Chris Homa is a freelance animator and video editor. He is based in New York City and Philadelphia. He draws his frames by hand.
State Bicycle did this creative interview series with pro bicyclists, where instead of sitting them down in a boring old room and asking them questions on camera, they filmed the pros riding out in the open while the interviewer rode next to them and asked questions.
They got some wild stories out of it, so State asked me to animate them and really bring the stories to life.
These stories are silly and naturally lend themselves to a cartoon style. But still, it was a challenge to figure out the best way to show them. Because even with the voiceover, I still had to write the scenes: picking which moments to show, what angle, choosing how to structure each scene for drama or comedy. The producers gave feedback each step of the way, but it was my job to dream up the cartoon and its characters.
Some animators really try to do things as cheap as possible. There's an unspoken rule that you should avoid doing anything difficult because it takes too long and it won't be worth it. But I think the final product really suffers with that kind of mentality!
Difficult shots don't have to be expensive. Things like lip sync, special effects, complex action, and inbetweening add a richness that I believe is worth figuring out.