Harryhausen, 2) Frank Frazetta, and 3) Jack Kirby.
GM: What is your favorite early animation memory?
Ray Harryhausen’s Golden Voyage of Sinbad (1974). I saw it in the drive-in theater when I was about 9 years old. That was a “life-changing” experience; seeing the puppets on the big screen!
GM: Who should we be watching for in animation? or is there particular studio work that interests you?
Anything by Pixar: their films are good for the whole family and always tell great stories. There are a lot of great independent animation film studios out there and Passion Pictures comes to mind for commercial TV work.
GM: What was your toughest job?
When I was working at a studio (which I won't name here) developing animation properties, the creative director/owner came in and told the crew that he had a great idea for a new property. He gave us the one-word title and expected us to develop the entire concept, art work and storyline based on the one word he gave us.
We freaked out, but we did a good job on it.
GM: What was your favorite job?
Working on a clay-animated commercial with Charles Barkley during the Phoenix Suns '92 play-off craze.
GM: How do you envision the future of animation?
- The internet will continue to grow and be a major showcase for what you can do as an artist. There will continue to be people who will look for animation art on the internet as well.
- A good education will help your skill set. Knowing a variety of digital skills such as 3D programs and Photoshop are very important
- Understanding the use of technology as a tool. In the past, the animation creation was left up to the “techie” guys who knew how to use the high-end program software. Today, that knowledge base has evened out. You get computer programs right off the shelf, so the art is left to the true artists again.
- Sculpting maquettes is still valid, and being able to create digital versions in programs like ZBrush allow makeup artists to pre-visualize characters and prosthetic makeup designs.
GM: Are there any new breakthroughs in the industry that excite you?
The advances in production with digital sculpting programs like Pixilogic’s ZBrush and AutoDesk’s Mudbox. Mudbox is a high resolution, brush-based sculpting software developed and used by WETA Workshop.
Disney/Pixar may be getting back into the mix using traditional animation. Disney will have 3D artists being mentored by traditional 2D artists to help with animation technique and study.
GM: What current projects are you working on?
I currently do freelance illustration work and I also teach.
GM: Do you have advice for the beginner or someone just getting started?
Get a good education.
Whether you choose animation, makeup special effects, or illustration you need to have the best drawing abilities possible. You should be doing a lot of observational drawing and taking drawing classes to understand anatomy and movement. I also recommend sculpting classes. Having a good foundation in art skills that you then can apply to whatever discipline you want is the key. You need to understand light, form and color: all those things work together in creating a piece.
GM: What was the best advice you ever received?
I was soundly critiqued in art school and then forced to address those problems. That challenged me to accept the criticism and want to always do better.
GM: What are your top five movies?
- King Kong (1933)
- Citizen Kane (1941)
- Raiders of the Lost Ark (1982)
- Seven Samurai (1954)/ The Magnificent Seven (1960)
- Jason and the Argonauts (1963)
And anything directed by John Ford.
In addition to his other projects, Mr. Hedgpeth has co-written two instructional texts about the field of animation and character design, with artist Stephen Missal:
Exploring Drawing for Animation
AUTHOR PERSPECTIVE:
I've been a professional artist and mostly unprofessional writer for many years, and it was a tremendous thrill and opportunity to be able to put those skills to use in creating a textbook dedicated to subject matter that is of great personal and professional interest to me. I also feel that we (Steve Missal and I), as authors, are documenting important information for animation artists that has not been broached in such a cohesive manner until now: the direct relationship between observational drawing and drawing skills for 2D animation.
As an educator, I find it exciting to be able to share knowledge and expertise with people who are interested in animation and drawing. Writing this book has been a concerted effort to transcribe many of the thoughts and experiences that the authors have had with animation and drawing into a unified source of information that can hopefully provide learners and instructors with information in a subject area that is not always easy to research.
I'm excited about the illustrations that were created and collected for and implemented in our textbook. It was demanding work, but we were aided by a combined portfolio of years of illustration and sketchbook work. I kept my life drawing skills while drawing many new images to be included in our voluminous grimoire.
My favorite part of writing this book was the chance to use the word 'antediluvian' in a sentence.
Behind Exploring Character Design
AUTHOR PERSPECTIVE:
Exploring Character Design was written to fill a huge gulf that existed in instructional literature. Up until now, there have been only small portions of the theory and practice of character design written into 'how to' and/or coffee table 'eye candy' books. Some of the issues concerning design and character have, to our knowledge, never been addressed in print. We combined the subjects of research, conceptualization, style, synthesis, character type, anatomy and locomotion issues, and construction methodology with chapters showing the application of specific information such as prehistoric resources into a logically complete technique that can be practical for student and professional alike. The chapters can be used alone or in combination to aid in the myriad character and creature design problems facing contemporary artists.
JM Jeffrey is the founder of http://www.goremaster.com. Visit us often for resources and information about Makeup Special Effects!