Jeremy Spears

Christmas Card Answers 2011

2012-01-03T17:05:00.001-08:00

Merry Christmas and a very Happy New Year everyone! Heres the answers to this years card. Hope you got them all!

-JL

Super Big Micro Gallery Show! Piece #3

2010-12-09T15:05:00.000-08:00

Logging Train #10

ink, watercolor, and pastel

Here is another tiny piece I did for the Super Micro Show! I can't wait! It's only 2 days away. See ya there!

gallerynucleus.com

themicrogallery.blogspot.com

Super Big Micro Show Piece #2

2010-12-03T11:39:00.000-08:00

Logging Train #4

ink, watercolor, and pastel

Here is one of 4 other pieces I did for the "Super Big Micro Show." Guess what the subject matter is...

Whittling a Bear

2010-12-02T16:32:00.000-08:00

So here is a little show and tell of my process for carving a bear. I use a pocket knife, a serrated pocket knife, and a Dremel tool. I also have a hand saw for chunking away the larger bits.

I first start with a lot of sketches, I also look to inspiration, so I know what I'm generally going for. In this case I looked at real bear footage, a ton of bear books, and some Country Bear stuff over at the Imagineering Research Library. I pick my block of wood and start to draw on it...trying to see the character inside. To me drawing on the piece of wood is like drawing on paper, but in three dimensions.

Once I start cutting this usually changes a bit, because I like to work into the wood and find the finished product as I go. I knew I wanted the bear to be in a relaxed pose(considering he has just eaten.) So I worked at that for awhile to get it right. I put him a little off balance from the wood which was difficult considering I want to make use of as much of the block of wood as possible. His butt overhangs in the back a little and extends in the front. I ended up using a few glued in pieces( the butt of the gun, and the raccoon tail on his cap, and the bottom stump of wood he sits on.) The barrel of the gun is a thick piece of copper wire.

I have to just keep cutting, then do a drawing, look at it from all angles, cut again, then draw again and keep repeating until I've carved away every bit of the wood that is necessary. It's always been an exciting moment when I finally can see the character realized in three dimensions! It's so much fun! If you've never tried it, you should. There is something so tangible and permanent about carving something from a piece of wood.

Just thought I'd share that. Please come to the Super Big Micro Show at Gallery Nucleus on Dec. 11th!

-Jeremy

Super Big Micro Show!!!

2010-12-01T10:45:00.000-08:00

Here is who is going to be in the show....

Need I say more?!!! See you there!!!

themicrogallery.blogspot.com

SUPER BIG MICRO SHOW!!!

2010-12-01T09:36:00.000-08:00

Here is a preview of one of the pieces I did for the upcoming "Super Big Micro Show" at Gallery Nucleus. I carved this bear out of a block of wood. I've been recently getting into whittling, it's really fun! I've wanted to carve me a bear for awhile now, so this was my chance. I definitely was inspired by Marc Davis' country bears. I've got his art plastered on my walls here at work. If your ever at the Disneyland Park, look around Critter country for a whole slew of carved animals...definitely a source of inspiration!!!

We started doing these "Micro Shows" in a space right next to our offices here at work. We have these two little walls that we couldn't figure out what to do with. Thus the Micro Gallery was born. Micro art for a micro space.

For this special one of a kind show at Nucleus however, we invited friends from Dreamworks, Pixar and a few others to join us. The great thing is how connected all the artists are from studio to studio. Most have worked together in the past etc... We usually have themed shows here at work, but this Nucleus show is going to be a little different. No Theme! We are all doing art that inspires us, stuff we like to draw personally on the side...so hopefully when we see everything up there together it will give the world a good idea of what is running through the minds of animation artists. It will be a very personal show! If you live in or around the LA area you'll have to come by and check it out! Our Opening is on Dec. 11th! See you there!!!!

Tangled!

2010-10-12T14:22:00.000-07:00

Congrats to our amazing team who have put so much effort into the upcoming Walt Disney Animation Studios film "Tangled" Nov. 24th 2010... Go See it!!!

The Ol' Torch

2010-09-14T11:19:00.000-07:00

It's been a while since I've posted, so here is a piece of art I did a little while back as I was starting to figure out my story for the comic "What is Torch Tiger?" At the start I didn't have any story figured out yet, but I had this image in my head of an old train rusting away in the middle of the woods, with the words Torch Timber Co. painted on it's rusted hull. It definitely helped doing this drawing and hanging it above my desk to help give me a target for the style and feeling I wanted my story to have.

-JS

Christmas Card 2009

2010-01-04T11:32:00.000-08:00

Well, here are the answers as promised, to our Christmas Card Photo Puzzle for 2009! We thought we'd give you all enough time to find them all. We hope you all had a really great Christmas and a Happy New Year!!!

-Jeremy and Lisa

Dreams Come True: A Celebration of Disney Animation

2009-12-03T15:04:00.001-08:00

Check out this new special about Walt Disney Animation Studios tomorrow night on ABC. There will be a special preview of The Princess and the Frog! It's a really exciting time around the studio right now, with Prep and Landing released just 3 days before Frog, not to meantion Christmas soon to follow....there is a lot to celebrate this Christmas season!

Dreams Come True: A Celebration of Disney Animation

Tune in on: FRIDAY DECEMBER 4 (8:00-9:00 p.m. ET) on the ABC Network

Prep and Landing Dec. 8th at 8:30pm on ABC

2009-11-30T14:36:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas!!!!! Prep and Landing will air on Dec. 8th at 8:30 PM ET right after the Charlie Brown Christmas Special. I'm really proud to have worked on this film. Check out the Kringle Academy website.

So gather your families and friends around the TV this Christmas and enjoy Prep and Landing!

-Jeremy

"LOVELY TROLL"

2009-11-09T14:54:00.000-08:00

My younger brother Kyler, proposed doing a quick character design assignment together. His topic of choice...."LOVELY TROLL" Heres mine. You can check out an amazing one by Kyler at his Blog too!!!

Prep and Landing!!!

2009-09-23T10:39:00.000-07:00

The trailer is up for Prep and Landing! This is an original short film(tv special) made right here within the creative walls of Walt Disney Animation Studios. I was lucky enough to have worked on this jolly Christmas special directed by Kevin Deters and Stevie Wermers(the talented pair that did our recent Goofy Short.) I'm a big Christmas guy, so naturally I really enjoyed working on this film. The air date is soon to be released so keep checking back here or ABC's website for details. Maybe someday I can post up a few of my story sketches from it too, we'll see. But for now, check out the trailer to the right and get Prep'd and ready for Wayne and Lanny (the Christmas Elves) this Christmas!!!!

-Jeremy

TORCH TIGER BOOTH!!!

2009-07-24T16:48:00.000-07:00

Part of the Torch Crew at Comic Con 2009, from left to right....Don Hall, Me, Chris Ure, Joe Mateo, Paul Briggs, Steve Anderson, Mark Walton, Jeff Ranjo, Chris Williams

My wishlist 2009, from the sideshow collectables booth!!!

Me and my good buddy Scott hanging out in the Avatar panel line.

It was a great time hanging out at the booth, I enjoyed getting to meet a lot of great artists and fans of last years "Who is Rocket Johnson" book. To all those that bought a copy of "Torch Tiger" I want to say a very big thanks!!!! I hope you enjoy it!!!! And to all those who have not picked up your copy... there are only 2 more days left at the Comic Con. Booth 2302!!!! Get them while there HOT!!!!

Later-Jeremy

Comic Con is HERE!

2009-07-22T16:55:00.000-07:00

I'm going to the Comic Con on Thursday now. So hope to see you there! I can't wait! I'll be at the booth 2302 with the rest of the Torch Crew. Come by and get a special collectors pin with your book.

Here is a sample of the first page from my story.

TORCH TIGER IS COMPLETE!!!!

2009-07-10T14:56:00.000-07:00

"WHAT IS TORCH TIGER" Comic Con Exclusive Comic is COMPLETE!!!! Alright we got just 2 weeks until Comic Con, San Diego. This year is going to be amazing! The book turned out better than I could have imagined. It's a bit thicker than last years "Who is Rocket Johnson." The stories and artwork are so inspiring. I was honored to be able to join these amazingly talented Story artists and Directors and work on something so unique and fun.

I hope you all stop by our booth #2302 and say hello! A bunch of the fine folks who made the book will be hanging out doing book signings all weekend long. I'll probably be there on friday the 24th. Stay tuned for more details. Look for our banner at the Con, you can't miss it, it has a smattering of some of the amazing artwork in the book. A word of advice...THIS IS A VERY LIMITED RUN!!! ARRIVE EARLY....THEY SOLD OUT LAST YEAR!!!! Get ready!!!

-Jeremy

ARTISTS

Cover painted by:

Paul Felix

Artists contributing stories:

Steve Anderson

Aaron Blaise

Paul Briggs

Kevin Deters

Rob Edwards

Mike Gabriel

Nathan Greno

Don Hall

Byron Howard

Trevor Jimenez

Mark Kennedy

Joe Mateo

Nicole Mitchell

John Musker

Jeff Ranjo

Aurian Redson

Jeremy Spears

Lissa Treiman

Josie Trinidad

Chris Ure

Mark Walton

Dean Wellins

Stevie Wermers

Chris Williams

Featuring pin-ups by:

Andreas Deja

Andy Harkness

Jeff Turley

Jin Kim

Shiyoon Kim

Part 2: Europe Trip 2009

2009-07-10T14:14:00.001-07:00

More Salzburg, Austria

More Austrian Alps....

This house had a giant mural of a sword wielding viking

on a sled pulled by huge polar bears....AWESOME!

We took a gondola up the mountain-side heading for the Eagles Nest....Hitler's vacation home and bunkers.

Inside the Ice Caves

ITALY

Venice was our first stop, what a beautiful city...wow.

I thought I'd snag this photo of this guy taking a photo of his wife.

He held that pose for a really long time. She seems to be enjoying it. What a great character moment...this is why vacation is valuable...to experience life and then draw it when we get back to work.

part 3....ROME, FLORENCE, ITALIAN RIVIERA

gesture class

2009-06-30T14:37:00.000-07:00

We just had our gesture improv drawing class, thought I'd take some low rez photos with bad lighting of a few of my sketches and post them up.
-Jeremy

Return to HAND DRAWN!!!!!

2009-06-23T08:15:00.000-07:00

Hey guys and gals, check out the first behind the scenes look at the film I've been working on "The Princess and the Frog." These interviews show the excitement brewing inside the studio as we look to release our first hand drawn feature in a long while. Check it out for yourself! Oh and my buddies make a few cameos Erik, Mario, and Joe!

There is something so exciting about seeing rough animation, hearing flipping paper as I walk through the halls, seeing final color shots come in, I hope you can get a glimpse of what it's been like around here...very inspiring!

http://www.awntv.com/videos/the-princess-and-the-frog-featurette

Gesture Class

2009-06-17T08:16:00.000-07:00

These are a few sketches from yesterdays gesture class here in the Story Dept. They don't bring in models for us, they bring in actors. It is a great excersise to try to catch the action as it is happening. Sometimes the actors will freeze for about 15 sec...so that helps, but otherwise it's all about how we interpret the action.

I like how Walt Stanchfield says, "Don't think or speak negatively about (your drawing). If it is not as satisfying a start as you would have liked, do not be critical- that is where you are- face it." Stanchfield Notes #23

All done on 18x24 sheets of paper, China Marker, around 30sec. each

Coming up in my next posting....I have a ton of charactures that have been building up over the past two years,...most done by my buddy Erik Fountain... that's him swimming below me there. I've been wanting to share them for awhile.

-Jeremy

Part One: Europe Trip 2009

2009-06-04T06:34:00.000-07:00

My wife and I just got back from our long awaited trip to Europe! It was the best trip we've ever taken. We went to Germany, Austria, and ended in Italy...all in two wonderful weeks. We took so many photos, just thought I'd share some of them. Enjoy!
Arrival in Munich, Germany was really cool. We got in around 8:30 at night, the train station was the best looking train station we saw our entire trip. It was this great big building, very industrial looking, great typography everywhere, and ultra modern. The trains lined up inside the main building. When we got outside, we had to find our hotel, a slight rain started to fall, the moment reminded me of "Blade Runner." All these old buildings with neon signage and video screens flashing in the windows, and the rain...it felt like a future city.

The next morning we walked to the main square, where we were treated to a noontime clock tower show.
We then took a train to nearby Dachau, Germany, home of one of the worst internment camps from the Nazi party during and before the war. I wasn't prepared for what I was about to see this day.
They had images(horrific images) hung in the same rooms where these horrific moments took place.

They say no one was executed in the "shower room" at Dachau...at least what they know, but it seems strange they would build the thing and not use it.
Nearby the furnace and smoke stack, we walked through certain rooms that today look well kept, very clean, very normal, but when you see the photo of what was in those rooms and it shakes you up. They showed a film in which the American soldiers that had taken Dachau brought nearby townspeople into these rooms to see what had been going on, the townspeople were horrified at what they saw. It's really hard to watch.

How can a place so beautiful be used for such atrocity we wondered? The crematory lye next to a very tranquil forest, the "shooting range" was now a lovely overgrown wall with flowers growing off it. I'm really glad we saw this place....wow.
That same afternoon around 5 I think, we headed onto Salzburg, Austria. It was about an hour or so train ride through some of the most beautiful countryside we had ever experienced.
Villages along the way had one thing in common, a single church bell tower at the towns center. When we arrived in Salzburg we were greeted with an amazing dusk hour sky. We walked into town to find our Hostel high on a hill top overlooking the town.

We actually stayed in the old ruins of a castle, and we had an amazing view of the town....right from our room! WOW!!!
This view is from the shared bathroom, it shows how we were at the end of the old castle wall.
Salzburg is such a beautiful place, This ended up being our cheapest place to stay the entire vacation. We stayed for 3 nights. Here are some of the things we saw the next day as we hopped on some rented bikes and explored.

That is our window of our room right above this street.

This is one of my favorite photos from the whole trip, my wife riding through a field of flowers in the Alps...PERFECT!!!!
You never know what strange and wonderful creatures you'll spot right in the middle of the Austrian woods.

We got lost for a moment, I am using my expert tracking abilities to find the trail again.
This was only the first 2 days, so there is alot more to come!

-Jeremy

2009-06-02T11:49:00.000-07:00

My wife Lisa and I got back from Europe Sunday night. I had my office at work completely vulnerable for 2 weeks along with my bike. I had a feeling something was going to happen to my stuff while I was out, but I had no idea THIS was going to happen. My buddies Erik and Joe (and Lorelay too wrapped every one of my books) gave me the best welcome home ever!

Thanks guys!

-Jeremy

2009-06-01T15:56:00.000-07:00

"What is Torch Tiger?" is the follow up to the wildly successful "Who is Rocket Johnson?"
A graphic novel anthology being self-published by Walt Disney Animation Studio's Story Artists and Directors.
It's an all-ages book in which every artist answers the question: "What is Torch Tiger?"
It will be sold exclusively at booth 2302 in San Diego (http://www.comic-con.org/) and is a limited edition of 1300 copies.

Artists contributing stories:
Steve Anderson
Aaron Blaise
Paul Briggs
Kevin Deters
Rob Edwards
Mike Gabriel
Nathan Greno
Don Hall
Byron Howard
Trevor Jimenez
Mark Kennedy
Joe Mateo
Nicole Mitchell
John Musker
Jeff Ranjo
Aurian Redson
Jeremy Spears
Lissa Treiman
Josie Trinidad
Chris Ure
Mark Walton
Dean Wellins
Stevie Wermers
Chris Williams

Featuring pin-ups by:
Andreas Deja
Andy Harkness
Jeff Turley
Jin Kim
Shiyoon Kim

Cover painted by:
Paul Felix

For more information please visit: www.torchtiger.blogspot.com

-Paul Briggs
www.pbcbstudios.blogspot.com