www.manofmissle.com

Socially Awkward

2011-09-27T15:20:00.002-04:00

Development work at NEVER SAY DIE Studios

2011-09-13T14:07:00.002-04:00

Roughing it…

2011-09-10T09:13:00.001-04:00

An animator buddy of mine, (Lucas Gilbert), came over last night and asked me if I could help him with his boards for his thesis, so I gave him a hand and cracked out some roughs for him. I personally thought his boards read well and were pretty easy to follow--I can say this without bias because I had my wife check them out, which in my house is a good litmus test, she is brutally honest with me about that kind of stuff. So here are the boards their not pretty at all, but they will do the job for the project and are hopefully clear.

ESPN SPORTS Bar & Grill

2011-07-27T11:56:00.001-04:00

A year of work and now the game is out--now go play it.
Build, decorate and run your own sports bar for free with ESPN Sports Bar on Facebook. Go tohttp://www.ESPNsportsbar.com/

3D printed Zoetrope UPDATE

2011-06-22T00:39:00.006-04:00

On display at the Atrium Gallery

Update from previous post.

When breaking down the support structure to this I broke plate 23 and glued him wrong and now he is a little twisted, this ruins the animation for this zoetrope so I will try to fix him manually if not I will reprint him.

So close…

Frame 23 is WRONG and if not changed must DIE!!!

Click for Animation

The cycle should look more like this--->

Here is the first camera test: LINK

A Sunday Background

2011-06-19T22:01:00.002-04:00

A little background for a friend's short.

See more soon at Green Shoe Animation

Regular Show

2011-05-27T10:30:00.003-04:00

Here were some test boards for the Regular Show's episode that just ran called "Over the Top", these did not make the cut. One of the cool things about the way they do the Regular Show is that it is premised based, so they provide you with an outline and the Story Artist gets to write the script.

Clean Ups:

Thumbnails:

A little friend keeping the lights on…

2011-05-03T12:31:00.002-04:00

A quick 3D render and composite of Sad Robot--he makes me happy.

Interactive 3D Printed Zoetrope as an animation teaching tool

2011-04-04T01:07:00.004-04:00

So where I am at in Indiana there seems to be a lot of confusion on how animation works, I have decided to make an interactive zoetrope with little 3d sculptures that should help the people around here learn a little about the mechanics, or nuts and bolts of animation.

So the zoetrope will have 3 interactive backgrounds.

Will be the poses of the models drawn out to go behind it.
Will be just a nice fun repeating pan, it will only go over the basics and I will not be setting it up to move on ones as the timing will ultimately be varied based on the person spinning it.
Will have some background similar to above but with animated elements to it.

The models/ sculptures will be of my little sad robot character doing a march of sorts, I will have do this part in maya so I can 3D print him and then have him stuck to little numbered wedges that can be placed into the center of the zoetrope. Currently I plan on making the passing positions interchangeable to vary the walk a bit, I am still working his march out but I kicked this out to give an idea where I want to go with it.

When I am done making it I am going to donate it to the local Children's Museum .

Click on Image For Animation

Sam

Chase your dreams…

2011-03-14T17:37:00.000-04:00

…just like butterflies they wont hang around forever.

Organize your I.P.'s

2011-02-26T23:06:00.001-05:00

Here are the worksheets I promised to put up from the workshop.
The following worksheets provided will help you organize your IP and get it ready for pitching.

SuperBowl Mcdonalds Commercial Designs

2011-02-17T22:49:00.002-05:00

So I got to do some designs on a McDonalds commercial that aired this past Super Bowl.

They were stick figures, they turned out out, the animators I work with at Green Shoe Animation did a fantastic job with the parameters we were given.

Here are the designs:

Here is the commercial:

McDonalds Super Bowl Spot 2011 from Green Shoe Animation on Vimeo.

Just for fun here are my favorite designs that they passed on:

Special Thanks to Jason and the rest of the Boys.

Dark Legacy Trading Card Art

2011-01-12T09:45:00.000-05:00

I am getting ready to go to DC for Giga Con with a bunch of really swell guys.

Have a few things I needed to take care of so I knocked these out this morning so I can get them in to the Dark Legacy guys at the convention.

Happy Holidays Everyone!

2010-12-25T01:00:00.000-05:00

Sad Robot hates little Snowmen, wip pt 1

2010-12-01T16:59:00.005-05:00

Just rigged him and this is about an hour into the animation, still a way to go.

Here is where we are at now.

Still needs quite a bit of tweaking.

An open letter to the crew of Tangled

2010-11-24T19:43:00.000-05:00

Sad Robot Modeled

2010-11-06T20:34:00.001-04:00

Now I have to rig him.

Sam

Building A Walk, or, My Richard Williams Exercise For The Day

2010-10-17T23:42:00.003-04:00

Click on the image below for a looping gif

Sam Sightings

2010-08-31T14:00:00.003-04:00

So, when I was a kid one of my school teachers asked me what I wanted to be when I got older, I told her I wanted to be a cartoon character, she promptly told me I couldn't be one--that it was impossible.

So far to date I have been a cartoon character.

On 2 different shows and networks for that matter and not just the voice but actually as my self and thanks to my good friend Mike Getty a comic character as well.

So here is to not listening to scoffing minds that are held down to the confines of reality, the artist or dreamer that reaches beyond the known and into the unknown can achieve the impossible.

Sublime Doughnuts

2010-05-31T20:44:00.005-04:00

So, my bud Myke and I did a few shorts for Sublime Doughnuts, you all should facebook them and follow them on twitter.

So here is the short, no sound here you will have to go to www.sublimedoughnuts.com to get the full version, hope all dig now go "eat one that's worth it".

Click here to see a higher res version.

Sublime Donuts A-Town Cream by ~MissleMan on deviant ART

Sam

Sam Ellis Lead Illustrator and Character Designer for ARCHER on FX Season ONE

2010-03-19T13:54:00.017-04:00

I was lead Illustrator and Character Designer for Archer on FX.

Episode 01 Mole Hunt - Character Designs, Illustrations, Vehicle Designs, Prop Designs, Story Art

This episode was done with the original 70-30 Productions crew and we worked on all the assets and set the look and style of the show between January 2009 - March 2009.

Episode 02 Training Day - Lead Character Designer, Lead Illustrator, Lead Trainer, Artistic Talent Scout

This episode was done with the help of the current crew when we moved over to Radical Axis and leased studio space from them this and subsequent episodes were finished approximately every 3 weeks and 4 days.

I also worked closely with Craig Hartin and Matt Thompson to find new talent for both Floyd County Productions and Radical Axis from this time on.

Episode 03 Diversity Hire - Lead Character Designer, Lead Illustrator, Lead Trainer, Artistic Talent Scout, Actor - Frodo/Sam

Episode 04 Killing Utne - Lead Character Designer, Lead Illustrator, Lead Trainer, Artistic Talent Scout

Episode 05 Honeypot - Lead Character Designer, Lead Illustrator, Lead Trainer, Artistic Talent Scout

Episode 06 Skorpio - Lead Character Designer, Lead Illustrator, Lead Trainer

Episode 07 Skytanic - Lead Character Designer, Lead Illustrator, Lead Trainer

Episode 09 Job Offer - Designer, Illustrator

Episode 10 Dial M for Mother - Designer, Illustrator

Man Of Missle Productions

2010-03-17T21:55:00.004-04:00

is now online…

Your Never Alone

2010-03-03T21:05:00.004-05:00

My Sons and TOTORO: WIP, Part 4

2010-03-03T18:51:00.003-05:00

Final

My Sons and TOTORO: WIP, Part 3

2010-03-03T17:12:00.004-05:00

Designing Zeke, "Miyazaki" style.

Zeke is getting big for a seven year old, most people think he is ten, and he just turned seven on Sunday.

Part of the magic of the Miyazaki films surround a certain age of the characters and because of that I de-aged my son three years and have him looking closer to four.

It was a magic time for him then as it is now, but it is different now he is getting too big, but even though he is big, I can still see that he is very much full of wonder and magic as he discovers the world for himself.

Part 4

My Sons and TOTORO: WIP, Part 2

2010-03-03T10:05:00.005-05:00

So I really wanted the characters to pop from the background at this point, there might be a blending stage later on, but for right now I want the characters to feel like cell art on top of a painted background, so when the kids see it they will feel like they were there in the movie visiting our neighbor Totoro.

To achieve this look I refined my sketch and drew it in Illustrator.

I will, for something like this, just place the image on a layer in Illustrator and draw it out with the pen tool. When I have the outlines of the character I will usually copy and paste the shape behind and change it into a base color, the duplicate it again and erase what I don't need to create my low lights, more or less the same work flow I developed for ARCHER.

From here I am drop in the bus stop sign and the next thing I have on my list is finishing the design of my son's outfit for this piece.

Part 3

My Sons and TOTORO: WIP, Part 1

2010-03-02T19:26:00.007-05:00

For those of you who don't know me on a personal level, I have two kids, Zeke, who is six years old and Ben, who is two.

They are great kids, we have a lot of fun, we chase the dog together, throw sticks, put on puppet shows and watch films by Hayao Miazaki.

The boys favorite film is My Neighbor TOTORO, I also love this movie and so I decided to make a series of portraits of my boys in various scenes of the film done in the style of Miazaki.

I have a month of before the next season of Archer pulls me back to the office, so I decided no time is like the present to get these done, so I thought I would share my process.

This first piece is for my son Zeke.

I wanted to draw him with Totoro waiting at the bus stop, so I started with the background.

After I get the background to where I want it I do a quick sketch of where I want Zeke and Totoro, I give my self a few options for Totoro's business, but I already know where I want Zeke and I will bring in a stop sign later on.

PART 2

ARCHER on FX

2010-02-28T21:24:00.006-05:00

Ad for Archer on FX.

Radical Axis: Fred Flintstone

2010-02-24T20:37:00.002-05:00

Head on over to the Radical Axis Sketch Blog and see what my studio mates are up to.

This weeks challenge : Fred Flintstone

Sam

ARCHER on FX

2010-01-01T21:57:00.002-05:00

2010…

2010-01-01T15:21:00.004-05:00

New Cards

2009-12-28T22:42:00.004-05:00

MISSLEMAN

2009-12-11T11:43:00.000-05:00

"Yes Ma'am--
--insurance would be a very good idea."

Ben Chalfant, the alter ego of MissleMan, was originally a realestate agent in the first book, he blew up the corperate headquarters, I think Insurance salesman might a better choice.

Yeah, his costume change is still just the glasses.

ARCHER promo's on Hulu

2009-11-14T21:05:00.007-05:00

Go check out ARCHER at www.hulu.com

Coming 2010.

FX Networks ARCHER

2009-10-23T22:07:00.005-04:00

Go check out ARCHER at www.fxnetworks.com

Coming 2010 only on

A Real American Hero

2009-10-22T21:34:00.000-04:00

The Xtacles on [adult-swim]

2009-10-22T21:21:00.017-04:00

Xtacle Run Cycle:

Click Image To Run

Designs and illustrations for the show:

The Xcaliber

Police Car from the intro

Old Spice Bike

[adult-swim] The Xtacles Episode 102

2009-10-22T20:28:00.006-04:00

The too short lived pretty funny Spin-off of [adult-swim]'s FRISKY DINGO, the show featured the voice talents of Marshall Bell, Michael Ian Black, and Rachael Harris.

If you have the opportunity to watch it do it and look for me, I make a couple guest appearances in it as myself.

CAPTAIN LIEFELD's FORCE BRIGADE

2009-03-28T13:19:00.006-04:00

[adult-swim] The Xtacles Unaired Episode

2009-03-28T13:15:00.003-04:00

[adult-swim] The Xtacles Episode 102

2009-03-28T13:14:00.007-04:00

Fun Beard's Interior

Fun Beard's Exterior

Mr. Ford's Rocket Carlo Exterior

Mr. Ford's Rocket Carlo Interior

StarWars Misc.

2008-07-11T23:58:00.008-04:00

Naruto_02

2008-05-18T20:30:00.008-04:00

Click for Sketch

SKETCH DUMP

2008-05-18T15:47:00.010-04:00

Life Drawing

Doing it Vilppu Style

Can't help my self, when I start drawing too fast…

Superheroes show up…

…and Sausages, and Megatron.

Drawing for My Kids

2008-05-18T00:43:00.011-04:00

ROBOT COWBOY SAMURAI "The Hive"

2008-03-28T13:21:00.000-04:00

[adult-swim] FRISKY DINGO

2008-01-22T21:04:00.003-05:00

Color Rough

35. BEE is the NEWEST Addition to the ELLIS CLAN

2007-12-14T19:00:00.000-05:00

We started the day at 5AM and Jenn and I were ready for Ben to come.

12 hrs, 4 pushes, and just a little bit of vomit later…

AND…

…Poof!

Now that's how babies are born.

Benjamin Ephraim Ellis was born today at 5:47PM.

He will make a fine new addition and probably a pretty sweet Robin.

-Sam

34. Dethlok vs. Benjamin Ephraim Ellis

2007-12-14T06:24:00.001-05:00

I was going to go see Dethlok in Atlanta last night, but baby number two is about to join our family this morning, I'm sitting in the hospital and I will post some pics up later.

-Sam

[adult-swim] FRISKY DINGO Episode 208

2007-12-13T11:08:00.007-05:00

[adult-swim]'s FRISKY DINGO.

These clips are from Episode 208,

so sit back, relax and get your self some big pants...

Spider-Man

2007-12-07T22:04:00.004-05:00

The Sketches for spiderman001 - spiderman005.

The Pluton and WOtS'UP

2007-12-07T22:02:00.005-05:00

So when Pluto lost it's planetary status I was contacted by these guys to do their logo, I have no clue where they are now, but I hear Pluto is still just past Neptune.

MARVEL COMICS Spider-Man_005

2007-12-07T21:48:00.004-05:00

Spidey Likey SODA POP!

MARVEL COMICS Galactus

2007-12-06T16:42:00.005-05:00

No You Cannot HAS Cheeseburger…

MARVEL COMICS Spider-Man

2007-12-06T16:28:00.004-05:00

THWIP!

Wheee!

Spider Sense Tingling!

Back in Black
-- I know it's cliche…

Family Values

2007-12-06T13:19:00.002-05:00

Sketch

Color MockUP

Star Wars Christmas Card

2007-12-06T13:02:00.002-05:00

This years Christmas Card Design.

Front

Inside

Studio Challenge # 007

2006-11-20T10:43:00.000-05:00

This weeks Challenge over at FMLB COMICS.

Sam Ellis-

Studio Challenge # 006

2006-11-20T10:38:00.000-05:00

This weeks challenge at FMLB COMICS.

Sam Ellis-

2009 Portfolio

2006-11-09T11:07:00.003-05:00

All artwork is ™ and © 2009 Sam Ellis and their respective owners and is included herein for scholarly review no portion of this video may be copied or distributed without written consent by the owner.

Working with Getty (part 2)

2006-11-02T23:26:00.002-05:00

Like I said before, I like working with Mike. He drew this sketch of Kate from LOST.
I told him I wanted to color it-- so I did.

Mike's Sweet Lines

Some Colors

Sam Ellis-

Working with Getty (part 1)

2006-11-01T23:12:00.001-05:00

I like working with Mike Getty, even if he doesn't know I'm working with him, he drew a sweet Hellboy sketch for this weeks challenge over at http://fmlbcomics.blogspot.com, but I couldn't help photoshoping it to give it some Shakesperean flare. Then I decided to ink it, and after that I figured, "Hey, why not color it".

Getty's Photoshoped Pencils My Inks and Colors

Sam Ellis-

HELLBOY

2006-10-31T13:56:00.004-05:00

Here are the scribbles

HELLBOY

2006-10-30T20:24:00.005-05:00

Here is my work process

MISSLEMAN

2006-10-25T21:48:00.007-04:00

Desktop Download

Studio Challenge # 004

2006-10-24T01:19:00.000-04:00

This weeks challenge was "Favorite Movie Monster"
I always liked "Griffin" the Invisible Man.

Click to see-- maybe...

Sam Ellis-

Sad Robot

2006-10-22T20:43:00.000-04:00

The following story can be seen in SCIENCE,

a comic anthology distributed by TOP SHELF Comics.

MissleMan man of missle

2006-10-18T21:28:00.000-04:00

So, I do this little "comic book thing" with a guy I call MissleMan, I am taking the book in a new direction after I release "MissleMan - The Way Things Were...", this February at MegaCon. I have been doing loots of sketches and building a 3D city to prepare for these changes, anyways, I'll be posting sketches from production as well as the weekly sketch challenge from this point on.

Here is the sketch

Sam Ellis-