Brad C Constantine

Drawing Hope: A Sketchbook for Autism 2011

2011-05-24T23:07:00.000-07:00

Drawing Hope:A Sketchbook for Autism #1 is Coming to Comic Con 2011!!

Featuring 23 Artists from Film , Games, TV, and Comics in a highly collectable collection of Black and White Drawings done exclusively for Comic Con 2011! You can find yours for only Five Bucks at Stuart NG Books at the Con. Other Locations to be posted soon.
All proceeds will benefit the Community Coaching Center of San Diego!! See You at The Con!!

Sony Coffee Pot Art Part 4!!

2009-07-18T11:26:00.000-07:00

Coffee Pot Art Part Four 2008-2009

Welcome Back, Friends!

It's time for a long overdue round of Coffee Pot Art from the various artists at SOE Studio 1 break room, including myself. Some of these go back to last Fall.

Thomas Sinich

That's All, Folks...see you soon!! BradC

The Bill Cartoons

2009-05-11T21:22:00.000-07:00

Who doesn't love a guy named Bill somewhere?

For me, It's at Sony, and his name is Bill Yeatts..Bill's a good guy who always has a smile, and an enthusiastic attitude toward life that is contagious.

One day in the break room Bill says to me

" I could use a bit more notoriety around here" and I said.." you've come to the right place".

All it takes is one around here to get a roll going.

These are done by various artists in Studio One and Two, including some by Bill himself. mine are based off of Bill's drawing of himself.

Enjoy..Buhradd.

Happy Holidays 2008

2008-12-18T20:42:00.001-08:00

Happy Holidays Everyone!!

Sorry it's been a while since I posted last. Work's been busy this Fall as we are all plugging away on the next big thing here at Sony. When I'm not working, I'm busy chasing two amazing kids around the neighborhood. Let me extend warm holiday wishes from our family to yours this year with hope for a great 2009!! Here is my Holiday card from this year. (props out to Floyd bishop for the good idea). See you next year with more Bloggy goodness to come including more coffee pot doodles and family pics from the fall.

peace out.

BradC

Zala The Scout!!

2008-09-26T22:31:00.000-07:00

concept art by Dante Fuget

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zPEEpVvV1zI&NR=1

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X7Tbo8gZnbc

(click links to see video)

This is "Zala the Scout" from our Playstastion 3 launch title "Untold Legends Dark Kingdom".

A fun Hack and Slash button mashing Adventure RPG from 2006. I animated this with the mighty Aaron Carlson in only 9 days !!. Cloth sim effects were done by the awesome Andi Smithers. She was a lot of fun to do, and eventually won an award as "Best New Female Game Character by Play Magazine 2006 and was featured on the cover of the "Girls of Gaming"

issue of CGW magazine. She rocks and hates to wait for dinner.

enjoy

Brad

Quick Value Sketches from Life (partial nudity)

2008-09-26T18:16:00.000-07:00

At Sony, We artists are fortunate to have Life Drawing sessions available after work on occasional Wednesdays. They are hosted by the famous "Jaqueline" from the "Ubiquitis Bee Studios" in Downtown San Diego, which also hosts many other drawing and painting workshops.

We get a wide variety of models and techniques to explore, and Jaqueline comes around and helps us with our observation and technique. Plus, it's great to just sit down, and do some real art with my friends at work. These are very quick 2 minute and 5 minute value sketches in watercolor pencil with an emphasis on light and shadow. (as always, click on images to enlarge)

enjoy

Brad

5min

2 min
1 minute gesture
2

5 min

Next time : Even more coffee pot art from Studio One including a collection of cartoons about fellow developer Bill Yeatts.

See ya soon.

Buh-radd

Summer 2008 Family Scrapbook / Back to School!

2008-09-01T10:41:00.000-07:00

Hey Friends!! That's right, It's back to school time here in beautiful Poway!!
Sorry It's been so long since I posted last. We are in our crunch time at work and that keeps me from sharing as much as I would like. It's all good as our new project, Free Realms, will be coming out early 2009!! I can't wait to show the fruits of our labor soon and best of all it's gonna be free!! Here's a scrapbook of some of our family fun this summer. We did the big "stay-cation" and enjoyed all that Socal has to offer from theme parks and the ocean, to hiking and Baseball. All in all a great summer!! (click on pics to enlarge)

The new Classroom!!

Tori on her first day of kindergarten

James at La Jolla shores.

Me getting the big wet one from Bubba the dog.

all ready for learning!!

James and Zack try out slingshots in the canyons near our house.

Gettin ready for school way too early!

The circus!!

Our SOE booth at Comic Con 2008

Typical Con attendee....

Me and my son celebrating my 42nd B-day at Dave and Busters...

hiking near the house..

happy 4th

At Comic-con with the boy

The line to get in...sheesh!

comic con madness.

Summer Day program at the school

Shirts by Daddy of course (I like the Houses of the Holy Lettering)

Camping in the yard

Bike Day

Tori and her BFF Ariel at the SOE Picnic

yumm...Mud Pies

Caught in the Act of having fun!!

End of another great Day!!

Tori gets her orange belt

Legoland fun

coneheads!

symptoms of my eating disorder

squirting people while growling like a pirate

Calif Adventure with mommy

My son takes Mickey's wallet...

Pixar Parade at CA Advent

Diddneyland fun!!

Riding The Ward Kimball!!

Caged animal on Casey Jr Train!!

My Public!

3 Real Boys and a Girl (yuchh)

Three mighty pirates!! Arrrr!

under the sea

Run, James, run

I like the folks behind me in this one...hehe

At the Ballgame!!

number 1 son

Below is one of the coolest things I saw all summer. It's a carousel with static

Pixar characters that animate when the strobe light flashes...this was at the Pixar exhibit at Disney California Adventure.

Thanx for stopping by...More bloggyness to come, so visit often.

nuffsed

B-rad

Coffee Pot Art At Soe Part 3!!

2008-07-06T19:04:00.000-07:00

Hey Friends!! Happy Fourth of July!!It's great to finally be posting again after the big computer crash of 2008!! My trusty 5 year old Gateway finally went out in a blaze of sparks and smoke in mid June, and I have been scrambling to get a new system up and running for work and other computer goodness since then. Now I'm running a brand new Dell and I am back and ready for action!!(Woo-Hoo!) Unfortunately, I lost a lot of stuff that was all lined up for blog posts, but will be posting regularly very soon as I recover old files and create new ones. Here is my latest collection of Coffee Pot Art straight from the Studio One break room.(As always, Click on pictures to enlarge)
Enjoy...
Cinco De Mayo!!

bagelsaurus!

french roast!

tribute to Vaughn Bode

Blue Meannie
day after cinco de mayo..hehe

If you use Scrum, you know what I mean!!
the day the AC went out..

See you soon with more Bloggy goodness in the days to come so check back often..

nuffsed

BradC

(next time: Family Vacation Goodness!!)

The Barbarian Chieftan Sez:

2008-04-27T12:01:00.000-07:00

I just love fantasy dialogue sometimes. Especially when it pertains to current events. Here's our good friend, the Barbarian Chieftan, talking to the Mobil-Mart cashier after paying close to 4 dollars a gallon for gas today. I know just how he feels sometimes...hehe
enjoy
BradC

"Cartoonist Day" at The Blood Bank 2008 with my Dad!

2008-04-22T07:23:00.000-07:00

A great big "Thanks" to everyone who came out for "Cartoonist Day" at the San Diego County Blood Banks last Saturday. As always, It was a lot of fun,and a big success!! ( who can pass up free donuts?)
The SCCS ( Southern California Cartoonist Society) has been doing this event for many many years, and my Dad and I just celebrated our 10th year doing it together out in East County. I am also proud to announce that the SCCS "Cartoonist Day" won the American Association of Blood Banks' National Award for Outstanding Community Service. (whoo-hoo!)

Me and Mickey

Me and my first Art teacher, My Dad..Bob Constantine.
who is a great cartoonist, a helluva good drummer, and a lot of fun to hang with.

Lefty and Righty

See you Next Year!!

The Continuing Adventures of the Recently Displaced Coffee Pot.

2008-04-20T20:18:00.000-07:00

Poor old Peter Pot.

He was recently replaced in the break room by the newfangled single serving Keurig-2000.

This recent "letting go" was hard on Peter. He ended up hitch hiking to Los Angeles

where he's been caught up in one adventure after another.

Enjoy some of his daily dealings below.

The newkid on the block.

depression...

then..repurpose..
his movie debut...
then a recording deal..
television star appearances...
Finally...Scandall!!

Since leaving Hollywood, Pete's become
the official SOE ambassador for Fridays and Holidays!!

Welcome Back Peter, We Missed Ya!
nuffsed..

Coffee Pot Art at SOE_Part 2 !!

2008-04-20T19:48:00.000-07:00

Hey Friends!!
That's right it's time for more of your favorite morning coffee pot doodles straight from the SOE Studio One break room! you can almost still smell the subtle blend of fresh roasted coffee and Sharpie ink. These are more from various artists in the studio, including myself...enjoy.

Bradc

Everyone's a critic...

Friday is bagel day!!

Mugman by Matt Broome

another WesWheeler CV

Bill Yeatts appears in his own doodles..

nuffsed....next Time: The recently displaced Coffee Pot....

My Personal Tribute To Ollie Johnston 1912-2008

2008-04-15T19:55:00.000-07:00

Ollie Johnston, The great, life long Disney animator and author, passed away yesterday at the ripe old age of 95. (not too shabby!)
Not only was he a great artist and a talented animator, He was a really nice guy who
will always hold a special place in my heart for his kindness, generosity, and unbridled enthusiasm for all things, but especially character animation. When I finally got to meet him and spend some time with him back in 1987, I realized that this was a man who wanted to keep this "handed down" Art Form going long past his time, and that he was committed to do "whatever it took" to make that happen. The result of this tenacity was the incredible series of books solely dedicated to fine art of character animation and it's secrets, starting with the grand-daddy of all animation books, Disney Animation, The Illusion of Life ,which debuted in 1981. Many folks don't know that before that book came out ,
there was really no other authoritative reference published on the Disney processes.
Only The Art of Walt Disney and a few others touched on the basic work flow, but left out all of the real secrets of the art. The only other references I can remember were the Preston Blair animation book, and The Animation Book by Kit Laybourne, which featured independent animators and their mediums, but gave little specialized technique. So that's what makes Ollie's (and Frank's) contributions so much more valuable today.
I was working in a gas station back in 1987 whilst I attended animation classes on the weekends. I would draw in-between customers and my wife called and said that Frank and Ollie were at the mall signing books. I got a guy to cover for me and I went over, in uniform, with my already tattered 1st edition of Illusion of life to get signed and some sketchbooks. Because it was a Tuesday afternoon at 2pm, There were not a lot of folks at the Barnes and Noble when I walked in. Then I saw Ollie sitting at a table signing copies of "Too Funny for Words", his new collaboration with Frank Thomas. I noticed Frank was not there, but Ollie's wife, Marie, and some other family were sitting behind. I introduced myself and inquired on Frank. " He's not feeling well today, so he stayed home". I then asked if he would sign my "Illusion" and "Too Funny" books, but was embarrassed because I had already really worn them out from studying and copying drawings and such. The cover was faded, torn, and falling off and the pages were all "post-it" covered from previous reference. He was so tickled by the fact that someone was actually using his book that much, that he asked me to sit down and visit for the remainder of his time there. So for almost 2 and half hours I got to sit down with Ollie and look through the two books with him and ask him all kinds of questions and listen to his philosophies on animation and such. I showed him some of my draw-rings and he was very encouraging.
We talked about trains and Walt Disney and I asked him to tell me a good Walt Disney story. He said that one afternoon after WWII, Ollie, Frank, and another animator were in the hallway near the bathroom in the animation building complaining "out loud" about the film they were working on. It was one of the package features that combined smaller stories into one long film.
Ollie said they were wanting to get back to better stories, and that the other guy said someone should kick Walt "in the ass" to set him straight. Just then the bathroom door flew open and there was Walt, who promptly turned around and bent over and said "Okay, fellas, take your best shot". He said you could have heard a pin drop. Everyone was speechless. Then Walt said to the guys " I'm gonna go to the bank now and beg for your payroll," any of you guys want to go for me instead of standing around doing nothing?" Doh....back to work I guess.
Anyhoo..It was one of the best experiences of my life and thanks to Frank and Ollie, we can all benefit from their inspired art and teachings forever and ever. I was very fortunate to have met 5 of the "Nine Old Men" including Eric Larson, Frank Thomas, Marc Davis, and Ward Kimball. They seemed like very different people who all spoke the same language. And what a joyous language it is. God Bless you, Ollie, you were one of the good ones. My most sincere condolences to the Johnston family and all those who really knew Ollie well.
nuffsed.

Ollie loved trains...

never "too old" to be silly

Ollie Draw-rings from Dalmations..he said " It's the contact that proves they are real"

"Rufus" from the rescuers was inspired and animated by Johnston himself.

The books we looked through together..in '87

The tattered remains of an Animation Masterpiece signed by the author.

Brew Cartoons.. "Coffee Pot Art" at SOE, the best of 2007

2008-04-02T20:47:00.000-07:00

Here at Sony, we love our coffee!! And if there's anything we love more than coffee, it's Fresh Coffee! And if there's anything we love more than fresh coffee, It's fresh coffee with art on it, and a time and flavor so you know what it is and how old it is.

(common courtesy)

So you grab a "post it "and a sharpie and ...presto!...

A New Art Form is Born!!

Next thing you know, someone's hung one up on the wall, then another, and before too long, some are neatly gathered, matted, and framed and displayed like "real artwork" in our break room.

Most are done by me and a few select early morning "coffee cohorts" but the odd guest artist, and or programmer efforts are equally collectable, and help round out the show. Below are some of my personal "Faves" and then the framed collections.

These are done from memory and before coffee.

Enjoy!! BradC

( above) "Caramel Vanilla" by Wes Wheeler(I love this guy's style)

" Decaf " by Rick Randolph (another great artist!)

another great Wes Wheeler "French Roast"

The coffee area with the new "coffee flavor bar" and maker.

Friday is Bagel and Donut Day!!

Example of a "2 parter" the picture was added later(artist unknown)

The result of a request for a "Garfield"

Sometimes I'll do a series based on holidays or other... Here's Peppermint Patty from my "Salute to gender challenged cartoon females" week. Also included were "Velma", "Marcy", and "Dora The Explorer." I don't think anyone figured it out.

One of the Very First ones(and re-used)..I love Patrick..he's so silly!!

Next Time:
Coffee Pot Art Part 2: Even More "off model"-pre caffeine doodles from the "doodle bin" plus:
"The Continuing Adventures of the Recently Displaced Coffee Pot"..

SWG "Leftovers" Part One.

2008-04-01T21:49:00.000-07:00

Here are a couple of animation "leftovers" from my days on Star Wars Galaxies.

Sometimes you can do a lot of work on something, make it look really cool, put it in, and it just doesn't work for gameplay. Such is the game business. I liken it to an actor's best bits being left on the cutting room floor.

These are some quick anim tests for a "Raptor" skeleton type which had 5 different creatures associated with it. the top is an upright horned creature "gallop" and the bottom is a more traditional dinosaurid type "fast run." These were to be used as "mounts", or rideable creatures, but were eventually dropped in favor of some other form of transportation. I think because the necks were blocking the view from the saddle when upright.

Here's a dug, dig? Yet another cool character with lots of fun animation that never quite made it in. Here I was testing the distance between the "point" animation and the character in front. He may need to back up just a wee tad I think. Ouch!!

enjoy,

BradC

Next Post: Coffee Pot Art Exposed!!( The Photo Evidence)...really!

Sony Rocks!!

2008-03-30T19:25:00.000-07:00

The "King" of his own whiteboard...

Sony is a great place to work!!
Besides being located in sunny San Diego, (my Hometown) All the people here are extremely talented, and all very nice folks as well. Which makes work a real pleasure, even when it gets busy.
Here is a view of my current animation "digs"*. As digs go, this is pretty darn good having a window and all. In gaming, the projects go quickly and you never stay in one place very long.
You can end up in a sea of cubes, or sharing a small office with three people.You never can tell. Even our Company President has moved down the hall, so no more Ward Kimball naps. (just kidding, Smed.)
Listed from the above photo, are all the things I need on a daily basis to do my animation thing.
enjoy.

BradC

1. Fan-Great for keeping all those funky development odors and germs at bay.

2. Sunglasses-Animators are cool! no matter what big, strong men and pretty girls say..
So, a good pair of sunglasses are a must. (If you see a good pair of glasses, please send my way...mine say Target on the handle.)

3. Mirror- For Acting and facial reference. Also good for wiping that Friday "jelly donut" evidence off your lip. ..."No honey,..I was good. It's just cocaine...really!"

4. Disney (the "Man")-Psychedelic Alice poster from the early 70's helps me celebrate all my "unbirthdays. "

5. Family Photos-My beautiful family right next to me all day long...except much quieter. "just kidding, Dear"

6. Phone-Contact with the outside world..."Yes, Dear..Of Course I was listening to you ..Don't I always give you my undivided attention?..now what was that about your co-worker's mother in law?"

7. Machines that go "ping!"- Lotsa Cool "State of the Art Technology "to play with,
and best of all.. Tech Support...Sweet Hoogely Moogely!

8. Popcorn- A healthy delicious stinky snack. Every day at 3pm.

9. Comfy Chair-Helps me sit and get a load off my mind.

10. Sports Illustrated "Swimsuit A Day" Desk Calendar (one a day is all I ask.)

11. Toys!-Animators love toys. Maybe because we are all big kids at heart.
or just maybe because we're broke and can't afford a real 65 foot Transformer schoolbus with external missle launcher.(...no place to park it legal anyway...well not in Poway. I checked)

12. Caffeine- Ahh.. Sweet Nectar of Awakeness.!!If you have children, you know what I mean!!( Diet Coke, Coffee, espresso I. V. ,Chocolate)The company ran out of coffee one day back in 2002. "White Monday" it was called as reference to color of the bottoms of everyone's mugs. We almost shut down. Starbucks stock spiked that day for sure.

13. Water-Can't ever seem to drink enough water. Can you?

14. Headphones- Yeah, I know...Milt Kahl and Richard Williams Say "No"..but Hell, One's dead, and the other's in London. and I gotta ROCK!! (Dick, you should try some Metallica...and then do some "cobbling.")

15. DVD/VCR- for watching things move in every speed....or one frame at a time.(very important!! "study the motion, Grashopper!")

16. More Toys-All Plastic Character Goodness in the round. (My Fave? The train from Dr Seuss' "Green Eggs and Ham"

17. Natural Light...No fluorescent for me. Give me the sun and the trees and the little Disney birds that accidentally fly into the window.(insert Don Martin sound effect..."Pap!")

18. Mr Tiki Man Says "Bon Jour!" He's French Polynesian ya Know.

19. Mr. Peanut also says "Hi"... but is wary of folks who may want to eat him. "He smells so peanut-buttery up close' they all say.

20. TV- just for sitting "too close" to.... sorry, Mom...and yes, I run with scissors, too!"

21. Reference. I keep a large file of motion reference for just about everything. Today it's "Enchanted" on DVD. I just can't stop watching the Princes' puffy sleeves move around.(very well done, Mr. Baxter and friends.)

22. Kid Stuff...My kids give me the greatest stuff all the time. Cards, Draw-rings, and more toys to play with. My wife says there are "three kids in the house" at home, but I only see the two.

GottaGoYaKnow!

Next Post.."Coffee Pot Art " A New Fine Art Form at Last!! (the photographic evidence)

*from the "Urban Dictionary"
1.
digs.

home; place of residence; crib.
"my bro just moved into new digs across town."

Spring Color and Texture

2008-03-25T22:36:00.000-07:00

Spring has sprung here in beautiful Poway, Ca.

A perfect time to start a new blog and do a first post about Spring. Here is some local color and texture from strolling around the neighborhood with my digital camera.

Enjoy.

Brad C