Last Official Day on Abby's Flying Fairy School, Season One

[Note: I started drafting this on August 28, when animation on our show finally came to a close - but I have since been busying myself as a generalist/layout AD for the interactive projects that will air online alongside the broadcast episodes. However, that production is wrapping up soon as well, and we are hopeful to begin work on something new very soon. Huge good luck and bon voyage to Scott as he ventures to France for the big MIPCOM/MIPTV/MIPJR conferences, armed with a gorgeous portfolio and work that we're all very proud of. Best wishes! And now for that post I was writing almost a month ago...]

So, today marks the last official day of animation at Speakeasy FX on the broadcast project we've been working on for Sesame Street. It has been an amazing year, and I think it's allowable now to tell you that the name of the thirteen segments we animated is called Abby's Flying Fairy School, which is already searchable on Google, since the start of this month when PBS made their press release.

Here is also an article which includes a rendered still of the show.



A photo of most of the team on the last official day of production on AFFS, taken in the back of the historic Galloping Hill after some fantastic hot dogs. Front to back, left to right:
Jan Carlee, Sally Anne Syberg, Laura Skowronski Nattam, Charlotte Zielinski, Kristy Maslin, Mikaila Munoz, Edyta Kuciapa, Steve Palaia, Eileen Kearney, Kevin Scott, Andy Zazzera, Eric Thivierge, Mitch Lotierzo, Rob Gegner, Sean Smith, Brad Regier, Cesar Tafoya, Scott Stewart, David Michael Friend, Mike Wilson, Kevin Worth, Jake Kalsbeek, Roman Kobryn.



It boggles the mind a little to think about how this last year went for me personally. Towards fall of 2008, I was completely absorbed in wedding planning, and very focused on the upcoming state of simply being married. I did work on some small animation projects myself, but few that I felt were going anywhere because of moving, wedding planning, etc. Toward the wedding, I was more and more focused on being a bride, and being a very happy, thankful one at that. However, just ask my husband and he will tell you that throughout last year I definitely had my moments (or -insert long periods of time-) of feeling down about myself as a person because I had spent all kinds of time and money and effort trying to become a professional animator, and instead I saw myself as a small-time graphic designer who didn't sell herself well and might very well not (dare I say never) find herself animating professionally anytime in the near future.

And then we got married, and a week later, I heard from our dear Sally Anne, EP and awesome lady extraordinaire, who heard about me through a contact from Animation Mentor by the name of Bridget Haley, former career services manager there. And it just so happened that I had met Bridget at GDC in SF earlier that year and she recommended me to Sally Anne, and the rest was history. The moment I got Sally's email was the moment my whole mentality changed. Instantaneously I knew that there was no other way than to accept the position I was being offered - not because it had been the only one, but because it had been the only relevant one to me, and an extremely special one as well. I knew in the moment I received the email that everything was about to change, and I had no fear. This was what I had been waiting for, trying for - - - why it had to happen a week after we got married, I'm not sure, but it truly was a blessing.

It certainly was interesting, showing up on September 22, 2008, to a small office above a tuxedo shop in Westfield, NJ. The place had been partitioned into what we called 'pods' which organized animators, generalists, and editorial/direction staff, and to give an idea of how rushed the process was, the computers and desks were still being assembled for much of that first day on the job. Speakeasy FX had been a small commercial outfit for the last couple of years, and suddenly it had taken a fast forward plunge into children's television, exploding in size from a couple of specialized folks to suddenly around 16 - about a 8 animators, 2 generalists, a production assistant, an editor, an art director, an animation director, an exectutive producer, and the owner - plus a small handful of accounting and other staff that worked out of NYC, so we animators didn't get to know them too well. And as time ticked on, 5 more animators came onto the scene, and about 5 more generalists, new editors, new assistants. It was awe-inspiring, being a part of such a special production team while watching this growth unfold.

Simultaneously though, it didn't take long for the heartache to start of being separate from my husband in our first year of message. The time was ticking away, month by month, and by spring our personal misery was beginning to become very noticeable at work, which we had fought hard to avoid. We searched and searched for an opportunity to live together and work on the east coast to accommodate my job, since his job was lacking the challenges he anticipated. Even looking for work elsewhere was difficult because it not only meant leaving a company which had swept him off his feet at a convention, offering him a tremendous salary and benefits package for an entry level programmer, but it also meant uprooting ourselves from living near our families in the midwest and from the beautiful apartment home we were starting in Chicago.

Still, we were determined to find an opportunity to live together again by the time our first anniversary would come to pass, and thankfully we were able to fulfill that goal when finally a company we were hoping for came out of a hiring freeze, and a friend at the company helped to get my husband's name heard until an offer came for us. Despite an enormous pay cut and decrease in benefits, we took it to meet our goal to live together, and thankfully the job has proved to be far more involving and gratifying for my husband. We are very hopeful for my animation career to continue out here in the coming months, and I am certainly grateful to have been able to remain onsite at Speakeasy FX to help direct the online interactive media projects. What is next, few are sure, but once again all the best to Scott in his endeavors at MIP these next two weeks, and hopefully we'll be celebrating soon with more work for this very special crew. Bon Voyage, à tout à l'heure!!!

No Limbs, But No Limits

Truly amazing video, and a very inspiring gentleman who has remarkable strength and wisdom for someone my age.

Another Stepping Stone for my Interest in Autism

Another noticable brush with fate today perhaps...

Tonight after work I went downstairs to do some laundry, and I met a neighbor, Barbara, a 59-year old woman who works at Seton Hall University and takes classes there simultaneously. We were having a friendly commiserating moment about being halfway through the workweek, but I added how I really can't complain because I love what I do, and I'm lucky enough to still be doing it. I was supposed to have been laid off about two weeks ago, but was needed for some help on our interactive projects. Again, I was supposed to be laid off this coming Friday, and again, it looks as though it will be pushed another week so that I can help to complete the project (hopefully). It's going to be a very hectic, fast-paced week, but I'm very thankful to still have work and to be valued so much. It's a very special feeling to have at work, and I've already mentioned several times on this blog what a special company this is to work for.

Getting back to the whole fate thing.. I believe I mentioned in my last post that I wanted to be getting involved somehow with Autism, perhaps helping at a clinic or something. Well, while discussing with Barbara what she was learning this semester, she also happened to mention her involvement helping those with Autism through ARC for Union County, a non-profit membership-based organization dedicated to enriching the lives of individuals of all ages with developmental disabilities and to assisting their families in promoting the quality of their care and support. As it turns out, ARC is based in all New Jersey counties, so there is one near us in Middlesex (where our new apartment is). So, of course, I am completely psyched to check that out more.

That's unfortunately where I have to leave that tonight, because I have to finish doing laundry, taking trash and recycling out, and doing the dishes before going to bed early (ha!). Tomorrow I will be attending a meeting with Nitrous and possibly some Sesame Workshop folks to discuss our interactive projects, so the morning will be slightly more rushed for me than usual. I'll have to catch an 8:15 train into Newark Penn and an 8:55 NEC line to NY Penn for a 9:15 arrival there. Wish me luck. ;)

Hope you are all well, and please shoot me an email sometime. :-)

I Made A Mother Cry Today

Not exactly a title to be proud of, but I'll explain.

Tonight, I left the studio after a productive day working on my first shot of the last episode of our show. It's sad to think that in just under a month it will be over, but everyone is striving hard to secure future work for the studio.

As I walked toward my bus stop, I passed crowds of people that one would be used to seeing in New York but not usually in Westfield, NJ. As it turns out, there was some kind of marathon today and the endpoint was right at the intersection where I catch my bus. So traffic was a madhouse and apparently I crossed at the wrong time because an officer yelled for me to stop (it hadn't been apparent to me that he was directing traffic, since he was in plain clothes and in the street like everyone else). Most surprisingly, my bus was on time despite the craziness, and I started up a conversation with a woman about all the marathon runners and food vendors packing the corner of North and Elm. We started talking about Westfield and traffic officers and the horrendous parking enforcement, and eventually about work. Of course when she asked me what I did, I told her I was an animator working for Sesame Street in the building with the clock on it. She lit up right away.

As it happens, her son is autistic, but responds very well to programs like Sesame Street, and she was quick to mention that he even responds better to the animation sequences than to the live action sequences.

If you know me very well, you may know that for almost 10 years, I've had a slowly budding interest in autism, so my interest in her story was piqued. In a very short bus ride, I learned that the boy was 12 years old, attending a special school called New Beginnings about 45 minutes north of here in Fairfield, and currently living with his father and stepmother. I was surprised to hear that he was only recently medically diagnosed with autism (in the past year), whereas the schools recognized it before he turned 3. I wondered how it was possible for the medical diagnosis to take so long. This is where things started taking an emotional turn for the woman.

She started describing that for the last few years he was living here with his father and step-mother, but for his first 7 years the boy lived with her in Minnesota (she actually may have said Missouri, but I can't remember now). The boy lived with her until she was completely burnt out, and needed a break. She started crying at this point, describing how until that time she thought she could fix him, and was in denial of the school's diagnosis, spending her time blaming herself. I had to hand her some tissues - I couldn't believe how much she was pouring out to a stranger on a bus. I did apologize in case I was asking too many questions and in a few words explained my interest in autism (from personal and educational standpoints), and she was eager to say it was no problem and not offensive at all. I felt badly when I had to exit the bus for my stop, and told her not to blame herself and to take care. It sounded like she might take that bus regularly so I may see her again. I hope so.

There's a lot I could tell you about my life right now and how things are going since our move - we are still not living together since I am up in Cranford through the end of August, and Naveen is in our new place in South Brunswick - and there will be much to tell once we are more settled. But for now, I felt that sharing this story was important. In one of our many recent driving trips throughout this state, Naveen and I passed a place called Eden (or Edens?), a center for autistic children. At that time, I related to Naveen that if animation work lapses for me in the next few months, I would highly enjoy taking some time to get involved there or at another center, voluntarily or part-time.

I hope not to offend anyone who is autistic or knows someone who is, but for a long time I have felt some sort of calling toward understanding autism - whether that means fighting it or simply embracing it, I'm not sure, but it is a subtle, strong internal vibe. Whether I'm a working animator or not, I hope to indulge in my interest soon and perhaps find a way to channel that into something helpful.

Good News Everyone!

To be read in the stylings of Futurama's Professor Farnsworth...

Good news everyone! After painfully observing the approximate ten months of elapsed time my counterpart and I have been biologically separated due to phenomenal natures of profession, I am delighted to report a permanent dimensional union which will occur in an estimated 229 hours and 13 minutes at coordinates 40°22′51″N 74°32′37″W. Please note that the distinct cause of this impending equilibrium is to be credited to my counterpart who has secured an unprecedented but significant transition into an alternative engineering classification, and also to myself after securing a correlating intermediate habitat between our respective diurnal endeavors. Prognosis, booyah!

Translation:

The news we've been waiting for: After 10 months married but living apart due to our jobs, Naveen and I are finally going to be living together again under the same roof in central New Jersey starting next Friday. Thanks to hard work and dedicated job searching, Naveen will be continuing as a game programmer for a new company called Megatouch Games (a division of AMI Entertainment) while I continue working as a character animator for Speakeasy FX. We're going to split the distance between Philly and Westfield so that neither commute is too bad, and if all goes well in the next two months for my company (in that, we secure further work from Sesame Workshop or an additional client), perhaps I could even afford a car. For now, Naveen will most likely take the van to work and I will take a train.

Today was crucial because after only a two-day search, lots of mileage on a rental car, and never enough iced coffee from Starbucks, we signed the lease for our new apartment and also finalized our moving truck reservation next Wednesday. We plan to spend Friday packing, Saturday (the 4th) with my family in Wisconsin, Sunday through Tuesday finishing packing, and finally loading the truck and heading to the east coast. It's hardly what we thought we'd be doing a year ago, but much in our lives has evolved and we've begun to roll with the changes and jump at the opportunities that mean most to us. Still, we could not do it without the constant support of our family and friends, and we thank you for cheering us on and offering helping hands, sympathetic ears, among all else and your love.

Warm regards,

Laura (and Naveen)

PS, some spanking new images hot off the press...













We'll be home soon!