Title

I think I will have a different cover and title for the two different sections of the book.
Some initial ideas for titles (I've highlighted my favourites):

FAST
* I need this yesterday!
* You snooze, you loose!
* The Fast Lane.
* Speed Junkie.
* Turbo.
* Pell-mell.

SLOW
* Slow and Steady Wins the Race.
* Pause.
* Respite.
* Breathing Space.
* Lull.
* Interlude.
* Time Out.
* Recharge.

More Frames Added

Blueprint (revised)

Here's the to do list from my previous blueprint.
Grey= Done.
Green = Doing.
Blue = haven't started yet.

TO DO

content
* conduct research
* write story x2
* capture footage of characters x2
* edit footage and export frames for animation x2
* trace frames to form line drawings x2
* add colour
* figure out binding method
* place frames in layout
* add type
* title, legal info, dedication ???

construction
* create test mock-up
* print (double-sided)
* bind

Initial Sketches Test Clip

So I've managed to edit the footage down to a more manageable chunk and from that I've started sketching out the frames for the animation.

Here are the first 30 frames. (the sketches are still a little rough and will be cleaned up for the final). I'm not sure if I should add colour to the sketches or just leave them as line drawings, any thoughts?

Video Capture

When I went home for thanksgiving I managed to rope my brother and sister into letting me film them to get a base on which to build my final flip book animations. My brother did a good job once he got into it, but when I turned the camera on my sister she couldn't stop smiling, so I'll have to edit that out when I make the sketches.

Here are the rough results:

Flipbooks Found, Thank you Pages!

I've been trying to find some real life flip books so that I can have a look at how they are constructed, what kind of paper would be best to use, and so on. Thank god for Pages! They kicked Chapters butt on the flip book front. They have a whole little shelving section set up at their front desk with books by multiple authors/artists as well as pretty much the entire Santiago Melazinni flip book collection. I flipped every available book in that section and in the end decided that the Melazinni books were the best in terms of their construction and how they moved in your hands, and at only $6.95 I HAD to get a couple!! I got a really nice black and white yoga one which shows a sun salutation sequence and a fun bubble blowing one (posted below).

*As a side note I actually called Chapters out of interest to see if any of their locations sold these books (cause they did have them on their online store) but not a single location, not even that big one on Bloor, had them in stock.

The Fast Lane (rough draft)

So here's a very rough draft of one of the stories for my book. I'm thinking of breaking up the text so that it enhances the fast-paced tone of this half of the book and speaks to the fact that nowadays we tend to skim words or sentences when we read. There will be one sentence/chunk per page along with a frame of the animation.

Marty Swift is a speed junkie.
He eats fast,
talks a mile-a-minute...
... to five different people at a time...
... drives like a fugitive...
... and is always looking towards his next milestone.
“It’s called multitasking.” he says triumphantly to himself...
... as he slurps down a bowl of cereal in the shower.
To fuel his turbo routine, Marty consumes a crap-load of caffeine....
in the form of coffee,
Red Bull,
Rock Star,
Power Horse,
Full Throttle,
Tab,
Jolt Cola,
Steven Seagal’s Lightning Bolt.
..it’s a real drink,
caffeine pills.
He’s tried them all.

And what does he do with this caffeine-fueled vigor?
Everything!
Marty is the proud owner of many “time-saving” devices
On top of all the usual suspects
(electric stove, flush toilet, hot water system, toaster, kettle, blender)
Marty also owns
The Roomba vacuuming robot,
instant coffee,
automatic garage door,
push button ignition on his car,
and several of those electronic picture frames that cycle through images of friends and family so that you never have to change it.

Marty has a lot of friends,
but he connects with them briefly.
a chat over coffee here,
a short e-mail there,
or a quick phone call,
interrupted of course,
by a beep on the other line...
... that just HAS to be answered!
He flits from one social encounter to another...
... like a butterfly...
... but with less grace.
You see...
... all that fast food...
... and “no time” to exercise...
... has not done any favours for Marty’s waistline.
Drive-throughs and microwaves are Marty’s culinary companions.
If it ain’t fast it ain’t gonna last!...
...is his motto.
But do these “time-saving” devices and technologies really given him more time to enjoy life
as they claim
?
or does he just use this extra time to become even more busy.

Marty works at an advertising agency –
Think F*#%$ing Quick (or we’ll lose our jobs) Studio.
Where vague briefs, tight deadlines, and even tighter shirt collars are a way of life.
He’s been competing hard for an upcoming promotion...
...to a faster-paced, more hectic job than the one he currently has...
...which is already supersonic.
Speed is king in the workplace!
Of course, all this haste results in cut corners...
... inside the box thinking...
... and many, MANY mistakes...
...but as long as they meet the deadlines right?
“I need this yesterday!” yells Marty’s boss.
There’s no time for reflection.
“Didn’t we make the same mistake when we worked on the Cheese Whiz account?”
Ah well, no-one will notice anyway...
...they’ll all be too busy rushing around in their own lives.

Not surprisingly, eight of Marty’s co-workers are off sick today...
burnt out,
anxious,
depressed,
exhausted,
...on the verge of cardiac arrest...
Or at least another pimple.
But not Marty!
well
not yet anyway.
Marty won’t find out that he has cardiovascular disease till next month
because “Who has time for a visit to the doctor these days?!”
and even after he discovers this alarming fact
Marty will continue to push himself.
He’s more afraid of failure than his impending demise.
Too obsessed with punctuality, productivity and progress.

He did take a vacation
once.
He went to New York for a week,
tried to squeeze in as many possible sights, day trips and tours as possible,
and ended up coming home more exhausted than he had been when he left!

Instead of taking a proper vacation
Marty tries to cope with his stress induced anxiety...
... by smoking.
but nicotine is actually a stimulant.
Don’t be too hard on him though.
It’s not his fault.
Speed is a natural part of our daily lives...
... where each fast aspect...
... is necessary...
... for the other fast aspects to happen.
It is part of our vocabulary...
... “You snooze, you lose!”
So “Get up to Speed!”

One day...
as Marty is rushing...
... out of his car...
... to a very important meeting at work,
he sees himself
just a glimpse...
... in the reflection
of the door as it slams shut.
A tired resemblance of his former being..
wrinkles
shadows
the fast life is taking it’s toll.
The biological cost of his need for speed:
accelerated aging.
He’s been pressing “fast forward” without realizing that...
... there’s no rewind on THIS remote.

Multi-task THAT!