Brian Kesinger

Last updated
Brian Kesinger21.jpg

Brian Kesinger (born June 20, 1975 in Los Angeles, California) is an American illustrator, author and animator who has worked at Walt Disney Studios for 20+ years. His works are steeped in Victorian steampunk art.

Born into a family of musicians, he was the only one not able to play an instrument. His fondness for drawing was so apparent that his parents supported his artistic training throughout his school days. He started drawing steampunk art long before the term was coined. In 2000 he did the layout and background design for Walt Disney's film Atlantis: The Lost Empire . It was during this period that he developed a fondness for drawing submarines, gears and similar gadgets. Following this he became involved with the film Treasure Planet and grew to like tall ships and sci-fi. Other films he has worked on include Winnie the Pooh , Tarzan , Tangled , Chicken Little , Home on the Range , Bolt and Meet the Robinsons .

Brian Kesinger was raised on a steady diet of Walt Disney creations by parents who felt it important for him to be exposed to art. He was accepted at the Walt Disney Animation Studios in Burbank, California, during his senior year at high school, becoming in 1996 at age 18 the youngest animator in the history of the company. He started as a layout artist on the film Tarzan and in his career with Disney Animation has filled many positions ranging from visual development to story artist. In 2011 he received the Annie Award for his story work on Disney's Prep and Landing , with his most recent film at Disney being the Academy Award-nominated Wreck-It Ralph . In Wreck-It Ralph Kesinger's voice is used for Kano from Midway Games's Mortal Kombat franchise. Away from his office he has created fantasy steampunk worlds peopled with memorable characters under the banner of "Tea Girls", illustrations using tea-stain washes and finished in ink and watercolours, [1] including a portrait of steampunk chanteuse Veronique Chevalier.

Two of his most popular characters are the unlikely duo of Victoria Prismall, an independent young lady, and Otto (Italian for 'eight'), her live-in octopus who is a friend, butler and pet. They have appeared in books, prints, T-shirts, and more. Kesinger has published his first illustrated book on the couple, Walking Your Octopus: A Guide to the Domesticated Cephalopod. He describes it as "a satirical look at how we all can get a little carried away with how we raise our pets. It’s certainly inspired by my own dog Scout but also inspired by the ups and downs of raising two young children with my wife. My hope is that the book speaks to not only steampunk fans but pet owners and parents as well." Thirty full-page illustrations portray the couple at home and about, bathing, biking, dating, cooking, playing croquet, pumpkin carving, and other activities necessary for the spiritual well-being of an intelligent and worldly octopus. [2] [3]

Kesinger finds it entertaining to draw the octopus and is constantly challenged by having to find things for each tentacle to do. In that sense an octopus is a natural at multi-tasking and has enthralled a great many people. Cephalopods generally have become a theme animal for steampunk, so that Kesinger found the choice of octopus as Victoria's soulmate an easy one to make. The popularity of Otto and Victoria, though, came as a surprise, as did the fan art, tattoos and the appearance of girls cosplaying Victoria at conventions all over the country. He plans to produce a full-length film featuring Otto and Victoria’s adventures, purely to satisfy his own wish for a well-rendered steampunk animated film. [4]

Kesinger created a mashup of Kylo Ren and Darth Vader and the comic strip Calvin and Hobbes. It also stars Kylo's parents, Princess Leia and Han Solo.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ub Iwerks</span> American animator and special effects pioneer (1901–1971)

Ubbe Ert Iwwerks, known as Ub Iwerks, was an American animator, cartoonist, character designer, inventor, and special effects technician, known for his work with Walt Disney Animation Studios in general, and for having worked on the development of the design of the character of Mickey Mouse, among others. Born in Kansas City, Missouri, Iwerks grew up with a contentious relationship with his father, who abandoned him as a child. Iwerks met fellow artist Walt Disney while working at a Kansas City art studio in 1919. After briefly working as illustrators for a local newspaper company, Disney and Iwerks ventured into animation together. Iwerks joined Disney as chief animator on the Laugh-O-Gram shorts series beginning in 1922, but a studio bankruptcy would cause Disney to relocate to Los Angeles in 1923. In the new studio, Iwerks continued to work with Disney on the Alice Comedies as well as the creation of the Oswald the Lucky Rabbit character. Following the first Oswald short, both Universal Pictures and the Winkler Pictures production company insisted that the Oswald character be redesigned. At the insistence of Disney, Iwerks designed a number of new characters for the studio, including designs that would be used for Clarabelle Cow and Horace Horsecollar.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bill Peet</span> American screenwriter

William Bartlett Peet was an American children's book illustrator and a story writer and animator for Walt Disney Animation Studios.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rick Law</span> American film producer

Rick Law is an American entertainment illustrator and producer, best known for his career with The Walt Disney Company. His work has spanned across all forms of popular entertainment media: films, TV, music, theme park, print, toys, and video games.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Glen Keane</span> American writer and artist

Glen Keane is an American animator, author and illustrator. He was a character animator at Walt Disney Animation Studios for feature films including The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, Pocahontas, Tarzan, and Tangled. He received the 1992 Annie Award for character animation and the 2007 Winsor McCay Award for lifetime contribution to the field of animation. He was named a Disney Legend in 2013.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Laugh-O-Gram Studio</span> A studio founded by Walt Disney

The Laugh-O-Gram Studio was a short-lived film studio located on the second floor of the McConahay Building at 1127 East 31st in Kansas City, Missouri, that operated from June 28, 1921, to October 16, 1923.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marc Davis (animator)</span> American artist and animator (1913–2000)

Marc Fraser Davis was a prominent American artist and animator for Walt Disney Animation Studios. He was one of Disney's Nine Old Men, the famed core animators of Disney animated films, and was revered for his knowledge and understanding of visual aesthetics. After his work on One Hundred and One Dalmatians he moved to Walt Disney Imagineering to work on rides for Disneyland and Walt Disney World before retiring in 1978.

Eyvind Earle was an American artist, author and illustrator, noted for his contribution to the background illustration and styling of Disney's animated films in the 1950s. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, Rahr West Art Museum, Phoenix Art Museum and Arizona State University Art Museum have purchased Earle's works for their permanent collections. His works have also been shown in many one-man exhibitions throughout the world.

Robert Fred Moore, was an American artist and animator for Walt Disney Animation Studios. Often called "Freddie," he was born and raised in Los Angeles, California. Despite limited formal art training, he rose to prominence at Disney very quickly in the early 1930s, due to his great natural talent and the tremendous appeal of his drawings. His drawings are still greatly admired by animators and animation fans.

<i>Tarzan</i> (1999 film) Animated film directed by Kevin Lima and Chris Buck

Tarzan is a 1999 American animated adventure film produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and released by Walt Disney Pictures. It is based on the 1912 story Tarzan of the Apes by Edgar Rice Burroughs, being the first animated major motion picture version of the story. The film was directed by Kevin Lima and Chris Buck and produced by Bonnie Arnold from a screenplay by Tab Murphy, Bob Tzudiker, and Noni White. The film stars the voices of Tony Goldwyn, Minnie Driver, Glenn Close, Rosie O'Donnell, Brian Blessed, Lance Henriksen, Wayne Knight, and Nigel Hawthorne.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mary Blair</span> American artist, animator, and designer

Mary Blair was an American artist, animator, and designer. She was prominent in producing art and animation for The Walt Disney Company, drawing concept art for such films as Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan, Song of the South and Cinderella. Blair also created character designs for enduring attractions such as Disneyland's It's a Small World, the fiesta scene in El Rio del Tiempo in the Mexico pavilion in Epcot's World Showcase, and an enormous mosaic inside Disney's Contemporary Resort. Several of her illustrated children's books from the 1950s remain in print, such as I Can Fly by Ruth Krauss. Blair was inducted into the group of Disney Legends in 1991.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charles Thorson</span>

Charles "Charlie" Gustav Thorson was a Canadian political cartoonist, character designer, children's book author and illustrator. Thorson is best known as the man who designed an early version of the then yet unnamed Bugs Bunny.

Rubén Procopio is an American animation and comic book artist, animator and sculptor. Long affiliated with Walt Disney Feature Animation as an animator and sculptor, Rubén is credited with restoring the maquette process to feature animation film production in the early 1980s. He is the founder of Masked Avenger Studios, whose clients include Walt Disney Studios, Warner Bros. Studios, New Line Cinema, Cartoon Network, Electric Tiki and DC Comics. He is known for his versatile sculpting and illustration style in both cartoony and realistic characters, with an emphasis on Disney characters, superheroes, and the masked heroes of yesteryear.

Herbert Dickens Ryman Jr. was an American artist and Disney Imagineer. Ryman worked in watercolor, oils, and pen & ink sketches. In 1953 Ryman drew the first illustrations of Walt Disney's vision of a theme park that eventually became Disneyland.

The second wave of Walt Disney Treasures was released December 3, 2002. This was the final wave with the tin's individual number embossed on the tin.

Mark Daniel Walton is an American storyboard artist and voice actor who has worked for Walt Disney Animation Studios, DreamWorks Animation, Blue Sky Studios, Warner Animation Group, and other companies. Walton is best known for voicing Rhino the hamster in the 2008 animated film Bolt.

Keith Sintay is an American animator. Sintay has been an animation artist at Walt Disney Studios, DreamWorks Feature Animation, Sony Pictures Imageworks, and Digital Domain as well as many other studios.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John McDermott (American artist)</span> American illustrator and writer

John McDermott, also known under the pen names J.M. Ryan and Mariner, was an American illustrator and author noted for action and adventure illustrations. McDermott worked as an in-between and effects animator for Walt Disney Studios and as a US Marine combat artist, before establishing himself as a cover illustrator for 1950s paperbacks and pulp magazines such as Argosy, American Weekly, and Outdoor Life. Under his J.M. Ryan pen name, he wrote the novels The Rat Factory (1971), a derogatory satire of Walt Disney and the Disney studio; Brooks Wilson Ltd (1967), on which the 1970 film Loving was based; and Mother's Day (1969) about Ma Barker. Under his own name, he novelized director-writer Bo Widerberg's screenplay for the 1971 film Joe Hill, which would be his final published book.

Mel Shaw was an American animator, design artist, writer, and artist. Shaw was involved in the animation, story design, and visual development of numerous Disney animated films, beginning with Bambi, which was released in 1942. His other animated film credits, usually involving animation design or the story, included The Rescuers in 1977, The Fox and the Hound in 1981, The Black Cauldron in 1985, The Great Mouse Detective in 1986, Beauty and the Beast in 1991, and The Lion King in 1994. He was named a Disney Legend in 2004 for his contributions to The Walt Disney Company.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cephalopods in popular culture</span>

Cephalopods, specifically pertaining to octopuses, squids, nautiluses and cuttlefishes, are most commonly represented in popular culture in the Western world as creatures that spray ink and latch onto things with their tentacles without releasing.

Tarzan is a Disney media franchise that commenced in 1999 with the theatrical release of the film Tarzan, based on the character Tarzan by Edgar Rice Burroughs.

References

  1. ↑ "Dragoncon". www.dragoncon.org. Retrieved 6 February 2019.
  2. ↑ "Walking Your Octopus : Brian Kesinger : 9781614040064". www.bookdepository.com. Retrieved 6 February 2019.
  3. ↑ "Disney Illustrator Imagines A Life With A Pet Octopus, And It's Just Too Adorable (79 Pics)". Bored Panda. 16 June 2017. Retrieved 6 February 2019.
  4. ↑ Kriete, Evelyn (12 July 2013). "Interview With Steampunk Octopus Artist Brian Kesinger". ComicMix. Retrieved 6 February 2019.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.