A Late August Update

Hello! I have been a very bad blog keeper these last few weeks. I have being doing lots of work on Deep Time Cabaret but most of it is preparation work so I don't actually have anything to post about.

The deadline for this project is fast approaching! Only about a month left until everything needs to be completed. I am working on 5 separate things for the production plus the online education pack and a making of film. These things will be keeping me very busy for the next month but I do have a couple of personal projects I have started which I will update about soon.

I also have had a weekend away in Bath to give myself a little bit of time off. It was a great trip just not long enough! The city of Bath is lovely! I fell in love with all the oldness instantly, I guess I just have a thing for old buildings :) We did the touristy thing and paid to go look around the Roman Baths which was pretty cool. I now want to plan another trip there so I can actually use the spa facilities in the city centre. ^-^

On another note I am looking at entering this competition... to win a trip to Pixar Studios. I have realised how little animating I have been doing recently so I really want a project to get me back into it all. This seemed like the perfect opportunity, plus I would be in with a chance to win a trip to the U.S. ^-^ All I need to do is create an original animated short with the theme of "an animated adventure"... time to get out the thinking cap!! ^-^

For Sock's Sake

I just found this whilst browsing those you tubes and thoroughly enjoyed it so I thought I would share. :)

Edinburgh and Lilly

I have just returned from a two day trip up to Edinburgh to see my friend Nicole and record some voices for her graduation film. It was my first visit to Edinburgh and I had such a lovely time! The city was so beautiful and it was great to see some friends after such a long time of being hidden away working in my room. We only had one full day together but we made the most of it!! We started with voice recording and then heading into town to walk up Arthur's Seat. A walk that I didn't think I could make considering my current fitness level...

...but Yay! After much huffing and puffing we made it to the top! Pretty embarrassing as there were lots of older people up there who didn't look out of breath at all.

Then after a yummy dinner we decided to go on one of the ghost tours and it was one of the funniest things ever. It was pretty interesting to learn a bit about Edinburgh's history and our guide was extremely good and succeedeed in completely freaking Nicole and me out! o_O

Now I will tell you a little more about Nicole's project. Nicole is studying her MA in Animation at the Edinburgh College of Art and Rachinta and I agreed to do the voices for her graduation film. Below is an image of the lovely little girl I have recorded a voice for. :) She is called Lilly. You can read all about her on Nicole's work in progress blog called Improve Lilly.
Check out the rest of Nicole's work on her website here -->>> nicolevolbeda.com go go go!!


It's back to reality now though and I'm just working on a short film for YouTube of the Little Leap Forward production. I am also going to be involved in the next Horse + Bamboo project but I will tell you all about that another day.

New Website

For those of you who visit my blog at the web address you may have noticed that the layout around here has changed a little today. This is because today I have began phase one of my new website. ^-^


Today I uploaded a brand new version so stefflee.com is looking all sparkly and new! A lot of the content is the same but there a few new bits here and there. I will be updating this site a lot over the next few months and will hopefully have some new content up by the start of July. I am also planning to add lots of little animated extras to this site! :) These are still a work in progress but they should be popping up on the site as I finish them.

I am going to be very busy the next few weeks as I am about to start work on editing together 'Little Leap Forward' for a short online film of the production. I am also trying to organise a trip to Edinburgh to visit my dear old collab partner Nicole and help her with some audio for her film. All very exciting! :)

Papercutting adventures...

I have had a very busy week but thought I should update my blog as I haven't been keeping as up to date as I would like. :)

I have been working lots of overtime at my part-time job and have also been ill at the same time so have spent many many hours in bed. I did however spend some time making these little paper cuts over the last two weeks. I have been having so much fun doing it and can't wait to make some more!

These first two cuts were me just experimenting and messing around trying to see what I could get the paper to do.


On one of my ill days in bed I watched the movie 'Marie Antoinette' and totally fell in love with everything about it. So I tried to make a cut with that famous up hair style which I absolutely love! I wish I could get my hair to do that!



And finally this was something I made for my sisters birthday. It was meant to be her birthday card but kind of turned into a wall hanging thing... It turned out a lot neater than my other cuts as it was the last one I made and had finally got used to curling and controlling paper.



I will update with website things soon. My overtime is continuing in to next week and I have another animation job coming up but I am trying my best to get my website complete. I am hoping to add a lot more of my more recent work to it.

Curly Paper Hair

Just something I have been experimenting with... it was a lot of fun to make the hair. I will post up some more of these when I have time to make them.

Will update soon with the latest on my website re-design. It is taking a while as I am trying to learn some more Flash as well as doing lots of overtime at work.

^-^ watch this space ^-^

Blogging from my phone

I'm just testing posting to my blog from my phone... Lets hope it works.

[EDIT] Yes it does work, and yes that strange mermaid toy used to belong to me and now lives in my Nonna's garden amongst the pot plants. ^-^

Sketchbook #2

Sketchbook #1

Just some random things from my sketchbook. I haven't had much time to draw recently :( By the end of next month I will have a lot more time :) I really want to join a life drawing class, but I can't seem to find one in my area. When the sun shines a bit more I am planning to go to the park and draw people there :) should be fun!

Will update with Little Leap Forward work soon. ^-^

Willow and Scraps...

My auntie bought me a Willow Pattern mug! :) I am so pleased with it! It is my first piece of Willow Pattern so I thought I would share. ^-^


I have had a fairly busy weekend at work and have been feeling quite tired. I did however find time to start making my scrapbook. I was fed up of tearing pictures I liked from magazines and just keeping them in a pile... I have decided I will now spend every Sunday afternoon sticking them altogether in my nice big book of inspiration. Quite a nice way to wind down at the end of the working week. :)


Back into After Effects now to sort out those birds wings. :) Hopefully I'll be able to post another Little Leap Forward update this week.

Snow Totoro ♥

I have been waiting for so long for there to be enough snow to build a Totoro in my garden and today my dream finally came true! ^-^ I can now say I have my very own Totoro in my garden. Yay!
Working from home for the last two weeks has meant that I have hardly been out. Apart from popping to shop for some milk and going to do my weekend shifts at the shop I haven't really left my bedroom. So it was really refreshing today to get outside in the fresh air and take a break from sitting at my computer. :)



Here is me (looking dorky as ever with my winter hat) and my Totoro.
I wanted to make a GIANT one and there was plenty of snow for it. But I didn't have the time or man power :( Next snowy season I will gather a team and make a HUGE one!

Yay for snow!

My Mum through my 6 year old eyes...

My Mum found this drawing today and I just thought I would share...



...I think she is holding an easter egg. ^-^

* Merry Christmas *

I'm not doing paper cards this year so have put together my Christmas greetings in the form of an ecard. Phillipe has switched from his usual flower to something a little more festive. :)

Merry Christmas everyone! I hope you all enjoy the holiday season!

Sketchbook

Bringing out the paints again :)

I decided to get the paints out after a very very long time of not doing any painting at all. My paint box was very dusty and lots of my acrylics had dried out >.< very annoying. Anyway I painted something for my sister to take to university with her to put in her new bedroom. I used this reference photograph I found from the National Ballet of Canada and attempted the change the girls face into my sisters... it kinda worked... o_O Anyway now I've got my paints out again I wanna start painting much more. It's a shame I haven't done it for so long! So from now on I am painting! wee!! ~~~