This past week, in addition to continuing to build Maranappta, I've dusted off my traditional animation skills by creating an original short clip called "So You Think You Can Smurf", which stars Smurfette from the Smurfs shyly tiptoeing onto the dance floor and finally succumbing to "Boogie Fever" by The Sylvers. It was inspired by a visit on Monday to the McDonald's at Main and MacArthur in Irvine, CA next to John Wayne Airport, where "Smurfs 2" Happy Meals are being promoted and clips from "Despicable Me 2" were playing on the in-house TV channel. "Boogie Fever" is a running gag in the original minions movie, and I had a goofy idea to mash up the two, developing and promoting my animation skills in the process.
Smurfette was an easy choice because she's not only the first female Smurf, but also the most popular one of all based on merchandising and overall fan appeal. This isn't the saucy seductress as reimagined by Katy Perry in the recent movies but the original innocent, girly and spunky Smurfette from the original Hanna-Barbera TV series as established by her original voice actor Lucille Bliss, which became the defining role of her decades-long career and her all-time personal favorite.
It's been an interesting past few weeks. As I wrote in my last post, I got a temp job at a real estate software company in part because I've been a lot more open about my technical skills in web development, coding and creating apps. I've been getting a lot of smiles at church and with my friends about the above Smurf video with the new movie on everyone's mind. And at church the pastors have been teaching us to stop making excuses to God for not obeying His call on our lives to serve Him with the gifts He's given us, and to learn to release (let go) of controlling everyone and everything, entrusting it all to His loving hands. Very timely messages if you ask me.
Animators are often actors through their pencils or software as they bring their characters to life, infusing their personalities into their creations. Smurfette's dance moves in the above clip are my own choreography, acting out each step when I'm sure nobody else is looking (or doesn't care), draw the movements onto paper and translate them into the computer. So yeah, that's basically me in her poses. But don't get any pupule (crazy) ideas about me, even though I live in hopelessly weird California.
