9/8/21 Stoopid Buddies Panel (IN PERSON)
STOOPID BUDDIES PANEL
Introduction by Armando Sepulveda Mendoza
Chris Waters spent the last 20 years as a senior level executive in animation development and production. Currently he serves as Head of Development at Stoopid Buddy Stoodios, which has animated comedies set up at Hulu, Peacock, Comedy Central, Nickelodeon, AMC+ and Adult Swim. Prior to Stoopid Buddy Stoodios, Waters co-founded Oktobor Animation, the New Zealand-based visual effects and animation studio which developed and produced original content for Nickelodeon, DreamWorks Animation and others. Titles included the Emmy-winning series The Penguins of Madagascar, Kung Fu Panda: Legends of Awesomeness, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Robot and Monster.
As Senior Development Coordinator at Stoopid Buddy Stoodios, Mary Thurman is a creative voice on all studio animated projects. Having worked previously at Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s crowd-sourced production company HitRECord as well as Awesomeness TV, Mary brings her love for IP and the kids and family demographic to Stoopid Buddy’s kid’s brand, Lil Buddy, as well as maintaining a core awareness of all YA and adult projects.
Thanks so much to Stoopid Buddy Stoodios for such a fun, energetic presentation! I was excited to see the hilarious works by Stoopid Buddy and learn about what’s currently happening in the industry.
ReplyDeleteI particularly liked the experimental short with two stop-motion characters in real life. I love the contrast in shapes and the unity in textures. The technique of mixing cartoony characters with real life scenes reminds me of shows such as The Muppets. But full-body stop-motion and digital techniques help unifying the world so much better. And digital composition also brings more possibilities for story development. I wish we could see more of this!
It was also good to hear industry professionals share practical tips for story pitches and show development.
Cherry Guo (guomengy@usc.edu)
Shengwei Zhou (szhou894@usc.edu):
ReplyDeleteWhat benefits me most is that I learned that the story was based on the conflict between characters and their dilemmas, not from plot design. In other words, as a writer or storyboard artist, you should firstly create a multi dimensional character and his or her background rather just design the plots in your own preferences. Let the characters drive their plots in terms of different dilemmas instead of being their parents or even gods to control them. I think this would be the most important principle when it comes to storytelling. In this way, the audience would be totally immersed into the world you create since all the characters there are truly alive and vivid.
Secondly, I also learned that it is really essential to keep your storyline as simple as possible, like adjusting the whole story into 2 to 3 sentences. By simplifying the story in this way, creators can not only gradually clarify what theme they most want to express through the characters, but also allow the audience to immediately understand the core motives and dilemmas of the characters, so that they can quickly establish empathy with the characters.
How to simplify the story to a few sentences? What needs to be highlighted? In my opinion, it is useful to include the following two core elements: 1. The dilemma of the character. (What kind of situation the character is involved?) 2. The motivation of the character. (What the character wants to do?) Take The Zootopia for example, the whole complex story about the main character - the rabbit police officer could be simplified into 2 sentences: In a metropolis where only large carnivores are qualified to be excellent policemen, a tinny rabbit is trying so hard to become one of them. In this 2 sentences, I extracted the background of the story and the dilemma of the characters: This is a metropolis with a very complicated social class, and because of the existence of various stereotypes and class privileges, Only large animals and carnivores constitute the majority of the position of police. Meanwhile, I also caught the character’s core motivation: Although she looks weak, she still wants to be a good policeman. Therefore, all the plots in Zootopia are generated between the main character's core motivation and the obstacles that block this motivation based on the character's dilemma and the background. I think this also goes to all the narrative genre films and animations, especially to the Disney ones.
Finally, I also benefited a lot from this lecture on how to create a funny and humorous character. One trick I learned is to create contrast, which can be either visual or narrative. Stoopid Buddy Stoodios is really good at creating contrast to make humorous effects.
In terms of visual media contrast, they placed the exaggerated image of the puppet in the environment of a live-performance to create a kind of drama in Super Bago. This contrast makes the two animated characters extremely funny, and also shows that they are incompatible with the real world, strengthening their loneliness.
As for the narrative contrast, they put the seemingly conflicting or even irrelevant personalities on the same character, creating dramatic effects. Take Modock for example, Modock is cruel and cute at the same time. He treats everyone ruthlessly, at the same time, he also tries to learn how to deal with children in his family life. This contradiction approach can make the character more multi-dimensional, and it can also give the audience more space to interact with the character.
Anna Wang
ReplyDeleteAwang206@usc.edu
Stoopid Buddy Stoodios is an animation studio that works with many artists from many different backgrounds to produce content ranging from adult animation, to kids animation, to commercial, to puppet shows, and to short films. As the world start to view animation as a medium instead of a genre, the Stoopid Buddy Stoodios is an exemplary of where the animation industry is headed. I was very intrigued by how they were able to mix mediums together and produce works with textures and experience we have never seen before, (such as “Superbagg”).
The most important thing I learned in this session is that, content creators need to know themselves and their characters very well. Originality and clear visions are what makes people excited. This session with Stoopid Buddy Stoodios excited me with the potential of the future of animation industry.
Pedro Chinchilla
ReplyDelete(pedrochi@usc.edu)
Stoopid Buddies team were great as a group of presenters they started dropping bombs of knowledge right away. Additionally they where super inspiring as they brought real world industry knowledge to the table.
They started off with telling us how much the industry has grown and how animation is buyers are buying shows and using animation as a medium to tell a story. They also talked about industry trends and giving us tips and tricks to succeed in the animation industry.
Additionally they explained current industry trends: New genres , Voracious appetite for animation, Experimental animation in the rise.
I defiantly have taken notice to that as during first lockdown. I noticed the emergence of a lot of experimental animation and a lot of it taking off and growing traction on social media. This in part was voracious appetite for animation people were bored and willing to watch anything new or different. Additionally most live action movies require people to be on site ; with Lockdown, making live action films was nearly impossible. On the other hand, most animation can be done remotely. Thus the rise of animation and the bigger demand in the market , defiantly put a smile on my face. Finding a job the past year was extremely difficult thus this fine group from Stoopid buddies defiantly gave me a spark of inspiration. Im excited for the future and see what road I take with animation.
It was also very nice of the team to show us what they’re working on at Stoopid Buddies. Specifically the new style of live action mixed with stop motion animation was definitely a treat ; it was also pretty hilarious and they described how it was a short used to pitch the show. Which was a great Segway as they began to describe how to create a proper pitch.
As gave us the crash course in creating a proper pitch along with the dos and donts, the also gave us some guidelines; you should be able to be describe your show in one to two sentences. In order to be able to describe your show you basically need to have your characters fully developed along with a backstory and premise or narrative. Something that stuck with me was “Why do you want to tell the story and who is the voice telling it “? It’s a good way to start a project and make sure the story and voice telling the story catches the attention of the show buyer or audience.
It was intrigued when the team discussed the three ways one can create animated show. Which was either Grassroot / Social media , Story board and writer. I defiantly want to start my own projects so I defiantly want to go the grassroots route although who knows what direction I will take. I defiantly still want to create my own work but at the same time working at a vfx or animation studio does sound appealing but the sky is the limit. The Stoopid Buddies team definitely left me feeling inspired with a lot of knowledge to navigate through the industry .
Delaney McCallum (jmccallu@usc.edu)
ReplyDeleteI absolutely loved The Stoopid Buddies team! They had such a fun and welcoming energy. I thought all of the trailers they showed us were really impressive and hilarious. I had no idea so much stop-motion production was happening in the mainstream now, which was really exciting to hear. I loved that they work with such a wide variety of artists and styles. It's really refreshing to hear that you don't have to have the typical Disney animation drawing style to be successful.
I really appreciated their crash course on how to craft a good pitch deck. It was the first time I've heard that flexibility is a good thing in pitches! I always thought I had to follow a strict formula, but it makes so much more sense to play to your individual strengths. Something that really stood out to me was how much they value authenticity in pitches. You have to have a WHY and a passion behind your story, and no amount of drawings or backstory can cover that up. The question of 'why this story?' is a good creative launching point to brainstorm projects I think. I really appreciated them explaining different routes to success: writer, storyboard artist, assistant, etc. It's always nice to hear that there is no one way to achieve success in the industry, but instead you make your different strengths work for you.
Georgina Gonsalves
ReplyDeleteI absolutely loved this panel. I have heard of the company before but it was really eye-opening to really see the things they do and the content they create. The trailers they showed us were amazing and such great concepts. I really can feel their creative energy through watching their work. The information they gave us about learning how to pitch and what to compile for a successful pitch was very valuable. Not many guests bring that information to their visits with us so that really set them apart and it was great they were so helpful with our questions. I really liked the example of Dusty Road, the characters designed really reflect the theme and concept of the show.
I also loved the technology test they showed us where they used real footage and made the characters animated in a real life world, it was truly hilarious and a great concept for an animated show. Great guests!
Thank you so much Stoopid Buddy Stoodios!
It was exciting to hear the Stoopid Buddy panelists share their observations on the expansion of animated content. As an animator who is driven by more experimental narratives and techniques, it was encouraging to know that the animation field is growing. It’s inspiring to feel that the stories I want to tell can have a place in popular media.
ReplyDeleteThe Stoopid Buddy pitch talk was very informative and I picked up a lot of practical advice from that presentation. I appreciated getting a step by step approach to pitching. I was happy to know that studios like Stoopid Buddy want us to put our voice first. I did not realize that a lot of studios want to hear that personal perspective within our pitches.
One of my graduate school goals has been to hone my artistic voice, so Stoopid Buddy's tips and examples on how to do that were helpful. For me the idea of showing myself within my work sounds vague and daunting, but knowing to ask myself questions like “why is this story important to tell,” “why is it that you must tell this story,” and to share personal anecdotes is clarifying. It feels good to know that there are studios like Stoopid Buddy who are looking for non-traditional stories and perspectives, that have not been represented in mainstream media. It made me hopeful that more and more doors will open for new animators and content in the future.
Victoria Cruell (cruell@usc.edu)
It has been an eye-opening experience to hear from Stoopid Buddy Studio this week. I have known a bit about this studio from last year, but seeing their presentation of what they have worked on and listening to them talking about the creating process of each project is truly inspiring and have opened up my eyes. We watched several trailers of their projects, which are all super hilarious and imaginative. Among all the trailers we watched, my personal favorite one is the trailer of MODOK, which is a Marvel stop-motion animation series, not only because it is fun and extremely well made, but also because it shows the potential of stop-motion animation that it starts to get more and more involved in larger productions and begins to catch the sight of mainstream audiences, since this media has mostly been applied in smaller or independent productions. By seeing this, I could truly feel the expansion of need for animation talents in the industry, as more and more different types of animation start to become more mainstream in the life of audiences and gradually become the rival of live action productions.
ReplyDeleteAnother part of their presentation that inspired me a lot is the skills we need in pitching for a new project. Having a good story in mind is not adequate enough to make it into production, knowing the right way to pitch, such as preparing the visual arts for the beginning and the end of the show you envisioned and other supplementing designs such as characters and environments will help people better build up the world you envisioned in mind. A good storytelling and in-depth character background building is also very important, since these are the key elements to make your show stand out from tons of other shows that has similar concepts. These solid advice and techniques have all inspired me greatly. This session with Stoopid Buddy Studio has not only informed me with new information about the industry, but has also provided solid advice for we future animation artists, from which I have learned a lot.
Rui Han ( ruihan@usc.edu)
Stefie Gan (stefiega@usc.edu)
ReplyDeleteIn their studio name "Stoopid Buddy Stoodios," we can already expect something quite goofy. It was hilarious to see the clips they showed. I think the stopmotion aspects of it sold it even more, since it feels like we're not supposed to take it that seriously. Most of the clips felt like toys performing with limited movement and facial expressions, which is part of the charm. The dialogue played a crucial role in selling the comedy, since it was often what the characters said that was most funny. Armando mentioned stop-motion is a dying art, but I think it's making a comeback because of the saturation of 2D and 3D animations on streamers and media. People are often seeking something different if they see too much of a certain medium. From the lineup they mentioned, it seemed the boom in animation has benefitted the company, from multiple show deals with Hulu and Reese Witherspoon's Hello Sunshine Production Company.
Mary and Sydney got into candid conversations about pitching. It was eyeopening to hear and slightly disappointing because they seemed to be a bit jaded or disillusioned sitting on the other side of the pitch desk. Often times as creators, we love our stories and think it's unique and worthwhile. It seems they have perhaps seen all kinds of pitches, so a story we think is unique may not be that unique after all. When they broke down characters that are too simplistic, I wonder where these pitches are coming from. From the sounds of their experiences, it seems many pitches they looked are aren't quite developed. I'm surprised they receive so many pitches with shallow characters. If they really are so bad, I wonder how it made it to their desk. Perhaps they may be exaggerating a bit as well. Or maybe they've really seen the lot. I try to write meaningful characters, and not fall into the stereotype of one dimensionality, i.e. smart guy who gets everything right, mean girl who always gets in the way. There seems to be a balance since audiences like characters they can relate to, but too cerebral and the character might be seen as enigmatic.
Vicky(Shunyi) Xie
ReplyDeleteShunyixi@usc.edu
This week's guest speaks with Stoopid Buddy about how to become a show runner is obsoletely inspiring.
It has been my dream since my childhood to become a showrunner, however I never know exactly how, other than just drawing my comic. The steps of becoming a showrunner and the main point that people need to be aware of is very clear. From so many points, “The Why” is one of the most important things that inspired me. I didn’t know why I was the one to tell my story, and it helped me to realize there are so many things I need to work on for my own comics.
It is also good to know that you don’t have to become an amazing writer to become a show runner. I am not good at writing whatsoever; I am a visual person. It’s definitely a heads up for me: keep working on what you good at, but also try to get help from actual writers and let them view your story and check if they fall into cliché.
After all, not everyone is lucky enough to be like that 17 years old teenager that the speaker mentioned who became a showrunner even before attending college. The speech from Stoopid Buddy not just gives me a lot of useful advice, but also let me realize how difficult it is to stand out. It’s a depressing thing to think about, but it is what it is. I will keep chasing my dream.
This weeks talk with the folks from Stoopid Buddies was something special. It was a talk, I was not sure I wanted but, I needed — to be inspired and educated from a perspective I never really thought about. It was informative and engaging enough to point me in a direction which creatively strikes a chord.
ReplyDeleteThe speakers went over virtually everything there is to make your show. As an individual who is very keen on making narratives of their own, I found it very helpful. Their talk on "Pitch Breakdown" is something after I got home, I ran it through some of my existing ideas and it helped in volumes. The Q and A added an extra dimension to my understanding for being an effective show creator. I really appreciated it when Mary and Sydney reached out to me after the seminar and we discussed more about my question. It felt good, to be able to start this dialogue about being a show creator while being an international student with some industry professionals. I have had been worried about raising my individualistic concerns because I always felt being a minority they would not be entertained abroad. I am glad such was not the case.
This talk has given me a certain sense of confidence and assurance, like I said before, was not something I thought I wanted, but needed.
This week we have artists from stoopid buddy stoodios share their experience with us. It’s eye-opening, and I’ve learned a lot. Stoopid buddy stoodios is an animation studio. They work on all kinds of animations like stop motion, 2D, 3D, and they even make costumes. Their works are incredible, and I love their stop motion animations especially.
ReplyDeleteIn their speakings, I learned how to create funny characters and give funny and natural plots to the story. I watched robot chicken some time ago, and I still remember how funny it is. As an international student, I love how these American animations, as well as animated comedies, integrate vast amounts of senses of humor and jokes into their stories because it can use a lot of ideas and jokes from various peoples, allows anyone’s idea to be made into the cartoon and board cast to the whole world.
Their speakings widened my mind and encouraged me a lot. With more and more people involved in animation and more people are watching animations, the market has expanded, it’s a great age for artists and creators, you don’t need to be a great writer or senior director to run shows anymore these days, allows us to do whatever we want, there undoubted will be audiences who love our works.
Jiayi Tang
tangjiay@usc.edu
It is such a fun and inspiring talk from Stoopid Buddy Stoodios. I am very excited to see that with the improvement of technology, there are more and more animated shows and shorts made in stop motion animation. I really appreciate that they have shown the development process of their shows. It is very enjoyable to hear the experience of being a showrunner and what problems a showrunner might encounter.
ReplyDeleteSelling your own show is essential, which we have learned from Richard Goldsmith’s Business of Animation class last semester. So it is really interesting to see how they develop the story and design all the characters. You need to love and really know about your characters when creating the show, know exactly what you want to tell, also most importantly, understand what the audience wants to watch.
All the trailers from Stoopid Buddies that we have watched in the class look so astonishing! The lighting and render quality do not look like the stop motion animation that I used to know. It is also super inspiring to see how the shows are made in multimedia. I am very excited to see more stop motion animation created by Stoopid Buddies in the future.
Tyler Krantz, tkrantz@usc.edu
ReplyDeleteIt was wonderful to hear from Stoopid Buddy Stoodios. I appreciate the team’s willingness to come speak with our class. My main takeaway from the presentation was how much the animation industry has opened up in the last several years, with renewed interest in the medium and a focus on diverse narratives and perspectives. It was incredibly helpful to see Chris, Sydney, and Mary walk through a formal TV pitch. The information presented will not only be beneficial when entering the field, but more immediately when pitching my thesis project in the spring. Moving forward in the program, I will be thinking about their emphasis on keeping things authentic to the heart of the story we’re trying to tell.
The stress of graduate school can cloud our perception of animation. Stoopid Buddy’s body of work is a great reminder of what the artform can be: random, hilarious, and full of character.
Last week's seminar was truly interesting and inspiring thanks to our guest speaker, Stoopid Buddy Stoodios.
ReplyDeleteIf I am not being wrong, I assume a lot of fellow animation artists, including me, are constantly going through the dilemma of being realistically commercial and creatively liberated. In other words, stay on the sunny side with Disney or go "into the unknown". Stoopid Buddy's works showed us that not all animation has to be kid-friendly and Disney-ish. In fact, it can be dark and serious and targeted solely to adults! And the fact that we are currently living in a time where animation demands are growing, and furthermore, unconventional styles are increasing to be consumed as well! This couldn't be more great news to us, animation folks.
Also, I found the "Pitching" breakdown greatly useful. Although, it was kind of confusing and disappointing to hear that so many people who get the chance to get an interview could be so unoriginal and intellectually lazy. Maybe it's because a lot of the people who actually are able to get their foot in the industry are ones who didn't have to have lived a life to have an "original" story, and rather come from a safe and privileged, entitled background? And not as much of the other people who actually have a media-unconventional story to tell, for instance, foreigners or people of color or women, often don't make it into the pitching room as much as the people who were born with an "easy head start"? To be clear, this is just my personal curiosity and I do not know for sure yet, but hearing incidents like those gets me very frustrated., Other than that, I very much enjoyed the seminar overall. Thank you Stoopid Buddy Stoodios! (P.S: Love the humor in the name!)
Aloha Lee (haekyung@usc.edu)
It is interesting talk from Stoopid Buddy Stoodios and they showed us a lot of interesting short animations.
ReplyDeleteAlthough Disney has led the development of the global animation industry for many years, hand-painted animation works have finally reached a low point at the end of the last century. The emergence of computer 3d animation technology has promoted the revolutionary development of global animation. Nowadays, animation design is inseparable from digital media art, because it is increasingly favored by more people.Technology in digital media art has always been an important driving force for the development of animation art. In recent years, the rapid development of technologies such as virtual reality, augmented reality, and mixed reality has provided a new form of media for the creation of animation art.
I was very impressed by the combination of the short real person and StopMotion tonight. From 《ted》 in 2012 to 《paddington》in 2014, they have tried to mix virtual cartoon characters into live action movies, which is changing along with the development of technology.
Then the speaker told us how to sells our own work. I believe this will play a very important role in the future. When developing the project, you should let the things you like to establish personal connections with others. It’s as simple as two or three describe your project in one sentence, and be familiar with the characters you create and create character conflicts to make them unique.
shiqihu(shiqihu@usc.edu)
Last week with Stoopid Buddy Stoodio was amazing! Such an eye-opening presentation that allows me to learn more about the process of creating original contents. I have always admired stop motion animation since that is something I normally don't do, seeing their work and hearing about the effort of making shows was truly inspiring. Stoopid Buddy has a very unique, modern style and is not afraid to make new and creative contents which I rarely see in some other big studios. I learned a lot during their talk, not only about the tips for pitching ideas but also the importance of boosting creativity and telling your own stories. As an animator, I feel deeply related since it is difficult to stay original and creative nowadays. But they told us it's not about creating something that no one has ever done before, it's about what makes your story unique and meaningful. What is your voice? Why you? I feel like we often put too much attention on the "big picture" rather than the core idea and what we are trying to convey to the others. Also I especially appreciate it when Sydney and Mary brought up the issue of "boring female characters" since it is something needs to be changed. I can't agree more! Mass media could be so much more than that, and us animators are ready to change that. The pitching break-down was super helpful too since I've never fully understand the procedure to create a show. They gave very constructive advices and those are the things I will keep in mind in the future. Thank you, Stoopid Buddy Stoodio!
ReplyDeleteSydney(pinghsin@usc.edu)
I loved this presentation. Their energy, passion for, and knowledge about the subject really got me interested in television. I always assumed I would lean towards feature length films and shorts, but this got me excited about working on shows.
ReplyDeleteI had no previous experience or knowledge about pitching shows so the Stoopid Buddies panel taught me a lot. I think the most valuable concept I understand now is that when making a tv series, creators who are in it for the money or rush their process are not setting themselves up for success. It is those who really understand and care about the story they are telling who make a successful pitch, and hopefully ultimately a good show. Now that the world has a growing “appetite” for animation, the possibilities for genre and form are more open than ever.
It was interesting to find out that being personal made for a good pitch as opposed to over-professional. They made a point about explaining why you want to tell the story and how it came to you, and to have a voice that will bring something to the topic which no one else can. Additionally, it gives something unique/human for the studio/network to connect with and want to invest in you.
I’m really glad they mentioned their aversion to stereotypical characters and superficial stories. It was great to hear that the industry is looking for new and great stories as opposed to recycling known material for a money grab. TV shows really are centered around dialogue and characters, so it is so important for them to be interesting enough on their own and together for audiences to even care about their story. Also, culture is highly influenced by the TV we watch so it is crucial for a good show to reflect the kind of society we want to live in.
Nina Ceklic
This week’s guest lecture turned out to be a talk that I didn’t know I needed. They gave a comprehensive overview on how to pitch and produce your own show, which is a career direction that I haven’t given much thought about before this talk, but is making more and more sense to me now.
ReplyDeleteIn their talk, I learned what the industry values in a pitch, and how to create engaging plot lines and original characters. It’s fascinating to hear about their summarization of common story arcs and character types, to avoid the cliches. They also had an interesting view on how to create female characters that no one has seen before, which is to avoid the common types(slut, whore, virgin and hermione), to take qualities that is typically attribute to male characters and give them to a female character, to create a more unique character. I’m also interested in hearing about their perspective on how ethnics groups and their perspectives are not so commonly seen in today’s world of animation production. The advice that Stoopid Buddies gave was to find common themes that anyone can sympathize with. From an industry point of view, this is definitely valuable, because they are targeting a wide range of audience.
Stoopid Buddies’ stop motion teasers are really fun to watch. The character design is so funny and the rendering and production quality looks amazing. I’m really looking forward to watching more of their work in the future!
Ruoyu Chen(chenruoy@usc.edu)
I really appreciated Stoopid Buddy Stoodios team for coming and giving such a valuable and energetic presentation. It is very valuable to review the creative process from different perspectives, especially when these perspectives come from industry professionals.
ReplyDeleteAs a successful stop-motion animation studio, Stoopid Buddies Stoodios is not only able to continuously output hight-quality and unique stop-motion animation, but also very good at pitching to buyers in the industry. They used very specific examples to explain the process of project development and trends in the industry for us. Having more comprehensive information and an idea of the big picture certainly can be more helpful to me, who is aspiring to engage in animation work in the industry. Stoopid Buddies Stoodios team shared valuable, practical tips while encouraging us to develop and tell our own stories. And they also show us the technique to compile and improve story pitches by establishing solid and charming characters.
Thank you for these precious professional tips. It was a great presentation.
Naicheng Liu
Stoopid Buddies’ talk this week was really interesting, and even though I’m not planning to be a showrunner any time soon, I still found a lot of what they said to be pretty valuable. What especially amazed me was when they showed us that demo of the live action/stop motion hybrid piece. It was surprising to see the degree to which they developed projects that they thought wouldn’t even turn into a show or be monetized in any way. That’s what I like to see from bigger studios like this; making things not just because they know they’ll make money from them, but because they want to experiment with new methods and ideas.
ReplyDeleteIt was cool to hear from one of the few studios still doing physical hand-made animation, but also mixing it with more modern techniques.
-Jackson Roberts (jpr02403@usc.edu)
Tianyun Lyu
ReplyDeletetianyunl@usc.edu
USC ID:2799801213
Thanks so much to Stoopid Buddy Stoodios for such a benefit and informing presentation! I was very fortunate to meet the introduction of this studio in the seminar. They told me about the origin of the studio and how it worked.They gave us an overview of their studio and useful information about how to pitch my own project if I want to find a studio to work with. Because of the epidemic, they could not continue to adhere to the production of action movie, so they turned to stop-motion animation. I think this is a very smart move, and it shows me that animators will not be hindered by reality no matter what. He always encouraged us to be bold, all ideas were good ideas, and all had his immeasurable potential.And to touch this goal, they also teached us how to create a “real”charactor, to make the audience know that this charactor is beleviable.To do that, you should know your character very well, his/her history, his/her birth, his/her personality, his/her reasons for acting are all for a reason, you can't just draw a character than can say he/she is the protagonist.
Thank you for reminding me that.
Vicky Gu (xingyugu@usc.edu)
ReplyDeleteStoopid Buddy Stoodios have been coming for studio day in the past few years but I've never actually had much knowledge of the background of the studio and the diverse number of works they produce, except for the ones on their website. It was great having a local stop-motion studio come to give us a presentation so that we know what to expect of the local industry. Chris, Sydney and Mary were very enthusiastic about the studio and what they do. I appreciate the amount of information they put into their slides and it was very helpful to learn about pitching and show-running. Even though working in TV isn't the path where I see myself in the future, I really appreciate the different aspects of the industry they went over in the slides and their encouragement for us who are about to step into the industry. A lot of the things they mentioned not only apply to TV, but also independent films as well. Our films need to be special and have a "heart" if we wish to grasp our audience. I also love the different examples of work they showed us; the live-action/stop-motion hybrid was really fun and it was amazing how much work they put into small experiments like this. They seem like really nice people and I hope other studios can be as inclusive and encouraging as Stoopid Buddy Stoodios.
Adriel Meka ameka@usc.edu
ReplyDeleteHuge thank you to Stoopid Buddy Stoodios! Chris, Mary and Cindy did a wonderful job at engaging the audience and providing a thoughtfully honest look into the work of modern animation. I truly appreciated hearing all of their insights on what makes the animation industry tick and loved learning about their experiences navigating it. The projects they got to work on and show us were amazing and sensationally funny! One thing I could deeply admire is their ability to innovate and shift gears with their content in a way capitalizes on the benefits of the pandemic while simultaneously revitalizing the art of stop motion animation in the mainstream media. It was very refreshing to see so many new high-budget stop motion animation series. They were able to partner with big names get some very promising titles released and I couldn't be happier for them.
I loved hearing about how to build will rounded characters, appealing pitches, and thoughtful concept advice. Above all the main thing I appreciated was their willingness to walk us through the steps of pitching and running an original show. They were super encouraging and open about the different routes one could possibly take to get their idea off the ground and into the homes of millions and i definitely took note of the wonderful tips! Looking forward to this weeks guest!
Shengluo Zhang
ReplyDeleteshengluo@usc.edu
Stoopid Buddy's panel was a great screnwriting class, and taught us a lot of skills and key points for pitching our projects/films. They told us how a good story should be structured. Not saying that all good stories have the same structure, but the cores of good stories are similar. The author should create a complete three-dimensional character who has rich emotions just like real people, rather than randomly creating a character that can be replaced by anyone for the plot. Each character should have its own irreplaceability. The plot happens naturally because of certain characteristics of the character. We should not let our characters do things that are inconsistent with their own personalities/traits. Their visual experiments in Super Bago were also very interesting. The ingenious combination of stop-motion and real people brings a dramatic effect to the story. While focusing on screenwriting,perhaps the director should also carefully consider the impact of different media on the audience. Different style frames will bring different colors to the same script.
Jiamu Tao (jiamutao@usc.edu)
ReplyDeleteThis week's presentation with Stoopid Buddy Stoodios was exactly what I wanted to hear as my career goal involves working in television. Coming into USC, I've met a lot of people with very different backgrounds and aspirations than myself, so hearing from Chris, Sydney and Mary, who share the same old nerdy animation interest as me is very endearing. I liked the pitches they showed so much and loved how they advised us about going into the industry. I love that they are a stop motion studio that still produce their own kind of niche stuff, but also adaptable enough to fit in the bigger industry environment. It's yet another reminder that while you hone your skills for the more commercial products to always keep your originality and specialness in your work, which leads to when they emphasized that being a show runner, you have to be unique to the show you want to produce. It's a very pleasant time hearing from Stoopid Buddy Stoodios.
Shon Xiao
ReplyDeleteI’m absolutely loving the diverse topics that are being covered by the guests in this seminar class. Stoopid Buddy Stoodios gave a great overview on how to pitch ideas and how people get started in the industry. They broke down the pitching process into concise and easily digestible steps: the why, the about, the characters, the pilot, and the wrap up. Further, the examples they gave of their own show pitch decks were extremely helpful in giving us an idea of what a pitch looks like. They even specified the average length of each section our pitch should be to be most brief yet interesting. Overall, the pitch section of their talk provided a very helpful step-by-step guide on how to get started in a pitch. I also appreciate how they applied the pitching process to areas outside of TV shows, such that the talk would be beneficial to as wide an audience as possible.
Stoopid Buddy Stoodios also touched on the different pathways people could take towards their desired career. While I don’t feel they went into depth, it was comforting to know that there are many ways to reach our goals rather than a narrow, unforgiving path. There were different advantages and disadvantages to each pathway as well. While I am most drawn to the grassroots approach of being discovered on social media, I realize the drawbacks of such a passive approach would lower my chances of finding work. Their slide on paths opened me up to the idea of the storyboard path, or alternative paths that would require more active searching on my part.
What I found personally most helpful in this talk, aside from the pitch guide, was Stoopid Buddy Studios’ answers to the question “what makes a pitch fail?” I feel we are often told how to succeed but not how to fail. They mentioned that applicants with a high concept but no content are likely to fail, which informs me to really create the intricate details of any story or concept I pitch in the future. The panelists also listed some common ideas they’ve received, which was quite eye-opening. Some of the concepts they mentioned had never occurred to me before, so it is baffling to think that multiple people have independently submitted similar ideas. I have learned to be more aware of my peers and competition, and to discover what makes my own ideas unique.
Siqi Fu
ReplyDeletesiqifu@usc.edu
This has been my first time leaning how stop motion can be blended with other media and turns out to such a nice art piece. I am very impressed by Stoopid Buddy Stoodios's test of shooting live action as background footage and has stop motion animation for the main characters. I cannot imagine how it will look at beginning. However, after they show their test, I am totally amazed by their results. It is so fascinating that how the characters can actually interact with the live action people in the test video. It is so amazing that I even believe this can be made into a feature film. I am really fascinated by how the cartoon style characters can behave so natural in the real world setting. I believe people can come out with really good stories using this strategies.
Moreover, This test video also reminds me how they concentrate on pushing the limit of making animation. I can tell how much efforts they have made to push the boundaries. This is also a inspiration of how I can push my own limits of making animation. Thanks a lot to them for sharing such amazing pieces they have experimented.
The stoopid buddies panel was such an informative event. Not to mention that all the work they showed was fantastic and each piece had its own unique charm to it. It amazes me how one studio could create multiple styles of animation so successfully. The live action and stop motion aesthetic was so good and by far my favorite work they showed. It’s definitely something that I would love to attempt to make in the future. Their presentation on what they look for when developing shows was super helpful. Afterwards I left with a solid understanding of what to include in a pitch deck for any future ideas I want to develop. Most importantly, by the end of the panel I was so stoked to one day work at stoopid buddies studios. All in all they were great guests to listen too and I'm so thankful they stopped by to talk to us.
ReplyDelete-Armando Sepulveda
Jessica Wu(wujessic@usc.edu)
ReplyDeleteI thoroughly enjoyed Stoopid Buddies Studio’s lecture. It might be the most helpful and informative lecture that I’ve ever been to. It’s the first time that I heard about pitching shows from a production standpoint. They talked about tips and things to avoid that I’ve never thought about. Moreover, the opportunity to listen to actual people working in the production industry has just been helpful. I also appreciated that they talked about diversity in characters and plots nowadays. To be honest, I didn’t know that animated TV shows are growing so big in the industry. But the programs that they showed us made me think about animated TV shows differently. One of the most important things that I learned from the lecture is that artists should know how important their pov is. And it is crucial to find a story that’s worth telling. And most importantly, only you can tell.
Last week's seminar with Stoopid Buddy Stoodios was fun and enlightening. it was an eyeopener to things I have not thought of before. As a strong entrepreneurial spirit, myself, their message of seeing yourself as a creator and writer not only as animators really resonated with me. I have spent a lot of time in my life conceiving and carrying out my business ideas of starting up my own training studio/animation studio but have not done so yet. I've identified with their idea that it is OK to not have an immediate way to pitch or bring the idea to life; just like a business idea, you can create character, show idea, series, anything and have it ready to when the opportunity presents itself.
ReplyDeleteDina Garatly
Lydia Su (lrsu@usc.edu)
ReplyDeleteThanks to Stoopid Buddies Panel Stoodios. I never know that I actually need such a presentation so much before I got the great opportunity to learn from them. only because the practical guidance they gave for pitching is so informative to the students that would like to become a director/showrunner in the future. But also so many valuable opinions they share from their experience of years from the perspective of projects developer. I also learn a lot from their introduction for their own process in developing projects. It is good to see how the developers’ passion was dedicated to making the project “ come alive”, having the chance to be shown in front of the audience's eyes. Just as they suggested, I would bear in mind to keep thinking “why the story should be conveyed?” and “how do I pursue the purpose” if I got a chance to tell my own story in the future.
Kacey Layson (klayson@usc.edu)
ReplyDeleteThe panel of guests from Stoopid Buddies were such a great, energetic and vibrant group. I really enjoyed their lecture from Seminar last week. They shared many of their projects and how they evolved and came to be, through pitch decks, concept art, and the final product. They compared the process between being a showrunner and producing shorts.
I appreciated how Chris Waters, Sydney Tannenbaum and Mary Thurman dissected the production process in animation and showed the concept and pitch decks of previous projects. One idea for pitching that resonated with me was the question they asked, “Why does your story need to be told?” When telling a story, the first impression matters- there always needs to be a hook and a strong ‘why’ as to your own voice as an artist and storyteller. Why does the story need to be told, and why should it be you? What does your voice as an artist bring to the table. This made me think a lot about the stories I want to tell, and the types of animation I am drawn to. As well as forming my voice as an artist during my time here in school. I liked the idea they shared about having that “humanity” in each story they shared, with it being from unique and specific perspectives. For example, the pitch deck about the boy growing up in a strong female-dominant household in the south. The point-of-view and the reason why the story was being told was clear. To tell relatable stories, it should come from a place that is specific and has a direct audience in mind while still exploring the human condition.
Thanks for a great seminar, Stoopid Buddies Stoodios!
Aisha Jamila Harper (5377-7371-00 // ajharper@usc.edu)
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed the entire seminar hosted by Stoopid Buddies. They provided some much needed insight about the process from the inception of a show all the way to giving the pitch to get it produced. Something that I truly appreciated was how they gave us visual examples of both current shows, and future shows that they have in production. I also really loved how bizarre their experimental animation was, because it put into perspective how literally ANY concept can be brought to life with passion and a great team.
Concerning my personal situation, I know that I will have to work remotely when I enter the job force, but after they answered my questions with concerns surrounding it, I'm very confident that I'll be able to fit into job that values my work and time as much as a team member that's physically present in the studio. I am riding the fence on whether or not I want to actually join a studio or be freelance, but seeing examples of how both can be rewarding definitely calms my anxiety. I know that I'll ultimately end up making the choice that's right for me, which is all that matters. I have a lot to learn that will only be gained from experience, but having the pros come in and provide us with reassurance and guidance, certainly makes for a smoother transition.
Last week, it was a pleasant experience in having the development team from Stoopid Buddy Stoodios come in person. What I enjoyed most in this three-panelist session was the focus on what specific elements go into a great successful pitch deck. A great pitch requires an anecdotal story about the concept/theme behind the series, descriptions on the characters that will be included, and an idea how it will be a great addition to the studio's body of work. Not a lot of classes go over these concepts so it was helpful to hear the perspectives from an animation studio like Stoopid Buddy. I also appreciated that they presented specific examples from pitches they had in the past that later became successful shows. It was illuminating to hear about the culture of pitching in terms of what stories are being created and stereotypes that continue to be perpetuated. At the end of the lecture, I felt inspired to pick up some ideas I have and make sure I put them in a secure place for the future.
ReplyDeleteJarrod Chatham
I can't express how much I enjoyed Stoopid Buddies's speech and how grateful I was for them to come in and share everything. One of my goals is to develop a show of my own and have a unique voice. Chris Waters, Mary Thurman and Sydney Tannenbaum really broke down the elements for a successful pitch and walked us through the steps of how to get there. I really appreciated the pitch samples they showed us. They showed a variety of style but a constant quality. After the presentation I gained a better sense of how to approach pitch ideas and perfect them.
ReplyDeleteAnother thing I really enjoyed was the work of their studio. Even though their main focus was stop motion they really explored within the concept and expanded it as much as they could. I really loved the combination of stop motion and other medium. I didn't see how stop motion limited the story and animation. Instead I saw a unique style that could only be pulled off by stop motion. I loved the experimental piece they did combining live action and 2D animation. It had a great sense of humor and the combination itself had so many potential for story twists and gags. So it felt like a really successful experiment and inspired me to do something similar.
Chenxue Lu (chenxuel@usc.edu)
Charlene Xu
ReplyDeleteThank you Stoopid Buddies for the super informative presentation! I really appreciated their effort to especially mention the pitching process at animation studios. In my undergrad program there was a class that specifically talked about how to create a pitchdeck, but I kind of picked it up in a mechanical way without thinking about WHY we show a film idea in the first place. I guess the real question is, why does the audience need to see this? This issue was also addressed by the presenters.
As much as I enjoyed the wonderful variety of mediums Stoopid Buddies utilizes, I also wonder if this versatility will keep develop into a sweeping trend in the industry. Because animation is such an extensive umbrella medium, it is applicable to so many different forms of entertainment and art practices. Going back to the question of "why this?", I think when we are creating a film/show/whatever, essentially we are to create a spectacle that is not just eye candy, but a unique emotional experience the viewer would not be able to experience elsewhere. We do not create a pitch deck just to create a pitch deck! This might be a dumb finding, but the point I'm trying to make here is that as artists we need to be as much creative and authentic as possible and should always bear in mind who our audience is. Thank you Stoopid Buddies for these wonderful information!
Chris Waters, Sydney Tannenbaum, and Mary Thurman delivered a succinct presentation regarding the development process and provided examples of pitches that were useful. I liked hearing about the process that went into the series "Crossing Swords" and the unexpected subversive humor employed in the show. With animation booming as a lucrative medium for streaming platforms, we're seeing an increase in niche animated content that are adult-oriented. Overall, Stoopid Buddy Stoodies gave an engaging discussion surrounding pitches and the studio's own shows. As a storyteller who is more visually inclined, I also found Sydney's advice to hire a writer for assisting with pitch materials to be helpful.
ReplyDeleteParker Chatham
Deletepchatham@usc.edu
I knew Stoopid Buddy Stoodies for the first time on this year's studio day. Since then I have been deeply attracted by their magical, humorous, creative world. One of the best feature of Stoopid Buddy Stoodies is their super creative way to integrate various media. Their combination of stop motion and 3d/2d animation is always inspiring. In their works, I see the freedom that animation give us that no other filming method can compare with. It is the delicate freedom under the fine rehearsal and planning, but also allows wild imagination.
ReplyDeleteAnother thing I love about Stoopid Buddy Stoodies is the sense of humor! The jokes and humor in their is beyond cultural background and is universally funny.
It's been a great pleasure to see the new projects from Stoopid Buddy Stoodies. I'm so happy to see they're experimenting with combining reality and stop motion! And the lecture and discussion of pitching is also super helpful.
Giulia
tzuyupan@usc.edu