Featured Mentor: Bret Parker
AnimationMentor.com:
What was your first animation job?
Bret Parker:
My first job as an animator was at Pixar. I came into animation in sort of a round about way, with a background in performance/dance. I always loved animation, but never realized how much sense it made to me until I started to work at Pixar as a production assistant. So many aspects of animation shared commonalities with theatre and dance that I felt like I had studied it my whole life, just in a different context. From being a production assistant, I began really studying animation and worked myself into the position I have today, as full-time animator at Pixar.
AnimationMentor.com:
If you could do one thing differently on your journey to becoming an animator, what would it be?
Bret Parker:
My one regret, or one thing that I would do differently, is that I would have studied some of the basic principles longer before trying to animate complicated characters. It's so easy to get wooed by the motion that you get instantaneously with the computer. Later, I went back and studied life drawing, and it made a huge difference.
AnimationMentor.com:
Who would you consider your mentor to be in animation?
Bret Parker:
I feel like most of my mentors have been Pixar animators who have helped guide me along this path. Mark Oftedal was an early mentor for me, as were some of the early Pixar animators: Rich Quade and Glenn McQueen. Looking back, I find Milt Kahl's work really inspiring.
AnimationMentor.com:
Who is your favorite character that you've animated and why?
Bret Parker:
My favorite character to animate was Kari, the babysitter in "The Incredibles". How could it not be? It was an amazing experience to be able to do her voice and animate her as well. I think that's probably the closest you get in animation to live acting.
What was your first animation job?
Bret Parker:
My first job as an animator was at Pixar. I came into animation in sort of a round about way, with a background in performance/dance. I always loved animation, but never realized how much sense it made to me until I started to work at Pixar as a production assistant. So many aspects of animation shared commonalities with theatre and dance that I felt like I had studied it my whole life, just in a different context. From being a production assistant, I began really studying animation and worked myself into the position I have today, as full-time animator at Pixar.
AnimationMentor.com:
If you could do one thing differently on your journey to becoming an animator, what would it be?
Bret Parker:
My one regret, or one thing that I would do differently, is that I would have studied some of the basic principles longer before trying to animate complicated characters. It's so easy to get wooed by the motion that you get instantaneously with the computer. Later, I went back and studied life drawing, and it made a huge difference.
AnimationMentor.com:
Who would you consider your mentor to be in animation?
Bret Parker:
I feel like most of my mentors have been Pixar animators who have helped guide me along this path. Mark Oftedal was an early mentor for me, as were some of the early Pixar animators: Rich Quade and Glenn McQueen. Looking back, I find Milt Kahl's work really inspiring.
AnimationMentor.com:
Who is your favorite character that you've animated and why?
Bret Parker:
My favorite character to animate was Kari, the babysitter in "The Incredibles". How could it not be? It was an amazing experience to be able to do her voice and animate her as well. I think that's probably the closest you get in animation to live acting.