These days I'm reviewing animatic sequences of the first movie with Phil Weinstein and giving notes on the second movie's storyboards to Vic Cook. Character design is still finishing up designs for the first movie. When things are set on fire, or covered with goo, or torn up, they need to be redrawn for new color models. Plus, every character needs shadows and mouth charts. A mouth chart shows basic positions of the mouth like an "oo" sound or an "eff" so that timing sheets can be filled out to guide animators who don't speak English.
Layouts and props are in great shape with the artists handling last minute designs pulled from the storyboards of the first movie and staying ahead of the storyboard crew of the second movie.
Color is seriously underway with James Gallegos joining Wei Zhao on background paints and Tracy Jones soon to be joined by another stylist on color models. The backgrounds here are all Wei's. The larger paintings are background keys. The sketch with the gold leaves is a color rough done from a small story sketch. We'd love to do more if time permits. It gives us more control over the color of a sequence, adding to the information of the color keys. -- Tad
Very nice - does this mean you'll only be using the new HQ in Colorado , and not the old one in Fairfield?
Posted by: Kim Larsen | January 28, 2006 at 02:46 AM
Great job ! My favourite images so far !
Posted by: Jérôme | January 28, 2006 at 03:41 AM
I was partial to Fairfield but Mike wanted to use the new HQ. It also provides an easier transition for fans coming from their interest in the movie. It also gives us a stronger agents vs. bureaucracy dynamic which we may play if future stories, assuming there are future stories.
They may work in a big concrete bunker, but they brought their furniture from Fairfield.
Posted by: Tad | January 28, 2006 at 08:34 AM
WOW!!!! I really love the Hellboy in fall sunlit leaves! Perfect mood and atmosphere.
The new BPRD building really has a nice handle on the mix of Mignola shadow shape, Guy's rooftop tech, and Dave Stewart's metal texture. Bravo Tad and Co, Bravo
Posted by: David Petersen | January 28, 2006 at 11:18 AM
http://www.liquidology2.com/fpics/hb.jpg
Awesome site - you guys are doing amazing work on my most favorite character. Please keep it up -- I also included a sculpt I did a while back, it's 180 degrees from what you guys are doing, but hope you guys get a kick out of it.
You guys rule.
Posted by: chris | January 29, 2006 at 01:21 PM
Awesome! I'm glad to see you keeping up-to-date with current events in BPRD/Hellboy comics. Does this mean we might see an appearance of the frog men, or that Abe might know about his past already? :o
Posted by: Siona | January 29, 2006 at 03:37 PM
Great sculpt, Chris. I like its rawness. So many superhero busts get reworked and smoothed until they lose all character.
Sionna, of course I'm up on the BPRD. I'm a fan! Anyway, character-wise I'd say think of the series as being just before WAKE THE DEVIL. Story-wise it's its own world with the first movie including a published short story in full and the second movie includes scenes out of the aforementioned WtD.
Posted by: Tad | January 29, 2006 at 09:58 PM
Hey Tad,
Will there eventually be an official HB animated website, where we'll be able to download, say, a larger version of that castle interior as a wallpaper?
Posted by: Poe | January 30, 2006 at 06:54 AM
An official website is being designed but I doubt that it will go online for a couple of months. Those sorts of things are all about building toward a release date and this is too early. It's supposed to have all sorts of goodies.
Posted by: Tad | January 30, 2006 at 10:25 AM
Awasome work! Very nice light in the background. Upsetting color palet. I like the cold light and the contrast of the forest with hellboy, Hum stone texture ? The Cavendish manor? No it's too exotic, Some souvenir of Rasputin's evocation in the past? (Perhab's an Ankor evocation) Dont' know exactly where it is but the atmosphere is great...
What about the Cavendish place Did you make a reference to what appened here?
I hope so...
Posted by: morrigane | February 02, 2006 at 06:00 AM
Well, I'll miss the Fairfield building, but I'm glad they kept the furniture.
Lovin' yer work, Tad.
Andrea
Posted by: Celtic_Fiddler | February 02, 2006 at 05:42 PM
Well, knowning Hellboy's luck with falling through floors and off other structres, lets hope he can keep his footing in the new base.
Don't want him falling off those cliffs.
Posted by: Dan | February 02, 2006 at 07:23 PM
Cool backgrounds, Tad! Nice gribbly temple/castle looking really good! I'm so disappointed that you're not using Fairfield as the base though, that has to be the only thing I really dislike about the current BPRD setup, it just feels so generic whereas Fairfield had its own character. I know,I know, you can't please 'em all, eh!
Posted by: Dominic Shaw | February 06, 2006 at 05:09 PM
hi, where exactly do you outsource the animation?
Posted by: yano e | February 23, 2006 at 10:48 PM
Beautiful work on a beautiful superhero...loving the awesome work on display..More power to you
Posted by: Indira Bisht | July 11, 2006 at 11:13 PM