After first visiting our three Stateside artists in April – James Frye, JA Tan and Angela Weddle – Dom and Jeremy have been back for a second visit to again work with them and to see the artwork that they have been preparing for our films on Diagnosis, Neurodiversity and Art.  The trip was a great success with Dom and Jeremy thoroughly enjoying the time they were able to spend with the artists.

A Glimpse into Angela’s sketchbook.

AN UPDATE ON OUR FILMS

The three short films that we have been working on during 2018 capturing the voices of autistic adults, and the art and animation of autistic artists, are nearing completion.  Complemented by the beautiful cello compositions and playing of Sarah Moody we now are approaching the final cuts.  This is an exciting time!  Now into 2019 we shall be making the last minute changes ready to roll the films out at various locations during the Spring. Watch this space for an update on our progress and the locations where the films will be screened!

Today is Tuesday. We met once more outside the Tan’s place at 8:50 and walked to the studio. JA has a Wacom tablet which his dad bought for him. He hasn’t used it before, but we set it up on his laptop along with the open source animation software ‘pencil 2d’. He did just fine, but working on the computer is not his favourite so we returned to the land of paper and crayon. I just wanted to make sure he had the software installed and a handle on how to use it should he decide to give it a go when I’m not there.

We looked through JA’s sketch book and he picked a drawing he would like to animate. A penguin on a rocky beach. He looked at a video on his camera as reference and animated the penguin flap and look up. Once he was happy with the penguin animation he drew a rocky background and traced it on to each frame. He then coloured each picture and after that photographed them with the animation app. we worked without a break for about 3 and a half hours. Jeanne told me the next day that usually they’ll do about 2 hours with a half hour break in the middle so this is a pretty prolonged and intense period of concentration. JA got a headache and we called it a day and went for lunch. on the way he introduced me to the person who makes paint in the paint shop. They make incredible acrylics.

On Monday we met at 8:50 outside the Tan’s apartment and I walked with JA to his studio. His mentor Jeanne (who is also a tenant of the studios) met us there. I was going to start with a simple flick book made with reference cards and a foldover clip but on the advice of Jeanne I busted out the peg bar and a ream of paper I had pre punched. JA finds it easier to work on a larger scale. I did a quick, simple ball bounce. First day of animation school stuff. Having seen what I did, JA drew his own ball bounce. We recorded it it on His iPad using the animation app I’d installed the day before. Next a little colour was added with pencil crayons.

Bouyed by this success I demonstrated simple morphing in a flip book. Circle to square to triangle. Again, JA made his own version after seeing how I’d done it. Finally in this session

I drew a figure of 8 track on a piece of punched paper and demonstrated how it could be used as a guide to animate a coloured blob whizzing about. Once again, after a practical demonstration JA took to it like a duck to water and a colour changing scribble was soon zooming about the iPad’s screen. JA asked that I help him carry his stuff back home. On the way he introduced me to some of the people he knows on Granville island. He requested that we meet agin the same time tomorrow.

I arrived in Vancouver late on a Friday night in the pouring rain. JA’s parents had arranged for us all to meet on Saturday afternoon, just so JA would know who i am and we’d not be going in cold on Monday morning. Unfortunately JA had plans already. His parents drove me around the city and Stanley park and showed me the sights which was lovely. We spoke a little about the project and arranged to meet mid morning on Sunday, JA too this time.
I met up with the Tan’s outside their apartment and we walked down to Granville island where JA’s studio is located. It is a lovely room with a big window in a complex of artist’s studios. On the walls hang a dozen or so recent works and by the entrance is a large rack with heaps of painted canvases. JA tells me about the group of seven, a Canadian collective of landscape painters from 1920 – 1933, who he is currently studying. He also shows me his sketch books from his recent cruise around South America. Seals, Llamas and penguins abound! Over lunch we installed an animation app on his iPad