Episodes

  • Welcome back to Part 02 of our conversation with DeadEndia creator and showrunner - and pitch extraordinaire - Hamish Steele!

    Last episode we talked about how the original DeadEndia story drew from some of the real life experiences Hamish and his friends had, and how our own real life experiences are, and can be, reflected in the shows that we watch and create.

    Now in Part 02, we’re picking up again as Hamish considers what’s most important about DeadEndia that he really wanted to protect as it became an animated show, as well as:
    - Plenty of pitching advice gleaned from Hamish’s years of experience (including a link on diyanimation.show to his pitching webinar, 'How to Pitch Perfectly'!)
    - How collaboration can bolster representation and amplify others’ voices
    - Hamish’s wonderfully straight-forward answer to ‘guilty’ pleasures
    - And his dearest wish for DeadEndia, and how you can help make it happen!

    This episode is an indie production from your hosts, Jessica Doll & Lauren Morse.
    Our theme music is provided by Azureflux.

  • Hey you! Welcome back to The DIY Animation Show! We’re kicking off Season 5 with DeadEndia creator and showrunner, Hamish Steele!

    Possibly best currently known for his graphic novel, DeadEndia*, Hamish also has wide experience of developing and pitching animated shows, directing and writing with Blink Industries, has won an Eisner award, AND is a self-confessed zine enthusiast (if you ever get your eyes on his Paul Rudd zine, you won’t regret it!). His work is silly and fun, and infused with warmth and a real heart for human experience.

    We were super excited to speak with him all about DeadEndia - to discover how his webcomic became an animated series, and what that process was like - and enjoyed an incredibly uplifting and astute conversation, ranging from his broad work experience to his and his friends’ own personal experience of life.

    Today in Part 01 Hamish shares with us...
    - All about Deadendia - its roots, its heart, and its 10-year journey from short, to webcomic, to published book, to animated series
    - His experiences of show development and writing
    - What it’s like showrunning during the UK’s covid-19 lockdown, and finding ways to keep the team’s spirits buoyed up
    - And the importance of being part of the conversation about LGBT representation

    This episode is an indie production from your hosts, Jessica Doll & Lauren Morse.
    Our theme music is provided by Azureflux.

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  • Whaaaaaat! It’s season 5 of the DIY Animation Show! It’s been a very strange year, with a lot of unexpected events, but we're back and excited for this new Season of the Show!We’ll be here on January 27th with our first guest of Season 5 - DeadEndia creator & show runner, and pitch extraordinaire, Hamish Steele! He was such a joy to talk with, and it’s such an uplifting and encouraging conversation; we think you’re going to love it!We’re also trying some new things this season, so listen to the recording for all the details. The short version is:___ a more raw feel to the show, with less intense editing___ a more spontaneous and flexible release schedule___ and a broader range of topicsWe’re really looking forward to this season of DIYA, and want to thank you for your support, patience and for sticking with us

  • Bonjour et bienvenue to the DIY animation show! We are back with part 2 of our interview with Kevin Gemin, aka KekeFlipNote, as well as our final episode of season four!

    Last time, we learned how the Nintendo DSi ignited Kevin’s passion for animating that still burns strong to this day. We were also given a detailed walkthrough of just how he makes his adorable, bouncing animations, as well as how to survive the naysayers and focus on what brings you joy.

    Today in Part 2, Kevin continues to enlighten us…
    - ...As he recounts how he came to work on the video series 'L'Odyssee de Klassik'
    - The most challenging episode of 'L'Odyssee de Klassik' and why
    - Tips for animating dance to music
    - Practices for supporting other artists online and protecting your own work
    - And the one most vital thing he thinks a diy animator needs!

    This episode wraps up Season 4 of the DIY Animation Show. This summer, there won’t be any season break posts as we both have big personal things coming up - moving, job transitions - you all know what that’s like! So we hope you all have a fantastic spring and summer, filled with fun and animation, and we’ll see you back here for Season 5 in autumn 2020! (Be on the lookout - we’ll post a teaser the week before we release the first new episode!)

    Until then, follow your heart, and have fun animating!

    This episode is an indie production from your hosts, Jessica Doll & Lauren Morse.
    Our theme music is provided by Azureflux.

  • What do pigeons, baguettes, and a Nintendo DSi all have in common?
    Kevin Gemin, of course! AKA 'KekeFlipnote'!

    Hailing from France, Keke’s work overflows with joy and charm.
    It’s easy to recognize his work. Quite often, his animations feature adorably bouncy, dancing, happy animals, smiling and living their best lives in silly and sweet scenarios.

    On top of this, the aesthetic of his animations is completely unique. Using his trusty Nintendo DSi as his go-to tool, the final look of his animations is a semi-pixelated 2D affair, unable to be replicated using any other program outside of the FlipNote Studio app.

    If you ever need to put a smile on your face, just turn to Keke’s work. You’ll be grinning ear-to-ear in no time!

    In today’s interview, we learn…
    - “Why pigeons, foxes, and baguettes?”
    - How FlipNote Studio’s unique magic captured Keke’s heart
    - Exactly how Keke creates one of his gifs in FlipNote Studio… and it’s not as straight-forward as you’d think
    - How Keke makes his squash and stretch ‘just so squashy and stretchy’
    - And surviving the naysayers and focusing on what brings you joy

    This episode is an indie production from your hosts, Jessica Doll & Lauren Morse.
    Our theme music is provided by Azureflux.

  • Happy Holidays! In this year's Christmas special, we're shooting the breeze about the incredible Klaus (Netflix 2019), our plans for the holiday break, personal projects, hopes for 2020, and way too much food. Grab a tasty hot beverage, some cosy socks, and hang with us for some super chill Christmas vibes!
    <3 Jess & Lauren

    This episode is an indie production from your hosts, Jessica Doll & Lauren Morse.
    Big thank you to Antisocialite and SadBunny for this episode’s Holiday-themed music.
    Intro: Antisocialite - https://soundcloud.com/antisocialite/8-bit-wish-you-a-merry-christmas
    Outro: SadBunny - https://soundcloud.com/sadbunny/sadbunny-christmas-chiptune-medley

  • Hallo, gutentag, and welcome back to the DIY Animation show!

    We’re here with part 2 of our interview with Thomas Wellmann - background artist on Clarence and Summer Camp Island, Adventure Time storyboard artist, illustrator, AND indie comics creator in his spare time.

    Last time, in Part 1 Thomas shared his process for creating backgrounds for animation, as well as discussing his lo-fi, grounded approach to making his art, and encouraging the evolution of your visual style.

    And in case you missed it, be sure to check out his latest book, 'Nika, Lotte, Mangold!' It looks so good, and is available from publisher Rotopol Press - http://www.rotopolpress.de/en/produkte/nika-lotte-mangold-zeichenheft

    So today in Part 2 of our interview, Thomas talks about
    - His free-fly approach to character design
    - His creative process for making his comics
    - He breaks down some helpful techniques for creating backgrounds with crazy perspective
    - Discusses the importance of finishing things
    - And, of course, shares the one most vital thing he thinks a DIY Animator(or creator! needs

    Plus, we have a bonus conversation on whether we really need websites, and what Germany’s comics scene was like.

    Thomas has such great creative energy, and a real passion for exploring and making, so grab your bare essentials and adventure boots, and let's get on with the show!

    This episode is an indie production from your hosts, Jessica Doll & Lauren Morse.
    Our theme music is provided by Azureflux.

  • Today we talk with story and background artist Thomas Wellmann, calling all the way from Germany!

    Thomas Wellmann wears many hats as an artist, being an illustrator, a background artist for Clarence and Summer Camp Island, a storyboard artist on Adventure Time, and an indie comics creator in his spare time!

    We were initially stoked to pick his brains just about making backgrounds for some of our favourite shows. But as we soon learned, and as you’ll soon hear, his wealth of experience lead to an enriching discussion on what it means to tell a visual story, whether through backgrounds, comics, or in the simplest of drawings.

    We loved his grounded, simple approach to his art, as well as his enthusiasm and curiosity towards making it, and we know you will too!

    So today in pt 1, we talk with Thomas about:
    - How he got to work on Adventure Time & Clarence… while still living in Germany
    - His favourite things that help him work effectively from home
    - His technical nuts & bolts process for creating backgrounds for Clarence
    - His lo-fi, no-frills approach to creating his art
    - And His philosophy on visual style and encouraging its evolution

    This episode is an indie production from your hosts, Jessica Doll & Lauren Morse.
    Our theme music is provided by Azureflux.

  • We're back with part 2 of our interview with Kate Sullivan, the magical Guardian behind the wheel of fan-animations, Moon Animate Make-Up 1 and 2!

    In part 1, Kate touched on what her re-animated project process was like, the state of 2D animation, what makes a great demo reel, and what hustling really looks like.

    Now, here in part 2, Kate dives into more detail about:
    - her project management process for Moon Animate Make-Up 2, from breaking down the episode, to dishing out the work, to putting it all together
    - discusses the importance of fan creations and making the transition from fan to professional
    - we also go over the importance of timing for your animated project, career, and any aspect of life
    - and, of course, the one most vital thing she thinks a DIY animator needs!

    We should mention Kate's audio gets iffy in places - her WiFi and Skype were having a tough time, BUT we so enjoyed Kate’s active energy and love of Sailor Moon, and her optimism and excitement for what the animation community will create next shines through.

    In the name of Moon Animate, let’s start part 2!

  • Season 4 is here! And boy, do we have a good’un - we talk with powerhouse & pioneer Kate Sullivan, all about project managing her legendary Sailor Moon re-animation collabs: Moon Animate Make-Up!

    As well as giving us a look into the project management-side of Moon Animate Make-Up 1 & 2, Kate also drops some real talk on the state of 2D animation, what makes a brilliant demo reel, and what hustling really looks like.

    Whether you want to head up a similar collaboration or take part in one, this episode is for you!

    And now, in the name of the Moon, check out this interview!

    This episode is an indie production from your hosts, Jessica Doll & Lauren Morse.
    Our theme music is provided by Azureflux.

  • We will be tabling at Denver Pop Culture Con 2019! Woohoooo!!!

    What is Denver Pop Culture Con, you may ask? Held in Denver, Colorado, and formerly titled Denver Comic Con, DPCC is a 3-day family friendly pop culture convention that features some of the best in pop culture entertainment. This year, it runs from Friday May 31st - Sunday June 2nd at the Colorado Convention center.

    We’ll be at booth CC11 promoting the show, selling special DIYA stickers, and geeking out with people about animation (of course!). Jess will also be selling some prints and commissions for those interested!

    To hear more details - including a special secret code for convention freebies that you won’t want to miss - check out the audio recording!

    Let us know if you’ll be there! And if you can’t, never fear! You can check out our social channels during the convention for photo bombs and general convention shenanigans (@DIYAShow on Instagram and Twitter). And a post-convention blog will go up in June featuring photos from the trip, stories, and who knows what else!

  • Today we bring you Part 2 of our uplifting interview with Creator & Director Cinzia Angelini and Producer Andrea Emmes, all about their high-quality 3D short, “Mila”, raising awareness about children impacted by war.

    In case you missed it, in part 1, we talked about...
    - Mila’s real-life origins, drawn from the childhood experience of Cinzia’s mother during WWII
    - The realities of running a professional studio on donations, an Indiegogo campaign, and a GIANT team of international volunteers
    - All whilst also cultivating a fulfilling working environment for those volunteers

    Cinzia and Andrea have such great drive and courage, enabling them to make a real impact for such a poignant issue. With these two at the helm, Mila looks like she’ll have a very bright future ahead of her.

    So Today, in Part 2, Cinzia and Andrea share:
    - Tips for finding projects like Mila to work on, regardless of your location
    - Why you should choose a story that’s significant to you for your own animated project
    - Technical advantages of scripts vs. storyboards, and how to best balance the two during production
    - Why the hashtags #letschoosehope and #letsmakeadifference are Mila’s calling-card
    - Tips for telling a serious story with sensitivity and focus
    - And, of course: The one most vital thing a DIY animator needs!

    This episode is an indie production from your hosts, Jessica Doll & Lauren Morse.
    Our theme music is provided by Azureflux.

  • We’re here with Writer, Director, and Creator Cinzia Angelini and Producer Andrea Emmes to discuss 'Mila', an incredible 3D short film raising awareness about children impacted by war.

    Cinzia has a personal connection with this short film - Mila is based on her mother’s own childhood experience of bombing raids in her hometown during World War II. With Andrea Emmes on board as Mila's producer, these two have become an unstoppable team that has grown to a world-wide production.

    A 350-volunteer, 35-country spanning, high-quality CG short film, Mila has thrived since 2011 with no studio backing and just a modest funding campaign to cover the film’s bare essentials. A community of volunteers, a few sponsors, many hours, and a whole lot of love made Mila possible.

    Today in Part 1, Cinzia and Andrea tell us about:

    - The story of Mila’s real-life origins
    - Running a professional studio on volunteers, donations, and an Indiegogo campaign
    - Managing a GIANT team spread across the whole planet
    - The best places to spend what money you do have once you've raised it
    - And how to create a healthy working environment for your volunteers through paying it forward

    This episode is an indie production from your hosts, Jessica Doll & Lauren Morse.
    Our theme music is provided by Azureflux.

  • In today’s episode, we dive further into Collin's Part 1 mic-drop - how limitation is the mother of creativity - this time from the lens of fan art and fan creations, as well as talking shop and getting into the nitty-gritty technical aspects of his animations.

    Here are some of our favorite points this episode:
    - Collin’s thorough break-down of elements for engaging animated action choreography
    - The understanding, use, and legality of fanart
    - The structural similarities between jokes and fight scenes
    - The importance of representation in media
    - Technical overlaps between comics and animation
    - And Collin’s take on “the one most vital thing an animator needs”

    This episode is an indie production from your hosts, Jessica Doll & Lauren Morse.
    Our theme music is provided by Azureflux.

  • Happy New Year and welcome back! We're continuing Season 3 today with a new guest - the indefatigable Collin "Skipperwing" Byrd, creator of action-packed, animated webcomic, The Crimson Fly!

    Originally debuting in 2015, Collin’s ‘Crimson Fly’ is an examination of the intricacies of being a superhero, and combines the freedom of animated movement and the storytelling of comics to tell his story in the most complete way possible, as he meets any obstacle this unique artform throws his way with full gusto.

    We are also excited to announce that Collin is revamping his comic in full - from its visuals to updated coding - and has treated us to a teaser of the new animation! Find a link to a sneak peek in the blogpost for this episode diyanimation.show/diya16 , and keep an eye out for the revamped ‘Crimson Fly’ to debut sometime in the very near future!

    Today with Collin, we talk about:
    - The origin and evolution of the Crimson Fly
    - Negotiating and creating an intuitive animated reading experience for your audience
    - A thorough overview of his entire process for making his animated comic
    - His social promo process
    - How limitation is the mother of creativity

    This episode is an indie production from your hosts, Jessica Doll & Lauren Morse.
    Our theme music is provided by Azureflux.

  • Happy Holidays! Today we ask each other the questions, reveal Lauren's ultimate Ugly Christmas Jumper, and discover just how many Tamales Jess can eat over Christmas. So grab a cosy sweater (ugly or non-ugly), some tasty treats and join us for a chilled Christmas hangout!
    <3 Jess & Lauren

    This episode is an indie production from your hosts, Jessica Doll & Lauren Morse.
    Big thank you to Antisocialite and SadBunny for this episode’s Holiday-themed music.
    Intro: Antisocialite - https://soundcloud.com/antisocialite/8-bit-wish-you-a-merry-christmas
    Outro: SadBunny - https://soundcloud.com/sadbunny/sadbunny-christmas-chiptune-medley

  • Following on from Part 1 of our interview with Jocie Juritz (our first conversation, recorded back in 2016), today’s episode sees us catch up with her earlier in this year, 2018.

    Jocie had a lot of promising projects in the pipeline last time we spoke, and has been up to so much in these two years.  If you follow her on Instagram, or her other social media, you'll know how she's consistently playing with animation, DIY-ing it, keeping that spirit of experimentation and curiosity, and ensuring her voice is at the core of all she does.  So we couldn't wait to hang out again, pick her brains about her latest projects and soak up more of her deep cogitations on animation.  It's another bumper episode!

    Today, in part 2, we have a brilliant, eye-opening conversation about:

    - How she handles her client work
    - How animation is perfectly poised to broach sensitive topics
    - Brain compost (yes, you read right)
    - Facing her fears about analogue traditional animation
    - The pros of drawing badly

    This episode is an indie production from your hosts, Jessica Doll & Lauren Morse.
    Our theme music is provided by Azureflux.

  • Tell us… are you sitting comfortably?

    We bring you a special episode of The DIY Animation Show this Halloween...  A spine-chilling collection of astonishing Animation Horror Stories!

    Every interview, we ask each of our guests for a horror story - either a spooky thing that happened, or (more often than not...) an occasion when things just went horribly awry… (we’ve all been there).

    And guests Alex & Lindsay Small-Butera, Jim Lujan, Todd Favela, Adam Floeck & Nate Swinehart, and Jocie Juritz share with us their tremendous Tales of Terror!

    We're sure lots of these stories will sound familiar, but if they don’t...
    Animator -- BEWAAAAARRREEEE!

    Without further ado, we present to youuuu...

    Animation Horror Stories!

    This episode is an indie production from your hosts, Jessica Doll & Lauren Morse.
    The music for this episode is provided by Azureflux - 'Wizard House' from 'Mean Machine', and 'Haunted Woods' from 'Eighth Chip Tangent'.

  • It's the Season 3 premiere of the DIY Animation Show!
    ...and what better way to kick off this Season with none other than Animation director & Experimentalist, Jocie Juritz!

    Professionally, Jocie crafts beautiful 2D animated projects with a gorgeous hand-made look. She specialises in PSAs and documentaries dealing with pertinent topics, interesting factoids, even book trailers, and teaches animation classes in her spare time. In her personal work, you’ll find slice-of-life gifs, featuring her cats, plants, and other joyful things.

    We were drawn to her colourful, soulful work, and enjoyed an engaging, thoughtful conversation with her, discussing animation on a fundamental, artistic level. It’s like a soothing balm for the creative soul.

    We first spoke to her in 2016, and so enjoyed our conversation
    Timeless insights still hold up two years later.

    Today, in Part 1 of Jocie’s interview, we discuss:

    - Designing movement and emotion with shapes
    - Emphasizing narrative over animation principles
    - Constructing the optimal gif
    - Freely using trial and error as a tool of development
    - Her approach to colour
    - And the one most vital thing Jocie thinks a DIY Animator needs

    This episode is an indie production from your hosts, Jessica Doll & Lauren Morse.
    Our theme music is provided by Azureflux.

  • Welcome to The DIY Animation Show’s first ever Season Break! We kick it all off today with a catch-up with Adam Floeck and Nate Swinehart!

    Since their original interview with us (recorded in 2016), Adam & Nate have been hard at work pitching 'The Sentinel' to different networks in the hopes of getting it greenlit for a series.

    What followed, and what we’ll hear about today, is a series of pitching adventures, techniques, and personal insights they gained about the Sentinel, themselves, their friendship and their creative endeavours.

    Gather round as Adam & Nate share...
    - The latest thrilling chapter in The Sentinel’s tale: The Pitching Quest
    - Lessons learned directly from within the Pitching Room
    - Gaining perspective on your goals and your own sense of timing
    - The importance of relationships with companies, agents, and your creative partner
    - And some exciting new things hovering on the horizon for Adam & Nate’s studio, Boketto

    So grab a drink, put a little umbrella in it, and join us for some pitching adventures!

    Over our 3-month season-break, we'll be supplementing interviews with a new selection of monthly goodies!
    We’ll be back with Season 3 and a new batch of interviews this October.
    In the meantime, keep your eyes on Facebook and Twitter for updates and join us on the blog for new content.

    This episode is an indie production from your hosts, Jessica Doll & Lauren Morse.
    Our theme music is provided by Azureflux.