The Good Doctor

Worlds collide...

UPDATE: fresh from a viewing of the latest episode. Holy Capaldi. I recently had the chance to remind him of his transcendent speech in The Zygon Inversion. We high fived. After Heaven Sent I'm showering him with the equivalent of a knighthood. As well as among Steven Moffat's best episodes, credit also goes to Stuart Biddlecombe, Rachel Talalay, Michael Pickwoad, MFX et al for giving us so much glorious, frightening imagery, whether it was underwater, in the corridors, atop the castle, or the Veil creeping in negative space. Every layer of the Doctor is shredded in this nightmare palace within 55 tear/sweat/squirm/chill-inducing minutes. Simply jaw-dropping.

***

A month after the Cineworld screening, receiving the last of the summer's sun in Cardiff two days back-to-back was therapeutic, and magical especially as Russell T Davies was down the Bay producing a new version A Midsummer Night's Dream. Eight years since our last meeting, here we were, fangirling about Peter, authorising the coinage 'Twelfies', discussing the viability of certain formats – animation would require higher budget/insurance, and a live episode would look like video – and the upcoming Doctor Who Festival at ExCeL. The following day, I succeeded(???) at staging an impressionable method of networking...

Imagine me on this bridge, handing the writer my business card

That was followed by a walk to the studio entrance when we reminisced our first exposure to Who, the 'Shoot for the Moon' story, and TV scheduling issues. Seriously, Series 9 is exceptional, ballsy television, but for youngsters and over-worked mothers it's on TOO DAMN LATE.

I'm still awkward at communication, but the conversation flowed seamlessly from one subject to the next and gave me a bit of perspective on proposals and setting budgets.

On the eve of the Festival, I found my hotel after a lovely afternoon with Lindsay (AWUK) and a failed attempt at getting into a recording of The Graham Norton Show near Waterloo. Not even the Prime Minister of India could get priority tickets to see such an incredible lineup of guests. I mean, Peter Capaldi sharing the couch with Tom Hanks, David Walliams and Duran Duran? Prior to that, Johnny Depp AND Benedict Cumberbatch. What a time to be alive.

The BBC Children in Need benefit concert (with Rob Brydon and Tom Jones) gave me a pang of homesickness. But I knew the Festival would in a way bring me back to Wales. I would be reunited with friends and make new ones to celebrate a show that's carrying us through tough sheep.

Opposite the hotel was a roundabout – Frobisher Road

Here we go again. This is where I queued for Benedict last April

The weekend was reported to be much busier than Friday, which was a relief. Three sets, exhibits, two talk stages and the Shopping Village which took up most of the space. Main panels took place in a separate theatre hall.

My first cosplay; Christel Dee praised the idea – Clara cosplaying as Classic Twelve – as highly original

Defending TARDIS from a Dalek; finally saw Real SFX show as I missed it at Sherlocked

There was a selection of props/costumes from recent episodes including the red velvet coat and guitar. I even bumped into Bernadette chatting to costume design legend Ray Colman, who liked my Mission Dalek. The Millennium FX exhibit (and the panel) was a treasure trove of creativity. After the monster-filled panel I ended up in Level 0 and stumbled upon the 50th Anniversary couch; up ahead was Mark Gatiss talking about Robin Hood movies with a dude. At Production Village I asked Michael Pickwoad about becoming a storyboard artist; he explained pretty much what I had done last month.

Talking of small worlds...

As he greeted me Peter looked surprised to see me again. “Lucy! It's so good to see you again! I like your coat!” I told him about my cosplay; he said Jenna was due to appear over the weekend, which made me feel deeply sad.

The motivation behind my cosplay was that Clara is making/made herself more Doctor-y. All it consists of are my normal clothes and hairstyle.

Before the photoshoots, the co-creators of Sherlock discussed how the idea of 'Immortal Woman' was pitched with Catherine Treganna. The video below is a tiny portion of the Cast panel. Michelle Gomez and Ingrid Oliver summed up how they cope with the pressure of delivering great performances, while Peter demystified the gap between the Twelfth Doctor's regeneration and his first adventure:

After another fantastic, brilliant, cool, good, and uplifting day in the world of Who, I was brought down by the godawful news of the attacks in Paris. Mum and Dad were more than relieved I was safe home.

The Doctor's anti-war speech in The Zygon Inversion couldn't be more relevant.

I returned to London a week later, to attend another Disney/Pixar advance screening/panel at BFI.

The Good Dinosaur is one of those films that not only pleases the dino-loving child in me, but, like Series 9, also has some deeply affecting moments. I related to Arlo overcoming his fears as he journeyed through the wilderness, figuring out his role in society. Full of inventiveness, tenderness and (digital) scenery porn, it's like a Miyazaki film.

Director Peter Sohn explained how The Good Dinosaur, Inside Out and all the movies express stories in which challenges are thrown at the characters:

“Story-making at Pixar is a very therapeutic one. The process of it is digging into every pore of what it is to experience being human on this planet, from birth to childhood to death to being a parent. And so these ideas, this film in particular, we really try to create haiku moments, poetry in the film that do echo certain things for sure but at Pixar there really is behind every film the same crew of people that have been working there for 25 years. What's so interesting about that place is that you can feel the storytellers in each one of those films and it really depends on what that storyteller is doing – they're amazing film-lovers and amazing parents and amazing people and artists there that put their hearts into the work. And so, life is injected in there...”

Pixar goodies from the BFI advance screening

Lindsay recommended me Dude, Where's My Career? a book aimed at lonely graduates facing the uphill battle of pinning down a job.

For a while between Oct-Nov I was consumed by anxiety, doubt and the belief that I was unemployable. The fact that death creeps closer towards two members of my family made it worse/making it worse.

But as GBBO 2015 winner Nadiya says,

“I'm never gonna put boundaries on myself ever again. I'm never gonna say I can't do it. I'm never gonna say 'maybe'. I'm never gonna say 'I don't think I can'. I can and I will.”

I'm no good as a salesperson in business. I aspire to be like the aforementioned storytellers.

In the face of overwhelming odds I'm left with only one option: I'm going have to art the shit out of this!

Life in Toon Boom Motion

From the House of Lords to the House of Blues, I've been around the world - sort of - while slowly getting back into the swing of things. Storyboarding is underway as the script for Scampi Catches a Drift is reviewed. Removing one certain detail from the story only slightly changes the denouement. It doesn't always have to be the focal point.

I had applied to join Animate Projects' DRIVE programme. Quite a sought-after one as they received over 60 proposals; only five artists would be supported. I'm not one of them unfortunately. Generally the reasons were that animators working in conventional areas of their field weren't accepted, and some applicants didn't fully explain their contribution.

24th June

I was once again invited to the Rethinkyourmind prize presentation, the second since the project's inception. I met some new and familiar folks - some were winners of the national competition - while enjoying the catering's excellent snacks, overlooking the Thames. Prior to arriving in Westminster, I couldn't pass on the opportunity to see John Byrne's A Matter of Life & Death exhibition at the Fine Art Society. Everything that day was so perfectly timed (except rebooking the coach). I did not expect it to end on such a high note. Before heading home I stumbled upon and joined a crowd to watch a performance outside BBC Broadcasting House. Mika was a guest on The One Show, promoting his new album No Place in Heaven.

My sister was ecstatic.

27th June

It was Postgraduate Careers Day at Heritge House. Along with another freelancer I was requested to talk about the trials and successes of setting up a business. In front of a class. If I can hold a conversation with Smaug, this talk would be a breeze. Although it overran it was very well-received.

8-11th July

Doctor Who fan art lit up the House of Blues in San Diego. My watercolour was among the selection, after submitting it to BBC America's call for entries on Tumblr. I've been to enough conventions/festivals to get a sense of SDCC's immensity. But to think there was piece of me floating around... I was there in spirit, as we all got to see world exclusives.

Thanks to MJB Stallmeyer for capturing the slide (main image, bottom left). It's ironic - we met at the Caerphilly filming, on the day of the Comic Con announcement.

18th July

BFi hosted a preview of Lava and Inside Out. It is a such a beautiful, warm, funny and heartbreaking film. Haven't cried that much since The Imitation Game. It was followed by Q&A with the legendary Pete Docter, Jonas and Amy Poehler. GASP! I asked them:

Q: This film on a technical and emotional level, seems to be a culmination of all of [Pixar's] films. Congratulations! I've noticed that all or most of the films run parallel to an audience of a certain generation. […] Is the Braintrust this generation's Headquarters?* 

Pete: “[The Braintrust] are not working on our films, they're in a better position to see it, and give us opinions on what works and what doesn't […] it does end up being a very helpful thing because you get very close to things, as you're drawing or writing anything for any length of time you start getting so absorbed into small little details that nobody can really see or the wrong things... This process of showing it to people about every 3 months, though we hate it at the time because it all feels like 'WELL IT'S NOT DONE YET!' You're sort of forced to do it. But in the long run it ends up being a very good thing.”

Jonas: “Pixar is a place built for filmmakers so there's no real executives other than John Lasseter...he's the creative executive, he's a film director. So everybody comes to the table... my boss Jim Morris is a general manager as a filmmaker, so you get in that room and all you're basically doing is channeling a really smart audience of people that want to go to movies, and we never thought of these movies as anything other than movies. People often say, 'oh you know Animation's a great genre, you guys are great in that genre.' We've got to back up with that, we never thought of it as a genre. Western's a genre. Horror movie's a genre. Animation is a medium. And we've always approached it as a medium and we don't start from a point in trying to make films for kids. Although we do, we make films for families. We really make films for us, and I suppose we're like kids, but the truth is these are films we want to make. We never thought 'should this be simpler or more accessible for kids or what's in the market, should we'... we sort of four-wall ourselves up there, for better or worse, and we make what we want to make. It's not perfect there but it's a great support for creativity and I think we're all proud of the way the stuff comes out of that way.”

Amy: “It's like 'Women in Comedy'...'Animated Film'.

*I spun that query on the spot. To be clear, Ratatouille was released when I was a fresher at university. Toy Story 3 was released when I graduated. The respective films are about chasing your dreams and moving forward. Inside Out touches on looking at cherished memories differently, holding on to childhood innocence and coping with change.

20th July

My Dad flew a plane over Leicester 2500ft above ground at 100mph. It was one of his 60th birthday gifts. We all felt proud of life.

Finally...

Is there a full scale statue of this?

Also, how sweet does The Good Dinosaur look/feel? November's gonna be good!

I Am Sherlocked

Wide awake with post-con blues and giddy glee, I felt like I had run a marathon. Convenient or not, I'm glad I came anyway.

The Road to ExCeL

The prospect of attending this convention was unlikely. Over £500 was already spent on a page in a lifestyle magazine that nobody in my field even reads. Saturday would be the least awkward day to travel, but by the time I received payment, it was too late.

Benedict Cumberbatch attended Richard III's Reinterment Service. That was when I accepted this was the only opportunity to at least see the guy and show him support. How often does a global star of stage/screen visit your hometown?

Exactly two weeks before Sherlocked, Naomi of Cumberbatchweb announced on Twitter that somebody was sparing a ticket. At that instant I punched “yes please!” Everything was set in motion. I can't thank Naomi and Monika enough.

A seat at Benedict's Talk was then secured. Indecision stalled extra choices. There were also monthly bills to take care of.

The date change of the London Animation Club event was a blessing. Travelling to/from ExCeL required an Oyster card. Took a selfie with the ad poster on the tube escalator. If anyone attempted such a challenge, you were rewarded with funny looks, serious vertigo and a badge for your efforts. Cherish it.

All very eleventh hour stuff. Eleven days later...

The Reluctant Dragon

I joined the queue in Hall S7, exchanging other con adventures with Kirsty and Sera before being herded into the Main Stage.

Akin to a rock concert, Benedict seemed most in his element talking directly to the crowd. It was incredibly entertaining to hear his thoughts on Sherlock; character relationships; fellow cast members; how he approaches both big movies and little TV shows vice versa; dropping f-bombs; meeting Johnny Depp only as Whitey Bulger. This is a man still feeling his way through, mastering his craft. I have always been enamoured of him.

Now, don't ask me how...but the moment finally arrived. Although I've never had a problem with public speaking. The ultimate test was asking a coveted actor about his process, and applying it to my own.

Heart pounding, clearing my throat: “Hello Benedict, I'm Lucy from Leicester!”

My amplified voice was oddly disembodied. He scanned the audience to find me smack-bang in the middle. This wasn't even staged. “So good to see you,” I continued. “What I would like to know is... (reading from notes as it was too long to memorise) For each character you play or have played in any medium, how do you bring together your research and life experiences to deliver a unique performance and interact with other actors?” And then threw in at the last-minute, “also can you give us a little...bit of...dragon voice please?”

For 3 seconds, Benedict assumed his scaly, fiery form...

“Oh crumbs.”

Family Vertue

It had been a long while since going to a convention. I was reminded why I love it so much - a succession of random surprises ensue. Examples: for a toddler this was his first Con-going experience; one girl cosplaying as Irene Adler in barefoot wore only a coat; and while waiting for the Sherlockology panel, a boy I recognised as Louis Moffat approached the entrance. I excitedly told him I loved the charming interview he did with his parents. When asked if it was something he wanted to get into, he said it was more of a one-off.

Sue Vertue talked about her role as producer on Sherlock 1-3. I asked her, “What audience did you have in mind around the time of the pilot and A Study in Pink?” She said initially they were aiming for BBC Two; ultimately half the demographic were female, and Hartswood naturally skewed toward a young audience; her background in comedy helped – I squeed “YES!” when she mentioned Gimme Gimme Gimme as my sister loved that growing up.

This Reichenbach theory is...

I literally got my hands dirty at Real SFX's display. These cats deservedly won the joint TV Craft award for VFX the following day – the visuals in Doctor Who series 8 are the best.

Danny Hargreaves showed us fake blood you can eat, raining debris, the science of exploding bullet holes, ice old snow, rubbery thermoplastic that stunt performers smash through... Glorious practical FX.

The Door and Living Room were expertly and lovingly assembled as they are in the show. It took three times to fully confirm that yes that is the actual 221B set from Bristol. Apparently the adorable Arwel Wyn Jones had seen the aforementioned meme; we talked Wales and wallpaper, and I even showed him my Sherlock-related fan art.

The museum teased the costumes from the Special.

As well as being unable to locate Monika around the Con, I also deeply regret not meeting the other guests. Briefly spotted Jonathan Aris, Lars Mikkelson, Una Stubbs, but never had the chance to go up and greet each of them. Saw Mark Gatiss and Andrew Scott...in toy form. Martin Freeman was there too, in spirit.

I didn't want the Con to end. It was best not to fight clashes and just relax, process everything and top-up on lunch. The lines were long and would take up the small amount of time and cash. I did however purchase Series 3 on blu-ray, as I didn't have anything for Steven or Arwel to sign besides a TARDIS notepad with Sam Bailey's auto inside, which Danny was happy to sign.

Word had spread that Benedict looked less than happy – the truth was he had a cold.

There was a moment when he was escorted to a photoshoot cubicle. We made eye contact. Both said hello, but the guard prevented any high-fives. Awkward, but in those familiar eyes I saw a sensitive soul fighting a gruelling schedule and winning. While bunged up? That makes him thrice more badass. Later I glimpsed the 221B lounge shoot towards the end to check if he was okay.

The Convention

Like the show I savoured every minute of Sherlocked. I'm reliving it again reading the stories and quotes. It was a joy to discover and connect with fans from different backgrounds. I'm sorry for the many who couldn't attend and especially sorry for those few underwhelmed by the overall experience. Hard to argue with the expenses though. Just be grateful that most of the cast spent the weekend with you. We are all one big extended family.

Plans for 2016... Listen up Showmasters/Massive Events:

• People would pay handsomely for An Afternoon with Holmes AND Watson
• Get Amanda Abbington to do a panel or two with Louise Brealey, Una, Martin etc
• Michael Price and/or David Arnold can talk about musical compositions
• A live band performing the entire soundtrack on stage or in the centre of the Con
• Millennium Centre would be an ideal venue
• Offer another chance to explore the set
• Lastly, why bother doing another convention without David Nellist?

We will all be fresh from the Special and Series 4, spilling more credible and ridiculous theories and cracking jokes with those mad geniuses. Blame/praise them for bringing these gentlemen and women into our lives.

Carpe Diem

Immersing myself in passions and travelling distances are fuel for the creative soul. It can be terrifying and I am bound to make mistakes, but my communication skills improve.

There has been a Human League ballad swimming around in my head, since speaking to the mighty Cumberbatch, who is just a man. I fully 100% respect him now. As is the case with every star or writer I meet, I get a sense of their vulnerability. He dedicated a whole day to the fans. He is THE man and he deserves a nice long break and warm chocolate with his wife Sophie.

The whole thing has given me validity to make my animated short film; the missing piece of the puzzle has been found.

Keep “falling upwards” folks!

*Find out what BC said to me at the Q and A* (link to tumblr)

Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication

-Leonardo da Vinci

And the simplest solution is always right in front of you.

Animgather at the Doodle Bar

At this great venue we talked movies and royal encounters, drew on the chalkboard, made connections, and learned many jaw-dropping things about the Bar. Kiel Figgins (DNeg) worked on two of my favourite shots from X-Men First Class; Brendan Fagan (MPC) and Lisa Taylor (Framestore) teased upcoming shows plus gave feedback on my reel.

Lindsay Watson, along with some Bournemouth uni graduates, reviewed the script for Scampi Catches a Drift. Right now it needs more revision - establish character relationships and motivations.

3D Creative Summit

As a thank you for designing the logo for Animated Women UK, I was invited to the Summit at BFI in mid-March. Although only attending a 1/4 of the 2-day summit, I learned quite a bit about Stereo 3D tech. There were brightly-lit presentations, autostereo demos, interviews with the pros...where was all this during the first MA semester?

I managed to catch the last third of the James Cameron interview, where he mentioned cinemas ought to prioritise on good projections, giving audiences the best-viewing experience. Anthony Geffen talked about the Atlantic/Sky/David Attenborough 3D features, showing some astounding footage including birds and a massive cave. Sylvain Grain and the team behind D-Day 3D used lots of techniques to bring us closer to the Normandy landings.

The summit wrapped up with Flight of the Butterflies presented at the IMAX, followed by a Q&A. At points it made you reach out to grab a butterfly! That's been happening a lot lately, they're not so shy.

Twitter

I joined Sketch Dailies to exercise that creative muscle. But Twitter finally put Creative Cat FX on the digital map for other reasons. I tweeted two ridiculously popular photobombs pics. They were a playful, spur of the moment representation of the Academy Awards that saw Gravity, 12 Years a Slave and others competing for Best Picture.

I followed up that success with Sherlock fan art for Speedy's website. The still life took nearly four hours straight, on the spot, and it was so much fun. The reward - to be among the first batch of monthly fan art pieces featured in the gallery, as well as Anglophenia.

Epiphany!

Tale. Spin. It finally makes sense. It was a spin on Disney's The Jungle Book, which was a spin on Kipling's Jungle Book.

And now a quote to properly tie all this up:

"Simplicity is the final achievement. After one has played a vast quantity of notes and more notes, it is simplicity that emerges as the crowning reward of art." ~Frédéric Chopin

Everything is Awesome

Every trip to London just gets more punctual, action-packed and madder than the last.

Firstly I felt immensely proud to have work screened along with a variety of inspiring videos embraced by an audience of talented filmmakers. Even had a brief encounter with Vivien Halas. The showcase was part of Animated Women UK. I've been designing their new logo.

A few doors near MPC is a chocolaterie that greets customers with the most incredible aroma. The tastes take you to faraway places. Likewise, Speedy's, on North Gower St, where I had lunch, make some magically delicious salad wraps.

The tour of Broadcasting House exceeded expectation with its informative and witty guides, the history, studios, the interactivity, and I was even complimented for my brief news reading. Afterwards I spotted Ashley Walters entering the One Show half of the House.

The Apple store was hosting a Dallas Buyers Club panel (all places were filled) featuring Jared Leto and Matthew McConaughey. The view while cluttered with onlookers was all right, all right, all right.

The atmosphere around Oxford/Regent Street is fantastic. I knew I had to keep local so decided to look around Liberty where designer collections are like £200-£800. Got a sense of déjà vu as, yes, this is where I stumbled into Carnaby Street a while ago.

Another Ashley wearing glasses, this time Roberts, was at Vision Express. I said to the pap, "oh! I saw him earlier."

London conventions

Empire presents...BIG SCREEN, O2 arena, 14th August

Entertainment Media Show, Earl's Court, 2nd October

Comic artists/illustrators:
Matt Dixon, Lee Townsend, Lee Bradley and John McCrea

Highlights (including the best five seconds of my life):

Summer Picspam