₦airaland Forum

Seun:
DSTV already repackages foreign cartoons. So if this is your dream, it's nothing special. Many Nigerian TV stations already broadcast foreign cartoons during the afternoons on weekdays and Saturday mornings. A dedicated cartoon channel will also have to show cartoons when students are at school or during the evenings when adults would have displaced the children in order to watch their favorite soap operas or evening news. So a dedicated cartoon channel doesn't sound viable at all. It only makes sense if you own a large library of cartoons already.

Your argument is WEAK, and frankly disappointing, especially coming from a supposedly smart chap like yourself. You make it sound as though other THRIVING cartoon channels/stations aren't/weren't in existence before and AFTER the advent of CN, e.g. Nickelodeon, the Disney Channel, e.t.c. You'll NEVER find CN showing Disney, Fox, or Nickoledeon cartoons [like 'the Proud Family', 'American Dragon: Jake Long', 'Sponge Bob', 'Rugrats', 'Wild Thornberrys', 'Hey Arnold', 'King of the Hill', 'Kim Possible', 'Lilo and Stitch', e.t.c]. They only show in-house produced toons or those they've bought broadcast rights to, a la some anime and old Warner Bros and Hanna-Barbera cartoons among others. Same way Disney has exclusive rights to broadcast, sell and distribute the ace Japanese Studio Ghibli's anime. Your argument's just like saying, "well, naija doesn't need any more t.v stations as they all pretty much cater to the same audience", or "africa doesn't need an mtv because we have other stations that already serve the purpose it intends to serve". What if I tell you that your website is purposeless simply because there are many other naija sites online that offer similar services? Or would you say that others with the intention of owning/running a web-board similar to yours should shelve their ideas simply because your site is doing so well? Don't be myopic bro, you smart pass all this your yarns, abeg -- atleast I'd like to believe that you are.

Kobojunkie:
Nope@Seun,


It is possible to NOT BE SKILLED In the ART OF Animation and still own a CArtoon network. Ask Ted Warner or even Simon Cowell who does not know much about the music industry or even how to sing but produces and makes big bucks for Sony.


KoboJunkie

KPOM! Besides, it doesn't necessarily have to be exclusively nigerian in content; animation shorts and features can be sourced from other countries within and outside africa. Or it could even be an african/nigerian version of/stake in the Turner Cartoon Network Franshise [there's Cartoon Network EUROPE, CArtoon Network FRANCE, Cartoon Network UK, Cartoon Network POLAND, Cartoon Network ASIA, e.t.c], sorta like how Africa finally got it's own MTV. This can go a long way in serving as an outlet for and encouraging indigenous and locally produced animation.

Anyway, I'm not shocked nor perturbed by the naysayers'/cynics' responses -- most great achievements had their cynics and critics -- moreso considering naijas' penchant for thinking within the box and ever failing to see the POSSIBILITIES in the seemingly IMPOSSIBLE. Our folks will look for a million-and-one reasons why foreign successes can't be duplicated or work within naija, UNTIL some foreigner from without come open their eyes. Ignorance, as they say, is bliss.

Cartoon Network Shines

Cartoon Network the fastest growing network at Turner Broadcasting

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Cartoon Network, the cable TV home of many anime series such as Case Closed, Wolf's Rain and Inu-Yasha, is the fastest growing network in Turner Broadcasting's impressive line-up of networks that includes CNN, TBS and TNT. In fact, investors and press recently learned that Cartoon Network is more profitable than CNN. In 2003 Cartoon Network turned $650 million in revenue, 17% of the the entire Turner Broadcasting revenue, compared to $535 million (14%) in revenue for CNN and the rest of Turner Broadcastings news operations.

Cartoon Network's financial success is being attributed to increased ad revenue thanks to its ever increasing adult audience, and low operating costs. Adult Swim has consistently ranked #1 in its time period (11 pm - 2 am) on basic cable with adults 18-34, against competition from late night talk shows like NBC's Tonight Show with Jay Leno and the CBS Late Show with David Letterman.

In early July Cartoon Network reported impressive growth statistics over last year for Adult Swim in key adult demographics such as 23% in adults 18-34, 47% in adults 18-24 and 76% in women 18-24.

Culled from: http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2004-08-02/cartoon-network-shines

Cartoon Network More Profitable than CNN
$241 Million in Cash Flow

July 30, 2004


Variety reports that Turner Broadcasting has revealed that Cartoon Network had cash flow of $241 million last year on $650 million in revenues, making it more profitable than the CNN group.  It accounts for 17% of Turner's revenues, vs. 14% for news. 

Cartoon Network has a great audience of 12-24 year old males, drawn especially to Adult Swim programming. 

Turner also revealed some of the reasons for Cartoon Network's profitability, which go beyond the prices advertisers are willing to pay for CN's attractive audience.  They include licensing of its characters through Warner Bros. consumer products division and the equity stakes of 2-4% that CN takes in ancillary revenues of shows it purchases from outside suppliers. 

CN also keeps its costs low by producing its own programming, drawing from its huge animation library, and making good deals for the outside programming it runs. 

Future plans include adding ads to spin-off network Boomerang and putting cartoon episodes on chips that can be viewed on Game Boys.   

Cartoon Network's influence on retailers goes far beyond the licensed products based on its own shows -- it's also a huge venue for popularizing anime, which drives sales of DVDs, manga, and licensed merchandise.   


Culled from http://www.icv2.com/articles/news/5412.html

To add to Tokorie's piece about cartoon-watching adults, peep this. Successful animated cartoons like "King of the Hill", "Family Guy", and "The Simpsons" aren't for 'kids'. They're adult-oriented [and I'm not talking Hentai here o ] cartoons that have a primarily adult fan-base; just imagine Papa-Ajasco, PaJimoh, Boy Alinco as  2d or 3d animated cartoons, or those popular newspaper cartoons many of us are used to [you can't tell me such are 'kiddies' stuff'], ehn hen, that's what I'm talking about.

Seun:
Business-wise it's a questionable step because most cartoon lovers (kids) don't have any buying power.

Errh, I don't know of anywhere in the world where 'kids' have any 'buying power', BUT their PARENTS DO! No be the same kids the world-over dey persuade their parents to buy them the latest toys on the shelves and the latest rice krispies? ADVERTISMENTS WILL GENERATE THE NEEDED REVENUE, simple as a.b.c. With good storytellers, artists and animation know-how, it can be done. Make no mistake about it, naija is fertile ground for such a venture, and with a solid and well-planned strategy, it can work and become very lucrative. Go ask Kellogs [and other cereal companies] and the Toy industry in america how they've been able to consistently make billions of dollars in sales yearly, since the advent of t.v.

In a recent discussion with a naija-based chick about my plans to help foster a vibrant animation industry in naija, she asked the question, "will such an idea work in naija? who will watch the cartoons?". The baby no sabi say guyman don already do him homework well well, my rebuttal floored her sotay she even begin ask how she sef fit come on board.

Seun, some years ago, before the the internet went 'nitro', if you'd intimated people of your vision to own and run a site like this one, you'd have gotten a similar response as the one you gave above, like "oh, people can't afford to browse in naija, naijas don't shop online, who has time to visit a web-board? what purpose will it serve, the site will never be popular, do you know how much competition is out there? blah, blah, blah, " But see what you've been able to accomplish, all because you had a clear VISION of what you wanted, and were able to sell that vision to the rest of the world in a way that they just couldn't resist! The rest, as they say, is HISTORY!  Unless you wan tell me say the success of this website was/is hapzard/by mistake/by luck. Just because something hasn't been tried in naija doesn't mean it can't be done! Just bring together a team of visionaries, and you go know wassup.

Last set,,,

More screenshots,,, ,,

More shots from KB v.1:

Below are some screenshots I took from the preceding anime sequence from "Kill Bill Vol. 1"; I had to later resize the images and paste them together to save space. Enjoy!

Below are youtube clips of the beautifully animated and visually stunning anime sequence from "Kill Bill, Vol. 1".
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AI9bAulzpwE

[flash=425,350]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AI9bAulzpwE[/flash]

qeemus:
my i ask a rather dumb question?please what is a light table

Broman, your question isn't dumb at all as we're all here to learn a thing or two about the 2d genre. Now to answer to your question, a light table (or light desk) is a very simple device -- it's just a box with a clear or translucent white surface with a light inside, that shines through the surface so that any paper overlaid on it is rendered transparent/translucent (the onion-skin effect that Flash simulates). This way you can layer multiple sheets of paper on top of each other, and see your sequences of frames for reference as you're working on drawing or tweaking new frames.

Large studios or other professionals in the animation industry sometimes use highly-specialized light tables with glass surfaces over a special light; the tables can be locked, or set to rotate and pivot in order to help the animator draw with the rotating sweep of his/her full arm. Those tables are rather delicate and highly expensive, but there are much cheaper options for personal use. Any hobby shop or camera store will be able to help you pick out one of their light boxes, which are generally used for viewing slides and transparencies but that can also work well for animation as long as they have a large enough drawing surface.

If you really want to simplify, though, really all you need is a glass surface and a medium-strength light. I've known people to build their own light boxes with a wooden frame and a sheet-glass surface with a lamp inside, or to even just place a desk lamp underneath a glass coffee table. Whatever works for you--just don't ruin your furniture in the effort. Once you've got a light desk set up you'll find yourself animating with ease.

Click on the following link to view different samples of Light-tables/boxes:

http://www.cartoonsupplies.com/index.php/cPath/25?osCsid=8b8100d609bdefc347d6a075960fc43c

and

http://www.cartoonsupplies.com/index.php/cPath/23?osCsid=8b8100d609bdefc347d6a075960fc43c

Twin animators Marilyn and Madilyn Woods; this pic was taken at the Warner Bros. Animation, 1940's or '50s.

Animator Uli Meyer ("Who Framed Roger Rabbit" crew , Disney, London, 1986)

The famous Richard [Dick] Williams, author of "Animator's Survival Kit", and animation director of the Oscar winning "Who Framed Roger Rabbit", in his London studio.

The [late] Great Milt Kahl doing his thing on his light-table.

More Ken Harris, at Warner Bros. Cartoon studio, c. 1940's

[late] Master animator Ken Harris, animating at Richard Williams Studio , London, late 70's.

Floyd E. Norman (born c. 1936) is an African-American animator who worked on the Walt Disney animated features Sleeping Beauty, The Sword in the Stone and The Jungle Book along with various animated short projects at Disney in the late 50's and early 60's. After Walt Disney's death in 1966 Floyd Norman left Disney Studios to co-found the AfroKids animation studio with business partner animator/director Leo Sullivan. Norman and Sullivan worked together on various projects such as the original Hey! Hey! Hey! It's Fat Albert television special which aired in 1969 on NBC. (not to be confused with the later Fat Albert series made by Filmation Associates.) Floyd Norman returned to Disney at one point in the early 1970's to work on the Disney animated feature Robin Hood. More recently he has worked on motion pictures for the Walt Disney Animation Studios and Pixar Animation Studios, having contributed creatively as a story artist on films such as Toy Story 2 and Monsters,Inc. for Pixar and Mulan and The Hunchback of Notre Dame for Walt Disney Animation among others. He continues to work for the Walt Disney Co. as a freelance consultant on various projects.

Floyd Norman has also published several books of cartoons inspired by his lifetime of experiences in the animation industry : 'Faster! Cheaper!' , 'Son of Faster, Cheaper!' , and 'How The Grinch Stole Disney' .

He currently is a columnist for the websites JimHillMedia.com and AfroKids.com.

Famous animator Eric Goldberg, animating The Genie , from Disney's 1992 hit and classic, "Aladdin".

Animator Kathy Zielenski, animating Frollo, from Disney's 1996 hit, Hunchback of Notre Dame.

[late] Iwao Takamoto, a Japanese American animator, television producer, and film director. He was most famous as being a production and character designer for Hanna-Barbera Productions shows such as Scooby-Doo.

More Ward Kimball.

[Late] Ward Kimball, animator from the 'Golden era'. Kimball created several classic Disney characters including the Crows in "Dumbo"; Tweedledum and Tweedledee, the Mad Hatter and the Cheshire Cat from "Alice in Wonderland"; the Mice and Lucifer the Cat from "Cinderella"; and Jiminy Cricket from "Pinocchio". He also animated the famous "Three Caballeros" musical number from the Disney film of the same name.

In the mid-1950s, Kimball became a director and was responsible for the Academy Award-winning short "Toot, Whistle, Plunk and Boom," and three Disney television shows about outer space that put the United States into the space program. He received an Academy Award for the short animated cartoon "It's Tough to be a Bird", 1969.

James Baxter, animated scenes in features like the Hunchback of Notre Dame, Who Framed Roger Rabbit, Road to Eldorado, Shrek, e.t.c,

Following are pictures of famous 2d animators at work on their light-tables:

The first here is Glen Keane, disney animator of such classics like Aladdin, Tarzan, Beauty and The Beast, Pocahontas, e.t.c,

wham:
Hey Lafem,

I'll like u to give me a break down of how u do your own animation from Storyboard to pc. I just started using an 8x6" Graphics Tablet, so drawing into flash is easier for me. I had been waiting to get one for a while. But now that I've goten it, I see how difficult it is to determine/imagine and draw the  following frame of a character after the first. Its not about just drawing him, but getting the right amouth of offset from the previous that would produce fluid motion after making about 5 secs of the scene. I'm I making some sence?

I'd like u to tell us how u do urs. Do u draw and scan? Do u do  some work with a Graphics pen, or do u do your entire work by drawing and scanning. Which SW do u use mainly for the animation Flash? Flipbook? Use 'Candid Politriks' as your example. (I'm even beggining to think, Maybe it would have been easiers for me if I were a traditional Animator using flip pads, Light Tables, celluloid, camera and lighting). 

Now I see why 2D animation needs a good team of Directors, storyboarders, animators, Asst. Animators, Clean-up artists etc. Even digital/desktop animation.

Heres my email: whamatix@yahoo.com. I would like to have u as a contact

'Sup my guy? To be honest with you I have no experience with Graphic tablets. I remember though that right before I started animating I did a thorough research on the strenghts of Graphic tablets over traditional pen & paper for animation, and based on my findings I settled for pencil & paper. I've heard some graphic tablet users rave about its abilities and strenghts, though. However, I believe that most non-flash style 2d/classic/traditional animation is still done by pencil & paper which are then cleaned-up and scanned into the computer. Personally, I draw [both roughs and cleaned-up frames/images] by hand, with a pencil on white paper, on a light-table, I then scan the drawings into my computer and use Flipbook studio to set the timing, compositing, and for digital painting, which can then converted to/exported as an .avi file. Post-production/Editing of sound and images are done in either Windows MovieMaker, Adobe Premiere, After-effects, Adobe Illustrator [for title cards]. For sound editing I use the open-source software [similar to Sounforge] Audacity. That, I believe is still the popular, though time-consuming, way of making 2d animation [the non-vector/non-flash style type that is].

grafikdon:
Ajayi1. . . I think you kind of missed the point. This thread is not about Lafem and his work, it's a sort of 2D animation portal, you dig? Of course he can post his work but that is not the main objective of the thread.

Wow! Graphikdon, it's like you READ MY MIND, coz you said exactly what I thot as soon as I read his post; I even had my reply ready offline long before you posted yours. Thanx, mate!

ajayi1:
@ Lafem. we can see everything you are droping here. But what i need from you is to show us your own job.

The purpose of this thread isn't to promote MYSELF or my abilities as an animator -- I can easily do that by opening a self-promotional thread -- but rather the 2D genre as a whole. I've opened threads in the past, in this same section of the forum, to showcase crude pencil tests of some of MY animation, e.g.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oy-sGcVdtDA


As I mentioned in a related thread, I currently have two almost completed animation shorts on my laptop [I've started digitally painting one of 'em], each 2 mins. in length. Took me two weeks to time-out the dialogue, and almost a month to animate each short -- with each gulping about 1,500 individual drawings/frames, all on ONES! One's titled 'Candid Politriks' -- about a nigerian politician, addressing an audience of supporters and candidly intimating them of his intention to loot the treasury upon getting elected into office. It's done in FULL ANIMATION style [at a high frame rate of 24 frames per second]; it came out so smooth that even I was wowed! I'm yet to come up with a satisfactory title for the second one, but it's about two friends, Jamiu and Ike, two police officers at an illegal police checkpoint rationalizing and justifying why they collect bribe from motorists. I expect to upload Candid Politriks on youtube in about a month or so.