Hello people of the New Grounds!

 

TALES OF ZALE

 

So, where to start—Yeah, Tales of Zale episode 1 is finally out - on NG! This has been a BIG passion project of mine and continues to be so as work continues on episode 2. Have a watch if you haven’t already, I really hope you enjoy!

 

Fortunately I wasn’t quite alone on this, especially when it comes to the audio-side of things, and I can only recommend checking out the people who contributed on this part’s websites and take a look at what else they do- you’re in for a lot of quality stuff! The very talented voice actors put a great amount of effort into their roles as well, it was absolutely great!

Speaking of that, the sound designers Nick Standing and Mackubin Owens have released a behind the scenes video of their work with the sound design in ToZ. Have a look.

The composer, Matthew Pablo who made all of the music in ToZ from scratch to the animation itself will be releasing a bit of a behind the scenes video as well soon.

 

I myself will of course not go without doing some BTS as well. This Saturday, 1pm EST I’ll be lives streaming, showing off how I created the visuals of episode 1 and answering any questions that may come my way. The stream will be taking place here: https://new.livestream.com/accounts/3659352/events/3804965

 

 

J-POP CON

 

Next weekend, February 20-21 I am going to be attending a convention called J-POP CON. The con takes place in Copenhagen, Denmark (yeah, that’s all the budget can muster at the moment), and I’ll have a table in the artist alley where I’ll be drawing commissions and selling merchandise. If you are in the area, do drop on by; as allways you’ll be able to recognize me on my brown cap—and the fact that I am sitting in the artist alley selling stuff related to my animations.

 

 

DVD’s

 

That brings me to another thing that I’ve had in the works: DVDzz! Since I’ll be attending a convention I was looking into what kind of stuff I would be able to sell while there. T-shirts didn’t really do it for me – designing those is an art in itself. Instead I’ve decided to put together some DVDs with my animations on, and let me tell you it’s looking really cool.

The DVDs contain 54 minutes of my classic animations in the categories “Tales of Zale”, “Tournament Animations” and “Experimental Animations”. Additionally I made a commentary, talking about ToZ and my tournament animations, and along with that you’ll find some never before released animations, finished and unfinished as well as some cool animatics.

 

Now, I know that not everyone is able to attend this convention, so I’ve decided to sell the DVD’s on my website as well for a limited amount of time. Have a look if you’re interested: http://sifps.dk/store.html (They’ll of course be signed too.)

 

 

AUDITIONS

 

Voice acting auditions are right now open for the characters appearing in Tales of Zale episode 2. There aren’t that many roles to go about this time around, but have a look if you’re a VA, there might be something for you!

 

 

LOOKING FOR ARTISTS AND ANIMATORS

 

I am right now looking for artists and animators to join me in the work on Tales of Zale episode 2 and some minisodes. For more info on that, visit my website: http://sifps.dk/become-associated.html (I’ll definitely make that page look better at a later point, but for now I think you’ll get the jest).

There’s room for both people who are able to copy my style as well as for people who have a very distinct style of their own.

The work isn’t paid, this project isn’t profitable in any sense of the word at this point, but it’s an experience, and you of course aren’t forced to produce so and so much in a certain amount of time- it’s just for those that want to lend a hand whenever they can. Give it a look, I’d love to collaborate with more artists.

 

 

FAN ART

 

Another way to contribute is fan art. I thought I’d mention that. At the end of ToZ episode 1 I featured some different fan art, and I’d very much like to make that a reoccuring thing. So if you end up drawing the characters or the universe, be sure to put it up on Twitter and Tumblr with #talesofzale or send it to me at toz@sifps.dk , and it just might be shown in the next episode!

 

 

 

Okay, I think that’s about it! I’d hoped to be able to post this in form of an update video rather than a long wall of text, but that video has been delayed a bit due to a persistent cold. So this will just have to do!

 

All the best from here and have a great day!

- Sif

 

Edit: Here's the update in video format!