Joseph Fasolino

I have recently been doing much research on different animators, and over the past few months I've been obsessed with shows such as Pendelton Ward's "Adventure Time," and "Regular Show." I have come across a show called "Home Movies," which ran from 1999 to 2004 on Cartoon Network.  It was created by Brendon Small, who hold positions as writer, animator, and composer for the show. Being a musician myself, I thought it was particularly interesting that Small writes all of the episodes, and composes 100% of the music. He actually holds a degree from Berklee College of Music.

The show is supposed to be a parody of Small's life growing up as a teenager. He and his awkward friends go on various misadventures while simultaneously figuring out what it means to grow up.  The show has it's own custom made censor, which is a significantly different pitch than Adult Swim's censor, and it is commonly used for words that Adult Swim would have otherwise allowed. The show also uses it's own process of scriptwriting, called "retroscripting," a process in which scripts are purposely left vague, and the plot is merely outlined. Most dialogue is actually done through improv by the actors.

The show has reach various levels of critical acclaim, and January of 2009, IGN listed Home Movies as the 28th best in the Top 100 Best Animated TV Shows.  Here is the link for Season 2, Episode 1.

'Six Feet Under' Title Sequence

I was recently brainstorming for my final animation project and wanted to look into the creative process. I wanted to see what goes into making a title from nothing but still creating something that centers around a main idea. I watched the 'Six Feet Under' sequence for inspiration and it lead to storyboarding and looking into artist Danny Yount's work. He explains his creative process and how planning ahead is key to animation and creating titles. Each shot must capture the mood of the show and stand alone as a beautiful composition. We talked about composition and framing but storyboarding and coming up with alternatives and backup plans are necessary when creating a title sequence. The sequence refrains from using actors and the ambiguity of the characters and emotional shots create a sense of sorrow and darkness. The font and titles are simple but the composition of the shots is amazing and truly draws the audience in to the main theme of the show in a dark yet beautiful way.

WATCH YOUNT'S TALK BELOW