This was a video I worked on back in July and wasn't sure what had come of it, but recently found this video with some behind-the-scenes. Here are some snippets from the scout and shoot day:
Not only was it an amazing chance to work with rocker and international star Yoshiki, but I also got to meet comics legend and personal hero of mine, Stan Lee! He had a cameo playing the part of the Devil in the video.
He recently attached his name to a fun event which I've been attending, now dubbed "Stan Lee's Comikaze Expo" in L.A. As an exhibitor in Artist Alley last year, I didn't get too many chances to see his talks or appearances, but did enjoy a terrific time there.
Afterwards, I sent him some of my comics (a medium I came to appreciate through many of his Marvel creations) and was astonished to receive a letter in return. Truly, I was humbled and honored that "The Man" would personally take the time to connect with a fan.
Most young folks with a bassdrum heartbeat know deadmau5-- This was a rare opportunity to do a music video for the electronic music sensation.
Featuring Gerard Way of "My Chemical Romance" (though comicbook fans might doubly appreciate him for "Umbrella Academy"), this high-octane music video was a treat to see come to life.
Drawing out a Thunderdome-like structure with thousands of fans and a giant robot battle is much easier to sketch out than actually build and make it happen. Great to see all these moving parts come together to smashing effect. A monumental task with great direction provided by directors Paul Boyd and Jeff Ranasinghe.
[EDIT: Found this neat behind-the-scenes clip which has a glimpse of the boards at 2:58~]
Director Nima Nourizadeh (who previous did a stellar Adidas/ Star Wars Cantina ad) put together this commercial featuring all manner of crazy party shenanigans. Scouting locations and casting took us to many a picturesque and lavish places in the LA area. These frames were kept pretty loose in keeping with the party vibe (but also to accommodate the quantity/timeframe and drawing while in the location scouting van ;)
Updates have been delayed since starting a very exciting set of projects for Disney's Imagineering's (WDI) Blue Sky department. They are however NDA bound projects, so won't be posted publicly. It's safe to say that it's been a dream to join this talented team of creative folks even for these limited projects.
Now back to our regularly scheduled commercial and music video storyboards...
New projects I still have to post/ awaiting release:
•Deadmau5 music video •Usher music video (feat. Rick Ross)
•KFC commercial (Dir. Jeremy Konner) •American Greetings birthday e-card •Bud Light commercial •Drunk History series
Talk about rockin gigs-- Director Jeremy Konner had me jump in on this celeb filled music video featuring none other than Tenacious D through Partizan.
Signed by the D ! (+Kyle drew me back a doodle)
This video had a lot of locations and setups to work with and a great cadre of cameos including Val Kilmer, Maria Menunos, Dave Grohl, Josh Groban, Yoshiki, Jimmy Kimmel-- many of whom weren't confirmed yet at the time of boarding. Hence, Val Kilmer looks nothing like my stock "celebrity friend" rendition at Jack's mansion.
Location scouts help quite a bit for reference, scale, and blocking in shots--
interspersed here with storyboard comparison:
Approaching the Pacific Palisades location
A fittingly spooky asylum space for Karl's scene
A funny great detail
Likeness comparison
A dramatic and heroic death scene
A view from the top
Majestic oceanfront views
Kyle's beard was pretty convincing
The recording studio
A trek to the outdoor
training path
Mansion interior hall
Smog city day
Sketches from the set:
One of "Hollywood Jack" in regalia...
...and one signed by Val Kilmer
Our triumphant director
Director: Jeremy Konner Production: Partizan Label: Sony Music Entertainment
This was a promotional ad for Pergo XP laminate flooring-- akin to a previous series where they face off against many floor destroying foes. Director Jeremy Konner and the actual robot makers (whose workspace was quite a mechanical makers' wonderland) gave some great notes and direction for this project.
I had a little more involvement than usual for this production since I was also part of the robot concept design process. Sketching possible models that would be both fun to watch and present a scuffy challenge to the floors was the challenge. I drew out about three dozen concepts that got whittled down to the 6 champion contenders. Here they are:
This was the most fun to see come to life. The terrifying mechanical K9 known as:
The messiest one of the lot:
This one required heels as weapons and I wasn't sure how'd it would work-- until
they broke the mold with:
We knew pretty early on there would need to be a radially spinning one. Thus was born:
The diabolical flame thrower:
My personal favorite line, the Launcher Bot concepts eventually resulted in: