@GuyHitchens - @Aalasteir (Q) - Index

Q: What does art mean to you?

Art to me (and this goes for anything creative really) is the ultimate form of self expression. i absolutely love how it can tell you so much about the creator and their feeling on something whilst also not telling you much at all about them. i picture it almost as a capsule of what the creator feels and thinks at a given point in time, shaped into what the creator wants to convey to the audience. The viewers may infer their own unique feelings about the art however that capsule exists as a thing for anyone to interact with and have their own thoughts and feeling as a response to. <- Hopefully i didn't just write a bunch of complete gibberish

Q: What was it like studying animation at the University of Hertfordshire? What did you learn, and how would you describe the experience?

Studying at UH (The University of Hertfordshire) was definitely the biggest personal growth period of my life. It was the period where i really got to make a lot of friends and bond with some similar like minded people. Before that i generally found it a bit harder to find people i could resonate with. I also loved my tutor Phil Vallentin. The course was SUPER busy and stressful in the first two years tho, as that's when you're really learning everything, but i personally am very fond of my experience at uni

Q: As far back as you can remember, you always wanted to create things. Why do you think making art resonates with you?

 I think for myself i mainly just want to make things i want to see, or make something i think my friends will laugh at

Q: What are the key storytelling differences between manga and comics? Which manga and comics do you like, and why?

tbh i dont really think about the differences between manga and comics storytelling. i think if there are, its mainly down to the industries and culture behind them. 

As for manga I love One piece, Hunter x Hunter, Chainsaw man, Kingdom and Takopi's Original Sin

As for comics i like Bone, Invincible, Batman, Hellboy and Spawn

I tend to be a sucker for long running series, and really just love anything that has good characters, cool designs, and a gripping story. (As long as a series does one of these things right im sold)

Q: What video games do you enjoy and why? Are there any games you dislike, and for what reasons?

I've been absolutely Resident Evil-pilled this past year as i just recently played all the games for the first time. Other than that tho i like The Binding of Isaac, Fallout New Vegas, Batman Arkham City, Breath of the Wild and Dark Souls

I cant really think of any games i actually dislike so im just gonna choose Ratatouille for the Nintendo wii. A truely indescribable sinister energy emanates from that game....

Q: What advice would you give for learning how to draw in an anime style?

I would just say copy and try to emulate the style of artists you really like, and this goes for any art style. Over time you'll develop a taste for how to draw specific features and end up with your own style, or you could just be a super cool style emulating machine

Honestly i have a long way to go as an artist myself, but i think as long as you focus on improving in classic areas like anatomy, form and gesture, all the while being inspired by artists you like you will see yourself improving and getting better over time

Q: What was the inspiration behind Pesticide?

I was heavily inspired by the works of Hiroyuki Imaishi and his fast frenetic style. The two works of his that inspired me the Most were Dead Leaves and SEX and VIOLENCE with MACHSPEED

Q: What is your typical animation pipeline?

I usually start off with a premise i think will be fun / what gets me excited to work on something and then design the characters after that to help me visualise how it may look. HOWEVER for this short i designed my character fist and later decided what the short would be haha

After that ill just write a bunch of diabolically bad versions of what i think should happen in a word document, until im happy with something, so i have a guideline for my animatic

I tend to spend a lot of time focusing on the animatic, this really helps me understand the pacing of the film, as well as knowing what edits and sound effects to keep in mind whilst i'm animating (as a lot of that stuff goes hand in hand)

After that its just me animating the shots and compositing them in after effects, after which i will stitch everything together in Premier!

Q: What makes an animation good?

This is super subjective for everyone but me personally - Guy Hitchens - i am a sucker for anything punchy, energetic, colourful and expressive. i love anything with a strong personality

Q: Please, give us some hints on the location of the Guy Hitchens CRYSTALS!?

Oh man actually whilst i was typing all of this someone actually found all of them and beat the shit out of me, so this is like old news now. Those crystals are gone

Q: When you were younger, you studied acting and took drama classes. How would you say that has impacted your ability to improv? But you were not a theater kid, what is a theater kid?

When i say Theatre kid, i guess i mean the super confident, outgoing, singing and dancing type of person, i was far too awkward for that lmao. I wouldn't say im great at improv or anything, but i think that was definitely a moment where i realised making a fool of myself and trying to make dumb jokes was something i found fun

Q: What do you think about food?

Genuinely the thing that motivates me throughout the day. I think if i have a bad meal the day is instantly fucked (this is a 'slight' exaggeration)

Q: Top 10 memes (ironic)

Just went red in the face laughing at the 9gag best memes of the week list. idk if they have 10 memes on there but whatever those guys have selected they are cooking (Please i beg do not have anything offensive or hateful on there)