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Hello to my little followers.

I've moved to Tumblr now.

Check out my stuff at lascaldaferri.tumblr.com

Cheers!

The Magic Moleskin.

For some reason I have been sketching a whole bunch more. It might be because Name Game's one year put me in a really good mood or because the weather is finally getting nicer. Or because I'm getting closer to moving to Vancouver!

I don't know! Here's some drawings!

Some Dapper Young lads..



I really want to make this into a painting...



Japanese Masks...



Some Concepts...





Some Badass Bone-structure..



Another concept...



And last but not least... Me!



I hope I portrayed my "short" well enough.

Stickin it to NYC MTA

This is what I have to do to get to class sometimes...

Meh.

I think I'm just really tired.

I've been trying to write a heart-felt review about Portal 2 but I'm just so exhausted I can't get it out as quickly as I would like to. So to keep you busy here are some sketches I scanned a while ago but forgot existed. Some are studies from Uncharted 3D models... figure out who.

My version of Valve Time

Name Game is one day delayed
IN THE NAME OF SCIENCE!

Also I have a SHIT TON (most accurate unit of measure for art measuring) of sketches and stuff that I've yet to scan/post. I have a very bad habit of starting projects and never finishing them. I've got sketches, mini comics, and an animation that I've been working on.... Then Portal 2 came out and that didn't really help.

I also want to post my own review of Portal 2 and what it means to me. Yeah it might seem dumb, but Portal is a great example of one of those games that puts me in awe, reminds me why I'm going into video game design and renforces some of my cases in the whole "Games as Art" debate (which it is). And besides, this is the internet where I'm allowed to have a dumb voice... encouraged even. I'll go into more depth when I get a chance to write it. Seeing how all my other projects go, there is a good chance that might not be for some time.

And here are some sketches I did while I waited anxiously for Portal 2 to be released. I played through Portal 1 and just did studies of GlaDOS before I began the boss fight.. quite difficult to since she rocks back and forth.

PAX East: A Community with a Reminder.

I'm not really much of a writer so you'll have to excuse my terrible structure, grammar and whatever else I'm doing wrong. It's also about 2AM so I'm tired and will miss many of my mistakes.

Tonight I watched the latest episode of PATV, which was about PAX East. I’ve been meaning to write about my experience at PAX East but as always, life has a tendency to bring up various annoying tasks to get in the way so I’ve been putting it off. But as I watched this episode and saw all of the familiar sites from that glorious weekend, a rush of good feelings came back to me.

Every so often (when I'm lucky), something happens that justifies why I'm pursuing this particular type of career and life style as oppose to blending in with the rest of the world. It can be anything really. A special moment, a new film, art etc etc. Since I've been home in New York (again) it’s been harder to have those moments. I've been out of school since December and am waiting anxiously to move to Vancouver. I've taken a part time job doing shitty office work for a family friend. The few classes that I have been taking in the city are not as mentally stimulating as I originally thought they’d be. Most of my friends are away at school or working so I've been spending a lot of weekends alone.
Long Island appears to be sucking the life out of me.

I decided would take the time I had off to do some stuff for myself. One of those things I planned was PAX. When Name Game started off with Sunday Funnies I really wasn’t sure if it would last. I promised myself though that if Name Game did get a full contract with the Escapist, I would go to PAX East to try and meet my editors. Surely enough Name Game did proceed to a full contract. It looked like I was going to PAX. I didn't know that much about PAX other than it was a hug convention, celebrating nerds through the creators of Penny Arcade. So in preparation I had Name Game stickers and posters printed to promote myself while I was there.

I had never been to any sort of gaming convention before. I was expecting the whole experience to be good fun for a weekend. Taking a load off while seeing some new toys. What I didn't expect was how it would restore my sanity and show me again it's okay to be who I am. Going to PAX was one of the most surreal experiences I've had in a very long time. It didn't feel like a convention of strangers. It felt like a community. A close one at that. I felt more at home there than I did living with my family in New York for the past several months. I was actually appalled by how nice everyone was. I realized later it was so easy to talk to anyone because they had similar interests in mind; something I've had trouble finding since I’ve been separated from most of my close friends.

I spent my first day wondering alone since my friend, Patrick, wasn’t flying in until that night. I didn’t really have much of an agenda so I kinda wung it. After seeing the Portal 2 booth and going to the Penny Arcade Q & A I didn’t have anything in particular I wanted to do. I was exausted since I had been carrying heavy posters in my bag, along with a makeshift PodiBama picket sign (a podibama poster taped to a piece of cardboard, taped to a broken light saber toy) which was stupid inconvenient to carry. I decided to go to the Blanimations panel to have a place to sit while listening to some good comedy. I parked myself in the back, fairly isolated from the rest of the audience. As I relaxed for a bit I could see people getting up and walking through the isles to leave the panel. Through the light coming from the entrance doors I realized that two of those people were oddly familiar. They were none other than Graham and Kathleen from Loading Ready Run. After frantically grabbing my stuff and following after them I found Graham outside talking to some fans. I decided to introduce myself. I was a tad fan-struck and nervous. I stumbled over my words a bit but then we just got a conversation going and he felt like an old pal. Shortly after Kathleen and Paul joined us and I ended up hanging with them for most of the day. At one point when we were talking to some fans that came up to them for pictures and autographs I said they (LRR) are being nice enough to let me follow them around. To which Kathleen replied, "You're not following us. You're hanging out with us." I was humbled. These were the people who I would crowd around a computer with my friends in high school at lunchtime to watch every week. Now here I was not only hanging out with them but they actually enjoyed my company.

Soon after something really unexpected happened... I met a fan of Name Game. A guy, Brian, had recognized my PodiBama Poster and stopped to say he was a fan. I think I was more excited then he was. The best part was he wasn’t the last one. I continued to meet more fans throughout the day and the rest of the weekend. But for the rest of that whole first day I was shaking. I couldn’t believe all of this was entirely real.

The next day I finally met my editor, Susan Arednt, who greeted me with a big smile and a warm hug. I met other writers and staff of the Escapist including Greg Tito, MovieBob and Shamus Young. They were all just as amazing. Since almost all of our communication is done through email it was nice to see that these people had faces and real personalities. They were all warm, welcoming and entirely too funny. For the rest of the time there I enjoyed playing new games, meeting more new people and going to various panels. I even hope I might get to talk at one some day.

Going to PAX East was probably one of the most important decisions I’ve made since I’ve been off from school. It was one of those times where I was reminded why I do what I do. A feeling I hadn’t had since I took my first game design course at art school. In those three days I felt more alive then I ever did back home. It reminded me that there are other people, a lot in fact, that are just like me. Nerds, artists, and writers who are all really big kids with a lot of love to give. A community I want to continue to stay a part of. A truly genuine and honest community (extremely hard to come by in Long Island). A community that restores my life and spirit.

I must thank all of those who helped make Name Game what it is today. My editors, The Escapist, my friends, my family, and most importantly my fans. My community. By keeping Name Game going you have given me opportunities like this. You have also given me something to look forward to creating each week when home life seems bleek. Something that keeps me on my toes a bit and helps me grow as an artist.

And thank you PAX East for bringing all this back to me. I can’t wait to go to PAX Prime.


The aftermath of my PodiBama Picket sign.

Bread Makes You Fat?!

I just got Scott Pilgrim Vs The World : The Game and it's quickly becoming my new obsession. I love 8 Bit side scrollers. I just wish it was a DS game. That's definitely something I would love to have on the go. Since I got the game it's only natural I decided to watch the movie again. The thing is every time I they refer to Giddian as "G-Man" I can't help but associate it with THE G-man from Half-Life.. Seriously. I can't be the only one to think of that...

So I quickly wiped this up.




I also have a few itty bitty comics that I'm working on about random encounters I've had while walking around in New York. I'll post them as soon as they're done.

There are Never Enough Hours...

I've been super busy yet I'm still extremely behind. PAX sort of screwed up my schedule though I think it was worth it. Now I'm just working my ass off for Scholarship stuff for VFS.

This is a character design for my project.



And here's a little something from PAX. Of course my friend Patrick got more love from the Loading Ready Run crew on camera. Though I did spend most of the first day hanging out with them.



I was also in their video very breifly as seen here.

And here's Kathleen and myself as seen on Grahams Twitter.




Also I have a twitter now! You should follow me.

http://twitter.com/#!/LaScaldaferri

The Tortured Soul of an Artist

Instead of working on Name Game or my scholarships for VFS or settling my VISA or ya know any of those other important things I should probably be focusing on.... I did this.





I think the only part of this that's not true is the fact that I've never used the phrase "boy howdy"

St Patty's Day Preview

In preperation for PAX I'm attempting to do 2 comics in one week... This is particularly difficult since both these comics are LONG and/or STORY ARCHS. One of them is also the St Patricks Day one.

On the bright side my brain's lack of sleep produces entertaining things like this.



Should be an interesting strip.

Gotta Stick Together

So my last Name Game seemed to be quite a success (no where near as much as the Valentine's day one but a success nonetheless)

I love reading the comments I get, especially when viewers have better ideas than I do. Something that came up was Podibama T-shirts which I think is a fabulous idea.

Something else that came up from Grey Carter of Critical Miss was this :

http://www.freeimagehosting.net/image.php?f995a7dbf9.jpg

Made me smile.

For the record this poster will be handed out at PAX East for free along with the stickers I posted on my earlier blog post. So if you're gonna be there, find me. Not sure how. Just do it.

Free Advertising

I decided since I'm going to PAX east (with a fancy media badge) I thought it would be a good opportunity to do some advertising. That is why I'm handing out FREE stickers and posters... now the trick is to find people who are interested.

This is the design for the sticker. The poster will be a little surprise as time goes on.

Back to Square One

I've been trying to get tickets to PAX East lately. Things haven't been going so smoothly. I originally planned to get a media badge but then didn't feel like applying. So my friend and I decided just to get the 3 day pass. I checked online today to find that they are all sold out.... so instead of paying $70 for 2 days.... I'm applying for the media badge... sigh.

In other news this piece was brought to my attention by the charming Johnathan Grey Carter of Critical Miss. I decided it was about time to work on it again (after like 7 months) and I have to say I'm glad he reminded me of it... it might even become business card worthy. Here are some progression thinggys. I'm still not done.






The original sketch (in case you forgot)

Rant Rant Rant

Sorry guys. No artwork in this post. But there is something that has just been brought to my attention that I really want to talk about. I'm not sure how many fans I have on my blog so I might be only speaking to about 10 people, but I want to talk about this anyway.

I just read Yahtzee's Extra Punctuation this week about American Box Art. I actually didn't know that there was different box art done for different countries (so often). It makes sense now that I think about it, but why does America get the short end of the stick? Yahtzee was absolutely right, US box art is total shit. It completely bastardizes the look and feel of the game. As I was looking at the examples he gave I couldn't understand why it kept happening. There shouldn't be much of a difference, right? I mean don't they come from similar producers and artists? Then I remembered a RSA lecture I watched given by Sir Ken Robinson. Of course our artist aren't thinking the same way as foreign artist. From the start we are educated in such a way that ignores potential talent, puts down visual learners, and medicates children with emotions. I know this to be true because all my memories of elementary school are tied with feelings of being mentally inept or slow. I remember feeling horrible when I didn't score as high as the other children on standardized tests because I was told "That is what you're suppose to do". The only time I felt self-worth was in my art class. But sadly we only had it once a week for about 30 - 40 minutes at a time.

This feeling followed me throughout middle school, and it actually got worse. My academic grades were terrible and I couldn't understand why I wasn't as smart as the other kids. When I got to high school I was told for the first time that I could make a living out of being an artist from my Art teacher. She explained I could go to Art school after I graduate. After I learned this fact, my grades improved, my art got better and I had much more confidence in myself because I finally felt like I amounted to something. That small boost of confidence was a complete catalyst of helping me be a more competent human being.

Unfortunately, The entire process of feeling like crap took hold again when it came time to take the SATs. I'm not a good test taker. I'm not a strong reader, I suck at math and my spelling is god-awful (my first Name Game entries are evidence of this). So you could imagine the SATs were my version of Hell at the time. The US is the ONLY country that has the SATs. Just like how we're one of two countries that still don't use the damn metric system.

Another issue is the costs/expenses. For those of you who don't know, Art schools are private schools. The tuition to some can match those of great universities and even ivy leagues. The tuition is high, the art supplies are expensive and the grading can be complete subjective bullshit. The worst part, there are little to no scholarships available. Jobs are extremely competitive once you do graduate and that doesn't help when you have loans to pay. At the end of my high school career, there was a small ceremony for Senior awards. There were various disciplines such as math, science, business, music etc. I won a little art award that was nothing more then a wooden plaque that basically said "Ya did good, Kid". The business awards on the other hand, were given grants and scholarships on fucking embossed glass plaques. Hold the phone, they're giving money to the kids that they think are going to make money anyway? I understand they might believe it's an "investment" but why are the arts, something that influences lives every day, seen as something not worth investing in? Maybe if a few dollars were thrown our way we could make a notable difference.

Other countries offer a lot more support towards the arts for a lot less. They're aware that the arts are a key factor in keeping people more well rounded and wholesome. I'm doing everything in my power to try and study abroad just to get a small taste of what that life is like. I'm also trying to do what I can to bring that life home. Of course there are exceptions. The US has produced a handful of artists throughout the years. This is not to say that I don't have an appreciation for academics. I'm well aware of their importance. They're just incredibly imbalanced. I know that if I had the artistic enrichment at a much earlier age I could have been a much better artist as a result.

Think of it this way. Almost everything you touch, someone had to sit down and design it. People who believe the arts aren't necessary or influential deserve a swift kick to the face. If the US understands this fact and starts producing better artist maybe our box art won't suck as much.

Keep the art alive guys. If we loose the arts, we loose what makes us human.

Digital Luv

This is what happens when you play too much Little Big Planet 2 and listen to too much Daft Punk... oh what am I saying? You can never have enough Daft Punk.

And the cuteness of the Sackbots literally make it hard for me to play. I can't take it.

This is just a progress shot. I'm still working on it.

Off to the Great White North!!

I'm going to Vancouver tomorrow! I'm going to go visit Vancouver Film school and go to the Game Design expo they host. I'm so excited! I'll be sure to post pictures/sketches I do while I'm there. I'm catching Red Eyes both ways so I'm not sure if I'll be sketching on the plane but we'll see.

Anyway. These are some sketches I've never posted here and I just recently found them again.. They're a bit old but, enjoy.

Podi Dance

Here's something I did while I was stuck on the last Name Game. This is me practicing new techniques in photoshop. Funny how it looks almost exactly the same.

I'm such a Bum.

I'm really bad at being consistant with posting stuff. Lately I've been such a bum about doing work. I've been chilling out since it's technically my vacation. Mostly catching up on video games. I played through Uncharted 1 and 2 this past week. Those games are awesome. They also kept me from working on Name Game... which is not too awesome.

What has also kept me distracted is this..





That's right. After months of planning I FINALLY built my PC. This little baby includes, AMD Phenom II Cpu, Radeon HD SAPPHIRE Vapor-X graphics card, 8GB of G.SKILL Ripjaws RAM all incased in a sexy NZXT case. I call it the Citadel Core. I can't wait to start animating and gaming on this thing. Unfortunetly I'm still waiting on a friend to get me a copy of Windows 7 so I'm running a crappy copy of XP. But at least it's built. As you can see it's hard at work loading all my games on Steam..

Oh and here's some art too. I don't know what they are yet, but they'll be something soon.