Jeremiah Wallis

Jack and Lloyd for Jack Daniel's Old Tennessee Whiskey

2011-08-01T13:41:00.002-05:00

Hybrid Car Frames

2011-06-16T01:14:00.001-05:00

Practice frames--cars be hard to drawz.

In-N-Out Lebowski

2011-06-10T13:05:00.003-05:00

"Some burgers. Beers. A few laughs. Our fuckin' troubles are over, Dude."

Snapper Woodchippers

2011-06-10T13:01:00.002-05:00

Advert fun with Peter Stormare and Steve Buscemi('s foot).

Blood Simple Bud

2011-04-01T19:17:00.002-05:00

Here's another entry into the Coen Bros. series.

9 from '99: Rushmore

2010-12-10T14:41:00.004-06:00

Continuing the 9 from '99 practice frame series: Max Fischer from Rushmore.

9 from '99: Magnolia

2010-11-22T23:24:00.004-06:00

"I used to be smart...now I'm just stuupid".

Been away too long, gang. Worked on and finished my first feature film project from mid-July to mid-November. I'll post all 30 frames, plus thumbs and roughs for a comprehensive process documentation when I get the OK from the production co.

In the meantime, here's another practice frame from the series 9 from '99. (Nine frames from my favorite films from one of the greatest years for cinema, 1999.

"Run"

2010-06-26T21:38:00.004-05:00

Lots of cool freelance work lately, but unfortunately I can't show anything as they're all under strict NDA's. So in the meantime, here's an inked sketch of Walter White from the amazing AMC show Breaking Bad...

New TV Spot Frames: FOOD!

2010-05-04T17:07:00.003-05:00

Here are some color frames I cranked out last week for a client. As always, sketched, refined, and colored in Sketchbook Pro, then Gaussian blurred the backgrounds and adjusted levels in Photoshop.

Sketchbook: Puuuuuuurdy Redhead

2010-04-29T01:37:00.003-05:00

Been pretty busy on the ol' freelance front. Unfortunately, I can't post any of the projects for a while. Confidentiality agreements and all that jazz. But in the meantime, here's a sketch of a purdy red. Anyone take a guess what film this is from?

Postcard Promo

2010-04-09T13:06:00.002-05:00

Storyboard Promo

2010-04-09T12:41:00.003-05:00

Don't worry, the Coen Brothers haven't licensed their characters for advertising. These frames are just self-promotion pieces I've sent to Art Directors to promote my storyboard skillz. I wanted to do something different than just sending past storyboard projects for my first big promo push so I thought I'd combine my love of film with a promo piece that is also practical for the ad industry. It just so happens that my favorite filmmakers, the Coen Brothers, use identifiable products in their films, usually to poke fun at Americans' steadfast brand loyalty. In this first series of four, the Coen characters advertise products they either interact with or mention in the respective films. Chad (Brad Pitt) from Burn After Reading glugs Gatorade, the Dude and Walter from The Big Lebowski shill a can of Folger's (which house Donny's remains), Jerry Lundegaard (William H. Macy) from Fargo hawks an '86 tan Cutlass Cierra at Gustafson Motors, and H.I., Ed, and Nathan Jr. peddle a hot bundle of Huggies from Raising Arizona.

Black and White Line Frames

2010-03-29T17:01:00.002-05:00

Black and White Line Frames

2010-03-29T16:58:00.001-05:00

Color Frames

2010-03-29T16:51:00.001-05:00

New TV Spot Frames

2010-02-25T11:01:00.002-06:00

Client: Republic Studios/First National Bank

TV Spot frames

2010-02-09T19:12:00.003-06:00

Practice frames from Spike Jonze's classic "Doctors" commercial for Levi's.

Action/Horror Boards

2010-02-09T14:49:00.003-06:00

Horror Boards

2010-02-09T14:04:00.003-06:00

Frames from the second of three feature film pitch packages I worked on over the last month.

Awesome Twins Pt.2

2010-02-09T14:00:00.003-06:00

Another scene from The Awesome Twins. Marty gets jealous of Stuart's girlfriend always calling him.

Horror/Comedy Storyboards

2010-02-08T17:37:00.003-06:00

These are a few frames I'm allowed to show for an independent horror/comedy currently being pitched. This is the first of three films I completed over the last month. Damn fun project.

Horror/Comedy Storyboards

2010-02-08T17:04:00.003-06:00

Sci-Fi Comic Book Cover

2010-02-08T17:00:00.003-06:00

Trying to catch up on posting all the projects I've been working on for the last couple of months. Here's a work in progress of a comic book cover for an upcoming Sci-Fi anthology. As with my boards this piece was penciled, inked, and colored on my Cintiq tablet in Sketchbook Pro.

Awesome Twins Pt.1

2010-02-08T13:58:00.003-06:00

Here are a few storyboard frames for a animated show pitch package I was hired for back in December.

New Snickers TV Spot Boards

2009-12-09T19:08:00.003-06:00

9 from '99: The Limey

2009-11-15T21:52:00.003-06:00

Gen. Jack D. Ripper

2009-11-11T20:12:00.004-06:00

"I can no longer sit back and allow...Communist infiltration...Communist indoctrination...Communist subversion...and the International Communist Conspiracy...to sap and impurify all of our PRECIOUS BODILY FLUIDS!"

Sounds like Glenn Beck.

Dirk Diggler's Big Blankout

2009-11-06T14:09:00.002-06:00

One of my (many) favorite scenes from Boogie Nights. Dirk Diggler/Eddie Adams realizes his life has turned to a heap of shit.

Random Storyboard Frames

2009-11-04T14:56:00.002-06:00

Late Night Lee Marvin Sketch

2009-10-30T01:31:00.002-05:00

Up late watching Point Blank (one of the great Revenge pictures). Trying out this hybrid of my storyboard and comic book styles.

Doritos TV Spot

2009-10-21T16:43:00.005-05:00

I'm gonna try to catch up on posting all the work I've been doing since my last post in July. Here are some TV Spot boards I just finished for the same director I did the Careerbuilder boards for.

It starts out with two wives sitting on the couch. Off-camera loud intermittent smacks can be heard.
Wife #1: "What are they doing?" Wife #2: "It's a smackout..."
"...the first one to give in has to make a run for more Doritos."

Doritos TV Spot

2009-10-21T16:41:00.003-05:00

Door bell sounds off camera.
Wife #1 answers the door revealing Jonny the neighborhood kid with bag of Doritos.
Jonny: "Here you go Mrs. Smith!".
Mrs. Smith: "Thanks Jonny."

Doritos TV Spot

2009-10-21T16:30:00.005-05:00

Husband #1 looks over to his wife.
"Hey darlin'...think smarter not harder."
Husband #2: "BOOM! Doritos run for you buddy!" "Um...buddy?"

Pilots Poster Triptych

2009-10-20T14:44:00.003-05:00

Here's a compilation/triptych of the posters I made for my band's last few shows. (Not sure exactly why I chose the WWII comic book theme--but I had a blast making 'em!).

New TV Spot Boards pt.1

2009-07-07T15:53:00.002-05:00

Digital presentation boards created in Sketchbook Pro and Photoshop for the fantastic commercial director Brendan Hayward.

New TV Spot Boards pt.2

2009-07-07T15:51:00.003-05:00

New TV Spot Boards pt.3

2009-07-07T15:36:00.001-05:00

Raiders Storyboards part 1

2009-06-25T13:59:00.003-05:00

Here it is, storyboard exercise #2--Raiders of the Lost Ark.

Raiders Storyboards part 2

2009-06-25T13:58:00.002-05:00

Raiders Storyboards part 3

2009-06-25T13:56:00.001-05:00

Raiders Storyboards part 4

2009-06-25T13:53:00.001-05:00

Nudes

2009-06-22T11:33:00.002-05:00

Nudes from Tojo gallery. 5-10 minute poses. Ballpoint pen, Moleskine sketchbook.

Gorillas!

2009-06-19T11:42:00.001-05:00

Marker sketches.

The French Neil Young

2009-06-18T12:46:00.002-05:00

This doodle doesn't really do him justice, but I used to see this guy around the neighborhood all the time, pretty much daily, 3-4 years ago. I'd see him scampering around (usually outside the liquor store by the Montrose Brown Line stop), shorts, flip-flops (sometimes barefoot), always with that goofy-ass beret, unruly sideboards, and wispy gray hair billowing in the breeze.

Always on the run, the French Neil Young was. He had this kinda half-trot, half-gallop shuffle-step with his arms out-front and wrists limp not unlike Mr. Burns from The Simpsons or a meerkat. I'd say to myself "Ope, there he is. The French Neil Young. Look at 'im go!". Haven't seen him since though. If anybody has had a sighting on this guy I'd like to hear about it. I like to keep tabs on the neighborhood eccentrics.

Posting Mr. Boss yesterday made me think of him, so I sketched up this doodle from memory with brush pen and did a little Photoshop coloring on him. Maybe someday I'll do an animation of that weird scamper-run he did.

Mr. Boss

2009-06-17T18:26:00.004-05:00

Train sketch. There he is. Mr. Boss in all his glory.

I saw this chap on the train one night. I had had a few beers and Mr. Boss clearly had a few more. As soon as I saw that hat, I pulled out my trusty Moleskine and started sketching away. The seat next to me freed up and sure enough Mr. Boss plopped down right next to me. I had to lift my sketchbook so Mr. Boss couldn't see I was drawing him. (I always draw people on the sly--I'd rather not talk to them or ask permission). Then as my stop approached, I tipped my hat to him, "Mr. Boss...", and away I went.

I wanna know more about Mr. Boss. Where'd he get the hat? Was it gifted to him? Did he pick it up in a thrift store? Do people call him Mr. Boss? Does he insist people call him Mr. Boss? So many questions for Mr. Boss.

Snickers TV Spot part 1

2009-06-17T14:32:00.003-05:00

Here's some sample TV spot boards I did from a spec script I found online. It's basically a take off on the old Stanley Milgram "Obedience to Authority" experiments from the early sixties. The researchers give Joe-Joe the idiot guy a Snickers and each time he takes a bite, the guy behind the curtain gets zapped with a jolt of electricity. Of course, just like the real experiments the guy behind the curtain is faking the pained cries. He works the lights with a dubious looking rig and plays it up to the hilt. Joe-Joe idiot guy keeps eating the Snickers until the guy behind the curtain pretends to pass out. Joe-Joe says "Got any more?" and curtain guy hits the lights.

It was a pretty fun project, but I can see why this never made it past the pitch meetings. It's a little morbid for a commericial.

Snickers TV Spot part 2

2009-06-17T14:31:00.003-05:00

Snickers TV Spot part 3

2009-06-17T14:29:00.004-05:00

Snickers TV Spot part 4

2009-06-17T14:28:00.003-05:00

Snickers TV Spot part 5

2009-06-17T14:25:00.003-05:00

Snickers TV Spot part 6

2009-06-17T14:23:00.003-05:00

Shawshank Storyboard Exercise part 1

2009-06-16T17:29:00.003-05:00

I've had this idea for a while and now have finally got around to doing it. I'm boarding a scene per week from some of my favorite films in my DVD collection. I'm doing this to learn a thing or two about shot selection, editing, pacing, composition, and acting. Might as well learn from the best, right? Cueing up a short scene and pausing the DVD for each new shot, I'm sketching these out in just a few minutes on the Wacom tablet in Sketchbook Pro (highly recommended for quick digital sketching). Some of these are pretty quick and dirty, but some I like to take a little time with and try to capture the likenesses.

This first sequence is from The Shawshank Redemption. It's the scene where Andy sees an opportunity to receive a small amenity (beer!) for him and the boys while they work hard re-tarring the prison roof.

I chose Shawshank because I wanted to rewatch it after not seeing it in years and hearing Andrew Stanton on a Spline Cast interview talking about how they screened it at Pixar around the time of Wall•E's production. Stanton calls it a "nearly perfect movie" and I'm inclined to agree.

NEXT WEEK: Raiders of the Lost Ark (opening sequence)!

Shawshank Storyboard Exercise part 2

2009-06-16T17:27:00.002-05:00

Shawshank Storyboard Exercise part 3

2009-06-16T17:26:00.002-05:00

Shawshank Storyboard Exercise part 4

2009-06-16T17:23:00.002-05:00

Shawshank Storyboard Exercise part 5

2009-06-16T17:21:00.002-05:00

Shawshank Storyboard Exercise part 6

2009-06-16T17:19:00.002-05:00

Shawshank Storyboard Exercise part 7

2009-06-16T17:05:00.001-05:00

Shawshank Storyboard Exercise part 8

2009-06-16T15:44:00.001-05:00

Intro

2009-06-16T15:02:00.000-05:00

Hi, everyone. I thought I'd start a blog to share some of my storyboards, sketches, observations, and musings as I make my way into a career as a freelance storyboard artist.

I'll be posting some samples from my weekly exercises including sketches of critters from the Lincoln Park Zoo, nude models from Tojo Gallery in Bucktown, and storyboard sequences from some of my favorite films.

Hope you enjoy!

J