My Creative Process | Jill Halliday

Artists and Creatives are often asked about their "process". Some people are curious to hear how a work of art moves from blank canvas to finished piece or a movie from Concept to Big or Small Screen. There are thousands, perhaps millions, NO! KaGILLions of articles, musings, books and blogs on the subject.

We are the Fast, the Slow, the Up At Dawn Types. The Vampires, those who work drunk, high, sober, some are mean, or naked...

wait. What??!

During my career in Animation, I suppose my process looked something like this;

- do what I was hired to do
- do it well|
- deliver on time
Sound familiar? Mechanic? Vet Tech? Barber? ALL JOBS?
I went to school, learned a skill/trade, and was for hire.

Soon after my Graduation from Sheridan College, I landed my first job. (Crawley Films in Ottawa. It was on the highly limited T.V. series, “THE RACCOONS) This is where I cut my teeth. I was young, green, ......and I was bad, ....and, I was bad for a really long time, and, many of the Bigger Talents in the room reminded me of this every time I put pencil to paper. That, you see, was their right, even the Talents who were not my boss.

Process. It was part of a much bigger picture.

When I hear people say "drawing is fun!", I have absolutely no effing idea what they are talking about because drawing is not fun, it is MIND BENDINGLY DIFFICULT to do properly, or with any meaning. (Or for a living.) Okay. For example, Babar, King of the Elephants, who, you might think, looks simple enough to draw, was not, and here is why. Should one of his eyes be even one teeny tiny pencil tip width wider apart than "on model", he no longer looks like everyone's Beloved Babar, KING of the ELEPHANTS. No! He looks like "Babar's unpopular cousin", or "Babar's not as good looking brother", and nobody wants to tune in to a Christmas special about some random King of Elephants who ISN'T BABAR! Oh, and also, I don’t get rehired!

BABAR AND FATHER CHRISTMAS was a made for T.V., limited animation, Christmas special released on December 15th, 1986. Running time: 24min

So, as animating was the only thing I had ever wanted to do, I kept showing up. Revising every drawing as per their direction. Again. And again. Yup. And again.

I suppose that's part of a process.

Hey kids, let's do the math! Redoing scenes, which are several seconds of acting, with, let's say, two characters. (or...seven dragons doing a Conga line around a flaming/smoking campfire....)@ Twenty four drawings per SECOND of film...over my first few crappy years, every day?

ya.

that's kagillions of drawings, people.

I KNOW,RIGHT?!!!!!

HOW LUCKY WAS I ?!!!

I got to work in my calling.

(:

Huh. Maybe my process in my Animation career looked more like this;

- be crappy for ages

- be reminded all the livelong day by Asshats and Egotists that I probably didn’t belong in The Industry

- LOVE the work with a full and passionate heart and show up to work.

- answer the phone when Disney calls

(:

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My Creative Process | Jill Halliday