Is it possible that the look and feel of current animation feature films has hit a wall? Is creativity still alive in feature film animation?
Consider the current response to the Sony Pictures block-buster, Oscar nominated “Spider-Man Into The Spider-Verse” in this article from Animation World Network entitled “Art Triumphs Over Everything. Animation geeks and mainstream film-goers alike are finding a virtual treasure trove of inspiration and visual interest in Spider-Verse’s artful direction by the art direction team of Patrick O’Keefe (Animation Portfolio Workshop grad) and Dean Gordon. Their combined approach inspired the Spider-Verse production team and resulted in a film with fresh exciting approaches to an old classic. Comic art, grafitti and urban art appear to be woven into this film in a different way than current animated features, a welcomed diversion from the same-old.
Comic art is made up of drawings (yes, obvious but true). In Spider-Verse, could we be witnessing the continued resurgence of drawing as a central component of animated feature-films? If so, then all the more reason to get really good at drawing if you feel you have something to contribute. Mediocrity is clearly not the goal here. Aim high – really high. APW students just finishing up their animation portfolio preparations for 2019 are setting their sights on further training in animation supported by their hard-won foundation of drawing skills.
“APW was a major catalyst in forming my passion and skills as a young artist. It helped me to build a strong foundation that went far beyond getting into the college of my choosing and sustains my work ethic today as a professional concept artist and art director in the entertainment industry.”
Patrick O’Keefe
