First off ... best wishes to Edd, his family, and friends. While I'm not religious, I sincerely hope that there is a better place after life, and if so, that Edd is sharing his creativity and passion there ... as much as he did here on Earth.

In the light of such an event, sharing idle news about personal projects seems so hollow, but I think most people will agree, that of all people, Edd wouldn't have wanted his passing to be a cause for a creative stand-still.

So ... here's some stuff ...

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YU-GI-OH ZEXAL
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I voice the old man, Roku, is episodes 15 & 16. The episodes aired a couple weeks ago, but still haven't been posted to Hulu. However, you can catch the episodes here:

Episode 15
Episode 16

While it appears lots of folks have mixed feelings about 4Kids, I have to say, despite what executive decisions they've made, the folks that work at the NYC office/studio are really awesome people, and I'd count myself lucky to work with them again.

Still completely lost in terms of how the game is played.

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HUNTER S THOMPSON
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Most folks here are probably too young to even know who the hell he is. If you've seen Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas ... it's about him. He was a drug-addict, writer, and had a fetish for machinery and guns.

For a sound test for ProTools10, I asked a college friend of mine to write a short piece in the style of HST.

This is the result of our collaboration : Nando's Girl

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ONEY2012
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The bubble has kinda burst on the whole the KONY2012 debate.
But the battle against Chris O'Neill ... has just begun.

ONEY2012

Noses.

Grueling week of work, no animation ... really bummed me out.

._._.

NEW TOON > ASH FINDS A PINSIR!
Bummed as I am, I'm happy that a new Pokemon toon is out, animated by the very talented Hbrunav. It's a cute little story about a boy named Ash who makes a new friend in the wilderness. Kinda.

._._.

NEW TOON > KONY2012
Also, the recent release of KONY2012 (by psychicpebbles) cheered me up. If you haven't seen it, go check it out. Aside from the usual Pebbles-humor, it features the voices of Ego, Tomar, and myself, as well as some surprisingly touching music by Oney. And by "touching", I mean like that of the gentle caress of a baby seal on muh bawlz.

._._.

NEW AUDIO > FUCK*NG AAGRON
Also I released an audio track : Fuck*ng Aagron. Originally created for an animation that fell through, based on this poster.
It's also on Soundcloud.

._._.

NEW HOME STUDIO
The studio is coming along really nicely. The foam's been up for a week, and I've got my ProTools, Mbox, and AT4033 ... still missing my pre-amp, and the Mojave mic (which I'll be doing a comparison).

._._.

Pico Day mutherfuckers.

TREY SPADE - - > link to video
Slackman continues the misadventures of a foul mouthed private dick, hired to get his hands on a prissy lil' pussy. IMO the first episode was highly under-rated, I hope folks get a chance to check out his stuff.

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ABYSMAL ADVENTURES #2 - - > link to video
A highly ambitious series, created by Maxwerkmeister. Only his second submission, and already covering quite a bit of ground in terms of creating full episodes of his series. A lot of work put into it. Check it out.

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GAYWILLIAMJOHNSON - - > link to video
Animanic (previously, Pacmanic) has animated a loving tribute to everyone's favorite internet video commentator. If you didn't catch it last week, and you LOVE RWJ ... be sure to laugh and cry as he discovers the meaning of true love.

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HOME STUDIO
2.7k ... it better be fuckin' worth it.

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FUTURE STUFF
Finally caught up on life and settling into the new apartment (and Minnesota). I started two animations and dumped them after I realized one was terrible and no one on the fucking planet has seen Hugo (that Christmas movie that won a bunch of awards). I had some serious beef with that movie ... if you haven't seen it, you're not missing anything.

Finally, back to the grind...kinda. Strange how comforting routine is. I'll miss the sand and sun, but I've missed feeling like I can actually unpack my bags and settle in to our new home and start working again.

Just finished pick-ups at 4Kids this afternoon, only had a few lines, which makes the hour minimum really nice. Heading back from 4 days in NYC to MN on Wednesday.

Backed up on voicing, so I plan to tackle those first. Some fun projects I'm excited to get rocking on. Also, Auralex has sent me the breakdown on what I need to treat my first real home studio. So that'll be happening soon, along with a new mic.

Animation stuff ... I'm kinda in the air. Would really like to pick up where I left off with all my fbf stuff, just to keep that rock rolling. Been seeing some great fbf stuff in the portal lately, which has been really motivating. Still thinking of hassling Oney for the rights to make a short Jack Matthews continuation. And I'll be picking up on some projects that have been in stasis for way too long.

Pico Day is quickly approaching, and I'm psyched to see everyone again. If all works out with my audition tomorrow, I'll be back in NYC recording the same time period as the NYC NG meet ... which means I'd basically go from Pico Day to the NYC meet. More scheduling insanity, but would be a blast to have another last hurrah in NYC with some local Newgers.

Also, while I'm not one for prayer, my positive energies go out to any of those affected by the insane tornadoes that tore through the past week. I hope you're all okay.

Sup, Newgers.

I'm currently at JFK airport, NYC ... heading to the "hot beaches" of the British Virgin Islands for a week. I'll be back in NYC to record pick-ups for Yu-Gi-Oh, then finally back to Minnesota.

I apologize for any delays in voicing files for pending projects. I get back to NYC on March 3rd, so I'll try to snag a studio at Edge to record what I can (rather than waiting til I get home on the 7th).

After this trip, I hope/plan/pray that I'll finally be able to settle into my new home, free of travel. At least, for a while.

Apparently, I won't have much access to the internet in St. Thomas and Tortola. So ... bye.

See you guys in a week.

~R!P

Hey guys! After a complete failure in my first attempt to make a video tutorial on treating your space with household items for better recording quality, I decided to scrap it and go with what I know: tweened flash.

/ / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / /
How to Make an Audition-Quality Home Recording Studio like you Robbed an Airport Baggage Claim
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I'm not an authority on voice over recording spaces, but I have experimented with a number of setups and done a bunch of research online and with some prominent voice over folk ... so, this is a culmination of some of the stuff I learned about treating your space.

A couple people asked how portable sound booths play into this. They're great. And when combined with some wall treatment, you can guarantee the sound quality will be even better, especially if you're projecting.

I'm holding off on animating for a little while, while I figure out what's up with the Pico Day game.

Also, back in NYC March, 4 - 7 to record more Yu-Gi-Oh.

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**EDIT** ACE PILOT HAS BEEN RELEASED! GO PLAY NOW!!!

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Lots of updates ... so if you don't like to read, go away.

STUFF
- New animation : Megaupload animation
- VO : Harley the ... Porn Star
- VO : Yu-Gi-Oh voicing
- VO : iPhone Game - Diggin' Dogs
- Life : NYC move
- Game : Pico Day game
- Youtube : PebbleMon and DragonCubes
- NG : Redesign
- NG : In the works...

==================================

NEW ANIMATION
-- Hank's Rage : Megaupload --

A fun short dedicated to the Megaupload FBI shutdown controversy.

A huge honor to have worked with hbrunav. The guy's talent is off the charts, and I look forward to his future here on Newgrounds... which is obviously bright and shiny.

Thanks to Lazyass for making the introduction. I hope you're doing your homework and learnin' dem animation skillz.

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VO : HARLEY THE ... PORN STAR
I'm stoked to have been cast as a cock-guzzling tranny in the latest Milburn endevour : Harley the Really Really Famous Porn Star.

With such an awesome cast and crew, I count myself lucky to be the backstage fluffer. Gobble-gobble!

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VO : YU-GI-OH ZEXAL
I'd spoken about this gig in the last few posts, namely because I was so excited to be voicing in the very industry that got me inspired to start voice overs. Growing up on cartoons, going to acting school, and recently getting a taste of character voicing here on Newgrounds made the job all the sweeter.

Despite what some may feel about 4Kids, the folks who work there (that I met, at least) were so extremely supportive, positive, and all around just fun folks.

I was initially confused where my character was in the storyline, but I did some research. I'll be featured in episode 15, and on the sidelines in 16. Dunno if my character comes back or not later in the series. But it was nice to have a character with a story arch who plays a pivotal role in the protagonists journey.

Darren, the director, was fucking awesome. Hands down. (And so was Mike, our "engineer").

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VO : iPHONE GAME - DIGGIN' DOGS
Soap Creative released a new game today Diggin' Dogs. I did some sound/voice stuff for the game.

I'm not just saying this because I worked on it, but as a mobile gamer, this shit is FUN! It utilizes the entire iphone without making you look like you're strangling a phantom.

It picks up fast, has a great mix of action and puzzle, and enough spastic activity to keep your ADD in order.
It's only 99 cents, and it's original. Not some ragdoll, bird tossing, yeah-we-get-it same-old-same-old bullshit.

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LIFE : NYC MOVE
Another thing I spoke at length about. After 12 years, my wife and I finally moved. After 3 days in a u-Haul, we're officially stationed in Minneapolis, and we're loving the new space. The neighborhood is awesome and we've got 1,800 sq feet of living space : enough for an entire room to become a voicing studio.

I miss New York (though I was there just yesterday for Yu-Gi-Oh), but I like the trees and the grass and the air here. I can already feel it's for the better ...

Hopefully, some more cartoon gigs will have me back in the city in the near future ... but not too near.

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GAME : PICO DAY GAME
I'm working with RedHarvest and MonoFlauta on a game slated for Pico Day. The concept is a mix of old-school and new-school, and should be fun for any fan of platformers.

We got off to a quick start, but the process has taken a hit since the move and the Yu-Gi-Oh recording (which pretty much ate up this last week, now that I'm playing catch-up). That said, we still have plenty of time, and once the ball starts rollin', I'm hoping the progress will inspire us to rock.

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YOUTUBE : PEBBLEMON AND DRAGONCUBES
PsychicPebble's Pikamon hit Youtube while I was on the road moving. And it was a dandy pleasure to behold while on the road. Fucking weirdo.

KaggyFilms' DragonCraft Z was released today. I voice the gayest Goku ever ... honestly, I thought his announcer sounded like a better Goku. My apologies. If you're a Minecraft Dragonball fan, go check it out.

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NG : REDESIGN
Most surprising to me is how well everyone seems to have adjusted to the new design. It appears I gave the NG mob less credit than they deserved. So, kudos to the NG community.

- Love the new project management system and refined search feature.
- Miss the mini descriptions ... Tom's heard it a millions times by now, so I won't harp on it.

Overall, I'm just happy to see that things are still truckin' along at a steady pace.

Oh! AND HOLY SHIT!!! Thanks for the featured artist on the FP ... I'm humbled, I'm honored, I've got rock hard nipples. Honestly, considering the experience and connections I've garnered since being a part of the NG community, I really feel like I owe the NG staff and community a large debt. I'll try my best to pay it back in any way I can. Long live Newgrounds.

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NG : IN THE WORKS
Besides the Pico Day game, there's a number of projects on the table. The God of War animation with Hulalaoo slowed down after he finished his education and started work, but I'm hoping to get that going again. The Creaturing Project has also lost a bit of momentum for a while now, however once I get settled in our new place, I plan to fill in the blanks on the site and move that along.

Also working on an "Awesome series" tribute. It's proving to be a lot more challenging than I initially planned, but I like that ... I'm learning a lot about animation, backgrounds, and comedic delivery and setup (namely, that I have to redo shit like 20 times before it's passable).

Lots of other things I'm forgetting ... bah.

.

That's it for now ... or at least, all I can remember!

Phase 1 : pack it up
Phase 2 : drive it across
Phase 3 : take it out
Phase 4 : unpack and settle ...

Minnesota has provided some awesome weather (considering the standard), for our move. I'll be back in NYC on Tuesday morning to record Yu-gi-oh. Wednesday I have another morning session for YGO, then I head back to MN that afternoon.

Today is the final day of packing. Tomorrow we load up the truck. And Wednesday morning we start our three day drive from New York to Minnesota. I know I've been talking about it for the last couple weeks, but New York is the longest place I've lived, and I guess I've just recently come to terms with it. 12 years ... about a third of my life ... lol, feels like I moved here just yesterday.

Anyway - ONWARD!!

If you try to reach me this next week, expect delays. Sorry!

See you guys on the other side.

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Oh, I'm also working on an Awesome Series tribute. Don't know how "awesome" it will be, but the short vignettes have been great for practicing backgrounds, lip-sync, fbf, reactions, and editing. So ... yeah.

After a surprisingly short conversation, I came to the conclusion that I should no longer be providing voices with the reckless abandon of the past. There's a fair number of reasons for this decision, including my work, my family, and my desire to push myself as an animator. There's only so much free time, and I need to be more selective with how I use the time that I have.

But the biggest reason for this decision comes from the realization that I've been working under a false notion. I prided myself on being supportive (and that will certainly not change), and so I justified providing voice work for everyone and anyone who asked for it, with little to no concern for the quality of the work or the seriousness of the creator. In my mind, I was trying to help start-up animators better fulfill their vision of their projects. I have come to realize that this is clearly a mistake.

Where many starting animators need the most help is in their concepts and writing: the core (hell, I'm in the same boat). Providing voices for a poorly plotted piece only serves to fortify bad habits, and guarantees stunted growth, by dishing out instant credibility without holding the artist to any bar of standards. It's like handing out an A+ without even reading the essay. This doesn't inspire growth, it enables complacency.

I've heard, on a number of occasions, that just by having me be co-authored, chances of a daily award or even being featured on the front page are higher. This is the most destructive end of the spectrum. If people are coming to me with a false notion that by having my name on their work, they'll garner instant success ... then I've clearly dug a hole not only for myself, but for the people who come to me. The award should be the work, not playing the system to get a pixel trophy.

This doesn't mean I'm not providing voices anymore. It just means that I'll be providing voices for the projects that excite me. For the start-ups, I'm happy to offer my opinions and help how I can, and even point them in the direction of VAs who I think could help them out. There are a ton of talented VAs on Newgrounds eager to voice!

If you ever respected me in the past, I'm sure you understand, and I appreciate it. If you don't respect me, that's fine, too.