We've submitted the Olympus Burger pilot to Adult Swim!

Today, we mailed the Olympus Burger pilot episode and bible to the late-night Cartoon Network block, Adult Swim! Getting onto Adult Swim has been our goal for Olympus Burger since the beginning (which was almost four years ago) so we're keeping our fingers and everything else crossed.

This picture was taken six minutes before the post office closed, but Chris* turned into The Flash and got it there just in time. He was locked in the post office for a couple minutes afterwards, but then he turned into the Hulk and...asked the lady at the desk to let him out.

Unless the mail gnomes get at it, the package will arrive in Adult Swim's submission box tomorrow. We'll put up another post when we hear from them, so check back soon!

*Even though that little sign says "Connor," that's Chris. Trust me.

Behind the Scenes: Interns!

Hello, world.

This is Steve, a current all-purpose animation intern at Moving Box Studios. My creative director Chris Davidson wants to give you all some insight into what us interns actually do (i.e. not watch cartoons all day), so here's some insider info.

I had my hands on the pilot episode of Java, correcting colors and whatnot. Java refused to "pop" against the background in his drab duds. We can't have our title character blending into the background, so I created a bunch of alternative palettes. I consulted with Chris on what the final color choice should be, and after picking it, I went to town in Adobe Flash changing each instance of Java to the new palette by Cmd + I'ing and Cmd + K'ing everything into submission. Repetitive? Eh, maybe, but it seriously helps develop an eye for color, attention to detail, and, well, using Flash in general. Java will be coming to your screen this summer... so I better hop to it.

That's all for now. Cheers!

Update 4/20

Here's some more content to make you drool - it's a short animation titled "Meet Java!" where you'll "meet" Java, Heidi, and Maddie - the three main characters from the upcoming series created by Danielle Chillemi, Java!

Watch it on Newgrounds too, and remember to vote 5!

The Java pilot episode is coming out this summer, so stay tuned.

Coming Oh-So Soon: Purgatory Pizza

The flash version of Purgatory Pizza is coming soon!
Creator Christian Taranto, AKA MC Death Bear, took a twelve-hour bus ride from Virginia up to our studio last Friday, and he’s been working non-stop since he arrived.

Talk about dedication! But what would you expect from a guy who’s almost finished with a concept he started in ninth grade? That’s right, Purgatory Pizza was first conceptualized when Christian was a freshman in high school. Back then, it was a comic strip. It’s gone through many revision since then. At the beginning, it was known as “Outcasts,” and there wasn’t even a pizza place! But over the years, he’s worked at several pizza places, so he eventually decided to put his work experience to good use (or bad, who knows? It’s Purgatory).

Now at 22, Christian’s thrilled to see his teenage doodles come to life in magnificent moving media magic, not to mention that he’s at the helm of it all. But Christian isn’t the only one working. Chris Davidson’s been leading the animation, and he and Jeff Hellman have been hard at work on the sound design.

In fact, it was because of Chris Davidson that Purgatory Pizza got started on the road to cartoon-dom. Back in December 2007, Christian had an art show at Pixel Lounge. During the show, he mentioned how he had an idea for a cartoon and wanted to make it, and he was referred to Moving Box Studios by local DJ Chris Capulet. Christian had always be interested in animation, but he never got the chance until he and Chris teamed up.

Just like The Elephant’s Lullaby, Moving Box will be putting together a “making of” video for Purgatory Pizza. It’ll include commentary from those already mentioned, plus Christian’s cousin Law Tarello, the co-writer of the cartoon. Law will be arriving at the studio this Saturday to share his thoughts.

We're in the final pruduction stage of the final cut, but if you need something to do before Purgatory Pizza is released, head to SickDamage.com where Christian is a staff writer. No kidding, Christian isn’t just an artist and budding animator; he’s a talented writer as well.

Need something else? Get a Purgatory Pizza refresher – watch the teaser for the cartoon on Newgrounds.

Update 2/11

Whatever the weather's like outside, you can be sure that inside Moving Box Studios, everything's coming up roses. (forgive me, please)

The Making of The Elephant's Lullaby has reached it's second cut, and the final cut is expected by the end of the month. Wanna see how the cutest animation you ever saw was put together? This'll be the one to watch.

Don't forget about Java! The pilot has gotten a sound-lock and the picture-lock will be finished next week. Plus, we've gotten some awesome additional art by Emily Benning (see the image above). Java will be out this Spring!

We have a full inventory of everything we need to complete Days of Our Lamps 2 - General Popsicle. We just had a shoot at a local hospital and have a new action sequence planned - it's gonna be epic! Don't let the sequel status fool you...this Summer blockbuster is gonna make you think in a whole new way about lamps and popsicles.

We're working on a cut for a highlight reel of completed Moving Box productions. It'll be featured on our website when it's done, so keep a lookout for that!

Moving Box Studios is launching a new service called Ithaca Tape to Disc. If you have any old home video tapes, you probably know by now that they wear down, and this service is the perfect solution - we'll convert your tapes to digital format! More details to follow.

Update 1/20

Happy New Year! Long time no update, but the weekly updates are starting again, and we here at Moving Box have got a lot of exciting stuff coming your way.

Our studio is in its last week of construction and we're excited to show it off! We'll be having an awesome opening event, and will post a date for that soon.

We've entered production for The Making of The Elephant's Lullaby, which is (as you've already guessed) a behind-the-scenes look at The Elephant's Lullaby. We expect to release "The Making" next month.

Dave Livingston has finished recording with Mike Brindisi and the New York Rock. Their new album, Counting Pennies, has entered the mixing stage with Alex Perialas of Pyramid Sound Studios. Counting Pennies is slated for release this March!

Joe Zohar's film noir, Chalk Outlines, is nearing completion! Haven Cousins from Nonfx has come aboard as visual effects supervisor, and Joe feels that this collaboration takes the film to a much higher level. Just check out that still from the film at the top.

Also working with Joe is Dillon McCarthy, a talented, on-the-rise student at the School of Visual Arts in New York City. Dillon is working on the effects for one of the most visually challenging scenes in the film. Keep an eye out for this incredibly dedicated artist in the future.

Joe is delighted to have Eric Spangler, AKA DJ Dubble8 as composer for the film's score. Eric has worked with Joe and Moving Box Studios before, and Joe couldn't be happier to be working with him again on this project.

Ryan Mauk of Digital One is head of sound design for Chalk Outlines. Like Eric, Ryan's worked with Moving Box before, as sound designer both for the Chalk Outlines trailer and for Olympus Burger!

Chalk Outlines has been in production for a number of years now, and now with all of these talented people, Joe feels that he's found exactly the right team and is pleased to see everything coming together just right. He estimates completion in 2-3 months, and we're seriously pumped. We'll be having screenings here in the studio and elsewhere - check back here for updates!

Elephant's Lullaby

It’s refreshing to see a bit of childhood in the midst of adult life.

Tom Knight’s children’s music video The Elephant’s Lullaby has culminated its production with Moving Box and can be seen on Newgrounds and Youtube.

The animation was featured on the Newgrounds homepage this weekend. The Elephant’s Lullaby is a children's ballad about a small elephant that won’t go to sleep.

Update 12/2

Winter has brought us festivities, happiness, camaraderie, and snow. Clearly this is a big change for Matt Lenz and Joe Zohar after returning from the tropical paradise of Costa Rica.

Matt and Joe have been gone for just over a week filming the pilot episode of Eco-Spots, a Co-Production of Moving Box Studios and GA.GA Productions. This show about environmental awareness; it includes shots of breath-taking deserted beaches of the Pacific Ocean, completely self-sustaining eco-lodges, national marine parks, and the mountains of Costa Rica. After a week of filming, the team walked away with great footage and production stills. The pilot episode is scheduled for completion this week and it will air in March in LifeStyle TV.

Joe has recently started using Photoshop’s animation timeline sequence for Chalk Outlines. It has allowed the artists to work more effective with each other. Nicoli Schwiep and Liz McLelland have just breached the halfway point with rotoscoping for the film. It’s looking as if a first fine cut will be complete for December 15th, and will be followed by a first trailer. Liz will produce promotional material using graphic design.

Nicoli's Robobots is coming to fruition. He is currently putting the final touches on the first draft script of the origin story of the gigantic killer Robobots. The character designs are also on lock and some images will be posted on the blog soon.

The Java promo is also almost completely done, but a release date has not yet been set.

The principal photography of Tom Knight’s Elephants Lullaby is complete. All that’s remaining in production is the shading of the characters, which will be finished soon by Liz.

Olympus Burger HD is more than halfway converted, with 8 of the 15 scenes in HD. According to Joe and Chris, the fight scene is almost completely converted to HD and is looking awesome.

Looking towards the future, Days of Our Lamps 2 is going back into production THIS WEEK and is looking at a tentative release date of early 2009.

Stay Tuned.

Days of our lamps Promo

Update 11/11

C
A hard beginning makes for a good ending, especially when you’re looking at Moving Box Studio’s new digs.

With only a few touches left, construction is soon coming to a close. All that remains is paint touchups and trim on the doors, and what a time to start finishing up, with all of our projects traveling towards their conclusions.

Chris Davidson has just brought Ryan Mauk back on board to work on sound design for Olympus Burger HD. Dave Livingston is composing new music for the show and Joe Zohar is re-animating the epic fight scene of the pilot episode. Everything we have learned in the last three years will be put into this pilot, proving what we are capable of.

Our very own Matt Lenz and Joe Zohar are flying to Costa Rica tomorrow as the production team of a new pilot produced by Lifestyle TV. The off the charts tourism show called Eco-Spots takes the viewer to secluded places in popular areas and teaches them how to not leave their environmental footprint.

Tom Knight’s Elephant’s Lullaby is nearing completion, with 99% of the main cartoon done. Tom’s rotoscoped intro is now being colored and synced, and the main characters are being shaded by Liz McLelland.

As for Java, Danielle Chillemi has just green-lit a short promo for the show. Megan Corsen has already completed the art, now it’s Chris’ turn to composite it. Matt has been working on the syncing for the pilot, but the promo will be released first.

In addition to working hard at the construction of the studio, Dave has been recording Mike Brindisi and the New York Rock. He is almost finished with the lead guitar and the vocals are the next step.

Chalk Outlines is getting close to having a full cut to watch all the way through after Joe added a few more shots last week. Nicoli and Liz has been working extremely hard with the rotoscoping of the film so it can be finished as soon as possible, and the 3D components are almost complete, thanks to Evera Lovelace.

In addition to all of this, Chris has just finished the introduction credits for the ICTV program, The Quasi Late Program with Joe Para. Click here to take a look.

Stay Tuned.

OnlyCORP - Olympus Burger

World-Wide Mega-Company ONLYCORP sells you Olympus Burger on Newgrounds!

Watch and VOTE 5!

Featuring Java!

The last day of September is upon us and we’re working hard on Java. We finished recording the voiceovers this weekend and now we’ve moved on to sound design and mixing. This is very exciting for all of us here at the Box because Java was our first commissioned project, the baby of Danielle Chillemi.

Danielle, a former classmate of Chris, contacted him in the summer of 2007 and asked him about an idea she had. She had been thinking about her pets when she came up with the brilliant concept for Java, an animated TV sitcom based on the life of three playful dogs.

After the planning process was complete and artists and animators were selected, production began. Crafting the personalities of the three dogs Java, Heidi and Maddie was a challenge, but the animators of Moving Box surpassed expectations.

Java, the main character of the series, proves his charm with each loveable phrase he barks. Not only is he a working model, but also a performer at a nightclub on weekends. He is living every man’s nightmare/dream of having a love interest as a roommate.

Maddie is a crazy Golden Retriever pup who loves to cook. She is haunted by a Rastafarian Duck who steals her baked goods, and is such a frantic pup that she can never sit still. Maddie, without thinking about it, provides much of the comic relief for her roommates.

Heidi is a cute mutt, but often is annoyed by her two roommates antics. With Java always trying to dance with her and Maddie always making messes, she plays the role of the homemaker, balancing out the trio. With those two in play, Heidi is a necessity. The three pooches together is a recipe for fun.

A 30 second promo is coming soon, and the first episode is to follow, so be ready. These characters are too much fun for you to miss.

Stay Tuned.

Elephant's Lullaby Background

By Liz McLelland

Purgatory Pizza Pilot Part 1 (rough cut)

Check out the all-flash 1st part of the Purgatory Pizza Pilot!

Olympus Burger Pilot (send to your friends!)

We've decided to go to Revver for embedding videos. Send this to your friends! New content coming soon, I promise.

Elephant's Production Still

Ellie and Marika (not yet shaded)

Here's a screen grab from the upcoming "Elephant's Lullaby"

Purgatory Pizza Promo

Serving soon.

Saturday Night and Java promo

So instead of going to a keg party at a lakehouse, I stayed in and drank redbull. Tween and I are at the studio, working on stuff (she's mostly working on meowing). New backgrounds by Nick featured here, and I'm loving that wallpaper texture. 

OB Commerical

Chris here, late at night on friday morning, working on the FOURTH version of the Olympus Burger backstory for the official trailer. Now it's a commerical format that I think is more loyal to the show. I just finished a rough cut, so here's a screeeenshot