Animation with an Attitude
Deb Mayo1 October 2007
Feisty. That’s the kind of energy the good folk at Yukfoo Animation bring to the table. Or perhaps it is more aptly put by the company itself: “If you want more rock null roll in your animation, more shiny shoes and slick ties, more characters of distinction, a better class of design, you want a touch of the Foo.”
Located in Auckland, New Zealand, their talents reach the world over. Their body-of-work includes famous restaurant franchises, various phone companies, lotteries, computer and games market leaders, automobiles, alcohol manufacturers, the odd bank, some airlines and television networks, and lots of biscuit and drink brands. That said their talent pool is wide and deep with such artists as Alan Dickson, Glen Real, Kristen Sagli, Karl Willis, Alex Dron, Julian Stokoe, Dan Sumich, Tom Gravestock, Hamish Beachman, and Thelonius Veltman.
Simply put, Yukfoo knows animation. Dedicated to the craft, the company creates animation of distinction. More than just lines and pixels, Yukfoo is all about creating animation that is something special, something new, and something better. Armed with an arsenal of different tools -- 2D, 3D, CG, Flash, Motion Graphics, Typography, even Stop Motion – they’ll use anything to get the job done – and done well.
With the ability to deliver ‘animation with an attitude,’ it was only a matter of time before SourceEcreative sought out the talented troupe to pose a few questions about all things ‘Foo.’ Here’s how they weighed in:
 |
Explain the concept behind Yukfoo. Additionally, how did the name come about? In 1971 Yukfoo Patriarch Alan Dickson was born into abject poverty in a slum in Muirhouse, Edinburgh. Fighting his way from the gutter to the bordello to the workhouse to the gutter (again), he learnt the rugged ways of the street-brawler and the tender caress of the budding animator. What a guy.
|
He worked in the Animation industry in London throughout the ne’er-do-well-nineties and made many friends (mostly winos who used to bum ciggies off him in Soho Square) but he lusted after the wide-open spaces and mellifluous birdsong of good ol’ New Zealand. So he packed his bags and his pencils (and whatever else it is that animators travel with) and came down to the arse-end of the world with a view to becoming a professional miniatures painter, but he was too tall. So he started his own Animation studio, called it Yukfoo and made a point of doing things differently. Yukfoo likes to challenge, push, explore and innovate – and NZ budgets being what they are (a bit wee most of the time) there’s been plenty of need to find, what we NZers call, No.8 Wire solutions. Yukfoo creates Animation that sticks its head above the crowd, pokes out its tongue and yells “Hey, over here. Look at me” – and we do it while smiling nicely at the client, turning up for meetings (un-hungover), and delivering on time.
 |
What makes you so different than other animation companies out there? It’s our size – small and imperfectly formed – like a little three-toed computer sloth. Yukfoo is a magnificent, eclectic mix of people – serious folk, light comedians, bar room philosophers and touched poets, even an eco-warrior, and we’re all tinged with a touch of the aaaaargh !!! and the oooooooh !!! Yukfoo people have a serious dedication to Animation – capital ‘A’ Animation – and a whole heap of enthusiasm to explore the vast potentials of the craft on their path to becoming the Gods (and Goddesses) of the Animation world. As animators, do you long for the more traditional approach or are you glad to see technology moving the genre ahead exponentially? To be honest the technology is really only the tool, it’s just a means to tell the story – what was always important in animation is still important – the ability to Animate (so often overlooked by animators), and an eye for design - so that the ideas are conveyed in a way that is visually compelling, memorable and engaging. For many of us, a steadfast name in animation is Chuck Jones. Who inspires the collective you? Chuck Jones… Lynch, Jodorowsky, Svankmayer, Kovalyov, Gondry, Miyasaki, Plympton, Gilliam, Tarkovsky, Chris Ware, Fellini, Bunuel, Anime, Manga, Disney, UPA, Pixar, the work of our animation industry colleagues, music of all colours, art from grand to not-so-grand, design, nature, the cosmos, esoteric philosophy, sports, fine dining, and so on and on and on…. |
 |
What is the defining line for advertisers to choose the ‘animation’ route over the ‘live-action’ route? Animation allows for the impossible to become possible, the outrageous to be realized, the brand to be iconised – and you can create your own character/s and a look that’s entirely unique. Animation is like magic, you start with nothing and over a relatively short period of time a whole world is created. There is nothing that animation can’t do. Plus we can animate when it’s pissing down with rain, the lead actor never ever gets ill or makes outrageous fee demands, and bad light doesn’t stop play. How is your business plan changing to adapt to the ever-morphing ‘beyond the traditional commercial’ advertising climate? The great thing about animation is that it is constantly mutating - there are so many different ways of applying animation to all varieties of media. It’s infinitely adaptable and smart and talented people find this invigorating and challenging. The medium is still just that, a medium, realistically all you need to do is shrink, enlarge, encode, output, design etc., etc., to fit the medium. Its still got to engage the viewer and what engages the viewer is the way that the message is conveyed to them. Animation always has and always will be a brilliant way to talk to people.
Pop promos , idents , installation, virals, illustrations and TVCs a-plenty What’s the next evolution for Yukfoo? More and better. We’ll be expanding into new markets, gathering new talent, meeting new people and continuing to look for work that gets us excited.
|
What projects are you working on now?
