Featured Mentor: Michelle Meeker
AnimationMentor.com:
How did you get into animation?
Michelle Meeker:
I decided that I wanted to be an animator when I was 15. I loved acting and singing and had tried out for my high school swing choir. Unfortunately (or fortunately), I didn't pass the audition. I remember the moment that I was walking back to my class after finding out that I didn’t get in. I was sad and realized that my dream to be a stage actress wasn't going to happen. I don't know how it popped into my head but at that moment I told myself that I would be a character animator instead. I had been interested in drawing and figured that I would do my acting with a pencil. I didn't really know the work that was involved in being an animator. I just thought it sounded like a cool career option. Soon after that I sent away for the CalArts catalog. I looked through the admission catalog like it was the Holy Grail (attending was a long shot since I was growing up in a small town in Ohio). I just couldn't imagine a place where other people loved animation like I did. Eventually, I was accepted to CalArts and this is when I consider my journey into animation began.
AnimationMentor.com:
Who would you consider your mentor to be in animation?
Michelle Meeker:
My mentor at CalArts was Becky Bristow. She was the first teacher that really had faith in me that I could be an animator. She also pushed me to find my own style and ideas. Being a woman, it was also great to have a female role model and see that a woman could succeed in animation. What I loved about her teaching was how she was honest without being disrespectful. She knew when to push and when you needed some words of encouragement. She also broadened my animation by showing me how everything in the art world can influence your animation.
AnimationMentor.com:
Who is your favorite character that you've animated and why?
Michelle Meeker:
My favorite character that I've animated commercially is Beast Fiona in Shrek. I really identified with the shots I was given on an emotional level (the moment that she reveals her secret to donkey). It was also the first time that I was given the opportunity to do quiet, subtle animation. In 2d, my drawing was never strong enough to do subtle animation so I hadn't thought I would be good at it. Computers opened these shots up to me. My favorite shots now to animate are quiet shots with great emotion. On a personal note: I still really love a character I created in school named Herman. I think of him sometimes as my alter ego and he still pops up in my sketch books.
AnimationMentor.com:
Do you think 3D characters will eventually replace actors?
Michelle Meeker:
I don't think that we can really imagine where animation is going to take us in the future. The line between live action actor and computer animator is probably going to blur and the artists who tell the best stories will continue to create.
How did you get into animation?
Michelle Meeker:
I decided that I wanted to be an animator when I was 15. I loved acting and singing and had tried out for my high school swing choir. Unfortunately (or fortunately), I didn't pass the audition. I remember the moment that I was walking back to my class after finding out that I didn’t get in. I was sad and realized that my dream to be a stage actress wasn't going to happen. I don't know how it popped into my head but at that moment I told myself that I would be a character animator instead. I had been interested in drawing and figured that I would do my acting with a pencil. I didn't really know the work that was involved in being an animator. I just thought it sounded like a cool career option. Soon after that I sent away for the CalArts catalog. I looked through the admission catalog like it was the Holy Grail (attending was a long shot since I was growing up in a small town in Ohio). I just couldn't imagine a place where other people loved animation like I did. Eventually, I was accepted to CalArts and this is when I consider my journey into animation began.
AnimationMentor.com:
Who would you consider your mentor to be in animation?
Michelle Meeker:
My mentor at CalArts was Becky Bristow. She was the first teacher that really had faith in me that I could be an animator. She also pushed me to find my own style and ideas. Being a woman, it was also great to have a female role model and see that a woman could succeed in animation. What I loved about her teaching was how she was honest without being disrespectful. She knew when to push and when you needed some words of encouragement. She also broadened my animation by showing me how everything in the art world can influence your animation.
AnimationMentor.com:
Who is your favorite character that you've animated and why?
Michelle Meeker:
My favorite character that I've animated commercially is Beast Fiona in Shrek. I really identified with the shots I was given on an emotional level (the moment that she reveals her secret to donkey). It was also the first time that I was given the opportunity to do quiet, subtle animation. In 2d, my drawing was never strong enough to do subtle animation so I hadn't thought I would be good at it. Computers opened these shots up to me. My favorite shots now to animate are quiet shots with great emotion. On a personal note: I still really love a character I created in school named Herman. I think of him sometimes as my alter ego and he still pops up in my sketch books.
AnimationMentor.com:
Do you think 3D characters will eventually replace actors?
Michelle Meeker:
I don't think that we can really imagine where animation is going to take us in the future. The line between live action actor and computer animator is probably going to blur and the artists who tell the best stories will continue to create.